Tang Ya's Corruption, High-Tier Escort Points in Hand

Her voice trembled with excitement and longing.

"The Tang Sect is everything to me. I'll give you half of it, and you won't even have to join.

"And from now on, half of everything I own will be yours. That's how sincere I am.

"Is that enough?"

Lin Chen stared at her in surprise!

He had only meant to complete a task. He had never expected this unexpected windfall.

"Before this, you were useless. Naturally, I wouldn't have given you a second look.

"But once your Martial Soul is corrupted, your super Blue Silver Grass will be powerful. You might even break through several levels in a very short time.

"And you won't need to hide your abilities at all. You'll only need to conceal your evil aura.

"If you show your talent and cultivate by devouring the flesh and blood of Soul Beasts and plants,

"yet show no signs of corruption and suffer no ill effects..."

He paused. "Shrek might even take notice of you and pour all its resources into nurturing you.

"And once you have value, they'll help you rebuild the Tang Sect too."

He looked at Tang Ya and smiled faintly. "That's how the world works."

Tang Ya shuddered. Her hatred for this world only grew deeper.

She would climb to the very top, step by step. She would grow strong and have a voice. She would never let anyone look down on her again.

If Lin Chen helped her and concealed her identity, she would have everything.

"Please. I'm begging you.

"I'll do anything. Please help me corrupt my Martial Soul."

Lin Chen smiled at her excitement. This task was going to be easy.

Besides, renewing the flame cost him next to nothing. It was merely the most basic function of his Reincarnation Soul-Guiding Martial Soul.

No sooner said than done. Lin Chen began the Martial Soul corruption ritual right there.

He took the necessary tools from his Storage Soul Tool.

He had performed this ritual countless times in the Holy Spirit Cult. He knew it like the back of his hand and could do it with his eyes closed.

Evil patterns spread across the ground, one after another.

Tang Ya sat at the center of the array with her eyes closed, letting evil energy ravage her body and remake her Martial Soul.

Only an hour passed.

When the last wisp of black light faded, Tang Ya had been fully transformed into an Evil Soul Master.

Her Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul had turned pitch-black, giving off a faint, eerie glow.

Her features had gained a seductive edge. Her already beautiful face looked as though it wore smoky makeup.

She was as stunning as ever, but now there was something wickedly alluring about her.

Tang Ya had always been beautiful. After this corruption, her uncanny beauty was enough to make anyone's heart skip a beat.

"This won't do." Lin Chen raised an eyebrow.

He summoned the Reincarnation Soul-Guiding Lamp at once, and its flame shed a holy light.

With a tap of his finger, he branded Tang Ya, then quietly sent a wisp of candleflame into her sea of consciousness.

From that moment on, Tang Ya was completely in his grasp.

As the wisp of flame gradually brightened, her evil aura receded. It took only fifteen minutes.

She slowly opened her eyes. The pitch-black Blue Silver Grass around her had returned to its blue-green color.

The smoky look on her face had vanished without a trace, as though nothing had happened.

But she was now an Evil Soul Master—one who looked perfectly normal.

Her Martial Soul was still twisted and evil, still capable of devouring everything. Lin Chen had merely concealed it all.

That was the power of the Reincarnation Soul-Guiding Lamp.

Lin Chen received the system reward.

[Congratulations, host. Task completed. You have obtained 100 High-Tier Escort Points.]

Excellent!

He was another step closer to redeeming those eyes.

Tang Ya moved her arms and legs. Feeling the utterly different power within her, she could hardly believe it.

"My Martial Soul doesn't look any different, but I've grown so much stronger.

"That candleflame is incredible. It really can hide everything about an Evil Soul Master.

"If your Holy Spirit Cult used this method to plant spies in the other major powers, who could ever find them?"

"Not practical. Without me renewing the flame, it fails in seven days."

"That's true."

"All right." Lin Chen put away the Soul-Guiding Lamp. "Let's go while we still have time.

"We'll test your new abilities and raise your strength while we're at it."

Tang Ya glanced toward the camp, uneasy.

"Won't they wake up?"

"What if they do?

"And what if they don't?"

Lin Chen did not look back.

Tang Ya could only follow. "They'll worry when they find us gone."

She bit her lip.

"Bei Bei will get the wrong idea."

"What wrong idea?

"Are the two of you together?"

Lin Chen glanced at her, his tone mild.

"Besides, you're only using him, aren't you?

"You're a gold digger."

"I am not a gold digger!"

Tang Ya grew flustered.

"If you're not, what are you?"

Lin Chen looked at her with a faint, knowing smile.

"I just... I just..."

Tang Ya herself did not know how to answer.

"You just what?

"Just want to use him?"

The question stopped Tang Ya cold. She had nothing to say.

Put that way, she really did sound like a gold digger.

She had kept Bei Bei dangling all this time, never even letting him touch her hand, while asking him to keep giving.

"Do you know who he is?"

Lin Chen spoke at an unhurried pace. "He's the Dragon God Douluo's great-grandson."

"The Dragon God Douluo?

"Who's that?"

Tang Ya froze.

"The Dragon God Douluo is the one who runs Shrek Academy—its true headmaster and a Level 99 Limit Douluo.

"So Bei Bei has been playing house with you all this time. He has strength, influence, and money.

"One word from him could establish a new Tang Sect for you at Shrek Academy.

"But he's willing to endure hardship with you. He wants to build it together with you, brick by brick.

He thinks that's what you want.

"What he doesn't know is that what you really want is a rich backer—

"someone who'll provide the people and the money and build the Tang Sect for you in one fell swoop."

"That's nonsense! I'm not that kind of person!"

"Heh. Do you believe that yourself?

If you did, you wouldn't have said what you said while we were eating grilled fish."

Tang Ya's expression dimmed.

"I knew his background might be unusual. I just never imagined it was that unusual.

"I never planned to be with him,"

she said quietly. "I only want revenge and to rebuild the Tang Sect.

"He just happened to help me when I was at my lowest."

"A classic line from a heartbreaker," Lin Chen said without mercy.

"If you have nothing to hide, you don't need to cover anything up.

"If you truly like him, tell him everything."

"He doesn't mean enough to me for me to tell him everything."

Tang Ya bit her lip.

"Then stop leading him on. Let's go."

Lin Chen had seen through Tang Ya long ago. She nodded in silence.

They were on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest. There were no powerful Soul Beasts here, but plenty of hundred-year and thousand-year ones remained.

To others, those Soul Beasts might have posed a considerable threat. To Lin Chen, they were no match at all.

He said nothing more. He simply led Tang Ya from one kill to the next.

With each Soul Beast he killed, another blood-red thread extended from him, skewering the beast and suspending it in the air.

No matter how large a Soul Beast was, Lin Chen's red thread lifted it with ease. He himself seemed to bear no weight at all.

He showed Tang Ya

what an absolute genius was,

and what it meant to crush an opponent utterly.

Lin Chen used only one motion to kill every Soul Beast.

He raised his sword and swung!

Getsuga Tenshō.