"How could this happen?"
"Why did this happen?!"
Luo Chen's memories contained what he knew about the opening of the story of Douluo Continent, along with several of his own guesses about the truth behind Tang San's transmigration.
"Tang Sect, hidden weapons, transmigration..."
Ah Yin had not understood these terms before, but the knowledge Luo Chen gave her filled in those gaps in her understanding.
Although Douluo Continent had a concept of souls, it had no notion of reincarnation.
Only after breaking through to godhood, leaving Douluo Star, and seeing more worlds would they learn of the Underworld's existence.
"Tang San... is this Tang San still my child?"
At that moment, Ah Yin was lost.
As a mother, Ah Yin found it hard to accept that someone had taken her child's place.
Especially after learning the concept of "body possession" from Luo Chen, Ah Yin felt an instinctive aversion to Tang San.
Had things been as they were in the original story, Tang San would already have been a teenager when Ah Yin first met him.
Without a mother by his side, no matter how the child turned out, Ah Yin would not have questioned it. She would only have felt that she owed him.
Likewise, if Tang San had lived with Ah Yin for several years, or over a decade...
Whether Tang San was her biological child or not, Ah Yin would have treated him as her own, because they would truly have built a deep bond.
But what was the situation now?
Only a little over two months had passed since Ah Yin's sacrifice.
To her, it felt like yesterday.
Not only did they have no emotional bond, but the child she had risked her life to protect had become a wedding gown sewn for someone else. How could Ah Yin accept that?
"Sister Ah Yin..."
Seeing Ah Yin in such pain, Luo Chen could hardly bear it.
Ah Yin was truly innocent. She had done nothing, had never hurt anyone, yet this was how things had ended.
"Xiao Chen, can you tell me where my child went?"
Since Tang San had become her child, what about the original child? Where was he?
"I'm sorry, Sister Ah Yin. I don't know either."
The mystery of the womb had always been the most unfathomable.
On this point, Luo Chen could not give an accurate answer.
If Luo Chen had been a Tang San hater, he would certainly have told Ah Yin that Tang San had possessed her child and devoured his original soul.
But Luo Chen had no grudge against Tang San. He would not deceive poor Ah Yin just because he disliked him.
Unless Luo Chen could master the power of time and take Ah Yin back to witness the moment Tang San arrived...
Otherwise, all of this would probably remain unanswered forever.
"Why..."
Ah Yin could never accept that a strange adult's soul was living inside her child's body.
Whenever she thought of it, Ah Yin felt as though someone had stolen her most treasured possession.
But ultimately, Ah Yin was simply too kind.
She rejected Tang San, but she could not hysterically demand that Luo Chen kill him.
If Tang San really had possessed and killed her original child, Ah Yin would absolutely seek revenge.
The problem was that Luo Chen could not give Ah Yin a definite answer either.
"Perhaps this is simply my fate."
Tang San's transmigration had dealt her far too heavy a blow.
In fact, regardless of whether Tang San had possessed her child, Ah Yin could no longer accept this so-called "son."
"Sister Ah Yin, you could actually think of Tang San as an adopted son."
"Heh."
Ah Yin gave a disdainful laugh. She knew Luo Chen meant well in comforting her.
But the problem was, just what sort of thing had Tang San been in his previous life?
He worshipped bizarre weapons that struck people from the shadows, researched all sorts of poisons, studied the quickest ways to kill a person, and declared at the drop of a hat, "You have a path to death."
And Ah Yin?
Except to protect herself, Ah Yin had never harmed a single living being.
Yet kind as she was, her child's body had been stuffed with the soul of a killer whose hands were stained with innocent blood!
Who would adopt someone like that?
"Xiao Chen, thank you for telling me the truth."
Ah Yin was deeply grateful to Luo Chen. Otherwise, she really might have been deceived for her entire life.
Luo Chen clearly had absolute authority over her. Whatever his orders, Ah Yin could not disobey.
Yet Luo Chen had not done that.
He respected her and comforted her, making Ah Yin even more certain that Luo Chen was a good child.
Since that was the case...
Perhaps staying by Luo Chen's side and quietly watching this world was her best choice.
"But I truly can't accept it."
"Whenever I think of someone like that using my child's body," Ah Yin said, her expression ugly, "I feel sick."
She only hoped this new Tang San could use her child's body to do some good.
Otherwise, Ah Yin would rather destroy it with her own hands than let that disgusting Tang Sect disciple defile her child's remains.
Yes, Ah Yin had already decided that Tang San was not her Xiao San.
He was a thief who had stolen the most precious thing she had in this world.
"I'm sorry for putting you in a difficult position."
Ah Yin looked at the boy before her and gently gathered him into her arms, as though trying to find a new emotional anchor in him.
Luo Chen did not resist. He knew Ah Yin was deeply upset right now.
Besides, Ah Yin was a hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor. Luo Chen did not know how other Soul Beasts' cultivation corresponded to their age, but Blue Silver Grass could not possibly become a Soul Beast capable of taking human form without several tens of thousands of years.
