At the gate of Zhongli Mansion, the silver-haired girl gazed up at the plaque and murmured softly, "This should be it."
Suddenly, a small figure floated out from the gate, adorned with a platinum-colored soul ring.
When the silver-haired girl noticed this figure and the soul ring, she was momentarily stunned.
She recognized the aura of the soul ring all too well. After a moment of contemplation, she finally understood the connection.
This was the soul ring of the million-year-old Tianmeng Ice Silkworm!
To her surprise, the Tianmeng Ice Silkworm had attached itself to this Martial God.
From what she knew of human society, this Martial God possessed twin martial souls, one of which took the form of a petite, cute "UFO." Its purpose, however, remained a mystery to all.
"Hello, beautiful lady!"
"Zhongli invites you in!"
Paimon looked at the silver-haired girl and spoke with an innocent tone.
Hearing this, the silver-haired girl nodded without hesitation and stepped through the gate.
As for Paimon, she didn't follow, as she was eager to go out and play!
"Miss, just walk straight, and you'll arrive. Paimon is off to play!"
With that, Paimon floated away in a familiar direction.
The silver-haired girl's eyes twitched slightly at the sight.
Such a martial spirit... even she had never seen or heard of anything like it before.
It would be more accurate to call her a human child than a martial spirit.
Without dwelling on it further, the silver-haired girl followed Paimon's instructions and quickly arrived at the living room, where she met the "God" revered as the Martial God by the world.
Zhongli sat in the main seat and gestured for the silver-haired girl to take a seat.
The girl paused for a moment, then nodded and sat down.
Zhongli and the silver-haired girl exchanged glances, their thoughts racing in silence.
When this soul beast leader first arrived in Liyue, Zhongli had detected her presence, though her intentions remained unclear.
Logically, she should have been in a deep slumber, requiring at least 10,000 years to expel the influence of Shura's divine power.
Moreover, it was impossible for her strength to return to its peak instantly.
Yet, here she was, arriving in Liyue in human form despite her severely injured state, which left Zhongli deep in thought.
The silver-haired girl, too, studied Zhongli, this elegant, handsome man, but she could discern nothing extraordinary about him.
This is very strange!
Judging from the combat power displayed by Zhongli, he should be a first-level god. As a "god" of the same level, or even higher status, even if she were severely injured, she should still be able to sense something about him.
Yet, she couldn't perceive anything at all. All she noticed was that Zhongli was quite handsome.
Of course, compared to the readers, Zhongli is still a bit more modest...
After a prolonged silence of mutual observation, Zhongli waved his right hand, and a teacup floated gently to the silver-haired girl's side.
"I wonder what brings the Soul Beast Master to Liyue?"
The silver-haired girl picked up the teacup, took a sip as Zhongli had done, and frowned slightly, though she said nothing.
The water tasted a bit unusual.
Hearing Zhongli's question, the silver-haired girl was stunned once more and looked at him in surprise.
After all, in her human form, even gods would struggle to see through her true identity.
Yet, the god before her had instantly discerned her identity and recognized her as the leader of the soul beasts!
This was a secret within a secret!
"I heard that the Martial God was born and established Liyue, a gathering place for humans, so I came to visit," the silver-haired girl replied, her expression unchanging.
With a casual wave of her hand, a ripple of space distortion followed, and several storage soul guides materialized on the table beside Zhongli.
"This is a gift. I hope you like it."
Zhongli: "…"
She understood manners, but only to a certain extent.
Who gives a gift like this?
Zhongli's eyes twitched slightly, but he chose not to comment further.
"Thank you, Your Excellency, Silver Dragon King," Zhongli said, cupping his hands respectfully.
After all, it was a gesture of goodwill from the Silver Dragon King, so expressing gratitude was only natural.
"Martial God, you thanked me without even looking at the gift?" the silver-haired girl asked, her expression one of genuine confusion.
If a soul beast offered her something, she would outright refuse it if she didn't like it, and only accept it if she did.
But this Martial God simply thanked her without even glancing at the gift. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed somewhat perfunctory!
"It doesn't matter whether the gift is valuable or not. As long as the intention is sincere, gratitude is warranted," Zhongli replied, picking up his teacup and taking a sip. He continued, "Your Excellency's visit, despite your severe injuries, demonstrates your sincerity."
Hearing this, the silver-haired girl opened her mouth slightly, as if wanting to say something but hesitating.
She couldn't help but feel that the Martial God's words were a bit perplexing.
Well, at least he accepted the gift.
"You may call me Zhongli. The title of Martial God is something I earned in my youth, during a time of competitiveness and lack of control over my strength," Zhongli explained kindly, though his words struck the silver-haired girl as somewhat odd.
So, he achieved his divine status through combat?
Yet, there were no records of him on the Douluo Continent.
Though she couldn't make sense of it, she decided not to dwell on it.
"My name is Gu Yuena. You may address me by my name," she said after a moment.
This time, she had come with a purpose. Seeing Zhongli silently brewing tea and drinking it, Gu Yuena decided to take the initiative.
"Zhongli, I came here to ask for your perspective on the soul beast clan and your stance toward them."
Hearing this, Zhongli set down his teacup, stroked his chin, and appeared to be deep in thought.
His perspective and stance on the soul beast clan?
He wasn't a true soul master who had ascended to godhood, so what perspective or stance could he have?
Humans were humans, and soul beasts were soul beasts. Most soul beasts lacked a sense of reverence, especially the lower-level ones.
However, soul beasts that had lived for a certain period could communicate.
"Miss Gu Yuena, I hold no prejudice against soul beasts. However, under the current rules, there is an irreconcilable conflict between soul beasts and humans," Zhongli stated bluntly.
Gu Yuena fell into deep thought upon hearing this.
Yes, that was the rule of the Douluo Continent. Soul masters had to kill soul beasts and obtain their soul rings to advance. Even she couldn't change this.
As long as this rule existed, there would be no easing of tensions between soul masters and soul beasts.
"Miss Gu Yuena, I have a method that could reduce the conflict between soul beasts and humans. Would you like to hear it?" Zhongli offered.
Gu Yuena's silver pupils contracted, and she instinctively leaned forward, urgency in her voice. "Zhongli, what method do you have?"
If they could reduce the killing, if they could lessen the conflict between humans and soul beasts, perhaps tragedies like the destruction of humanity could be avoided.
"In another world, there exists a form of magic called necromancy," Zhongli explained.
"This magic can transform the soul of a soul beast into a form that can bond with a human soul master, granting them a soul ring."
"A single soul can even provide multiple soul rings to a soul master."