Douluo Continent: My Martial Soul is the Ten Ferocious Heavenly Horned Ant

Looking at the increasingly radiant face of Village Chief Jack, he felt a pang of sadness, and his slightly salty tears, like seasoning, silently seeped into the white rice.

Three days later...

With a kind smile on his face and a body free from illness and pain, Village Chief Jack passed away peacefully in his old age.

For this old man, being able to see Dongqing again, and to see Dongqing still lively and healthy, was enough to make him very content.

Actually, a long time ago, Village Chief Jack wanted to follow in his wife's footsteps, but he didn't choose to leave this world because he was worried about Dongqing.

For Chief Jack

His grandson has grown up healthy and strong and can now stand on his own. At the same time, the path he had always longed for, connecting Holy Soul Village to Notting City, has been repaired. He has no regrets in life.

When a person contemplating suicide feels that they have no regrets in life.

Even though the thousand-year-old willow heart, a divine plant, nourished his aging body, it couldn't hold onto his desire to leave, nor could it keep this village chief, Jack, who felt his life was already complete.

actually........

If Dongqing really wants to stay, he might not be able to.

At worst, he could forcibly invite Ye Ruyin, who was still angry with him, over. With the power of her Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul, she could temporarily save Village Chief Jack's life.

However, while Dongqing could forcibly keep Jack the village chief's men, he could never alleviate Jack's loneliness, which was not something that could be solved simply by having him by his side.

the reason is simple.

Village Chief Jack doesn't need his fledgling eagle, which has already flown away, to come back and keep him company as he nears death. What he wants to do most is to go to the underworld to find his former wife.

Now, seeing Dongqing grow into a revered Holy Son of the Spirit Hall and secure tax exemption for Holy Soul Village, he truly has no regrets in his life.

Even if Dongqing forcibly keeps Village Chief Jack, it will only mean that he will live a few more years alone, silently gazing at the sunset and thinking of his wife every day.

Loneliness is one of the most terrifying forces in the world. How many people, in order to get rid of that terrible feeling of loneliness, often act like fools and try to please those around them?

So what exactly is loneliness?

Loneliness is always a solitary loneliness; no one can truly empathize with it.

Loneliness makes time seem longer, and the long passage of time allows loneliness to gradually seep into one's very bones.

Loneliness is a normal part of life. There will always be a moment when loneliness suddenly surges in. You can escape the nights of drunken revelry, but you can't escape the cold, deserted streets.

Loneliness is when some people have nothing to say, while others have things to say but no one to say them to.

In this life, we always need companionship and encouragement; we can't truly live like an isolated island.

There is a kind of loneliness called the stillness of the night.

There is a kind of loneliness called tossing and turning in bed.

There is a kind of loneliness called bone-chilling cold.

When a person is extremely lonely, they will feel a chilling sensation from the depths of their heart.

Searching and searching, only to find it all so desolate and lonely.

So desolate and miserable, so utterly wretched.

..............

Timeline, Douluo Calendar, February 14th, 2648, sunny.

Nottingham City, Holy Soul Village.

Under that same towering tree, bathed in warm, comfortable sunlight, a cute-looking boy lay on the ground, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, staring blankly at the azure sky.

Three days have passed so far.

Dongqing still remembers that night, the last night of Village Chief Jack. His old, cloudy eyes suddenly became bright, and his dark, deep gaze seemed to pierce through the world.

“Xiaoqing, your grandma has actually been waiting for me to come and reunite with her.”

"Grandma? Didn't she already...?"

"She waited for me in the same spot the whole time."

"Okay, Grandpa, remember to say hello to Grandma for me."

"Yes, she will. Although she has never met you, Xiaoqing, she will definitely like you."

"Let's not talk about this anymore. It's like Grandpa is about to leave us. Grandpa, do you know? That road has been repaired. It's paved with white, yellow, and black pebbles. It's very beautiful."

"Of course, that is the hope of our Holy Soul Village. Even if no one can leave the village for the next few decades, as long as this path is still there, the village will still have hope."

Speaking of it.

Village Chief Jack clenched his withered hands, his aged eyes filled with tears.

“But before, the village…” Dongqing asked, puzzled.

next second.

A pair of slightly withered hands gently pressed down on Dongqing's head.

“Xiao Qing, you are still young and don’t understand some of the ways of the world. Apart from Su Yuntao, the deacon of the Spirit Hall, who was willing to travel through wind and rain every year to come to Holy Soul Village to help children of the right age awaken their spirits for free, there has never been another outsider willing to come to our remote village that has no special products.”

"No way, besides Brother Tao, there really wasn't a single outsider in our village before?"