Luo Chen was hardly losing out by having Ah Yin treat him as a younger brother, or even a child.
"Um..."
Afterward, Ah Yin hesitated.
Luo Chen hurriedly asked her what was wrong, and she said, "C-can I tell Brother Hao the truth about Tang San?"
The child belonged to both of them. Ah Yin felt she needed to tell Tang Hao about this, to let him know that child was not their Xiao San.
Of course, Ah Yin had previously promised that she would not see Tang Hao again.
For a moment, she hardly dared look at Luo Chen, afraid he would see her as an insatiable woman who went back on her word.
"Don't worry, Xiao Chen."
Ah Yin said, "I'll only let him know. I absolutely won't reveal myself."
"It's all right, Sister Ah Yin."
Seeing Ah Yin's pained expression, Luo Chen could not bear it. "If you want to see them, Na'er can take you there anytime."
Dawn Avatar was Na'er's unique ability, but she could bring others along with it.
If Ah Yin wished, she could go out scavenging with Na'er at dawn tomorrow.
Of course, Ah Yin's true body could not leave.
It was not that she was incapable, but that an Aspect's mission was to protect Luo Chen. Ah Yin could not violate that most fundamental principle.
Even if Luo Chen became enemies with Tang Hao and his son in the future, Ah Yin could only watch.
She could not betray Luo Chen, much less do anything to harm him.
"May I?!"
Ah Yin was a little excited, but she still restrained her impatience.
She felt sincerely fortunate that the master she had met was someone as kind and gentle as Luo Chen.
"Let me take a look at your attributes, Sister Ah Yin."
Soon, after soothing Ah Yin's emotions, Luo Chen connected his consciousness to the Celestial Star Crown.
With a slight shift of his thoughts, detailed information about Ah Yin appeared within the Martial Soul Space.
[Ah Yin] Race: Blue Silver Emperor → Star Seedling (immature) Status: complete Soul Power: level 30 Talent: Starlight Curtain Affection: extreme trust, extreme gratitude (inner misgivings must be resolved before these can become absolute)
"Star Seedling?"
Luo Chen discovered that Ah Yin's race had changed.
Like Na'er, she had been nurtured by Celestial Power and evolved, transforming from her original Blue Silver Emperor form into a Star Seedling.
"Does 'seedling' mean Ah Yin can keep growing?"
What would a seedling ultimately become?
Some kind of flower, or a tree?
With so little information, Luo Chen did not know what Ah Yin would become in the future either.
"Level 30 Soul Power, not divine power?"
Luo Chen noticed another issue.
He had assumed that all subsequent Aspects would possess divine power like Na'er.
Unexpectedly, only Na'er was special. What Ah Yin possessed was still Soul Power.
"Looks like I'll need to find a chance to search the Spirit Hall library thoroughly for records on Silver Dragons as Soul Beasts."
A single scale could give birth to a beautiful being as exquisitely endowed as Na'er, born with divine power. Luo Chen would never believe Silver Dragons were ordinary Soul Beasts, even if someone beat him to death.
"Sister Ah Yin, what exactly does your talent do?"
Luo Chen had checked, but the description of Starlight Curtain's abilities was long and complicated.
Rather than read it himself, he might as well have Ah Yin, its owner, explain it directly.
"It's a support-type talent."
Ah Yin quickly settled into her role as an Aspect, seemingly hoping to forget her troubles for a while through work.
"Xiao Chen, your second Soul Skill creates a special domain centered on yourself."
"Within this domain, you'll receive an unending supply of vitality," Ah Yin said. "As long as the energy in your body hasn't run out, you can quickly recover from any injury."
"You can also share this recovery effect with others, giving them a certain degree of healing."
At this point, Ah Yin added, "However, during combat, its recovery effect on others won't compare to its effect on you, Xiao Chen."
Only after the battle could Luo Chen actively provide his teammates with exceptionally powerful healing.
In theory, as long as his teammates did not die outright, Luo Chen could heal them back up after battle.
"So strong!"
After hearing Ah Yin's introduction, even Luo Chen could not help exclaiming.
The domain's first effect resembled the Blue Silver Emperor Soul Bone's Soul Skill, "Wildfire cannot burn it all away; the spring breeze blows, and it grows anew," but was a super-enhanced version.
Not only had it changed from a single-target skill into an area-of-effect group skill, its effectiveness had also improved tremendously.
According to Ah Yin, even if someone cut off Luo Chen's head, he would not die.
Luo Chen could quickly return his head to its place, and his body and head would immediately recover.
He could also turn his original flesh into starlight and reconstruct a new body with his head as the core.
The entire process would take no more than five seconds.
"What a broken Soul Skill!"
Even Na'er could not help accusing this Soul Skill of ruining the game's balance.
Of course, she would never admit that Ah Yin's arrival made her worry that her position as the number one Aspect in her master's heart might be shaken.
