Holy Soul Village, night.
Lin Chen squatted on the roof of his thatched house, his gaze sweeping over the low eaves and settling on the dilapidated blacksmith shop at the east end of the village. Lin Chen had taken a day off and traveled day and night, using his Lingbo Weibu (a martial arts technique) and Beiming Divine Skill to rush back to Holy Soul Village just to observe Tang Hao.
Tang Hao went out.
Half an hour ago, that burly figure, carrying a forging hammer, silently disappeared onto the dirt road leading to Notting City. Lin Chen knew that this "down-on-his-luck blacksmith" had gone to deliver the Pope's Decree, a symbol of the Spirit Hall's authority, to Yu Xiaogang. Because Lin Chen possessed the Eye of Truth, coupled with his daily cultivation of spiritual power, and the fact that Tang Hao wasn't a Title Douluo with a spiritual attribute, he hadn't noticed him.
Waiting for a rabbit to run into a tree stump
Lin Chen's lips curled into a cold smile. Didn't Tang San and his disciples like to play dirty tricks? Then he would give them a taste of their own medicine.
"Tang San, I will accept your opportunity."
As for killing Tang San while he was asleep, Lin Chen had absolutely no intention of doing so. Firstly, he had never personally killed anyone in either his past or present life, and he was afraid of overreacting. Secondly, killing Tang San like that would be too easy for Tang San.
What he wanted was to sever their foundation, seize their destiny, and let this master and disciple taste... the bitterness of despair.
The waterfall in the backyard roars with its roar.
Lin Chen skillfully passed through the water curtain and landed in the hidden cave. After six years of observation, he had already figured out the soul power restriction set up by Tang Hao. He used the Northern Darkness True Qi to silently dismantle it.
Deep inside the cave, on a stone platform.
A pitch-black wooden box sat quietly, its surface engraved with intricate patterns—a seal set up by Tang Hao using his soul power.
Lin Chen took a deep breath, activating his Eye of Truth at full power, golden light flowing deep within his pupils. He clearly saw the key point of the seal, and with his fingertips, he condensed Northern Darkness True Qi into threads, precisely cutting into the gaps in the patterns.
"Click."
With a soft sound, the seal broke.
The moment the lid was lifted, a soft blue light burst forth, revealing the crystal-clear Blue Silver Emperor's right leg bone lying quietly on the velvet. The aura of the 100,000-year-old soul beast caused the Northern Darkness Divine Art within Lin Chen's body to stir uncontrollably.
"It's done!"
Lin Chen's lips curled slightly as he slowly stepped forward. Six years of planning had finally paid off, and even with his composure, he couldn't help but feel a little excited at this moment.
A 100,000-year-old soul bone, the right leg bone of the Blue Silver Emperor, one of Tang San's trump cards in the original novel...
Today, it belongs to him!
He stretched out his hand, the Northern Darkness True Qi flowing in his palm, preparing to suppress the fluctuations of the soul bone with his cultivation technique to prevent Tang Hao from noticing.
Just as the fingertips were about to touch the soul bone—
Whoosh!
A blue shadow suddenly flashed by!
Lin Chen's pupils shrank suddenly, and he retreated rapidly, instinctively using the Lingbo Weibu technique to instantly retreat three zhang.
Upon closer inspection, he was stunned.
The Blue Silver Emperor, which had been quietly rooted in the cracks of the rock, now stood upright as if it were alive! Several slender yet resilient vines shot out from its roots, wrapped around the soul bone with lightning speed, and pulled it back sharply!
"What?!"
Lin Chen looked completely bewildered.
That blade of grass... is moving?!
It's not just swaying in the wind, but a genuine, proactive attack!
The Blue Silver Emperor's vines coiled around the soul bone, its leaves trembling rapidly, as if... smug?
Lin Chen quickly calmed down, his brows furrowed.
Is it the lingering soul of Ah Yin after her sacrifice? Or the instinct of a 100,000-year-old soul beast?
He scoffed, "A mere remnant soul dwelling in this plant dares to compete with me for food?"
Before he finished speaking, Lin Chen suddenly sprang up, combining Ghost Shadow Steps with Lingbo Steps, transforming into three afterimages that rushed straight at Blue Silver Emperor!
"Put it down!"
His palm was like a knife, and the Northern Darkness True Qi condensed into a blade, precisely slashing at the line connecting the vines.
The Blue Silver Emperor seemed to have not expected the human to be so fast. Its vines waved frantically, and it even used the soul bone as a shield in front of it.
