Chapter 47: Naive Ah Yin
A month had passed. In a relatively remote mountain village, Ah Yin was still doing what she had been doing throughout the Douluo Continent—taking out her small medicine box from her storage soul tool and offering free treatment to the villagers wherever she went.
With access to treasures like the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Qian Xunji had no shortage of medicinal herbs. Yet Ah Yin never asked him for any. Thanks to her incredibly powerful detection ability through the Blue Silver Domain, she could sense plants rich in energy within her field and use her Blue Silver Grass vines to collect them.
So for the past month, she and Qian Xunji had been traveling through scarcely inhabited forests.
At first, Qian Xunji found it somewhat interesting. But gradually, he began to regret agreeing to Ah Yin's request. The repetitive routine of diving into forests, searching for herbs, and healing villagers was nothing like the "leisurely tour" he'd envisioned.
When it came to scenery, how could anything on the continent compare to the Lake of Life in the Star Dou Forest or the breathtaking beauty of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well? What could match the grandeur of the Pope's Hall?
By carriage, it would take a month to return to Wuhun City. At their current meandering pace, it might take four months.
After spending most of the morning treating hundreds of people in the small village, Ah Yin wiped the sweat from her brow, packed up her table and chair, and waved goodbye to the villagers.
In the past, when traveling alone, she'd often ask for some dried food. But now that Qian Xunji was with her, the food they had brought from big cities was much tastier than what small villages could offer. Having experienced luxury, Ah Yin had grown more selective in her taste.
Perhaps influenced by Tang Hao and Tang Xiao—after all, swinging a hammer was hard labor—even Ah Yin, who had always been vegetarian, started eating some meat.
At the village entrance, on a muddy path leading toward Wuhun City, Qian Xunji appeared. "Aren't you bored?" he asked. "Doing the same thing over and over, never-ending."
Ah Yin shook her head. "Not at all. Don't you find it interesting? If I trained all the time, I'd grow tired of it. Besides, didn't you want me to reach maturity sooner?"
Seeing Ah Yin's cheerful demeanor, Qian Xunji couldn't help but recall: she had spent ten thousand years rooted in the Blue Silver Forest, watching nearly unchanged scenery day after day. Her patience far exceeded what he had imagined. Growing up in such a monotonous environment, it was no wonder her mind was so... empty.
Half a month ago, in hopes of helping her reach maturity sooner, Qian Xunji gave her a celestial herb: the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid. It had the mildest yet most nourishing properties—perfectly suited for a life-attributed Blue Silver Emperor.
The herb's effect was to strengthen her foundation and purge impurities. While it required a long time to absorb for ordinary humans, Ah Yin's soul beast body had no such limitation. After consuming it, she quickly broke through to Soul Emperor, and her cultivation had already reached rank 65.
The purpose, naturally, was that once she reached maturity, her offspring would no longer bear beastly traits. With Ah Yin's potent life energy, she had the ideal body for pregnancy.
Once again, it must be said: the origin of humans in Douluo World was strange. They weren't evolved from apes or wild beasts but from soul beasts who took human form and reproduced. So there was no reproductive barrier between humans and soul beasts.
Still brimming with excitement, Ah Yin said, "Look how happy those people are. To improve relations between soul beasts and humans, this is something I have to do."
Qian Xunji's lips twitched. "You're really dumb."
Ah Yin's smile instantly vanished. Her cheeks puffed up in anger. "Why do you always call me dumb? I'm not!"
Qian Xunji's spiritual sense picked up on several presences ahead in the forest. "You'll soon understand why I said that."
About two hundred meters farther, on a forest path, five figures jumped out.
"Don't move! Hand over everything you've got!"
Among them, four were Grand Soul Masters, and one was a Soul Elder—their rings were white, yellow, white, and double yellow.
The moment they spoke, their gazes locked onto Ah Yin. One tall man gulped. "Is that... a fairy?"
Another with a rat-like face nodded rapidly. "I've never seen such a beautiful woman in my life."
A third, who had an ugly scar across his face, added, "That guy's not bad-looking either. Guess we brothers can all have a taste today!"
Qian Xunji raised his hand, golden light gathering between his index and middle fingers. A light whip shot out, and two of the men were instantly sliced into several pieces—blood, guts, and organs splattering everywhere.
"Instead of sending you to the Slaughter City, I'll just deal with you here."
Although there were benefits and subsidies for soul masters, human greed and wickedness were never truly suppressed. If someone with soul power committed serious crimes and was exposed, they'd be blacklisted by Wuhun Hall and sent to Slaughter City. But many resisted—like these men. They were the type who didn't want to work, didn't want to earn. So Qian Xunji saw no need for mercy.
With another flick of his glowing fingers, the scarred man exploded into a bloody mess.
"Mercy, senior! Mercy! We were just trying to get by!" The last two survivors dropped to their knees, kowtowing frantically.
"Senior, I have an 80-year-old mother and a newborn child to feed—please, have mercy!"
Qian Xunji's eyes remained cold. Just as he was about to lash out again, a soft hand gripped his own.
"Please let them go. They're pitiful too," Ah Yin whispered.
It was the first time in a month that she saw Qian Xunji—who always seemed gentle and calm—act so brutally. She trembled at the sight of the blood and gore.
Qian Xunji didn't look surprised. "Are you sure? Don't tell me you didn't run into things like this with Tang Hao and Tang Xiao."
"We did... but Brother Hao and Brother Xiao only taught them a lesson, then let them go."
"As you wish." Qian Xunji lowered his hand. "Get lost. Now."
"Thank you, senior! Thank you, fairy lady!" the two remaining men cried and scrambled away.
Once they'd gone, Qian Xunji and Ah Yin continued into the forest. She reactivated her Blue Silver Domain to search for herbs and tucked them into her medicine box.
By the time they reached the mountain peak, it was already dusk.
Tugging at Qian Xunji's sleeve, Ah Yin pointed to the horizon. "Look over there! The sunset—it's so beautiful! That little village I treated earlier is right there."
Qian Xunji nodded slightly, but then frowned as he looked down at the village. "Doesn't something seem strange to you?"
Ah Yin blinked. "Strange how?"
"At this hour, the farmers should be done with work and heading home for dinner. But only one house has smoke rising from the chimney."
"Come with me."
Qian Xunji placed a hand gently on her waist and took to the sky, flying straight toward the small village.
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