Two Spirit Bones

After successfully saving Huyan Li, Qian Yu did not show himself.

He was waiting, waiting for the final outcome.

Before long, Snake Lance Douluo brought them over to Qian Yu. As for Huyan Li, he had already left.

Huyan Li had clearly chosen a path that led in the opposite direction from theirs.

"He resents the Spirit Hall Empire deeply and has already accepted his fate. Fortunately, before leaving, he said he wouldn't tell anyone he'd met us."

After Yan finished giving his assessment of Huyan Li, he noticed everyone else looking at him strangely.

As if he were an idiot.

"We went to all that trouble for nothing. We didn't gain a thing, and only increased the risk of being exposed!"

Pufferfish Douluo, who had spent the most time with Qian Yu, spoke as if it were an offhand remark, then fixed his gaze on Qian Yu.

"It's not as if we gained nothing. We may well have obtained a Ten Thousand Year Head Soul Bone. That's a pretty good haul."

Qian Yu spoke calmly.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Pufferfish Douluo vanished from the spot.

Everyone else fell silent. Only Yan and Hu Liena still looked bewildered.

"Why?"

"If you were going to attack him, why save him just now?"

Hu Liena was blunt and quick to ask what she was wondering.

Yan said nothing, but his expression gave him away. Clearly, he didn't understand why they had done it either.

Qian Yu did not answer. Instead, he glanced at Xie Yue.

Xie Yue did not speak at once. After a moment's thought, he gave his answer.

"We saved him at first because he might have joined us and become an asset."

"We're killing him now because his existence could very well expose us."

"He said he wouldn't reveal our information to anyone else. Does that mean he really won't?"

"Given Huyan Li's current predicament, even if he and the Elephant Armor Sect wanted to bow their heads and be someone's dogs, they'd still have to see whether anyone was willing to take them in."

"At a time like this, he needs a sufficiently weighty offering to prove his loyalty—and we're the perfect offering."

After speaking, Xie Yue looked at Qian Yu, as if expecting him to weigh in.

Qian Yu nodded with an old head on young shoulders, clearly approving of Xie Yue's reasoning.

"Exactly. That's just one possibility."

"Perhaps Tuoba Li really would keep our secret, mindful of how we saved his life today. But he isn't alone. The Elephant Armor Sect still has other remnants, and no one can predict what Huyan Li might do for their sake."

"Don't forget who we're up against—a god!"

"In this situation, we should assume the worst of everyone else."

Qian Yu couldn't help feeling a little regretful.

No matter what, Huyan Li was a Soul Saint. Even if he couldn't fight well, they could still use him as cannon fodder in a crisis.

What a shame!

Before long, Pufferfish Douluo returned.

"Wouldn't you know it, it really was a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone. Good quality, too—the kind that increases defense."

"She Long, it's yours!"

Pufferfish Douluo tossed Snake Lance Douluo the Head Soul Bone he had pried from Huyan Li's head.

The two of them were partners, with a deep bond. They wouldn't begrudge each other something like this.

Besides, Qian Yu had already reserved a Head Soul Bone for him—a Ten Thousand Year Head Soul Bone that suited him perfectly.

Naturally, good things went to one's partner first.

"I won't stand on ceremony, then!"

Looking at the Ten Thousand Year Head Soul Bone in his hand, Snake Lance Douluo accepted it without hesitation. He put it into his Storage Soul Tool, intending to absorb it once they had settled down.

"Let's go. We still need to help Yan hunt for a Soul Beast!"

Qian Yu couldn't say he was happy or disappointed with the outcome.

From the moment he had chosen this path, he had known it would be difficult.

Tang San and the others were far too powerful on the Douluo Continent now. Even among their old friends, how many would be willing to join them in gambling on a mad venture with less than a one-in-ten-thousand chance of success?

As for underhanded methods, Qian Yu had never cared about them.

He had his own fundamental principles. There was no such thing as a struggle between good and evil—only conflicts between different sides, beliefs, and systems.

Whoever won in the end was absolute justice.

Perhaps because their previous topic had been so heavy, Yan remained uncharacteristically silent as they made their way to hunt for a Soul Beast.

He was using what little brains he had to think things over.

Soon, they arrived at their destination again.

They quickly found the Soul Beast they needed.

A seventy-three-thousand-year-old Two-Headed Fire Lizard. It was an inferior dragon species and possessed both fire and earth attributes.

It was a perfect match for Yan.

The problem was, killing it would be no simple task.

Fortunately, they had numbers on their side. Even without using their full strength, the two Titled Douluo were on par with peak Soul Douluos. Xie Yue and Hu Liena's Martial Soul Fusion Skill could also rival a Soul Douluo, and Yan was a Quasi-Soul Douluo.

As for Qian Yu, he only needed to support them from afar with his Angel Domain.

They soon managed to kill their target.

While Yan absorbed the Soul Ring, Qian Yu quickly noticed something amiss.

Or rather, he noticed that something was off with the two Titled Douluo, Snake Lance and Pufferfish.

"A Spirit Bone?"

Sensing a Spirit Bone's energy coming from the Two-Headed Fire Lizard's corpse, Qian Yu knew the two men were tempted.

A seventy-thousand-year-old Spirit Bone was enough to test even a Soul Douluo's self-control.

They had not made a move because they were wrestling with themselves.

Qian Yu said nothing. Instead, without drawing attention to himself, he moved Hu Liena and Xie Yue behind him.

If things really took a turn for the worst, they could at least hold the two men off for a while.

"Yan sure is one lucky kid!"

After a long silence, Snake Lance Douluo finally spoke, breaking the stillness.

Clearly, they had managed to suppress their greed.

He stepped forward and dug out the Spirit Bone.

When he saw that it was a flawless Torso Bone, Snake Lance Douluo's pupils trembled.

Then, with a clear trace of resentment, he tossed it down in front of Yan and refused to look at it again.

He was afraid that if he looked any longer, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from snatching it.

The reason they had suppressed their greed was simple.

What would stealing this seventy-thousand-year-old Spirit Bone even accomplish?

Would improving their power a little with a Spirit Bone change the outcome?

Their enemy would still be an unbeatable force.

If they wanted to eke out a living, the two of them could hide in any small mountain village with their strength as Titled Douluo. As long as they didn't draw too much attention, nothing would happen to them.

But how could they be content with a life like that?

They had worked so hard to bring everyone together. They couldn't let a single Spirit Bone tear them apart.