Na'er: Damn it, why is the newcomer so outstanding? The pressure is killing me!
"Besides that, my domain has another effect."
Ah Yin told Luo Chen that after deploying the domain, he could create stalks of Star Grass. "These stalks of Star Grass are phantoms I create with energy. They can gather the light of the sun, moon, and stars, thereby accelerating a Soul Master's cultivation."
"And it doesn't just work on you alone."
"Anyone you approve of, Xiao Chen, can benefit by cultivating beside you."
In other words, this was a group cultivation-speed buff.
As for its precise effects, a conclusion would have to wait until Luo Chen tried it personally.
"Awoo!"
Na'er suffered another critical hit. She suddenly felt so useless.
Silver Dragon King: Oh no, Na'er is in grave danger!
"Sister Ah Yin, this ability of yours will be a great help to me."
"As long as you're satisfied, Xiao Chen."
The matter of Tang San had dealt Ah Yin a heavy blow.
She chose to avoid thinking about the issue for now. What Ah Yin needed to do at present was repay Luo Chen for saving her life.
"Right, there's something I need to tell you, Sister Ah Yin."
Luo Chen said, "I'm now the disciple of Bibi Dong, Spirit Hall's new Supreme Pontiff."
"..."
Ah Yin's little mouth fell slightly open. Her startled expression, like a lamb that had fallen into a wolves' den, made even Luo Chen laugh aloud.
"Don't worry, Sister Ah Yin. I actually only joined Spirit Hall recently."
"Also, Sister Ah Yin, the former Supreme Pontiff, Qian Xunji, who hunted you down, is already dead."
With Luo Chen's explanation, Ah Yin understood the current situation and then accepted the fact that he was a disciple of Spirit Hall.
Because of her preconceived notions, Ah Yin did not have a good impression of Spirit Hall.
Tang Hao was a disciple of the Clear Sky Sect and had always looked down on Spirit Hall. Whenever he mentioned Spirit Hall while spending time with Ah Yin, he never had a single good word to say about it.
Over time, Ah Yin was inevitably influenced by Tang Hao and came to believe that Spirit Hall was an evil organization.
"Let me be honest, Sister Ah Yin. Please don't be angry."
Luo Chen said, "In this world, when Soul Masters hunt Soul Beasts, it's hard to say who's right and who's wrong."
Soul Masters needed to obtain Soul Rings to break through, while Soul Beasts also attacked humans and even fed on them.
In this relationship, much like a food chain, there was simply no right or wrong, good or evil to speak of.
There was only the question of where one stood.
Whose side were you on?
Luo Chen was human and a Soul Master, and now he had joined Spirit Hall as well. It could be said that he naturally stood on the opposite side from Soul Beasts.
"Then, do you have to hunt and kill Soul Beasts too, Xiao Chen?"
Ah Yin had asked Tang Hao this same question, and his answer had been that he would not harm kind Soul Beasts.
But the moment those words left her mouth, Ah Yin realized the problem with them.
Wasn't she a Soul Beast herself?
So was Na'er.
Yet both women had become Luo Chen's Innate Aspects.
From that perspective, hunting Soul Beasts was not an issue for Luo Chen at all, because his way of obtaining Soul Rings was to turn Soul Beasts into Aspects.
The Soul Beasts did not die in the first place, so how could that be called hunting?
Besides, how fortunate it was to become Luo Chen's Aspect and grow stronger alongside him.
With Luo Chen's talent, his becoming a god in the future was a certainty nailed firmly to the board.
That also meant that any Soul Beast chosen by Luo Chen would have the chance to ascend to the Divine Realm with him in the future.
"I'm sorry, Xiao Chen."
Ah Yin said apologetically, "I-I just..."
"I understand what you mean, Sister Ah Yin."
If a Soul Beast attacked him and Luo Chen chose to fight back in self-defense, even Ah Yin would consider that perfectly reasonable.
How could it make sense for an enemy to try to kill you, yet forbid you from fighting back?
Ah Yin was kind, not a holy mother.
By the same token, having lived in human society for many years, Ah Yin could also accept Soul Masters hunting a certain number of Soul Beasts.
She only hoped that Luo Chen would not slaughter them indiscriminately.
As for the definition of kind and evil Soul Beasts, after receiving Luo Chen's shared knowledge, Ah Yin discovered that those words were entirely up to Tang Hao himself.
If he thought a Soul Beast could be spared, then it was kind.
Conversely, if killing that Soul Beast could bring benefits...
Tang San provided the model answer: You have already chosen the path to your death!
The three Qian Jun Ant Emperor brothers, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "Ah, yes, yes, yes. Everything you say is right."
"I can promise that I will never kill Soul Beasts indiscriminately."
"But I can't stop other Soul Masters from hunting Soul Beasts to grow stronger either," Luo Chen said. "Unless the cultivation rules of the Douluo Continent change, the killing between humans and Soul Beasts can never disappear."
(End of chapter)