Golden Crocodile Douluo Kills Tang San! (Two-in-One)

Soon, under the orders of Qian Daoliu, every Title Douluo of Martial Soul Hall, with the exception of Bibi Dong, appeared in the council hall.

Calling it a council hall was generous; it was merely a side chamber hastily cleared for use.

The main hall of Martial Soul Hall had been leveled by a myriad of beasts during the day, and this side chamber had also seen half its structure collapse under the shockwaves of the Thunderlight Fist that evening. Spiderweb-like cracks still marred the walls, and the overhead beams hung at precarious angles, looking as though they might give way at any moment.

The gathered Title Douluos sat or stood, their expressions grim.

Qian Daoliu stood in the center of the hall. The Angel Martial Soul behind him had retracted, yet the pressure belonging to a Limit Douluo still permeated the air, making the atmosphere in the chamber feel heavy.

"I took action just now. I failed to keep the target."

The moment his voice fell, the entire chamber plunged into silence.

Every Title Douluo present exchanged glances, their faces mirroring the same shock and disbelief.

The Grand High Priest had taken action personally, and yet he hadn't managed to keep the target?

That was Qian Daoliu, the man hailed as invincible in the skies, the very pinnacle of speed!

If anyone else had said this, they would never have believed it; they would have deemed it a slander against Qian Daoliu and lashed out in fury.

But now, these words had come from Qian Daoliu's own mouth!

Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, Qian Daoliu continued.

He extended his right hand, his five fingers slowly curling in the air, as if trying to recapture the figure that had slipped through his grasp.

"The speed of that Golden Light Eagle..."

Qian Daoliu paused, a trace of deeply hidden anxiety flashing through his aged eyes.

"Its speed has already surpassed the level of 'spatial transition'."

An elderly elder beside him frowned. "Spatial transition? Isn't that an ability belonging to the legendary god-level powerhouses?"

"No," Qian Daoliu shook his head. "Spatial transition tears a hole in space to jump from one point to another.

It is indeed fast in that instant, but during the process, the user is unable to observe or perceive the outside world.

To put it plainly, it is jumping to the destination with one's eyes closed."

He paused here, his gaze turning profound.

"But that Golden Light Eagle is different.

Every time it flaps its wings, it triggers ripples in space, much like a stone skipping across the surface of water.

It does not tear space; it glides along the surface of space, like a pebble skipping over a pond."

"Its wings do not need to tear through the barrier of space; they only need to find the fissures in space to streak past at a speed bordering on teleportation."

At this point, Qian Daoliu paused again, his voice dropping lower.

"That is not a flight-type soul skill; that is... a method of movement that is an entire level above all speed-type soul skills on the continent today!

In my two hundred years of experience, no human soul skill has ever reached such a degree."

The hall fell into silence once more.

The Title Douluos present looked at one another, all seeing the same question in each other's eyes.

Then, where did this thing come from?

Qian Daoliu did not answer the question weighing on their minds, instead shifting the topic to another matter.

"However, the Titan Giant Ape is even more terrifying."

Qian Daoliu paused briefly when he spoke the name.

But the others had already involuntarily recalled the figure that had blotted out the sky during the day.

The demonic ape whose dark golden bone wings crackled with lightning as they unfurled.

The monster that had smashed two Title Douluo elders into the earth with a single punch.

The Titan Giant Ape that had gone head-to-head with Golden Crocodile Douluo without losing ground.

Almost everyone present had clashed with that giant ape.

Aside from Golden Crocodile Douluo and Qian Daoliu, everyone else had been utterly crushed!

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan looked down at the tightly wrapped bandages on his left arm; the limb hung at an unnatural angle against his chest, and even lifting it was a struggle.

Ghost Douluo Gui Mei subconsciously reached up to touch his chest, where his ribs had been fractured by the Thunderlight Fist, still throbbing with a dull ache.

They truly did not want to touch upon this topic...

Qian Daoliu continued.

"I struck the chest of that Titan Giant Ape head-on with the Holy Light Judgment."

As he said this, he raised his right hand.

On his palm, a dark red mark had yet to fade.

The mark was radial, as if something had scorched it from the inside out, with a faint, lingering wisp of black energy coiling around the edges.

"My Holy Light Judgment was reflected back."

When Qian Daoliu said these words, the Golden Crocodile Douluo, who had been silent all this time, suddenly raised his head.

His dark green eyes were filled with unconcealable shock.

Qian Daoliu's Holy Light Judgment was touted as the strongest single-target purification skill of the Angel Martial Soul; even he, Golden Crocodile Douluo, would not dare to take it head-on.

Yet that Titan Giant Ape not only took it head-on but also reflected the Holy Light back?

