Saving Zhu Zhuqing

Yang Xiu did not rush to attack again. With his strength, he could reveal himself and defeat them, but even a lion used its full strength to hunt a rabbit. Who knew what trump cards they might have?

The silence was suffocating. Even people accustomed to licking blood from a blade found it unsettling. They had always been the ones to make others feel this way. What went around came around. Heaven's Cycle of Reincarnation spared no one.

As time passed, Yang Xiu's Soul Power recovered while he remained hidden.

He left the Soul Saint alone and used the Clone Technique to slit the killers' throats one by one. Though each clone was destroyed after killing two people, before long, only the Soul Saint remained. Terror had nearly drained the strength from his body, and his face showed that he had given up hope of surviving. Yang Xiu stopped playing cat and mouse and revealed himself.

"What? Scared?" Yang Xiu teased.

"When you killed people before, you must have known this day might come. Has it come too quickly for you to accept?"

"It's all right. This day was bound to come sooner or later. Don't be afraid."

"Are you a devil?"

"Can you at least give me a quick death? Tell me when I offended you."

"You recently accepted a job you shouldn't have. I assume you remember Dai Weisi."

"I knew I shouldn't have gotten involved in the royal family's struggle," the Soul Saint said regretfully.

"Well, I've told you what you wanted to know. Take your own life."

The Soul Saint did not answer Yang Xiu.

Instead, he attacked with a Soul Skill. Yang Xiu easily dodged its path.

Then Yang Xiu spoke with an expression of utter dismay.

"You're going back on your word. You wanted a quick death, and I told you why. Why won't you take your own life?"

Then he said in earnest,

"Luckily, I knew you couldn't be trusted. Otherwise, that sneak attack might have hit me. Still, you've taught me something: sneak attacks really are useful."

The Soul Saint glanced at the corpses on the ground. A sneak attack? You need someone to teach you that? You're the ancestor of sneak attacks! His face darkened, but he did not answer. He watched Yang Xiu with full concentration.

Seeing him like that, Yang Xiu lost all interest in playing.

"Since you won't talk, let's have a proper fight."

"And don't think of running. There's a Titled Douluo outside."

At those words, the Soul Saint abandoned every other thought. He could either kill Yang Xiu or take him hostage. Those were his only ways out. Of course, the likeliest outcome was that Yang Xiu would kill him. Yang Xiu had now summoned his Martial Soul, and the sight of those black Soul Rings terrified him.

"Come on." Yang Xiu beckoned to him.

Soon, the two were locked in combat. The Soul Saint discovered that Yang Xiu surpassed him by a wide margin in both Soul Power and Soul Skills, even though Yang Xiu was a lower-level Soul Emperor. As the fight dragged on, he gradually gave up hope of surviving. Wounds multiplied across his body. Just before he died, he suddenly asked,

"Can you tell me who you are?"

"Yang Xiu. Xiu as in 'a fight to the death.'" As Yang Xiu finished speaking, he ended the Soul Saint's life.

Before he died, the Soul Saint thought of the home he had once had and how wonderful it had been. Regret filled his eyes, along with relief. His life of evil was finally over.

"Zhang Liao."

"Sect Master." Zhang Liao appeared before Yang Xiu and spoke respectfully. Yang Xiu waved a hand, signaling that there was no need.

"Pack up every useful resource here. I'll go ahead." Hua Xiong was protecting Zhu Zhuqing in secret, so she certainly would not die, but she might still be hurt. Yang Xiu soon left the city and followed the trail to Hua Xiong.

The fighting below had only just begun. Zhu Zhuqing had suffered no more than a few superficial wounds, and Yang Xiu felt relieved.

He did not wait for a final, desperate moment. Yang Xiu simply summoned his Martial Soul and appeared on the battlefield. His sudden arrival stunned everyone. They could not comprehend his Soul Ring Configuration, which exceeded anything they had imagined, and no one dared speak first. Yang Xiu walked up to Zhu Zhuqing and gazed at her with pure eyes, free of any stray intention. Gradually, love and heartache filled them. At last, he said,

"My name is Yang Xiu. Hello. This is our first meeting."

Zhu Zhuqing looked at Yang Xiu's complicated expression.

Finally, she answered, a little dazed,

"Zhu Zhuqing." Her voice was cool and clear, but it no longer seemed to hold people a thousand miles away.

"Wait here. I'll deal with this trash." Yang Xiu spoke gently.

As if under a spell, Zhu Zhuqing softly said one word. "Okay."

The attackers soon fell before Yang Xiu. Hua Xiong threw back anyone who tried to flee, and none escaped death.

