Dugu Yan's fingers stopped picking at her nails, and she froze on the spot.
This guy... What had he just said?
I'm poisoned?
What a joke! I'm the granddaughter of the famous Poison Douluo, whose name struck fear throughout the Soul Master World. I'm always the one poisoning others. How could I possibly be poisoned myself?!
This guy was spouting nonsense to throw off my fighting spirit so he could escape. What a sly fox.
"Stop trying those little tricks. I'm not letting you go. Surrender quietly, and you'll suffer less." Dugu Yan lowered her arm and summoned her Jade Phosphor Snake Martial Soul. Three Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, and purple—rose from beneath her feet. Looking at Xue Hen, she stuck out her tongue and licked the corner of her mouth.
"You're too weak. You're no match for me." The girl had completed Martial Soul Possession, but Xue Hen's tone didn't change in the slightest. He spoke as calmly as ever.
"Hmph, arrogant!" Dugu Yan had never been treated with such contempt in Heaven Dou City. She was furious and gave a cold snort.
She leaned forward slightly, then sprang toward him at incredible speed.
"Third Soul Skill, Jade Phosphor Purple Poison!"
The man was far too arrogant, and he had sent Xue Beng flying from a distance earlier, so he clearly had some strength. Dugu Yan went straight to her strongest Soul Skill, hoping to take him down in one move.
However...
"Your speed is slow, too." As she rushed toward him, Xue Hen remained utterly composed. He raised his right arm, and in an instant, summoned his Martial Soul. A dazzling golden light flashed, and a long sword radiating tremendous pressure appeared in his hand. One side bore carvings of mountains and rivers, the other, the sun, moon, and stars. At the same time, nine Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, red, and red—rose one after another from beneath his feet.
"This Martial Soul, these Soul Rings—you're..."
"W-wait!"
Dugu Yan stared at the scene before her as she sprang forward, her eyes widening until they were round. Her mind nearly shut down on the spot.
A Titled Douluo?
A Titled Douluo with two 100,000-Year Soul Rings, at that!
And that Martial Soul...
Xue Hen. This guy was Xue Hen?
Dugu Yan came to her senses and hurriedly shouted for him to stop. Unfortunately, Xue Hen wasn't her grandfather. It wasn't as if he had to stop just because she told him to. Without even using a Soul Skill, he simply held his sword and casually swung it forward.
"Boom!" A wave of sword pressure slashed out.
"Pfft!" She had no time to dodge. The poison she'd been about to release was instantly annihilated into nothingness by the sword pressure. As if struck by a galloping steed, Dugu Yan spat out a great mouthful of blood and flew backward even faster than she'd come.
That wasn't all. The sword pressure tore across her skin, cutting into her flesh and muscles as blood poured out. Before the eyes, she went from a fair-skinned beauty to a blood-red figure.
"Bang!!!" In the end, just like Xue Beng, she crashed into a wall and brought it tumbling down. She was buried beneath the broken bricks.
Xue Hen lowered the arm that held his sword. With a hum, the Imperial Power Sword dissolved into flecks of golden light.
He put his right hand behind his back and gazed at the place where Dugu Yan lay buried. "Those who aid evil deserve this fate!"
With that, he turned and left.
After walking a few steps, he stopped. Two seconds later, he turned around again and continued forward.
Right, why had he turned around?
He'd been heading forward all along!
Xue Hen strode on, passing by the rubble and broken bricks.
Not long after he left, a blood-covered hand trembled out from beneath the bricks. An extremely faint cry for help came from within.
"Grandpa... save me..."
Xue Hen hadn't tried to kill Dugu Yan. He'd only grievously wounded her with his sword pressure and severed several vital meridians, leaving her unable to use her Soul Skills at will in the future.
It wasn't that Xue Hen had gone soft. Her intention had been to capture him and hand him over to Xue Beng. If he'd been weaker than her and she'd succeeded, it didn't take much imagination to figure out what would have happened to him.
When it came to people who wanted to take his life, Xue Hen wouldn't even furrow his brow if he hacked them to pieces.
Still, her appearance could help him do one thing.
Tell those people that he had arrived in Heaven Dou City!
That was why Xue Hen had summoned the Imperial Power Sword Martial Soul just now. Otherwise, he wouldn't have needed to use his Martial Soul at all to deal with Dugu Yan. He'd done it so she would recognize who he was.
Of course, he could have simply taken off his mask and let the countless passersby recognize him, but that wouldn't fit his character.
Xue Hen... was supposed to hate trouble!
Being recognized by a crowd and attracting attention everywhere he went wasn't something he would enjoy.
As he continued walking through the city, Xue Hen wondered how many more days it would take before he could reasonably step into the limelight.
A few hours later.
In the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, Emperor Xue Ye received a report from a royal spy.
He opened it and read it. His old eyes lit up at once, and he rose from his seat in excitement. "Is this true?"
"Absolutely. Dugu Yan said so after she was rescued and brought back to consciousness," the spy answered with his head bowed.
"Hahahaha! Excellent! This is wonderful! The treasured son of my Xue Family has come to Heaven Dou City!"
Emperor Xue Ye threw his head back and laughed. He paced back and forth across the hall, muttering nonstop. "What has he come here for? He's come to find me, hasn't he? He wants to ask me to restore his royal status, restore his birth mother's honor, and appoint him heir to the Balak Kingdom! Yes, that must be it!"
As he spoke, Emperor Xue Ye abruptly turned toward the direction of Spirit Hall, his face brimming with smugness. "Spirit Hall, I'm not afraid of you anymore! You have plenty of Titled Douluo, do you? I have Xue Hen! My nephew is a dragon among men, blessed with peerless grace. His talent is without precedent, and he possesses two supreme Martial Souls, the Imperial Power Sword and the Emerald Swan. He was born with Innate Full Soul Power, and in his early twenties he's already a Super Douluo. His First Martial Soul has two 100,000-Year Soul Rings, and his Second Martial Soul already has three. The remaining six can all receive 100,000-Year Soul Rings, too. He's far stronger than your Pope, Bibi Dong!"
"Come on, send out your Titled Douluo if you dare and test yourselves against us! Then you'll learn what true terror is!"
"Hahahahaha!"
The more Emperor Xue Ye spoke, the more excited he became. He spread his arms and threw his head back in laughter once again.
There was no helping it. As the ruler of an empire, he'd been oppressed by Spirit Hall for far too long. Spirit Hall had established Martial Soul Branch Halls and Martial Soul Main Halls in cities throughout the Heaven Dou Empire, and often meddled in their affairs. Since Spirit Hall had so many Titled Douluo, he'd had no choice but to endure it.
Now, he didn't want to endure it anymore!
He would show Spirit Hall what an empire was—and what an emperor was!
Before you continue