My goodnight to you

Lin Mo sat with his eyes closed, his breathing slow and steady.

Soul power circulated slowly through his meridians, compressing, purifying, then compressing again.

With every circulation cycle he completed, he could feel his soul power growing purer, but in exchange, the improvement of his soul skills had slowed considerably.

Teacher's theory really worked. Compress the space holding my soul power, then squeeze and purify the soul power gathered during cultivation. Over time, my level will rise much more slowly, but the purity of my soul power will definitely reach new heights.

Not only that, even though my soul power level will rise more slowly, the gap will remain unchanged. In some situations, I'll even be a little stronger.

For instance, someone who reached level 24 using the Compression Cultivation Method would have roughly the same total soul power as someone who reached level 28 through ordinary cultivation, but would be far stronger when using soul skills.

He gradually settled into his cultivation.

After an unknown stretch of time, someone gently pushed the door open from outside.

"Brother Xiao Mo?"

Lin Mo opened his eyes.

Huo Yuyao stood in the doorway, wearing a loose white nightdress. Her still-damp hair hung over her shoulders, and she held a pillow in her arms.

"Huh, Little Yao, why is your hair wet?"

"Because I just took a bath. A towel won't dry it completely."

Huo Yuyao reached up to touch her long, azure-blue hair as she spoke.

"Ah, doesn't that feel uncomfortable?"

Lin Mo also reached out to touch Huo Yuyao's hair as he asked.

"Actually... a little, but there's nothing I can do. My soul power isn't enough to blow my hair dry yet, and I'm not a fire-element soul master."

Come to think of it, things like hair dryers don't exist here. Soul masters wouldn't catch a chill and get sick just because their hair wasn't dry, either.

Looking at Huo Yuyao's damp hair, Lin Mo briefly fell into thought.

"What's wrong, Brother Xiao Mo?"

"Nothing. All right, come on up. Get some rest early. We're leaving tomorrow, so skip cultivation tonight."

"Ah, okay."

Huo Yuyao took off her shoes, carefully climbed onto the bed, and lay down beside Lin Mo. His familiar presence brought the girl an inexplicable sense of peace.

Lin Mo turned off the light and lay down as well. The day's events had indeed left him a little tired, but perhaps because someone was lying beside him, he couldn't fall asleep right away.

The moon outside the window slowly shifted, carrying its soft light along with it.

Hah, why can't I fall asleep all of a sudden?

Lying flat on the bed, Lin Mo stared out the window, troubled. Now that he was a soul master, he no longer needed to sleep every day like ordinary people, but there was nothing else he could do right now. After all, someone was sleeping beside him.

Suddenly, a faint rustle came from beside Lin Mo as someone turned over.

Hmm, is Little Yao still awake?

Curious, Lin Mo carefully turned his head. He had only meant to steal a glance, but instead met a pair of tear-filled eyes with reddened corners.

"Brother Xiao Mo..."

Huo Yuyao lay beside him, her already petite body curled up close. She seemed to have been about to reach out and take hold of him.

"Wh-what's wrong? Little Yao, why are you crying? Who upset you? Don't cry, don't cry."

Having rarely interacted with girls, he was even more at a loss when faced with Little Yao's tears. Flustered, he took something out of his Storage Soul Tool and used it to wipe them away.

"You."

Huo Yuyao quietly named the "culprit," making Lin Mo freeze in the middle of wiping her tears.

"...Me?"

"Yes."

Faced with this pitiful beauty on the verge of tears, Lin Mo's brain first churned up a storm.

"Me... me? What did I do?"

Lin Mo: O-O

Huo Yuyao: ૮₍ɵ̷﹏ɵ̷̥̥᷅₎ა

"Why?"

"You scared me today."

Lin Mo turned his head to look at her blankly.

Huo Yuyao pouted, bumping her little head against Lin Mo's arm in displeasure.

"When you broke through today, you got struck and fell to the ground. You wouldn't wake up. I was scared to death. I thought... I thought..."

As the girl spoke, more and more tears gathered in her eyes, and Lin Mo felt as though someone had gripped his heart tight.

He reached out and gently stroked Huo Yuyao's head.

It was the same gentle touch as always, yet at this moment, it brought Huo Yuyao a different kind of reassurance.

