Gu Yuena's fear and grief at being abandoned were like the fiercest poison, relentlessly eroding Gu Yue's Cold Divine Barrier.
The space around her shuddered violently, groaning as if it could no longer bear the strain.
The ground beneath her feet cracked from where she stood, fissures spreading like a spiderweb and plunging into unfathomable depths!
"Shut up! Shut up, you useless wretch! All you know how to do is cry!"
Gu Yue roared inwardly, trying to seize control.
"He didn't abandon you! He's just running away! He's afraid of me! He has to be afraid of me!"
"But... he saved me... in that cage... he stroked my hair... and he even fed me..."
Gu Yuena's cries rang in her mind like a demonic spell, tinged with humble yearning and grievance as they echoed again and again.
"That was all a lie! Pity! Charity!"
Gu Yue refuted her furiously, using her Sky-high Hatred to suppress her weakness.
"Don't forget that sword! The one that pierced your heart! Have you forgotten?!"
"I haven't... I haven't... but... but now... he doesn't want me anymore... he left me here all alone..."
Gu Yuena's grievance and fear surged like floodwaters bursting through a dam, completely overwhelming the defenses.
Gu Yue's body trembled violently.
She staggered back two steps and slammed into the ruined wall.
Rubble pattered down.
The divine light in her violet eyes flickered like a candle in the wind.
She clutched the front of her clothes so tightly that her knuckles turned white, as if she wanted to rip out her heart and crush it.
"I told you... shut up!"
She rasped hoarsely, but her voice grew weaker and weaker. "Shengyan is my husband, not yours... what are you even grieving for?"
Yet Gu Yuena's sobs gradually turned into a shrill, bitter laugh, like thousands of steel needles stabbing into Gu Yue's soul.
"But aren't I you? You're lying to yourself... You're afraid he'll abandon you, too... You want his tenderness just as much as I do..."
Gu Yue's pupils contracted sharply.
She suddenly raised her hands and clapped them over her ears.
But the voice kept welling up from the darkest depths of her heart, like a viper winding around every inch of her reason.
"Stop... stop it! I'm the Silver Dragon King's Divine Incarnation. How could I possibly have such weak feelings? You must be influencing me!"
Her voice had taken on a fragile, tearful note that even she did not notice.
And just as Gu Yue was lost in turmoil—
Her pursuers arrived!
The first to reach the scene were three members of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
Ning Fengzhi stood in the middle, with Chen Xin and Gu Rong on either side. The three of them crashed onto Long Street like meteorites!
Ning Fengzhi maintained the Sect Master's composure, but he could not conceal the burning eagerness deep in his eyes.
"Her aura has weakened this much..." His voice was steady, though it carried a faint tremor. "Heaven blesses our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
Never mind how precious that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring was.
Even a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Bone was priceless, even to a Titled Douluo!
What was more, the aura radiating from this Silver Dragon seemed to carry traces of divinity!
Could this be a Soul Beast on the verge of godhood?
Sword Douluo Chen Xin's Seven Kill Sword Martial Soul had already emerged an inch from its sheath.
He said nothing, fixing his keen, hawklike gaze on Gu Yuena as he sensed the drastic changes in her aura.
"Fengzhi, this Silver Dragon's aura... is a hundred times stronger than that Rabbit's! Could you let me have the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Bone?"
Bone Douluo Gu Rong lowered his voice, barely concealing his excitement.
Being a level below Sword Douluo had always rankled him.
If he could get this Soul Bone, he might finally have a chance to surpass Chen Xin!
Almost the instant the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect landed, a figure as still and imposing as a mountain silently appeared in a shadowy corner on the opposite side.
Beneath a worn cloak, a pair of weathered, keen eyes lit up.
A heavy pressure, like an invisible mountain, quietly settled over everyone's hearts.
Tang Hao! Clear Sky Douluo!
He did not release his Soul Rings. He simply stood there.
Yet the murderous aura of a man who had survived a Sea of Corpses and Blood, combined with the domineering presence of a top-tier powerhouse, made Ning Fengzhi and the others' pupils contract with wariness.
Next, Platinum Bishop Salas of Spirit Hall charged onto the scene with several Soul Saints in his guard, all bristling with aggression.
Salas's gaze swept over everyone present, lingering for a moment on Tang Hao before settling firmly on Gu Yuena, whose aura was in disarray and whose face was deathly pale.
A cold smile curled his lips, as if his prey were already in his grasp.
"This Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast belongs to Spirit Hall."
Salas's voice carried unquestionable authority.
"I hope you'll all know what's good for you and not make a mistake!"
The Soul Saint Guard behind him immediately fanned out, subtly forming an encirclement.
His words sent the weaker ones scrambling away, but only made the powerful figures present look more hostile.
For a moment, tension hung in the air. It was as if even the atmosphere had frozen.
Everyone's greedy gazes focused on the slender, helpless Silver-haired Maiden at the center of the scene, her aura weak and chaotic.
Now that the Main Body's Will no longer suppressed her absolutely, Gu Yuena's weakness and fear as a Split Soul had been magnified without limit.
She seemed terrified by the sudden arrival of so many powerful figures and their fearsome pressure.
Her body trembled slightly as she instinctively shrank back, her violet eyes shimmering with fear and helplessness.
"Everyone!"
Ning Fengzhi spoke first, his voice gentle yet carrying indisputable weight.
"This Soul Beast is destined for our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It will be the best guarantee for Rongrong's Ninth Soul Ring in the future."
"Our sect is willing to offer treasures of equal value. Please do us this favor."
He had skillfully invoked Ning Rongrong's name.
After all, Ning Rongrong was not only the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Little Princess, but also the personal disciple of Light Feather Douluo, a Spirit Hall worshipper.
Surely Bishop Salas would think twice after hearing that.
Salas only sneered, then struck the ground hard with his scepter. "Sect Master Ning, what an arrogant claim! Spirit Hall has been pursuing this Soul Beast for a long time. You can't simply demand that we hand her over!"
In the past, he might indeed have had to think twice because of those words.
But just moments ago, the young master had given a death order: they had to capture this Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
Remembering the terrifying pressure that the esteemed lord had unleashed at the auction house not long ago, a fervent gleam flashed in Salas's eyes.
That lord was the being with the greatest chance of attaining godhood in ten thousand years!
What did the mere Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect amount to?
"Salas, don't use Spirit Hall to throw your weight around!"
Bone Douluo Gu Rong sneered hoarsely.
"This isn't Spirit City! If you want her, then take her by your own strength!"
"I'd like to see whether your Soul Saint Guard can provide enough of a snack for my Bone Dragon!"
Tang Hao remained silent, like a statue.
But his grip on the hammer tightened.
His gaze occasionally swept over Gu Yuena, carrying the cool certainty of a man who knew he would claim her.
The standoff was complete!
The Titled Douluos watched one another warily. None dared make the first move and become the target of everyone's hostility, but none of them could retreat, either!
The allure of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast had made even these powerhouses at the pinnacle of the continent lose their heads.
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