In the direction of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Tang Hao strode ahead, each step leaving a deep footprint in the mountain path.
His left arm and right leg were twisted unnaturally, yet he moved at astonishing speed, like a wounded tiger racing through the wilderness.
Tang San circulated his Soul Power and struggled to keep up.
The Mysterious Heaven Skill within him was already running at full tilt, but Tang Hao was still leaving him farther and farther behind.
The father and son went one ahead of the other, only a few dozen zhang apart, yet it felt as if an invisible chasm lay between them.
Their moods, meanwhile, were worlds apart.
Tang Hao had only one word on his mind.
Run!
The faster, the better. The farther from Spirit City, the better.
This turn of events had already far exceeded what he could handle. Spirit Hall had actually dispatched so many Titled Douluo!
If this level of power caught up to them, even he, a Titled Douluo, would struggle to resist.
Tang San's mood was even more complicated.
The Soul Bone he had just obtained—the Spirit Condensation Wisdom Skull—was tucked into his belt.
It was a reward from Spirit Hall. Under normal circumstances, any Soul Master would be grinning in their sleep over a Soul Bone.
But Tang San couldn't bring himself to smile.
Because his goal had never been a mere Soul Bone.
What he wanted was a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring! A Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring!
No matter how precious that skull was, could it compare to a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring?
That was a shortcut to instant greatness, a ticket that would let him step straight into the ranks of Titled Douluo-level fighters.
But now Xiao Wu had been rescued by the Soul Beast army and taken back to Star Dou Forest. Never mind a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring—she hadn't even left him a rabbit hair.
What made his teeth ache even more was...
Bibi Dong and Chrysanthemum Douluo, those two old fossils, had actually exposed his intentions in public!
"That kid wants that little rabbit to sacrifice herself for him."
"He's even crueler to Soul Beasts than our Spirit Hall."
Whenever Tang San thought back to those words, his face still burned.
Ever since childhood, he had been good at making people believe him. From one year to the next, people believed whatever he said, and the trick had never failed him.
But this time, he had run into two people who refused to be fooled.
The worst part was... what if those words reached Xiao Wu's ears?
As he chased after Tang Hao, Tang San rapidly calculated his next move.
He thought those words probably wouldn't make Xiao Wu turn against him outright. After all, he had built such a perfect image in her eyes over all these years.
But once a seed of suspicion was planted, who knew when it would take root and sprout?
If he wanted to obtain that Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring then, the difficulty might leap straight from hard mode to hell mode.
This was a fine case of trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to lure it—in the end, his scheme had come back to bite him.
Tang San was lost in thought when he suddenly heard Tang Hao stop ahead of him and speak without turning around.
"Xiao San."
"Were you the one who exposed that little rabbit?"
Tang San's heart lurched. He nearly stumbled and fell.
Fortunately, his years of practice at controlling his expressions hadn't been for nothing. In an instant, his face shifted to a mix of hurt and disbelief.
"Dad! How could it have been me?"
Tang San's voice trembled just enough, and even his eyes reddened slightly.
He hurried up to Tang Hao and looked up at his father's bloodstained face, his tone so sincere it was as if he wanted to tear out his own heart and show it to Tang Hao.
"Xiao Wu and I have known each other since we were children... You know that.
"I'm not made of stone. After spending so many years together, she's practically family to me. How could I hurt her?"
Tang Hao glanced down at Tang San.
The expression on Tang San's face was so genuine that Tang Hao nearly let go of his suspicions.
But Tang Hao was, after all, the Clear Sky Douluo. He had survived all these years while Spirit Hall hunted him, and the Clear Sky Hammer wasn't the only reason.
He didn't press the matter. He said nothing, but a string inside him quietly drew taut.
This time, when he went to Spirit City to pick up Tang San, he had planned to take the boy to that valley he had dreamed of for so long.
That place held the most precious secret of his life, and all the hopes he had left for the rest of it.
But now...
Something seemed off about Tang San.
Tang Hao couldn't say what it was, but his instincts told him he needed to change his plans.
He couldn't afford to gamble when it came to her.
He had already gambled once in his life and lost—an arm, a leg, and half his life.
He couldn't afford to lose again.
So he decided to wait until Tang San needed to obtain his Fifth Soul Ring before taking him to that valley. There was no harm in waiting.
By then, he should have a better sense of what kind of person this boy really was.
