Tang Hao Dies, a Windfall, Ah Yin's Misfortune

Ning Rongrong's facial injuries were not fatal, but her skull seemed slightly misaligned, leaving her cheeks crooked. She kept sobbing nonstop, on the verge of a mental breakdown.

Zhu Zhuqing was the only one who appeared largely unharmed, but ever since returning from the Soul Arena, she had kept her head lowered. An unnatural flush colored her cheeks, her lips were tightly pressed together, and she did not say a word. No one knew what she was thinking.

He turned back to look at Tang San, whose wounds had just begun to scab over and who was still unconscious, then could not help letting out a heavy sigh.

Not only had he lost half his fortune betting on this Soul Fight, but now, to treat the Little Monsters, he had spent what little savings remained like water.

At this rate, Shrek Academy would soon be unable to afford food.

At that moment, Yu Xiaogang walked in with his head lowered and heavy steps.

Flender hurried over and asked anxiously, "Xiaogang, how was it? Did you find the Clear Sky Douluo?"

Yu Xiaogang shook his head weakly, his voice dry. "No... I searched everywhere he might have gone, but there was no trace of him."

"Then... what about Little San's missing Eight Spider Lances?" Flender pressed. "If we really can't get them back, how are we supposed to explain this to the Clear Sky Douluo later?"

Yu Xiaogang shook his head again. His lips moved a few times, but no words came out.

His heart was filled with confusion and fury.

That Zhao Linchuan had a clear objective. He seemed to have come specifically for the Eight Spider Lances.

But the problem was, only a few people within Shrek knew about the Eight Spider Lances. How had the information leaked?

He suddenly slammed his fist into the nearby wall with a dull thud, roaring in impotent rage within his heart.

"It's all that idiot Dai Mubai's fault! He underestimated the enemy and charged ahead, completely ignoring the tactics I laid out!"

"Otherwise, how could we have lost so miserably, even letting someone steal Little San's opportunity!!"

No one knew how much time had passed. Deep within a waterfall, in a dark, damp cave that barely saw the light of day—

Zhao Linchuan casually tossed Tang Hao, who looked like a dead dog, in front of a special plant.

The plant resembled Blue Silver Grass, but faint golden patterns flowed across its leaves, giving off a weak aura of life.

"Tang Hao," Zhao Linchuan's voice echoed through the empty cave with a trace of icy mockery. "At a time like this, are you afraid to see her? Afraid she'll learn those filthy, despicable truths about you?"

As he spoke, he slowly lifted up his left hand.

A mass of Purple Haze gradually emerged in his palm, silently swirling and emitting strange spiritual fluctuations.

Under his precise control, the haze separated into an exceedingly thin purple thread. Like a living tendril, one end pierced precisely into Tang Hao's Sea of Consciousness between his brows, while the other gently wrapped around the main stem of that Blue Silver Grass.

Then, under Zhao Linchuan's guidance, the memories Tang Hao had buried deep within his mind regarding Ah Yin—

How he had deliberately guided her, how he had exploited her feelings, and how, when she was at her weakest after giving birth, he had led Spirit Hall to her, forcing her to sacrifice herself—those filthy memories and dark schemes surged uncontrollably into Ah Yin's true body like floodwaters bursting through a dam!

"Thanks to Tang Hao receiving Ah Yin's sacrifice back then, some kind of life connection beyond common sense was formed between them..."

"Otherwise, my Mental Bridge would not have been able to make people share memories." Zhao Linchuan watched the scene coldly.

"Mm..."

That Blue Silver Grass began to tremble violently. The golden patterns on its leaves flashed rapidly, as though it were enduring immense pain and shock.

It "saw" her husband's past filth and selfishness, and understood that her willing sacrifice had been an elaborately planned deception from beginning to end!

So-called love seemed so ridiculous and cheap in the face of sect interests and the temptation of a One Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring!

Her faith collapsed, and her beloved became an illusion...

Bang!

A faint cracking sound rang out.

The swaying Blue Silver Grass had its leaves break apart inch by inch. Its main stem near the soil rapidly turned yellow and shriveled at a visible rate. In the end, that faint life force, like a candle flickering in the wind, was completely extinguished.

"So this was... enough for her to be unable to bear it and end her own life?" Zhao Linchuan looked at Ah Yin, now utterly lifeless and reduced to withered grass. He shook his head slightly, unsure whether he felt regret or ridicule.

He hesitated no longer. With a reverse grip, he seized the Thunder Tyrant Prison Breaking Sword. Lightning Light gathered along the Sword Body, making it incomparably sharp.

Then his eyes turned cold, and he suddenly exerted force with his arm!

Splat—!

The longsword pierced Tang Hao's heart with flawless precision!

A faint wail filled with pain and unwillingness squeezed out from Tang Hao's throat, then abruptly stopped.

The Clear Sky Douluo—Tang Hao—once renowned across the continent as the youngest genius, who had wielded the Clear Sky Hammer against Spirit Hall and slain the Pope, had his pupils completely lose focus. His life force ebbed away like a receding tide, and he fell within this dark, unknown cave.

At the same time, yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black, red—nine Soul Rings in total, especially that bewitching One Hundred Thousand Year red Soul Ring, seemed to be drawn by some force. They floated uncontrollably out from his gradually cooling corpse and hovered in midair, illuminating the dark cave in bizarre, dazzling colors.

(As for whether Soul Rings leave the body after a Soul Master dies... It has been too long, so I may have remembered incorrectly. I have made some revisions. Please forgive me.)

"What a pity... If there were some way to recover these ownerless Soul Rings and reuse them, that would be nice."

Zhao Linchuan looked at the red Soul Ring and murmured thoughtfully.

Then he composed himself and began the final "harvest."

Zhao Linchuan stripped the six extremely high-quality Soul Bones contained inside Tang Hao's body one by one and carefully put them away.

Then his gaze fell on an inconspicuous corner of the cave—there rested the One Hundred Thousand Year Blue Silver Emperor Soul Bone Ah Yin had left behind after her death.

"This matter is finished. It's time to go back."

Zhao Linchuan put away all the Spoils of War, gave the cave one last look, and turned to leave.

Not long after he left, the blood-red One Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring hovering above Tang Hao's corpse seemed to be drawn by some invisible force and slowly drifted toward the withered Blue Silver Emperor's true body.

Meanwhile, a thousand miles away, within the magnificent Seven Treasure Grand Hall of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Ning Fengzhi, Chen Xin, and Gu Rong sat in the seats of honor, their expressions grave as they listened to the report of a Guard kneeling below them.

This Guard was one of the elites Ning Fengzhi had specifically sent to Suotuo City to secretly protect Ning Rongrong.

Gu Rong's expression grew increasingly ugly as he listened. When he heard that Ning Rongrong had not only been humiliated in the street, but had also been personally slapped off the Soul Fighting Arena by Zhao Linchuan in full view of everyone, Gu Rong could no longer hold back and abruptly rose to his feet.

"Trash! A bunch of trash! What does the sect keep you for?!"