"No, no..." Little Gong, the infant spirit, cried out, clinging to the bedside and shaking his head. Mo Yu turned her head, smiled gently at him, and I saw her Soul-Calling Gourd right beside her.
"Hurry, my time is running out. Little Gong, you want to be reborn as our child, don't you?"
"Yes, Mother..." Little Gong whimpered. Mo Yu nodded.
"Good child, listen to your mother. Eat both me and your father—whether soul or flesh—and your brother who died at birth. That way, our family can at least be together."
"No, Miss Mo Yu..."
At that moment, Wang Su suddenly rushed forward.
"Ah..."
Lan Yin went mad, wailing, clutching his head, banging it repeatedly against the ground. Pain had driven him insane, and he kept crying out.
"Why? Why, why? Even after trying so desperately, why..."
"Don't come any closer."
Mo Yu shouted harshly. Wang Su froze in place.
"Miss Mo Yu, I will do everything I can to beg the Hades Circle for mercy, at least..."
Mo Yu laughed, her expression contemptuous as she looked at Wang Su, then her face softened with tenderness as she gazed at Lan Yin.
At that moment, Little Gong's body began to emit black mist. His mouth opened wide—instantly, it became like a cauldron, filled with black fangs. Tears streamed down his face as he bit into Lucas Qi's corpse and began to chew.
Blood and flesh flew everywhere. I was too shocked—I never imagined something like this could happen.
"Young Master Lan, Mo Yu, one last request—will you grant it?"
Mo Yu opened his mouth, sobbing. The pain had completely consumed him; he stared blankly at Mo Yu.
"Young Master Lan, find a way to help Little Gong escape from here. This is Mo Yu's last request. Thank you, Brother Lan. Our family will never forget your kindness..."
With a roar, Lan Yin raised his hand, releasing a strip of white silk that instantly pulled Wang Su out from the mountains.
I saw Little Gong sobbing uncontrollably, holding Mo Yu's Soul-Calling Gourd. He opened the lid, and as soon as Lucas Qi's soul appeared, he devoured it. Little Gong screamed, and Lan Yin slowly stood up.
I looked at Lan Yin with concern. His eyes seemed abnormal, as if his soul had left him, staring at Zhao He, Wang Ming, and Su Jianle, who were all preparing themselves.
At that moment, as I tried to turn my head, Little Gong had already opened his mouth wide. Mo Yu's gaze was unfocused; she smiled softly and slowly closed her eyes.
My eyes widened instantly, fists clenched, staring blankly as Little Gong swallowed both Mo Yu and the misshapen, already dead infant beside her, chewing noisily.
At that moment, I noticed the red flower made from cloth hanging at the bedside, now stained with blood. Finally, Little Gong finished his devouring and stood quietly by the bed.
Tears still dripped from his face, falling steadily.
Suddenly, Little Gong's body began to swell. He screamed in pain as Lan Yin turned his head blankly to look at him.
"Is that so, Little Gong? Rest easy, take your parents and your brother, and leave."
Lan Yin said this flatly, then turned away. Just then, as Little Gong's body reached its limit, it suddenly shrank back, returning to normal bit by bit, a strange smile appearing on his face.
Waves of ghostly green light seeped from Little Gong's body, growing brighter and brighter. That eerie smile, under the green glow, looked even more terrifying.
Little Gong slowly floated upward. I saw his eyes gradually turn gold, the strange smile vanishing from his face. He laughed wildly, and suddenly everything in the mountains creaked and then crumbled into dust.
I felt a powerful ghostly force emanating from Little Gong. In his hand was a Soul-Calling Gourd—the one Wang Ming had given Lan Yin, filled with Awakening Water.
"Deal with the one inside first."
Su Jianle said, and the other two moved at the same time. Su Jianle charged forward, wielding the Phoenix Blade. Instantly, strands of red silk shot out from Zhao He's hands. Wang Ming stepped onto the silk, and without realizing it, a sword had appeared in his hands.
I looked over—a blue-green sword, its blade broad with many small grooves, resembling scales. The hilt was shaped like a dragon biting down. For a moment, all three exuded a powerful aura.
