Tang San

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Tang San (唐三)
Alias(es)	Little San; Young Master of the Strength Clan 137
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Shrek Academy; later recognized by the Tang Clan Inner Sect of Haotian Hall 218 222
Occupation/Role	Soul Master; former wielder of Twin Martial Souls; participant in the Sea God's trials and the Nine Trials of Evil 117 337 355
Martial Souls	Formerly Blue Silver Grass; Clear Sky Hammer, later evolved into the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer and further strengthened with Evil Origin and dark-purple Evil Runes 136 218 238 354 355
Status	Alive; resurrected after his death by the God King of Evil; subsequently subjected to hidden divine constraints through his strengthened martial soul 193 354 355
First Appearance	33

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Rank 30 Soul Elder	73	Had only recently broken through Rank 30; his slower cultivation compared with Qian San becomes a source of resentment.
Four-ring Soul Ancestor	125 127	His fourth soul skill, Soul-Devouring Toxic Calamity, drains blood, Soul Power, and life force. He later absorbs Zhu Muhei's fourth soul ring.
Level 44 → 46	139 140	Uses Devour on Titan, an eighty-sixth-level Soul Douluo, to force two rapid level increases.
Level 47	144	Reaches Level 47 after draining Titan again overnight.
Soul King / Rank 50	182 186	Breaks through Rank 50 and obtains a ten-thousand-year fifth soul ring from the Netherworld Ghost Vine Flower, gaining Netherworld Calamity and believing this may close the gap with Qian San.
Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer	218	Survives the Six-Balance Ancestral Furnace and reforges his primitive Clear Sky Hammer into a six-ridged, god-grade form.
Level 31 Soul Elder	238	After being forced to attach three white ten-year soul rings to the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer, his Soul Power falls to Level 31 when his Blue Silver Grass and all of its soul rings are destroyed.
Four-ring Clear Sky Hammer	337	By his reunion with Tang Hao, his hammer bears four soul rings, including a purple fourth ring. His exact Soul Power level is not specified.
Evil Origin-enhanced Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer	354 355	The Inner World's God King of Evil embeds Evil Origin and dark-purple Evil Runes in his hammer, greatly strengthening it, granting access to evil divine power, and awakening a powerful Innate Domain. The enhancement secretly binds him to the deity's control.

Background

Tang San retains memories and techniques from a previous life, including the Tang Sect's hidden-weapon arts and the Mysterious Heaven Skill. He treats these secret arts as the foundation of his survival and reacts with immediate alarm when Qian San demonstrates the same techniques. 67 73

In his previous life, he belonged to the Tang Sect of Bashu and leapt from Ghost Peak. He later attributes his soul's passage into Douluo Continent to the Tang Sect's secret arts and a measure of luck. Zhu Muhei's revelations about another world give him a possible explanation for Qian San's knowledge of the same inheritance. 123 192

After Shrek Academy's early defeats, Tang San becomes increasingly preoccupied with obtaining enough power to defeat Qian San and protect Xiao Wu. The God King of Evil approaches him during this vulnerable period and offers him strength and eventual godhood in exchange for following his nature and removing obstacles by any means necessary. Tang San accepts. 74 75

After his resurrection and arrival in the parallel world, Tang San discovers that Haotian Hall's inherited Clear Sky Hammers are superior to his own ridge-less hammer. Determined to erase that disparity, he enters Haotian Hall and risks the Six-Balance Ancestral Furnace to force his martial soul's evolution. 200 214 218

The evolved hammer's quality triggers a backlash between his Twin Martial Souls. Although Tang San resolves to extract the remaining value of his Blue Silver Grass before its collapse, Sea God power later destroys the martial soul and all five of its soul rings completely. 219 238

His subsequent pursuit of divine inheritance also makes him a political asset. Tang Chen uses information about his whereabouts to manipulate Tang Hao, while the Surface World's Tang Xiao hopes that Tang San's eventual divine power will enable the Clear Sky Sect to seize control of Haotian Hall. 285 296 298

