"Despicable woman, you're really playing your cards well, huh?"
Gu Yue gritted her teeth in fury at Leng Yulai's shameless insistence on pledging herself to Xia Yi. She was absolutely livid—even to the point of swearing.
No girl would be happy about her boyfriend suddenly acquiring a female servant out of nowhere.
If Leng Yulai weren't Leng Yaozhu's younger sister, Gu Yue would have insisted that Xia Yi shatter her martial soul without hesitation.
"She must have gained some insights from being in that space within your mind," Gu Yue said in a low voice. "She realized your extraordinary origins and wants to follow you to eventually become a god."
Whether human or soul beast, becoming a god was the ultimate pursuit.
For anyone, the stronger they were, the deeper their obsession with divinity became.
Why else would so many fearsome beasts from ten thousand years ago willingly give up their physical bodies and become soul spirits? Why would they offer themselves up as sacrifices to the Ice Spirit Douluo, Huo Yuhao?
The Ice Emperor, the Snow Emperor—these beings were far prouder than Leng Yulai.
Even they couldn't resist the temptation of godhood. So how could Leng Yulai?
At least those beasts had to sacrifice their bodies, resigning themselves to being mere attachments.
But Leng Yulai? All she had to do was pledge herself to Xia Yi.
With Leng Yaozhu's connection, Xia Yi wouldn't make excessive demands of her.
He wouldn't use her martial soul essence to threaten her.
And if she didn't step out of line, there was even a chance Xia Yi would grant her freedom in the future.
Xia Yi's potential needed no elaboration—he was only fourteen yet already at the Lingyuan Realm.
The thought alone was terrifying.
Combined with the unfathomable mysteries surrounding him, it was obvious that his chances of becoming a god were even greater than the Ice Spirit Douluo, Huo Yuhao.
Forget Leng Yulai—anyone would jump at such an opportunity.
Even the Heart of the Ice God, which had mysteriously become Xia Yi's soul spirit, accepted its fate so quickly because it saw the potential for divinity in him.
Though it refused to bow to Xia Yi or call him master, deep down, it had already acknowledged him.
"What do you think I should do?" Xia Yi asked.
He felt that Leng Yulai's motives weren't as simple as just seeking godhood.
"Can you bring her out?" Gu Yue asked.
"I can feel that I probably can." Xia Yi nodded. Ever since Leng Yulai fully activated the Dark Phoenix markings on his arm—her martial soul essence—he felt an even closer bond with her.
Now, he could borrow more soul power from her.
In other words, his Dark Phoenix attacks had become even more powerful.
Xia Yi could also sense that he could summon Leng Yulai directly through the Dark Phoenix essence.
If he summoned her from outside, she would appear before him.
If he summoned her while inside his spiritual world, he could send her back in.
Of course, this only worked if they weren't too far apart.
"Let's take her back and see if we can hand her over to the teacher," Gu Yue said helplessly.
She couldn't trust Leng Yulai at all.
"That seems like the only option for now." Xia Yi nodded. "There are still many things I don't fully understand. Wait for me a bit—I need to go back in."
"Alright!" Gu Yue nodded.
Once again, Xia Yi concentrated his consciousness into his spiritual world and touched the cyan-golden vortex.
In the next instant, he reappeared inside the bronze-walled space.
Looking around, he was stunned.
Previously, this space had been enclosed by bronze walls. But in the short time he had been gone, it had transformed into a simple room.
"Welcome home, Master!"
Leng Yulai greeted him, personally bringing over a metallic chair for him to sit on.
"A soul-forged metal chair? You're really generous," Xia Yi remarked.
The chair was made of soul-forged metal that had been refined from at least three different types of metals.
It could already be used to create a three-word battle armor.
Yet here it was—just a chair.
"A servant can't possibly let her master be without a proper seat," Leng Yulai giggled.
Xia Yi shook his head and asked, "Do you want to leave this place?"
