Hun Changqing heard Yao Chen's rejecting words, chuckled, and interrupted him as he spoke.
"Yao Chen, no need to be in such a hurry to refuse. I know you think I used to be a member of the Soul Palace and am untrustworthy, believing I will commit countless evils after I grow up. After all, the image of the Soul Palace's people is far too deeply rooted in the hearts of those in the Central Plains. Sigh..."
Hun Changqing put on a look of regret, sighed, and continued.
"You don't know this, Yao Chen, but I am an orphan. I was taken to the Soul Palace to be raised as soon as I could remember things, and this was not something I could choose.
Furthermore, the Soul Palace elder who trained us told us children that the Soul Palace performed so many acts of slaughter for the sake of the stability and development of the Central Plains.
The people killed were all deservedly unstable elements who affected the peace of the Central Plains.
Meanwhile, the Pill Tower harbored wild ambitions, deluded the common people, and widely recruited alchemists to join, attempting to control the entire Central Plains with pills.
And thereby radiating to every corner of the entire continent, plotting to rule the entire Dou Qi Continent.
Alas, we were too young at the time and did not know how to tell right from wrong. Hearing the elder's words one by one, the children were filled with righteous indignation, wishing they could immediately rush into the Pill Tower and slaughter those with wild ambitions.
Even I was the same, deeply convinced by the elder's words and strictly executing the orders issued by the Soul Palace.
In the end, my hands were still stained with the blood of those innocent people, sigh..."
Hun Changqing revealed an expression of emotion and sorrow, sighing endlessly as if feeling endless grief for the innocent people who died at his hands.
"W... What?!"
Yao Chen was inherently a person of relatively kind nature, upright and open all his life, not fearing the powerful.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have offended the upper echelons of the Yao Clan due to injustice in his youth and thus been expelled from the Yao Clan.
Upon hearing Hun Changqing's words and being infected by Hun Changqing's sorrowful and heavy emotions, he couldn't help but roar up to the sky, his hatred for the Soul Palace stepping up to a new level.
"Soul Palace... Soul Palace! How dare you! How dare you indeed! Deceiving these young children, slandering the Pill Tower, utilizing the kindness and justice in the hearts of these children to turn them into sharp blades for manufacturing sins in your hands! Ah! Beasts! You beasts! Soul Palace!"
Yao Chen roared toward the sky, his eyes bloodshot, and his aura became extremely chaotic.
Seeing this, the corners of Hun Changqing's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a smile that was hard for Yao Chen to notice, and he continued.
"It was only by chance a short while ago that I discovered the abnormalities of the Soul Palace, realizing the truth was completely different from what the Soul Palace claimed, and at that time, I also happened to discover information about you, Yao Chen.
When I saw your profile back then, your conduct in life truly made me filled with admiration and yearning.
At the time, I also discovered that you might be the only person in this world capable of refining pills for me, which was why I developed the intention to seek you out. Unfortunately, back then, there was not the slightest trace of you in the Central Plains.
Afterward, because I was very angry at the actions of the Soul Palace, I was preparing to find a suitable opportunity to leave the Soul Palace and didn't pay attention to your news anymore.
In the end, I originally wanted to take that Secret Realm opportunity and quietly defect while leaving the Secret Realm, but I didn't expect that I would ultimately defect while being hunted down, and even lost an arm."
As he spoke, Hun Changqing couldn't help but reveal a trace of self-deprecating expression.
Feeling Hun Changqing's emotions, Yao Chen couldn't help but be drawn in, his mood rising and falling along with it. Listening to Hun Changqing's tragic encounter undoubtedly made him even more angry.
"Therefore, when I guessed that you, Yao Lao, were inside this ring, I was extremely excited. It wasn't just because you could refine pills for me, but also because your deeds made me admire you endlessly, and I desperately wanted to have a good chat with you, which led me to commit some over-the-top actions. I only hope you won't mind this time."
After calming his mood at this moment, Yao Chen heard Hun Changqing's lavish praise and surprisingly felt a rare touch of embarrassment.
"Haha... Haha, it's nothing, it's nothing. I just didn't expect that those trivial things the old man did back then would be seen by you. I'm ashamed, truly ashamed, haha."
Hun Changqing's wave of flattery made this old fellow Yao Chen's mood unexpectedly much better.
"This matter of cooperation between you and me, Yao Lao, is not just about you giving; the essence of cooperation is mutual help. You refine pills for me, and I will also provide you with some assistance.
I believe that with your exceptionally high alchemy prowess during your lifetime, Yao Lao, you definitely have a way to help yourself recover, right?
Since you are currently in a soul state and it's inconvenient for you to move about on the continent, I can search for all the materials you need.
I won't dare speak for the Central Plains, but in this speck of a place, I will definitely get everything you need into your hands one by one.
By then, after you recover, relying on your immersion for so many years, who's to say you won't break and then stand, advancing to a Half-Saint.
With your help, I will also grow stronger at an extremely fast pace.
Moreover, I previously gathered a piece of intelligence: twelve years from now, the Bodhi Ancient Tree, which appears only once every thousand years, will manifest in the Barbaric Ancient Region!
I have the confidence to break through to a Half-Saint by then. When that time comes, you and I will enter the Barbaric Ancient Region together to seize the Bodhi Seed and the Bodhi Heart!
Both of us will achieve that supreme Dou Sheng realm!
By then, we will charge into the Central Plains Soul Palace together, rolling heads with our slaughter! Slaughtering that group of evil-doers who plague the common people until not a single one remains!
Delivering justice on behalf of heaven! Granting the Central Plains a bright and clear universe!"
As he spoke, Hun Changqing's expression turned solemn, his voice became incomparably passionate, and the aura around his body suddenly changed, making it extremely inspiring!
Yao Chen was also shocked by these words from Hun Changqing, his expression blank, and he muttered incessantly in his mouth.
"Enter the Barrens... Seize the Bodhi... Storm the Soul Palace... Deliver justice on behalf of heaven... Return a bright and clear universe to the Central Plains..."
The more Yao Chen chanted, the more excited he became. In the end, the youthful hot-bloodedness deep within his body that had been dormant for I don't know how long was completely awakened at this moment! He couldn't help but clap his hands and laugh up to the sky.
"Hahaha! Good, good! Deliver justice on behalf of heaven! Return a bright and clear universe to the Central Plains! Good, ah! Hahaha!"
Seeing Yao Chen like this, Hun Changqing narrowed his eyes slightly, a smile floating on his lips. He knew this matter was accomplished.