"Teacher..."
Inside the sea of consciousness, Qian Renxue couldn't bear to watch any longer.
She knew the Old Poison Freak's temperament. He had always done as he pleased and acted recklessly,
and there were few people on the entire continent who could earn his regard.
But at this moment,
he wasn't racking his brains to figure out how to survive. Instead, he was begging the other party to spare his granddaughter.
That made her think, quite involuntarily,
of the old man who had once held her in the palm of his hand and doted on her beyond measure.
Besides, Dugu Yan was an old acquaintance of hers. She was a little hot-tempered,
but she wasn't a bad person at heart.
If Dugu Bo died here, she wouldn't be able to face her anymore.
"Hah, womanly softheartedness!"
"Mercy toward your enemies is the greatest cruelty toward yourself!"
"If he becomes your enemy in the future, don't regret it!"
"Thank you for your guidance, Teacher. The world is ever-changing. I don't know what the future holds, but at least right now, I have no regrets!"
Qian Renxue declared firmly.
Ling Xiao let out a soft sigh. In the end, he didn't strike Dugu Bo,
"Submit, or die!"
"This Seat has always been lenient with those under me. I can overlook your insolence!"
"I can help you and your granddaughter remove the poison from your bodies!"
He didn't really have any prejudice against Dugu Bo. He just knew the Old Poison Freak was stubborn and foul-tempered,
and would take a great deal of effort to bring into line,
which was why he hadn't bothered talking much to him at first.
Later, when he saw the other party about to side with Tang San, instinct had made him intervene.
Now that Qian Renxue had pleaded for him,
he didn't mind going along with it and giving the Old Poison Freak a chance to choose.
Besides, seeing Qian Renxue's attitude had given Ling Xiao some other ideas.
Dugu Bo abruptly raised his head, so shocked he couldn't speak.
He hadn't expected the other party not only to spare him and his granddaughter, but also to remove their poison.
And this condition—
He simply couldn't refuse!
"Your subordinate... thanks you, my lord, for sparing my life!"
Dugu Bo immediately kowtowed.
Ling Xiao nodded in satisfaction,
and was about to help him up—
when suddenly,
he sensed an extremely faint fluctuation of spiritual power.
Ling Xiao remained still,
but his spiritual power instantly locked onto Tang San, who was hiding behind a rock, his eyes faintly tinged with purple.
"Your spiritual power really is far beyond ordinary people's, but you think a little trick like this can spy on This Seat?"
"You're still too green!"
Ling Xiao sneered inwardly,
and was about to teach the other party a small lesson,
when he suddenly seemed to think of something amusing, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
Behind the rock,
when Tang San saw Dugu Bo falling behind, in the past he might well have rolled up his sleeves and joined the fight himself.
But in this life, he was no longer as reckless as before.
He was a God King, shouldering the mission of saving the world. How could he risk himself so easily?
But he was truly unwilling to accept this!
Watching someone else snatch away the Immortal Herbs, while he didn't even know the other party's identity—
What could be more humiliating?
Only after the other party had beaten Dugu Bo down did he realize that his opportunity had come!
People were highly alert to their surroundings during battle, but once the fight ended, there was bound to be a brief moment of slack.
He quietly circulated his Soul Power and channeled it into his eyes.
With the experience of two lifetimes of cultivation behind him, even though he hadn't taken Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew in this life,
his Purple Demon Eye had already reached the third realm—the Mustard Seed Realm.
It could see through all disguises,
even those of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
And his control was even better than before. He was certain he could do it without anyone noticing!
He would see through this person's disguise and remember his true face.
Even if he couldn't do anything to him now,
once his cultivation recovered, he'd be the first to grind him to dust.
However, when he circulated his Purple Demon Eye and swept it over Ling Xiao's face—
he was so startled that his heart nearly leaped out of his chest.
"How is this possible?"
"Impossible... It's impossible..."
"I must have seen it wrong!"
Although he knew the Purple Demon Eye couldn't be wrong,
at that moment,
he would rather believe there was a problem with the technique, or that his eyes were playing tricks on him,
than believe what he had seen!
But even when he channeled more Soul Power
and gave it everything he had, he still saw that same face.
The face of a middle-aged man.
Weathered, with stubble covering his cheeks, yet his eyes still bright.
"Dad... Why is Dad here?"
Tang San's mind buzzed, but he had no choice but to accept reality,
"Could he have found out that Dugu Bo kidnapped me and rushed over immediately to save me?"
At that thought,
Tang San's heart was instantly filled to the brim with that great paternal love. He was so moved that he wanted to rush out and throw his arms around his dear old father at once.
But he forced himself to hold back.
There was still one doubt in his heart he hadn't resolved.
If Dad had come to save him, why wouldn't he show his true face?
"Ah, that's it!"
Tang San suddenly came to his senses.
"Dad is still wanted by Spirit Hall, so naturally he can't show his face in public."
"And he must be afraid that if I recognize him as a Titled Douluo, having such a powerful backer will make me lose the motivation to strive on my own!~"
Thinking of the other party's painstaking consideration, Tang San wished he could slap himself hard across both cheeks.
Back when he had just been reborn,
he had even despised his father in his heart, disappointed by his useless appearance, and looked down on him.
Now that he thought about it—
"I'm such a beast!"
"How could I have doubted him like that and denied him?"
Ling Xiao had no idea what Tang San was thinking, but seeing the way his expression kept changing,
he knew the other party's inner world had to be quite a spectacle right now.
However, Qian Renxue pleading for Dugu Bo,
along with Tang San's sudden appearance,
had made his own thoughts shift a little.
He was Qian Renxue's teacher, not her nanny.
If everything depended on her,
without setbacks and hardship, she could at most reach the realm of those five God Kings.
"Disciple, see that? That boy will be your first whetstone."
"Defeat him, and only then will you qualify as my disciple!"
Following Ling Xiao's spiritual guidance, Qian Renxue naturally saw Tang San as well.
She froze for a moment, then couldn't help laughing wryly:
"Him? You want him to be my opponent? A twelve- or thirteen-year-old child?"
But before she had even finished speaking, she sensed something was off,
and carefully felt out his strength.
"Hm? He's only one step away from reaching the Soul Ancestor rank?"
"He's actually a rare genius."
But even so... she was a dignified Soul King. How could he possibly be her opponent?
Qian Renxue was completely puzzled.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you—"
"Your Master has decided on the spur of the moment not to restore all your cultivation for now."
"Consider it a test!"
"What? No—"
Qian Renxue exploded on the spot,
"Teacher, how can you go back on your word again?"
Ling Xiao had already used her body, Dugu Bo had been beaten down, and she was on the verge of obtaining the Immortal Herbs and restoring her cultivation,
yet he was going back on his word and refusing to follow through?
How could that be acceptable?
"Hmph, am I the one refusing to restore your cultivation? Take a look at yourself first. Just how poor is your physical condition?"
Ling Xiao launched into a harsh scolding,
"Have you seriously honed your combat skills all these years?
Have you ever settled down and studied your Soul Skills?
Have you tempered your mind, and endured the trials and tribulations of narrowly escaping death?"
The moment he thought of the Qian Renxue from his previous life—
she had already become a god,
yet she had been utterly crushed by Tang San, who was still only at the Titled Douluo rank.
Before you continue