"Basically none. Apart from Tang Hao and his son Tang San, who chose to settle in the village a long time ago, it's normal for us not to see a single stranger in our village for several years."

"Grandpa, if you want the village to have more people, I have a way to bring many people to the village!"

"Xiaoqing, you shouldn't bother with this. Actually, the village is fine now and doesn't need so many outsiders."

"Alright, Grandpa, I'll do as you say."

......

That night.

Dongqing seemed to sense something, as if he had noticed something. Instead of going back to his room to sleep, he silently guarded Village Chief Jack.

The next morning, as birds began to sing, Dongqing looked at Village Chief Jack, who was leaving this world with a smile on his face, and stood there without saying a word.

The time that follows.

There was no sadness, no grief, and no crying.

Dongqing handled the funeral arrangements for Village Chief Jack with a blank expression, and buried him next to the grandmother he had never met.

Dong Qing did not retrieve the scepter made of the thousand-year-old willow wood, a divine plant; instead, he buried it as a burial item next to Village Chief Jack.

Meanwhile, Dongqing used his index finger to carve a poem on the tombstone of Village Chief Jack and his wife, which was the last thing he could do for them.

A poem dedicated to lovers everywhere

Ten years have passed, and we are separated by life and death. I try not to think of you, but I cannot forget you. Your lonely grave is a thousand miles away, and I have no one to share my sorrow with. Even if we were to meet again, you would not recognize me, for my face is covered in dust and my temples are white as frost.

Last night, in a dream, I suddenly returned to my hometown. By the small window, she was dressing her hair. We looked at each other speechlessly, only tears streaming down our faces. I know that every year, on this night of bright moonlight, my heart will break again by the short pine hill.

.......

What Dongqing didn't know was...

After he inscribed this poem, the immense power of faith he possessed, gained from purifying the blood curse, seemed to sense the regret in his heart at that moment.

This power of faith, strong enough to make someone a god on the spot, transformed into a raging torrent, piercing through endless space and retrieving a fragile phantom from the depths of the underworld.

The old, illusory figure that had been staying beside Dong Qing seemed to solidify considerably after seeing the fragile figure with his own eyes.

They looked at each other and quickly recognized one another.

"Old Jack, it's been a long time. Who's that little boy...?"

"My grandson, Dongqing!"

"Fine, I've only been gone for twenty years, and you've already found another young and beautiful woman behind my back!"

"Old woman, what nonsense are you talking about? Xiaoqing is a grandson, not a son."

"Oh right, old Jack, I can't have children, I don't have a son at all, so where did this godson of yours come from?"

"To be honest, I don't remember very clearly either, but I remember that the sun was shining brightly that day. Xiaoqing was lying under a big tree, and there seemed to be a very beautiful woman not far away. But when I got closer, I could no longer see her."

The aged, illusory figure beside Dongqing and the fragile, illusory figure spoke one after the other, as if trying to pour out all the longing they had felt for each other over the decades.

But the dead must eventually depart...

Even with the help of Dongqing's immense, torrent-like power of faith, they still cannot defy the laws of nature and cannot remain permanently in the mortal realm.

Sensing the rejection of the world from them, one aged and the other a fragile phantom, they held hands and walked together into the dark passage leading to the underworld.

The Underworld [a subsidiary plane jointly created by the evil god-king and the benevolent god-king].

Countless souls pour into the underworld every day, and there is a set of established rules that divide the fates of good and evil beings.

.......

Time is slowly passing by, and dusk is quietly approaching.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh" is the sound of a gentle breeze rustling through the treetops.

Lying under the towering tree, Dongqing noticed a cool breeze near his ear and was surprised to find that he had been sunbathing under the tree for a whole day.

"Sigh... Why am I so sentimental all day long!" Dongqing shook his head helplessly.

next moment.

A pale blue spatial vortex opened up on the spot, and he slowly walked into his personal little world.

As the owner of the Sky-Piercing Shuttle, Dongqing possesses a personal mini-world.

This little world is very special.

Unless Dong Qing, the owner of the Sky Shuttle, grants guest privileges, any alien life form entering the Sky Shuttle will fall into a state of stagnation of consciousness and senses.

However, if one day Dongqing becomes powerful enough and no longer fears outsiders invading the world inside the Sky Shuttle, he can also unlock full access.

Once the permissions are granted, a vibrant and dynamic world, a world with life, will slowly emerge within the small world inside the Sky Shuttle.

of course.

As the owner of the Sky-Piercing Shuttle, Dong Qing still possesses the highest authority.

In this little world.

He is the Way of Heaven, he is the only one, he is the only creator. Who he wants to die, who he wants to live... all these things are just a matter of his mind.