Feeling that gentle caress and familiar warmth on her head, the girl instinctively snuggled closer to Lin Mo. She even wrapped her arms around his waist, gripping his clothes tightly.

"I'm sorry..."

Seeing this, Lin Mo didn't think too much of it. He simply drew her into his arms as naturally as could be.

"Don't apologize."

Huo Yuyao shook her head.

"I don't want you doing anything so dangerous. I-I'll work hard to grow stronger. Sister Tian Meng said I'll become really, really strong in the future, too, so don't do anything so dangerous. I'll definitely protect you, Brother Xiao Mo."

Huo Yuyao's voice grew louder as she spoke, the trembling sobs in it becoming increasingly distinct. Her forehead pressed tightly against Lin Mo's shoulder.

"Mom's already gone. I don't want you to suddenly leave me, too."

Lin Mo didn't answer immediately. He only kept stroking the girl's back.

Of course, he could simply agree to her request, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He knew exactly what awaited them in the future. Dangerous things were things they would have to do.

To survive in this place where the strong devoured the weak, they had to grow stronger. If they wanted revenge, safety would never be possible. Yet feeling the warmth against his shoulder and hearing those faint sobs, he couldn't speak the truth.

"I'm sorry, but I promise I'll do my best to stay alive and won't let you worry."

"No."

"Silly girl, just like you said, you don't want to see me doing dangerous things. Then do you think I could watch you do one dangerous thing after another? Right? Besides, by age, I'm still your older brother."

As he spoke, he held his little finger out in front of her.

"As your older brother, I certainly can't watch my little sister do dangerous things to protect me. I couldn't do that, either."

He looked at Huo Yuyao, who had lifted her head, tears still clinging to her face.

"Let's make a pinky promise. First, I promise I won't die. Of course, you have to promise, too. We'll stay beside each other until the very end, all the way to the ends of this world."

Looking at the little finger held out to her, Huo Yuyao reached out as well.

Their little fingers hooked together.

"Pinky swear, hang it high, a hundred years, no changing our minds."

At first, Huo Yuyao hadn't understood what this gesture and phrase meant. Lin Mo had done this with her back when they were still at the Duke's Mansion, though their promises then had all been about food and similar things.

But Huo Yuyao knew that once they made a pinky promise, he would always keep it.

Their voices echoed clearly through the room. After making their promise, the two looked at each other and smiled.

"All right, be good and go to sleep now."

"Okay!"

Only then did Huo Yuyao smile, before hugging him a little shyly as she settled down to sleep.

"Then I want to sleep hugging you, Brother Xiao Mo. I feel safer that way."

"All right, but just this once. This is a special privilege."

"Mm-hmm."

And so, that night, both of them unexpectedly slept soundly through the latter half of the night, all the way until morning.

After packing their things and heading downstairs, the two soon noticed a middle-aged man standing beneath a large tree not far from the dormitory building.

"Now that you're here, let's set off."

The man showed no surprise at seeing them, nor did he ask much about their identities. He had already learned what he needed to know before coming.

"All right."

"All right."

A week passed, and Lin Mo, Huo Yuyao, and the Titled Douluo accompanying them arrived at the city closest to the Far North: Dragon City, a major stronghold in the northeastern Heaven Dou Empire.

It was also home to the two great sects, the Heavenly Dragon Sect and the Earth Dragon Sect.

Come to think of it, the ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow should be beneath the Earth Dragon Sect. Maybe...

Lin Mo couldn't help thinking about it as he stayed at the inn.

Forget it, forget it. I'll come back next time.

"Dragon City is quite tightly controlled."

A bald, middle-aged man sat opposite Lin Mo, drinking tea as his gaze swept over the Taxi Soldiers coming and going outside the window.

"Senior Ye, Little Yao and I will be heading into the Far North next. We expect to be gone for several days, so sorry for the trouble, but please stay here a little longer."

Indeed, the Titled Douluo accompanying-or rather, protecting-the two was Ye Yulin, an offering of the Sun Moon Empire's Worship Hall.

"Hmm, that's fine, but do you really not need me to follow you? The Far North is nothing like the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest. With your soul power, you really can't enter it."

Ye Yulin's expression was complicated. He had received a last-minute order from Kong Deming yesterday. Before that, he hadn't even known who Lin Mo and Huo Yuyao were.

