"Lucas Qi, Lucas Qi..."
Mo Yu looked ahead—Lucas Qi was nearly transparent, his soul pale and white, his face full of panic. She was visibly worried. Lan Yin walked over and spoke to comfort her.
"It's alright, Miss Mo Yu. We've already recovered his Three Souls, and his Seven Spirits are condensed within this gourd."
As Lan Yin spoke, he shook his Soul-Calling Gourd in front of Mo Yu.
Both were from the Hades Circle, so it took them less than an hour to find Lucas Qi's Three Souls and Seven Spirits. Lan Yin explained: once the Three Souls and Seven Spirits leave the body, they cannot merge, so most souls are unconscious.
Unless, at the moment of separation, there remains an extremely strong will—resentment, sorrow, or the like—they may become a ghost, with the Three Souls and Seven Spirits intertwined. But for ordinary people, after death, the Three Souls and Seven Spirits cannot merge; these fragments flow to one place—the underworld.
After reaching the underworld, a person's Three Souls and Seven Spirits recombine, forming a ghost with consciousness. Hearing this, I understood—I had indeed seen many ghosts before, and they lacked awareness.
"Now we need to wait for a day. I'll find a way to reestablish the connection between Lucas Qi's Three Souls and Seven Spirits. For now, we must prevent his yang energy from leaking too much. Miss Mo Yu, watch over his soul. I'll go infuse some yang energy into Lucas Qi."
As Lan Yin spoke, Mo Yu took the Soul-Calling Gourd and raised her hand. A stream of blue energy, like a rope, bound Lucas Qi's soul.
Lan Yin stepped up to Lucas Qi and checked him. Lucas Qi's complexion was poor, and Mo Yu seemed to notice as well.
"What should we do, Lan Yin? Lucas Qi's yang energy seems to be leaking rather quickly."
Lan Yin turned his head and smiled.
"Lately, I've grasped a bit of the Four Symbols power. It's not fully refined, but at least it's somewhat useful."
As he spoke, Lan Yin raised his hand, and a small flame of red fire ignited in his palm. Lan Yin closed his eyes, controlling something within. I watched in awe as the red flame slowly faded in color; at first, it gave no warmth, only its shape, but now it radiated a gentle warmth, like the sun on a winter morning.
I quickly realized Lan Yin was using the Vermilion Bird's power to draw out his own yang energy and condense it into flame. I'd never seen this method before, but it felt familiar—when I used the Vermilion Bird's power, it was also by condensing yang energy into fire.
Lan Yin's brow furrowed as he concentrated, condensing energy for nearly two hours before finally opening his eyes. He was drenched in sweat, wearing a weary smile.
"It's done, Miss Mo Yu. Though it was my first attempt, I succeeded."
Lan Yin excitedly raised his hand, a gentle stream of yellow energy swirling within. He approached Lucas Qi and slowly placed his hand on Lucas Qi's chest.
The yang energy began to flow into Lucas Qi's body. I was amazed to see Lucas Qi's face, once pale and bluish, slowly regain its color and then return to a healthy flesh tone.
Lan Yin collapsed to the ground as if drained, wiping sweat from his forehead, but quickly stood up again.
"Miss Mo Yu, take a rest. I'll handle it."
Mo Yu quickly shook her head, insisting she wasn't tired. Lan Yin could only lean against the side of the shed and close his eyes. Mo Yu let out a long sigh of relief.
Lan Yin truly seemed exhausted. Before long, he fell asleep, and Mo Yu, though also weary from days without sleep, was more concerned about Lucas Qi.
I watched quietly from the side. While Lan Yin slept, his face suddenly shifted—turning blue, then purple. Mo Yu was worried at first, but after a while, seeing nothing amiss, she dismissed her concern.
But I couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. It seemed Lan Yin was having a nightmare; his expression was twisted in pain, and he couldn't wake up.
"I don't know, I don't know, stay away..." Suddenly, Lan Yin muttered in his sleep, shaking his head, his arms and legs moving restlessly.
Mo Yu called out to him softly several times, but Lan Yin kept repeating that he didn't know.
Then, something strange happened—Lan Yin's soul began to separate from his body, little by little.
"Lan Yin..." Mo Yu screamed, her face changing instantly. She released two Spirit Veils, wrapping both Lan Yin's body and soul, but with a sharp rip, her Spirit Veils were torn apart.
Lan Yin's soul continued to detach from his body. Just as it was about to leave entirely, I saw Lan Yin suddenly open his eyes—revealing golden irises.
"What do you want?"