After reuniting with Tang Hao and preparing for the Sea God's fourth trial, Tang San is summoned to the Inner World's Divine Realm. There, the God King of Evil strengthens his remaining martial soul while secretly making it a means of control. He returns to the Lower Realm with Xiao Wu, both empowered and bound by concealed divine restrictions. 337 351 354 355

Personality

Tang San is fiercely protective of Xiao Wu. His fear of failing to protect her drives many of his decisions, from challenging stronger opponents to secretly using Titan's vitality to heal her injuries. 144 156 157

He is calculating, secretive, and willing to exploit others when power is at stake. He conceals the devouring ability of his Blue Silver Grass, drains Zhu Muhei's remaining blood, Soul Power, and life force, and repeatedly uses Titan's loyalty and life force as cultivation resources. 125 139 151

Despite his ruthlessness, Tang San remains deeply concerned with preserving his image as an upright disciple. His guilt over hiding Devour from Yu Xiaogang makes him vulnerable to his teacher's manipulation; eventually, he turns Yu Xiaogang into an accomplice by transferring stolen power into him. 151 152 153

His devotion to Xiao Wu ultimately outweighs his loyalty to others. He accepts the ruinous ten-year soul rings only when she is threatened and later gives the Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline sought by Yu Xiaogang to Xiao Wu instead, dismissing his teacher's lifelong obsession as less important than the group's survival. 231 310

His courteous public behavior increasingly conceals predatory cultivation practices. After Titan's death, he selects vigorous beast-type Soul Masters as arena opponents and secretly steals small amounts of their power, taking care to disguise the losses as poisoning or ordinary battle exhaustion. 172

Tang San remains emotionally dependent on his father despite his growing ambition and ruthlessness. At their reunion, his desire to question Tang Hao's long absence gives way to fear that his father will leave again. When he later discovers that Tang Hao's hand has been ruined while trying to save him from divine power, he is deeply moved and resolves that the injury will not have been suffered for nothing. 337 355

He readily celebrates major power increases without recognizing the intentions of his divine patrons. His delight in the Evil Rune-enhanced hammer contrasts with the God King of Evil's concealed plan to deepen her control over him through that very enhancement. 354 355

Abilities & Skills

Blue Silver Grass

Tang San's former first martial soul was a control-type Blue Silver Grass with poison and paralysis properties. Its fourth soul skill later gains a dangerous Devour attribute. 73 125

• Produces vines capable of binding targets before they can activate their martial soul. 132
• Uses poison-attributed control to restrain opponents. 73
• Cannot withstand Qian San's extreme light and flames; vines become ash beyond a roughly ten-meter range. 177
• Its fifth soul skill, Netherworld Calamity, inflicts sluggish Soul Power circulation and gradual life-force decay through deathly vines and gray mucus, though it cannot absorb the drained vitality. 182
• Begins withering after the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer awakens, as the higher-grade hammer drains its power. 219
• Is completely destroyed alongside all five of its soul rings during Myriad Tides Body Tempering. 238

Tang Chen identifies an extremely high-grade bloodline origin concealed within the martial soul and explains that a problem during its awakening left it in the form of ordinary Blue Silver Grass. Its attempted evolution fails because no compatible Blue Silver Emperor origin is available to resonate with it in the surrounding region of the parallel world. 219

Soul-Devouring Toxic Calamity

Tang San's former fourth soul skill drains a victim's blood, Soul Power, and life force through barbed Blue Silver Grass vines. It originates from the Soul-Devouring Baleful Wolf's soul ring. 125 139 154

