Chapter 85

Shen Siyuan vaguely felt that everything seemed to be arranged by fate.

Now that he thought about it carefully, he, an ordinary mortal, had effortlessly turned the tables, swallowing the residual soul of the Nine You Demon Lord.

Yaozhidao ， Jiuyoumojunzheyangxiuxingqianniandemodaodalao ， Napashiyilvcanhun ， Kendingyeshiqiangguoshensiyuanzheyangdeputongren ， Hekuangtahaiyou 【 Wanhunfan 】 Zheyangdemodaozhibaohushen 。

It subtly hinted at something strange.

Even meeting Duoduo felt the same—everything seemed predestined.

But Shen Siyuan didn’t mind at all; he was just an ordinary mortal, so what was there to complain about with such a miraculous turn of events?

A person as insignificant as an ant shouldn’t dream of reaching for the heavens—no point spouting childish words about rebelling against fate; better to accept it and enjoy it.

As for accepting fate, he believed he must also shoulder the corresponding responsibilities.

Just like working at a company—if your boss promotes you and raises your salary, you must take up the burden and deliver him a stellar performance.

But since he had chosen to accept fate, what should he do next?

Continue helping the dead fulfill their wishes, gain merit, and repair the [Ten Thousand Souls Banner].

Or find a way to eliminate the corruption of the Netherworld.

In fact, these two tasks weren’t conflicting—only by striving to repair the [Ten Thousand Souls Banner] and strengthening himself could he hope to eradicate the corruption.

The corruption could be eliminated; Buddhism had methods to purify it, and Daoism had techniques to transcend tribulations.

Thus, within the Nine You Demon Lord’s memories, there were naturally methods to deal with the corruption, the most powerful of which was to use the corruption as a root to manifest the Six Desires Heavenly Demons.

Then, using the Six Desires Heavenly Demons as the main soul of the [Ten Thousand Souls Banner], one could at that point become a Buddha or an Ancestor, capable of toppling the Jade Emperor from his throne and dragging the Buddha from his lotus seat.

Just thinking about it made his mouth water—but then he remembered his current strength: not only could he not manifest the Six Desires Heavenly Demons, even if he could, they would devour his body and unleash demonic chaos upon the mortal realm.

No matter how you slice it, one’s own strength matters most.

“Banner Master Brother… Banner Master Brother… look at me… look at me…”

Duoduo’s excited voice interrupted Shen Siyuan’s thoughts.

There, the Netherfire Firefly darted like a butterfly among flowers, circling her fingertip.

What surprised Shen Siyuan even more was that the netherfire that had just been rising from her body had vanished entirely.

“Impressive—you’ve mastered controlling the Netherfire Firefly so quickly,” Shen Siyuan couldn’t help but praise.

He added, “And your netherfire—can you control it fully now?”

“Huh?” Duoduo looked down at herself in confusion.

Instantly, netherfire burst forth from her body, then vanished just as quickly.

Duoduo looked up at Shen Siyuan, puzzled.

As if to say, Do I really need to learn how to control this?

Shen Siyuan was speechless—he thought of Doudou.

Duoduo was the kind of prodigy from xianxia novels—absolute talent—while Doudou was just a lowly outsider, one heavenly, one earthly.

One didn’t need to learn how to control it—it came naturally; the other had struggled for so long and still couldn’t master her own netherfire—truly, one was heavenly, the other earthly.

As for Yin Xingyue, she was in the middle tier—not great, not terrible—and much older than the two little ones.

“Tomorrow, I’ll introduce you to two companions,” Shen Siyuan said.

“Companions?” Duoduo tilted her head, adorable as ever.

But she still instinctively cupped her small head with her hands.

“Yes, one older sister and one little sister…”

As he spoke, a sudden gust of yin wind slipped through the window.

“Oh no, oh no…”

Doudou landed on the ground and rushed frantically toward Shen Siyuan.

But halfway there, she suddenly noticed another young lady inside the room.

She froze in place, eyes wide with shock, staring at Duoduo.

“Why the panic? What’s wrong now?” Shen Siyuan tapped her small head.

Doudou didn’t answer that question; instead, she quickly shielded her head and stared at Shen Siyuan in amazement. “Who is this young lady?”

“She’s Duoduo. You two must get along well,” Shen Siyuan said.

At that moment, Yin Xingyue materialized as a gust of yin wind and entered the room.

Earlier downstairs, she had seen Doudou riding a howling yin wind from afar; though it was night, the flames burning atop her head made her glow like a firefly in darkness—unmistakably bright.

But the little puppy hadn’t followed—Yin Xingyue knew the pup feared Doudou, so she hadn’t brought it up.

She was also startled by Duoduo’s sudden appearance, but quickly understood what had happened.

Shen Siyuan explained everything to the three.

He then turned back to Doudou. “Tell me—what’s going on? Why the panic?”

“I saw that old man with the feather duster again—he’s chasing me,” Doudou said, still trembling with fear.

Shen Siyuan frowned. “Didn’t you say last time you spat fire at him and scared him off? Then why are you afraid now?”

“I’m afraid he’ll beat my butt with the feather duster!” Doudou replied matter-of-factly.

“You…”

Shen Siyuan had no way to deal with this little thing.

Sensing Shen Siyuan’s disappointment, Doudou added, “I spat fire at him, but he hid. When I left, he chased me again—he’s so annoying…”

Shen Siyuan frowned. “Didn’t you ask him why he’s chasing you?”

Doudou shook her head.

Shen Siyuan turned to Yin Xingyue. “Go with Doudou and find out what’s going on.”

Yin Xingyue nodded. Shen Siyuan added, “Be careful, protect yourself—if danger arises, use the Netherfire Firefly.”

Hearing this, Doudou suddenly remembered her Netherfire Firefly—then it crawled out from her hair.

She treated it like a pet, never thinking of it as a weapon she could command at will.

Yin Xingyue nodded, grabbed Doudou’s wrist, and summoned a yin wind to depart.

“Wait,” Shen Siyuan called out.

He turned to Duoduo, standing nearby. “You go with them too—follow the older sister’s lead.”

The three little ones rode the yin wind, whooshing out the window into the void.

Watching them leave, Shen Siyuan didn’t idle—he began practicing the [Eighteen Forms of Great Arhat]. He couldn’t rely solely on merit—he had to improve himself bit by bit.

They say exercise is addictive because it releases dopamine and endorphins, helping people grow fond of it and find joy.

Practicing the [Eighteen Forms of Great Arhat] is also exercise—stretching meridians, muscles, and bones brings pain, but also excitement and pleasure.

Moreover, in this state, Shen Siyuan felt his mind unusually alert.

He was now considering the future arrangements for the three little ones.