Little Gong opened Wang Ming's Soul-Calling Gourd and gulped down all the Awakening Water inside. With a bang, he tossed the gourd aside.
"Come on, let me use the blood of you souls from the Yellow Springs for a sacrifice..."
As Little Gong spoke, green light flared from his body, and a chilling, fierce cold spread out, freezing thin layers of ice on the surrounding stone walls. The air was suffocatingly cold, and ice flowers formed everywhere.
In an instant, Little Gong turned into a burst of green light and shot forward. Just as both sides were about to clash, Lan Yin suddenly burst into laughter, his body swaying as if he could collapse at any moment. Suddenly, Lan Yin slowly floated up, blocking the middle between the two groups.
"Brother Lan, move aside. Today, I will use their blood to commemorate all of this. Only the blood of souls from the Yellow Springs can soothe my anger..."
As Little Gong spoke, he pressed a hand to his chest, his face twisted with rage.
Lan Yin chuckled softly.
"Hurry and go, Little Gong. Do you remember what I promised your mother?"
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Little Gong stared blankly at Lan Yin. Lan Yin's body was covered in wounds—his previous injuries hadn't healed, and a gaping hole in his chest from the Phoenix Blade was slowly mending under the power of the Vermilion Bird, but blood still oozed out.
"Brother Lan, you already..."
"The greater the hope, the deeper the despair... in this world..."
Lan Yin muttered to himself, staring at the three souls from the Yellow Springs before him.
"Lan Yin, stop deceiving yourself. Step aside. Since you're a Lan family descendant, if you come back to the Yellow Springs with us, everything will become clear."
Zhao He spoke, walking slowly on the red silk toward him.
"That is a ghost creature. Its power is not strong right now, but it harbors deep hatred for us souls of the Yellow Springs..."
"Failed, failed, failed..."
Lan Yin hung his head, shaking it repeatedly, muttering 'failed' over and over. He was in agony—nothing he had done could save anyone or protect anything. Now, he seemed to have nothing left.
"No matter how hard you try, what awaits you may only be the ashes of despair, predetermined long ago..."
At that moment, I saw ember-like things rising beneath Lan Yin's feet. In his eyes, the hope I once saw was gone—his golden eyes now held nothing but bottomless despair.
I've seen people like this before—the girl in the Forest of Desire, just like Lan Yin, had nothing but despair in her eyes.
"Lan Yin..."
Wang Su shouted, standing nearby, his face filled with regret.
"I told you, this is my business. Little Gong, hurry and go, anywhere you like—take your parents, and your unborn brother."
Lan Yin said in a low voice. Little Gong slowly approached him, but suddenly, with a crackling sound, Little Gong jumped back. The three souls from the Yellow Springs stared at Lan Yin in astonishment.
Around Lan Yin, the black embers gradually spread over his body, forming a crust. His body turned black, and soon even his face was gone, leaving only his golden eyes.
A sizzling sound rang out as black currents of electricity flickered across Lan Yin's body.
"Everything in this world is fleeting. Who am I? Why am I here? Everything was beautiful at first. If miracles truly exist, I would give everything for one. The will of the Yellow Springs—what nonsense is that, ah..."
Lan Yin roared. Suddenly, a massive black aura erupted from his body. Behind him, Little Gong flew up into the mountain sky, turning into green light and vanishing. At that moment, the three souls from the Yellow Springs focused all their attention on Lan Yin.
When the black aura faded, I saw a black dragon coiling around Lan Yin, its head resting on his left shoulder. Beneath him was a pitch-black tiger with white stripes.
With the Vermilion Bird's cry, black currents behind Lan Yin formed a pitch-black Vermilion Bird, floating behind him.
With a thunderous roar, the ground shook violently. The three souls from the Yellow Springs glanced at each other and retreated to the center of the lake.
Mountains collapsed, and strangely, the rocks flew backward. The ground split open, and something black and oval, covered in turtle-like scales, emerged from beneath Lan Yin's feet.