Invitation

Ten miles outside Heaven Dou City, a swordsman wearing a bamboo hat stood with his hands behind his back atop a large boulder.

Pufferfish Douluo, who had come to accept the challenge, was somewhat surprised to see this. He had expected the swordsman to appear ornate and wealthy, not dressed so plainly.

"You sought me out for a duel; are your words true?"

The swordsman nodded lightly at the question, looking toward Pufferfish Douluo as he spoke.

"I am a man who enjoys battle. Having heard that there was a Title Douluo in Heaven Dou City, I came specifically to challenge one. Might you be willing to cross blades?"

Pufferfish Douluo probed carefully, only to discover that the man possessed not even a sliver of soul power.

There were generally only two possibilities for this: either he was an ordinary person with pitifully little soul power, or his strength was so immense that he could suppress his own aura, preventing others from detecting it.

Clearly, the swordsman had to be the latter, and Pufferfish Douluo furrowed his brows.

As a Title Douluo, he was naturally not afraid of a fight, but it was a different matter if the opponent was too strong. Furthermore, Pufferfish Douluo was not a power-attack type soul master; he could manage against a Soul Douluo-level swordsman, but against a Title Douluo, he would be nothing more than a sitting duck.

"A battle is certainly possible, but your cultivation is far higher than mine."

Upon hearing this, the swordsman immediately adjusted his state, locking his cultivation at level 91.

"I shall suppress myself to your level and fight you."

Hearing this, Pufferfish Douluo breathed a sigh of relief. If he suppressed himself to the same level, although he still wouldn't win, at least he wouldn't be too humiliated.

"Then I shall fight you."

Hearing Pufferfish Douluo's agreement, the swordsman nodded in satisfaction. A burst of intense soul power erupted from his body, blowing his bamboo hat away.

Pufferfish Douluo finally saw his face clearly and was shocked to discover that this man was none other than the protector of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Sword Douluo Chen Xin!

"Ninth Soul Skill, God Demon Two Slashes!"

Are you kidding me, man!

I'm here for a friendly spar, and you open with your ultimate move? Use a proper skill if you're going to use one!

The Seven Kill Sword in Chen Xin's hand grew to an immense size, stretching beyond the reach of sight.

The Seven Kill Sword radiated intense energy, as if it could cleave heaven and earth asunder.

Facing such a powerful attack, Pufferfish Douluo's life began to flash before his eyes.

No way, you're making a support soul master take this hit?

That's a pipe dream!

"Old thing, what are you standing there like a fool for! Quickly, use our martial soul fusion skill!"

At that moment, his old partner, Snake Spear Douluo, arrived just in time, giving Pufferfish Douluo a glimmer of hope where there had been none.

"You've returned just in time! Then, martial soul fusion skill, Rock Pig Spear!"

The two released their martial souls simultaneously. A snake spear, wreathed in a blood-red pufferfish, slowly condensed before them and quickly took its final form.

Whoosh!

The snake spear streaked across the horizon, charging straight toward the Seven Kill Sword as it descended from the sky.

Boom!

The two terrifying attacks collided in the sky. The powerful energy fluctuations shook the heavens and the earth; the residents of Heaven Dou City, ten miles away, heard the massive roar and felt the violent tremors beneath their feet.

Thinking it was an earthquake, they rushed outside, only to realize that the culprit behind it all was the giant sword in the distance.

Beneath the Seven Kill Sword, Pufferfish Douluo and Snake Spear Douluo gritted their teeth, supporting the strain with all their might, while Chen Xin remained on the boulder, his expression unchanged, as if this strike were effortless for him.

"Ah! Snake Spear, I can't hold on much longer!"

Pufferfish Douluo's upper garment had been shredded to dust, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth; he was extremely weak.

"Hold on, Pufferfish! If you don't, we'll both be finished here!"

Crack!

The struggle between the snake spear and the Seven Kill Sword ended with the snake spear being split in two by the Seven Kill Sword.

Both Snake Spear and Pufferfish suffered a backlash, vomiting a large mouthful of blood as their bodies were sent flying backward several meters.

With no further resistance, the Seven Kill Sword crashed down without obstruction.

Boom!

The earth tore apart and dust billowed. Pufferfish Douluo lay on the ground, severely wounded and on the verge of death. Seeing this, Snake Spear Douluo rushed over to help him up.

"Pufferfish! Pufferfish, are you alright!"

"Snake Spear, I may not be able to continue guarding the Young Master. You will have to complete the missions alone from now on."

"Pufferfish! How can I guard the Young Master without you? Without you, our Snake Spear and Pufferfish duo is incomplete!"

"Hoo, hoo, hoo~"

A powerful snoring sound came from Pufferfish Douluo's mouth. Seeing this, Snake Spear Douluo finally breathed a sigh of relief; it turned out he was just asleep, not meeting the Angel God.

On the boulder, Chen Xin retracted the Seven Kill Sword, feeling very dissatisfied with their performance—it hadn't even been as good as sparring with Bone Douluo.

"Go back and tell your master: the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has an invitation. Tomorrow at six in the evening—do not forget."

After saying this, he vanished from the spot. Seeing this, Snake Spear Douluo did not dare to delay in the slightest, spurring his horse to reach Qian Renxue as quickly as possible.

"Ah! What is wrong with that Sword Douluo! Who uses their ultimate move the moment a spar begins?"

Qian Renxue roared indignantly, furious at Chen Xin's conduct.

Chen Qi, however, was not focused on Chen Xin, but rather on the invitation from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect for Qian Renxue to visit.

Regarding Qian Renxue's identity, the other party must have already figured it out; this invitation was not as simple as a single person paying a visit, but represented a meeting between two massive powers on the continent.

Ning Fengzhi likely saw that Qian Renxue was still young and wanted to extract some benefits from this.

It had to be said that there was a reason the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was so wealthy.

"Master, they have invited you to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Will you go or not?"

"Go! Of course I'm going! That Sword Douluo hurt Uncle Puffer so badly; I must go to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to demand an explanation!"

Qian Renxue clenched her fists and said huffily. She had already made up her mind: the moment she arrived at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, she would seek out Chen Xin and make him offer a personal apology.

"Sigh, Master, if you go to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, you represent Spirit Hall. That old fox Ning Fengzhi could swindle you to death; his invitation is definitely not well-intentioned."

Chen Qi sighed helplessly. The eight-year-old Qian Renxue's mind was still too naive. If it were really as simple as an invitation to dinner, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would not have become the wealthiest organization outside of Spirit Hall.

After hearing Chen Qi's analysis, Qian Renxue nodded thoughtfully, then patted him on the shoulder and said...

"Hehe, don't I still have you? Chen Qi, as long as you are here, no fox spirit or rat spirit can trick me."

You have to admit—you really have to admit—Qian Renxue certainly knew how to talk. He didn't know who she learned it from, but she was damn right!

Chen Qi's heart blossomed with joy. In the past, it was only he who complimented Qian Renxue; this was the first time the roles had been reversed. If he didn't show some reaction, it would damage his status as the protagonist. If things continued like this and he really became a sycophant, wouldn't he be finished?

"Ahem, that may be so. Although I am resourceful and can see through all things, I am not omnipotent. Very well, for your sake, I will meet this profiteer Ning Fengzhi."