"You... who are you?!"
Dai Mubai struggled to turn his head, staring fixedly at Venti. His voice had turned hoarse from the strain.
Venti swung his legs, smiling as he spoke:
"Me?"
"Didn't I already tell you?"
"Venti, Lord of Godwind City."
"And... the finest bard here."
Though Yu Xiaogang couldn't move his body, he could still move his mouth.
After the overwhelming fear came a furious roar that masked his weakness.
He refused to believe that anyone in this world besides Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue could be stronger than Tang San!
"Venti! Put us down at once!"
"Do you even know what you're doing?!"
"My disciple, Tang San, is now the Sea God! He has ascended to godhood!"
"If you dare so much as lay a finger on us, Xiao San will flatten your Godwind City and reduce your soul to ashes!"
Yu Xiaogang had brought out his biggest trump card.
A god!
Before that word, mortals were all ants.
He believed that any Soul Master who heard the words "Sea God" would be scared witless.
However.
After hearing him out, Venti merely scratched his ear, looking puzzled.
"The Sea God?"
"Sounds all wet. Not very comfortable."
Just as Yu Xiaogang was about to continue roaring,
the Golden Ranking on the Sky Curtain, which had remained silent in the heavens above, suddenly erupted in an unprecedented blaze of light.
Its radiance even outshone the Star Dou Forest from before.
All of Douluo Continent was dyed a blue-gold hue.
The wind howled, and clouds churned.
A name no one could have expected slowly appeared.
[Power Ranking, Number One: Godwind City!]
At the sight of those three bold words,
Yu Xiaogang, suspended in midair, nearly popped his eyes out.
Dai Mubai gaped as if he'd seen a ghost, a strange "khh, khh" sound catching in his throat.
Number one?
Godwind City was number one?!
How was that possible?!
The Spirit Hall Empire, with two gods, was only third.
The Star Dou Forest, with its Beast Legion, was only second.
What gave Godwind City, with nothing but strong winds, the right to rank first?!
Then more detailed information began scrolling across the Sky Curtain.
[Faction Leader: Venti] [Identity: ??? (Unable to analyze for now)] [Strength: ??? (Unable to analyze for now)] [Martial Soul: ??? (Unable to analyze for now)]
At the sight of that string of question marks, Soul Masters across the continent were left stunned.
Even the Sky Curtain couldn't analyze him?
Just what sort of realm had he reached?
The scene shifted.
It was neither a grand palace nor a primeval forest.
It was a city of freedom, bathed in a gentle breeze.
Within Godwind Academy, students ran and trained in the wind.
In one corner of the scene, Venti held a bottle of wine and casually offered a few students some pointers.
With just one seemingly offhand remark, the Soul Power of those students surged in an instant, and the bottlenecks that had troubled them for years shattered on the spot.
[Faction Introduction: A haven on the continent, the home of the Wind of Freedom.] [Evaluation: Under the guidance of Lord Venti, even ordinary mortals can stand shoulder to shoulder with the gods. Godwind City is, without a doubt, the number one faction!]
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Yu Xiaogang, suspended in midair, had gone completely blank.
The theories he'd always been so proud of seemed laughable now.
Even ordinary mortals could stand shoulder to shoulder with the gods?
This... what an outrageous evaluation!
"What happened? Nothing to say now?"
Venti's voice drifted over softly.
He brushed the apple crumbs from his hands and stood up on the rooftop.
At his movement, Dai Mubai and Yu Xiaogang felt the pressure on them surge, as if a mountain had come crashing down on their chests. Even breathing became difficult.
"You... you..."
Yu Xiaogang's lips trembled as he stared at the smiling young man before him. At last, his arrogance crumbled, replaced by boundless fear.
Was this man actually more powerful than the Spirit Hall Empire and the Star Dou Soul Beasts?
The leader of the number one faction?
"Who was it that said he'd tear down my city?"
Venti took a step forward.
Wind sprang beneath his feet, carrying him up invisible stairs until he stood before Dai Mubai.
By now, Dai Mubai was drenched in cold sweat. He wanted to back away, but couldn't move at all.
"I... I'm a prince of the Star Luo Empire... I'm the Sea God's brother..."
Smack!
A crisp slap cut off Dai Mubai's plea.
Venti hadn't even touched him.
It was the wind.
A blade of wind shaped like a hand struck Dai Mubai squarely across the left cheek.
In an instant, half his face swelled up. Several bloodied teeth flew out with his spit.
"Argh—!"
Dai Mubai let out a pig-like squeal.
"That one's for Feng Xiaotian."
Venti smiled, his voice gentle.
Smack!
He backhanded him again.
This blow was even fiercer, snapping Dai Mubai's head to the side with a grating crack from his neck.
"That one's for the civilians you frightened."
"Ugh... don't... don't hit me..."
Dai Mubai no longer had even a trace of the Evil Eye White Tiger's might. Mucus and tears smeared his face as he begged incoherently.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
But Venti showed no sign of stopping.
Another dozen slaps struck Dai Mubai across the face from a distance.
Each one landed with a crisp sound, followed by Dai Mubai's anguished howls.
Only when Dai Mubai's whole face had swollen into a purplish-black pig's head, his eyes squeezed shut, did Venti finally stop.
"Whew, nice feel to it."
Venti shook out his hand and turned his gaze to Yu Xiaogang.
Yu Xiaogang trembled all over and instinctively tried to cover his face, only to find he couldn't lift his hands.
He looked at Dai Mubai's wretched state and was scared out of his wits.
That was a Titled Douluo!
Someone had slapped him like a dog!
"As for you..."
Venti looked at Yu Xiaogang's stiff, terrified old face and frowned in disgust.
"You're too filthy. I'd hate to dirty my wind."
Hearing this, Yu Xiaogang wasn't angry at all. Instead, he felt as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
As long as he didn't get hit.
As long as he didn't get hit!
By now, he had completely lost his nerve.
His so-called Grandmaster's dignity, his pride in his supposedly invincible theories—all of it was dogshit before absolute power.
Below, Feng Xiaotian watched the scene, his face flushed with excitement as he waved his fists and shouted:
"Teacher, you're mighty!"
"Good! Beat those bastards to death!"
Shui Yue'er jumped up excitedly too.
"Brother Venti is so cool!"
"Hmph, that's what they get for acting so arrogant earlier. Now they've got pig faces!"
Just as the crowd cheered and vented their anger, the Golden Ranking on the Sky Curtain trembled again.
The reward for the number one faction had finally arrived.
[Reward for Venti, Lord of Godwind City, is being issued!] [Reward One: Godwind City advances into a Super Divine Artifact—the Sky City!] [Effect: The city can freely change size and be carried on one's person. It possesses an absolute defense shield and the Godwind Annihilation Cannon. None below the God King level can break through!]