Night lay thick as ink over Wutan City. Xiao Yan stood alone in the courtyard, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles had turned white.
The humiliation he had just suffered in the main hall had branded his heart like a searing iron.
Nalan Yanran's contemptuous gaze, Elder Ge Ye's threats, and the deliberately averted eyes of his clansmen had all become sharp, venomous thorns, piercing deep into his organs.
"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west..."
He repeated the vow under his breath, his voice trembling slightly with anger.
Moonlight fell across his slender shoulders, stretching the boy's stubborn silhouette long, yet it could not dispel the despair lingering around him.
The three-stage Dou Qi within him stirred faintly, like a guttering candle in the wind that might go out at any moment. His tightly clenched fists unconsciously loosened a little.
Just then, an almost imperceptible rustling drifted quietly from behind him.
Xiao Yan spun around, Dou Qi instantly gathering in his palm as he warily scanned the empty courtyard.
Beneath the moonlight, tree shadows swayed. There was only the mournful sound of wind through leaves, with not a soul in sight.
"Who's there?"
His sharp demand rang with startling clarity through the silent night.
No one answered. Just as Xiao Yan began to think his overwrought nerves had made him hear things, the sound came again. This time, it was no rustle, but a barely audible whisper, as though someone were breathing softly against his ear:
"Heh heh heh... What an interesting soul..."
The voice was cold enough to pierce bone, carrying an eerie menace that made his skin crawl, as though it came from the deepest pits of hell.
Every hair on Xiao Yan's body stood on end. He stumbled back several steps, pressed his back against the wall, and looked around. There was still no one there.
"Who's playing ghostly tricks?"
He forced himself to sound calm, but the tremor in his voice betrayed his fear.
"No need to panic, young friend..."
The eerie voice sounded again, this time echoing directly inside his mind,
"I am a deacon of the Soul Hall. I sensed unusual fluctuations in your soul and came expressly to help."
The Soul Hall?
Xiao Yan's pupils abruptly contracted. That name had long since become taboo on the continent. After the Hun Clan went into hiding a hundred years ago, the Soul Hall had vanished without a trace, leaving only scattered records in ancient legends.
Weren't they supposed to be living in seclusion deep within the continent? Why had they suddenly appeared-and come looking for him?
"What exactly do you want?"
Xiao Yan gritted his teeth as he asked, his right hand secretly reaching for the dagger at his waist.
"Heh heh heh... To help you restore your Dou Qi, of course, and even make you stronger."
The voice in his mind carried a mocking chuckle,
"Think about it. Nalan Yanran's contempt, your clansmen's ridicule-don't you want to wash away every last one of those humiliations? All you need to do is cooperate with me..."
"Cooperate?"
Xiao Yan snorted,
"Cooperate with people like you, who hide your heads and tails? Wouldn't that be asking a tiger for its hide?"
"Young people are certainly wary."
The voice spoke unhurriedly,
"Do you know why your Dou Qi has been draining away for no apparent reason?"
Those words exploded like thunder in Xiao Yan's mind. For three years, he had searched countless times for the cause without finding a single clue. It was the greatest mystery weighing on his heart.
"Was this your doing?"
Xiao Yan demanded sharply, anger blazing in his eyes.
"No, no." The voice chuckled,
"A special soul power lies hidden within you, but someone has sealed it. That seal not only locks away the power, it also steadily eats away at your Dou Qi."
Special soul power? Xiao Yan's heart shook violently. He had heard that those with powerful souls could often gain unexpected advantages on the path of cultivation.
Could he really possess something so wondrous?
"How do you know all this? And how can you help me?"
Xiao Yan struggled to suppress his excitement, his voice trembling slightly.
"Heh heh heh... I have my ways."
A hint of temptation crept into the voice,
"The Soul Hall possesses the finest secret soul arts on the continent. You need only enter into a Soul Contract, and I can help you break the seal. I can even teach you the Soul Absorption Technique. Then, never mind Nalan Yanran-even the entire Misty Cloud Sect will have to bow at your feet."
Xiao Yan fell silent. He recalled his father's increasingly stooped back, his clansmen's disappointed eyes, and Nalan Yanran's cold figure as she walked away.
The yearning born of despair wound around his heart like vines, nearly strangling his breath.
"This contract... What is the price?"
He forced the question out.
"Very simple."
