Haotian Sect (3)

"The death of the current Pope at the hands of Tang Hao is a matter that can no longer be suppressed as it was in the past.

"Even with Tang Chen backing the Haotian Sect, this war has become unavoidable.

"Tang Zhan, the Haotian Sect Master at the time, also understood that with a Pope dead, Wuhun Hall could no longer retreat as it had before.

"While Wuhun Hall was mobilizing personnel to prepare for war, the Haotian Sect also began recalling disciples from across the continent and contacting allies.

"After a month of tentative skirmishes, Tang Zhan discovered that his sect's reputation was so foul that no one was willing to help them. Even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, which shouted about the 'three upper sects being of one mind' at the top of their lungs, only sent a token force.

"The final result was that Wuhun Hall received a corpse—the body of Haotian Sect Master Tang Zhan—along with a letter.

"The gist of the letter was that Tang Hao had been expelled from the sect, Tang Zhan was paying for the crime with his own life, and the Haotian Sect chose to seal itself away, hoping Wuhun Hall would pursue the matter no further.

"After reading the letter, we understood that Tang Chen must have died; otherwise, given the Haotian Sect's style, they would never have been so humble.

"At the time, we felt we should take this opportunity to wipe out the Haotian Sect entirely, but my elder brother's old habit of being sentimental flared up again, and he agreed to their request."

Qian Daoliu gave a bitter laugh and continued, "It was truly out of sentimentality. At the time, I felt that since Tang Chen was dead, and his son was willing to pay for my son's life with his own, it was enough.

"The price the Haotian Sect paid was heavy enough, and without Tang Chen, they were merely a minor irritation that would eventually vanish into the annals of history. They were not worth worrying about.

"There was no need to hunt down the descendants of these old friends."

Tian'e remained expressionless upon hearing this.

"But you didn't expect the Haotian Sect to play dirty and pull a fast one on you, did you?

"The 'expulsion' mentioned in the letter turned into Tang Hao voluntarily leaving the sect.

"Tang Zhan, who supposedly paid with his life, was framed by the Haotian Sect as having died of anger due to Tang Hao's actions.

"The people of the Haotian Sect don't even use their brains; would a Title Douluo really be angered to death by his own son?

"In Shuang'er's words, that's enough to make the whole continent laugh for a year.

"At least they were honest about sealing the sect; they really did crawl into the mountains and lock themselves away."

Qian Daoliu could only say helplessly, "There's no need for you to nitpick these small details, Second Brother. Since they've sealed themselves in the deep mountains and forests, they will truly disappear into the river of history within three hundred years."

Tian'e did not dwell on these details and continued.

"The Haotian Sect might disappear, but Tang Hao is still out there, jumping around.

"He comes to cause trouble for Wuhun Hall every few days.

"Brother, you shouldn't stop us from capturing Tang Hao this time, right?"

Qian Chongling, hearing this, felt a bit bewildered. Could it be that, just as Qian Ningshuang said, the average intelligence of Wuhun Hall really needed improvement?

"Setting aside whether Xiao Liuer will stop you, let's talk about the size of the continent. What are the odds of a few of you catching one rat?"

"But this is the only way, Ancestor. We can't just let this rat, Tang Hao, keep jumping around and disgusting us."

This time, it was Tian'e who gave a bitter laugh. He knew that catching a single Tang Hao on such a vast continent was indeed difficult, but it was the only clumsy method they had.

"It seems it really is as Shuang'er said; the political education in our Wuhun Hall needs improvement."

Qian Chongling sighed gloomily.

The elders looked at each other, and finally, Yin Long braced himself and stepped forward.

"Does the Ancestor have a brilliant plan? Forgive our dullness, please enlighten us."

"If the mountain won't come to me, I will go to the mountain! Have you all been holed up in Wuhun City so long that your brains have turned to mush?

"It's hard for you to catch a single rat like Tang Hao, but the Haotian Sect can't just run away!

"No matter how cold-blooded Tang Hao is, even if he cares about his reputation, he must care about his brothers and sisters, right!"

Qian Chongling finally couldn't help but lose his temper. Had these descendants stayed in a stable continental situation for too long?

