The Secret of Lan Yin (Seeking Follow-ups, Seeking Votes)

The aftermath of the Corpse Explosion Technique finally dissipated amidst a series of rumbles, and Yang Fan's body slammed heavily into the scorched crater.

He was a gruesome sight to behold; there wasn't a single patch of intact flesh on him, his bones were shattered, and even his breath carried a pungent stench of blood and charred remains.

Amidst the smoke, the Heart of Eros in Yang Fan's mind exhausted its final sliver of power after resisting the mental shockwaves of the Corpse Explosion, automatically triggering its timeline-traversal function.

A faint, pink-hued mist enveloped Yang Fan's body.

When Yang Fan regained consciousness, he felt as though his body no longer belonged to him.

He used the sliver of spiritual power he had recovered to look within, discovering that his body was a wreck, and he was currently lying in the secret chamber of Yang's Treasure Appraisal Pavilion.

It seemed he had returned.

If not for the Dragon God Reverse Scale absorbing the initial impact and sustaining his life force, and the Heart of Eros protecting his sea of consciousness, he truly would not have survived the aftermath of a Spirit Emperor's Corpse Explosion in his current state.

Who could have guessed that a terrifying operation involving, at most, Spirit Venerable-level combatants would suddenly erupt with a Spirit Emperor-level Corpse Explosion?

Yet, if given the chance to do it all over again, he feared he would still make the same choice—only he would do it better, ensuring the enemy would never have the opportunity to drag him down with them.

Although Yang Fan was cautious and valued his life, he felt just like a line from a novel he loved: "I will not lose much, only myself. There are always things that matter more than others."

He could not stand by and watch innocent people be kidnapped and killed when he had the ability to intervene.

He might not be able to save everything, but he wanted to save those he could.

Regarding this incident, which was never mentioned in the original work, Yang Fan highly suspected that the Plane Master, Tang Hao, had been pulling some strings.

That man was far too devious!

This was the same person who had a track record of orchestrating the sacrifice of spirit beasts to become the strongest Title Douluo of his generation, and who had merely observed his own son after the boy was possessed, only investing in him once he proved to have utility.

Otherwise, how could someone with the level of an ordinary genius become the Plane Master?

Douluo Continent was not lacking in brilliant and talented individuals; Tang Hao was among the most unremarkable of them.

Regardless of whether Tang Hao was truly behind this, Yang Fan had marked it down. If it was indeed him, then he was an enemy, and Yang Fan would never let such an enemy live.

It was a pity he was too weak; he didn't feel like a protagonist at all.

He could only rely on the memories of his past life and the help of the Heart of Eros to search, fight, retreat, and slowly develop in other timelines.

Fortunately, the Heart of Eros was reliable; Tang Hao only made his move when the energy was nearly depleted and it was time to return, likely because he possessed the ability to obscure the secrets of heaven.

Yang Fan wanted to offer a bitter smile, only to find his body so weak that he lacked even the strength for that.

Beside him, the Blue Silver's pale blue pupils were half-closed. When she noticed Yang Fan had awakened, a subtle, imperceptible softness bloomed at the corners of her eyes.

"Fan, why are you spacing out? Hurry and use my spirit bone skill to heal yourself!"

Only then did Yang Fan notice that Yin'er was standing beside him in a languid posture.

Her left leg was slightly raised, her skirt hanging down like clouds, and her toes hovered back and forth just above his line of sight—neither stepping down firmly nor pulling back.

It looked like a tease, yet it also seemed like she was simply reminding him to heal quickly.

Yang Fan struggled to pull himself together and slowly channeled a sliver of spirit power into the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone to activate the spirit bone skill.

Instantly, a brilliant, dazzling blue-gold halo erupted from his right leg. The light was crystal clear and permeated with an intoxicating aura of life.

"Wildfires cannot destroy it; the spring breeze blows and regenerates."

Following Yang Fan's whisper, the ultimate mystery of the hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone was fully unleashed.

The intensely concentrated blue-gold life energy surged from his right leg like a burst dam, transforming into countless fine blue threads that frantically wrapped around the fatal wounds all over Yang Fan's body.

A miracle unfolded in that moment.

The terrifying wounds, which had been deep enough to reveal glistening bone, began to squirm and heal at a speed visible to the naked eye the moment they touched this life energy.

