Chapter 6 Crimson Douluo
"This isn't some charitable place where reason and benevolence prevail," Fei Yan said, gently twirling her parasol, her tone laced with a habitual indifference.
"You only have two paths before you. Either become nourishment for someone's cultivation—your bloodline seems rather special, perhaps even more effective."
She smiled with satisfaction as she saw Xia Die's face turn pale.
"Or… join us, become one of us. After all, our Holy Spirit Sect has always been inclusive, welcoming all comers."
As she spoke, a barely perceptible darkness flashed in her red eyes, as if recalling some unpleasant past events of her own.
Perhaps, at some point, she hadn't willingly stepped into this quagmire, but forced by fate, with no other way out, she ultimately chose to embrace the darkness, becoming a fearsome evil soul master.
Therefore, she paid no heed to Xia Die's flimsy lies.
In this place, the past was meaningless; only survival and power were the eternal themes.
She didn't care what secrets Xia Die harbored, only whether those secrets could be used by the Holy Spirit Cult, or whether this interesting little one could survive in this cruel environment and bring some new amusement.
"So, little Xia Die," Fei Yan said with a smile, posing the cruelest choice in the sweetest tone.
"Do you want to become nourishment, fertilizing this land? Or do you want to... join us and become a glorious disciple of the Holy Spirit Cult?"
Her lie was mercilessly exposed, and the feigned panic and helplessness on Xia Die's face receded like the tide.
She raised her small face, her amethyst eyes regaining their calm, a tranquility and serenity far beyond her years, almost as if she had seen through the world.
"So, do I have a choice?"
Her voice was clear and crisp, yet devoid of any emotional fluctuation, as if she were merely stating a given fact.
Fei Yan, watching the little girl's face change instantly, showed no anger. Instead, as if she had discovered a priceless treasure, her smile grew even more radiant and eerie, her scarlet pupils gleaming with excitement.
"Yes~ Little Xia Die is so clever!"
She sweetly echoed, her tone carrying a seductive rhythm.
"Heaven and hell, we never have the right to choose, only... the fate of being chosen."
This statement, rather than a warning to Xia Die, was more like Fei Yan's sigh for her own past.
She seemed to see in this excessively calm little girl a reflection of her younger self, who had also been trapped with no way out and ultimately succumbed to darkness.
An indescribable, almost sympathetic feeling, mixed with long-standing boredom and a desire for amusement, suddenly gave rise to an unprecedented thought:
To take her as a disciple.
With such a temperament, coupled with… Fei Yan keenly sensed the faint yet extremely pure soul power fluctuations within Xia Die's body, clearly at level ten.
Given her bone age, she must possess innate full soul power; such talent was top-tier even within the Holy Spirit Cult.
"It's decided."
Fei Yan's smile became more genuine, carrying an undeniable air.
"From today onwards, you are my only personal disciple, the Crimson Douluo Fei Yan."
As she spoke, with a touch of intimacy, she naturally extended her slender, white hand, wanting to take Xia Die's.
In her view, this was both a sign of acceptance and a hint of closeness.
Xia Die's eyes flickered slightly; she was well aware of the characteristics of her body. Her lips parted, but before she could utter a word of warning, Fei Yan's warm fingertips had already touched her cool palm.
"Sizzle—!"
The instant they made contact, a sudden change occurred.
An invisible, intangible, yet terrifying power, imbued with absolute deathly stillness, like a ferocious beast awakened, instantly surged upwards from the point of contact.
Visibly, eerie and grotesque purple lines spread across Fei Yan's fair arm, draining the life force from beneath her skin in an instant, leaving a chilling and decaying sensation that sent shivers down her spine.
"What?!"
Fei Yan's smile froze instantly, replaced by horror.
She felt the chilling breath of death approaching, a power that ignored levels and defenses, a power that aimed directly at the very essence of life.
"Boom—!"
Almost instinctively, a vast and terrifying soul force erupted from her petite body like a volcanic eruption.
A dark red aura of soul force formed a tangible shockwave, mercilessly blasting the nearby Xiao Die away.
"Bang!"
Xia Die's petite body crashed into a twisted ancient tree in the distance, letting out a muffled groan as she slid to the ground, a trickle of blood escaping from the corner of her mouth.
At this moment, Fei Yan had no time to spare.
Her face was deathly pale, cold sweat instantly soaking the back of her dress.
She unleashed the immense soul power of a level 97 Super Douluo, the vast energy surging like a rushing river towards the arm eroded by the power of death, desperately trying to block and wear down the purple patterns that were attempting to spread upwards.
Dark red and eerie purple clashed fiercely on her arm, emitting a faint but teeth-grinding "sizzling" sound.
Several breaths passed before the terrifying purple patterns, due to the absolute difference in power, were forcibly suppressed and forced back, finally slowly dissipating.
But the once fair skin on Fei Yan's arm seemed to have lost all its luster, becoming somewhat gray and withered.
She clutched her arm with lingering fear, and when she looked at Xia Die struggling to her feet in the distance, her eyes were filled with astonishment, shock, and a hint of barely concealed…greed and fanaticism.
"Such terrifying death power..."
Fei Yan's voice was slightly hoarse, a trait she herself didn't even realize.
"Just now... if my cultivation hadn't far surpassed yours, a Soul Emperor would have been completely corrupted, or at least crippled. Even a Soul Saint, without special methods, would never dare to touch you."
She stared intently at Xia Die, as if examining a peerless weapon of death.
"If you were to grow stronger, if that power were to become even more powerful... even a Title Douluo would likely be killed by you in an instant."
This realization made Fei Yan's heart pound violently.
This was no harmless little girl; she was clearly a nascent form of death walking among humans.
She was determined to take this disciple.
Just as all the evil soul masters present were stunned and at a loss by this sudden turn of events...
Having made up his mind to take in this strange girl, Fei Yan was about to speak to stabilize the situation when a languid yet supremely authoritative female voice, as if from the depths of the netherworld, resounded without warning in the depths of everyone's soul:
"Such a rough gem, Fei Yan, you are probably not capable of carving it."
The voice was calm, yet carried a chilling coldness that froze one's soul.
(End of Chapter)