Rustle.
A hideous ghost charged at him, intent on tearing him apart with its gaping maw.
A familiar face, filled with terror, couldn't even get close to Xie An before a surge of spear intent ripped it to shreds.
A peerless Spirit Beast charged at him with overwhelming ferocity.
"Not bad, this little world."
Xie An praised it.
A brief explanation was in order. Most small worlds reliant on the Douluo Plane were more like independent spaces carved out through immense strength. A Limit Douluo, or a Three-Word Battle Armor Master using an artifact or a special secret technique, could create one.
But what Xie An, Yun Ming, and the others wanted to create was a small world that transcended the Douluo Plane—or one large enough to encompass the entire Douluo Plane.
With a casual wave, the utterly fake illusion shattered in an instant.
Xie An strolled through the space, observing it.
At its center was an enormous pit filled with countless adult men. Judging by their clothes, most of them seemed to be homeless men from the streets.
Their bodies were covered in tiny needle marks.
Around the large pit were various caves. Each entrance was supported by rough stone pillars, with a small opening just large enough for one person to sit cross-legged carved into the rock every few feet.
A Soul Master sat in each opening.
The weakest among them had three rings, while the strongest had six or seven.
Their expressions were peaceful, their eyes closed, and they sat as steadily as a clock. Not a single one had a visible wound, but a closer look revealed that their souls had long since been drained, leaving only their bodies to keep working.
"H-How many people have died here, senior?"
Sun Wenxuan's voice held both fear and outrage.
Xie An signaled Sun Wenxuan to stay calm, then continued inspecting the space.
Around a bend, a young girl lay on the ground. Her hair was tied into twin ponytails, and she wore a short top and skirt that exposed her fair skin. Her large eyes brimmed with tears, stirring an urge to protect her.
When the girl saw Xie An, she sobbed, "Big brother, I fell down. It's so dark here. I want to go home."
Xie An smiled faintly, stepped forward to help her up, and kindly asked, "Little girl, how did you end up here? What's your name?"
Sun Wenxuan had wanted to warn his senior to be careful, but his mind suddenly went blank for a moment, and he found himself asking along, "Yes, yes. Why are you here all alone?"
"My name is Lina. I don't know how I ended up here either," the girl replied softly. Black energy emanated from her hand, but Xie An acted as if he hadn't noticed and helped her to her feet.
A hint of surprise crossed the girl's eyes, but she quickly returned to her pitiful expression.
"Oh, so your name is Lina. But I thought your name was Na Nali?"
"Big brother, you're teasing me. My name is Lina. I don't know who Na Nali is."
The girl spoke in an innocent voice, but a flicker of panic appeared in her eyes.
"Then do you know why these people were killed? What is the Holy Spirit Cult's purpose?"
"Big brother, why do you keep teasing me? How would I know? Maybe it's revenge, or maybe they just did it for fun?"
After speaking, the girl covered her mouth and giggled, her voice as sweet as silver bells.
"I see."
As Xie An spoke, the World-Breaking Spear suddenly appeared in his hand, and he thrust it straight at the girl. Sun Wenxuan stared in shock.
Black mist welled up where the spear struck. In the blink of an eye, the girl's entire body turned to mist, which drifted out of Xie An's grasp.
She reappeared a hundred meters in front of Xie An.
The smiling girl was now covered in dark green Three-Word Battle Armor. She held a large bell, and the phantom of an enormous bell loomed behind her.
"Temple Master, you're no fun. You hurt me so much. I was hoping we could enjoy playing our little roles together, but you don't know how to treat a lady~"
"I've asked everything I needed to. Unless you have some plan I don't know about? We know each other, Dark Bell. Why pretend to be young?"
Xie An replied, a hint of anger in his voice.
"Ooh, the Temple Master's angry. What is it? Did killing these ordinary people tug at your little heart?"
"Since the Temple Master won't show me any courtesy, I'll just have to show you the grand gift our Holy Spirit Cult prepared for you."
As she spoke, the enormous bell appeared behind her and swayed gently, giving off a clear chime.
In an instant, countless dark green Wronged Souls surged behind the girl, gathering into a mass.
