Vol 3. Chapter 126: Nourishment

“W-What do you mean by that?”

“Just as you understood it. I can give you a new life.”

Youlan spoke with utmost seriousness,

“And in exchange, I hope that after your rebirth, you can help me fulfill a long-cherished wish. A wish that only the Chosen One can help me realize.”

Youlan's words were incomparably sincere, without the slightest hint that she was joking.

Hearing this, sensing the seriousness in her tone, and meeting those pleading eyes of hers, Xue Tianao naturally became excited, his azure soul trembling slightly. His initial doubts and wariness were inexplicably worn away by some invisible force as he stared into Youlan's eyes.

Moreover,

even if he still harbored doubts, what could Xue Tianao possibly do now?

He was already at the end of his rope.

If there was an opportunity,

he had to seize it.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Xue Tianao gave an affirmative answer,

“I understand, Tower Master Youlan. If you can grant me power sufficient to take my revenge, I will definitely use the power of the Child of Destiny to help you fulfill your long-cherished wish!”

“Really? Then I truly must thank you, Your Majesty.”

The honey-haired woman's beautiful face was filled with delight.

Faced with such a friendly and amiable Tower Master of the Red Moon Tower, who was also his lifesaving benefactor, Xue Tianao's remaining defenses completely disappeared.

Intense excitement and overwhelming joy gradually occupied the Child of Destiny's heart.

Xue Tianao, whose heart had already turned to ashes after his defeat and Mengxi's attempt to intercept and kill him, once again saw hope for the future at this moment.

With the Red Moon Tower's assistance, perhaps he really could return to his peak as quickly as possible! He might even surpass his former peak!

When that happened, his revenge...

It seemed,

this defeat wasn't entirely a bad thing after all.

Heh,

as expected of the protagonist of this world. Every time he suffered a tremendous defeat, an exhilarating opportunity would inevitably follow.

“Then, Tower Master Youlan, how exactly am I supposed to obtain this new power you mentioned?”

“Ah? That? It'll be a little painful.”

Hearing this, Xue Tianao laughed dismissively,

“Haha, I understand. Obtaining great power is often accompanied by pain. I know that much.”

“Enmmm, and the success rate isn't particularly high.”

“I understand that too.”

Xue Tianao continued replying with a light laugh.

Whether it was receiving an inheritance, undergoing a trial, or obtaining a new body, a certain degree of risk and a possibility of failure were inevitable.

If he could obtain power sufficient to take revenge, he didn't care.

The important thing was...

“However, Tower Master Youlan, may I ask what the success rate is? Also, what happens if I fail?”

“Well, about that...”

As she spoke, Youlan tilted her head somewhat playfully, and the smile on her face gradually took on a deeper meaning.

Her smile remained beautiful,

yet at that instant, it sent an inexplicable chill through Xue Tianao.

He sensed that something was wrong.

?!!

“T-Tower Master Youlan?... Hm?! T-This is...?”

Before he could finish speaking, Xue Tianao's peripheral vision caught something terrifying.

The elegant, classical hall where he and Youlan were standing suddenly underwent an incomprehensible distortion!

?!

The next moment, under Xue Tianao's dumbfounded gaze, the surrounding scenery abruptly shattered into pieces, disappearing in an instant like an illusory dream.

And once the great hall and the floor beneath them disappeared,

the world surrounding Xue Tianao plunged directly into boundless darkness. An enormous abyss radiating an eerie crimson light from below suddenly appeared before Xue Tianao's eyes, instantly freezing the smile on the Child of Destiny's face.

Instinctively, he sensed an overwhelming threat coming from the depths of the abyss.

What was happening?!

“T-Tower Master Youlan! W-What's going on?! Where is this?!”

Sensing that something was terribly wrong, Xue Tianao hurriedly shouted at Youlan.

However,

Youlan had no intention of explaining. Instead, she answered Xue Tianao's previous question:

“Don't worry, Your Majesty. If you fail, you'll merely experience ‘a tiny billion’ bit of pain before your soul is completely scattered, that's all.”

?!

W-

What did you say? My soul will be completely scattered?

