Wells and Lan sat at a table, spread with food and drinks.
Lan sat silently, silent.
"Let's not talk about work today, let's talk about our hearts,"
Wells said with a faint smile, then he picked up his glass and poured Lan a glass of wine himself.
As he poured, he asked, "Lan, do you hate your teacher and the Empire?"
It was Wells who had led him down this path.
With Lan's talent, he should have blossomed on the continent's stage, enjoying the spotlight, a shark galloping freely across the ocean.
But because of his words,
Lan spent the first half of his life confined to a dark cage.
Training, endless killing, and being forbidden to show his face were too cruel for a child.
Sharks should have roamed the ocean,not been confined to a sewer.
Wells felt a deep sense of guilt towards Lan.
He had spent some time with Lan and knew that he was far from the aloof and mature person he appeared to be.
"No hatred.
It was the Empire that saved me, and you, Master, who gave me a new life.
If it weren't for the Empire and you, Master, I would have perished at the hands of pirates along with the people of my small fishing village."
Lan's voice was unusually low.
"But you deserved a better childhood," Wells suddenly spoke.
Lan shook his head, a flicker of pain in his eyes.
"Teacher, I don't want to discuss this."
"Okay," Wells' voice was a little hoarse, the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes reflecting the years.
He was old,but Lan was still young.
Such a brilliant young talent shouldn't have died in this dark, damp cage.
After a long pause,
Wells looked at Lan.
"Lan, do you want freedom?"
Suddenly, Lan's heart trembled!
Freedom... freedom...those two words were familiar yet strange to him.
It was something he had longed for, yet seemed so out of reach.
Then,Wells pulled a contract from his arms and pushed it towards Lan.
"I've petitioned His Majesty for a chance to escape Black Ice."
"But you must complete one final mission for the Empire, no matter when or where."
"A year, ten years, perhaps even longer."
"Until you complete this final mission, you remain Black Ice, an assassin for the Empire."
Wells paused, a smile flickering across his face.
"But until then, you can live the life you desire."
"Once you complete this mission, you will no longer be a Black Ice assassin, Lan."
"Lan, are you willing?"
Wells's voice echoed quietly in the cell.
Lan's numb body shook violently. He trembled as he picked up the contract, examining it carefully.
His Majesty's seal.
This contract was genuine.
"Lan... I do."
Lan signed his name on it.
The moment Lan pushed the contract aside, he felt a sense of relief.
He was free...
It all happened so suddenly, so dreamy, that Lan thought he was dreaming.
Wells put away the contract, placed his hand on Lan's shoulder, and smiled softly, "Live well.
The world is vast, and there are many beautiful things you need to discover with your heart."
"Also, teacher hopes that if the empire is ever in danger, you will stand by it."
"Teacher knows you don't want to talk about your childhood because of the empire."
"But this is a world where the strong prey on the weak.
Without the cruel laws of survival, the empire wouldn't be what it is today."
"Even Your Majesty got there the same way,"
Wells sighed softly.
The competition within the Xingluo royal family is far more brutal than that of the Black Ice.
After all, the enemies standing before them are their beloved relatives and friends.
Lan, too, had a brief childhood.
He lived under the same roof with many children his age, playing and laughing together.
Until one day, a nightmare struck.
The empire imprisoned these children in a cage, where they were slaughtered.
Only the last one standing could enter the Black Ice.
And Lan was the last child left alive.
His hands were stained with blood,including that of his childhood friend.
From the moment the contract was signed, the Black Ice's strongest assassin was dead.
Died in childhood memories.
As for the final mission, for Lan, it was just another kill; Lan had long been accustomed to killing.
Lan bowed deeply to Wells and turned to leave.
Wells looked at Lan's back, a relieved smile on his face.
Lan.
Live well,for yourself.
Lan walked out of the underground cell and back to the surface.
The glaring sunlight made his expression dazed for a moment.
It seemed that this was his first time truly experiencing sunlight.
Lan looked at the people walking in the streets and alleys.
Some were in a hurry, some were at ease, and more or less, they had their own things to do.
Lan was a little uncomfortable,this sudden feeling of freedom was like being suddenly fired by the boss of the company.
"I wonder if the little ghost is okay?"
Lan's mind suddenly flashed with the image of Qian Renxue's dirty face.
Why did he suddenly think of that little ghost?
It must be because I've been too idle.
I need to find something to do.
Soon,for the next six months, Lan embarked on a solo journey, traveling across the land, witnessing the blossoms of flowers, their withering and flourishing.
This benefited him immensely.
The scenery and interesting encounters along the way made Lan feel the meaning of life for the first time, and also taught him many truths.
It turns out that a life without killing can truly be so beautiful.
However,it's not possible without killing either.
Lan encountered many pirates during these journeys.
But Lan was no longer the weak boy he once was.
He easily dispatched those pirates.
However, he could not return to that summer ,the day that changed his fate.
For some unknown reason, during these six months of travel, Lan's cultivation speed had far surpassed his previous level.
Now, Lan's soul power had reached level seventy.
He only needed to obtain one more soul ring, and he would enter the Soul Sage realm!
A Soul Sage at the age of twenty.
This talent already surpassed that of Tang Hao, the continent's greatest genius.
However, Lan, lurking in the darkness, was destined to miss out on the spotlight that rightfully belonged to him.
He had even forgotten that today was his twentieth birthday.
Happy birthday.
— Lan Lan set out for the sea.
His martial spirit was that of a shark, and the spirit rings he needed were ideally those of a sea beast.
Lan's Breath of the Deep martial spirit was truly unique.
When it first awakened, it was still a young shark.
As Lan acquired spirit rings, his spirit power gradually improved.
Furthermore, Lan developed an inexplicable affinity for the ocean, as if it were his family and companion.
Therefore, absorbing spirit rings at sea was virtually painless, even unimpeded.
This also caused all of Lan's spirit rings to age beyond their maximum limits.
This secret was known only to Lan himself.
Lan pulled out a map from his bosom.
It depicted ocean routes, and its destination was a place called Sea God Island.
He had seized this map from a pirate.
Lan was a spirit master.
Cultivating and becoming stronger was the aspiration of every spirit master, and he was no exception.
"Poseidon Island, I hope it will be a good journey..."
(End of this chapter)