The God of Destruction's Wife, Tang Ya?

Zichuan's mouth twitched. Good grief, it was one thing to be force-fed meals and resources, but now they were even assigning him a wife?

God of Destruction, are you that afraid of me ending up a bachelor, or is your grudge against Tang San having a wife and daughter so deep that you have to compete even in this?

"No, Old Zi, I'm only six and a half..." Zichuan tried to struggle.

"What does six and a half matter? Set it now! Feelings can be cultivated!"

God of Destruction didn't care at all. "You are the son of a God King, a future God King; what's wrong with having a few more wives? The Great Dao shouldn't be so narrow, and one's Dao companions shouldn't be so few! This Seat is doing this for your own good!"

Zichuan clutched his forehead, completely speechless. What even is this?

Just as he was about to offer a stern refusal (though he was secretly a little curious), a series of hurried, chaotic footsteps suddenly erupted from the forest in the distance.

Along with the sounds of clashing blades and exploding soul skills, there were angry shouts, screams, and one more thing... a young, crisp girl's cry that, despite being filled with panic and despair, was still clearly audible.

The direction the sound came from was exactly the general area indicated by his God trial.

God of Destruction chuckled in his mind: "There, speak of the wife, and the wife arrives. Isn't this fate? Go on, kid, save the damsel in distress, and pass your God trial while you're at it. I picked her out for you myself; I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

Zichuan rolled his eyes, but he knew there was no time to waste. He shoved the rest of the roasted meat into his mouth in two or three bites, clapped his hands, and stood up.

Deep within his eyes, a dark red light quietly emerged, and his hair began to dye dark red from the roots. Destruction Form, activate! A cold, violent aura spread out with him at the center.

His figure flashed, silent as a panther in the dark night, as he sped toward the source of the noise. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw flickered in and out of existence at his fingertips.

Meanwhile, in a forest clearing about two or three miles away from Zichuan, a cruel hunt was unfolding.

The fleeing side had few members, and most were wounded. Protected in the middle was a little girl who looked to be about ten years old.

She wore her long, deep blue hair in a high ponytail, strands of it sticking to her slightly pale face from the running and sweat. Her oval face should have looked playful and cute, but it was now covered in tear tracks, terror, and defiance.

She wore a simple blue cloth dress, already torn in many places by branches and stained with mud and blood. In her hand, she gripped a simple, ancient-looking sleeve arrow, but its soul power fluctuation was weak—she was clearly only at level 18.

It was Tang Ya, the last sect master of the ten-thousand-year-old Tang Sect, and its only descendant.

Standing before her were three figures. One was an old woman with graying hair, a wrinkled face, and blood spilling from the corner of her mouth. She held a dragon-headed cane, and two yellow and two purple soul rings swirled around her—she was a Soul Ancestor!

But her aura was withered, and a deep, bone-exposed wound on her chest bled profusely; she was clearly at the end of her rope. She was the last old servant of the Tang Sect.

The other two were middle-aged men dressed in the standard gray attire of the Tang Sect. They only had two or three soul rings each, with soul power around level twenty or thirty, and they were also covered in wounds, barely holding on.

They were the last disciples, or rather, servants, of the Tang Sect.

The people hunting them numbered about a dozen. They were uniformly dressed in black, with a bleeding fist emblem embroidered on their chests—the Iron Blood Sect!

Leading them was a tall, thin middle-aged man with a sinister gaze. Two yellow and two purple soul rings swirled around him; he was a four-ring Soul Ancestor!

He held a ghost-head blade in his hand, the blade dripping with blood, and a cruel, cat-and-mouse smile played on his face.

The rest of the pursuers had soul power ranging from level twenty to thirty, a mix of Soul Grand Masters and Soul Elders, surrounding Tang Ya and her group.

"Old woman Tang, stop struggling." The sinister Soul Ancestor licked the blood off his blade tip and chuckled.

"The Tang Sect is already finished! If you're smart, hand over this little girl. Our Young Sect Master happens to be missing a child bride; she's a bit young, but she'll be useful after a few years of raising. As for you old bones, cripple your own cultivation, and maybe you'll keep your dog lives."

