"You really are a little greedy cat."
Lin Chuan laughed and said nothing more, pouring the entire small bottle of Creation Essence in his hand over the Blue Silver Emperor.
Within the void.
Ah Yin felt her once-depleted soul greet a magnificent rebirth at that moment.
Her cultivation had originally stood at only a hundred years, but now it suddenly began surging relentlessly with an unreasonable, domineering force.
Her original hundred-thousand-year cultivation all returned at that moment.
At that moment, shock broke across Ah Yin's breathtaking face, shattering her composure. She extended her senses beyond this void and looked at Lin Chuan as though looking at a monster.
Her desire for the Creation Essence just now had been entirely instinctive. What that bottle contained was simply too irresistible to her; its life force was far too rich.
Yet this child had given it to her without another word, truly leaving her somewhat at a loss.
Looking at the completely empty bottle in his hand, Lin Chuan instantly felt his heart ache.
Then he turned his gaze toward the Blue Silver Emperor before him and said gently:
"Ah Yin, your cultivation should have returned to a hundred thousand years. Try and see whether you can take human form."
The Blue Silver Emperor's branches and leaves stirred without wind, swaying softly as though murmuring in response.
Suddenly, a rich blue light burst forth, illuminating the dark cavern that never saw daylight.
The blue light did not linger, vanishing in an instant.
When its radiance dispersed, a graceful, breathtaking figure stood quietly within.
It was none other than Ah Yin.
She was exquisitely beautiful, with waterfall-like blue hair falling loosely behind her delicate shoulders, dressed in a long aqua-blue gown.
The skirt hugged her figure, outlining every graceful curve, her cool beauty carrying a hint of otherworldly elegance.
Ah Yin gazed dazedly at Lin Chuan before her, her eyes shimmering, her expression moved.
After a long while, she actually bent both knees, intending to sink gracefully to the ground in gratitude.
She knew better than anyone what a priceless, exceedingly rare treasure that bottle of life essence the child had handed her was. It was probably worth even more than her life.
Something that could forcibly raise her cultivation from a hundred years back to a hundred thousand in one stroke-how could such a heaven-defying treasure not be precious?
Seeing Ah Yin bend her knees slightly as though about to kneel, Lin Chuan frowned faintly and caught her without allowing any argument.
He gazed at the breathtaking face before him, the smile fading from his own as he said solemnly:
"There's no need for this. I saved you only because I pitied your ill-fated life. You were clearly a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, and had even taken human form, yet you were still far too innocent. I'm starting to suspect all you Soul Beasts who take human form after a hundred thousand years are like this, believing your love is mutual when, in the end, it's nothing but an elaborately woven deception."
"Deceiving your sincere heart would have been bad enough, but he even plotted to take your life and schemed for your Soul Ring. A fate like yours truly is tragic and lamentable."
At these words, a layer of poignant sorrow instantly shrouded Ah Yin's breathtaking face.
Yes, no fate could be more ill-starred than this.
She had thought Tang Hao was a worthy man, someone she could spend her life with, and had entrusted all her devoted love to the wrong person. How could she have known that, from beginning to end, all that beast had wanted was her hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring?
After coming back to her senses, Ah Yin raised her eyes to Lin Chuan before her. Killing intent surged across her breathtaking face, leaving not a trace of her earlier fragility.
"Benefactor, do you know where that beast Tang Hao is now?"
She gritted her teeth, her voice steeped in bone-piercing hatred.
"I want to cut off his life with my own hands, to leave him unable to live or die! Since he dared to scheme for my Soul Ring and deceive my devoted heart, how could I quell this hatred unless I flayed that wolf-hearted, dog-lunged wretch myself, one cut at a time?"
At this moment, Ah Yin was already on the verge of turning dark.
In truth, she really could not be blamed for it.
Any woman in the world who suffered such a bone-deep betrayal would probably be driven mad.
If he wanted her Soul Ring, he could have shown his true mettle and hunted her openly, with blades and spears bared.
Why stoop to that beast's level, using the most despicable methods to scheme against a woman's feelings?
Hearing this, Lin Chuan gave a dry cough and answered somewhat awkwardly:
"I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you. That Tang Hao's conduct was truly beneath even a beast. I simply couldn't bear watching it, so I erased him completely while I was at it. Now, not only is he dead and his cultivation extinguished, but his soul has also scattered. I'm afraid he can't even go to the underworld."
At this, the light in Ah Yin's eyes instantly dimmed somewhat.
Without ending that beast's life herself, how could she quell the hatred in her heart?
But on second thought, death was like a lamp going out. As long as Tang Hao was thoroughly dead, it seemed not to matter anymore. Why fuss over whether he had died by her own hand?
After a long while, Ah Yin suddenly came back to her senses and remembered something else. Filled with confusion, she asked:
"Benefactor, what did you mean by what you said earlier? What do you mean my child is no longer my child? Why does that sound so strange?"
The instant she said this, Lin Chuan's eyes lit up. Had she brought up anything else, he certainly would not have been interested, but when it came to Little Scumbag, all his interest truly came flooding in.
He cleared his throat and began explaining very earnestly:
"Actually, it's quite simple. When you sacrificed yourself to that beast Tang Hao, your child had only just been born, and Tang Hao was facing a joint assault from three Titled Douluos of Spirit Hall. Just think about it: your child was still an infant back then. How could he possibly have survived a battle of that magnitude?"
"What's more, Tang Hao fought those three Titled Douluos of Spirit Hall for three whole days and nights while carrying your child in his arms. In such desperate circumstances, the child's chances of surviving were next to nothing. The stray shock waves from a clash between Titled Douluos alone could kill a low-level Soul Master on the spot, let alone an infant with no means of protecting himself."
No matter how innocent Ah Yin was, she fully understood the meaning beneath these words.
Her body swayed, and she staggered back two steps, nearly collapsing to the ground.
Two pieces of heart-gouging news had struck her one after another in a single day. How could she, a mere woman, bear it?
It was bad enough that the beast Tang Hao had deceived her and ground her devoted heart to dust beneath his feet, but now even her own flesh and blood no longer belonged to her.
Why was her fate so ill-starred? How could heaven be so unjust?
It was bad enough that the beast Tang Hao had deceived her feelings, but now even her child could no longer be considered hers. How could her fate be so tragic? Why was heaven so unfair to her?
After coming back to her senses, Ah Yin clenched her fists, the killing intent on her face even more pronounced, and asked fiercely:
"Benefactor, please tell me the truth. What exactly is going on with this beast of a child now, and who, exactly, has occupied my child?"