The Gentle Woman

"Kid, still trying to run?"

"Come back with me nicely. You'll make perfect nourishment for the Fifth Elder! Hahahaha!"

"Not a chance!"

The voice came from high above. Yue Ling gritted his teeth tightly, his heart trembling and turning cold.

He knew full well that his parents were most likely already dead.

The Evil Soul Master wore an amused smile. What he enjoyed most in life was destroying geniuses.

The villagers he had captured earlier had all said that this child was Hundred Flowers Village's only hope.

That was why, while he had been chasing down the remaining small fry, two people had desperately held him back for a while: one Soul Elder in his thirties, and one novice Spirit Master with only a single Spirit Ring.

Hahaha, they had been completely insignificant.

By the time he caught up, the boy's aura had vanished into thin air. He had thought the kid had been eaten by a soul beast in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Who would have thought that he would catch him in the end?

"Hahaha, heaven has handed me this opportunity!"

"Let's see where you can run now!"

Beneath the Evil Soul Master's feet, five Spirit Rings lit up in succession: white, yellow, purple, purple, purple.

"Second Soul Skill, Blood Claw!"

The yellow hundred-year Spirit Ring flared brightly. Bloody patterns crawled across his skin, and all ten fingers instantly turned into sharp crimson claws as they viciously struck down at Yue Ling.

"First Soul Skill, Heavenly Chrysanthemum Body Protection!"

Yue Ling shouted lowly, and a layer of Soul Power light shield immediately formed before him, protecting him as he tried to withstand the blow head-on.

But the gap between their Soul Power was far too great. The shield shattered upon contact.

The immense impact sent Yue Ling flying. He crashed heavily into a large tree behind him.

"Argh!"

Agonizing pain spread throughout his body, as though every bone had come apart.

Yet the piercing pain only made his mind clearer.

His spiritual power had been utterly exhausted, and his Soul Power had long since run dry.

He had originally planned to absorb his second Spirit Ring, then use the boost from his domain to leave the forest, cultivate properly, and someday avenge the village and his parents.

But reality gave him no such chance.

The Sun Flower that had trapped him earlier had been suppressed by his domain and could not attack him, but he had never been able to break through its defensive light shield.

Now, things had gone from bad to worse. The Evil Soul Master had cornered him here.

What could he do? There was no way out at all.

Seeing that the danger was gone, the Sun Flower immediately withdrew all its solar energy. That energy was the foundation of its survival; if it kept expending it to sustain the light shield, it too would become food for soul beasts.

"You damned Evil Soul Master!"

Yue Ling lay sprawled on the ground, without even the strength to raise a hand. He could only glare at the other man, his eyes filled with hatred. "Once the Shrek Inspection Team discovers what happened to Hundred Flowers Village, they'll definitely kill every last one of you!"

The Evil Soul Master put away his bat martial soul. A pair of pitch-black Bat Wings spread behind his back as he slowly descended before Yue Ling.

"You've got quite the hard mouth. Don't worry, I won't let you die so easily."

With a cold laugh, he grabbed Yue Ling by the collar and forcibly lifted him up.

"I'll take you back and slice open your flesh bit by bit. Let's see if you can still talk tough then!"

"Your blood will be enough for us to drink, and your soul can serve as nourishment for our martial souls. Especially a talented child like you—your flesh is at its tenderest!"

"I'll savor you bite by bite, hahaha!"

His arrogant laughter echoed through the forest.

Yue Ling looked at his hideous face and spat fiercely at him, the spit landing precisely in his mouth.

He had only one thought now—enrage the man and make him kill him immediately. Even if he died, he would never become nourishment to be butchered at another's whim.

"You're courting death!"

The Evil Soul Master was thoroughly enraged. All his previous restraint vanished in an instant.

With a vicious swing, he smashed Yue Ling into the ground. Pain instantly surged through his entire body. Then the man raised his hand, gathering force, his killing intent icy and sharp.

Father, Mother, Village Chief Grandpa... I'm sorry. I couldn't protect the village. I let you down.

"Third Soul Skill, Blood Bat Slash!"

Scarlet light gathered in his palm, and the deadly blow came crashing down.

Yue Ling closed his eyes and quietly awaited death.

He was not afraid to die. He was only unwilling to accept it.

Unwilling that he had failed to kill every Evil Soul Master, unwilling that all these injustices would go unanswered.

Just as the bloody claw was about to descend upon his head, two figures suddenly appeared in the sky.

One was a gentle woman with black hair, a phantom full moon hanging at her side. The other was an old man in white robes, looking slovenly and lazy.

Beneath the woman's feet, a yellow hundred-year Spirit Ring slowly lit up.

"First Soul Skill, Moon Blade."

Her cool and gentle voice fell, and a silver crescent blade shot through the air, precisely colliding with the descending bloody attack.

