The moon hung high over Mount Hồi Âm, casting a pale light over the shattered remains of an ancient shrine. Bloodied stone pillars and the scent of lingering resentment filled the air—a remnant of the sealed ancient wraith.
Lăng Tiêu leaned weakly against a fractured stone column. His Taoist robes were torn and stained crimson. Each breath came shallow, but his eyes burned with unwavering calm.
Beside him sat Diệp Vân Sơ, her hand gently transmitting green spiritual energy into his wounded body. Her face was serene, yet her eyes revealed the turbulence within.
"You vanished from the Heavenly Heart Valley without a word," she said quietly. "I once believed you had failed your tribulation…"
Lăng Tiêu closed his eyes with a faint, bitter smile.
"I intended to take you with me. But the war with the Demon Sect erupted. I broke the seal and fell into the void. I thought I had perished… Only to awaken in this foreign world."
Diệp Vân Sơ lowered her gaze, her voice trembling slightly.
"You still have the charm I gave you back then?"
Lăng Tiêu slowly opened his hand. A faded talisman, frayed and barely glowing, rested in his palm.
"The token remains. And so do you. That… is enough."
That night, Bé An suddenly awoke. His dark eyes shimmered with an eerie blue light. He raised his small hands toward the ruined shrine.
Wisps of wraith energy—residual fragments of the ancient spirit—began to stir, swirling toward the boy as if obeying his call. Diệp Vân Sơ's expression shifted from awe to shock.
"This... this is the Spiritborn Soul Physique? A constitution thought extinct in the Lower Realm?"
Lăng Tiêu smiled faintly despite his weakened state.
"This child… was never meant to be ordinary. He shall be my true heir."
At dawn, Ngô Văn Tín returned to the village, accompanied by a group of red-robed figures. Each bore a sinister insignia: a severed black eye, encircled by a broken crescent moon.
The townsfolk retreated in fear. Doors shut, windows barred. An old man trembled as he whispered:
"They… they're from the Hidden Yin Cult… desecrators of graves, devourers of resentment. Monsters in human skin…"
At their lead stood the cult leader, his voice slithering like a snake in the grass.
"Lăng Tiêu the so-called Immortal… you've meddled in our plans to awaken the Great Wraith. Today, we've come to settle scores."
Diệp Vân Sơ stepped forward, standing protectively in front of Lăng Tiêu.
"You defile the path of cultivation and still dare to speak of righteousness? Pathetic!"
A cultist sneered, pointing at her mockingly.
"And you? A fallen immortal, living with a mortal man—your story will amuse the heavens!"
Lăng Tiêu roared, fury burning in his eyes despite his injuries.
"Insult her again, and I'll shatter every tooth in your damned mouth!"
Suddenly, a violent surge of spiritual energy erupted from his body. He began to merge the newly absorbed remnant soul into his shattered spirit core!
The ground trembled. Golden light erupted skyward.
The cult leader recoiled in horror.
"He… he can assimilate remnant souls? He must not be allowed to live!"