A Sudden Mutation

"Tang Hao, I bet you don't dare kill me. If you kill me, I'll make every disciple of the Clear Sky Sect accompany me to the grave."

Qian Xunji, at death's door, showed no fear. Dragging his heavily wounded body upright, he spoke with a proud expression.

He was utterly certain that Tang Hao would never dare kill him. Tang Hao was not alone—behind him stood every member of the Clear Sky Sect.

If anything happened to him, his father, Qian Daoliu, would undoubtedly wipe out the entire Clear Sky Sect.

"Damn it!"

Blinded by overwhelming hatred, Tang Hao gradually snapped back to his senses upon hearing those words. His advancing steps paused slightly.

Bang!

Tang Hao clenched the Clear Sky Hammer in his right hand, and an even more terrifying aura erupted from his body. He was unwilling to accept this. Though he could kill Qian Xunji, how could the sect's members possibly deserve such a fate?

He could not bury everyone's lives for the sake of his own hatred. He could only force that hatred down into the depths of his heart.

"Your Royal Highness, the Saintess, should we help His Holiness, the Pope? Judging by Tang Hao's crazed state, I'm afraid he might kill the Pope."

Dugu Bo, standing behind her, clearly had not noticed the shift in the battlefield's atmosphere. He turned and asked Bibi Dong.

"No need. Tang Hao doesn't dare strike."

Bibi Dong waved her hand and spoke indifferently.

As soon as she finished speaking, a cold expression appeared on her face. Qian Xunji had to die by her own hand. Anyone who dared obstruct her path would be shown no mercy.

Dugu Bo was somewhat baffled by her words, but he still obediently remained where he was, watching the situation unfold.

Rumble!

Tang Hao realized that he truly could do nothing to Qian Xunji. He could only suppress his fury deep in his heart and smash the surrounding mountains with the Clear Sky Hammer's violent force.

Cough, cough!

As the attack struck the ground, bursts of thunderous roars rang out. The explosive force caused Qian Xunji's injuries to worsen once more.

However, at that moment, a sudden mutation arose.

Buzz!

A wisp of black energy silently appeared before everyone. Without most of them noticing, it gradually drifted into Tang Hao's body.

"Hmm?"

Now possessing Level 97 Soul Power, Bibi Dong naturally sensed the subtle change the instant the black energy entered Tang Hao's body.

A trace of gravity appeared on her delicate face. She did not understand why that energy felt so familiar, as though it shared some similarity with the power of her martial soul.

After a moment, Bibi Dong stopped paying attention to the minor matter. Tang Hao had only just broken through to Titled Douluo; he was nothing to worry about.

Besides, with her current strength, so long as a Level 99 Limit Douluo did not intervene, there were truly few who could be her match.

The moment that wisp of black energy entered his body, Tang Hao's body stiffened slightly, and the movement of his hands instantly froze.

Crack!

The scarlet in his eyes was gradually swallowed by darkness. Strands of black lines appeared across his forehead and slowly writhed. The bones and tendons throughout his body began to distort, while an even more violent aura surged outward in all directions.

Tang Hao raised his head and walked toward Qian Xunji step by step. Holding the Clear Sky Hammer, he raised it overhead with both hands. At the same time, the fifth Black Soul Ring around him lit up.

A deep voice filled with killing intent rang out. "Clear Sky Hammer martial soul, Fifth Soul Skill, Overlord's Strike."

The entire Clear Sky Hammer abruptly doubled in size, unleashing an incomparably terrifying aura from within.

Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled above everyone. Arcs of lightning containing overwhelming power continuously gathered around the Clear Sky Hammer.

Crackle!

Tang Hao exerted force with both hands again. His gaze toward Qian Xunji overflowed with killing intent, and at that moment, his pupils turned utterly black. The Clear Sky Hammer in his hands smashed toward Qian Xunji.

Seeing this, Bibi Dong gave a cold smile before vanishing from where she stood. She had long anticipated this situation and had been prepared to attack at any time.

Qian Xunji had to die by her own hand. Tang Hao dared disrupt her plans—he was truly unforgivable.

"Tang Hao, stop!"

"You actually dare kill me? You... you will bring disaster upon the Clear Sky Sect and doom it to destruction."

At this moment, Qian Xunji clearly had not realized the gravity of the situation. His face filled with fear as he retreated backward.

At the same time, he roared furiously at Tang Hao. He did not want to die; he had not lived enough yet.

"Die!"

Tang Hao, controlled by an unknown energy, could not hear any sound from the outside world.

A voice constantly echoed in his heart, reminding him that he had to kill Qian Xunji. Only by personally slaying Qian Xunji could he avenge his great hatred.

Just as the attack was about to descend, Bibi Dong appeared before Qian Xunji as she had wished. Looking at the Clear Sky Hammer above her, her expression remained utterly calm.

It was as though this attack was insignificant to her, something she could block with a casual gesture.

And that was indeed the truth!

Bibi Dong activated the Soul Power within her body. The scepter in her hand shone brilliantly, and in the blink of an eye, it fiercely blasted toward the Clear Sky Hammer above.

Rumble! Rumble!

A terrifying aura, mixed with an incomparably powerful Soul Power presence, rapidly spread outward from this area.

Bang!

The ground beneath their feet split apart, while explosions crackled through the air. It was practically a scene of world-ending destruction.

Bibi Dong, standing at the very center of the attack's range, was surrounded by an aura that completely isolated her from all the residual shockwaves.

With her ninety-seventh-rank Soul Power, if she could not even withstand an attack from someone who had just broken through to Titled Douluo, then if word got out, would she not become the laughingstock of Soul Masters across the entire Douluo Continent?

Against Tang Hao, she did not even need to use a soul skill.

Pfft!

Tang Hao, on the other hand, took Bibi Dong's casual strike head-on. His face instantly filled with terror as he was sent staggering back hundreds of steps, blood pouring endlessly from his mouth.

Tang Hao's face gradually turned deathly pale. His internal organs had all been knocked out of place, and the bones throughout his body seemed to have been forcibly shattered.

Bang!

After a long while, Tang Hao could no longer hold himself up. He collapsed to the ground and fell unconscious.

"Bibi Dong, you..."

Seeing that he had been saved, Qian Xunji's expression relaxed, and he felt incomparably fortunate. Once he saw that it was Bibi Dong, he was overjoyed.

Watching this unfold, Qian Xunji secretly felt smug. Bibi Dong still cared about him after all.

Before he could continue celebrating, however, he looked up and saw the earth-shaking killing intent in Bibi Dong's eyes.

When Qian Xunji met Bibi Dong's gaze, his heart skipped a beat. Could it be that things were not as he had imagined?

"Qian Xunji, today is the day you die. As for that death, I'll delay it by a few hours."

Bang!

Bibi Dong spoke with hatred written across her face, then drove a fist into Qian Xunji's abdomen, shattering every bone in his body.

Boom!

Next, before Qian Xunji's shocked eyes, a surge of Soul Power appeared. Bibi Dong slapped him into a nearby mountainside, embedding him within it and leaving him unable to move.