Severed meridians were forcibly reconnected, and shattered internal organs were reshaped within the blue-gold radiance.

In just a few dozen breaths, the charred black and bloodstains on Yang Fan's body were washed away by a layer of lustrous blue light.

When Yang Fan opened his eyes again, there was no trace of death in them, replaced instead by a vitality as deep as spring water.

He slowly stood up from the floor of the secret chamber, his slightly youthful face accidentally brushing against Yin'er's jade-like foot.

Hmm, fair and clean, fragrant and soft—as expected of Yin'er!

No, what the hell am I thinking?

I must have been influenced by Amon; I, Yang Fan, am not a foot fetishist! He didn't notice that Yin'er's face had also flushed slightly, her eyes brimming with moisture.

He stretched his body slightly, emitting a faint "crack" sound from his rubbing bones.

"Yin'er, thanks to your spirit bone!"

Yang Fan figured that as long as he wasn't embarrassed, the embarrassment would belong to others.

"Why must you say such things between us?"

Yin'er replied softly.

The more she interacted with Yang Fan, the more she discovered his personal charm.

He possessed wisdom from another world and would often tell her stories from books like the Story of the Stone. He was mature in his thinking; while his peers were still learning to read and write, he had already opened the Treasure Appraisal Pavilion, his heart filled with concern for the people.

During the half-year experience of returning to two thousand years later, she had seen his studious, kind, and self-sacrificing side through his perspective.

Suddenly, Lan Yin seemed to sense something, and the look she cast toward Yang Fan was laced with a hint of reproach.

At first, Yang Fan was baffled by the sudden shift in her expression, until he discovered with a strange look on his face that his Heart of Eros was pulsing with a surge of overflowing energy.

He probed with his spiritual power, only to find that this energy was actually being provided by Mo Lan?!

What did I do? (⊙o⊙)

Yang Fan was bewildered himself. Hadn't he just played the role of Amon to be a hero, and before leaving, used his final instincts to leave behind a jade tablet for Mo Lan to pass on to Na'er and Master Leng to let them know he was safe?

How did he collect energy? He had to keep in mind that he was devoted to Lan Yin!

At least for now... For some reason, Yang Fan suddenly felt a bit guilty.

Wait, did I get transported back before I even finished writing that note? He had been extremely weak at the time, relying entirely on bodily instinct to trace the characters, and he couldn't even remember how many he had left behind.

Can Mo Lan understand what I meant? If not, won't Na'er and Master Leng think I'm actually dead? If I go back next time, won't they think I'm a corpse coming back to life?

No, that's not right. It was Amon who went missing while saving people; what does that have to do with me, Yang Fan? Amon is Yang Fan, but Yang Fan isn't necessarily Amon. If I don't say anything, who would know? When I go back, I'll have the great scholars to debate the scriptures for me.

After building up his own mental defenses, he hurriedly began to explain to Lan Yin.

He understood Lan Yin very well. Perhaps because she was a soul beast in human form, or because the era she lived in leaned toward feudal or slave-owning times, Lan Yin didn't care much about the romantic entanglements around Yang Fan. Although she still possessed the natural instinct of a woman to get jealous, she considered it normal.

The strong possess everything; that was the rule of the soul beast world.

What Lan Yin cared about more was Yang Fan's thoughts toward her, and whether he truly cared for her.

Just as Yang Fan had thought, Lan Yin was easy to coax, or rather, she wasn't truly angry at all. It was nothing more than wanting an attitude—the attitude due to the primary wife.

Lan Yin had nothing left but him, and she didn't want to lose him again. With the Heart of Eros, perhaps neither time nor space could stop them from being together.

When Yang Fan was struck by the aftermath of the Corpse Explosion Technique, Lan Yin had truly wanted to use a sacrifice to save him. But she couldn't; she was now merely an existence similar to a tool spirit attached to the Heart of Eros, lacking the vast origin of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.

She could only exhaust all her strength to communicate with the Heart of Eros, which allowed the Heart of Eros to protect Yang Fan's sea of consciousness, preventing him from suffering amnesia or becoming mentally disabled.

She had paid the price of a quarter of her soul. Now, her soul body was even closer to the Heart of Eros; even with her physical body by her side, she still needed to leave a quarter of her soul within the Heart of Eros.

Yang Fan was unaware of these things, and Lan Yin did not intend to tell him. This was a secret that belonged to her, Lan Yin.