[You composed yourself, raised your eyes toward the Blue Silver King beside the cocoon of light, and asked softly, "Senior, could you tell me more about Ah Yin's past?"]
[The vines hanging around the Blue Silver King stilled slightly. Reminiscence surfaced on his aged face, and only after a long hesitation did he slowly speak.]
["Our sovereign is the previous Blue Silver Emperor's sole direct descendant. The purest, noblest imperial bloodline flows within her, and she is also the oldest Blue Silver Grass still living on this continent."]
["From birth, Her Majesty rooted herself deep within the Ancestral Land. Through ten thousand years of withering and flourishing, she scarcely ever took a single step beyond the forest."]
["She awakened the spirits and intelligence of newborn grass, guided her kin's cultivation with her own origin essence, and spurred the clan's transformation with her imperial bloodline... Through winter's cold and summer's heat, day after day, she guarded the clan's continuity and prosperity."]
["Her Majesty has always been gentle by nature, and endlessly patient with her people. Even the frailest seedlings received her careful protection and nourishment. In the hearts of all Blue Silver subjects, she was not merely the emperor who wielded authority over Blue Silver, but the kindest mother of the entire clan."]
["Then, forty years ago, Her Majesty faced her hundred-thousand-year Heavenly Tribulation. She knew her accumulated strength alone would not withstand the tribulation lightning. After much deliberation, she ultimately chose transformation and cultivation, and left the Ancestral Land."]
[At this point, the Blue Silver King's voice sank, steeped in an inextricable melancholy.]
["In truth, I know little of Her Majesty's experiences in the human world."]
["After taking human form and entering the world, Her Majesty seldom returned. Only occasionally would she send a few words back through the plants, saying, 'All is well,' so that her people would not worry."]
["Seventeen years ago, Her Majesty brought a human Soul Master back to the Ancestral Land." The Blue Silver King's tone grew more complicated, his vines lightly brushing the damp soil at his feet. "His aura was fierce, his entire body carried the baleful air of someone long steeped in slaughter, and his cultivation was unfathomable. Had he harbored ill intent, he could have shaken the peace of the entire Ancestral Land."]
["Fortunately, he bore no malice and was very close to Her Majesty. The two stayed in the Ancestral Land for only a few days before leaving together."]
[You understood-the man's true identity was naturally the Clear Sky Sect's Clear Sky Douluo, Tang Hao.]
[But you did not reveal it, merely lowering your eyes and listening quietly.]
[The Blue Silver King paused, his tone gradually turning sorrowful, as though even the surrounding air had grown still.]
["About a year later, I suddenly sensed the sacrificial magnetic field of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, and... our sovereign's demise."]
[Affected by his emotions, the Blue Silver Grass covering the hills and fields seemed to feel the sorrow as well. It drooped as one, giving off a low rustling, as though weeping and lamenting.]
["Sacrifice?" You feigned surprise, frowning slightly as you looked at the Blue Silver King. "But Ah Yin told me that she faced a life-or-death crisis and had no choice but to become a seed to preserve a thread of life."]
[The Blue Silver King slowly shook his head, his voice heavy. "It was indeed a suicidal sacrifice that destroyed her own origin essence."]
["Our sovereign mastered the Blue Silver Domain's Highest Profound Meaning-wildfires cannot burn it all away; the spring breeze blows, and it grows again."]
["So long as she did not sever her own origin essence, no matter how grievous her injuries, our sovereign could gather her vitality anew within forty-nine days and recover completely."]
["No one in this world could truly kill her, much less take her Soul Ring and Soul Bone by external force."]
["Only a suicidal sacrifice could truly cause her demise."]
[Your brows drew together slightly, revealing a carefully measured hint of confusion, as though you did not understand. "But I found her in a cold, damp cave. Sunlight was scarce there, and the soil was barren, utterly unsuitable for plants to grow."]
["If she truly sacrificed herself willingly, then whoever received her sacrifice should have returned her seed to the Ancestral Land. At the very least, they should have found somewhere with plentiful water and fertile soil to settle her properly. Why would they leave her in such a harsh environment?"]
[Readers in your previous life had offered many conjectures about that sacrifice.]
[For instance, that it had been an elaborate deception orchestrated by Tang Hao-]
[He knew full well that his own strength could never completely kill the Blue Silver Emperor. So he seized the moment when Ah Yin had just given birth, her vitality gravely depleted and her strength at its lowest, which also happened to be the crucial point when he had broken through to level 90 and still needed a Soul Ring. He deliberately leaked their whereabouts, drew in Spirit Hall's pursuers, and induced her to sacrifice herself willingly.]
[You had never put much stock in such conspiracy theories. Not because you trusted Tang Hao's character, but because you doubted he possessed the calculating depth to advance step by step and manipulate people's hearts.]
Seeing this, Su Yi outside the simulator could not help shaking his head.
The members of the Clear Sky Sect all seemed like reckless brutes, eager to fight, fierce and unbending, preferring to break rather than bow.
Yet throughout "Douluo Continent," countless Titled Douluo had fallen-
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's sword was broken and its bones shattered, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was exterminated to the last member, Poison Douluo died on the battlefield, and Spirit Hall suffered near-total casualties.
