Tang San's Disfigurement

Yu Xiaogang trembled with rage, his finger pointing at Xuan Qing as he struggled to find words, until he finally spat out a sentence.

"Just you wait! Tang San possesses Twin Martial Souls; sooner or later, he will trample you beneath his feet."

Xuan Qing's gaze turned cold. With a flick of his right hand, the Azure Sky Demon-Breaking Spear appeared in his grip. He swung the spear, sending a crescent-shaped blade of light slashing toward Yu Xiaogang's feet.

"BOOM!"

The ground split into a deep trench, stopping a mere three inches from Yu Xiaogang's toes. Terrified, Yu Xiaogang scrambled backward, his face turning deathly pale.

Xuan Qing walked forward, dragging the spear, his voice icy.

"I despise it when people point fingers at me. Today, I am going to break that finger."

Flender tried to intervene.

But Zi Ji and Dugu Bo stepped forward simultaneously. Behind them, the phantoms of the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor and the Hell Demon Dragon King emerged. The pressure of two Title Douluo martial souls instantly enveloped the entire area.

Zi Ji said coldly, "Is someone trying to bully the young with their seniority?"

Dugu Bo added, "If you are defeated by your peers, you can only blame your own weakness. If you want to interfere, you'll have to get past us first."

Flender's expression turned ugly, but he dared not move. They were no match for two Title Douluo.

Just then, Tang San suddenly moved. His eyes were bloodshot as he roared and charged at Xuan Qing, the Eight Spider Lances unfolding from his back like a crazed spider.

Xuan Qing was truly annoyed now. His right hand transformed into a dragon claw; before Tang San could get close, he clamped onto his head and slammed him into the ground.

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

Three consecutive impacts left Tang San's forehead bleeding, his nose flattened, and several teeth sent flying.

"Do I look like I'm in the mood for your insolence?"

He pressed Tang San's head into the dirt and dragged him for over ten meters. A trench was plowed into the earth, gravel spraying everywhere. Half of Tang San's face was mangled, a bloody mess.

Finally, Xuan Qing tossed him aside. Tang San flew out like a discarded sack, collapsing half a mud wall. He lay there, his body twitching, his consciousness fading.

Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang was scared out of his wits. He wanted to run, but his legs turned to jelly. Xuan Qing walked up to him, spear in hand, the tip pointing at his right hand.

"Come on, hold out your hand."

Yu Xiaogang shook his head frantically, hiding his hand behind his back. Xuan Qing, having no patience for nonsense, struck his leg with the spear.

"CRACK!"

"AAHH~~!"

His leg bone shattered. Yu Xiaogang collapsed in a scream, his hand exposed.

Xuan Qing stepped forward and pinned his finger to the ground—the very finger that had been pointing earlier. He pressed down with his foot, grinding it mercilessly.

"AAHH--!"

A shrill scream pierced the sky. Yu Xiaogang's right index finger was crushed into a pulp of flesh and shattered bone.

Xuan Qing withdrew his foot without even glancing at him. He turned to Zhu Zhuqing, his tone calm.

"Let me leave you with some advice: people climb to higher places, and water flows to lower ones. If you can figure that out, there might still be hope for you. If you can't, you might as well hang yourself; at least it would be a quick end."

Zhu Zhuqing's face was deathly pale, her lips bitten until they bled. She looked at Xuan Qing with complex eyes.

Xuan Qing lingered no longer. He put away his spear and turned to Zi Ji and the others.

"Let's go. This place is sickening to look at."

The eight of them shot into the sky, flying toward Heaven Dou City.

On the way, Dugu Bo couldn't help but ask.

"Kid, what's the deal with that spear? I've never seen you use it before."

"The Six-Winged Angel is born with a sword, so why can't I have a spear? Is that so strange?"

Xue Qinghe's eyes flickered.

"Can you tell us if it has any special effects?"

Xuan Qing couldn't be bothered to hide it.

"Beyond its combat capabilities, its greatest trait is that it recognizes its master. If anyone other than me tries to seize it, their life force will drain away by percentage, feeding it back into the world."

Ning Fengzhi gasped.

"Is this spear a spirit bone skill? Or a spirit skill?"

Xuan Qing shook his head.

"Neither. Some special martial souls come with their own weapons. For instance, the Golden Dragon has the Golden Dragon Spear."

"That item can only be used by the Golden Dragon itself, or someone who possesses the Golden Dragon martial soul. Otherwise, their life force will be completely devoured by the spear itself."

