Sunset Forest, not far from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Porcupinefish Douluo had arrived a little later, following closely behind Gu Rong.
Relying on his Martial Soul's special traits, he had avoided detection by the two sides fighting and witnessed the entire encounter.
Now he stood rooted to the spot, replaying the scenes in his mind, unable to accept reality even after a long while.
Six unfamiliar young men and women, all at the peak of Soul Douluo, had fought Bone Douluo, a level ninety-five Douluo, to a deadlock?
Then something even more outrageous happened.
Space was torn open, and another six powerful experts appeared.
The gray-haired old man at their head had crushed and thoroughly trounced Gu Rong with ease.
Gu Rong had been utterly unable to fight back. The gap between them was clearly terrifying.
Where had these top experts come from? How had they escaped Spirit Hall's intelligence network? Porcupinefish Douluo was deeply shaken.
He held his breath, not daring to make the slightest sound. Only while the captives were being questioned did he quietly slip back to the edge of the forest.
"Th-that was close! How terrifying!"
Porcupinefish Douluo was drenched in sweat, his legs weak.
He was relieved he hadn't been discovered. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable. He couldn't even beat Gu Rong, after all.
After waiting to make sure he was completely safe, he hurried back to Heaven Dou City at a run and contacted Qian Renxue at once.
"What! Say that again?"
"Young Soul Douluo, Peak Douluo?"
"Elder Porcupinefish, it's not that I don't believe you, but this is just..."
Before long, Qian Renxue had finished listening to the report, her expression uncertain.
Even though the report came from a trusted confidant, she seriously doubted it was true. It was simply too outrageous.
Spirit Hall's current Golden Generation had barely reached level fifty. Someone of the same age had broken through level eighty?
And on top of that, six powerful experts had appeared by tearing through space, each no weaker than a Titled Douluo, with their leader utterly crushing Gu Rong?
Across the entire continent, aside from the Worship Hall under her grandfather's command, even Pope Bibi Dong didn't have that kind of power, did she?
"Your Highness, I know it sounds unbelievable."
"But I swear on my life, not a word of it is false!"
"These people were called the Special Operations Team. They served an unknown 'His Majesty,' so they must belong to an enormous organization!"
Afraid of being discovered, Porcupinefish Douluo hadn't dared to approach. He had kept to a safe distance.
So he had only seen what happened, not heard their exact conversation—just caught a few scattered words.
Now he blurted it all out. The more Qian Renxue heard, the more confused she became, and the stranger and more unfathomable it all seemed.
His Majesty? How could it be His Majesty? Of the two great empires of Douluo Continent, Heaven Dou had been infiltrated until it was riddled with holes, so it could be ruled out.
Could Star Luo be hiding such terrifying power? But why had it suddenly been exposed without any warning?
"This is no simple matter!"
Qian Renxue gritted her teeth and stated the obvious.
She didn't dare delay either and immediately decided to report it up the chain.
At this point, her mother-daughter relationship with Bibi Dong had yet to be brought into the open.
So her first thought was her grandfather, Qian Daoliu. She ordered Snake Lance Douluo, standing nearby, to relay the entire report back to him.
"Wait! Send a copy to Bibi Dong as well."
"This matter is of great importance. We may need the Pope's faction."
After a brief hesitation, Qian Renxue stopped Snake Lance Douluo and amended her instructions.
He looked a little surprised, but didn't question her. He simply nodded and left in silence.
The situation continued to escalate. Soon, the report passed through special channels and reached the Pope Palace in Spirit City.
At that moment, Bibi Dong sat on her throne. Ghost and Chrysanthemum Douluo stood in their usual positions on either side, respectful and attentive.
"Your Holiness, this intelligence is far too outrageous."
"We have the entire Douluo Continent under our control."
"Perhaps a few fish occasionally slip through the net, but there's no way there could be so many, let alone enough to form an organization."
Chrysanthemum Douluo held his fingers in a delicate orchid pose. After hearing the report, he furrowed his brow and wore a disdainful smile.
Beside him, Ghost Douluo didn't chime in right away. He pondered for a moment, then suddenly pointed at the "sky," deliberately lowering his voice.
"Do you think the old geezers might be behind this?"
The Pope's faction and the Worship Hall had been at odds for a long time.
As one of Bibi Dong's confidants, Ghost Douluo was clearly reading too much into it.
He assumed it was yet another scheme targeting the Pope, and looked unconcerned.
Seeing that both her loyal subordinates shared the same attitude, Bibi Dong raised an eyebrow and offered a different view.
"Qian Daoliu isn't stupid, and he isn't that bored."
"Keep a close eye on the intelligence. This may well be true."
"But since it happened in Heaven Dou City, it doesn't have much to do with us. Let the Worship Hall handle it."
"If a force that truly threatens Spirit Hall has appeared on this continent, that old geezer will be more anxious than I am. There's no need for us to get involved just yet..."
As she spoke, Bibi Dong's lips curved slightly.
Her daughter, Qian Renxue, appeared in her mind.
A mother knew her daughter best. How could Bibi Dong fail to see what the girl was plotting?
The fact that Qian Renxue had rushed to send back the report meant the situation was urgent. Still, Bibi Dong wondered whether it had been exaggerated.
After all, one super-genius so young, and one Peak Douluo who could casually crush Gu Rong, were already outrageous enough. How could there be twelve of them?
"Rest assured, Your Holiness. We understand."
Ghost and Chrysanthemum Douluo exchanged a glance and answered quietly.
The Pope Palace fell silent again. The report had made hardly a ripple.
Meanwhile, the Worship Hall was holding its own discussion. Its reasoning was much the same as Bibi Dong's.
Young Lady Qian Renxue wouldn't lie, which meant the threat was real, but it didn't necessarily mean things were as outrageous as reported.
"I think Porcupinefish must have mistaken what he saw. His cultivation is only at the early stage of Titled Douluo. How could he know what a Peak Douluo is capable of?"
"Dugu Bo has gone missing and Gu Rong has been defeated. That only proves there's some powerful being hidden in Sunset Forest. But six of them? I don't believe it."
The one speaking was Golden Crocodile Douluo.
The other Enshrined Douluo all agreed.
Even Qian Daoliu, who had been uncertain after reading the report, thought that made sense.
Who said defeating Gu Rong, a level ninety-five Douluo, made someone a Peak Douluo? The Enshrined Douluo could pull off that feat too.
And as for their numbers... Who would believe it without seeing them firsthand? If there really were six, they'd nearly match the strength of Spirit Hall!
"Well, no matter what, it's certain that an unknown expert has appeared in Sunset Forest."
"Even so, we can't just leave it alone... Qian Jun, Jiang Mo, the two of you will go."
"Join up with Xiao Xue and make sure she's safe. As for the investigation, let's first see how the other forces respond."
"With Dugu Bo gone, the Heaven Dou Imperial Family must be in a panic. Gu Rong is an elder of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. They can't have failed to notice!"
Qian Daoliu considered the matter and quickly settled on a plan.
Just as Bibi Dong had guessed, his reaction was more intense.
Although he doubted the report, he still sent two Enshrined Douluo because he was concerned for his granddaughter's safety.
Qian Jun and Jiang Mo were twin brothers, Peak Douluo at level ninety-six, with Coiling Dragon Staff Martial Souls. They worked together seamlessly.
Even if the worst came to pass and a super-powerful expert really did appear, the two of them were strong enough to keep Qian Renxue safe.
"Great Enshrined, with us there, you can rest assured!"
"Even if the Heaven Dou Empire falls, nothing will happen to Xiao Xue!"
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