Qian Chen did not know whether Tang San was still observing Huo Yuhao. To be cautious, he waited until the next day, until the moment just before Huo Yun'er's soul was about to leave her body, before secretly slipping into the woodshed of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion.
Huo Yun'er's body was still on the bed. Huo Yuhao knelt beside her bed, his eyes vacant. A bowl of food sat nearby, already stone cold, but he had not touched a single bite.
Uncle Yang, the man Angel Mountain Manor had planted undercover in the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, stood guard outside the woodshed. Clearly, he had brought the food, but Huo Yuhao had not eaten it.
Qian Chen hid in a dark corner of the woodshed, increasing his mental power output as he carefully observed everything around him. Before long, he sensed a faint fluctuation of energy from Huo Yun'er's body. A faint, illusory soul drifted out of her.
In the end, Qian Chen gritted his teeth and opened his Sea of Consciousness. Before Huo Yun'er's soul could react, it was sucked inside.
Qian Chen sighed inwardly. Let it be a little noisy, then. The jade bottle can extract and imprison souls; it might be of great use someday. With that thought, he left the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. As for Huo Yuhao, the Plane Consciousness had instructed him to leave the boy alone for now. A year later, his fortune would erupt.
After returning to Angel Mountain Manor, Qian Chen dismissed everyone before sitting cross-legged and entering his Sea of Consciousness.
Upon entering, the first things he saw were two small orbs circling in midair, one golden and one purple. They were Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue. He remembered how Qian Renxue had fallen into extreme weakness to save him, and how Bibi Dong had also fallen asleep after helping create Bing Ling and Ma Xiaotao's Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Both had helped him. It was time to wake them.
Qian Chen searched for a while before finally finding Huo Yun'er in a corner of his Sea of Consciousness. She was crouching on the ground, trembling with fear.
Qian Chen walked over, intending to help Huo Yun'er up. To his surprise, she grew even more frightened. She did not know why she had come here. She only remembered dying of illness, then hearing her son crying beside her without stop. She had desperately wanted to comfort him, but could do nothing. She did not know how much time had passed. The moment she could move, she had arrived here.
"Madam Huo, don't be afraid. I'm not a bad person," Qian Chen said earnestly.
Hearing Qian Chen's words, Huo Yun'er finally raised her head to look at him. Only then did she discover that he was not the demon or monster she had imagined, but a handsome young man.
"Y-you... who are you? Why did you bring me here?" Huo Yun'er asked haltingly.
"First, Madam Huo, do you remember that you died from illness, starvation, and abuse in the White Tiger Duke's Mansion?" Qian Chen asked.
Huo Yun'er nodded, seemingly remembering. Qian Chen continued, "Then do you remember who I am?"
Huo Yun'er studied Qian Chen's face and exclaimed, "It's... it's you!"
"That's right. I'm Qian Chen, the Soul Douluo who wanted to take you and Huo Yuhao away four years ago. Your child has a special innate nature and is blessed by the fortune of the Douluo Continent. As for me, you could call me your child's Dao protector. Unfortunately, by the time I found you, the evil god Tang San had already placed a vicious curse on you. You refused to leave the White Tiger Duke's Mansion no matter what, even if it meant holding back your child's future."
Huo Yun'er suddenly recalled every little detail of these past years. In truth, Dai Hao could not possibly have liked her. She was merely an ordinary maid, with neither family background nor great strength. In looks, there were plenty of women in the White Tiger Duke's Mansion prettier than her. In gentleness, Dai Hao was the White Tiger Duke-which woman did not lavish him with every charm and tenderness?
Why had she believed all these years that Dai Hao loved her most? Why had she believed that Dai Hao was all the hope and support she and her child had? Recalling her own wild fantasies, Huo Yun'er slumped helplessly to the ground. She had cost Huo Yuhao four years.