Xue Tianao immediately froze.

However, before the Child of Destiny could even react,

under Xue Tianao's astonished gaze, all the friendliness and gentleness on Youlan's face abruptly vanished, replaced by bone-chilling coldness. The honey-haired woman gently raised her hand and mercilessly tossed the still-confused Xue Tianao from her embrace toward the endless abyss ahead.

“Youlan?! Tower Master Youlan?! W-What are you?!...”

Seeing himself simply thrown away and beginning to plummet toward the bizarre abyss below, Xue Tianao couldn't help crying out in alarm.

No, this was bad!

If... If he was swallowed by that thing, something terrible would happen!

Realizing this, Xue Tianao instinctively attempted to mobilize his soul power and fly back upward. But Xue Tianao already possessed very little power in his soul state, and coupled with the overwhelmingly powerful suction force coming from below, any possibility of struggling free was mercilessly extinguished.

Even now, he still found it difficult to believe what was happening before his eyes.

She had clearly been such a gentle and considerate big sister just moments ago. Why had she suddenly become so cold and terrifying?

Moreover,

hadn't she come to help him? Why had she suddenly thrown him down there?!

......

Xue Tianao was beginning to grow hysterical.

But,

as he sensed the incomparable aura of death emanating from the black abyss below, the fear buried deep within Xue Tianao was completely awakened as he was slowly dragged downward. Instinctively, like a drowning man grasping at his final straw, Xue Tianao cast a pleading gaze toward Youlan.

He hoped this was merely a misunderstanding...

“Tower Master Youlan! W-What the hell is going on?!”

“Don't worry, Your Majesty Xue Tianao. This is merely part of the process of obtaining your new body. And rest assured, the success rate is actually quite high.”

Youlan smiled unconcernedly.

Hearing this, Xue Tianao felt slightly relieved.

Had he simply been overthinking things?

“Then, the success rate? Approximately how high is it?”

However,

before he could remain reassured for long, the Child of Destiny's peace of mind instantly vanished because of Youlan's next answer, and his entire consciousness once again plunged into an abyss from which there was no return.

“Pretty high. About 0.001.”

“Wha?!”

The instant those words fell,

the eyes constructed from Xue Tianao's soul power abruptly contracted as hysterical madness rapidly spilled from them.

At this moment,

no matter how much his mind had been influenced by the other party, Xue Tianao finally realized the cruel truth.

The person before him

had never intended to help him at all! She had merely been toying with him!

“0.01? You! You actually... You actually dared to deceive me!!! What the fu—”

Unfortunately,

Xue Tianao didn't even get the chance to finish questioning her. The pitch-black abyss below seemed to have caught the scent of food and suddenly erupted with an eerie blood-red light. Endless crimson mist surged upward with a howl, directly transforming into countless hideous demonic claws that tightly seized Xue Tianao's azure soul.

“You! You bastard! You'll die a horrible death!!!...”

Under Youlan's cold and faintly deranged gaze, accompanied by Xue Tianao's furious roar filled with rage, despair, unwillingness, and every manner of negative emotion, the Child of Destiny's soul was forcibly dragged by those bloody claws into the endless abyss below.

And as his soul was gradually torn apart and devoured by the crimson mist below, Xue Tianao's curses slowly transformed into waves of miserable screams.

Those bloodcurdling shrieks immediately reverberated throughout the pitch-black space.

However,

hearing those screams continuously ringing in her ears only made the smile on Youlan's face grow increasingly radiant. Strange spiral patterns even appeared within her幽-blue eyes from sheer excitement.

The next moment,

a chilling laugh slowly escaped Youlan's lips,

“Heh~ Hehehe~”

As the honey-haired woman gazed into the black abyss, a rare trace of genuine gratitude appeared in her eyes, yet within that sincerity lurked an indescribably horrifying chill.

Thank you,

Mr. Xue Tianao.

I'm sure you'll become a rather fine piece of nourishment.

Though, in a certain sense, I didn't lie to you either. I truly do need the power inside you to fulfill my long-cherished wish...

(End of This Volume)