"Darling…"
The woman, upon seeing the black-robed man appear again, immediately changed direction and desperately crawled toward him.
Meanwhile, Xu Lai rolled his shoulders a bit, finding that his body had seemingly recovered. He shot a grateful glance at Aether in the sky, then once more lifted his longsaber and strode toward the black-robed man.
No matter what, he was going to rip this beast to shreds today!
When he reached the black-robed man, only half of the latter's body remained. Steam rose from it beneath the curtain of rain, and a faint burnt stench hung in the air.
"Pah!"
Xu Lai spat on the corpse and raised his blade to vent his rage—but just as he was about to strike, he suddenly felt something grab his foot.
Startled, he quickly looked down—only to see the mud-covered woman clinging tightly to his leg.
His brow furrowed.
"Get lost!"
With a swift kick, he sent her flying. She coughed up blood and crashed to the ground beside the black-robed man's remains.
"Darling… darling…"
Seeing the man right before her, the woman ignored her injuries and threw herself on what remained of him. A crazed, deranged satisfaction appeared on her face.
Xu Lai tightened his grip on the blade. His hatred for the black-robed man was immense, but for this woman—it was no less.
He hadn't forgotten that the reason he and his team ended up here was because this woman and the butler—now slain by that mysterious powerhouse—had deceived them into coming through a fake bounty mission!
Their true purpose had been to cover for that evil soul master, helping him cultivate in secret and even hunting down other soul masters to fuel his level-ups!
Such wicked scum weren't just like fallen soul masters—they were worse, completely deranged!
As his mind flashed with images of his sister's miserable condition, Xu Lai could no longer contain himself. He raised his longsaber and began swinging it furiously.
...
"Traveler, I think you got even stronger again!"
Under the falling rain, Aether walked through the forest with an umbrella in hand. Paimon sat on his shoulders, resting her chin on her hands as she gazed at the misty woodland in surprise.
"Yeah? You're really sharp."
Aether smiled faintly and kept moving forward.
After Xu Lai exacted his revenge, Aether felt a crack within his body—another piece of the seal had been lifted.
At this point, nearly one-third of the seal was undone.
Must've been the buildup from all those commissions lately, Aether thought to himself.
He had initially assumed the mission had failed. But after the boy named Xu Lai killed his enemy, he instinctively felt the commission had been completed.
In the end, it wasn't just a mission—it had turned out to be a genuinely good deed.
"Hehe, well we are best partners, of course I'd notice~"
Paimon grinned, then glanced at Xu Lai following behind them and asked again,
"Traveler, are we just gonna leave him?"
"Yeah. Let him have a moment to himself."
Aether nodded.
After slaying the evil soul master, he had left with Paimon. Xu Lai, having let out his rage, said nothing. He simply carried his sister's body and followed them silently.
For a young man who had dared to enter such dangerous territory alone just to find his family, Aether held genuine respect.
But the pain of losing a loved one wasn't something words could heal. Xu Lai would need time.
As for the soul master team that had come with them, Aether suspected the black-robed man had intended to keep them alive as future resources. They'd only been knocked out. Once they woke, they'd be fine—so he hadn't intervened.
Once they exited the Icebound Forest, the oppressive atmosphere finally lifted. Rain still poured from the sky, with no sign of stopping.
"Sir, wait!"
Seeing that Aether and Paimon weren't slowing down at all, Xu Lai suddenly called out. He jogged to catch up.
"Sir, I have no way to repay your kindness—please accept Xu Lai's deepest thanks!"
Still cradling his sister's body, Xu Lai knelt before Aether, ignoring the muddy ground as he kowtowed three times with all his strength.
"A chance meeting is fate. You needn't think much of it."
Aether shook his head, then continued walking down the path with Paimon.
There were too many people and stories in this world. Be they humans or things, some you meet, some you leave behind.
What Aether didn't know, however, was that this seemingly random boy he'd helped—after receiving a baptism of the hydro element due to a stroke of fate—would one day become a nightmare for all evil soul masters.
"We're finally back! I was so close to starving~"
At the gates of Skywater City, Paimon sighed dramatically, then muttered softly,
"Though I do wonder if there are still any of those creepy people in the city. If you weren't with me, Traveler, I'd be terrified they'd eat me~"
"Don't worry. I'd never let them eat you—you're my emergency food, after all~"
Aether chuckled with her, but his thoughts lingered on what she said.
Evil soul masters…
Before leaving this world, he figured he might as well root them out for good.
Still, tracking them down one by one would be a hassle. Maybe he could find someone to partner with?
Aether's mind flashed with a familiar image. Wonder how she's doing now…
"Achoo~"
Far away in the Star Dou Forest, Qian Renxue suddenly sneezed.
"Young Mistress, are you alright?"
Two figures immediately turned toward her, one on each side. They were Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupine Douluo.
"I'm fine."
Qian Renxue rubbed her nose, then seemed to sense something and gazed into the distant void.
"No matter where you are, you'll always be the brightest… but… do you still remember me?"
She whispered softly.
Lowering her head, she looked at the longsword in her hand. Her slender fingers gently brushed the blade, and without realizing it, a certain figure appeared in her eyes.
"There—up ahead. That one's the one. Please, uncles, help me!"
Snapping back to the present, Qian Renxue pointed at a soul beast that had jumped onto a tree branch after being startled by her sneeze. It watched them warily.
"Young Mistress, that's a seven-to-eight-thousand-year-old soul beast. You…"
She Long furrowed his brow. The creature was a flying-type beast, likely around 8,000 years old. It wasn't worth the risk.
"I can do it!"
"Alright. You protect the Young Mistress—I'll handle the capture!"
She Long nodded. He and Ci Xue exchanged glances, then vanished. When they reappeared, they were already launching attacks at the soul beast.
Ci Xue watched as Qian Renxue gripped her sword, feeling gratified.
Everyone in Spirit Hall knew the Young Mistress was a prodigy. Yet for some reason, she'd been sent to the Heaven Dou Empire, and hadn't had much time to train.
That always worried him and She Long deeply.
But ever since that man had left, she had undergone a complete change, becoming fiercely determined to grow stronger.
In just a short time, she had shot up to rank 41—and now, she was here to find a suitable fourth soul ring!
"Uncle She, you rest. Let me try!"
Qian Renxue's eyes were locked on the battle ahead. Seeing that She Long had injured the beast's wings, she ran forward, excitement in her voice.
"Young Mistress, maybe I should wear it down a bit more? It still has about half its strength left."
She Long paused, worried.
Even with her current level, dealing with an 8,000-year beast was dangerous, even weakened.
"Don't worry, uncles—I have this."
She glanced at the longsword in her hand, held it across her chest, then activated her Seraphim Spirit. Without another word, she charged at the soul beast.
If it were just her alone, she might have hesitated.
But with the sword he'd gifted her by her side—nothing could stop her from chasing her dreams!
_
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