• Drains Zhu Muhei completely, leaving only withered remains. 125
• Secretly drains Tyrone during their confrontation over Xiao Wu, using shallow wounds and the vines' effects to conceal the process. 132 135
• Raises Tang San's cultivation by converting Titan's Bloodline Power and Soul Power through the Mysterious Heaven Skill. 139 140
• Can transfer stolen power into another person and their martial soul, allowing Yu Xiaogang to break through Rank 30. 153
• Can purify absorbed energy into gentler life force for healing; Tang San uses it in an attempt to heal Xiao Wu. 156 157
• Risks exposing him as a fallen Soul Master and severely harms Titan, who is repeatedly drained unconscious. 135 156
• Eventually drains Titan dry, killing him and prompting Tang San and Yu Xiaogang to fabricate evidence of an outside attack. 162
• Is used discreetly against arena opponents after Titan's death, with Tang San taking only small amounts to avoid discovery. 172
• Leaves impurities and resentment in accumulated power; Sea God body tempering strips these from Tang San and removes related hidden dangers from his companions. 238
• Is lost when Tang San's Blue Silver Grass martial soul dissipates. 238

Clear Sky Hammer

Tang San's second martial soul is initially an ordinary, ridge-less Clear Sky Hammer. He reveals it under pressure from Titan, proving his connection to Tang Hao and the Clear Sky Sect. 136

• Possesses overwhelming weight and direct destructive potential, but was initially kept hidden on Tang Hao's and Yu Xiaogang's instructions. 73 136
• Is reforged into the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer within Haotian Hall's Six-Balance Ancestral Furnace. 214 218
• Its six ridges represent force, weight, shock, break, split, and momentum. 218
• Initially has no soul rings after its evolution, leaving Tang San vulnerable despite its immense raw power. 229
• Later receives three white ten-year soul rings under duress, greatly reducing its long-term potential. 231 238
• Becomes Tang San's sole remaining martial soul after the destruction of Blue Silver Grass. 238
• Tang Xiao teaches him Six Edges as One, the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer's ultimate killing move. 222
• By his reunion with Tang Hao, possesses a purple fourth soul ring in addition to its first three rings. 337
• Is further strengthened by the Inner World's God King of Evil, who embeds Evil Origin and covers it in dark-purple Evil Runes. The altered hammer gains access to evil divine power and a powerful Innate Domain whose specific effects are not described. 354 355

The Evil Runes are also a concealed vulnerability. As the hammer grows stronger, they bind more deeply to Tang San. The God King of Evil intends to use this connection to control him, eventually destroy his martial soul, and reclaim his Godhead; Tang San is unaware of this purpose when he receives the enhancement. 354

Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer

A hammer technique taught by Tang Hao that chains recoil from each strike into the next, continually increasing momentum and force. 215 218

• Can theoretically stack up to eighty-one consecutive strikes. 218
• Lets Tang San strike the six Spirit Gold Anvils fifty-two times during the ancestral-furnace trial. 215
• Places extreme strain on his body; his meridians and muscles are severely damaged after overextending himself. 217
• Is donated to the Tang Clan Inner Sect's secret archive in exchange for trust and recognition. 218

Tang San recognizes that its lengthy buildup creates significant openings in actual combat. He contrasts this disadvantage with Qian San's faster-forming Light Sword formations, which can defend themselves against interference while accumulating power. 179

Clear Sky Nine Techniques and Exploding Rings

Tang Hao begins teaching Tang San the Clear Sky Nine Techniques on a secluded beach east of Sea God City to prepare him for the fourth trial. He considers them essential compensation for the inadequate ages of Tang San's first three hammer soul rings. 351

• Empty Technique — Disperses force. 351
• Sealing Technique — Pins down enemies. 351
• Piercing Technique — Breaks armor. 351
• Exploding Rings — Shatters a soul ring and pours its energy into the hammer to multiply a strike's killing power. Even a ten-year or hundred-year ring can provide several times its ordinary force, provided the user's body can withstand the burden. 351

Tang San watches the demonstrations closely and prepares to practice, but the God King of Evil's summons interrupts the lesson. His mastery of these techniques is not established at that point. 351

Eight Spider Lances

Tang San possesses the Eight Spider Lances, an External Soul Bone acquired in the Star Dou Forest. Qian Xunji later attacks him in an attempt to tear the bone from his body. 33

Tang Sect Secret Arts

Tang San employs hidden weapons, movement techniques, internal cultivation, and perception arts inherited from the Tang Sect. 67 73