"But, Tang Hao has already left the Haotian Sect. This goes against reason."

Qian Chongling couldn't help but slap Tian'e on the head.

"And you say Xiao Liuer is inflexible? You're all the same!

"When I was Pope, I didn't care about whether someone left a sect or not. If you cause trouble, you can't just claim responsibility by leaving the sect—don't even dream of it!

"You all care about your feathers and your reputation, but what about the people under Wuhun Hall who died because of the Haotian Sect!

"What about those who were wiped out or oppressed by the Haotian Sect!

"Don't forget why Wuhun Hall has always been obsessed with unification!

"Don't put the cart before the horse!"

As Qian Chongling erupted in anger, the group of elders lowered their heads in shame. They had all read the history of Wuhun Hall and knew it by heart.

Wuhun Hall was originally established by soul masters who followed the Angel God. At first, it only hunted down Evil Soul Masters. When Qian Chongling served as Pope, he added another mission: to manage the soul masters of the world, ensuring that this profession, which held the greatest power on the continent, would have something to fear and not act recklessly.

"The Ancestor's reprimand is correct!"

Qian Chongling scanned everyone present.

"You don't need me to teach you what to do next, do you?"

Tian'e asked tentatively, "Gather our forces and wipe out the Haotian Sect?"

"Otherwise, what?"

"Yes! Ancestor!"

Tian'e replied with an excited expression; he had endured this Haotian Sect for far too long and could finally vent years of pent-up resentment.

"I shall go this time as well. I haven't moved my hands in thousands of years, and I want to see what is so special about this Haotian Sect that it has turned the continent upside down the moment it emerged."

Qian Chongling narrowed his eyes as he spoke. The style of the Haotian Sect and their various actions since emerging reminded him of the methods the gods used to disrupt the situation in the lower realms back when he was in the God Realm.

"Yes!"

Hearing that Qian Chongling was also going, Tian'e could no longer hide the wild joy on his face. This time, even with Tang Chen resurrected, the Haotian Sect would not escape the catastrophe of total annihilation!

"You may go down and prepare."

"Right, take Shuang'er with you this time and let her see the world."

Seeing the world was one aspect, but on the other hand, Qian Chongling suddenly recalled those inexplicable questions Qian Ningshuang had asked about the Xuantian Sect when they first met Gu Yuena in the Star Dou Forest.

If the Haotian Sect was truly a chess piece used by the God Realm to disrupt the situation on the continent, he, Qian Chongling, should be able to see it. But if it concerned the Xuantian Sect, Gu Yuena, who followed Qian Ningshuang around all day, likely knew more.

"Yes, Ancestor, I will go notify Shuang'er immediately."

The Seventh Elder, Jiangmo, responded. He had no objections to bringing Qian Ningshuang along. Safety? With a group of Super Douluo, one Limit Douluo, and Qian Chongling himself, if they couldn't protect Qian Ningshuang's safety, they might as well find a block of tofu and bash their heads against it.

Oh, and it wasn't just one Limit Douluo; if Qian Ningshuang was going, Gu Yuena would certainly go too, and then Di Tian would surely follow.

Watching his brothers leave the Douluo Hall, Qian Daoliu still couldn't help but step forward.

"Ancestor, the Haotian Sect chose the site of my final battle with Tang Chen as their sealed territory."

"I promised Tang Chen back then that Wuhun Hall would..."

"Hmm?"

Meeting Qian Chongling's cold gaze, Qian Daoliu didn't finish the rest of his sentence.

Qian Daoliu understood in his heart that a promise was sometimes worth less than a sheet of toilet paper.

Take Tang Hao, who was jumping around everywhere, for example. When Qian Daoliu was hunting him down, Tang Hao had promised that if he were spared, he would never retaliate against Wuhun Hall in the future.

Qian Daoliu understood how troublesome a rogue Title Douluo could be if they were set loose to seek revenge. If not for that promise, even out of old sentiment, Qian Daoliu would have had to kill Tang Hao.

But right now, Tang Hao showed no signs of keeping any promises, and it was the Haotian Sect that had broken their word first.