Yang Xiu quickly returned to Zhu Zhuqing.

"It's all right now. From this moment on, no one can hurt you. I know your name is Zhu Zhuqing. May I call you Zhuqing? I also know you're going to the Heaven Dou Empire. So am I. Come with me. I can protect you." Yang Xiu spoke with gentle sincerity.

Zhu Zhuqing stared intently into Yang Xiu's eyes, and he met her gaze tenderly. He knew she was like a wounded hedgehog. She needed love to soften her defenses and make her feel safe. At last, too embarrassed to keep looking at him, she slowly lowered her head and whispered,

"I don't know the way. You lead." Her voice was cool and clear, but lovely to hear.

Yang Xiu smiled at her answer. He walked ahead of Zhu Zhuqing, heading in the direction of the Heaven Dou Empire.

The system's voice soon rang out. Congratulations, Host, on completing the mission. Rewards: Martial Soul Coordination Pill ×2, Zhu Zhuqing's affection +30, Martial Soul Evolution Pill ×1 (exclusive to Zhu Zhuqing).

As the system added thirty points to her affection, new impressions appeared in Zhu Zhuqing's mind. Yang Xiu's image gradually took shape there, bringing a feeling like first love.

Name: Zhu Zhuqing

Soul Power: Level 25 (yellow, yellow)

Martial Soul: Hell Spirit Cat (advanced)

Innate Soul Power: Level 8

Affection: 61

Martial Soul Fusion Pill: (Place a drop of another person's blood on the pill before taking it. Two pills are required. They will give the two people a connection of the heart. When intimacy or affection exceeds 75, their Martial Souls can fuse.)

So that's how it works? Martial Soul Fusion... What would a leopard and a cat become?

Zhu Zhuqing's Innate Soul Power is only level eight. No wonder her Soul Power was the lowest early on.

Before long, Yang Xiu and his companions checked into a hotel.

"Zhuqing, do you trust me?" Zhu Zhuqing studied Yang Xiu for a moment, then nodded.

Seeing her nod, Yang Xiu took out several pills and said,

"This is an Innate Soul Power Pill, and this is a Martial Soul Evolution Pill. Put a drop of your blood on this one, too." As he spoke, Yang Xiu put a drop of his own blood on another pill and handed one to Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing watched what Yang Xiu did and added a drop of her own blood.

"This one is mine." Yang Xiu swallowed his pill, then told Zhu Zhuqing,

"Take yours now. Start with the Martial Soul Evolution Pill. I'll wait outside. Call me when you're done."

An hour later, Zhu Zhuqing appeared before Yang Xiu. He said nothing, instead sensing what she felt. He could feel her happiness and the affection for him that had just begun to grow. Nothing else came through.

Name: Zhu Zhuqing (11 years old)

Soul Power: Level 29 (yellow, yellow)

Martial Soul: Hell Spirit Cat (top-tier)

Innate Soul Power: Level 11

Intimacy: 68

Level eleven Innate Soul Power? And level twenty-nine already. That's quite a gain.

"Zhuqing, there's no need to hurry. Let's go out and look around."

"Okay."

Zhu Zhuqing remained a woman of few words, even though she had fallen for Yang Xiu.

Hearing her answer, Yang Xiu boldly took Zhu Zhuqing's hand and led her outside. Startled, she tried to pull away, but he held on firmly. After a brief struggle, she stopped resisting.

She followed silently behind Yang Xiu.

Looking at the figure holding her hand, she felt warmth and safety beside him. A faint, happy smile touched her lips. It was like a snow lotus blooming on an icy mountain, but no one saw it except the sun above.

With Yang Xiu deliberately taking his time, they stopped often along the way. It took them a full month to return to the Sect.

Through his actions, Yang Xiu slowly melted Zhu Zhuqing's defenses. A month of companionship left her no longer feeling alone, and her affection rose to an extraordinary 95 points. She was much like Yang Xiu: once she chose someone, she gave that person everything she had. That was why her affection had risen so quickly. In her heart, she had already chosen Yang Xiu.

Perhaps happiness was a source of strength. Both of their Soul Power levels rose by one, and Zhu Zhuqing reached level thirty by the time they arrived at the Flame Emperor Sect.

Yang Xiu did not rush Zhu Zhuqing into the Sect Secret Realm. Instead, he became her sparring partner, and they trained for a month.

On an open stretch of ground, Yang Xiu and Zhu Zhuqing leaned against each other after a sparring session.

"Zhuqing, you should go to the Secret Realm tomorrow."

"Okay, Brother Xiu."