"Bah! Tie Bi, you're dreaming!" the old woman shouted sharply. Though her aura was weak, her eyes were fierce.

"Even if the Tang Sect has declined, it will not be bullied by traitors like you! If you want to touch Xiao Ya, you'll have to step over my corpse first!"

"Stubborn!" The sinister Soul Ancestor Tie Bi's face darkened. "You don't know what's good for you! Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish! Men, attack! Kill everyone except the little girl!"

"Kill!" The Iron Blood Sect members shouted in unison. Their soul rings lit up, and various soul skills crashed down toward Tang Ya and the others! Blade light, sword shadows, wind blades, and fireballs instantly engulfed them.

The old woman roared, her fourth soul ring lighting up violently. Her dragon-headed cane erupted with brilliant light, forming a barrier in an attempt to block the onslaught.

But her injuries were too severe and her soul power was exhausted; the barrier shook violently under the barrage of attacks and was instantly covered in cracks.

"Grandma!" Tang Ya cried out, wanting to rush forward, but she was held back tightly by the other two injured Tang Sect disciples.

"Young Miss, run!"

"Bang!" The barrier finally shattered. The old woman spat out a mouthful of blood and stumbled backward.

The shockwaves of several attacks slammed into her and the two disciples. The two men died on the spot, and the old woman was sent flying, crashing into a tree, gasping for air.

"Grandma!!" Tang Ya broke free and threw herself beside the old woman, tears streaming down her face.

Tie Bi carried his ghost-head blade and walked over slowly. Looking at Tang Ya, who was crying her heart out, a lecherous look flashed in his eyes: "Little girl, stop crying. Come with uncle, and you'll live a life of luxury later..."

Zichuan stood in the shadows at the edge of the battlefield, the lingering fragrance of roasted meat still in his mouth.

The arrogant shouts of the Iron Blood Sect, the desperate resistance of Tang Ya and the others, the shrill roar of the old servant, and the piercing sound of clashing blades, mixed with the forest's unique scent of vegetation and the metallic tang of fresh blood, all rushed toward him at once.

He "watched the show" with great interest while pricking up his ears to catch the scattered fragments of their conversation.

"Old woman Tang! Hand over the Tang Sect's secret techniques, and I'll give you a quick death!"

"Never! The Tang Sect... cough... heritage shall never fall into the hands of traitors like you!"

"Little girl, come back with us and serve the Young Sect Master well, and we might leave a spark of your Tang family line... hehe."

"Get away! I would rather die than let you succeed!"

Tang Sect? Iron Blood Sect? A hunt? A little girl with a Blue Silver Grass martial soul?

As the keywords connected, a name flashed through Zichuan's mind like lightning—Tang Ya!

The last Sect Master of the Tang Sect, who appeared in The Unrivaled Tang Sect carrying stubbornness and sorrow, shouldering the final hopes of the sect, and later becoming Huo Yuhao's "sister-in-law"!

So it was her. No wonder she appeared near the Sunset Forest.

The Tang Sect had long-standing ties with Dugu Bo and even the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well; although ten thousand years had passed and the Tang Sect had declined, some ancient records might still remain.

Perhaps the Iron Blood Sect chasing Tang Ya here was truly a coincidence, or perhaps it was some kind of predestined pull? Zichuan turned a few thoughts over in his mind, but quickly cast them aside.

Whatever, it didn't matter; either way, this young girl was now involved with his God Trial.

"Kid, see that? That little girl with the blue hair."

The voice of the God of Destruction rang in his mind, carrying a smug "See, what did I tell you?" tone.

"Tang Ya, the current Sect Master of the Tang Sect, though this Sect Master is basically a commander without an army right now. Her Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, tsk tsk, a trash Martial Soul, no wonder she's in such a miserable state."

He paused, his tone suddenly filled with an excitement and malice as if he had discovered a new continent: "However, did you notice? Her surname is Tang! And her Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass!"