After Ah Yin came back to her senses, she used her spiritual power to sense what was outside.
When she saw that the visitor was not Tang Hao but an unfamiliar child, a trace of desolation instantly appeared on her stunning face.
So it wasn't Brother Hao.
But at the same time, a trace of fear appeared on Ah Yin's face. The visitor was a child, and she clearly did not know him, so why had he suddenly come here?
Could he know that I'm the Blue Silver Emperor, and that there's a Soul Bone hidden in the cave, so he's come here to steal both me and the Soul Bone?
At this thought, the Blue Silver Emperor's branches and leaves thrashed wildly in the dim cave, looking extremely anxious.
Lin Chuan had already arrived before the Blue Silver Emperor. Looking at those chaotically swaying branches and leaves, he understood everything as clearly as a blazing fire.
A smile rose on his still-childish face, and he reached out a finger, gently stroking the cool veins of a leaf.
"Ah Yin, oh, Ah Yin, your fate really is bleak. As if Tang Hao tricking you out of your Soul Ring wasn't enough, now he's planted you in this cave that never sees the light of day, where you can't even absorb enough sunlight. What a tragic fate."
Lin Chuan looked at the withered Blue Silver Emperor before him and sighed with some emotion.
At these words, those branches and leaves shook even more violently, nearly frenzied.
Had she been able to speak human words, she would have argued until her voice gave out.
Brother Hao is absolutely not such a despicable man!
We love each other. How could he have the heart to steal my Soul Ring?
As for why he planted me in this cave that never sees daylight, Brother Hao must have had a momentary lapse of reason. That must be why he did it.
Ah Yin's cultivation had not yet recovered. Even forming a phantom image was a struggle, let alone speaking to argue back.
But in Lin Chuan's eyes, those wildly swaying branches and leaves were her silent resistance.
She doesn't believe it?
That doesn't matter.
Fortunately, he had made preparations long ago.
Next, he took an Image-Recording Stone out of the System Space and squeezed it hard.
The stone shattered with a crack, turning into motes of firefly light that spread through the gloomy cave.
As the light swirled, a water mirror slowly unfolded.
The scene in the mirror was none other than the filthy past deeds Tang Hao had personally confessed to in Zhang Lexuan's domain not long ago.
Half an hour passed.
Within the void, Ah Yin watched every last one of those scenes of bloody truth.
At that moment, nothing remained on her stunning face but utter desolation and despair.
Could everything this child said be true? Could every single thing reflected in that water mirror be true?
Had Brother Hao, whom I treasured as much as my own life, really tricked me out of my Soul Ring?
Why?
She had walked alone through this world, all her devoted love bound to Brother Hao. How could you do something that gouged out my heart like this?
No.
It must be fake. These are all illusions this child fabricated to throw my mind into turmoil.
At this thought, Ah Yin's stunning face grew spirited again.
Outside, the Blue Silver Emperor began thrashing wildly, clearly expressing her disbelief.
Seeing this, Lin Chuan shook his head helplessly and sighed softly:
"You really have let love blind your heart. Tang Hao wanting your Soul Ring is the most natural thing in the world. You Soul Beasts who undergo Soul Beast Transformation really are far too foolish and innocent. Put yourself in his place. If you'd been born human, could your heart remain as still as water before a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring?"
"Besides, why would I go to such lengths to deceive you? You're nothing but a Blue Silver Emperor who's already died once, with less than ten thousand years of cultivation left. What do you think I could want from you? I merely saw how tragic your fate was and wanted you to open your eyes and see that faithless man's true face."
These words utterly crushed the last thread of hope in Ah Yin's heart.
Yes... he's right.
I've already died once. I have nothing left. What could he want from me?
All my misery, or this place that never sees daylight?
At this thought, Ah Yin collapsed limply to the ground, tears sliding down in silence.
There was no sorrow greater than the death of the heart.
Outside, the leaves of the Blue Silver Emperor were visibly withering inch by inch, their vitality fading away.
At this sight, Lin Chuan's expression instantly changed. Ah Yin's heart had already died. If he did not find a way to keep her here, her soul would scatter completely.
Panic gripped him, and he immediately shouted in a low voice:
"Ah Yin, pull yourself together! For a beast worse than pigs and dogs, are you willing to let all that devoted love turn to dead ashes? There's something else I haven't told you yet, and it concerns the child you had with Tang Hao. Do you really think that child is still your own flesh and blood?"
"To tell you the truth, your child died long ago. What's occupying that shell now is nothing but a stray ghost from elsewhere. Don't you want to personally slay the vile beast wearing your son's skin?"
Those words were like a ray of light, and Ah Yin immediately rallied again. But she did not quite understand what Lin Chuan meant. What did he mean, her child was no longer his child? Why did that sound so convoluted?
Truthfully, if she had not been unable to speak at that moment, she had a bellyful of questions and would have grabbed Lin Chuan and questioned him until she got to the bottom of everything.
Seeing the Blue Silver Emperor before him regain her vitality, Lin Chuan instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
But communicating like this really was far too troublesome.
He pondered inwardly. He had to find a way to let Ah Yin form a human body again.
But to transform, she first had to recover a hundred thousand years of cultivation. How could that be easy?
Very soon, however, Lin Chuan remembered something.
There was a bottle of Creation Essence available for purchase in the System Shop. Its potency was so fierce that, never mind a Hundred-Year Soul Beast, even ordinary plants could be forcibly turned into a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast by pouring it into them.
But the price really made his heart ache.
A tiny bottle actually cost a full five thousand points.
The System Points required really were a little too much. Just one tiny bottle cost 5,000 points.
After thinking for a while, Lin Chuan gritted his teeth and endured the pain to buy a bottle outright.
You can't snare a wolf without being willing to sacrifice a child.
I'll throw these five thousand points out today, but someday I'll get them back from Ah Yin, principal and interest alike.
Lin Chuan took out the Creation Essence and pulled out its stopper.
Once it was opened, a rich presence spread wildly through the cave that never saw daylight.
Within the void.
Sensing the rich presence of life essence, Ah Yin was instantly startled.
Such concentrated life force. It's even stronger than my Blue Silver Emperor life force-thousands of times stronger.
For a moment, the craving coming from her body made her Blue Silver Emperor branches and leaves flap wildly.
She could feel that as long as she absorbed this life essence, her cultivation would definitely soar.
Seeing the Blue Silver Emperor's wildly flapping branches and leaves and how desperately she wanted it, Lin Chuan smiled. What a little glutton.
But that was normal. This was Creation Essence, after all. To plant types, it was simply their favorite thing.