Chapter 48: Teaching Ah Yin
In a small mountain village, inside a modest shack...
The tall man and the rat-faced man lounged on chairs with legs crossed, holding wine bowls in their hands. Two women knelt beside them, pouring wine into their cups with fearful expressions.
They enjoyed themselves like lords.
Outside, the entire village—over three hundred people—were kneeling silently. Two corpses lay on the ground. In one home, several young women lay curled on bedding, bruised and crying, having clearly suffered horrific abuse.
"Ugh!"
The tall man downed a bowl of wine and scowled. This village really was pathetic—even their best barley wine was weak. And the women? Far inferior to that fairy-like girl they had seen earlier in the forest.
"Be obedient! As long as you serve us well, you'll live. But if anyone dares to report this to the city, you'll end up just like those two corpses!" he roared.
"Soul Master, dinner is ready."
The elderly village chief came out from the house that was still releasing cooking smoke and bowed respectfully.
"Bring it out!"
Two men carefully carried over a long table covered with roasted duck, vegetables, radishes, potatoes, a whole roasted suckling pig, and a bucket of white rice. It was all the best the village had—the white rice was refined grain, usually reserved for New Year, and meat was a rare treat.
"So poor," the tall man sneered. As a Soul Elder, he received a monthly subsidy of 100 gold soul coins from the local Wuhun branch. These dishes weren't even worth two. He looked down on them completely.
The old village chief's face was bitter. These were the best offerings the village could provide.
Even so, the two rogue soul masters began eating. They knew not to push things too far—if their crimes became too infamous, they'd be hunted down.
They planned to enjoy themselves here for a few days before slipping away to another village.
"You animals!"
A furious voice rang out. The two looked up, and their pupils dilated in horror—Qian Xunji and Ah Yin had returned.
Ah Yin was trembling with rage. She had let these men go, only to learn they had turned around and brutalized innocent villagers.
Qian Xunji had deliberately halted at the edge of the village earlier, letting Ah Yin use her Blue Silver Domain to scout. She had sensed the two corpses and the abused women clearly.
Seeing the two arrive, the tall man panicked. He grabbed the village chief and snarled, "Don't come any closer! I swear I'll kill him!"
"How foolish. What's he got to do with me?"
Qian Xunji flicked his glowing fingers. A golden whip surged forward—striking through the village chief, the tall man, and the rat-faced man, obliterating them instantly. Blood, flesh, and entrails exploded everywhere.
"No!"
Ah Yin screamed, trying to act, but Qian Xunji's soul power pressed her down, completely sealing her movements.
After he'd eliminated them all, Ah Yin shouted in anguish, "Why?!"
"Why what?"
"You could've saved that old man! Why did you kill him too? And why didn't you let me stop you?!"
Tears welled in Ah Yin's beautiful eyes as she saw Qian Xunji's impassive face. Her heart broke. "You lied to me too… Just like Tang Hao and Tang Xiao—you're all the same!"
"If that's what you think, I've nothing more to say. But don't come crying later."
Without offering an explanation, Qian Xunji turned and walked away.
Ah Yin stood frozen, watching him disappear into the village's edge. Her tears flowed uncontrollably. Everything—the patience, the gentleness Qian Xunji had shown her over the past month—shattered like an illusion.
Liar. Liar. They're all liars.
Ah Yin felt like she would never believe in love again.
She wiped her tears and turned to apologize to the villagers—only to find them all glaring at her like she was some kind of monster.
Some angry children even threw rocks.
"Jinx! Get out of our village! You brought those devils here!"
A furious woman pointed at her. "Witch! If not for you, my husband wouldn't be dead! My daughter wouldn't have been raped!"
"I... I didn't...!" Ah Yin was utterly confused. Why were they blaming her? She hadn't done anything wrong...
"If it weren't for you, those bastards wouldn't have come! You're a soul master, aren't you? Just you wait—we're reporting you to the Wuhun Hall!"
The entire village was in uproar. Had Qian Xunji not warned her against showing her spirit rings earlier, if they thought she were just a normal person, they might have beaten her with farming tools by now.
"Why...? Why...?"
Ah Yin's worldview shattered. Tears fell again.
Just then, Qian Xunji's voice echoed in her ear.
"When the strong get angry, they raise a blade against the stronger. When the weak get angry, they draw it on the weaker. And you still don't think you're naïve?"
When the villagers saw Qian Xunji return, they all fell silent in terror. His earlier act of killing three people with one strike was still vivid in their minds.
Without wasting any more time, Qian Xunji took Ah Yin and flew away. He had already sensed the five soul masters back in the forest earlier. When Ah Yin had shown her misplaced kindness, he had anticipated exactly how this would play out.
He brought her to a field where fireflies floated beneath the twilight. The sun had already set, and the sky glowed crimson.
"If you want to cry, go ahead. Don't hold it in."
At his words, Ah Yin threw herself onto his shoulder, sobbing. "Why? Why is this happening? I only ever tried to ease tensions between humans and soul beasts... I've never done anything wrong—why am I being blamed like this?"
Qian Xunji sighed.
"Stop doing foolish things with foolish intentions. You're a transformed soul beast, and not just any—you're the Blue Silver Emperor."
"This world requires people to eat. For the average villager, blue silver grass roots are a staple food. By healing these people, you prolong their lives—so they can kill more of your kin. That makes you a failed Blue Silver Emperor."
"You dream of easing tensions between humans and soul beasts? It's futile. Soul masters must kill soul beasts to gain soul rings. That won't change. No matter what you do, you can't stop a soul master from wanting to grow stronger. At best, they might kill fewer—but they'll never stop."
Ah Yin raised her tear-streaked face. "So there's no way for peace? Was everything I did meaningless?"
Qian Xunji nodded. "It's impossible. Even if soul rings didn't require soul beasts, it wouldn't help. This is a world built on strength, on a pyramid. The strong feed off the weak. Even among humans, the powerful exploit the poor with no remorse—what chance do soul beasts have?"
"It's the same among soul beasts. The food chain doesn't change. You lot simply don't have the brains to organize like humans. Even if you evolved and developed intelligence over thousands of years—if you didn't get wiped out—you'd just repeat the same hierarchy humans have now."
Ah Yin asked, "Then what should I do—nothing?"
"Not nothing. Guard your Blue Silver Forest. That's your duty. Leave the rest to fate. And also—do what I say."
Qian Xunji raised her chin gently, leaning in, a sly smile on his lips.
"Are you ready?"
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