An hour later, a hundred li outside Nuoding City, deep in a desolate ravine.
Gu Rong leaned against the sheer rock wall, his breathing slightly ragged. Several places on his splendid robe were torn.
Though he was the greatest defensive Titled Douluo in the world, four opponents of the same rank had pursued him relentlessly, harassing him and launching probing attacks along the way. The strain had been immense.
Now trapped in this dead end, his face darkened.
The Haotian Sect Second Elder and Fourth Elder blocked his escape on either side, their gazes vicious.
Yue Guan and Gui Mei hovered a little farther off. They appeared to be standing by, but their auras surged, ready to strike at any moment.
"Gu Rong, hand over the Soul Bone. For the sake of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, we'll spare your life!" The Haotian Sect Second Elder's voice was hoarse and threatening.
"Bah! Treasures belong to the worthy! Want it? Beat me first!" Gu Rong spat. The phantom of a Bone Dragon flickered behind him as he prepared to fight to the death.
The battle was about to erupt!
At that tense moment—
A faint glimmer of blue flickered in Yue Shen's eyes high above.
Below, Yue Guan and Gui Mei's gazes both turned hazy for the briefest instant. They immediately cleared, but an inexplicably powerful and "reasonable" thought surged through their minds.
This was the perfect chance to seriously wound—or even kill—a Haotian Sect elder!
The Upper Three Sects stood together. Today, they would cut off one of its arms!
Under Yue Shen's exquisitely precise Mental Interference, the Haotian Sect Fourth Elder's senses lagged and misjudged things for a split second.
He seemed to "see" Gu Rong suddenly expose an opening toward him, while Yue Guan and Gui Mei's auras appeared to be locked onto the Second Elder.
Now!
In a flash, Yue Guan and Gui Mei moved in perfect unison!
"Ninth Soul Skill: Chrysanthemums Shattered, Scattered Across the Ground, Petals Falling as Hearts Break!"
"Ninth Soul Skill: Hellish Specter!"
A dazzling, deadly storm of golden chrysanthemum blades and countless ghostly hands reaching out of the shadows tore through the air. They didn't attack Gu Rong, whose "opening" seemed so obvious. Instead, with the unstoppable force of Thunderous Might, they engulfed the Haotian Sect Fourth Elder, whose body had momentarily faltered after his split-second misjudgment!
The Fourth Elder's pupils contracted. The deadly threat made his hair stand on end. "No—! Second Brother, help—"
RUMBLE—!!!
A world-shaking explosion rang out through the narrow ravine!
Brilliant Soul Skills and raging currents of Soul Power completely swallowed the area.
Rocks shattered and the earth split open. The entire gorge shuddered violently and began to collapse!
Gu Rong was stunned by the sudden turn of events, but he reacted swiftly. While everyone's attention was drawn to the explosion, the Second Elder rushed toward its center with his eyes nearly bursting from their sockets, and Yue Guan and Gui Mei focused on sustaining their Soul Skills, he pushed his speed to the limit and fled as a streak of shadow, never looking back.
At the very instant Gu Rong escaped, Yue Shen gently reached out into the air.
An invisible ripple of space swept past. The Soul Bone Gu Rong had hastily stuffed into his robes appeared silently in her fair palm.
"Young Master." She held the Soul Bone out to Zhao Linchuan.
Zhao Linchuan glanced at the Soul Bone, which still seemed to carry a trace of Gu Rong's warmth, but didn't take it. "Keep it. We might be able to use it to cultivate our own trusted forces in the future."
He looked down at the ravine, now a dust-shrouded ruin, and heard a cry of anguish rise from within: "Fourth Brother—!!" The corners of his mouth lifted.
"All right, the show's over. Let's go back." Zhao Linchuan turned, then added, "Oh, and when you tease Yan Fei in the future, remember what I said just now. Don't take it too far."
"She's our companion, not our enemy."
Yue Shen tightened her grip on the Soul Bone and replied obediently, "Yes. Yue Shen understands."
Blue moonlight surged again. Space rippled, and the two vanished without a trace, as though they had never been there.
Below, the dust began to settle over the ruins.
The Haotian Sect Second Elder clutched the remains of the Fourth Elder, whose body had been blasted almost to pieces, with only half a charred torso left. Tears streamed down his face as he threw back his head and howled like a beast.
He suddenly looked up, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Yue Guan and Gui Mei nearby. They had just withdrawn their Soul Skills, their faces alight with excitement at having killed a Titled Douluo.
Gu Rong had escaped, taking the Soul Bone with him.
But his own brother had truly died at the hands of those two bastards from Spirit Hall, ambushed from behind!
"It was you! You conspired with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to set this up!"
The Second Elder's voice was hoarse with hatred. "Gu Rong drew us in while you attacked from behind! What a vicious scheme!"
Yue Guan and Gui Mei were taken aback. Then they exchanged glances, and a cold glint appeared in both their eyes.
Gu Rong had escaped, and they hadn't obtained the Soul Bone, but killing a veteran Haotian Sect elder was still a tremendous accomplishment!
And perhaps they could pin the blame on the fleeing Gu Rong and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?
"Hmph. A remnant of the Haotian Sect deserved to die!" Yue Guan said with a delicate flourish of his orchid fingers and a sinister smile. He and Gui Mei once again locked their auras onto the grief-stricken Second Elder.
Two against one. Their opponent was already rattled. This was the perfect chance to root him out for good!
The Second Elder's heart tightened as he felt the two men's undisguised killing intent. He glanced at his brother's mutilated remains in his arms, and reason instantly overpowered his grief and rage.
He couldn't die here!
He had to take the news back!
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had actually conspired with Spirit Hall to arrange Fourth Brother's death!
This hatred could never be forgiven!
"Spirit Hall! Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect! Gu Rong! Just you wait!"
He roared, wrapped the Fourth Elder's remains in Soul Power, and drove his own Soul Power to its limit. Turning into a streak of black light, he charged out of the ravine, pushing his speed to the extreme and fleeing for his life at any cost!
Yue Guan was about to give chase, but Gui Mei stopped him.
"Don't chase a desperate foe. Killing a Haotian Sect elder is already a great achievement."
Yue Guan nodded. Watching the direction the Second Elder had disappeared in, he smiled with satisfaction. "Indeed. And it looks like the grudge between the Haotian Sect and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is now set in stone."
"How interesting. Truly interesting..."
Seven days later,
Nuoding City had gradually returned to its usual rhythm and bustle. For some reason, the spies and experts who had come from all directions withdrew as silently as the ebbing tide. Not a single one remained.
Tang San and Yu Xiaogang, who had been missing for days, finally returned to Notting Academy.
The two looked rather strange. Their bodies seemed unusually haggard and weak, and their walking was even more awkward and difficult to describe—their legs were slightly spread apart, their steps slow and staggering, as though they had suffered severe injuries between their legs. Every step seemed to make them suppress their pain.
After returning, they kept to themselves in Yu Xiaogang's room and rarely showed their faces, except when they had to go out.
It wasn't until an afternoon seven or eight days later that Zhao Linchuan, who hadn't been seen around the academy for some time, finally wandered over.
He had just reached the academy gates when Yu Xiaogang and Tang San, who had been "lying in wait" there, blocked his path.
Well, the book nearly got taken down. Thankfully, my editor showed mercy, so I had to revise some of the previous content. If anything is confusing, let me know.
By the way, does anyone like Yan Lingji? (Please follow the story!)
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