Ah Yin quivered softly in her pot, the faint glow of the contract magic shimmering above her.
Xiao Tian's request lingered in her mind: an equal soul contract.
Her first instinct was hesitation. If she signed… would it mean losing her freedom? Would she forever become just another soul bound to a spirit master?
But her reality struck her quickly. What freedom do I even have now?
She was but a fragile stalk of blue silver grass, utterly powerless. Bound in silence, unable even to speak her heart, locked in weakness. What difference would it truly make?
Slowly, a faint ray of starlight seeped from her thin leaves, rising upward until it merged into the hovering contract glyphs.
The contract blazed brilliantly, then dimmed.
It was complete.
Ah Yin's physical stalk vanished from the pot, her essence instead forming within Xiao Tian's spiritual space. There, she appeared in the shape of her human self—though still fragile and transparent, reflecting her low cultivation.
Daming and Er Ming's colossal essences also materialized beside her, as Xiao Tian sat cross-legged within his inner world. The four of them shared a rare moment of face-to-face clarity.
Ah Yin bowed gently, her voice soft yet tinged with disappointment. "I have met the Titan Giant Ape and the Azure Bull Python."
She paused, then added with warmth, "It is an honor to speak with you both again."
Er Ming puffed up proudly. "No need for politeness, Blue Silver Emperor. Though you've had to start over, with Xiao Tian's help it's only a matter of time before your cultivation returns. From now on we'll just call you Ah Yin. And you can call us Daming and Er Ming."
For a moment, the air was cordial. But pleasantries soon gave way to the question gnawing at their hearts.
Daming's gaze hardened.
"Ah Yin. Now that you can speak again… tell us honestly. If you regain your form, will you return to Tang Hao's side?"
The question struck at the root.
For Daming, this was everything. If Ah Yin still wished to go back to Tang Hao even after all that had been revealed, then there was no point helping her. Better to dissolve the bond now than walk into betrayal later.
Ah Yin lowered her head. She shook it gently, not in refusal, but in thought.
Her voice trembled. "I heard what you said before… but I still cannot understand. If Tang Hao plotted against me, then why—why did he fall into decadence for so many years afterwards? He drowned himself in drink, cast aside his pride."
Her words stilled the others. Even Daming and Er Ming faltered. They had no ready answer for this.
Xiao Tian broke the silence with a calm tone. "Because after your sacrifice, Spirit Hall couldn't find Tang Hao. Instead, they turned their hatred toward the Haotian Sect. The sect's master at that time—Tang Hao's own father—was furious and died from the blow. You see now?"
The words stunned the three.
Xiao Tian pierced deeper. "Ah Yin. Think. Did Tang Hao ever show you how deeply he cared for his sect?"
Her heart wavered dangerously. For all her years beside Tang Hao, she had known one truth—he did love the sect.
Then why had he never gone back? Why did he always live in exile, carrying guilt?
Was it because of her sacrifice? Or… was it because he bore the guilt of his father's death?
The answer gnawed at her.
Still, she clenched onto one last thread of belief. "Even if… even if Tang Hao used me… I still have my son Tang San. Isn't a child innocent in all this?"
She looked directly at Xiao Tian, her voice faltering, almost pleading.
Xiao Tian's eyes darkened. "Ah Yin. Have you never noticed how… strange Tang San truly is?"
Her body stiffened. "…What do you mean?"
"His countless self-created soul skills. His ability to forge and design strange 'hidden weapons.'" Xiao Tian's words were steady, cutting. "Do you truly believe all of that came naturally, just from being Tang Hao's son? Think carefully."
Ah Yin blinked in disbelief. "Tang San is not… my son? Impossible. What proof do you have?"
Her voice became sharp with refusal. "And what of invented spirit skills or hidden weapons? You also created your own spirit skills, Xiao Tian. Doesn't that make you the same?"
Xiao Tian only shook his head faintly.
"The difference is this: I can explain clearly the source of my skills. They came from opportunities inherited from my heritage… but also from training, from years of sword practice. Xiao Wu can testify to this."
He took a step closer, his eyes piercing straight through her fragile soul body.
"What about Tang San? His techniques were never tied to his martial spirit. Tell me—have you ever seen him invent a technique using Blue Silver Grass or the Clear Sky Hammer? No. Instead, he 'created' ghostly body techniques and ambush weapons, as if he had known them all along, just waiting to recall them… rather than invent them fresh."
Ah Yin staggered back a little, her face paling.
Xiao Tian's tone pressed heavier.
"And those hidden weapons—yes, they seem unfamiliar to this world. But in truth, aren't they just disguised sneak attacks? Poison-tipped, projectile-based—things no martial spirit could inspire. Where did those concepts come from for a supposed village boy?"
His sharp gaze cut into her. "His martial spirits are Blue Silver Grass and Clear Sky Hammer, but weapons like that can't link to either. The only option left is that he already knew of hidden weapons before awakening his martial spirit, and merely forged them after learning blacksmithing from Tang Hao."
His voice edged into steel. "And how old was Tang San then? A child. Barely even conscious of cultivation. Yet he set routines, strange actions—like his Purple Demon Eye training at dawn. Tell me, Ah Yin. At what age did your 'son' first start absorbing purple qi from sunrise? Was that normal?"
The question slammed into her.
Her mind bled confusion. Memory swirled with pain.
Daming growled, his deep voice vibrating the spiritual plane. "Are you saying… Tang San's soul isn't truly that of Ah Yin's son? That his body is theirs… but his soul has been replaced?"
Xiao Tian folded his arms. "That is what I mean, yes."
Er Ming blinked wildly. His hair bristled. "Parasite?! Is that what you're saying? Like those cursed bats that infest other souls?"
Daming shook his head grimly, calming his brother. "No. That isn't quite right. Parasites merge crudely, leaving corruption. Tang San… no, his is different. His case isn't parasitism. Something else resides in that body. It is him—but it is not him."
Ah Yin's transparent face grew whiter, trembling faintly. Her voice cracked. "No… No! Unless you prove it, I won't believe. Tang San… Tang San is still my son!"
Her denial ripped through the space, every word filled with heartbreak. Huge waves of disbelief crashed inside her.
She looked at Xiao Tian with watery eyes. "And even you, Xiao Tian—you hide secrets. You clearly have knowledge beyond this world! How are you different? Perhaps you also inherited someone else's soul!"
Xiao Tian did not flinch. His words were quiet but firm.
"My situation is… special. But I can tell you clearly, Ah Yin—I am me. Completely. Tang San, however, may not be Tang San."
His tone sharpened again. "And learn this—self-created spirit skills born from one's martial spirit are the natural path of growth. I forged mine patiently from my swordsmanship, tested with sweat, and proven before others. Tang San's spirit skills… how many truly link to Blue Silver Grass? To the Clear Sky Hammer? Or are they all decorations covering something alien?"
Ah Yin froze, unable to refute.
Xiao Tian delivered his final blow. "And again—think carefully. Those Purple Demon Eyes. When exactly did Tang San start practicing them in Holy Soul Village? From what age? Do you think a newborn child, barely capable of memory, could comprehend a technique demanding years of concentrated dawn cultivation? Answer that, Ah Yin—then tell me again your son is only your son."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Ah Yin stood trembling, her soul-body flickering faintly. The truth clawed at her, tearing open her fragile heart—but still, she clung stubbornly, refusing to let her faith break.
For the first time since her rebirth, doubt wrapped its thorns around her.
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