If it were Bo Saixi, perhaps every single person here would die.

It was unclear how much time had passed; perhaps it had been a few breaths, or perhaps as long as a century.

Only then did Tang Zhen manage to recover a shred of rationality from the immense humiliation, the fury, and the heart-chilling indifference radiating from the words of Sea Dragon Douluo.

He first stared fixedly at the burly figure before him, Sea Dragon Douluo, whose face was cold and rigid, his eyes offering not the slightest room for negotiation.

Then, he glanced at Pope Qian Xunji standing to the side, who looked as composed as if he were merely a spectator watching a grand play.

A deep sense of powerlessness and a cold chill coiled around his heart like poisonous vines.

He knew that the matter of today could no longer be brushed aside with a simple admission of being in the wrong.

The other party had clearly come prepared, wielding the force of a thunderbolt, and they wanted far more than just the return of their property.

They wanted to establish their authority, to exact revenge, and to use the most brutal method possible to make the Clear Sky Sect pay a painful price for the recklessness and greed of Tang Hao and Tang Xiao.

If not for the mysterious disappearance of his father, Tang Chen—that pillar of heaven—and the fact that there had been no news of him, who in this world would dare to bully their way to the door, given his reputation as a level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo?

And what of Martial Soul Hall?

Facing a Peerless Douluo at the pinnacle of the current era, even a force with a divine inheritance would have to weigh their options carefully.

They would never dare to be so aggressive, demanding the arms of the sect's future heirs directly!

But the reality was that Tang Chen was not here.

The Clear Sky Sect of this moment was like a tiger whose sharpest fangs and claws had been pulled.

It possessed a massive frame and a roar, but it had lost the lethal force that truly intimidated the masses.

Tang Zhen took a deep breath, as if trying to suppress all the stifling frustration, unwillingness, and anger in his chest.

He slowly loosened his tightly clenched fists; his palms were already marked with deep, bloody gouges from his own fingernails.

He spoke again, his voice much lower than before, stripped of its hardness and filled with a helplessness that bordered on pleading:

"Your Excellency..."

"I admit that this matter... is indeed the fault of the Clear Sky Sect. My two sons are young and impulsive; they acted recklessly, offended you, and... took what belonged to your side."

He struggled to say the word "took," which was tantamount to admitting the fact of "robbery" in front of everyone.

This was a heavy blow to the reputation of the Clear Sky Sect.

But he could no longer afford to care about such things.

"As long as Your Excellency is willing to show mercy..."

Tang Zhen's gaze carried a hint of earnestness as he looked at Sea Dragon Douluo:

"I, Tang Zhen, guarantee in the name of the Clear Sky Sect Master that we will not only return that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast and anything it may have left behind in its entirety, without taking a single bit for ourselves!"

He paused, gritted his teeth, and threw out an even greater bargaining chip:

"Beyond that, my Clear Sky Sect is willing to pay a corresponding price! Spirit bones, rare metals, heavenly treasures, or even the unique forging techniques of the Clear Sky Sect... as long as Your Excellency speaks, and it is within the capabilities of my sect, everything is open for discussion!"

His voice carried a tremor that was difficult to detect, having set aside almost all of his pride:

"I only ask... I only ask that Your Excellency can raise your hand and spare my two useless sons. They are still young; to have an arm severed would destroy their futures... This punishment is truly too heavy. I beg Your Excellency... to think twice!"

Tang Zhen truly had no other options left at this moment.

He certainly could not win a fight.

Not to mention the Worship Hall headed by Qian Daoliu, even the Pope Palace in the hands of Qian Xunji was enough to crush the current Clear Sky Sect.

Not to mention that there was also a Title Douluo present who harbored a bone-deep hatred for their sect.

Most crucially, even after bringing up the name of his father, Tang Chen, the other party was not afraid in the slightest, and even scoffed at it.

Therefore, aside from bowing his head, offering sincere compensation, and praying that the other party would take the return of the treasure and the extra compensation into account to take a step back, he could think of no other way to save the arms of Tang Hao and Tang Xiao and prevent the future hope of the sect from being destroyed.

However, faced with this humiliating plea for peace and submission—which practically trampled the face of the sect into the dirt—the expression on Sea Dragon Douluo's face did not soften in the slightest.

He shook his head indifferently, the icy chill in his eyes intensifying, his tone carrying an unquestionable finality:

"Sect Master Tang, there is no need to say more."