"That's not all." Qian Daoliu lowered his palm, looked into Golden Crocodile Douluo's eyes, and continued word by word, "There is another power within that Titan Giant Ape."

His tone became unprecedentedly grave as he described that aura.

"Cold."

"Dark."

"Tyrannical."

"It is not any power system known to the Douluo Continent. It comes from another origin, another law, another order."

"It... makes my Angel Martial Soul tremble."

Upon hearing this, the entire hall fell silent.

If anyone else had said the words "the Angel Martial Soul is trembling," any Title Douluo present would have taken it as a joke.

But the person who said it was Qian Daoliu.

Limit Douluo Qian Daoliu.

The inheritor of the Angel Martial Soul!

In the deathly silence, Qian Daoliu finally voiced his hypothesis.

"I suspect that deep within the Star Dou Forest, there lies a power far beyond the current understanding of the continent. It might even be a... faction."

He looked around at the Title Douluos present and spoke slowly.

"A winged Titan Giant Ape."

"A Golden Light Eagle with speed comparable to spatial jumping."

"And that young girl who was merely an ordinary Soul Ancestor during the day, yet possessed a domain at night."

Qian Daoliu enunciated each word clearly.

"I fear these are all just the tip of the iceberg revealed by that faction."

As soon as this hypothesis was put forward, the entire hall was shocked.

Everyone's expression changed.

A winged Titan Giant Ape... was already absurd enough.

A Golden Light Eagle with speed comparable to spatial jumping... was even more absurd.

And that young girl who had just participated in the Soul Master Tournament during the day, whose soul power was at most around level forty, yet could take down hundreds of soul masters alone with an Illusion Domain at night...

This could no longer be described as absurd; it was simply a fantasy!

Yet Qian Daoliu actually said that these were just the tip of the iceberg revealed by that faction?

Then just how terrifying was the true strength of this faction?

Golden Crocodile Douluo frowned, "Does the Grand High Priest mean that we, Martial Soul Hall, have provoked an existence we shouldn't have?"

Qian Daoliu was silent for a moment, then shook his head.

"It is too early to say that now."

"However, for these soul beasts to undergo such massive changes in less than a day, it would be impossible without the support of a power far beyond the continent's understanding."

The hall fell into silence once again.

After a long while, Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan spoke up.

His voice was shrill and trembling, and the hand he held in an orchid gesture was shaking slightly.

"Then... then what should we do now?"

He swallowed hard, his voice dropping even lower.

"...Should we avoid them?"

"Avoid?"

Qian Daoliu glanced at Yue Guan; his voice was not loud, but it carried an unshakable power.

"Martial Soul Hall has stood for hundreds of years and has never avoided anyone!"

"This matter must be investigated clearly!"

"I will now assign a few tasks."

Qian Daoliu's aged yet sharp eyes swept across everyone present, his voice steady and powerful, carrying unquestionable authority.

"The first task: Tang San must be killed."

"Regardless of the circumstances, this entire affair stems from Tang San.

Martial Soul Hall has stood for hundreds of years, yet never has it been schemed against in such a manner.

If we do not execute him, where will the dignity of our Martial Soul Hall remain?"

As these words fell, the atmosphere in the great hall loosened noticeably.

Truth be told, every Title Douluo present was nursing a deep-seated frustration.

By day, their main hall had been leveled by a soul beast, and by night, they were visited a second time by that Titan Giant Ape, with even Chrysanthemum Douluo being struck into critical condition by a single palm.

The root of all this, when traced to its source, was that brat named Tang San causing trouble.

If not for him repeatedly exposing the identity of Xiao Wu during the Soul Master Tournament, and if not for him secretly using Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to cause the Lovesick Heartbreak Red on Xiao Wu to fall twice, how could Martial Soul Hall have provoked that god of slaughter in the Star Dou Forest?

This debt must be settled with Tang San.

However, Ghost Douluo Gui Mei furrowed his brows, a flicker of worry passing through the eyes hidden in the shadows of his cloak.

"Grand High Priest," he began, his voice laced with hesitation, "Tang San is protected by Tang Hao. He is, after all, the Clear Sky Douluo. Can we... actually kill Tang San?"

Once this question was asked, several people in the hall couldn't help but frown.

Tang Hao.

Clear Sky Douluo.

These two names carried too much weight on the Douluo Continent.

Back when Martial Soul Hall hunted the Blue Silver Emperor, several Title Douluos joined forces, only to be blasted into critical condition by Tang Hao's hammer, one by one. Even the previous Pope, Qian Xunji, fell beneath his Clear Sky Hammer.

Even if Tang Hao was now missing an arm and a leg, he remained one of the strongest Title Douluos in the world.

