The aftermath of the Corpse Explosion Technique finally faded amid a rumbling boom. Yang Fan's body crashed heavily into a deep pit full of scorched earth.
He looked utterly mangled. There wasn't a single patch of uninjured flesh on him; his bones were shattered, and even his breath carried a thick smell of blood and charred flesh.
Amid the smoke, the Heart of Eros in Yang Fan's mind had used up its last bit of power resisting the mental shockwaves from the Corpse Explosion Technique. It automatically activated its ability to cross timelines.
A faint pink mist enveloped Yang Fan's body.
When Yang Fan regained consciousness, he felt as though his body no longer belonged to him.
Using the sliver of mental strength he'd recovered, he looked inward and saw that his body was in ruins. He was lying in a secret chamber beneath Yang's Treasure Appraisal Pavilion.
It seemed he'd made it back.
Thankfully, the Dragon God Reverse Scale had blocked the initial impact and kept his blood and vital energy from fading, while the Heart of Eros had protected his sea of consciousness. Otherwise, he couldn't have endured the aftermath of a Spirit Emperor's Corpse Explosion in his current condition.
Who could have expected that an operation whose highest combat strength was only at the Soul Elder level would suddenly produce a Spirit Emperor-level Corpse Explosion Technique?
But if he had the chance to do it all over again, he would probably still make the same choice. He'd just do it better, and never give his enemy the chance to take them both down.
Yang Fan might have been cautious and protective of his life, but he believed in a line from one of his favorite novels: "I won't lose much. Only myself. There are things that stand above everything else."
When he had the power to help, he couldn't stand by while innocent people were taken hostage and killed.
He might not be able to save everyone, but he wanted to save those he could.
Yang Fan strongly suspected that the incident, which had never been mentioned in the original story, was the work of Tang Hao, the Plane Master.
That man was far too devious!
He'd once schemed to have a Soul Beast sacrifice itself to him, making him the strongest Titled Douluo of his generation. He'd also discovered that his son had been possessed, but merely watched and then immediately invested in him once he saw his potential. Those were only some of the many things he'd done.
Otherwise, how could someone as ordinary as him have become the Plane Master?
Douluo Continent had no shortage of extraordinary talents. Tang Hao was among the least remarkable of them.
Whether or not Tang Hao had done this, Yang Fan would remember the grudge. If he really was behind it, then he was an enemy, and Yang Fan would never let an enemy like that live.
It was a shame he was too weak—not much like a protagonist at all.
All he could do was rely on the memories from his previous life, searching and fighting in other timelines with the Heart of Eros's help, retreating when necessary, and slowly growing stronger.
At least the Heart of Eros had proved reliable. Tang Hao had only made his move just as its energy was about to run out and send Yang Fan back. It seemed he had some way to conceal things from the heavens.
Yang Fan wanted to smile bitterly, but his body was so weak that he didn't even have the strength to do that.
Beside him, Lan Yin's blue eyes were half-lidded. When she realized Yang Fan had woken, a trace of tender warmth spread from the corners of her eyes.
"Fan, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and use my Soul Bone Skill to heal yourself!"
Only then did Yang Fan notice Lan Yin standing beside him, looking languid.
Her left leg was slightly raised, her skirt cascading like clouds. Her toes dangled just above his line of sight, swaying back and forth, never touching down and never pulling away.
It seemed like a tease, though perhaps she was only reminding him to hurry up and heal.
Yang Fan struggled to come back to himself, then slowly channeled a sliver of Soul Power into the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, activating its Soul Bone Skill.
In an instant, a brilliant blue-gold radiance burst from his right leg. The light was crystalline and clear, radiating an intoxicating vitality.
"Wildfire never consumes it all; the spring breeze brings it back to life."
As Yang Fan murmured the words, the ultimate secret of the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone was fully unleashed.
An overwhelming torrent of blue-gold life energy surged from his right leg. It transformed into countless fine blue threads that frantically wrapped around the fatal wounds covering his body.
A miracle unfolded in that moment.
The terrifying wounds, deep enough to expose bone, began to writhe and heal at a visible pace as soon as they touched the life energy.
His severed meridians were forcibly reconnected, and his shattered organs were reshaped in the blue-gold radiance.
