"I can."
"What?"
"I said, I can spare their lives." Lin Xiao looked directly at Saint Servant Number Six and repeated himself, his tone calm and steady.
"Thank you, my lord! Thank you, my lord!"
The woman dropped to her knees, trembling with gratitude. But before Lin Xiao could react, she drew a short dagger and thrust it toward her chest.
Before the blade could pierce her, Lin Xiao stepped forward sharply and caught her wrist, his grip unyielding.
"There's no need to be so hasty to offer yourself to the Church," he said quietly.
Number Six froze, then slowly raised her head to meet his gaze. After so many years in the Holy Spirit Church, she had heard enough of its cruel methods to know what might await her. Fear flickered in her eyes—but only for a moment before it was buried again.
Her fingers slackened, and the dagger clattered to the ground. She bowed deeply once more. "Please, my lord—command me as you will."
"Command is not quite the word." Lin Xiao lowered his voice, his eyes locking onto hers. "Tell me—what exactly happened during your Spirit Ascension Ceremony?"
He had long suspected that the souls of the Church's Holy Spirits were fragmented and kept under control, but he had never dared question any of them directly. This woman, however, was different. Half her soul rested in his grasp—she couldn't lie even if she wanted to.
As he spoke, his right hand began to glow faintly. The scarlet petals of the Other Shore Flower unfurled, illuminating the space between them.
He had no idea what might happen if she tried to speak of the ritual—whether the process involved a soul-bound seal or curse—but if anything went wrong, he was prepared to end it instantly.
Having already endured terror, despair, and relief in rapid succession, Number Six was too shaken to think of concealment. Bit by bit, she began to speak.
"I followed the Elder into the Holy Altar. There was nothing there—only a statue of the Holy Emperor…"
"And then?"
"Then… offerings… prayers…" Her words faltered. She clutched her head, her voice breaking into fragments.
Lin Xiao's pupils narrowed. His soul power surged, ready to strike.
But the outburst he feared did not come.
"I was praying… and then… I can't remember… I can't…"
She gripped her skull tighter, her face contorted in agony, letting out low, guttural screams that barely formed words.
"What about the Elder who went with you?" Lin Xiao pressed. "What was he doing?"
"He… did nothing… He was just watching… watching me pray…"
Suddenly, the soul fragment hovering in Lin Xiao's hand began to tremble violently, thrashing against his control as if trying to reunite with its other half before him.
With a thought, Lin Xiao withdrew his power. The flower closed, and the fragment dissipated.
Number Six slumped to the ground, her convulsions gradually fading.
So the missing memory wasn't coincidence… Did the ritual strip that part of her soul away entirely?
As he pondered this, Lin Xiao's expression shifted. He turned sharply toward the trees.
A small figure was hiding behind the trunk, both hands clamped over her mouth, holding her breath.
But to a Spirit Master's perception, the child's faint life aura was as clear as day.
Tap.
Lin Xiao took a step toward her. But before he could move again, a hand clutched his cloak.
"My lord… the Holy Emperor… please… forgive…"
The words slipped from her trembling lips before her consciousness faded completely. Her hand slid from his garment, falling limp.
Holy Emperor?
The name had surfaced more than once in her ramblings—and now, spoken again at the brink of death. According to her account, the Spirit Ascension Ceremony wasn't conducted by the Elders themselves, but rather through the statue of the Holy Emperor.
Lin Xiao's brows furrowed.
After so many years within the Holy Spirit Church, he was all too familiar with the title. The Church worshiped the so-called Holy Emperor as their supreme figure of faith.
Yet in his previous life—and throughout all he had witnessed—the Holy Emperor had never appeared, never acted, never displayed any divine power. To Lin Xiao, the title had always seemed nothing more than an invented myth.
Even when the Holy Spirit Church finally fell, there had been no sign of this supposed ruler.
But if a mere statue could perform a ritual capable of splitting a soul… could it truly be the work of a godlike being?
Could the Church really be serving something beyond mortal understanding?
Unable to find an answer, Lin Xiao exhaled softly. He glanced at the woman at his feet and shook his head.
By the time dusk painted the sky in crimson, he was already descending toward Radiant City once more.
A flash of light streaked across the horizon before he landed outside the city walls.
As the imperial capital of the Sun and Moon Empire, aerial flight above Radiant City was strictly forbidden—and Lin Xiao, of course, abided by the rule. After putting away his soul tool, he scanned the crowds out of habit… and froze.
Familiar soul fluctuations rippled through the air around him. The faces were different, but the aura—dark, oppressive—was unmistakable.
They were members of the Holy Spirit Church. And there were many of them.
Could it be that Nightmare Douluo had already returned from headquarters?
His suspicion was confirmed soon enough.
When Lin Xiao entered the branch's underground hall, he found the place far livelier than usual—crowded with figures cloaked in black.
"How is Saint Servant Six?" Nightmare Douluo asked immediately. He had clearly heard of the situation from the others.
"Teacher, she betrayed the Church," Lin Xiao said with a respectful bow. "I have dealt with her."
Nightmare Douluo merely nodded. "Hmm."
A mere Saint Servant was hardly worth his concern.
But a man in another black robe turned toward Lin Xiao, a smirk in his voice. "I remember that one—Number Six, wasn't she rather pretty? Don't tell me you couldn't bear to kill her and hid her away somewhere?"
Lin Xiao looked up to see the speaker—a lean figure wearing a half-mask. The Seventh Elder: Mask Douluo.
"Enough, Old Seven." The Third Elder interjected before the taunt could continue. "You think everyone shares your filthy habits? Since Lin Xiao is back, let's do introductions. Lin Xiao, this is Mo Ke. You'll likely be classmates soon."
He pushed forward a boy of twelve or thirteen.
"Mo Ke's talent for cultivation isn't the best," the Third Elder continued, "but his affinity for soul tools is excellent. I intend to send him to the Sun and Moon Royal Academy."
"Thank you, Teacher," the boy said hurriedly, bowing his head.
The other Elders nodded their approval, acknowledging him as one of their own.
"Enough small talk," said the Second Elder from the main seat, his voice cold and commanding. The hall immediately fell silent. "We didn't bring this many people to Radiant City just to chat. The city's underground trade belongs to the Church as much as anyone else."
"If we can swallow the Common Alliance whole," Mask Douluo added, licking his lips, "then that woman, Shangguan Wei'er—"
"Old Seven!" The Second Elder's expression darkened. "Since you broke through to the Titled Douluo realm, tell me—how long has your cultivation stagnated? Perhaps it's time you learned some restraint."
"I—Second Brother, I was only—" Mask Douluo started, but one glance at the other's increasingly grim face silenced him.
(End of Chapter)