With a low, muffled roar, Lan Yin's soul rushed back into his body. He stood up, and Mo Yu looked at him in fear.
"Who are you?"
Lan Yin walked over to Mo Yu and tapped her forehead. She fainted instantly. Lan Yin then took the Soul-Calling Gourd, raised his hand, and suddenly, I was stunned by the unbelievable scene before me.
With bursts of light, four differently colored glows shot out from Lan Yin's body—the red became a Vermilion Bird, the blue an Azure Dragon, the yellow a Black Tortoise, and the white a White Tiger. In an instant, the Four Sacred Beasts took their positions and gradually sank into the ground, the lake, the mountain wall, and the riverbank, like a painting frozen in time.
Then I saw this golden-eyed Lan Yin holding the Soul-Calling Gourd. Lucas Qi's soul was drawn inside. Raising his hand, the gourd floated up, and Lan Yin held it in midair—the gourd began to tremble.
This chapter isn't finished yet~.~ Please click next page to continue reading.
The trembling intensified, continuing relentlessly. The golden-eyed Lan Yin stared at the gourd, and I sensed something incredible was happening inside.
"Lucas Qi, Lucas Qi..."
Suddenly, the golden-eyed Lan Yin shouted. The gourd stopped trembling. He walked over to Lucas Qi, lifted the gourd, and with a swift motion, removed its stopper. Instantly, a surge of white vapor poured from the gourd into Lucas Qi's mouth.
After a while, the golden-eyed Lan Yin retrieved the gourd and pressed his hand to Lucas Qi's brow.
"Soul Realignment Ritual, Seven Orifices Awakening..."
Gradually, I saw Lucas Qi's chest begin to move, and then his eyelids fluttered. I watched in astonishment.
"Ethan Zhang, what happens next—you may finally understand what the Hades Circle truly is. Look closely: right and wrong, the origins of everything, begin here."
I stared in surprise at the golden-eyed Lan Yin.
"You're Lan Yin's instinct, aren't you?"
"One of them, at least."
As he spoke, the golden-eyed Lan Yin's eyes went black, and Lan Yin collapsed.
About an hour later, Lan Yin suddenly opened his eyes, looking around in disbelief.
"Lan... Brother..."
Lan Yin immediately got up and rushed to Lucas Qi. In an instant, he burst out laughing and excitedly grasped Lucas Qi's hand.
"I did it. This time, I really did it."
But soon, Lan Yin let go of Lucas Qi's hand, stood up, and ran toward the lake. He jumped into the water, and in no time, caught two live fish, wrapped them in Spirit Veil, and came ashore to start cooking.
"Wait a moment, Brother Qi. I'll make you something to eat right away."
After a while, a pot of fish soup was boiling, its aroma filling the air. Lan Yin kept cooking, and just then, Mo Yu woke up, her face full of confusion.
"Mo Yu... Miss..."
In an instant, Mo Yu turned her head, tears of joy streaming down her face. Her eyes widened, and I watched as she nearly rushed over to hug Lucas Qi. At that moment, Lan Yin approached, carrying a steaming bowl of fish soup.
"Lan Yin, what is this...?"
"Hurry and give your future husband something to eat. He just came back to life—don't let him starve again."
Mo Yu nodded, took the fish soup to Lucas Qi's side, and Lan Yin walked away, heading into the woods. He seemed to understand—the two had been apart so long, they had much to say.
I followed Lan Yin into the woods, where he sat quietly on the ground, leaning against a tree.
"Thank you. You helped me, didn't you? Now I understand. From now on, I hope to become even stronger."
Lan Yin spoke, clenching his fists as he gazed into the distant sky.
Over the next three or four days, Lucas Qi recovered well. His complexion returned to normal, and he could walk again. During those days, Mo Yu and Lucas Qi talked endlessly, from dawn to dusk. Each morning, Lan Yin would go to the woods to train all day, returning only at night. Mo Yu brought him food every day.
"Miss Mo Yu, things aren't over yet. You and Brother Qi should head into the mountains. The power there is chaotic, but I've used the Vermilion Bird's power to purify it. Do you remember when my soul left my body as I slept?"
Mo Yu nodded, and Lan Yin spoke with concern.
"It was people from the underworld—they tried to forcibly summon my soul away."
With a thud, Mo Yu and Lucas Qi both knelt before Lan Yin.
"What are you doing?"
"Thank you, Brother Lan. Thank you for your great kindness and virtue. In this life, to be with Miss Mo Yu, I have no regrets."
"Lan Yin, thank you, thank you..."