Di Tian, If You Want to Take Her Away, You Must Earn My Approval!

When there was something weighing on his mind, time passed especially quickly.

A day flew by just like that. After packing up and saying goodbye to Tang Wulin, Mo Yuan hurried home.

At dinner, Na'er was clearly distracted. Even a blind man could tell that something was troubling her.

"Na'er, is something on your mind?" Mo Yuan pretended not to know what had happened. He stroked Na'er's hair and asked softly.

Na'er looked up at him. A strange gleam flickered in her clear violet eyes. "Brother, will you go to the seaside with me for a while after dinner?"

Her gaze held reluctance and attachment, along with a hint of scrutiny.

"Okay."

Mo Yuan did not ask why. He simply nodded without hesitation.

Red Mountain Academy was not far from the seaside. It only took about ten minutes to walk there.

The beach in Aolai City was nothing special, though. It had none of the fine golden sand seen in anime. Instead, it was covered mostly with coarse gravel and fragments of nameless shells.

The moonlight was unusually beautiful that night. It was rare to see a sky filled with stars, like jewels set into black silk. The full moon in particular cast down clear, silvery light, making the waves sparkle translucently.

Na'er took off her shoes, carrying them in one hand while holding Mo Yuan's hand with the other. Together, they strolled through the seawater as the waves washed over her small feet.

"Brother, if one day I have no choice but to leave, will you miss me?" Na'er suddenly asked.

Mo Yuan turned his head. The girl stood gracefully beneath the moon, her long hair and skirt rippling in the sea breeze.

He sighed and said quietly, "Na'er, you've recovered your old memories, haven't you?"

"Brother, you..."

Na'er froze.

"Hmm... If my guess is right, your family has already found you too, haven't they? He wants to take you away. Maybe he even threatened you."

"Brother, you—"

Na'er shook her head. The shoes in her hand suddenly fell into the water, splashing up a spray. She stepped forward, intending to cover Mo Yuan's mouth and stop him from speaking, because she knew Di Tian had to be watching from the shadows.

She was afraid Mo Yuan might accidentally say something that would enrage Di Tian.

Unexpectedly, Mo Yuan seized Na'er by the waist and pulled her into his arms.

"Mmph—"

"Do you know something, Na'er? I've never stopped thinking about one question: if someone who has lost their memory regains their past memories, are they still the same person they used to be?"

Feeling the girl tremble faintly in his arms, Mo Yuan continued, "I'm no philosopher, and I don't really understand the question. But my answer is this: whoever she is, to me, she is still herself."

"Bro..."

Mo Yuan then called out loudly, "The person hiding there—I know you're listening. Come out and say a few words to me!"

"Brother!" Na'er's eyes widened. She stared at Mo Yuan, utterly astonished.

"What? You had no qualms about spying on me from the shadows during the day, but now you don't have the courage?" Mo Yuan provoked him.

"Hmph! I haven't seen a human this bold in a long time!" A domineering voice rang out behind Mo Yuan.

Without turning his head, Mo Yuan said, "Well, now you have."

"Interesting. How did you discover me?"

Mo Yuan smiled faintly. "Didn't Na'er tell you? I'm also a Near-Level-9 Soul Engineer. Isn't it perfectly normal for me to have a detection Soul Tool capable of noticing you spying on me from the shadows?"

"What a slick tongue." Surprise flashed through Di Tian's eyes, but quickly vanished. "Boy, you have considerable talent. But no matter how powerful a genius is, before he fully matures and fulfills his potential, he should avoid becoming too arrogant. After all, humans have a saying: a genius who has yet to mature isn't a genius."

A mere Level-9 Soul Engineer was not worth Di Tian's attention. What restrained him had never been technology—or human power—but the responsibilities he carried himself.

"I won't deny that you're right, but I consider myself pretty tough. So you don't need to worry about that." Mo Yuan turned around and shielded Na'er behind him. "You want to take Na'er away? Fine. Everyone has their own secrets, and perhaps she has her own mission as well. But before that, she's my sister. If you want to take her, you must earn my approval."

This was completely outrageous. Utterly outrageous!

Di Tian felt as though he was about to laugh from sheer anger.

He was the Beast God, yet to take his own liege away, he actually had to obtain a human's approval. It was absurd.

"Hahaha, human, I have to admit that you have guts. Do you know who I am? If this had been ten thousand years ago, and you dared speak to me like that, I would have crushed you long ago!"

After all, this was a human his liege favored. Di Tian still exercised some restraint, and he rather admired the other man as well.

"I already told you, I'm very hard to kill. At least, I don't think you can take me down. As for your identity..." A dangerous smile appeared on Mo Yuan's face. "The Beast God, Di Tian... some poor wretch imprisoned for who knows how many years, nothing more than a stray dog. What is there for me to fear?"

"Human, you're courting death!"

Di Tian was truly enraged. He pointed at Mo Yuan and roared, "Move aside now! This seat will pretend I heard nothing today. Otherwise, even if my liege is here, I will tear you limb from limb!"

"See? Being locked up all these years really did have an effect. At least, I can't see the slightest trace of the Beast God's bearing in you." Mo Yuan took out a metal rod nearly two meters long and drove it into the ground.

The instant the metal rod touched the earth, a silver pillar of light shot from its tip. It rose a thousand meters into the sky before scattering, transforming into an invisible barrier that enclosed everything within a ten-thousand-meter radius.

"This is a Level-9 Concealment Soul Tool I developed. Within its range, even if two Quasi-Gods beat each other bloody, no one outside will detect anything unusual."

Mo Yuan spoke casually. Then he turned to Na'er and handed her a golden necklace. "This necklace contains a Ninth-Level Soul Guidance Barrier that activates when triggered. Na'er, step back for now and wait for your brother, okay?"

Na'er could no longer hold back. Large tears streamed down her face, thoroughly soaking her clothes.

"Boo-hoo... Brother... don't... you..."

She wept her heart out, both aggrieved and worried.

"It's all right. Don't worry. Your brother is very strong."

As he spoke, Mo Yuan put the necklace around Na'er's neck and gently tapped it.

A silver radiance flashed, transforming into a barrier that enveloped Na'er. The space around it twisted faintly, giving it an eerie quality that seemed to belong to another world.

This was a special Soul Tool Mo Yuan had created by studying the technology of the Key of Infinity—Star of Eden. It could fold the protected person into a special subspace. As long as its carrying limit was not exceeded, nothing could cause the user any harm.

After finishing all this, Mo Yuan waved his hand. A staff radiating a metallic sheen appeared in his grasp.

Mimicry: Key of Devouring—Stellar Sea Harmony!

"Come on, Di Tian. Today, I'll let you see what stars being shattered looks like!"