The Balak Kingdom's Compromise, the Fall of the Ron Family

Deep within the Balak Kingdom's royal palace, inside a secluded side hall.

He Lianshan, the kingdom's guardian Douluo, sat cross-legged in meditation. He was the Balak Kingdom's only Soul Douluo, level eighty-two, with the Earth-Splitting Hammer as his martial soul. The black warhammer that had accompanied him for forty years lay across his knees, its surface pitted with marks from countless battles. He had sat here for twenty years, guarding this kingdom for twenty years.

The instant the aura of a Title Douluo descended from the sky, He Lianshan's eyes snapped open.

"Title Douluo... Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan."

He Lianshan seized the Earth-Splitting Hammer and strode out of the side hall. He roared at the guards waiting outside, "Notify the king! Summon every elder above Soul Saint!"

Before the royal palace's main hall, He Lianshan rose into the air with three Soul Saints. When they saw the figure above the central square of the royal city, all four of their expressions changed at once. Nine soul rings slowly revolved beneath the midday sun, while a blue lightning dragon coiled in midair, its dragon eyes lowered as it gazed down upon the entire city.

He Lianshan took a deep breath and led the three Soul Saints forward. He stopped three paces before Yu Luomian and cupped his hands in greeting.

"May I ask why Senior has come to our Balak royal city?" He Lianshan's voice carried a trace of unease.

Yu Luomian did not answer. He merely tilted his head and looked at me.

"Tian Lin, you tell them."

Four pairs of eyes turned toward me at once. He Lianshan and the three Soul Saints stared at a young man, their gazes filled with confusion and scrutiny, yet no one dared urge me to speak. For a Title Douluo to personally accompany him, this young man's status within the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan was self-evident.

"My name is Yu Tianlin. Two nights ago, Ron Barkley, a viscount of the Balak Kingdom, dispatched two Soul King-level deathsworn to infiltrate the outskirts of Thunder Academy. Using the kidnapping of my junior fellow disciple as bait, they lured me out of the academy and intended to kill me in the forest to the south. His son, Roger, personally admitted that this was true."

"That's impossible!" one Soul Saint blurted out instinctively.

"Viscount Ron has served the kingdom for many years. How could he possibly assassinate a student? Little brother, could there be some misunderstanding?"

"A misunderstanding?" I looked at him.

"The three corpses are still lying in the forest south of Thunder Academy. Would you like to inspect them yourself?"

The Soul Saint opened his mouth but could not say a word.

Another Soul Saint muttered under his breath, "How is that possible? Two Soul Kings... against a Soul Elder... Then how are you still alive?"

Yu Luomian spoke. The pressure unique to a Title Douluo weighed down on all four of them, making their shoulders sink at once. "A core disciple of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan naturally has the ability to kill enemies above his rank. The question now is not how he survived, but why a viscount of your Balak Kingdom dared send people to assassinate the heir of our clan. Who gave him the nerve?"

Fine beads of sweat appeared on He Lianshan's forehead. He turned and whispered a few words to one of the Soul Saints, who immediately flew toward the royal palace.

Inside the royal palace's Council Hall, the atmosphere was as oppressive as the sky before a storm.

The King of Balak sat in the seat of honor, with several of the kingdom's most important officials seated on either side. The Soul Saint who had delivered the message stood before the hall and repeated every word he had heard in the sky. The moment he finished, someone could no longer sit still.

"That idiot Ron! He dared provoke anyone? His son ran rampant at the academy for two years, and the moment he hit an iron wall, he had his old man send deathsworn to kill someone. Now look at this—they've brought a Title Douluo right to our doorstep!"

"What use is saying that now? The important thing is what we do. Do we hand him over or not?"

"We can't hand him over!" An old noble in charge of finances stood up, his voice urgent.

"Ron controls the mining rights to three mines. Every year, they contribute forty percent of the kingdom's tax revenue. If we hand him over, all three mining rights will be voided. Not to mention the money he has spent bribing officials at every level, the unemployment caused by the mines shutting down alone would be enough to throw the royal city into chaos for quite some time."

"He also manages the medicinal herb supply route through the forest. If that line is cut, our supply of herbs will be interrupted for at least three months."

"His private guard may only have around a hundred men, but they are all Soul Elders. If Ron falls, there's no telling what those people might do."

The king rubbed his temples from the seat of honor, his expression as ugly as if he had eaten shit.

He remained silent for a long time, until everyone in the Council Hall had fallen quiet and waited for his decision. At last, he slowly said, "Ron cannot be handed over. But neither can we offend the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Send someone out to apologize. Lower our stance and let them name whatever compensation they want. We'll provide Gold Soul Coins, medicinal herbs—whatever they want. As long as Ron's life can be preserved, any price is acceptable."

The king looked at the expressions of those present and nodded. He was the king, but half the kingdom's financial lifeblood was in Ron's hands, and the network of relationships among officials at every level could not avoid Ron. If Ron fell, even his throne would shake three times.

Above the square, a fat official in court robes rose into the air. His forehead was drenched in sweat, and a fawning smile was plastered across his face. When he landed before Yu Luomian, he first bowed at a full ninety degrees.

