Yue Mei

At the thought, wariness and unease rose in both their hearts.

Yue Guan ventured a question. "May I ask your name, young master? Who is your teacher, and who is your father?"

Lin Yue leaned leisurely against the counter, soothing them in a gentle voice:

"Don't be nervous. My name is Lin Yue. I'm just an orphan. After coming to this world, all I did was open this shop."

Having said that, Lin Yue's thoughts surged.

In the original story, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo had chosen Bibi Dong's side after Qian Xunji died, becoming her closest confidants. Yet until their deaths, they had never received precious rewards such as Soul Bones. Their ends had indeed been miserable.

By contrast, Dugu Bo and Bone Douluo, who were at the same level, both had Soul Bones. The difference was stark.

With that thought, since the men themselves stood before him, he asked outright without any reservations:

"Speaking of which, I'm curious."

"You've served Spirit Hall for years. After Qian Xunji was killed by Bibi Dong, you followed her and served her loyally for so long. Have you really never received any tangible benefits?"

At those words, Yue Guan and Gui Mei both stiffened.

This young man, whom they had only just met, had pierced the hidden pain they had endured for half their lives with a single sentence.

Outsiders saw only their lofty positions as elders, their boundless prestige, and the power in their hands.

But only they knew how they had bent their backs to exhaustion for Spirit Hall all these years, performing countless dirty, thankless tasks that could never see the light of day.

Yet apart from the stipends and empty titles due to elders, what they had given had long since exceeded what Spirit Hall had returned dozens of times over.

Half a lifetime risking their lives, half a lifetime swallowing their grievances-no one had ever seen through their hurt and disappointment.

But what truly made their hearts plummet.

Was that everyone outside, and even throughout Spirit Hall, believed Qian Xunji had died of incurable injuries after Tang Hao gravely wounded him.

Yet according to this young man, he had died at Bibi Dong's hands!

Although this overturned what they had believed for decades, filling them with shock and disbelief.

He had already exposed with a single remark the grievances and circumstances they had endured for half their lives, never speaking of them to outsiders. The truth of his words was self-evident.

After a long while, Gui Mei spoke first, his voice somewhat strained:

"Young friend... what exactly is your aim?"

Hearing this, Lin Yue answered casually:

"I don't have one. I just think you're rather pitiful, so I wanted to ask whether you'd like to work for me."

Both men visibly froze.

Dignified Titled Douluos, called "pitiful" and offered an olive branch to their faces-ordinarily, they would have taken it as an insult.

After a brief silence, Gui Mei spoke:

"If we choose to follow you, what benefits can you give us, young friend?"

Lin Yue raised his eyebrows and said unhurriedly:

"Benefits? Naturally, there are some."

"Soul Bones, immortal herbs, top-tier cultivation methods, Self-Created Soul Skills, or even becoming gods-none of those are a problem for me."

After a brief pause, he added:

"Of course, if you're afraid of being hunted down in retaliation after betraying Spirit Hall and Bibi Dong, pretend I never said anything."

Soul Bones, immortal herbs, top-tier cultivation methods, Self-Created Soul Skills, godhood...

Every word struck the lakes of their hearts like a boulder, stirring towering waves. Things they had sought in vain for half their lives were spoken of so lightly by the man before them.

And judging by his calm, casual expression, he had clearly only thought of recruiting them on a whim.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei exchanged another glance, their eyes filled with indescribably complicated feelings.

A moment later, Yue Guan cupped his hands.

"This is a matter of great importance. But young friend, we truly cannot tell whether these promises of yours are true."

"Words alone are no proof. We really find it difficult to believe."

Lin Yue smiled, unbothered, and pointed toward a row of gaming pods inside the shop.

"Fine. Consider it a pre-employment benefit."

"Choose whichever gaming pod you like. Once you enter the game, you'll understand everything."

Yue Guan and Gui Mei exchanged a look. Though doubtful, things had come this far, and they had no other choice.

Each chose a pod and lay down. The glass doors closed, and their consciousness sank into a void.

On the Martial Soul selection interface, both independently chose the other's Martial Soul and clicked confirm.

The next instant, heaven and earth spun.

When they opened their eyes again, the world around them had changed.

Unlike Zhu Zhuqing, who had appeared randomly in the Heavenly Radiance Empire through sheer chance, Yue Guan and Gui Mei's landing site had been secretly manipulated by Lin Yue through the system.

Fragments of sunlight filtered through the leaves, scattering mottled patches of light, while cicadas and birds called clearly around them.

