Gu Yuena was forced back another step by their oppressive auras, her back slamming against the cold, broken wall.
There was nowhere left to retreat.
She looked around at the faces filled with greed. A tremendous fear surged over her like an icy tide, completely swallowing her heart.
She could even clearly "hear" their most shameless thoughts—how to divide up her body, how to absorb her Soul Ring...
Despair was like a bitter chill, freezing her limbs inch by inch.
She remembered the disgusting stares on the auction stage, the cold iron cage, the burning pain as poison was poured down her throat...
And now, she was trapped in an even more terrifying predicament.
Her true self... had abandoned her.
Shengyan... had left her behind and fled, too.
She was going to be...
The thought was the final straw, crushing her crumbling defenses.
But at that very moment, in the taut, deathly silence, with violence ready to erupt at any second—
A weak, stumbling voice, yet unbearably arrogant, abruptly tore through the frozen killing field:
"Hey! You old geezers..."
The speaker gasped for breath. His voice was hoarse and laced with pain, yet he forced out a brazen, devil-may-care defiance.
"What are you doing surrounding my pet in the middle of the night? Trying to steal her?"
Bzzzt—!
Every gaze was instantly drawn away from Gu Yuena by an invisible force, all turning toward the source of the voice!
At the far end of Long Street, a figure emerged from the shadows, stumbling along with one hand braced against the crumbling wall.
Under the moonlight, everyone recognized him and froze.
It was Su Ling! That "infamous" wastrel from the Su Family in Heaven Dou City!
When Su Ling had gotten into trouble earlier, his mother, Ye Wanqing, had nearly turned all of Heaven Dou City upside down.
Everyone present knew who he was.
But right now, his appearance was utterly wretched.
His once-luxurious brocade robe was in tatters, soaked through with dark, almost black blood that clung to his body and outlined his gaunt, scarred frame.
His face was utterly bloodless, pale as crumpled paper.
His lips were cracked and purplish, and blood remained at the corner of his mouth.
Most horrifying of all were the deep, bone-revealing gashes in his skin, spreading like a web. Blood still seeped from them, dripping into the dust.
He moved very slowly, each step draining what little strength he had left. His body swayed uncontrollably from pain and exhaustion, as if he might collapse at any moment.
Yet despite looking half-dead, he ignored the Titled Douluos poised for battle, and the oppressive aura that could frighten an ordinary Soul Master out of his wits.
He struggled straight toward Gu Yuena, each step like walking on the edge of a blade.
Under the astonished, contemptuous stares of everyone there—the sort of looks reserved for a madman—
He finally stumbled to a stop in front of Gu Yuena.
Beneath the moonlight, they stood close enough to touch.
Su Ling looked down at her pale, delicate little face, streaked with tears.
He said nothing.
In the instant Gu Yue's mind went blank and Gu Yue's will briefly faltered—
He suddenly reached out, picked up Gu Yuena as if she were a kitten, and pulled her tightly into his arms.
"Take a good look. This Little Silly Dragon is mine... Want her? Then step over my dead body."
Su Ling raised his head. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, but he grinned wildly, recklessly.
Silence!
Absolute silence!
The composed calculation on Ning Fengzhi's face froze, giving way to the bewilderment of someone staring at a fool.
The dark look on Salas's face turned to undisguised contempt and disbelief, as if he'd just heard the most ridiculous joke in the world.
Tang Hao frowned slightly and warily surveyed his surroundings.
He didn't care whether a wastrel lived or died. He only cared whether Su Ling's appearance meant that the Su Family's old monster, King Zhenyuan Su Qingtian, was nearby.
His powerful Mental Power swept across the whole street like invisible tendrils.
Only after sensing no terrifying aura from a Super Douluo did he feel slightly reassured.
A wastrel who might not even beat a Soul Elder.
A good-for-nothing who'd barely scraped his way to ten levels of Soul Power on family resources.
A gravely wounded man on the verge of death...
He actually dared to spout nonsense while surrounded by several Titled Douluos.
He claimed he would keep for himself a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast capable of shaking the entire continent?
This was no longer arrogance. It was outright madness!
After a brief silence came suppressed snickers and the cracking of knuckles.
"Heh... Heh heh... You little brat from the Su Family?"
Bone Douluo Gu Rong rolled his neck, his bones cracking as he looked at Su Ling as if he were an insect.
"Did you knock your head loose when you got hurt earlier? Get lost! I'll pretend you never said that, for your father's sake!"
Ning Fengzhi drew a deep breath, forcing down his disbelief and displeasure at the insult.
He put the kindly elder's mask back on, though his eyes had already turned cold.
"Virtuous nephew Su," he said steadily, with an unmistakable air of authority, "your injuries are severe. Don't speak recklessly. Leave at once."
"Your mother, Madam Ye, is worried about you. She's sent a large number of people to search the city."
"A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast is no trivial matter. This place is extremely dangerous, and you have no business staying here. Go back and tend to your wounds."
His words sounded concerned, but carried both a command and a warning. They also made it clear that no powerful members of the Su Family had arrived.
"Get out of the way, brat!"
Dugu Bo had just broken free of the Ice Seal, and now he was furious, looking utterly disheveled with cold still clinging to him!
The shadow of death clung to him like a curse, driving his hatred of Gu Yuena to its peak.
His eyes gleamed with ferocity. "I don't have time to play house with you!"
He barely cared about the Su Family's influence. He was about to die—what was there left to worry about?!
All he wanted now was to capture Gu Yuena and force her to tell him where the black-robed man was.
Yet as hostility, oppressive auras, and scolding words closed in from every side,
Su Ling seemed not to hear them. He stubbornly held the girl in his arms and refused to let go.
Ning Fengzhi stared at Su Ling's badly wounded yet unyielding figure, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Was this wastrel really insane? He wanted a Soul Beast more than he wanted to live?
He suddenly remembered that when Su Ling had been gravely wounded and near death before, Ye Wanqing had unleashed a furious vengeance that had nearly turned Heaven Dou City upside down!
A thought pierced his mind like an icicle: If this boy really dies here, will that fiercely protective Madam Ye blame every one of us?
Without showing it, he signaled to someone nearby.
The person silently melted into the shadows and darted toward Su Mansion. They had to notify Ye Wanqing at once!
The muscles in Salas's face twitched. Though he was displeased, he didn't dare lay a hand on Su Ling.
Spirit Hall wasn't afraid of the Su Family, but Su Qingtian was an old madman.
If Salas acted, Spirit Hall might not be able to protect him, its own bishop.
The Soul Saints behind him exchanged glances, but none dared step forward.
The Su Family still had Heaven Dou City under lockdown.
Other than the Titled Douluos, who would dare touch the Su Family's only son?
Gu Yuena's little face was forced against Su Ling's chest.
Cold, bloodstained fabric pressed against her pale, chilly skin.
She could clearly hear the heartbeat inside his chest.
Weak and erratic, every beat tugged at his shattered wounds, sending a dull, painful tremor through him.
Like a candle in the wind, struggling for one last moment before going out.
His embrace... was not at all warm, yet for some reason, it gave her a trace of security.
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