"Xiao San," Tang Hao said, turning away and setting off again. "We'll find somewhere safe in a bit, and you can absorb that skull first. The Spirit-Condensing Wisdom Skull will greatly benefit your cultivation. Your cultivation speed should improve as well..."
He hadn't finished speaking when—
"Get out of the way!"
Tang Hao suddenly roared. Soul Power exploded around him like a volcano erupting.
A vast wave of force hurled Tang San backward, sending him crashing into a tree several zhang away.
Tang San saw stars from the impact, but he had no time to cry out in pain. Tang Hao had already turned around, his deep-set eyes locked on the darkness in the distance.
From behind an old pine tree in the direction Tang Hao was watching, a man slowly emerged.
He was an old man with white hair and beard, tall and lean, dressed in a plain gray robe.
His back was ramrod straight, and every step carried an imposing aura that commanded respect without a word.
His eyes drew the most attention: a pair of dark green eyes, cold and sharp as a crocodile's.
Golden Crocodile Douluo!
Tang San's heart sank.
He had seen the old monster's strength in Spirit City that afternoon. He was a Level 98 Titled Douluo, the second-in-command of Spirit Hall's Worship Hall.
At his peak, Tang Hao might have been able to fight him. But now, Tang Hao was still carrying severe injuries from the fierce battles he had fought that day.
Blood seeped from the old wounds in his left arm and right leg. The three wounds Bibi Dong had torn across his chest were deep enough to show bone, and even standing was a struggle.
How the hell were they supposed to fight this?
Tang Hao clearly didn't see it that way.
He stood before Golden Crocodile Douluo with his battered body ramrod straight, like an iron tower blackened by war yet still standing tall.
At some point, the Clear Sky Hammer had appeared in his hand. The web-like red markings across its face slowly lit up, like veins catching fire.
"What are you here for?"
Tang Hao's voice wasn't loud, but it carried the Clear Sky Douluo's unmistakable dominance.
Even facing a Level 98 Golden Crocodile Douluo, even while covered in wounds, he still seemed like the last person in the world anyone would want to provoke.
Golden Crocodile Douluo looked over Tang Hao's battered body, a cold smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
"I'm here to settle a score."
"Tang San used my Spirit Hall as a tool and made us invite trouble for no reason. And now, the two of you just turn around and walk away."
Golden Crocodile Douluo paused. His dark green eyes shifted to Tang San, who was still leaning against the tree, unable to get up. The killing intent in his gaze was almost tangible.
"Only by killing Tang San can our Spirit Hall answer for this. Otherwise, the world will think Spirit Hall is easy to bully from now on!"
Tang Hao narrowed his eyes.
He had been at daggers drawn with Spirit Hall for his entire life.
Spirit Hall had killed his wife, crippled him, and forced him to hide in the shadows like a rat for eight whole years.
And now they dared to chase after him, then threaten to kill his son right in front of him?
Had Spirit Hall forgotten the fear they felt when the Clear Sky Hammer held them in its grip?
Or did they think that because he had lost an arm and a leg, they could climb onto his head and shit on him?
"The score between you and me isn't settled yet," Tang Hao said, each word heavy with the fury he had held back for eight years. "And now you dare come knocking? Do you really think I'm easy to bully?"
Before the words had faded, Tang Hao stepped forward. The ground beneath his feet cracked apart.
His whole body opened like a great bow. The muscles in his calves throbbed like a heart as his strength erupted. His physical strength, the power of the Clear Sky Hammer, his mental strength, and his Soul Power merged seamlessly into one.
The Clear Sky Hammer swelled as it caught the wind, carrying enough destructive force to shatter the heavens as it smashed down on Golden Crocodile Douluo!
There was nothing fancy about this strike. It was pure, brutal, unreasonable force.
Faced with the hammer descending like a landslide, Golden Crocodile Douluo neither dodged nor retreated.
He planted his feet slightly apart and crossed his arms in front of him. A layer of pale golden light, shaped like scales, surfaced over his skin.
Boom!
The Clear Sky Hammer slammed squarely into Golden Crocodile Douluo's arms.
The tremendous impact shattered the ground beneath his feet in a web of cracks. Stones flew in every direction, and dust filled the air.
But Golden Crocodile Douluo himself merely swayed slightly at the waist. Not even a ripple stirred in his dark green eyes.
He had caught the Clear Sky Douluo's head-on strike with nothing but his body!
Tang Hao's heart sank. This was bad.