"If not for the sake of your father, Tang Chen..."

Sea Dragon Douluo's voice suddenly turned sharp:

"Today, what I would want would not be as simple as just their two arms!"

He took a step forward, and the overwhelming ocean pressure, like a tangible wave, slammed into the members of the Clear Sky Sect, causing many to groan and retreat once more.

"Did you think that the belongings of my Young Master were so easy to steal?"

"Do you think a mere excuse of being young and impulsive, or a willingness to pay compensation, can just brush this aside?!"

"In this world, there is no such cheap deal!"

Sea Dragon Douluo's voice boomed like thunder across the plaza, carrying monstrous rage:

"If I do not sever an arm from both of them today, where would the dignity of the force behind me remain? In the future, wouldn't any Tom, Dick, or Harry dare to come and rob my Young Master?"

To be honest, he really did not want to cooperate with Martial Soul Hall, nor did he want to be associated with them, so he did not want to reveal that he and Ye Qing were from Sea God Island unless absolutely necessary.

Listening to this unyielding, and even more indignant, decision from Sea Dragon Douluo, Qian Xunji, standing to the side, showed no surprise; instead, he nodded in deep agreement.

In his view, Sea Dragon Douluo's demands were not only far from harsh, they were... perhaps even a bit light.

If it weren't for those two ignorant fools, Tang Hao and Tang Xiao, snatching away that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast right in front of Ye Qing and Sea Dragon, how would Ye Qing have been forced to change his itinerary and ultimately arrive at Martial Soul Hall?

And how would he have been summoned by the Angel God by some twist of fate, triggering that subsequent series of events that left his father frantic and still felt utterly absurd to him even now—a tug-of-war for a person between deities?

It could be said that the root of all this lay with these two brats from the Clear Sky Sect!

Not only did they slap Sea God Island in the face, but they had also inadvertently "delivered" the God Child of the Sea God right into the hands of the opposing Angel God!

This was essentially taking Sea God Island, and the Sea God himself, and grinding their faces into the dirt!

If he were in the position of Sea Dragon Douluo or Bo Saixi, he feared his own rage would be even greater, and his methods even more ruthless!

Severing an arm?

That was only out of consideration that Tang Chen might still be alive, and a desire to avoid an irreconcilable, life-or-death feud.

Otherwise, given the iron-fisted methods of a woman like Bo Saixi, who had served the Sea God for a century and ruled an entire island, in her fury, the gates of the Clear Sky Sect today would likely be flowing with blood; not a single person would be leaving in one piece!

Never underestimate the rage of a woman who is powerful, holds a lofty position, and has had her core interests violated.

Especially a woman like Bo Saixi, who was the Sea God's own spokesperson and viewed the Sea God's legacy as more important than her own life.

Ye Qing was the successor to the Sea God; to steal from him was, in a sense, to steal from the Sea God himself!

It was a desecration of the Sea God's majesty!

In such a situation, even if Tang Chen himself were standing here right now, he would likely have to lower his stance and strive for peace, paying a massive price to have any hope of calming the fury of a deity's spokesperson.

Let alone the fact that Tang Chen was not even here!

Upon hearing Sea Dragon Douluo's resolute refusal and sensing the undisguised killing intent stemming from a deeper level of rage in the man's words, Tang Zhen's expression turned completely grim, as dark as the bottom of a pot.

He knew the negotiations had broken down.

The other party was determined to make an example of them and secure this retribution.

With the last shred of hope extinguished, Tang Zhen's gaze turned sharp and resolute once more.

He slowly straightened his back, which had been slightly hunched from humiliation, and the dignity belonging to a Title Douluo and a sect master returned to him.

He stared at Sea Dragon Douluo, his voice cold, asking word by word:

"Your Excellency... will you truly not reconsider? Not retreating even half a step?"

The soul power on his body began to boil once more, and the phantom of the Clear Sky Hammer faintly emerged behind him, carrying a heavy and overbearing sense of pressure:

"Although my father is temporarily away from the sect, my Clear Sky Sect... has a century of heritage, and we are not soft persimmons to be kneaded by anyone!"

He was issuing a final warning, and also bolstering his own courage and that of his sect:

"Your Excellency, think clearly. If you insist on this path today, you will be forging an irreconcilable, life-or-death feud with my Clear Sky Sect! Is it worth it... for two arms?"

This was already a naked threat, the dagger finally revealed from the map.