• Uses Bone-Piercing Nails, Willow Leaf Blades, and other concealed projectiles. 67
• Employs Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to evade Qian San's Liquid Metal needles. 67
• Uses the Mysterious Heaven Skill to refine absorbed foreign power into his own cultivation. 139
• Activates the Purple Demon Eye to inspect spiritual and soul-related abnormalities. 123
• Builds and uses Godly Zhuge Crossbows, though their use in the tournament violates the rules on external weapons. 147

He regards these arts as an independent advantage when martial souls are suppressed or forced out of their users' bodies. On learning of such a domain, he reasons that hidden weapons, internal cultivation, and movement techniques could allow him to attack opponents deprived of their usual martial-soul defenses. 205

Evil God's Inheritance

Tang San accepts the God King of Evil's influence and receives the Nine Trials of Evil in his original world. 75 117

• Is instructed to maintain his evil nature and use any means necessary to eliminate obstacles. 75
• Is tasked with reaching Soul Sage before age eighteen as part of his divine trial. 110
• Conceals the divine inheritance from everyone except Xiao Wu, falsely invoking Yu Xiaogang's instructions to justify seeking an evil-attributed fourth soul ring. 117
• Is revived after dying in Spirit City and ordered to scout a route between worlds for the God Realm, including a way to meet the other world's God King of Evil. 193

After crossing worlds, Tang San is summoned by the Inner World's God King of Evil and receives another assignment of the Nine Trials of Evil following the strengthening of his hammer. A purple divine mark appears on his forehead when he reveals the trials to the others. Xiao Wu receives the corresponding Nine Trials of Goodness and a white mark. 351 354 355

These later gifts include hidden restrictions that place their lives and martial-soul fortunes under the two God Kings' control. Tang San and Xiao Wu begin carrying out their trials near Sea God Island during the half-month following their return. 355

Equipment

• Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges — Storage Soul Tool used to carry hidden weapons, daggers, and other items. 67 125
• Godly Zhuge Crossbows — Mechanical hidden weapons fired during the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament. 147
• Bone-Piercing Nails and Willow Leaf Blades — Concealed projectiles used against Qian San. 67
• Flying God Claws — Grappling tools configured by Tang San and used by the Shrek group to board Blood Abyss. 229
• Haotian Hall Token and Soul Tool Belt — Items given by Tang Xiao that grant Tang San access to Haotian Hall's personnel and sailing arrangements at Sea-Calming City. 221