Lin Chen abruptly stopped his palm strike, his teeth itching with anger.
This grass... is quite cunning!
"You fucking..."
He couldn't help but swear.
This was the first time in his life that he had been so angry at a blade of grass that he wanted to curse.
Taking advantage of his hesitation, the Blue Silver Emperor coiled its vines around the soul bone and retreated to its roots. Lin Chen, however, wouldn't let it succeed. He flashed around to the side and grabbed the other end of the soul bone!
"let go!"
He let out a low shout, activated the Northern Darkness Divine Art, and attempted to forcibly peel it away using the power of devouring.
However, the next second, something strange happened.
Suddenly, the leaves of the Blue Silver Emperor emitted a dazzling golden light, a light containing an ancient and majestic will. Lin Chen felt a burning sensation in his palm, and the life energy within his soul bone surged wildly towards the Blue Silver Emperor like a flood bursting its banks!
"not good!"
Lin Chen's expression changed drastically. He tried to let go, but found that his palm was firmly stuck by a strange suction force. The Beiming True Qi in his body was leaking out uncontrollably and being devoured by the grass!
"It's absorbing the soul bone! And my true energy!"
Lin Chen was both shocked and furious.
What the hell is this?!
The soul bone was absorbed by the soul beast itself? This wasn't in the original story!
The Blue Silver Emperor's vines trembled violently, as if enduring immense pain, or perhaps laughing maniacally. The crystal-clear soul bone dimmed visibly, the ten thousand years of life essence it contained being devoured by its original owner… himself!
Lin Chen watched all of this with his mind completely blank.
He had considered the possibility of Tang Hao suddenly appearing.
I've considered that there might be restrictions on the soul bone.
He even considered that it might be a trap set by the Spirit Hall.
But I never imagined—that the grass would eat the soul bone?!
"you..."
He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
The leaves of the Blue Silver Emperor visibly plumped up, and pale golden veins spread across its entire body. The plant, which was originally only a foot tall, grew wildly to half a person's height! An aura of power far exceeding that before spread out—it was... the aura of a king!
The soul bone had completely turned into grayish-white fragments, which fell softly from among the vines.
That's all.
The soul bone, aged 100,000 years, is gone.
It was eaten by a blade of grass.
Lin Chen stood there blankly, his hand still outstretched, as if petrified.
An eerie silence fell over the cave.
Only the main vine, about 5 meters high, with a main stem about 2 meters thick and stretching outwards for more than 3 meters, with slender lanceolate leaves, each about 1 meter long and half a meter wide, is rooted in the rocks of the cave, layer upon layer spreading out a turquoise canopy with a diameter of nearly 7 meters.
Its entire body is a deep, imperial blue, with faint golden veins subtly flowing like embroidery on a royal robe. The leaf surface is covered with a thin layer of glassy sheen, which shimmers in the forest light, not a lifeless color, but rather imbued with a vibrant, living quality. The leaf edges are sharp and slightly upturned, and the vines have fine, silvery-blue scales on their surface, firm yet resilient to the touch. From the base of the plant, a pale blue aura of life slowly emanates, making even the smallest weeds around it grow exceptionally lush.
It lacks the overwhelming grandeur of a 100,000-year-old Blue Silver Emperor, but it has shed the weakness of ordinary grass. Every leaf and every tendril exudes the pressure of a plant royalty. When there is no wind, it stands still like a blue jade carving, and when there is wind, its leaves tremble slightly, making a clear and melodious sound like jade pendants, rather than the rustling sound of ordinary Blue Silver Grass. Under the soul power sensing, one can detect that its vines contain considerable control and recovery energy, making it a rare high-quality plant-type soul beast in the outer reaches of the Star Dou.
Lin Chen looked at the Blue Silver Emperor plant, then at his empty palm, and his lips twitched.
"so..."
"I spent the whole night working on it, risking being chased by Tang Hao, sneaking into the waterfall, and breaking the seal... but in the end it was all for nothing."
Lin Chen wanted to curse the Blue Silver Emperor but couldn't bring himself to do it. After all, he was the one who came to steal, and that wouldn't be very kind of him. However, looking at the Blue Silver Emperor swaying its huge branches, it seemed as if to say, "I'd rather swallow it than give it to you."
Lin Chen looked at it for a while and then laughed in anger. Did you think I couldn't do anything to you like this?
(End of Chapter)