The two forces collided, and the violent Soul Power blasted Yue Ling away from the ground, pulling him completely out of mortal danger.

After confirming Yue Ling was safe, the woman no longer held back. Several silver Moon Blades flew out one after another, raining down upon the Evil Soul Master.

The Evil Soul Master's expression changed drastically. He could not defend against them at all, so he immediately spread his Bat Wings and fled into the air, desperately mobilizing his Soul Power to block.

"Cough, cough! Who are you people? How dare you ruin my business!"

He clutched his injured body, suppressing the chaotic Soul Power rampaging within him as he demanded harshly.

"Chew, chew... Mm."

The old man leisurely chewed on the chicken leg in his hand, his hands covered in grease. After finishing, he casually wiped them off before speaking indifferently.

"Us? We're from Shrek. You can call me Xuan Zi, or the vice captain of the Shrek Inspection Team."

"W-What? The Shrek Inspection Team!"

The Evil Soul Master's face instantly turned deathly pale. Only one thought remained in his mind—run!

"First Soul Skill, Bat Wings!"

He activated his Soul Skill, pushing his speed to the limit as he fled for his life.

Xuan Zi watched his fleeing back. His grease-covered hand casually scratched his head, his face full of disdain.

"Lexuan, bring him back. I'll go take a look at the boy's village. If Evil Soul Masters got to it, then I'm afraid..."

"Alright, Xuan Zi."

Zhang Lexuan nodded gently.

Xuan Zi's figure flashed, and he instantly vanished into the forest.

She raised her eyes toward the fleeing Evil Soul Master, and the black ten-thousand-year Spirit Ring beneath her feet lit up once again.

Her red lips parted, her voice calm yet carrying a chilling intent to kill.

"Fifth Soul Skill, Moonfall."

A golden waxing moon condensed in the sky, instantly splitting in two and transforming into two enormous moon scythes. With deafening cries through the air, they slashed straight toward the Evil Soul Master.

The Evil Soul Master was terrified out of his wits. He frantically beat his Bat Wings, trying to escape the attack's range.

But he was too close. There was no time.

The sharp moon scythe slashed diagonally down, severing one of his Bat Wings and nearly cutting off half his body.

A great amount of blood instantly sprayed out, and he completely lost his balance in midair.

"No!!!"

A miserable scream echoed through the mountains and forest.

He gritted his teeth and raised a Soul Power shield, barely blocking the remaining fatal damage. Like a kite with its string cut, he fell heavily from the sky, crashed into the ground, vomited a mouthful of blood, and immediately passed out.

Nearby, Yue Ling's entire body was tense as he stared blankly at the scene.

The pain from his wounds constantly reminded him of the life-and-death crisis he had just endured. As the fear of death faded, all that remained was helplessness, fury, and hatred.

Supporting himself against the ground, he slowly and painfully rose to his feet. He panted heavily, then turned toward Zhang Lexuan. His voice trembled, yet it was exceptionally firm.

"Please, let me do it. I want to kill him with my own hands."

Zhang Lexuan turned to look at him. Those eyes brimming with hatred, stubbornness, and determination were exactly like her own eyes back then, when she had been filled with obsession and begged Mu En to avenge her.

She had wanted to refuse, but in the end, her heart softened and she nodded.

"Alright. Be careful."

"Thank you!"

Without another word, Yue Ling grabbed the short blade that had fallen to the ground and charged at the unconscious Evil Soul Master.

"Ah!"

This man before him was the enemy who had destroyed his village and killed his parents.

All his pent-up endurance and hatred erupted completely. Without the slightest hesitation, he drove the blade viciously into the man's chest.

The intense pain jolted the Evil Soul Master awake. Seeing the red-eyed youth so close before him, he instantly panicked.

Fear completely swallowed him, and he desperately begged for mercy.

"No! Don't kill me! I can give you things! I have a Spirit Bone! I'll give you the Spirit Bone!"

Yue Ling's gaze was icy, without the slightest ripple.

"You slaughtered my entire village and killed my parents. This hatred cannot be shared beneath the same sky."

"Rest assured, today it is you. One day, it will be the organization behind you, and finally your Fifth Elder. I will surely bring back his head as burial tribute for every man, woman, old person, and child of Hundred Flowers Village, as well as my parents!!"

"Pfft!"

The short blade stabbed viciously into a vital spot. Afraid the man was not fully dead, Yue Ling followed up with several more strikes.

With his great vengeance fulfilled, all the grievance, fury, and despair that had been building in his heart erupted completely.

"Hahaha! Father! Mother! I avenged you! Hahaha!"

The extreme release of emotion instantly drained every bit of strength from him.

Still laughing, Yue Ling's body went limp. He fell straight backward and completely lost consciousness.