"All right, Madam Huo, don't blame yourself. You were only under the evil god Tang San's curse. This is my Sea of Consciousness. Stay here without worry. As your child's Dao protector, I'll find a way to take him as my disciple and raise him into someone accomplished. When the time is right, I'll open my Sea of Consciousness and let you see how he's doing. Once Huo Yuhao's mental power is strong enough, I'll find a way for you to meet."
Huo Yun'er lowered her head and said earnestly, "Thank you, Qian Chen."
Qian Chen continued, "This is my Sea of Consciousness. You don't have to be so reserved. You can stand, sit, or lie down as you please."
Then he pointed to the two small orbs in midair, one golden and one purple. "They'll be your roommates from now on. But they exhausted themselves too much, so they're asleep right now."
With that, Qian Chen prepared to leave his Sea of Consciousness.
"Qian Chen, wait."
"What is it?"
"Could you let me... see my child one more time?"
"Yes."
On an inconspicuous little hill outside the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, Huo Yuhao and Uncle Yang had already brought Huo Yun'er's body over. Tears streamed from Huo Yuhao's eyes as he swung a hoe. After who knew how long, he finally dug a pit large enough to hold Huo Yun'er. Weeping, he gently laid her body inside, covered it with earth, then erected a simple wooden marker: Grave of my mother, Huo Yun'er.
Huo Yuhao knelt before Huo Yun'er's grave, his teeth clenched and fists tight, and said each word distinctly, "Mother, from today onward, my surname is no longer Dai. I'm changing it to Huo. From now on, my name is Huo Yuhao. For the harm the White Tiger Duke's Mansion did to you, I'll make them repay it tenfold, a hundredfold!"
After making his vow, Huo Yuhao returned to the White Tiger Duke's Mansion with Uncle Yang. Huo Yuhao was still too young and had not even reached rank-ten Soul Power. He could only plan to reach rank ten and obtain a Soul Ring first.
"Is Uncle Yang one of your people?" Huo Yun'er asked inside the Sea of Consciousness.
"Yes."
"Thank you."
"Now that you've seen your child, we should head back. Don't worry. Your child will soon achieve things you could never imagine."
In the Divine Realm, amid a forest rich with the breath of life, an exquisitely beautiful woman in green sat upright. Just then, a divine official quietly approached her and whispered, "My lady, word has come from the Douluo Plane. The mother of the child of destiny has been rescued. It's just that Qian Xunji doesn't seem particularly concerned about resurrecting the Angel God and the Rakshasa God."
The woman finally smiled, as though a great boulder pressing down on her had been lifted away. She said, "Continue monitoring the Asura God and gathering evidence of his violations of the Divine Realm's rules."
"Yes." The divine official acknowledged the order and withdrew.
"Tang San, now that I'm living a second life, I will never let you deceive me again. But Qian Xunji, why aren't you eager to resurrect your wife and daughter?" the woman murmured to herself, shaking her head. She could no longer remember what had happened tens of thousands of years ago.
Bitterness filled the woman's heart. She had been reborn after sacrificing herself to preserve the Divine Realm, but dared not tell anyone. If her husband found out, it would directly ignite a war in the Divine Realm.
Back at Angel Mountain Manor, Qian Chen once again summoned Pan Long and Qian Guyi to Angel Hall.
"Big brother." "Uncle."
"Let's get down to business. I'll be leaving again in a few days. Pan Long, you'll continue holding the fort at Angel Mountain Manor. Keep carrying out our work of helping people awaken their Martial Souls and expanding our forces."
Pan Long nodded and said, "Yes, but Angel Mountain Manor is already almost unable to accommodate so many Soul Masters."
Qian Chen said, "I'll break through to Titled Douluo as soon as possible and gradually transform Angel Mountain Manor into a force operating openly, rather than hiding here in Watch Valley."
Qian Chen then looked at Qian Guyi and said, "Guyi, you'll leave with me in a few days. I'll need help at Shrek Academy in the future."
"Yes," Pan Long and Qian Guyi answered together.
Qian Chen turned to gaze in the direction of Star Luo City and thought, The Spirit-Devouring Carving Knife. It's time to retrieve it and put it to use.