In the space of a few dozen breaths, the soot and blood covering Yang Fan were washed away by a layer of shimmering blue light.
When Yang Fan opened his eyes again, every trace of death had vanished from his gaze. In its place was a vitality as profound as spring water.
He slowly rose from the secret chamber floor. By sheer coincidence, his youthful face brushed against Lan Yin's delicate foot.
Mm, so white and clean, so soft and fragrant. No wonder she was Yin'er!
No, what the hell was I thinking?
Amon must have rubbed off on me. I, Yang Fan, wasn't a foot fetishist! He didn't notice that Lan Yin's cheeks had also flushed faintly, her eyes glistening.
He stretched a little, and his bones made a faint cracking sound.
"Yin'er, I owe you for your Soul Bone!"
"There's no need for thanks between us," Lan Yin replied gently.
The more time Lan Yin spent with Yang Fan, the more she saw his appeal.
He had the wisdom of someone from another world, and he often told her stories like Story of the Stone. He was mature in his thinking; while children his age were only learning to read and write, he had already opened an appraisal pavilion and cared deeply about the people's suffering.
During their half-year experience in the world twenty thousand years in the future, she'd also seen Yang Fan's studious, kind, and self-sacrificing side through his eyes.
All at once, Lan Yin seemed to sense something. A hint of annoyance entered her gaze as she looked at Yang Fan.
At first, Yang Fan was puzzled by how quickly Lan Yin's expression had changed. Then, to his bewilderment, he felt a surge of energy flow into the Heart of Eros.
After probing it with his mental strength, he discovered that the energy had come from Mo Lan?!
What had I even done? (⊙o⊙)
Yang Fan was completely baffled. All he'd done was play Amon and act like a hero. Before leaving, he'd used the last of his instincts to leave behind a jade token, hoping Mo Lan would pass it to Na'er and Master Leng to let them know he was safe.
How had that gathered energy? He was devoted to Lan Yin!
At least, he was for now... Yang Fan suddenly felt a little guilty, and he didn't know why.
Wait, hadn't he been sent back before finishing the message? He'd been terribly weak at the time, and his hand had moved on instinct. He couldn't even remember how many words he'd written.
Would Mo Lan understand what he meant? If not, would Na'er and Master Leng think he was really dead? Wouldn't they think he'd come back from the dead when he returned?
No, it was Amon who'd gone missing while saving people. What did that have to do with Yang Fan? Amon was Yang Fan, but Yang Fan wasn't necessarily Amon. If he didn't tell anyone, who would know? Once he returned, the great scholars would surely make the case for him.
After giving himself a pep talk, he hurried to explain things to Lan Yin.
He knew Lan Yin well. Perhaps because she was a Soul Beast who had undergone transformation, or perhaps because she came from an era that leaned toward feudalism or even slavery, she didn't mind the other women around Yang Fan too much. She still had the ordinary instincts of a woman who could get jealous, but she considered it normal.
The strong could have anything they wanted. That was the rule of the Soul Beast Realm.
What Lan Yin cared more about was what Yang Fan thought of her—whether he truly cared about her.
Just as Yang Fan had expected, Lan Yin was easy to soothe. Or rather, she wasn't all that angry to begin with. She just wanted him to show his attitude—to treat her like his one and only.
Now, aside from him, Lan Yin had nothing. She didn't want to lose him too. With the Heart of Eros between them, perhaps neither time nor space could keep them apart.
When Yang Fan had been struck by the Corpse Explosion Technique's shockwaves, Lan Yin had desperately wanted to save him through a sacrifice. But she couldn't. She was now merely a spirit-like being attached to the Heart of Eros, without the vast reserves of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
All she could do was try with all her might to communicate with the Heart of Eros. That was what protected Yang Fan's sea of consciousness, keeping him from losing his memories or becoming a fool.
She had paid a quarter of her soul in return. Her spirit body was now even more closely bound to the Heart of Eros. Even with her physical body beside her, she still needed to leave a quarter of her soul within the Heart of Eros.
Yang Fan knew nothing about this, and Lan Yin had no intention of telling him. It was a secret that belonged to Lan Yin alone.