Snow Empress paused slightly, then said softly,
"You mean, her martial soul is precisely that death qi that has almost entirely occupied her body?"
Shen Han Yu nodded, then continued,
"Normally, ordinary martial souls, and even most super martial souls, do not have negative effects on the soul master. However, there are still some super martial souls, and even special martial souls, that have extremely unique and almost fatal negative impacts on the soul master themselves…"
"For example, the True Dragon martial soul. An ordinary True Dragon martial soul appearing in a human would absolutely not cause negative effects, and soul masters with True Dragon martial souls are generally the cream of the crop among peers of the same level. But what about a Dragon King-level martial soul? Leaving aside its strength, it imposes an enormous burden and pressure on the soul master that endangers their life. The same goes for some martial souls with extreme attributes, extreme evil, extreme death, and even some alternative martial souls; they are a torment and oppression to the soul master's life and mind."
Snow Empress nodded, then said,
"Judging from the speed at which the death qi in that little one's body is devouring her life force, she has at most three months left to live…"
Shen Han Yu nodded in agreement, then said softly,
"However, her situation is quite special. I can sense that the death qi in her body seems to be interested only in life energy. It is an almost instinctive devouring reaction. If she had sufficient life energy to supply it, her cultivation speed could even surpass what mine once was…"
Snow Empress nodded slightly, then asked,
"You mean…?"
Shen Han Yu did not answer, simply walking back to the old man and the little girl.
At this moment, the little girl had recovered some strength, but her face was terrifyingly pale, as fragile as if a gust of wind could take her life at any moment, like white paper.
Seeing Shen Han Yu approach, the old man said somewhat embarrassedly,
"Soul master, sir, I'm really sorry. This little girl was picked up by us from the neighboring small island a few years ago. At that time, that side seemed to have been attacked by some soul beast. We only found her as the sole survivor among the pile of broken corpses. The little girl was also seriously injured back then, and she's been left with a lingering illness ever since. We couldn't bear it, so we brought her back…"
Shen Han Yu said softly,
"It's no trouble. Her situation is very special; normally, you don't understand…"
The little girl in the old man's arms struggled a bit, then spoke in a hoarse voice:
"Soul master, sir, can you awaken my martial soul for me?"
Shen Han Yu's gaze met those gray eyes filled with death qi, then he smiled lightly and said,
"You're very smart, and also very bold. But you should also be clear about what your body is like. Tell me, why do you want to awaken your martial soul…"
Bai Nian parted her dry lips, then said,
"I want to avenge my parents and everyone…"
Shen Han Yu had expected this answer. He chuckled lightly and continued,
"Do you still remember when your body started becoming like this?"
A flash of pain passed through Bai Nian's gray, dead-silent eyes, then she said,
"Five years old…"
Shen Han Yu understood. The little girl before him had an experience somewhat similar to that of the Ghost Douluo from the Spirit Hall in his youth.
One had lacked parental love, suffered exclusion and mockery from siblings and peers, and in despair chose to merge with demons, successfully evolving his martial soul into a ghostly form that greatly feared light and holiness…
This little girl's case was even simpler. She had likely personally witnessed her family and all the villagers being slaughtered by soul beasts, suffering severe trauma to her heart, giving birth to deep darkness and negative emotions within her. Then, lying amid the pile of corpses, she was contaminated with too much death qi from the bodies. The death qi slowly invaded her origin, but for some unknown reason, it ultimately transformed into her martial soul…
Thinking of this, Shen Han Yu looked at the old man and said softly,
"Old sir, this girl's martial soul is quite special. Combined with the serious hidden injuries left in her body, if this continues, she probably has at most three months of life left…"
The old man's face darkened. Despair and dejection surged onto the little girl's face as well, but then Shen Han Yu continued,
"Let her come with me. If she follows me, there is still a glimmer of hope for survival. Perhaps it won't be long before she can become a true soul master…"
The old man was stunned at first, then his face lit up with joy. Somewhat excitedly, he asked,
"You want to take little Nian away?"
Shen Han Yu nodded.
The old man hurriedly looked at the little girl in his arms and said softly,
"Little Nian, the soul master, says he wants to take you away. What do you think? Hurry and tell the sir…"
Bai Nian looked at the old man, then at Shen Han Yu, and slowly said,
"As… as long as I can live, I'll go with you."
A smile curved at the corner of Shen Han Yu's mouth. To have such a strong will to survive and such maturity at this age, with just a bit of nurturing, she would surely become a great killing god who would shock the world in the future…
Shen Han Yu took out two medicinal pills to stabilize her injuries and nourish her qi and blood, then placed them in the girl's mouth. He also channeled some gentle soul power into her. Under the combined effect of the medicine and soul power, the little girl's eyelids grew heavier and heavier until she finally fell into a deep sleep.
Shen Han Yu looked at the old man and said softly,
"Old sir, I'll have to trouble you to take care of this girl for a few more days. My wife and I still have matters to attend to, and it's inconvenient to bring her along. In less than half a month, we will return…"
The old man repeatedly agreed, then sighed and looked at the sleeping little girl in his arms, his eyes filled with helplessness.
Their village's island wasn't very large, with only a little over two hundred people in total, almost all relying on fishing for a living. If they encountered bad weather, the whole village, old and young, would suffer from cold and hunger. Taking care of Bai Nian for three years was already the limit of what they could do. Now that there was hope for the child who had been struggling against pain and death under their watch for three years, they naturally hoped to see her have a future that was at least not so painful…
The middle-aged man beside them also sighed repeatedly, his eyes toward Bai Nian filled with complex emotions.
Shen Han Yu slowly stood up, then said softly,
"Old sir, we still have important matters to attend to and won't stay longer. We will come back later to take the girl away…"
The old man nodded. Just as he raised his head to say something more, the figures of Shen Han Yu and Snow Empress had already disappeared…
…
High in the sky.
Snow Empress slowly approached Shen Han Yu and asked softly,
"Is this little girl worth all the effort you're putting in?"
Shen Han Yu smiled and said,
"Death qi born from the boundary between life and death, extremely pure and clean, representing the ultimate end and destruction of life. In terms of attribute intensity, it is only one step away from extreme death. But such geniuses often vanish into the long river of history very quickly. Since we've encountered her, it is the arrangement of fate…"
"Investment is inherently an activity that carries an element of gambling. Returns and risks coexist; it just needs time to verify…"
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