"Please calm your anger, Senior! Please calm your anger! This matter arose from our Balak Kingdom's poor discipline. Viscount Ron privately mobilized deathsworn and gravely violated the kingdom's laws. His Majesty has already learned of this and is deeply ashamed, so he sent this humble official to offer an apology. We are willing to compensate the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan tenfold for its losses. Gold Soul Coins, medicinal herbs, ores—Senior may name any amount you wish. We will not bargain."

Yu Luomian looked at the fat official's ingratiating smile and fell silent for a moment. Then he turned to me. "Tian Lin, what do you think?"

"Even now, you still want to protect the Barkley Family?"

The fat official froze, then hurriedly waved his hands. "No, no, that isn't it. We merely wish to show our sincerity. As for compensation, Senior may truly name whatever you wish."

"No need for compensation." Yu Luomian cut him off. His eighth soul ring lit up.

"Eighth Soul Skill, Dragon Soaring Thunderstorm."

The blue lightning dragon threw back its head and let out a deafening roar. Its jaws opened wide, unleashing a thick bolt of lightning. The lightning transformed into a surging thunder dragon in midair and charged directly toward the royal palace with an aura capable of destroying heaven and earth.

He Lianshan's pupils contracted sharply. He roared, "Block it!" Then he raised the Earth-Splitting Hammer and rushed forward. The three Soul Saints followed close behind. All four unleashed their strongest defensive soul skills. The Earth-Splitting Hammer swelled in the wind, transforming into a massive iron wall before them. Three defensive soul skills stacked behind the iron wall, forming four lines of defense.

The thunder dragon smashed straight through all four defensive lines they had constructed.

The four of them flew backward like kites with their strings cut, crossing the square and the palace walls before crashing heavily onto the roof of the royal palace's main hall. Glazed tiles shattered around them, while stones and fragments scattered in every direction.

He Lianshan braced himself on the Earth-Splitting Hammer and struggled to rise from the rubble. His chest heaved violently, and the webbing of his right hand had split open from gripping the hammer, blood dripping down its handle. The three Soul Saints lay sprawled amid broken tiles, without even the strength to stand.

After piercing through the four defensive lines, the thunder dragon continued onward and crashed directly into the royal palace's main hall. With an earth-shattering boom, half the hall was reduced to ruins beneath that bolt of lightning.

Everyone in the square before the palace fled outward. Palace maids screamed as they scattered in panic, while guards threw down their spears and ran with their heads covered. The fat official went limp in midair, trembling uncontrollably.

The king was helped from his shaking throne and supported out of the hall. A flying stone had cut a bloody gash across his face, and his robes were covered in dust. He looked at the half of the hall behind him that had become ruins, then at the figure in the sky with nine soul rings, and trembled from head to toe.

"Stop blowing things up! Stop!" The king's voice had completely cracked.

"Quick! Seize Ron and bring him here! Arrest every member of the Barkley Family! Do not let a single one escape!"

The royal guards had never acted so efficiently. In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, the entire Viscount Mansion was surrounded so tightly that not even water could pass through. The guards inside were pinned to the ground before they could even grab their weapons. Members of the Barkley Family were dragged out of every room, including Ron's seventy-year-old mother and children who had only just learned to walk. Every account book, mining rights document, and vault key was confiscated and sealed.

Ron was personally escorted over by two Soul Emperors. His luxurious clothes had been torn in several places, his hair hung in disarray, and a wad of rag had been stuffed into his mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue in suicide. His hands were bound behind his back with iron chains, leaving deep bloody marks around his wrists.

He was forced to kneel in the square before the ruins. His knees struck the broken tiles, and he let out a muffled groan of pain.

Yu Luomian landed before him and withdrew his martial soul. His nine soul rings slowly faded into his body as he looked at Ron.

"The Barkley Family attempted to assassinate the core heir of our clan. I will take this man away, and today's matter will be considered settled." Yu Luomian's voice was not loud, yet no one above the ruins dared make a sound. Every word reached the ears of everyone present with perfect clarity.

The king nodded repeatedly, cold sweat covering his forehead. The officials who had just argued so fiercely for Ron in the Council Hall shrank behind the crowd, lowering their heads as though they wished to bury them in their chests. They did not dare look at Yu Luomian, much less at Ron kneeling before the ruins.

I stood beside Yu Luomian and looked at Ron, who knelt on the ground trembling all over. A day ago, this man had wanted to kill me.

Now, his mansion had been seized, his family had been uprooted, and he knelt before a field of ruins with the rag in his mouth soaked through with saliva.

"Lord Viscount, when your son wrote to tell you that I had to be eliminated, did you ever consider that the two Soul Kings you sent would be unable to kill me?"

Ron raised his head and looked at me. His eyes were bloodshot, and he tried to say something through the rag in his mouth, but it was stuffed too tightly. All he could make were a string of muffled, incoherent sounds.

I did not look at him again. I turned and left the ruins with Yu Luomian. Behind us came the king's trembling voice as he ordered the royal guards to throw every member of the Barkley Family into prison, strip Ron of all titles, and confiscate all his property.

The officials standing in the square were silent as cicadas in winter. No one dared say even half a word for the Barkley Family at a time like this. Half the royal palace had collapsed before their eyes. Everyone understood that if they uttered another half-word of nonsense, the next thing to collapse would be the entire royal city.