"I will do whatever Master wishes. If Master wants me to leave, I will leave. If Master wants me to stay, I will stay," Leng Yulai said with a sweet smile. "But if Master does wish for me to leave, please give me a little more time."
"Seems like you're not ready to go yet," Xia Yi sighed. "You've been trapped here for four years. Aren't you sick of it?"
"Master may not know, but this place is very special," Leng Yulai explained. "I had strayed into the path of evil before, and my martial soul had turned from a Dark Phoenix into an Evil Dark Phoenix. But here, unknowingly, my martial soul has been purified. It has reverted to a pure Dark Phoenix. Now, only a small trace of evil remains in my soul power. If I stay here longer, I will completely break free from being an evil soul master."
"I see," Xia Yi nodded.
Leng Yaozhu had mentioned before that Leng Yulai's evil aura had been weakening.
Now he finally understood why.
"One more thing—what was that about you ambushing me outside Tiandou City four years ago?" Xia Yi asked.
"I wanted to create a four-word battle armor," Leng Yulai admitted. "I had been lurking near Tiandou City for three years, waiting for a chance to capture Divine Craftsman Zhenhua and force him to forge one for me. But I never got an opportunity."
"Then, four years ago, Master and a little girl appeared at the Blacksmith Association. Zhenhua personally came out to meet you. So I assumed you two were important to him. I thought I could capture you and use you to threaten Zhenhua… but instead, I ended up imprisoned here."
Leng Yulai looked at Xia Yi with pitiful eyes. "I didn't know who you were back then. Please forgive me, Master! I was an evil soul master then, but now I have reformed."
She was honestly quite frustrated about the whole thing.
Three years of waiting had gone to waste.
Even kidnapping two kids had failed.
And worse, she had trapped herself instead.
"Forget it," Xia Yi sighed and ignored her, turning his gaze to the surrounding bronze walls.
His past self had mentioned that they contained many valuable secrets.
It had to be the engravings on the walls.
Most of them were simple depictions of mountains, rivers, and forests.
Only two carvings, located at the center of the front and back walls, stood out.
They looked extremely simple—just a few circles and dots.
"Master, these two diagrams may look simple, but they are incredibly profound. I studied them for four years and nearly lost my mind. If not for the guidance of your past soul remnant, I wouldn't have grasped even a fraction of their meaning," Leng Yulai said gravely.
She had rarely looked so serious.
At first glance, the diagrams seemed childishly simple.
But the deeper she delved, the more terrifying and profound they became.
"My past soul remnant?" Xia Yi frowned. He already knew that his past self's spiritual power had dissipated a year ago.
The one who had imprisoned Leng Yulai was that remnant.
Judging by her words, she had met him and even received his guidance.
"Yes, but he wouldn't teach me directly," Leng Yulai pouted. "He only gave occasional hints. Even so, those hints allowed me to understand a tiny fraction of the diagrams."
"It's just a fraction? What have you learned?" Xia Yi asked curiously.
"Master, according to your past soul remnant, these diagrams are the River Diagram and the Luo Script. But they are not the originals—just copies. I have studied the Luo Script. Please watch."
Leng Yulai raised her jade-like hand and made a pressing motion in the air.
In her palm, a scene unfolded: the changing of the four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter.
"This is… the power of time?" Xia Yi gasped.
"Indeed," Leng Yulai sighed. "But I have only scratched the surface. Your past soul remnant was too stingy. He teased me with knowledge but never let me fully grasp it."
Xia Yi's face darkened. "Watch your wording."
"Master, don't be shy," she giggled. "I'm just a humble maid, after all."
Xia Yi sighed, giving up on reasoning with her. He turned instead to the surrounding landscapes.
"Master, these mountains and rivers contain immense spiritual imprints. Even I don't dare to touch them lightly," Leng Yulai warned, her tone serious once again.
Though she loved teasing Xia Yi, she knew when to be serious.
After four years in this space, she understood it far better than Xia Yi, who had yet to recover his past memories.