Time passed steadily, and the surrounding blood mist gradually dissipated. After the Evil Emperor finished consuming its blood sacrifice, the overwhelming pressure it exuded faded, and the Holy Spirit Sect disciples slowly regained their senses.
Zhongli Wu and several elders bowed respectfully toward the direction where the Evil Emperor had vanished, then led the others away. Soon, it was as if nothing had happened, with only a few inconspicuous blood droplets staining the nearby trees.
By the time the group returned to the Holy Spirit Sect's headquarters, faint sunlight could be seen on the horizon. Though the Evil Emperor had long since concealed itself, the Evil Demon Forest remained eerily silent. The soul beasts here were far more sensitive to the Evil Emperor's presence than humans.
"I still need to discuss sect matters with the elders. You're quite fortunate—the Sect Leader himself spoke up to secure that soul beast for you. Go absorb it quickly," Nightmare Douluo said in his usual sinister tone.
Though his voice didn't change much, Lin Xiao, who wasn't new to dealing with Nightmare Douluo, could sense a slight difference in his tone compared to usual.
The soul beast in Lin Xiao's hands was barely breathing, and he knew it wouldn't survive much longer. Without saying more, he turned and headed toward the disciples' quarters.
As he rounded a corner, Lin Xiao glanced back and saw Nightmare Douluo walking alongside Wanhun Douluo, their figures slowly disappearing into the corridor.
Having witnessed the sacrificial ritual firsthand, Lin Xiao realized that the relationship between the Evil Emperor and the Holy Spirit Sect was far more intricate than merely allowing the sect free passage through the Evil Demon Forest. On the contrary, their connection was much closer than he had anticipated.
This was Lin Xiao's first time seeing the Evil Emperor awaken, but twenty years ago, when it was last active, no one knew what deals the Holy Spirit Sect had struck with it or what they had gained in return.
Clang—
The stone door slammed shut. Lin Xiao raised his hand, tossing the lizard-like fifty-thousand-year soul beast onto the ground, then shook his hand to fling off the sticky mucus that clung to it.
For some reason, the soul beast's skin had undergone a change, becoming slick and slippery due to the mucus. On the way here, Lin Xiao had to switch hands multiple times.
Seeing that it wouldn't live much longer, a flash of light came from Lin Xiao's storage soul tool, and a short dagger appeared in his hand. With a puchi sound, he stabbed it into the soul beast's head.
The soul beast thrashed violently, its limbs flailing, but soon the movements slowed.
Lin Xiao looked at the soul beast on the ground, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. Not only did it resemble the Evil Emperor's tendrils in appearance, but the sensation of stabbing it was similar—soft and pliable, as if it had no bones.
Seeing it stop struggling, Lin Xiao knew its soul ring would appear soon. He sat down nearby, calming the soul power within him.
Raising his right palm, the Higanbana bloomed in his hand. Without opening his eyes, Lin Xiao connected his mental strength to his martial soul, instantly sensing countless residual souls wandering within the flower's stamen.
Among them, one figure stood out, unlike the aimless residual souls. It was brimming with vitality, darting back and forth. Lin Xiao gave a slight smile before shifting his consciousness to the side.
There, the soul of an assassin stood quietly, awaiting Lin Xiao's command.
With a thought, the assassin's soul vanished from the stamen, appearing instead in Lin Xiao's sea of consciousness. Like an instinct, it slowly moved forward.
Souls and mental strength weren't entirely the same, but they shared some similarities. This assassin had been skilled at concealment in life, and now, in this form, it was even harder to detect.
Except for soul masters specialized in mental strength or souls, using it against enemies often yielded unexpected results. In the future, he'd need to "create" more of these.
Lin Xiao's soul power had fully settled. As he sensed the soul he controlled, he suddenly realized something was off.
By now, the soul beast's soul ring should have already appeared.
Lin Xiao's eyes snapped open, looking at the ground. The lizard-like soul beast still lay there, but its head was smooth, showing no sign of the dagger's puncture. Instead, blood was steadily seeping from its long tail, spreading across the floor.
Lin Xiao's gaze carefully scanned the creature, his eyes narrowing slightly.
No wonder he hadn't felt any resistance from bones when he stabbed its head—the dagger hadn't hit a vital spot.
Was this instinct? But how had it deceived his eyes?
Lin Xiao pondered silently. The short dagger reappeared in his hand, and aiming carefully, he stabbed downward again.
But in that instant, the soul beast's body suddenly sprang from the ground, splitting into two parts and darting to either side. A spray of blood splashed toward Lin Xiao, obscuring his vision.
Lin Xiao's expression shifted. Ignoring the blood coming at him, he quickly turned toward the door, raising his wrist. A dark red light shot toward an empty spot.
The next moment, the soul beast's body collided directly with the Higanbana Seed Lin Xiao had fired.
If the soul beast had been at its peak, it might have noticed Lin Xiao's movements. Facing a fifty-thousand-year soul beast, even Lin Xiao wouldn't have had an easy time.
But since being brought by the Evil Emperor, it was already on the verge of death. Even if it had used some unknown ability to dodge a fatal blow and feigned death to recover some strength, it was far from its full power.
The Higanbana Seed burrowed into the soul beast's body. With a sharp cry, its body was tightly bound by vines sprouting from within, and it fell back to the ground.
Lin Xiao wiped the blood from his face, his gaze falling on the large tail nearby.
After staring for a moment, he looked back at the soul beast and realized its rear was completely empty, as if it had never had a tail to begin with.
Soul beasts were truly remarkable. If he hadn't been in a Holy Spirit Sect room and anticipated its escape route, it might have fled already.
Looking at the soul beast's surface, its black-and-white skin had become wrinkled, and the flesh beneath was steadily wasting away. Meanwhile, the vines growing from it grew lusher, and soon, several bright red Higanbana flowers bloomed.
Lin Xiao stood motionless until a pitch-black soul ring slowly rose, and only then did he relax.
Without hesitation, he sat cross-legged beside the soul beast. With a pull of his soul power, the soul ring drifted toward him.
Sticky.
That was Lin Xiao's first sensation.
This wasn't his first time absorbing a soul ring, but it felt different from the previous times. Due to his martial soul, the soul rings he had absorbed before were all related to death, and each time, he felt only silence and death.