The voice grew solemn. "Once it is done, you must serve the Soul Hall for ten years. During that time, you may neither reveal its secrets nor betray the contract."
Ten years of service... Xiao Yan clenched his fists. This was undoubtedly asking a tiger for its hide, but the temptation before him was simply too great. Without strength, he could only live forever beneath today's humiliation, never able to help restore his clan.
"How can I trust you?"
"You can first experience a little of my sincerity."
The moment those words fell, an icy current abruptly poured into Xiao Yan's brow, traveling through his meridians and throughout his body.
His previously dormant Dou Qi actually began to stir, and a faint warmth spread from his dantian.
"This is..." Xiao Yan felt the changes within him in astonishment. A comfort he had not experienced in three years swept through his entire body.
"Heh heh heh... Just a small taste of what I can do."
The voice brimmed with satisfaction,
"Well? Will you accept this contract?"
Beneath the moonlight, Xiao Yan's shadow shook violently on the ground, as though locked in a battle between heaven and man.
After a long while, he abruptly raised his head, a glint of resolve flashing in his eyes:
"Fine! I agree!"
"A wise choice." The voice grew excited. "
Now relax your mind. I will plant the Soul Seed within you and establish the contract."
Xiao Yan felt heat flare between his brows. A pitch-black mark quietly appeared, then sank beneath his skin and vanished.
At the same time, a passage of profound, mysterious writing appeared in his mind-the contents of the Soul Contract.
"From this day onward, you are the Soul Hall's agent in the outside world." The voice became solemn,
"Remember, unless you have absolutely no other choice, you must not reveal your connection to the Soul Hall. Once you break the seal on your soul power, someone will contact you to teach you the secret arts."
The voice gradually faded, leaving behind one final, meaningful whisper:
"Heh heh heh... I look forward to your growth, future candidate for Dou Di."
Silence returned to the courtyard. Only Xiao Yan remained where he stood, his entire body trembling slightly.
He lowered his gaze to his palm. His feeble Dou Qi was slowly reviving. Though still weak, it possessed a vitality he had never felt before.
"Nalan Yanran, Misty Cloud Sect..."
He murmured under his breath, a complicated light flickering in his eyes,
"For today's humiliation, I will repay you a hundredfold!"
The night deepened. Wind swept through the courtyard in Wutan City, carrying a barely perceptible trace of soul Qi that quietly seeped into the boy's body.
A secret contract capable of overturning the entire Dou Qi Continent had been quietly forged on this silent night.
Yet Xiao Yan did not know that this contract would lead him down a path strewn with thorns and slaughter, leaving him to struggle time and again between light and darkness.
In the days that followed, Xiao Yan began cultivating in secret according to the Soul Hall elder's instructions.
Each day, he secluded himself in a hidden chamber, circulating his Dou Qi and trying to reach the sealed soul power within him.
At first, progress was painfully slow. The sealing force was like an indestructible rampart, stubbornly blocking his probing efforts.
But Xiao Yan did not give up. With tenacious willpower and unwavering conviction, he persisted day after day.
As time passed, Xiao Yan gradually learned a few tricks.
He discovered that when he cast aside stray thoughts and immersed his entire mind in the depths of his soul, he could sense a faint response from the sealed power.
Every tiny stirring filled him with excitement, as though he had glimpsed the first light of hope.
And so, through unceasing effort and fortunate encounters, Xiao Yan's strength gradually increased.
Half a year later, on a night of the full moon, Xiao Yan was cultivating in seclusion in the hidden chamber when he suddenly felt violent changes in his Dou Qi and soul power. The previously sealed soul power surged forth like floodwater bursting through a dam, mingling with his Dou Qi.
Under the impact of that immense power, Xiao Yan successfully broke through to the Da Dou Shi realm.
At the moment of his breakthrough, Xiao Yan felt strength fill his entire body, as though he possessed the power to destroy heaven and earth. He slowly opened his eyes, confidence gleaming within them.
"Nalan Yanran, Misty Cloud Sect, I will soon make you repay the humiliation you gave me twice over!"
He spoke softly to himself, his voice carrying a resolve stronger than ever before.
Meanwhile, at the distant headquarters of the Soul Hall, an old man in black robes suddenly opened his eyes, a faint, satisfied smile appearing on his face:
"This boy has rather exceeded my expectations. It seems our plan can proceed smoothly..."
Before you continue