Ambition

Tang San forced himself to calm down and began to analyze the situation. He had to figure out what kind of person this Xuan Qing was.

An Azure Dragon Martial Soul, a ten-thousand-year third ring, and two Titled Douluo at his side.

With strength like that, he couldn't have been raised by some ordinary faction. So who was he? Where had he come from? Why was he targeting Tang San?

Tang San couldn't figure it out.

Could it be... because Tang San had Twin Martial Souls, and Xuan Qing was jealous?

The possibility made Tang San feel a little better.

That was it!

He had to be jealous—jealous of Tang San's talent, jealous that Tang San had Twin Martial Souls.

That was why Xuan Qing had struck so hard. He wanted to ruin Tang San, proving that Xuan Qing himself was a genius.

Tang San smiled, his expression twisted.

"Xuan Qing, what good will being jealous do you? I, Tang San, won't fall. You ruined my face today, and tomorrow I'll take your life."

He never considered that Yu Xiaogang had tricked Xuan Qing into becoming his disciple, nor did he consider the fact that he had been the one to attack first.

In Tang San's mind, everyone else was always in the wrong. He could never be.

If Xuan Qing knew what he was thinking, he would definitely have replied:

"Go eat shit! I have two Auspicious Beast Martial Souls. Why would I envy your weed and that busted hammer?"

Xuan Qing had slept until the sun was high in the sky.

After getting up, he went to the sitting room. Dugu Bo was there drinking tea. When he saw Xuan Qing come out, he gave him a cheeky grin.

"Hey, did you sleep well? Heaven Dou City was in an uproar last night. It was absolute chaos."

Xuan Qing sat across from him, picked up a cup of tea, and drained it.

"What do you mean?"

Dugu Bo grinned as he replied.

"Xue Qinghe must have reported what you did. That Emperor Xue Ye is making a clean sweep—cracking down on officials and investigating corruption. They're starting with the royal family, then moving on to the nobles and officials. No one's being spared."

Xuan Qing stared at him, baffled.

"I didn't tell them to do any of that. They're making a fuss on their own. What's it got to do with me?"

Dugu Bo shook his head.

"That doesn't mean they won't think it's because of you. Your actions over the past two years have made your position clear. They're scared—scared you'll actually make a move. Rather than wait for you to do it yourself, they'd rather clean house on their own. At least that way they can save some face."

Xuan Qing curled his lip.

"It's not a bad thing. At least ordinary people might have an easier time and suffer less oppression."

Dugu Bo nodded.

"That's true. I don't care much about these things, but seeing the world flourish does put me in a better mood."

"But you should watch out for those nobles. You've taken food off their table, and they won't let it go. They won't dare come at you openly, but they'll have plenty of tricks up their sleeves."

Hearing this, Xuan Qing gave him another look like he was an idiot.

Dugu Bo immediately took offense.

"Why are you giving me that look again? What did I say wrong?"

Xuan Qing sighed.

"Other than that old dragon, Yu Yuanzhen, you're the only Titled Douluo in the Heaven Dou Empire. Don't take this the wrong way, but if you two went up against Zi JI together, she'd only have to spin one extra top."

"Uh..."

Dugu Bo was speechless.

It was harsh, but it was true.

One was level ninety-three, the other level ninety-five. Picking a fight with someone at level ninety-seven? Give me a break.

The gap in strength was too great to make up for with numbers.

It was like two people at eighty trying to beat someone at a hundred and fifty. They still wouldn't stand a chance.

What was more, Zi JI's bloodline suppressed theirs. If they fought, it would be a crushing defeat.

Dugu Bo waved a hand.

"Fine, fine. As long as you know what you're doing. There's no way I can beat that senior, so you figure it out."

Meanwhile, things were also unsettled within the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.

One of the guards assigned to Yu Tianheng had delivered a detailed first-hand report from the Great Soul Arena in Suotuo City to the clan.

It included Xuan Qing fighting seven opponents at once, his ten-thousand-year third ring, and his Azure Dragon Martial Soul.