As the Wronged Souls surged, the girl's aura steadily climbed, eventually reaching the level of a Limit Douluo. Six black rings and three red rings swirled around her.
"Our Holy Spirit Cult prepared this especially for you, Temple Master. That Xie Family Head outside had a fairly strong will, too. It took me quite a lot of effort to bewitch him back then~"
"Temple Master, I've reached the peak of Demigod. I'm only a hair's breadth away from Quasi-God. Try this!"
The girl's smile never changed, and her voice remained sweet, as though she were speaking flirtatiously. But her hands moved without pause as she built up power in the huge bell.
The girl's sixth Soul Ring lit up, and the bell in her hand began to sway.
A sharp "jingle" rang out. A layer of sound waves spread from the bell, while a ring of light bloomed beneath the girl's feet. The sound waves and the ring of light merged.
The sound waves were emerald green, visible and tangible as they spread outward. Right behind them, countless dark green vengeful spirits surged from behind Lilina with shrill howls, rushing at Xie An like water gushing from a well.
The sound waves arrived in the blink of an eye and exploded violently. A thick cloud of black smoke billowed up, and the vengeful spirits charged into it, accompanied by dreadful screams. It seemed they had already torn the War God Temple Master to pieces.
"Is he dead? That would be rather boring."
Na Nali was puzzled. The black smoke blocked her view, and the violent explosion made it impossible for her spiritual power to investigate.
"Hmph, the War God Temple Master is nothing—"
Before she could finish her second sentence, the World-Breaking Spear shot out of the black smoke and pierced straight through Dark Bell. If her Battle Armor hadn't pulled her body aside, the spear would have pierced her heart.
"What happened? How are you completely unharmed?"
Dark Bell could no longer keep calm. Seeing Xie An emerge from the black smoke without a single injury, she shrieked almost hysterically.
"How can a firefly compete with the bright moon? If the Holy Spirit Cult had sent the Ghost Emperor, I might have had to be wary. But you're just a Super Douluo. How dare you bark at me?"
As he spoke, Xie An formed the World-Breaking Spear again. At the same time, Battle Armor with exceedingly intricate patterns appeared over his body—a set of Four-Word Battle Armor.
"You've reached the Quasi-God realm, haven't you?!"
"Take a guess."
Xie An's seventh, eighth, and ninth Soul Skills stirred to life.
A constant sense of mortal danger warned Dark Bell.
I have to run. If I don't, I'll really die here.
Dark Bell suddenly turned into a cloud of black smoke. At the same time, a teleportation rune lit up and opened a spatial tunnel.
"War God big brother, I was careless this time. You won't be so lucky next time."
"Hmph. You think you can run? Not a chance."
Xie An snorted and hurled the World-Breaking Spear once more, sending it straight after her into the tunnel.
"Ah! War God Temple Master, you—! I'll make you wish you were dead!"
A shrill scream drifted out just before the tunnel closed.
"Senior, did she get away?" Sun Wenxuan asked from behind him, trembling.
Xie An shook his head and said regretfully, "Although her Demigod strength was only temporary, and her cultivation will soon plummet—she might not even be able to maintain Level 98—she still managed to break through a certain limit. If she was determined to escape, I couldn't stop her."
"Besides, there's no need to chase a cornered enemy. Dealing with what's in front of us is more important."
After explaining, Xie An asked Sun Wenxuan, "How old are you this year?"
"Reporting to the Temple Master, I'm not quite thirty. I'm twenty-eight."
"Good. The next twenty years will be an Era of Great Contention. Train hard, and strive to reach Limit Douluo as soon as you can. I have high hopes for you."
"Yes, Temple Master!"
Sun Wenxuan didn't understand what the Era of Great Contention meant, but he answered enthusiastically all the same.
"Let's go. It's time to head back. Everyone should have arrived by now."
Elsewhere, Dark Bell complained to the Ghost Emperor, "The intelligence was wrong. Xie An has already reached the Quasi-God realm."
Silence.
When the Ghost Emperor said nothing, Dark Bell returned to her hiding place on her own.
She gently touched the wound left by the World-Breaking Spear.
A blush spread across Dark Bell's face.
"War God big brother, you really hurt me. But what am I supposed to do? I liked it so much~"
Before you continue