"This is considered a bit of a secret. Even if outsiders know, it's useless. You know how rare the chance of a Golden Dragon appearing is, let alone a spirit master who has it as a martial soul."

Dugu Bo clicked his tongue.

"So we wasted our time? You beat Tang Hao's son into such a state, and he still didn't show up."

Ning Fengzhi, Gu Rong, and Xue Qinghe suddenly realized the same thing.

That's right, shouldn't Tang Hao be nearby protecting his son?

Xuan Qing chuckled, "Nine times out of ten, he's gone to take revenge on Martial Soul Hall. Since all the Title Douluo are gathered in Martial Soul City, he's likely tearing down their branch halls in other cities one by one."

The group had a sudden epiphany; it was actually quite possible!

Qian Renxue forced a smile, suppressing her rising anger.

"Brother Xuan Qing's analysis makes sense, but Martial Soul Hall isn't a pushover. If Tang Hao does that, he'll only escalate the conflict."

Xuan Qing glanced at her, his tone dripping with amusement.

"Conflict? Do you think he cares? Even though he was expelled from the Clear Sky Sect, his title of 'Clear Sky' was never revoked. Care to guess why?"

This question left them stunned; it was something they had never truly considered.

"The answer is simple: the Clear Sky Sect still acknowledges his status. Expelling him was just a way to let him lay low. Martial Soul Hall didn't even bother to monitor him—did you know he returns every year to pay respects to his ancestors?"

Qian Renxue's cheeks burned. Xuan Qing was right; Martial Soul Hall had never paid attention, nor had they ever monitored the Clear Sky Sect.

Xuan Qing continued to twist the knife.

"Not to mention that back in the day, Qian Daoliu lost to Tang Chen and promised that unless he defeated him in a fair fight, Martial Soul Hall would never set foot on the Clear Sky Sect grounds."

"In my opinion, that's pure nonsense. You don't have to step on their mountain to deal with them. Why not try besieging the city to lure out reinforcements? You could starve them out, yet not a single person in Martial Soul Hall thought of that."

Qian Renxue just wanted to find a hole to crawl into. She was being lectured like a child by someone more than a decade her junior, and every word was so logical she couldn't even refute it.

Xuan Qing saw her reaction but couldn't be bothered to care about her feelings.

"I'll bet my life on it: that idiot Qian Daoliu wouldn't lift a finger against the Clear Sky Sect even if Martial Soul Hall were destroyed."

"When you let a fool who doesn't understand the need to pull up weeds by the roots hold power, collapse is inevitable. Qian Daoliu is a good enforcer, but he is absolutely not a good leader."

Xue Qinghe took a deep breath, suppressing her emotions.

She forced a smile.

"Brother Xuan Qing has unique insights, but it would be best to say less of this. If it reaches the ears of Martial Soul Hall, it won't end well."

Xuan Qing rolled his eyes.

"So what? The strong refuse to strike at the stronger, choosing instead to bully children? If Qian Daoliu were truly that shameless, he should have leveled the Clear Sky Sect by now."

"He's nurtured a tiger that will eventually devour him, yet he has the nerve to fear what others say?"

The group was speechless.

Xuan Qing's tongue was too sharp and too vicious, but everything he said was the truth, leaving them with no room for rebuttal.

He delivered one final, lethal blow.

"If I were an ancestor of the Qian family and knew my descendants were like this, I'd crawl out of my grave, beat him to a pulp, and drag him in with me. Otherwise, why keep such unfilial descendants?"

"They ignore the infighting in Martial Soul Hall and leave external enemies unchecked, spending their days praying in front of the Angel Statue. What's the difference between having this Peerless Douluo and not having him, when he never steps out of his door?"

"What use is he other than as a deterrent? Who could even reach him? Even if the entire Martial Soul City were razed to the ground, as long as they didn't touch his sanctuary, do you think he'd care?"

Qian Renxue fought the urge to strangle Xuan Qing, her nails digging into her palms, but she had to maintain her smile and keep her composure.

Ning Fengzhi, Gu Rong, Ning Rongrong, Dugu Bo, and Dugu Yan wore expressions so vivid they were comical; they wanted to laugh but dared not, holding it in until it was painful.

Zi Ji, however, remained calm. She was long used to it; Xuan Qing's mouth could bring the dead back to life just to anger them again.

The group continued their flight toward Heaven Dou City.

Qian Renxue swore to herself that once she returned, she would reorganize Martial Soul Hall; they could no longer continue living like this.