Relationships

• Xiao Wu — His closest companion and primary emotional attachment. Tang San repeatedly risks his principles and future to protect or heal her, and ultimately gives her the Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline rather than preserve it for Yu Xiaogang. They later endure divine martial-soul alterations together and return with the Nine Trials of Evil and Goodness respectively. 144 156 231 310 354 355
• Qian San — Rival and mirror counterpart. Their shared knowledge of Tang Sect arts creates immediate mutual suspicion, escalating into repeated battles across two worlds. 67 68 229
• Yu Xiaogang — Teacher whose approval Tang San values, though their relationship becomes compromised by their shared use of Devour to steal and transfer power. Yu Xiaogang resents Tang San's initial refusal to sacrifice his hammer for the team and later breaks down when Tang San gives the Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline to Xiao Wu. His bitterness persists through Tang San's reunion with Tang Hao, and he privately takes satisfaction in Tang Hao's later injury. 152 153 231 310 337 355
• Tang Hao — Father and source of Tang San's Clear Sky Hammer lineage. Tang San inherits the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer from him, while Tang Hao later sets out for Sea God Island to find him. They reunite outside Sea God City, where Tang San persuades him to remain for the fourth trial rather than immediately seek revenge. Tang Hao begins teaching him the Clear Sky Nine Techniques and Exploding Rings, then suffers a crippling hand injury while trying to resist the divine summons that takes his son away. 136 218 298 337 351 355
• Titan — Patriarch of the Strength Clan and Tang Hao's former retainer. Titan recognizes Tang San as young master, then becomes the repeatedly exploited source of his Devour-based cultivation. His loyalty initially leads him to cooperate willingly and later to protect Tang San's reputation, but continued draining ultimately kills him. 136 139 151 156 162
• Tyrone — Initially a rival for Xiao Wu's attention whom Tang San secretly drains in a duel. After witnessing Tang San and Yu Xiaogang draining his grandfather Titan, Tyrone conceals his hatred and vows revenge. Tang San subsequently assigns him an expendable defensive role in Shrek's delaying tactics. 132 163 172
• Tang Chen — Haotian Hall patriarch who allows Tang San to undertake the Six-Balance Ancestral Furnace trial. Tang Chen later uses knowledge of Tang San's whereabouts as leverage against Tang Hao during Haotian Hall's internal power struggle. He also invokes Tang San's supposed need for three Titled Douluo protectors to divide the Surface World's Clear Sky Sect forces. 214 218 285 296 297
• Tang Xiao — Tang Clan Inner Sect leader who accepts Tang San's Tang blood, explains the six hammer ridges, teaches him Six Edges as One, and offers him a path toward inheriting the Inner Sect. 218 222
• Tang Xiao of the Surface World — Tang Hao's elder brother and Clear Sky Sect leader. He helps organize Tang Hao's search while remaining behind to counter Tang Chen, intending to use Tang San's eventual divine inheritance as the foundation for a takeover of Haotian Hall. 297 298
• God King of Evil of the Surface World — Divine benefactor and manipulator who grants Tang San the Nine Trials of Evil, resurrects him, and assigns him an interworld mission. 75 193
• God King of Evil of the Inner World — Summons Tang San to her temple and strengthens his hammer with Evil Origin, Evil Runes, and an Innate Domain. Her apparent patronage conceals a plan to bind him ever more deeply, destroy his martial soul later, and reclaim his Godhead. 351 354 355
• God King of Goodness of the Inner World — Brings Xiao Wu into the divine hall and forcibly brands her Golden Dragon Rabbit martial soul and soul-beast bloodline while restraining Tang San. Together with the God King of Evil, imposes hidden constraints on the couple before returning them to the Lower Realm. 354 355
• Sea God — A divine presence involved in Tang San's sea trials and body tempering. The Sea God offers him the Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline, which Tang San chooses to reserve for Xiao Wu. 238 308 310
• Dai Mubai — Shrek teammate who supports Tang San in the team's final tournament fusion attack. Their solidarity is damaged when Tang San initially refuses Qian San's soul-ring ultimatum, allowing Dai Mubai to be crippled before yielding for Xiao Wu's sake. 190 231

Story Role / Major Arcs

Conflict with Qian San

Tang San first clashes with Qian San during the Shrek Academy and Kelaishi Academy confrontation. Both recognize the other's Tang Sect techniques, turning their encounter into a personal rivalry marked by paranoia and hostility. 67 68

The confrontation and its aftermath shatter Tang San's confidence in his generational talent. Xiao Wu's broken arms, Yu Xiaogang's mutilation, and his own inability to overcome Qian San make him seek stronger mechanical hidden weapons and become receptive to the God King of Evil's offer. 71 73 74 75

Qian San's Liquid Metal armor, hidden-weapon control, and light-based Zheng Fuyu Sword Technique repeatedly overwhelm Tang San. Tang San's Blue Silver Grass is burned away, and his hidden weapons fail against Qian San's defenses. 176 177

During the promotion-stage confrontation, Tang San initially hopes to steal Qian San's power even if he cannot win the match. Instead, the flames force him to sever his connection with his vines, and the enormous fused Light Sword frightens him into conceding. The referee intervenes and is severely injured while protecting him. 176 177

Their tournament clash culminates in Tang San using a team-assisted Clear Sky True Body against Qian San's massive Light Sword formation. The resulting Liquid Metal explosion kills Tang San before the God King of Evil intervenes. 190 191 193

