Qian Xunji activated his Ninth Soul Skill, Mental Detection, covering the entirety of Heaven Dou City.
All manner of events within the city escaped none of his spiritual detection.
He watched the Heaven Dou nobles' actions and committed them to memory, waiting for the right moment to make his move and wipe them all out in one fell swoop.
After all, swatting flies one at a time was nowhere near as efficient as gathering them together and catching them all in one net.
"Verify whether the crimes are genuine."
"Different crimes warrant different punishments."
"For minor crimes such as theft that neither harms nor injures others, send them directly to the mountains to mine."
"For serious crimes such as rape, child rape, human trafficking, murder, and arson, execute them on the spot once verified."
In order to hand in a satisfactory answer and pass the Asura Third Trial, Qian Xunji drafted harsh laws and regulations, handing them over to Soul Hall's stewards to continue cracking down on criminals.
With Thousand Year Spirit Bones as tangible rewards, the Spirit Masters worked with blazing enthusiasm.
Saphis hugged the Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone he had long yearned for, thrilled like a three-year-old child.
His endless overtime and sleepless labor had not gone to waste. He had even swept through the towns and villages around Heaven Dou City.
When the Pope had good things, he truly took them out to reward those beneath him.
He just did not understand why the Pope did not want to reveal his identity and had instructed him not to divulge any information about himself.
For the law-abiding residents of Heaven Dou City, this period had been chaotic because Soul Hall's Lord Soul Masters were arresting people everywhere.
But after those criminals who had once collected protection fees, robbed, extorted, and committed other offenses were all taken away, they suddenly realized that life could be this peaceful. They no longer had to spend every day in constant fear.
"Days without having to pay protection fees are wonderful," a small vendor said with a smile.
"We have that Titled Douluo in armor to thank for this," said a citizen who had once been forced into wrongdoing, his gratitude heartfelt.
Those criminals had once gone far too far. Even when lives were lost, at most they would be arrested by patrol officers, locked up for a few days, then released to continue tormenting them.
Now, these criminals were directly executed. Once they were dead and reduced to ashes, the residents no longer had to worry about them returning to torment them again.
Though they also knew such days could not last long. Once Armor Douluo left Heaven Dou City, everything would soon return to how it had been.
When it came to exploiting and squeezing commoners, the imperial nobles were as excited and tireless as if they had eaten Whale Rubber.
Within the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.
The Heaven Dou Emperor had no interest whatsoever in the inner thoughts of commoners.
What worried him most now was that Ning Hai, Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, its guardian Fire Dragon Douluo, and several Spirit Saint elders had died within Heaven Dou City.
Would the new Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect turn hostile toward the Heaven Dou Royal Family because of this?
Without the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's support, where would the Heaven Dou Empire find enough powerful Spirit Master troops to contend against the White Tiger Legion of the Star Luo Empire?
Without the combat enhancement provided by the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, Heaven Dou Empire's noble Spirit Masters simply could not contend against the fierce and powerful Star Luo noble Spirit Masters, who worshiped strength above all else.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, meanwhile, had no desire to intervene in the struggle between the two great empires.
Soul Hall stood above all, maintaining the balance of the continent.
The Clear Sky Sect remained ambiguous. It admired the Star Luo Empire's policy of strength above all, yet came to Heaven Dou Empire territory to sell weapons and armor in exchange for money to buy grain.
"Ye'er, although Tang Yuehua of the Clear Sky Tang Clan is a useless person, she is still Tang Chen's legitimate granddaughter and Tang Zhen's youngest daughter. Find a way to win her over."
"Royal Father, she only awakened her martial soul this year," Xue Ye said tactfully.
A political marriage was not a problem.
But... Tang Yuehua was far too young. He did not want to be beaten to death by her grandfather, father, and two older brothers.
"For the Heaven Dou Empire."
"Yes."
No one else knew of the conversation between Xue Ye and his father.
Yet in Seven Treasure City, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's base, Ning Fengzhi learned that his father, Ning Hai, had died in Heaven Dou City. His eyes turned bloodshot, his breathing became heavy, and his formerly refined and gentle expression twisted into one of ferocity.
"Uncle Gu, don't stop me. Let me go to Heaven Dou City. I, Ning Fengzhi, must avenge my father's death!"
"The other party is a genuine Limit Douluo. Even if we stake the entire Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect on this, we may still be unable to kill him," Gu Rong advised helplessly.
