At that moment, with Xiao Wu and the two Holy Spirit Cult elders' help, Yue Guan had successfully escaped with his life.
The moment the group entered the ghost's body, they quickly vanished without a trace, leaving Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the others standing helplessly off to one side.
Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the others were naturally all feeling terrible.
They stood rooted to the spot like statues, faces ashen and expressions full of regret. They stared at the empty space where their quarry had vanished, grinding their teeth in fury.
"If only we'd known, we should've just cut him down right away!"
"Why did we have to get so carried away?"
"And why did we fantasize about earning rewards from the Heaven Dou Empire and making our names ring across the army after killing him?"
"Now that he's escaped, how are we supposed to claim a reward? How are we supposed to make our names ring across the army?"
Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were both utterly regretful.
Thinking back to how they'd started dividing the credit before they'd even won, they felt incredibly foolish.
They really couldn't have been more stupid!
Otherwise, how could something like this have happened?
At the thought, both men wanted to slap themselves hard and punish themselves properly, so they wouldn't make the same mistake again.
"Damn it!"
Tang San, too, was so furious that he nearly dropped dead on the spot.
After all, he'd been just like Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun. Before they'd even won, he'd already started fantasizing about how to divide the credit.
Looking back now, he thought his own behavior had been utterly foolish.
And there was something else.
Tang San was, after all, King Lan Hao.
Moreover, he had proposed this operation to the general in his own name.
When he'd proposed it, the general had strongly disagreed. The general had believed that Tang San and the others might be good at one-on-one fights, but that they were absolutely no good at warfare.
Tang San had wanted to kill Yue Guan and give the general a good slap in the face.
He wanted the general to know that he, Tang San, wasn't just a Soul Master with tremendous Soul Power—he was also a military genius!
That was why Tang San had been so pleased with himself after defeating Yue Guan.
Who could've guessed that a moment's carelessness would ruin everything?
The duck was already in his mouth, and it had still managed to fly away!
This nearly made Tang San furious enough to die on the spot!
Now Tang San felt even more regretful.
"It looks like I'm going to make a complete fool of myself this time!"
Tang San couldn't help sighing.
Soon, his eyes fell once more on the Seagod Trident in his hands.
He began recalling everything that had happened.
When he thought back to the battle, he couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Those two Evil Soul Masters who called themselves Holy Spirit Cult elders were truly terrifying."
"Their Martial Souls were incredibly strange, and they were incredibly powerful."
"If I hadn't had the Seagod Trident, they might have killed me in that illusion just now."
Tang San knew very well that an illusion could kill people, too.
Killing someone in the real world meant destroying their body.
But if someone became trapped in an illusion, their mind would collapse, leaving them dazed and barely alive for the rest of their days.
So even thinking back on the battle filled Tang San with fear.
Whenever he thought of those two Holy Spirit Cult elders, he still felt wary.
He began recalling what they had said earlier.
"Looks like we'll have to leave this kid for the Cult Master to deal with personally."
"Petty Sea God. Once the Cult Master makes a move, he can crush you with ease."
"We're still too weak."
"We're the Holy Spirit Cult, an organization of Evil Soul Masters."
"You're very unlucky."
"Because you offended our Cult Master, and now our Cult Master wants you dead."
"You may have inherited the Seagod Inheritance, but in the Cult Master's eyes, a god like that is nothing."
"Get ready, and wait patiently for your death."
"Once our Cult Master comes out of seclusion, you're all finished."
"Then you'll learn what true despair is."
Earlier, the situation had been urgent, and Tang San hadn't had time to think it over.
But now that he considered it carefully, something seemed wrong.
Those two Evil Soul Masters were elders in an organization?
Then, apart from those two elders, how many people did the organization have? How many more elders like them were there?
The more Tang San thought about it, the more frightened he became.
Especially when he recalled the Holy Spirit Cult elders saying, "Petty Sea God. Once the Cult Master makes a move, he can crush you with ease."
The more he thought about it, the more his heart pounded.
These people could tell that his inheritance was the Seagod Inheritance—and they still dared to make such outrageous claims?
On Douluo Continent, everyone treated gods with the utmost respect.
That was because gods represented absolute power.
Anyone who said something like that was either a fool or genuinely powerful enough to back it up.
But those two Holy Spirit Cult elders hadn't seemed like fools!
Could their so-called Cult Master really be that powerful?
What was he supposed to do, then? Wait for death?
At the thought, Tang San's face went pale, and he was overcome with fear.
"Don't worry, Xiao San. The Sea God's power is supreme."
"Don't listen to those two Evil Soul Masters' nonsense!"
"They're just trying to attack you with their words. If they can make you lose your composure, they've succeeded. After all, they don't have to risk their lives at all. They only need to move their lips."
Dai Mubai, standing beside him, quickly noticed how frightened Tang San was.
He immediately spoke up, turning his gaze toward Tang San.
Hearing this, Tang San realized he had a point, and his face showed sudden understanding.
"Exactly. I almost fell for those Evil Soul Masters' lies."
Tang San nodded to Dai Mubai.
"If that so-called Cult Master is really that powerful and has a grudge against me, why hasn't he come himself?"
"Why send those two elders when they couldn't even kill me?"
"Hmph! It looks like those Evil Soul Masters just made the whole thing up to deceive me!"
Thinking of this, Tang San felt deeply grateful to Dai Mubai.
"Thankfully, Boss Dai, you reminded me in time. Otherwise, I really would have fallen for their trick!"
Dai Mubai smiled at Tang San.
Then he continued to reassure him:
"Heh, it's only natural for brothers to help each other."
"As for what those two Evil Soul Masters said, I haven't changed my mind. You don't need to take it too seriously."
"Maybe that so-called Cult Master is just someone they made up."
"Even if he really exists, he's just a coward. You're the Sea God's inheritor now, and you're holding the Seagod Trident. Killing him would be as easy as killing a chicken."
"The only reason you almost lost just now was that they caught you by surprise. If you'd faced them head-on, they wouldn't have stood a chance against you."
"Otherwise, they wouldn't have fled in such a panic."
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