Devour and Titan's Exploitation

After acquiring an evil-attributed fourth soul ring, Tang San secretly develops Soul-Devouring Toxic Calamity. He drains Zhu Muhei's remaining blood, Soul Power, and life force with it while concealing the evidence to avoid being branded a fallen Soul Master. 125

When Titan recognizes him as Tang Hao's son, Tang San takes advantage of the old man's devotion. He convinces Titan to offer his blood and power, using him as a repeated source of cultivation, transferred power for Yu Xiaogang, and purified life force for Xiao Wu. 139 153 156

The exploitation eventually drains Titan dry and kills him. Tang San immediately seeks Yu Xiaogang's assistance, and the two alter Titan's wounds with a poisoned blade and corrode the hut's surfaces to conceal the original Soul Power traces. Their fabricated account deceives Salas and the Heaven Dou Imperial Family, but Tyrone has secretly witnessed their actions and resolves to take revenge. 162 163

Without Titan, Tang San's rapid cultivation slows. He compensates by fighting in the Great Soul Arena, selectively draining vigorous opponents in small amounts that can be mistaken for fatigue or the effects of his paralytic toxin. 170 172

Resurrection and Arrival in the Parallel World

Following his death in Spirit City, Tang San awakens as a spirit body in the God Realm. The God King of Evil explains that resurrection is possible and gives him a mission connected to the parallel world. 192 193

Following his death in Spirit City, Tang San accepts resurrection from the God King of Evil. He and the surviving Shrek members are sent to Qian San's world to locate a path for the God Realm. 193

In the parallel world, Tang San discovers that his ordinary Clear Sky Hammer is inferior to Haotian Hall's inherited Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer. This humiliation becomes his motivation to seek out Haotian Hall and force his martial soul to evolve. 198 204

Working with Yu Xiaogang, he interrogates Ning Dagang about Haotian Hall's martial souls and political structure. They subsequently approach Bibi Yin in Clear Sky City and reveal their parallel-world origins. Tang San's resemblance to the deceased local Tang Hao and his primitive Clear Sky Hammer lead Tang Xiao to bring him before Tang Chen. 204 210 211 212 214

Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer

Tang San gains Tang Chen's support and enters the Six-Balance Ancestral Furnace, where he uses Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer to temper his martial soul through repeated strikes on six Spirit Gold Anvils. 214 215

He survives the trial and awakens all six hammer ridges, gaining a complete Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer that surpasses the five-ridged forms possessed by Tang Xiao and the parallel-world Tang Hao. 218

The triumph immediately causes a Twin Martial Soul backlash: the evolved hammer drains Tang San's Blue Silver Grass, which cannot evolve in this world and is expected to collapse. 219

Tang Chen discovers from the backlash that Tang San's Devour ability is highly practiced and concludes that he has used it to absorb other Soul Masters' blood essence. Despite recognizing his talent, Tang Chen does not retain him for core training and instead arranges for him to seek divine opportunities at sea. 219 220 221

Tang Xiao subsequently teaches Tang San the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer's ultimate move, Six Edges as One, while affirming that the Tang Clan Inner Sect will accept him as Tang blood. 222

Loss of the Hammer's Potential

On Blood Abyss, Tang San confidently confronts Qian San with his evolved hammer, only to be reminded that it has no soul rings. His hesitation lets Qian San defeat and cripple him. 229

Qian San then coerces Tang San into accepting three ten-year soul rings for the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer by crippling his companions one by one. Tang San initially refuses to preserve the hammer's potential, but yields when Xiao Wu is threatened. 231

The delay damages his standing with Yu Xiaogang and Dai Mubai, both of whom resent suffering mutilation before Tang San agrees to compromise. His eventual decision makes clear to them that Xiao Wu occupies a different place in his priorities from the rest of the group. 231

Destruction of Blue Silver Grass

During Myriad Tides Body Tempering, Sea God power destroys Tang San's Blue Silver Grass. Its fifth, fourth, third, second, and first soul rings shatter in succession before the martial soul itself dissolves completely. 238