But after learning the full story from Kong Deming, he had developed some interest in Lin Mo's martial soul. After all, despite having lived so long, he had never seen someone who could obtain soul rings by overcoming heavenly tribulations.

At first, he had maintained the aloof bearing of a powerhouse, but after spending a week with them, he had not only discovered that a nine-year-old child possessed such maturity, but had also been won over by the siblings' cooking.

Having been a Titled Douluo for many years, he naturally no longer needed food to replenish his stamina. Still, known as an old rascal, he often visited different places to enjoy fine food, yet he had never eaten anything so delicious.

Thanks to their food, his fondness for the two could be said to have soared in a straight line.

With the two intending to head into the Far North alone, entering a place explicitly marked as forbidden territory for humans with only level-20 soul power, he truly couldn't rest easy.

Moreover, this was the first mission Kong Deming had given him in recent years. Of course he wanted to carry it out perfectly. After all, Elder Kong's task for him was to ensure the two children's safety at all costs.

He had even specifically said that their futures could lead the empire to greater strength.

But Kong Deming had also relayed their wishes, leaving him in a dilemma. He had to ensure their safety, yet when they were in the greatest danger, he couldn't protect them.

"Don't worry, Senior Ye. We know what we're doing. We won't put ourselves in danger."

That was what they said, but how could Ye Yulin readily trust such weightless assurances?

Still, there was nothing he could do. The mission came with requirements, and he had to follow them.

He sighed helplessly and spoke.

"Hah, I understand. But you must take care of yourselves. This is a Soul Tool Signal Flare. Activate this soul tool immediately if you encounter danger. With minimal dissipation, the soul power inside can last for up to a week. As long as you activate it, I'll be able to trace the soul power within and find you."

"Understood. Then we'll set off now."

With that, the two said goodbye to Ye Yulin and walked together into the boundless snowfield.

Likewise, this would also become Ye Yulin's most despairing week. For the first two days, he desperately hoped to sense fluctuations from his own soul power.

Whether because of bad luck or some other reason, heavy snow began blowing as soon as they entered the Far North, making their advance somewhat difficult. It took them two and a half days to reach the Far North Hinterland.

"Ugh, aren't we way too unlucky?"

Huo Yuyao spoke as she walked forward. By now, she didn't dare open her mouth too wide when talking, afraid that saying a single sentence would earn her a mouthful of ice cream.

"At this rate, my eyes are going to lose their color."

"You two, honestly. All right, this spot is actually far enough. Or rather, we'd already gone far enough half a day ago, but I was afraid that place was too close to the edge and wouldn't be a good spot to call out."

"Hehe, great! We're finally here!"

Seeing Huo Yuyao excitedly about to hop up and down, Lin Mo hurriedly held her still.

"Um, do you want us to hide first?"

Recalling this part of the original story, when the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had made Huo Yuhao hide, he asked the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm for that very reason.

"Huh? Why would you hide?"

"Uh."

Hearing that, Lin Mo instead found himself at a loss for words. He couldn't very well say that was how it had been written in the book.

"I told you, the Ice Empress is my best friend. Don't worry. Though this sounds a little cruel, given her physical condition, without a fortuitous opportunity, she absolutely won't survive the 400,000-year heavenly tribulation."

As the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm said this, a hint of desolation showed on his face.

For soul beasts, especially those who had reached a hundred thousand years, nothing was more troubling than heavenly tribulations.

"All right, all right. Just stay here and relax. Next, it's this young lady's time to shine."

As he spoke, his body gradually took on a brilliant gold hue. Terrifying spiritual power surged outward like a tide. With a light push, he soared straight into the sky, and even the entire sky turned brilliant gold at that moment.

"Bingbing! Come out, come out, come out!"

Unlike the provocation in the original story, the female-form Sky Dream Ice Silkworm sounded as though he was calling a friend out to play.

Looks like it really is because of gender. Even his relationship with the Ice Empress has changed in a special way.

He had originally thought the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was only joking, never expecting him to actually call for the Ice Empress in this manner.

Hiss! Come to think of it, what kind of feelings does the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm have for the Ice Empress after turning into a girl? Are they just best friends? If it's romantic, wouldn't that be yuri? Huh, then what about the Snow Empress?

However, the situation gave him little time to ponder.