A year had passed. Every day, Yang Fan meditated, grew closer to Ah Yin, and restored his spiritual power, repeating the cycle over and over.
The afternoon sunlight filtered through the shabby doors and windows, dappling the stone bed at the back of the room.
Yang Fan sat cross-legged. He slowly finished his cultivation and breathed out a mouthful of stale air.
Beside him, a Blue Silver Grass plant, its entire body a deep blue and the edges of its leaves traced with faint golden lines, swayed gently in the breeze.
"Yang Fan, your Soul Power fluctuations seem a little stronger today than they were yesterday."
A soft, tender voice sounded directly in the depths of Yang Fan's mind.
The Blue Silver Grass's leaves unfurled slightly, as if trying to draw closer to him. The tip of one leaf lightly brushed the hem of his clothes.
Yang Fan opened his eyes and smiled warmly. He reached out and gently stroked the cool leaf. "Ah Yin, your senses are still so sharp. I finally broke through the bottleneck at level eighteen. But to make further progress, I really do need more time to consolidate my gains."
"Level eighteen..." Ah Yin's voice carried a hint of disappointment that was hard to detect, and her leaves drooped a little. "When you reach Soul Grandmaster, will you go hunt a Soul Beast for your Second Soul Ring?"
Feeling the careful concern in her voice, Yang Fan's heart stirred.
They had known each other for over a year, and Ah Yin's trust and reliance on him had long since gone beyond an ordinary friendship.
"Silly Ah Yin." Yang Fan's fingers gently traced the delicate golden patterns on her leaves.
Ah Yin's leaves instinctively drew back, but as soon as she felt the warmth of Yang Fan's palm, she quickly settled down.
Ah Yin's voice grew a little more resolute. She did her best to curl more leaves around Yang Fan's wrist, as if confirming that he was really there.
"Yang Fan, sometimes I envy humans. I envy how you can reach heights that take Soul Beasts centuries or even millennia of arduous cultivation in just a few short years. I envy how you don't have to worry about the threat of the Heavenly Tribulation."
Yang Fan lowered his eyes to the gentle blue wrapped around his wrist, and warmth welled up inside him.
He knew what Ah Yin was worried about. The path of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast reincarnating as a human was too difficult. She feared that after sacrificing herself once, she might not be able to withstand the Heavenly Tribulation and take human form again. Could she really stand beside the person who had saved her as a human?
"Ah Yin, our forms have never been what keeps us apart." Yang Fan gently clasped the leaves wrapped around him. His voice was earnest. "When I grow stronger, I'll take you to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. There, Plant-type Soul Beasts can cultivate for one year and gain the equivalent of ten or even a hundred years of arduous cultivation."
The Blue Silver Grass's leaves instantly took on a faint blush. Plants could not show their feelings on their faces, but through the Heart of Eros, Yang Fan could clearly sense the shy yet joyful Life aura she gave off.
"You're such a smooth talker..." Ah Yin muttered softly, her voice as sweet as marshmallows. "Th-then, when you're cultivating, can I stay closer to you?"
Before Yang Fan could answer, the Blue Silver Grass crept up his arm and finally nestled against his chest, as if expressing its silent affection.
Ah Yin had now realized that those memories were merely remnants of a past life.
She had no way of contacting a Titled Douluo or a disciple of the Tang Sect from another world in her present state. Otherwise, they would surely lock her back in that lightless cage and use her Blue Silver Grass bloodline to seize power.
There could only be one ruler on a continent. And now, she was just a pitiful, lowly, helpless little blade of grass. If not for the boy beside her, she had no idea how much longer she would have remained in the dark.
Still, "boy" was something she could only think in secret, because Yang Fan stubbornly insisted that he was already a mature man: he had been in his twenties in his previous life, and was eleven in this one.
Whenever Ah Yin saw Yang Fan acting like a little adult and insisting on his point, she couldn't help laughing.