Only the Clear Sky Sect had never lost a single Titled Douluo from beginning to end.
Clearly, one could not truly assume others were stupid merely because they appeared reckless. Perhaps they only seemed fearless of death on the surface, while in reality every one of them was as slippery as a thief.
[Still, disbelief was one thing; it did not stop you from sailing with the current and quietly putting in a bad word about someone.]
[Besides, every word you said was true, without the slightest falsehood.]
[The Blue Silver King remained silent for a long time, the vines and leaves around him trembling slightly in the wind, as though his heart was churning with uncertainty.]
[After a long while, he finally sighed, his voice full of weariness. "Perhaps... that man did not know of the Blue Silver Emperor Clan's immortal talent. After Her Majesty fell, her origin seed may have been lost by accident and passed from place to place before ending up in that cave."]
[He was not entirely without doubts; he simply did not wish to probe deeper.]
[For one thing, the dust had long since settled on the past. Her Majesty had now returned safely and lost her memories of the time after her transformation; that might not be a misfortune.]
[For another, the human Soul Master who had received her sacrifice was probably already a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse. A true confrontation would certainly benefit neither Her Majesty nor the entire Blue Silver Clan.]
[You did not stop there, following his words with another question. "Then... would you need me to investigate what happened back then someday?"]
["Perhaps the person who traveled with her back then would know the full story."]
[At this, the Blue Silver King hesitated for a long time before finally shaking his head. "The past is over. Why bring it up again?"]
["Since Her Majesty has returned safely and no longer remembers these painful events, let them scatter softly with the wind."]
[You stopped there and nodded slightly. "Very well."]
[Only after a long silence did the Blue Silver King compose himself and look at you again. His main vine bowed slightly, his voice solemn and earnest. "Your Highness, I have a favor to ask."]
["Please speak freely, Senior. If it is within my power, I will not refuse."]
["Though our sovereign has lived through long ages, she is unfamiliar with the ways of the human world. And our Blue Silver Clan is rooted in the soil; ultimately, we cannot leave the Ancestral Land for long to protect her constantly as she grows." The Blue Silver King's eyes were filled with worry. "With this transformation, our sovereign will inevitably enter the human world once more."]
["You are a wise man among humans, and also a Prince of the Blue Silver Clan. I humbly ask Your Highness to take particular care of Her Majesty in human society in the future, and protect her as fully as you can."]
[You looked toward the cocoon of light hovering nearby, your gaze as still as water. Without the slightest hesitation, you nodded solemnly. "Rest assured, Senior. I will do everything I can to keep her safe and sound."]
[The Blue Silver King's main vine bowed deeply, relief appearing on his aged face. "Thank you, Your Highness."]
[The days passed, and the changes in the cocoon of light became increasingly apparent.]
[On the thirteenth day, the golden patterns on the cocoon's surface grew ever more brilliant. Within, the figure could faintly be seen slowly stretching, her aura becoming ever clearer.]
[On the fourteenth day, after nightfall, the radiance on the cocoon's surface grew stronger and stronger, changing completely from a gentle azure to a blazing platinum. Fine cracks silently spread across its walls like a spiderweb, extending from the top all the way to the bottom.]
[The Blue Silver King grew excited, his vines trembling slightly as he murmured, "Soon... very soon..."]
[On the morning of the fifteenth day, the first ray of sunlight pierced the forest canopy and fell upon the cocoon of light.]
[The next instant, the cocoon abruptly burst apart.]
[There was no deafening boom, no violent blast of air.]
[Countless fragments became a skyful of blue-gold rain, fluttering down from midair. Each trailed tiny specks of starlight, like fireflies dancing with luminous tails, or the Milky Way shattering and falling into the mortal world. Drifting and swaying, they silently covered every inch of soil in the Ancestral Land.]
[The rain of light seeped into the soil, as though fresh vitality were spreading through the earth along its roots. Blue Silver Grass across the hills surged upward in response, its leaves gleaming green, its vines thick and gnarled. At that moment, the entire forest brimmed with unprecedented vitality.]
[At the center of the rain of light, a slender figure slowly floated down.]
[Her toes lightly touched the soft earth. Her figure was perfectly proportioned, her shoulders softly curved, her waist slender enough to encircle with one hand. Every movement carried the naturally unfolding grace of a living plant.]
[Her long azure hair cascaded like a waterfall, adorned with a few small Blue Silver leaf ornaments. Flecks of golden patterns traced the leaves, glowing softly in the morning light.]
[Her features were gentle and exquisite, her brows and eyes holding a natural serenity, like the clearest spring in a mountain ravine, or the softest breeze in the woods, untouched by the slightest trace of the mortal world's smoke and dust.]
[A pale blue dress trailed along the ground, its hem embroidered with intricate golden patterns identical to those on the leaves of her original body, shimmering with flowing light as she moved.]
[Her skin was whiter than snow, suffused with a faint, lustrous glow. Her entire being seemed molded from the purest life essence, pristine and translucent, unstained by a speck of dust.]
[-The Blue Silver Emperor, Ah Yin, had completed her transformation.]
Before you continue