The loss leaves Tang San with only the Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer and its three white ten-year soul rings, reducing him to Level 31 despite the hammer's god-grade foundation. 238

The tempering also exposes the cost of his earlier shortcuts. The divine light removes mixed, resentment-laden power accumulated through Devour, while his companions undergo a gentler cleansing of impurities left by the strength he had previously transferred to them. 238

Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline

When the Sea God presents Tang San with the Golden Sacred Dragon Bloodline, he recognizes that it is Yu Xiaogang's lifelong hope for evolving Luo Sanpao. 308

Tang San nevertheless chooses to let Xiao Wu absorb the bloodline, arguing that her strength is more important to the Shrek group's survival and future god trials. His decision destroys Yu Xiaogang's hope of reclaiming the bloodline for himself. 310

Yu Xiaogang continues to regard this choice as a betrayal. Even during Tang San's emotional reunion with Tang Hao, he privately blames his disciple for his crippled hand and lost opportunity to recover the bloodline. 337

Political Leverage and Reunion with Tang Hao

While Tang San remains overseas, Tang Chen uses his whereabouts to restrain Tang Hao's ambitions within Haotian Hall. He first withholds definite information until Tang Hao cooperates in the factional struggle, then claims that Tang San's divine-inheritance journey requires three Titled Douluo protectors. Tang Hao and the Surface World's Tang Xiao recognize the attempt to divide their forces, but cannot disregard Tang San's safety or potential godhood. 285 296 297

Tang Hao departs with the Second and Third Elders, while the Surface World's Tang Xiao remains behind to infiltrate Haotian Hall's administration. Their longer-term plan depends on Tang San returning with divine power strong enough to overturn Tang Chen's authority. 298

Tang San eventually reunites with Tang Hao outside Sea God City. He embraces his father and explains the damage to his martial souls and Qian San's coercion over the inferior soul rings. By this point, his hammer has acquired a purple fourth ring. Tang Hao is furious at Haotian Hall's failure to protect his son, but Tang San persuades him to stay and accompany him through the Sea God's fourth trial rather than leave immediately to seek revenge. 337

Divine Summons and the Strengthened Hammer

Tang Hao begins training Tang San in the Clear Sky Nine Techniques and Exploding Rings to compensate for the weaknesses of his low-age soul rings. Before Tang San can put the lesson into practice, a purple pillar of divine power descends and transports him to the Evil God Temple. Tang Hao attempts to pull him free but is burned and thrown back. 351

The Inner World's God King of Evil painfully reshapes Tang San's Six-Edged Clear Sky Hammer, embedding her Evil Origin and covering the weapon in dark-purple Evil Runes. Tang San celebrates the increase in strength and his new Innate Domain, unaware that the changes are designed to bind him more deeply to her as he grows stronger. Her ultimate intention is to destroy his martial soul and reclaim his Godhead. 354

The God King of Goodness then brings Xiao Wu to the hall, forcibly manifests her Golden Dragon Rabbit martial soul, and brands both it and her Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast bloodline with platinum divine markings. Tang San is restrained and can only watch her suffer. 354

The two return to the Lower Realm with greatly strengthened martial souls, access to the corresponding divine powers, and assignments of the Nine Trials of Evil and Goodness. Hidden restrictions accompany the gifts, placing their lives and martial-soul fortunes under the God Kings' control. 355

Several days have passed during their absence. On returning, Tang San discovers that Tang Hao's left hand is charred, twisted, and largely unusable from his attempt to resist the summons. Moved by his father's sacrifice, Tang San reveals his new trials and promises that the injury will not have been suffered in vain. He and Xiao Wu begin their trials near Sea God Island over the following half-month. 355

Notable Quotes

“Anyone who dares harm Xiao Wu will face my thunderous retaliation!” 144

“Then... Senior Evil God, what do I need to do?” 75

“In your dreams!” 231

“Only by letting Xiao Wu absorb it can we survive more securely in Sea God City and better complete the upcoming God Trials.” 310

“Dad, your hand...” 355

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