Yu Yuanzhen sat in the main seat, his expression grave. He stared at the report in his hands, his brows tightly knitted.

"An Azure Dragon that made Tianheng kneel? A ten-thousand-year third ring? Are you sure you didn't see wrong?"

The guard knelt on the ground and answered in a serious voice.

"I couldn't have been mistaken. I saw it with my own eyes. Young Master Tianheng knelt right there, suppressed by the bloodline. According to what we learned from the Great Soul Arena, the man is called Xuan Qing. He said himself that he'd gone to Suotuo City with Dugu Bo."

Yu Yuanzhen put down the report and looked at his second brother, Yu Luomian, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's second-in-command.

"Elder brother, the Azure Dragon Martial Soul is unquestionably far superior to our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. We have to bring him into the clan!"

His eyes shone with startling brightness as he spoke.

"I know. But have you ever heard of an Azure Dragon Martial Soul? There's no record of one anywhere on the continent, from ancient times to the present."

"That proves the Azure Dragon Martial Soul is at least on the same level as the Golden Dragon. It may even be a legendary Dragon King-level Martial Soul."

Yu Luomian grew even more excited.

"Then we have to recruit him! A genius like that, with a dragon-type Martial Soul, is practically tailor-made for our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan!"

Yu Yuanzhen let out a cold laugh.

"You make it sound simple. But what about the forces behind him? If he had no backing, would that old poison, Dugu Bo, stand up for him?"

Yu Luomian froze.

He'd only thought about recruiting Xuan Qing and hadn't considered much else. Now that his elder brother had pointed it out, he realized the situation wasn't simple.

"Then... what do we do? Just let it go?"

Yu Yuanzhen fell silent for a moment, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

"Investigate first. If he has no backing, then we'll deal with Dugu Bo and bring him and Dugu Yan back by force."

"Dugu Yan has a Jade Phosphorous Poison Dragon Martial Soul now. It may not be a True Dragon, but it's still a top-tier lesser dragon. We can take them both. It's a good deal."

Yu Luomian nodded. "And if he does have backing?"

Yu Yuanzhen's smile grew colder.

"If he does... then we'll decide whether he's worth the risk. If he is, we'll take him even if it means offending someone. If he isn't, we'll destroy him."

"A genius like that can't be allowed to serve us, but we can't leave him for someone else, either. If he grows up, he'll become a major threat."

Yu Luomian agreed wholeheartedly. "Elder brother is right. I think we can start with Dugu Yan. If we capture her, they'll have to think twice before making a move."

"We only need one True Dragon, and that's our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. Other dragon types can either submit or die."

Yu Yuanzhen nodded.

"Good! Take some men to Heaven Dou Royal Academy at once and bring Dugu Yan back. Remember, she must be alive. She's a bargaining chip. Don't kill her."

Yu Luomian stood up.

"Yes! Don't worry, elder brother. I'll go right away."

At the very moment the two men reached an agreement, two cries suddenly rang out from within Xuan Qing's body in Dugu Manor.

One was majestic and mighty; the other, dignified and benevolent. Both were filled with warning.

Xuan Qing's expression changed, and he shot to his feet.

Dugu Bo jumped in fright.

"What is it? Why are you acting so jumpy?"

"Old Poison, go find Yanzi at once. She may be in danger! Hurry!"

Dugu Bo realized something was wrong, too. Without another word, he shot into the sky and flew toward Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

This time, he truly went all out.

Xuan Qing stood where he was, his gaze icy.

As Auspicious Beasts, the Azure Dragon and the Qilin were born with the ability to sense the spiritual and ward off evil, and to perceive malice.

Those two cries had been a warning.

Someone had almost certainly set their sights on him or someone close to him.

And the malice was strong. If it had been only the slightest trace, the two would never have bothered to react.

Zi JI was with him, but not many people knew about her.

Dugu Bo? As a Titled Douluo, who would dare harbor ill intent toward him now?

That left only Xuan Qing and Dugu Yan. In that case, he would bring the two of them together.