Chapter Forty: After the Matter, Departure

“So what do you intend to do with me?”
Upon hearing that Lin An harbored no such desires toward her, Xiao Xun’er finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Indeed, as Lin An had said, if he truly had designs on her, he would never have summoned Nalan Yanran to witness.
“Do you know why they are so loyal to me?” Lin An asked in return.
“Why?”
“Because they have been reborn!”
Just as Xiao Xun’er was puzzling over Lin An’s meaning, she suddenly sensed an overwhelming surge of sinister energy in the distance. In the blink of an eye, a jet-black sword hovered in midair, radiating a chilling and terrifying power.
Xiao Xun’er’s face turned deathly pale. Helpless, unable to move, she could only watch as the black sword sped toward her.
“Senior Brother Lin An, what are you doing?”
Nalan Yanran had never seen Lin An act with such ruthless decisiveness.
She had never heard of the Eight Ancient Clans, but it was clear they were a power not to be trifled with. Yet Lin An showed no hesitation in attempting to kill her.
Anyone investigating Xiao Xun’er’s service as a maid at Lin An’s side would quickly realize her news was inevitably tied to him.
By then, no one would be able to save Lin An.
With a faint sound, the black sword pierced straight through Xiao Xun’er’s chest, then vanished without a trace. Strangely, her body bore no wound at all.
Gasping for breath, Xiao Xun’er was still in a daze.
In that instant, she had felt the sword deliver a bone-chilling cold, yet she had not died.
Not only had she survived, but she bore not a single injury.
It was as if everything she had just experienced had been a mere illusion.
Yet her instincts screamed that what had just happened was utterly real, and that some profound change had indeed taken place within her.
“Did you not want to know my secret? This is it. Anyone I kill, as long as I so wish, can be revived by me—and once revived, they will never again be able to betray me.”
Lin An spoke to Nalan Yanran.

“How can that be possible?”
Nalan Yanran whispered in disbelief.
“You mean... Ancestor Yunshan, my grandfather Nalan Jie... all of them have died once before?”
Nalan Yanran found Lin An’s words fantastical, and yet, after all he had gone through, she knew he could not be lying. Which meant it was all true.
“Rest assured, they were all willing. I never forced any of them.”
“I know you have feelings for me, and I truly care for you as well. That’s why I’m willing to share this secret with you.”
Lin An said softly.
“Let me think about it first!”
Nalan Yanran’s heart was in unprecedented turmoil.
She did care for Lin An, but to be with him now—she knew she could not.
Lin An understood; this was not something to be forced. Yet he believed that one day, Nalan Yanran would come to see things clearly.
Soon after, Lin An took both Nalan Yanran and Xiao Xun’er and left the Palace of Yama.
By now, Xiao Xun’er had come to accept that she was incapable of betraying Lin An.
The only comfort was that Lin An did not control her will; it was a small mercy in an otherwise unlucky fate.
“I wonder how Brother Xiao Yan is doing now.”
Only when she thought of Xiao Yan did Xiao Xun’er realize that ever since she left Wutan City, she had seldom thought of him at all.
If not for today’s events, she might never have realized that she had barely spared a thought for him, nor inquired about his well-being, during all her time at Lin An’s side.
...
Tonight would be a sleepless one.
Nalan Yanran, uncharacteristically, went to seek out her master, Yun Yun.
“If you already care for Lin An, then face it bravely. Don’t wait until you’ve broken his heart to regret it!”
Yun Yun saw clearly the relationship between Nalan Yanran and Lin An, even before Nalan Yanran herself did.
For reasons she could not explain, Yun Yun too felt that Lin An and Nalan Yanran were a perfect match, both in talent and appearance.

“But...”
Nalan Yanran wanted to reveal Lin An’s secret, but in the end, she held back.
“I know what you’re thinking. Everyone has their secrets. Wouldn’t you wish for the one you love to be unmatched among men? Lin An... is precisely the ideal man for a girl your age.”
Yun Yun spoke at length, and made up her mind that, once they returned to the Misty Cloud Sect, she would name Lin An as the next sect master.
The two spoke through the night until dawn, when Nalan Yanran finally departed.
At the same time, placing the underworld emissaries as guards within the jails of the Jia Ma Empire proved to be an astute decision.
In just one night, a thousand souls had been collected.
It was only the beginning. Once his corps of underworld emissaries grew, Lin An was certain that a million soul points would be no great feat.
Matters in the Jia Ma Empire could now be set aside for a time.
Next, Lin An decided to venture to the Tagore Desert in search of another Heavenly Flame, the Green Lotus Core Flame.
Heavenly Flames were exceedingly easy for Lin An to subdue, requiring almost no effort on his part.
Yet the soul points and power they brought were undeniable.
Thus, after capturing the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, Lin An had resolved to collect every Heavenly Flame on the Dou Qi Continent.
As for Xiao Yan... Lin An paid him no heed whatsoever.
After staying another five or six days with the Nalan family, Lin An bade everyone farewell and set out for the Tagore Desert, taking only Yao Chen and Yun Shan with him.
As for Nalan Yanran, with her grandfather Nalan Jie not only fully recovered but on the verge of a breakthrough, there was little reason to remain.
So, when Yun Yun prepared to return to the Misty Cloud Sect, Nalan Yanran and Xiao Xun’er accompanied her back.
After much inner turmoil, Nalan Yanran no longer felt such resistance toward Lin An.
It was as if nothing unpleasant had ever happened between them, and once again she called out “junior brother” each day as before.
It was precisely because of this that Lin An felt comfortable leaving her behind.
He would go to subdue the Green Lotus Core Flame, seize the remnant map from Hai Bodong, the Ice Emperor, and then return to the Misty Cloud Sect.