Electrolux

"Lin Shuo." Lin Shuo gave a slight nod, his tone indifferent. "I am merely resting here, and happened to encounter this young lady, Huo Yu'er, resting here as well."

Tang Ya poked her head out from behind Bei Bei, her gaze darting between Lin Shuo and Huo Yu'er before landing back on the grilled fish, her eyes sparkling. "Um... could you sell me one? I'll pay for it! It smells absolutely delicious."

Huo Yu'er looked up at her, then at Lin Shuo, and remained silent, simply handing over the two freshly grilled fish.

"No need for money," Huo Yu'er said softly. "Please, have them."

Tang Ya cheered, took the fish, and immediately took a large bite, letting out a sigh of satisfaction. "Oh my god, this is so good! Bei Bei, you have to try some!"

Bei Bei helplessly accepted the fish Tang Ya handed him but did not eat it immediately. His gaze never left Lin Shuo, his eyes filled with scrutiny. Upon seeing the few spirit fruits the youth had casually placed on the ground, his expression shifted from surprise to a sense of inevitability. Possessing such a powerful martial soul, it was only natural to have an extraordinary background.

"Is Brother Lin Shuo also here to hunt soul beasts?" Bei Bei asked tentatively.

Lin Shuo shook his head. Seeing this, Bei Bei tactfully refrained from pressing further.

The four of them enjoyed a delicious meal of grilled fish; aside from Bei Bei being a bit distracted, the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

"Brother Lin, Brother Bei, Sister Tang, I'll be heading off now." Once the fish was finished, Huo Yu'er stood up, bowed to Lin Shuo, gathered her pack, and turned to leave.

After Huo Yu'er had walked a short distance, Lin Shuo stood up and said to Bei Bei and Tang Ya, "Brother Bei, Miss Tang, I shall take my leave here as well." With that, Lin Shuo followed in Huo Yu'er's footsteps.

"Hey, you're leaving already?" Tang Ya was surprised and wanted to call out to stop him, but Bei Bei gently pressed down on her arm.

Once Lin Shuo was some distance away, Tang Ya nudged Bei Bei. "Bei Bei, what's going on?" She might be naive, but she wasn't stupid. At the very least, she could sense that the atmosphere just now had been quite heavy.

"That young Brother Lin's martial soul exerted great pressure on me; it must be a very powerful dragon-type martial soul," Bei Bei said after a moment of contemplation.

Hearing this, Tang Ya cast it to the back of her mind, instead looking at the fish bones on the ground, lost in thought.

"Little Yu'er must be here to obtain a soul ring. Should we recruit her into the Tang Sect?"

"Likely so. I can sense she possesses soul power, though it is very weak. That Brother Lin probably followed her because he was worried. However..." Bei Bei turned to look at Tang Ya.

Tang Ya, having her thoughts read, stuck out her tongue. "No time like the present, let's go take a look."

Bei Bei shook his head helplessly. "Fine, my little teacher Ya."

After walking for a while, Lin Shuo contacted the Sky Dream Iceworm through their mental connection. "Tian Meng, I have chosen a host for you. You will perform the sacrifice to this Huo Yu'er in front of me shortly." Lin Shuo maintained a distance from Huo Yu'er that allowed him to intervene at any moment without being discovered.

Upon entering the outer perimeter of the Star Dou Great Forest, a sharp screech rang out, and a creature lunged at Huo Yu'er. It was the legendary ten-year Wind Baboon that had nearly defied a God King. Lin Shuo stopped in his tracks, having no intention of intervening. To prevent Bei Bei and Tang Ya from becoming suspicious, it was crucial that a ten-year soul beast corpse remained on the ground. After a fierce struggle, the Wind Baboon fell short and was narrowly defeated by Huo Yu'er.

Just then, Tian Meng wiggled its round body and rushed directly in front of Huo Yu'er. According to Lin Shuo's plan, Tian Meng and Huo Yu'er successfully merged. However, during the fusion process, the previously clear sky suddenly darkened. A massive pressure descended from above, and a stream of gray energy suddenly appeared. Lin Shuo immediately took the Gold of Life from his storage soul tool. Sensing Lin Shuo's aura and the Gold of Life in his hand, the gray energy, which had been heading toward Huo Yu'er, veered toward Lin Shuo instead.

"Holding the sun and moon in my hand, plucking the stars; there is no one in this world like me. I never expected that I, this old man, would still have a sliver of a remnant soul remaining." That gray energy—or rather, Electrolux—fell into silence after entering Lin Shuo's mental sea. Seeing that Electrolux had entered his own mental sea, Lin Shuo walked toward Huo Yu'er. Electrolux only had a wisp of divine consciousness left; he could repair himself slowly.

The young girl lay on the ground while Tian Meng was still sealing its soul power and mental origin. Seeing Lin Shuo approach, its round face was filled with worry. "Master, I just saw that gray energy head toward you. Are you alright?"

Hearing this, Lin Shuo felt a warmth in his heart and smiled. "I am fine. Just continue to follow Huo Yu'er well; her future will not disappoint you."

Though Tian Meng was curious why its master held such high regard for such a weak little girl, it dared not ask, so it continued its grand task of sealing.

Seeing that everything was proceeding smoothly, Lin Shuo took a mat from his storage ring and placed the girl on it, then waited for her to wake up.

Subtle movements came from the woods in the distance. Lin Shuo's mental power spread out like a tide, discovering it was Bei Bei and Tang Ya, and he retracted his mental power.

Lin Shuo made no attempt to hide anything, simply sitting quietly beside the girl, his gaze resting on her pale face with an expression as calm as water.

A moment later, the bushes were pushed aside. Tang Ya poked her head through the branches, about to call out, but she abruptly stopped when she saw the scene before her.

"Lin Shuo, what happened to Yu'er?" Tang Ya asked in a low voice.

"She is in the middle of fusing with a soul ring. It's a pity; I arrived one step too late," Lin Shuo said with regret.

Bei Bei walked over as well, and upon seeing the ten-year Wind Baboon on the ground, he immediately understood.

"Indeed, if we had arrived a step earlier, we might have been able to secure a hundred-year soul ring for Miss Huo," Bei Bei said with a hint of pity.

"Mmm..." A soft moan escaped Huo Yu'er's lips, and the three of them looked at her in unison. Seeing Huo Yu'er wake up, Tang Ya immediately rushed to her side. Huo Yu'er's head was a bit muddled, and she nearly swatted her away.

Bei Bei helplessly pressed his hand to his forehead and pulled Tang Ya back. "Alright, Ya, let Miss Huo wake up first."

Huo Yu'er felt the soul power within her and realized that everything that had happened before was real. Thinking of what the Sky Dream Iceworm had just said, she jumped up with excitement. "I succeeded!"

Tang Ya and Bei Bei felt the mental fluctuations radiating from Huo Yu'er's eyes and were startled.

"Yu'er, is your martial soul a mental-attribute martial soul?"

Huo Yu'er secretly glanced at Lin Shuo first, then nodded. "Yes, Sister Tang, my martial soul is the Spirit Eye. It is a mental-attribute martial soul."