He hadn't put all his strength into that strike, but he had still used seven or eight tenths of it.
An ordinary Titled Douluo would have been sent flying or at least forced back several steps.
Yet Golden Crocodile Douluo hadn't budged an inch. He hadn't even activated his Martial Soul Avatar—he had endured it with his physical defenses alone.
The foundation of a Level 98 Titled Douluo truly wasn't something his battered body could shake.
"That's it?"
A trace of undisguised disappointment colored Golden Crocodile Douluo's voice.
He jerked his arms outward and knocked the Clear Sky Hammer aside.
The Third Soul Ring beneath his feet blazed to life. Blinding golden light burst from his body, and the signature golden crocodile tail behind him whipped around. The thunderclap of the air being split apart hadn't even reached their ears before the tail had already struck toward Tang Hao.
It moved so quickly that Tang Hao had time only to raise the Clear Sky Hammer across his chest.
Clang—!!!
A deafening metallic crash erupted.
Tang Hao felt an unimaginable force travel from the hammer's handle into both arms. His palms split open at once, and blood trickled down the shaft of the hammer.
A stabbing pain shot through the old wound in his left arm, while his crippled right leg trembled violently. The tail sent him skidding several zhang backward, his feet carving two deep furrows into the ground.
Before he could steady himself, Golden Crocodile Douluo's second strike had already arrived.
The Fifth Soul Ring lit up.
Golden Crocodile Douluo accelerated in a flash of golden light, crashing into Tang Hao's chest like a golden meteor.
Tang Hao grunted. The three wounds Bibi Dong had torn across his chest that afternoon burst open at once, blood gushing out as he flew backward like a kite with its string cut. He slammed into a cliff dozens of zhang away.
Rumble!
The impact punched a hollow a man's depth into the cliff face. Broken stones showered down.
Tang Hao knelt among the rubble, gasping for breath as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth, one drop at a time.
But Golden Crocodile Douluo didn't pursue Tang Hao.
His dark green eyes shifted to Tang San, who was leaning against a tree nearby.
"Your turn, kid."
Before he had finished speaking, the Sixth Soul Ring beneath Golden Crocodile Douluo's feet suddenly blazed.
A gigantic golden crocodile phantom appeared behind him. It threw back its head and let out a silent roar, then transformed into a golden torrent that surged straight toward Tang San.
Tang San's pupils suddenly widened.
That was the Sixth Soul Skill of a Level 98 Titled Douluo.
The vast Soul Power rolled through the air like a solid mass, flattening every plant in its path. Stones flew off the ground in the waves of force and struck Tang San's face, stinging painfully.
He wanted to move, but his legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.
He wanted to run, but the terrifying pressure seemed to pin him in place.
Was this the full force of a strike from someone on the verge of becoming a Limit Douluo?
Tang San's mind went blank.
His vaunted Mysterious Heaven Skill, Hidden Weapons, Eight Spider Lances, Blue Silver Grass... At that moment, they were all useless.
Before that golden torrent sweeping down like a flood, he was an ant facing a charging rhinoceros. Besides waiting to die, there was nothing he could do!
Just as the golden torrent was about to swallow Tang San whole...
"Who dares hurt my son!"
A hoarse roar, nearly cracking apart, burst from the direction of the cliff.
A dark figure shot out of the rubble like a burning black meteor, crossing the distance at an unbelievable speed and thrusting himself in front of Tang San.
An abnormal, dark red glow burned over Tang Hao's entire body. It was the sign of Soul Power being driven to its absolute limit.
Blood seeped from every inch of his skin. The old wounds in his left arm and right leg were gushing blood.
Yet there he stood before Tang San, his battered body ramrod straight, like an iron tower blackened by war yet still standing tall.
The Clear Sky Hammer swept out with crushing force.
Rumble—!!!
The Clear Sky Hammer collided head-on with the golden crocodile phantom. Golden and dark red light intertwined and burst apart, and the shock wave snapped every tree within dozens of zhang in half.
The force sent Tang San flying backward. He slammed into another tree, then spat out a mouthful of blood.
But he had no time to care about the pain. He could only stare blankly at the blood-soaked figure before him.
The ground beneath Tang Hao's feet had been crushed into a pit three chi deep.
His arms trembled violently. The gashes in his palms were deep enough to expose bone, and all three wounds in his chest had burst open. Blood had soaked him from head to toe.
But his spine was still straight!
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