No matter who was sent to kill Tang San, they could not bypass the hurdle that was Tang Hao.

Just then, Golden Crocodile Douluo stood up.

The bandages on his body had yet to be removed, and blood still seeped from the web of his hand where it had been split by Er Ming's strike earlier that day, yet he did not hesitate in the slightest as he rose.

His aged frame stood straight as a rod, and a long-suppressed killing intent surged within his deep green eyes.

"I will go kill Tang San."

His voice was hoarse, yet resolute.

The hall erupted in an uproar.

The Title Douluos present exchanged glances, their faces etched with shock.

Generally speaking, the priests of Martial Soul Hall were not dispatched lightly. The purpose of the Worship Hall was to guard the foundation of Martial Soul Hall; unless it was a moment of life or death, the priests would not easily take action.

Yet Golden Crocodile Douluo, the second-in-command of the Worship Hall and a peerless expert at level ninety-eight, was actually volunteering to kill a youth at the level of a Soul Ancestor?

They turned their gazes toward Qian Daoliu in unison.

Qian Daoliu nodded slowly.

"Very well. Take men with you."

The crowd felt a jolt of shock.

The Grand High Priest had agreed?

Could it be that in Qian Daoliu's mind, the situation had already developed to such a dangerous degree?

Before the crowd could recover from their shock, Qian Daoliu spoke again, issuing a second order.

"The second task: investigate the Star Dou Forest."

His tone became even more grave.

"I want to know what changes have occurred in the depths of the Star Dou Forest.

What is the source of the power possessed by that Titan Giant Ape, how did that Golden Light Eagle gain its speed, and what of that young girl's domain ability...

All of this must be investigated clearly for me."

This task required careful consideration in the selection of personnel.

Those sent could not be too strong, or they would easily be detected by the entities within the Star Dou Forest.

He had already experienced the perception of that Titan Giant Ape; if a Title Douluo-level individual were sent to investigate, they would likely be discovered before even stepping into the core region of the Star Dou Forest.

But they could not be too weak, either.

The Star Dou Forest was the domain of soul beasts, and ten-thousand-year soul beasts were everywhere in the outer regions. If someone below the level of a Soul Saint were sent, they would likely be eaten as a snack by soul beasts before even reaching the halfway point.

The gazes of the crowd swept around the hall, eventually landing in unison on one person in the corner.

Bai Changhe.

A Silver-Robed Deacon and a level seventy-three Holy Light-type Soul Saint.

He had just clashed with that Titan Giant Ape and the Golden Light Eagle, and had managed to escape with his life and limbs intact.

The Title Douluos present asked themselves: if it were them, under the Thunderlight Palm of that Titan Giant Ape, they might not necessarily have been able to escape as nimbly as he did.

"Bai Changhe."

Qian Daoliu's gaze fell upon him.

Bai Changhe shuddered, hurriedly bowing his head. "This subordinate is here."

"I am entrusting this mission to you. Go to the Intelligence Hall to mobilize some men, take some elites, and depart immediately to infiltrate the outer perimeter of the Star Dou Forest. There is no need to venture into the core region; you only need to investigate the changes occurring on the periphery."

Bai Changhe opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately swallowed his words and gave a heavy fist salute. "This subordinate accepts the order!"

He turned and walked out of the side hall, his footsteps hurried as he headed straight toward the Intelligence Hall.

What he did not know, however, was that the batch of "elites" he was about to take were precisely the ones Golden Crocodile Douluo had ordered to be swapped in earlier that day.

The veterans of the Intelligence Hall had all been relegated to the Logistics Department to scrub latrines, and those who had replaced them were a new group of youngsters recently transferred from various branch halls.

These youngsters were all "brilliant" in their own unique ways...

The meeting concluded.

When Golden Crocodile Douluo stepped out of the side hall, the night wind, laden with the lingering dust and smoke from the ruins, rushed toward him, casting a shadow over his aged face.

He tapped his toes against the ground, his entire body transforming into a streak of golden light as he soared into the sky, shooting off in the direction Tang Hao had taken when he left with Tang San earlier that day.

Cold killing intent surged within his aged eyes.

Tang Hao had fought several consecutive battles during the day; his injuries were certainly not light.

His left arm and right leg were already old wounds, and after clashing head-on with Bibi Dong several times and being rattled by the residual shockwaves of Golden Crocodile Douluo's own soul power, he was undoubtedly at the end of his rope.

Strike while the iron is hot.

Golden Crocodile Douluo's figure vanished into the night sky, like a golden meteor streaking across the horizon, pursuing rapidly toward the vast, boundless mountains in the distance.

As long as he caught up to Tang Hao and killed that menace Tang San, all the humiliation Martial Soul Hall had suffered today would be avenged!