Scarlet Douluo

"We're not some charitable hall that values reason and righteousness here."

Feiyan lightly twirled the parasol in her hand, her tone carrying the indifference of someone used to such things.

"There are only two paths before you. Either become nourishment for someone's cultivation. Your bloodline seems rather special—perhaps it would yield even better results."

Seeing Castorice's little face turn pale at once, she smiled in satisfaction and continued.

"Or... join us and become one of us. After all, the Holy Spirit Cult has always welcomed all rivers and refused no one."

As she spoke, an imperceptible gloom flickered through her red eyes, as though she had recalled certain unpleasant memories of her own.

Once upon a time, perhaps she had not willingly stepped into this mire either. Only, driven into a corner by fate with no path left to take, she had ultimately chosen to embrace darkness and become an Evil Soul Master feared by all.

Thus, she did not care in the slightest about Castorice's lie, riddled as it was with holes.

In this place, the past meant nothing. Only survival and strength were eternal.

She did not care what secrets Castorice hid. She only cared whether those secrets could be used by the Holy Spirit Cult, or whether this interesting little girl could survive in this cruel environment... and bring something new to relieve the boredom.

"So then, little Castorice."

Feiyan smiled sweetly as she posed the cruelest of choices in the gentlest tone.

"Would you like to become fertilizer and nourish this land? Or would you rather... join us and become an honorable disciple of the Holy Spirit Cult?"

Her lie had been ruthlessly exposed, and the deliberately feigned panic and helplessness on Castorice's face receded like the tide.

She raised her little face. Her amethyst-like eyes returned to the stillness of an ancient well, a serenity and calmness utterly at odds with her age, as though she had already seen through the ways of the world.

"Then, do I have a choice?"

Her voice was crisp, yet devoid of any emotional fluctuation, as though she were merely stating an established fact.

Watching the little girl's expression change in an instant, Feiyan was not angered. Instead, as though she had discovered an unparalleled treasure, her smile became ever more radiant and bewitching, excitement glittering in her scarlet pupils.

"That's right~ Little Castorice is so smart!"

She agreed in a syrupy voice, her tone carrying a rhythm that bewitched the heart.

"Heaven and hell have never been ours to choose. We only have the fate of... being chosen."

Rather than a warning to Castorice, those words were more like Feiyan's sigh for her own past.

It was as if she saw in this overly calm little girl the person she had once been—someone with nowhere left to go, who had ultimately thrown herself into darkness.

An indescribable emotion, almost like sympathy between kindred sufferers, mixed with her long-standing boredom and desire for amusement, suddenly gave rise to an unprecedented thought in her heart.

Take her as a disciple.

With such temperament, and... Feiyan keenly sensed the faint yet exceptionally pure Soul Power fluctuations within Castorice's body. They had clearly reached level ten.

At her bone age, she must possess Innate Full Soul Power. Such talent was considered top-tier even within the Holy Spirit Cult.

"I've decided."

The smile on Feiyan's face became a little more genuine, carrying an undeniable air.

"From today onward, you will be the sole personal disciple of me, Scarlet Douluo Feiyan."

As she spoke, she naturally extended her fair, slender hand with a touch of intimacy, intending to take Castorice's hand.

In her eyes, this was both a gesture of acceptance and a sign of closeness.

Castorice's gaze flickered. She knew the nature of this body well. Her lips had just parted, and before she could offer a warning, Feiyan's warm fingertips had already touched her cool palm.

Sizzle—!

The instant they touched, a sudden change erupted.

An invisible, intangible force containing absolute deathly stillness, like a savage beast awakened from slumber, instantly surged backward from the point of contact and began to erode her.

Sinister, ferocious purple patterns spread across Feiyan's fair arm at a visible rate. Wherever they passed, the vitality beneath her skin seemed to be drained away in an instant, bringing a chill and decay that made one's soul tremble.

"What?!"

The smile on Feiyan's face froze instantly, replaced by horror.

For the first time in ages, she felt the cold breath of death closing in.

It was a force of annihilation that ignored rank, ignored defense, and struck directly at the origin of life.

Boom—!

Almost by instinct, a terrifying oceanic surge of Soul Power erupted from her petite body like a volcano.

A dark crimson halo of Soul Power formed a nearly tangible shockwave, ruthlessly blasting Castorice, who stood close at hand, away.

Bang!

Castorice's petite body struck a twisted ancient tree in the distance. She let out a muffled groan, slid to the ground, and a trace of blood spilled from the corner of her mouth.

At that moment, however, Feiyan had no attention to spare for anything else.

Her face was deathly pale, and cold sweat instantly soaked the back of her dress.

She circulated the vast Soul Power of a level ninety-seven Super Douluo with all her strength. Boundless energy rushed like a surging river toward the arm eroded by the power of death, desperately blocking and wearing down the purple patterns that kept trying to spread upward.

Dark crimson and sinister purple clashed violently across her arm, producing a faint yet teeth-grinding sizzle.

Only after several breaths did those terrifying purple patterns, under the absolute disparity in strength, finally get forcibly contained and driven back before slowly fading away.

Yet the patch of skin on Feiyan's arm that had once been fair seemed to have lost all its luster, turning somewhat gray and withered.

Still shaken, she clutched her arm. When she looked again at Castorice, who was struggling to rise in the distance, her eyes were filled with shock, bewilderment, and a trace of barely concealed... greed and fervor.

"What terrifying power of death..."

Feiyan's voice carried a dryness that even she did not notice.

"In that instant just now... if my cultivation had not far surpassed yours, a Soul Emperor would likely have been eroded completely. Even if they survived, they would be crippled. Even a Soul Saint, without special means, would never dare touch you."

She stared fixedly at Castorice, as though examining a peerless weapon of destruction.

"If you are allowed to grow, if that power becomes stronger... even a Title Douluo might be killed by you in an instant."

That realization made Feiyan's heart pound violently.

What harmless little girl was this? She was clearly an infant Grim Reaper walking among mortals.

She was determined to take this disciple.

Just as every Evil Soul Master present was left dumbfounded and at a loss by the sudden turn of events—

Feiyan, who had made up her mind to accept this strange girl, had just opened her mouth to steady the situation when a languid female voice carrying supreme majesty, as though it came from the depths of the netherworld, rang without warning in everyone's soul.

"Such uncut jade, Feiyan. I'm afraid you are incapable of carving it."