Emerald Anthem

Late at night, in Heaven Dou City, the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire—the residence of the Speed Clan.

At this time, the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire had not yet experienced the territorial clashes from the original story, nor had the Sun Moon Continent invaded.

Soul Tools did not appear often in the eyes of soul masters. Even when they did, they were merely used as storage tools. Thus, the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Dou Empire had not signed an agreement with the Sun Moon Empire to divide and govern their territories.

The Heaven Dou Empire and Dou Ling Empire, which only existed in Huo Gua's era, simply did not exist yet.

Standing above the residence, Bi Ji, concealing her aura, stood to Lin Wan'er's left, while Zi Ji, full and satisfied, stood to her right. Protected by two Ferocious Beasts, Lin Wan'er felt a wave of reassurance.

No matter how powerful the soul masters on the continent were, there was no way they could learn from thousands of miles away that Ferocious Beasts had invaded the Speed Clan residence beneath the Tang Sect, then rush over at astonishing speed to stop the three of them.

Unless the insignificant Speed Clan possessed a level-ten Standard Soul Guidance Shell, the weak soul masters currently supported by the Heaven Dou Empire would have no way to prevent them from approaching Bai Chenxiang and discussing a mutually beneficial partnership, even if they discovered their tracks.

"You can begin, Sister Bi Ji."

Watching the Speed Clan disciples below move at high speed as they carried out their routine patrols and searched for suspicious individuals, Lin Wan'er turned to Bi Ji, who wore a hood that concealed her figure, signaling that she could begin the first step of tonight's plan.

Take down the unimportant members of the clan.

"I understand."

Bi Ji removed her hood, revealing her beautiful hair. Her red lips parted slightly. "Emerald Kiss!"

This was Bi Ji's only offensive soul skill, a miraculous ability that transferred illnesses and wounds she had previously healed from soul beasts onto enemies, accumulating their effects.

The deathly kiss of the Emerald Swan transformed into a current of air and swept through the entire Speed Clan.

The first to fall from the air to the ground were the patrolling disciples, who showed no fear of pain and immediately fell into a deep sleep. Next came the hidden guards who had sensed something was wrong and tried to sound the alarm. Only after that were the clan members sleeping within the sect.

"Bi Ji, you really are softhearted. You only gave them a peaceful sleep. If it had been Di Tian and the others, they might have inflicted a minor illness or two on these people."

Zi Ji stretched her stiff arms, displaying her proud curves. Her round, straight thigh kicked apart the glazed roof lantern beneath her feet as she spoke with some dissatisfaction.

"Don't forget the purpose of our visit."

After ending Emerald Kiss, Bi Ji put her hood back on. The coldness in her eyes was not directed at Zi Ji, but at the human soul masters sleeping soundly below.

"I hate these humans even more than you do. Every time we launch a Beast Tide, there are always one or two soul masters who fly faster than Needletail Swifts, gathering information and passing it to the royal family, causing our invasions to fail."

"But we are here to discuss cooperation with Bai Chenxiang. If we strike too heavily at her clansmen before she dies, it will be easy for the Holy Maiden to lose the advantage in the negotiations to come."

Seeing Bi Ji's expression turn unfamiliar, no longer as good-tempered as before, Zi Ji admitted that she had been wrong. She sincerely took Bi Ji's soft, boneless hand and earnestly apologized.

Looking at the lily that had only recently blossomed before her, Lin Wan'er found the scene quite pleasing to the eye. Still, she considered that lingering here for too long might arouse outsiders' suspicions, so she had no choice but to interrupt them.

"Sister Zi Ji, Sister Bi Ji, it's time to go!"

"Alright."

The three quickly transformed into streaks of light and sped toward the location indicated by that mutant swift who had rendered great service.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Wan'er, carried along by the two beautiful elder sisters, arrived outside Bai Chenxiang's door. Seeing the room brightly lit within, it did not seem as though Bai Chenxiang had been weeping all day and ignoring worldly affairs, as the rumors claimed.

Just as Lin Wan'er was about to push open the door and state her purpose, an elderly woman's voice came from inside.

"A guest is a guest. Since you're here, don't stand outside. Come in."

Zi Ji and Bi Ji, standing behind the Holy Maiden, exchanged glances. The information regarding Bai Chenxiang, the head of the Speed Clan, had been wrong. She had actually anticipated that visitors would come tonight.

"Then we shall accept your invitation. We hope the head of the Speed Clan will forgive us for intruding upon the sect so late at night."

Lin Wan'er quickly adjusted her mindset. She glanced at Zi Ji and Bi Ji, then turned away and naturally pushed open the wooden door, entering Bai Chenxiang's bedroom.

A scorching scent rushed at her, mixed with medicinal herbs and resembling flowing volcanic rock. It was indescribably strange, but not unpleasant.

What then entered her sight was furniture handcrafted entirely from wood. Aside from pure white, the room's decorations were all blood-red.

The elderly woman sitting calmly at the main table no longer possessed the beauty she had in the comics. Her eyes looked somewhat vacant, as though she had no interest in anything around her.

Combined with the scent at the entrance and the room's decor, it was enough to prove that Bai Chenxiang had not forgotten Ma Hongjun.

The elderly Bai Chenxiang sensed Lin Wan'er's gaze. She looked at her briefly before shifting her focus back to Bi Ji and Zi Ji.

How long had it been since she had felt the kind of pressure from Da Ming and Er Ming that made ordinary soul masters struggle to breathe?

Ten years? Fifty years? Or a hundred years? Bai Chenxiang feared neither heaven nor earth. Likewise, she did not fear death.

But now, the one thing she feared was that after her death, her lover waiting for her in the God Realm would gradually forget her with the passage of time.

At that thought, love and hatred tangled together in Bai Chenxiang's heart. Right before the guests who had arrived in the dead of night, she forcibly spat out a mouthful of dark blood.

Wiping the blood from the corner of her lips, Bai Chenxiang gave a despondent smile. "Please excuse me, everyone. This old woman is not in good health. If I have failed to receive you properly, I hope you will forgive me."

At this, Lin Wan'er frowned and instinctively called out, "Sister Bi Ji."

"I understand."

Bi Ji stepped forward, standing beside the Holy Maiden. She removed her hood again, revealing skin and features that made Bai Chenxiang incomparably envious.

A very, very long time ago, her appearance had once captivated Ma Hongjun just as Bi Ji's did. Unfortunately, she could no longer endure the day-after-day, year-after-year ravages of time. Her lifespan was nearing its end.

Though Bai Chenxiang was unwilling to accept it, her aged body would not obey her.

From the moment they had invaded the Speed Clan residence, she had known that she was no match at all for the two mysterious soul masters standing beside the little girl. She did not even entertain the thought of fleeing with her daughter.

Because the Speed Clan, once renowned throughout the land for its supreme speed, no longer possessed its former glory.

Even swallows would one day grow old. As the clan head, she had learned to compromise and bow her head over these long years.

"Emerald Anthem!"

The Emerald Swan's song echoed through the room, jade-green notes trickling into Bai Chenxiang's completely defenseless body.

This was Bi Ji's soul skill.

Its song healed the recipient's heart, infusing powerful vitality into their muscles, fully restoring their life force and injuries while granting immunity to all abnormal conditions for a period of time.

It could not have been more suitable for healing the pain in Bai Chenxiang's heart and the aging of her body.

As for Bi Ji's soul skills, which soul rings they corresponded to, and so on, the original novel did not seem to go into detail—at least not in the first two parts I read—so I made them up here. Please forgive any mistakes qwq