Qian Xunji's aura was simply too powerful, especially the terrifyingly dense killing intent around him, as though it had substance.
Tang Chen also possessed dense killing intent.
But Gu Rong, whose martial soul was the Bone Dragon, was especially sensitive to killing intent. He knew clearly that the killing intent on the two men was not on the same level at all.
Beyond that killing intent, the Bone Dragon had also been shocked to discover that compared with Tang Chen, Qian Xunji exerted even greater pressure on him.
With the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's current strength, they could not possibly defeat a Limit Douluo who might be even stronger than Tang Chen.
"Uncle Gu, are you really asking me to watch my father's murderer roam free?"
"No. First, you must pull yourself together, inherit the position of Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, strengthen the sect, and recruit and cultivate more powerful Titled Douluo."
"Remember this: only Titled Douluo can contend against Titled Douluo. If you want revenge, you must have enough Titled Douluo to besiege him. Only then will it be possible."
"That man killed Yu Xiaogang of the Blue Lightning Jade Clan and Tang Yin of the Clear Sky Tang Clan. Perhaps you can use that to unite all the Titled Douluo of the Upper Three Sects and launch a joint crusade against him."
Bone Douluo's words jolted Ning Fengzhi awake. He now knew how to walk his future path and what he needed to do.
Even now, the outside forces still did not know what Qian Xunji looked like beneath the Emperor Armor, nor did they know where he came from or his exact identity.
The scene returned to Heaven Dou City.
Within Duke Will Mansion, guests gathered in great numbers.
Great nobles at the Spirit Saint level assembled in the meeting hall, arguing without end.
The nobles had indeed united.
But surrounding and killing Qian Xunji, a powerful man suspected to be an agility-type Titled Douluo with formidable flight abilities, gave them a headache.
It was not as though there were no flying Spirit Masters among the nobles, but there were few of them, and none were particularly strong.
They simply could not defeat Qian Xunji in aerial combat.
To kill a Titled Douluo, they first had to prevent him from using his flight ability and force him into a frontal ground battle with them.
Only by relying on their numerical advantage to drain his Soul Power could they possibly kill him.
"Those who conspire to rebel, endanger national security, and drag innocent commoners into hell!"
"Whether ringleaders or accomplices, all will be sentenced to death and executed immediately!"
Night fell, and the bright moon hung high in the sky. Qian Xunji stood upon empty air, his icy voice enhanced by Divine Origin Realm spiritual power and transmitted precisely into the ears of every noble, private soldier, lackey, and thug.
Before they could even begin hurling curses, the crimson Divine Slaughter's Domain spread continuously beneath Qian Xunji's feet, enveloping the entire Duke Will Mansion.
The noble Spirit Masters instantly felt the Soul Power within their bodies being suppressed.
"Is this the Divine Slaughter's Domain of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Chen?" an experienced old noble exclaimed in shock.
Before the nobles' stunned eyes, Qian Xunji directly unleashed his Eighth Soul Skill, Angel Roar, a large-scale spiritual attack Soul Skill that slaughtered enemies over a wide area.
The weaker noble Spirit Masters had their heads explode immediately upon facing this move.
Only nobles whose cultivation had reached the Spirit Saint level managed to keep their lives, but they fell unconscious as a result.
Qian Xunji controlled golden short swords, harvesting the noble Spirit Masters who had not yet completely died and lay unconscious with a final breath remaining.
As for the private soldiers, lackeys, and thugs who possessed no Soul Power and had been pressed to the ground by the Divine Slaughter's Domain, setting them ablaze was enough.
Golden flames engulfed Duke Will Mansion, burning to death every living being within it.
The flames soared into the heavens, and countless people throughout Heaven Dou City poked their heads out to watch.
"Golden flames... could Angel Douluo Qian Daoliu have come as well?"
First came Clear Sky Douluo Tang Chen's Divine Slaughter's Domain, then came Angel Douluo Qian Daoliu's golden flames.
Why had two Limit Douluo joined forces to destroy Duke Will Mansion?
Some knowledgeable high-level Spirit Masters, unaware of the truth, were left with question marks popping up in their minds.
One night of fire burned away evil.
Qian Xunji had finally fulfilled the Asura Third Trial's KPI of judging ten thousand criminals.
Asura God Trial Third Trial: Judge ten thousand criminals—completed. Reward: Asura Divine Power Affinity +10%.
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