They felt the soft earth beneath their feet.

Yue Guan opened his eyes first. What greeted him was no longer the quiet, old-fashioned shop, but a dense forest that blotted out the sky.

Gui Mei rolled over and sat up right after him. He looked down at his hands, then around him, a rare note of bewilderment entering his voice:

"Where... is this?"

"I suppose that game the young fellow mentioned brought us here."

Yue Guan spoke softly, brushing blades of grass from his robes.

"Come on, old ghost."

"Since he said we'd understand everything once we came in, let's take a look."

Afterward, they pushed aside the bushes and moved slowly through the forest, following the lay of the land. Before long, they found a narrow, winding path.

People passed continuously in twos and threes, all ordinary folk dressed in coarse cloth and hemp, hurrying along with their families in the same direction.

Gui Mei stopped a woman carrying a young child on her back, trying to make his voice sound friendlier:

"Madam, may I ask where this is? Where are you all going?"

The woman looked them up and down. Seeing their fine clothes and extraordinary bearing, she immediately showed some respect and hurried to answer:

"You two lords must be from elsewhere, right? The Martial Soul Sect is just ahead. Those kind Lords Soul Masters awaken Martial Souls for poor people like us free of charge every month, and treat illnesses and injuries."

"My child's been sick for several days without getting better, so I'm taking the little one there to try our luck."

After hearing her out, Gui Mei thanked her and let her leave.

He exchanged another glance with Yue Guan, finding the same puzzlement in each other's eyes.

"Martial Soul... Sect?"

Yue Guan murmured, "Not Spirit Hall?"

"Come on. Let's follow them and look."

Narrowing his eyes, Gui Mei stepped forward to follow.

They followed the stream of people, and before long, an imposing mountain gate finally came into view.

Yet when they truly saw the sight before them, even with their composure as Titled Douluos, they froze in place, their eyes filled with astonishment.

Although this so-called "Martial Soul Sect" covered a broad area, its scale was actually about the same as the Upper Three Sects in their world.

The sect's buildings were arranged in pleasing order, but they fell far short of Spirit Hall's gilded splendor and air of supremacy over the world.

No wonder this place was called a "sect" rather than a "hall."

Yue Guan steadied himself and swept his gaze over the sect's square. Suddenly, his expression shifted. He gently tugged Gui Mei's sleeve and lowered his voice:

"Old ghost, look at the end of that long line. That person..."

Gui Mei followed his gaze and saw a woman in a pale yellow dress standing at the end of the long queue, treating a child's illness with a Soul Skill.

He frowned, somewhat puzzled:

"Isn't she just a woman? What's there to look at?"

"Take a closer look at her face."

An inexplicable emotion colored Yue Guan's voice. Hearing him, Gui Mei focused his gaze again.

This time, the longer he looked, the more alarmed he became, and the harder it was to believe!

The woman's eyes, brows, features, and even the slight upward curve of her lips bore a sixty- or seventy-percent resemblance to Yue Guan beside him!

Only her manner was gentle and tender, entirely without Yue Guan's effeminate, uncanny air.

"This..."

Gui Mei's pupils contracted sharply. His throat bobbed, and for a long while, he could not speak.

Seeing this, Yue Guan suddenly gave a coquettish smile, raised his hand to point behind the woman in yellow, and said softly:

"Not so fast. Look at the person behind her."

Gui Mei turned his head and looked closely.

A young man in plain white robes stood quietly behind the woman. His face was delicate and handsome, his features bearing a seventy- or eighty-percent resemblance to Gui Mei himself, yet his bearing was the complete opposite.

Gui Mei was perpetually wreathed in eerie ghostly energy, resembling a specter from the underworld, while that man radiated a warmth as gentle as jade. With a smile on his lips, he was like the warm spring sun, making others feel bathed in a spring breeze.

Gui Mei stiffened all over, his eyes widening and even his breathing stopping.

"That's... me?"

His voice was strained, trembling with disbelief.

Afterward, to clarify the situation before them, they discussed matters and decided to use joining the Martial Soul Sect as a pretext to gather more information about this world.

So they smeared some mud on their faces, borrowed patched clothing from others, and blended into the queue.

About ten minutes later, their turn finally came.

Before the bluestone platform, the woman in yellow whose features so resembled Yue Guan looked up with a gentle smile:

"Are you two here for treatment?"

Yue Guan shook his head, deliberately making his voice more even as he spoke:

"We've wandered here and heard of your sect's benevolence. We'd like to join and find some work."

