Tang Ziran continued in a serious voice, "The first thing I have to tell you about is the research that we did. There's definitely more than one research center like the one we were in, and we don't know the ultimate objective of this research. Hence, I can only give you my hypotheses. During these past 12 years, we've been constantly researching and developing a special type of medicine. Back in the day, both your mother and I were federal pharmacists, and we also did work in mecha design. When we were captured, we had thought that we'd been abducted for our mecha design skills, but only after arriving in the research center did we realize that we were going to be developing a type of medicine. To put it more accurately, we were developing a part of a type of medicine, and the main effect of this medicine is repression."

"Repression?" Both Tang Wulin and the Holy Spirit Douluo were rather surprised to hear this.

"That's right, it's a type of depressant that's specifically designed to repress emotions, and there are also many other research centers conducting similar research and development, but I believe that our research center was the most successful one. This type of depressant is extremely effective, but it's not for use in humans as human bodies wouldn't be able to handle it. The depressant is too potent, and if a human were to use it, they would become so devoid of emotions that they would be reduced to a walking vegetable. "

Only extremely powerful soul beasts would have a chance of surviving the administration of this type of depressant, so it's most likely the case that this research is targeting some kind of powerful soul beast. That's the extent of my knowledge on this matter. They took away all of our prescriptions, but little did they know that I had already committed all of these prescriptions to memory. I'll recite them now; make sure to record them carefully, Wulin."

"Father, please rest and allow Her Majesty to treat you first," Tang Wulin said in a grief-stricken voice.

"There's no time! My life is about to come to an end, and I must pass on this knowledge before I go. I don't know what the Spirit Pagoda plans to do with this depressant, but it took your mother and I, as well as many other researchers, over 10 years to develop it, so it must serve a purpose. With the prescription, you'll be able to better prepare yourselves if the Spirit Pagoda were to attempt to do something with this depressant in the future."

"Alright..." Tang Wulin gritted his teeth and pulled out a pen and some paper from his storage soul tool.

Tang Ziran's breathing was beginning to accelerate as he said, "Lang, if I miss anything, make sure to fill in the blanks. The prescription consists of..."

He spoke very quickly, and it was very clear that this information had been ingrained deeply within his mind. A string of medicine names and ratios were being recited in rapid succession, and even though the words didn't mean anything to Tang Wulin, but he still recorded them as quickly as he could.

More and more sweat began to appear on the Holy Spirit Douluo's forehead. This wasn't a sign of excessive soul power expenditure; it was an indication that she was reaching the limit of her control.

Tang Ziran and Lang's conditions were simply far too awful, and she had to ensure that her power created a perfect equilibrium with the power of the Blood Demon Curse within their bodies. Otherwise, if either power were to overwhelm the other, they would quickly perish.

"..., alright, that's it." Tang Ziran heaved a long sigh of relief, and at this point, a long list of medicines had been inscribed onto the piece of paper in Tang Wulin's hand.

"Take a rest, Father." Tang Wulin gritted his teeth tightly. He had been holding back his tears this entire time so it wouldn't smudge the writing on the paper.

"Don't cry, my child. Everyone dies eventually; this is simply the natural order of things. Your mother and I are more than content to have a son like you. It's a pity that we won't get to hear your story. After we pass on, you can come to our grave and tell us your experiences during these past 12 years; we'd love to hear it."

"Father!" Tang Wulin couldn't repress his tears any longer.

Tang Ziran waved a hand, and continued, "There's something else that's also very important that we have to tell you. Your mother and I actually never wanted to tell you this as we couldn't bear the thought of losing you."

He turned to Lang with a pained expression as he spoke, and she merely gave him a gentle nod of encouragement.

Tang Ziran took a deep breath, seemingly to strengthen his resolve, then said, "You are actually not related to us by blood."

"Huh?" Tang Wulin was so stunned by this bombshell that even his tears ceased for an instant.

Tang Ziran continued with a wry smile, "Your mother and I wanted nothing more than to have a son like you. You were so obedient, conscientious, and determined; you were the most outstanding child I've ever seen. Perhaps that's because my judgment is clouded by my bias as your father, but to me and your mother, you are perfect in every way. Even when you were so young, you managed to remain resilient after receiving that defective soul spirit, and seeing that made me immensely proud to be your father.

"However, what I have to tell you now is that you aren't our son. Back in her younger days, your mother was contaminated by a certain type of medicine during her research, and she lost her reproductive abilities as a result. We picked you up in the wilderness when we were hiking one day. In the instant that we picked you up, both of us heard a voice in our hearts that told us your name is Tang Wulin, which means you and I share the same surname."

Lang took over the story from there. "You were so very adorable as a child. You had a pair of large eyes, and your little body was so delicate, I couldn't get enough of holding you. You were always smiling and never cried, and you were very, very obedient and clever. In the instant that we picked you up, we decided to adopt you. In our eyes, you were a gift from the heavens."

Her voice was very gentle, and her eyes glazed over with reminiscence as she spoke.

Tang Ziran continued, "Not long after we took you home, we could already sense that you were different from other children. Back when you were a child, you fell ill very frequently, and regularly had persistent fevers. There were a few times when we had thought that you wouldn't make it, but you pulled through every time and seemed to grow stronger on the other side of each ordeal."

Lang continued, "You always ate far more than normal children. Your father and I no longer wanted to work in pharmaceutics and mecha design, so it was always hard to make ends meet, but no matter how tired we were from work, we were always filled with contentment when we returned home to see you. You were our psychological pillar, and at that point, we'd even forgotten that you weren't actually our child."

Tang Ziran continued, "When we first found you, you were completely naked and didn't even have any swaddling around you, but we were both sure that we had heard the voice that had told us your name. Perhaps your parents weren't ordinary people like us. If it isn't for the fact that we're about to pass on, perhaps we would've kept this a secret forever. We're both selfish at heart, and we couldn't bear the thought of losing you. However, now that we have to leave you, I don't want you to have no loved ones in this world. At the very least, you can go and search for your birth parents. When we first found you, we were nowhere near the ocean, but the voice that had told us your name was accompanied by the sound of loud crashing waves; that's the only potential lead that we have on where your parents may be."

Two lines of blood tears slowly flowed down Lang's cheeks. "Go and find your parents, my son. You're such a good child; I'm sure they would've been extremely reluctant to part with you. I'm sure that they're constantly thinking about you and searching for you. You still have loved ones in this world, so you'll never be lonely."

Tang Ziran's body began to tremble, and so did his voice, but his gaze remained firmly locked on Tang Wulin. "My son... If there's a next life, I only ask that the heavens make me your birth father."

Lang's condition was also beginning to noticeably worsen. "If there's a next life, we would never leave you. Even if you grow up to become a spoiled brat, we'd have no complaints."

Tang Ziran took a deep breath, and it was clearly becoming difficult for him to speak. "Don't be sad for us, my son. Your mother and I will still have each other on the other side, so we won't be lonely; we're just worried about you. You are our pride and joy, and we just want you to be happy. You've endured far too much during these past 12 years, and we're very ashamed of ourselves for not being able to provide you with a warm and loving home. Just remember this; if you want us to be happy on the other side, then the best thing you can do is live a happy life yourself."

"Seal!" the Holy Spirit Douluo suddenly yelled, and dazzling white light erupted from the eight-winged angel projection behind her. The bright red color that had stained both Tang Ziran and Lang's bodies instantly receded, and they solidified into what appeared to be a pair of pristine white jade statues.

"Father! Mother!" Tang Wulin let loose a heartwrenching cry of grief before blacking out on the spot.

......