Chapter 212 – Pioneering the South, Cutting Through the Chaos - Part 2
The crow fluttered free, returning to nest in Sheng'er’s hair.
Tang Nian gave Li Yuan a helpless glance. “That’s what happens.”
“Open it up,” Li Yuan said. “Let’s see the heart.”
Tang Nian sighed. “We’ve already checked; the heart inside is always ruined afterward.”
Li Yuan stepped forward and, with the effortlessness of stretching dough, tore open the puppet’s metal casing. As expected, the demonic beast heart within was shriveled, as though someone had stomped on it.
Tang Nian continued, “My only explanation is that the demonic beast’s heart isn’t just muscle and flesh. There’s likely a sliver of the demonic beast’s soul left inside. When an external soul tries to merge, it’s met with fierce resistance. Even if the intruding soul is strong, the residual soul in the heart is deeply rooted. They clash on instinct, and this is the result. The so-called soul in the soul iron crystal is different, more like a void of consciousness. When it’s nurtured by the blood in the heart, Yin and Yang combine, flesh regenerates, and the puppet gains a degree of intelligence. But it doesn’t seem to merge with another true soul.”
Li Yuan looked at his goddaughter. He could sense this wasn’t just idle speculation. There was hope in her words. If what she described was true, then maybe her own father’s soul still existed somewhere.
Tang Nian fell quiet, lost in thought. Li Yuan glanced at Sheng'er blinking beside him, and instinctively scooped her up, settling her on his knee.
She pouted. “The crow’s possession failed.”
Li Yuan mussed her hair. “Not a failure. If an enemy ever sends a puppet army against us, you just let your crows possess them...”
A bright smile lit Sheng'er’s face. “Then all those nasty puppets would go crazy!”
“Exactly,” Li Yuan said with a grin. “Your crows did just fine.”