"I see."

The woman smiled slightly. Then the white-robed man beside her stepped forward and said to them:

"If you wish to join the sect, let me see your Martial Souls."

Both nodded slightly and released their Martial Souls simultaneously without the slightest hesitation.

An enormous, magnificent singular velvet sky chrysanthemum slowly appeared in Gui Mei's palm. Its glittering golden petals overlapped in layers, shimmering with color as it rested steadily in his hand, exuding an awe-inspiring immortal aura.

Meanwhile, a cold wind sprang up around Yue Guan. A pitch-black, illusory humanoid ghostly shadow slowly formed behind him, and an icy, deathly still aura spread silently.

Looking at the utterly different Martial Souls in one's hand and behind the other, they exchanged a glance and chuckled soundlessly.

The woman in yellow stared at the golden chrysanthemum, her pupils contracting sharply and her lips parting slightly.

Then she instinctively turned toward the white-robed man behind her. He, too, was staring blankly at the ghostly shadow behind Yue Guan, a rare look of astonishment on his face.

A moment later, they came back to their senses.

They brought Yue Guan and Gui Mei to a reception room inside the sect.

The woman in yellow spoke first, her voice gentle:

"My name is Yue Mei. My Martial Soul is the singular velvet sky chrysanthemum. I'm a level eighty-five Soul Douluo."

As she spoke, she raised her fair hand, and a dazzling chrysanthemum bloomed in her palm.

Its petals, however, were a vivid crimson, like fire and rosy clouds. Compared with Yue Guan's brilliant golden sky chrysanthemum, it possessed an added measure of bewitching, eye-catching splendor.

The young man in white beside her followed, speaking slowly.

"My name is Gui Guan. My Martial Soul is Ghost Shadow. I'm also a level eighty-five Soul Douluo."

As he spoke, a pitch-black humanoid ghostly shadow appeared behind him, almost identical to the Martial Soul Gui Mei had released earlier.

Upon hearing those two names, Yue Guan and Gui Mei both froze, instantly falling silent.

Mei was the Mei in Gui Mei.

Guan sounded the same as the Guan in Yue Guan.

How could there be such a coincidence in this world?

Their names, Martial Souls, and even their similar appearances all seemed like an absurd joke played by fate.

At that moment, towering waves surged in their hearts. How could they fail to see that the man and woman before them were undoubtedly tied to them by countless hidden threads?

After a brief silence, Yue Guan coughed lightly and cupped his hands. "I am... Li Qing, a castoff of my family."

Then he pointed to Gui Mei beside him:

"This is Wang Xuan. We've traveled together across the continent for many years. Now we only wish to find somewhere to settle down and live for good."

"During our travels, we happened to hear of your sect's benevolent deeds in helping the world. Filled with admiration, we came here hoping to join."

Yue Mei and Gui Guan exchanged a glance. His words sounded sincere rather than fabricated, and they also considered their matching Martial Souls.

After a moment's thought, they nodded in agreement.

"That would be splendid."

"You must be exhausted in body and mind after your long journey. I'll have someone arrange lodgings right away. Get some proper rest first."

Gui Guan spoke slowly.

He then summoned a sect disciple and gave a few instructions, and the disciple led Yue Guan and Gui Mei to a quiet, elegant guest room.

The door closed, shutting out everything outside.

Yue Guan let out a long, stale breath. The heartstrings that had remained taut finally loosened somewhat. He turned to glance at Gui Mei beside him, his voice returning to its familiar tone with a hint of teasing:

"Old ghost, you really are a blockhead. If I hadn't improvised that story just now, we might already have been arrested as spies. When it counts, you still have to rely on me."

Gui Mei nodded, offering no argument for once, and merely said gravely:

"Chrysanthemum Guan, do you think everything we've seen and experienced was deliberately arranged by that kid?"

Yue Guan's smile faded. Leaning beside the window, he looked at the swaying bamboo shadows in the courtyard, his voice growing subdued:

"I don't know whether he arranged it. But he clearly said that once we came in, we'd learn whether his promises about Soul Bones, immortal herbs, and the like were true."

He turned to look at Gui Mei, a complicated expression rising in his eyes.

"But now, not only have we gained nothing, we have more and more questions."

Gui Mei nodded slightly. "So we need to go back and get a clear answer."

With that, they looked at one another, yet had no idea how to return.

The next second, a pale blue screen abruptly unfolded before them, accompanied by an icy mechanical voice:

"Players' intent to exit detected. Exit?"