Yang Fan, of course, had no idea that Ah Yin, pressed up against him, was teasing him in her heart. All he knew was that it was time to leave.
Beyond companionship, feelings needed a spark. He had built things up enough; now it was time to take the next step.
He could feel that the Heart of Eros was close to activating.
He hoped to activate it before reaching level twenty. That way, he could visit the era of Douluo III and learn about Soul Spirit technology. As long as his spiritual power was high enough, and he paired it with the rich variety of Soul Beasts in the era of Douluo I, he might come across an opportunity no less remarkable than Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's.
As for forging Battle Armor and the like, that could wait. He already had his own priorities planned out.
Besides, with Soul Spirit technology, he would have far more room to maneuver, whether in this era or during the time of The Unrivaled Tang Sect.
Still, Yang Fan felt a little reluctant to leave the small village where he had spent eleven years.
Old Li, Er Ya, Gou Dan... and that big yellow dog that loved to bark. By the time he saw them again, who knew whether everything would have changed beyond recognition?
Ordinary people and Soul Masters, humans and Soul Beasts, the empire and Spirit Hall.
As he set out, he had no idea what kind of impact this little butterfly would have on Douluo Continent. He didn't know whether he could obtain the truly complete Heart of Eros and make it the foundation of his path to godhood.
He didn't know whether the lofty gods had noticed an anomaly like him.
So many unknowns left his heart in turmoil.
Ah Yin seemed to sense his unease. Her tender leaves gently caressed Yang Fan's hand like a lover's.
Yang Fan couldn't bring himself to say goodbye to the villagers in person. He simply left behind the gold coins he had saved up over this period, along with a letter.
A month later, a travel-worn young man wearing a Monocle arrived in Heaven Dou City, a pot of Blue Silver Grass cradled in his hands.
The clean, bustling streets filled Yang Fan with wonder.
In his previous life, he had been a homebody who loved reading novels. In this life, he had spent eleven years quietly growing stronger in a remote village. He hadn't experienced this kind of bustle in a long time.
He couldn't help remembering the Spring Festival celebrations he had spent with his family in his previous life.
Unfortunately, it would be hard for him to return. In the original story, Tang San spent thirty or forty thousand years taking the Douluo cultivation system to its limits, yet it seemed he still hadn't found a way back to his sect.
With only level eighteen Soul Power, Yang Fan was better off not thinking too much about it.
Although it was strange for him to carry a pot of Blue Silver Grass, no one paid him any attention.
This was Yang Fan's development of his First Soul Skill. Now, even without using a Soul Skill, he could cast an illusion as long as he summoned his Martial Soul.
To passersby, he looked like the most ordinary person imaginable. They couldn't even see the Blue Silver Grass in his arms.
Without this ability, he wouldn't have dared to take Ah Yin out so openly.
Everything was going according to plan.
As one of the few Hundred-Thousand-Year plant-type Soul Beasts on Douluo Continent, Ah Yin's knowledge of Soul Beasts and medicinal herbs was unquestionably top-tier.
Over the past year, Yang Fan had learned a great deal from Ah Yin—knowledge that ordinary people rarely had access to. That was why he had chosen Heaven Dou City as his first stop.
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was the greatest treasure he was most likely to reach at this stage. With the knowledge he had gained, finding an opportunity to complete the Heart of Eros could also become a breakthrough toward traveling through time and space.
Besides, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well might offer better value than so-called true love.
Right now, a single true love could send him to the future for half a year. If the Heart of Eros recovered further, would that period grow longer?
What's more, the Immortal Herbs at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well could also turn him into a genius with Innate Full Soul Power.
In the original story, Zhu Zhuqing had been merely average in talent, yet after taking an Immortal Herb, she was able to inherit the speed godhood in the future. What made Yang Fan any worse?
When it came to hard work and scheming, he had climbed from an Innate Soul Power of just half a level to where he was today by treading on thin ice and fighting his way back from the gates of death again and again.