The creature raised a hand. Dark red light gathered in its palm, taking the shape of a flaming spear. It lifted the spear and aimed it at Zhu Shen.
Zhu Shen gritted his teeth and drove his Soul Power to its limit.
The Golden Dragon's phantom roared behind him, and all four Soul Rings blazed to life. He poured all his Soul Power into his dragon claws, ready to take the blow head-on.
Just as the spear was about to be thrown, a figure dropped from the sky.
"Ninth Soul Skill, Clear Sky Hammer!"
A massive hammer phantom tore through the night sky and crashed toward the creature with the force to destroy heaven and earth.
Sensing the danger, the creature had no choice but to abandon Zhu Shen and turn to face the hammer phantom.
The dark red flaming spear collided with the golden hammer phantom.
"Boom!"
The blast's shock wave swept in every direction. The altar collapsed in an instant, and the surrounding trees were ripped out by their roots. Su Nuo was caught by the shock wave. He cried out and passed out.
The smoke cleared.
Tang Hao stood before Zhu Shen, Clear Sky Hammer in hand.
He was still wearing those ragged clothes, his beard unkempt, but at that moment, he radiated a terrifying presence. Nine Soul Rings revolved slowly beneath his feet, the last—a red Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring—particularly striking.
"Clear Sky Douluo..." Blood Wolf charged out of the depths of the forest. When it saw Tang Hao, its expression changed dramatically. "What are you doing here?!"
Tang Hao glanced at it without a word and simply raised his Clear Sky Hammer.
Blood Wolf turned and ran.
Although it was a level seventy-three Soul Saint, it had no chance against a true Titled Douluo—especially not the Clear Sky Douluo, who possessed a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring.
"Trying to run?" Tang Hao snorted. The Clear Sky Hammer flew from his hand.
The hammer phantom traced an arc through the air and slammed into Blood Wolf's back.
"Pfft!"
Blood Wolf was sent flying dozens of meters. It smashed through several trees and fell to the ground, spitting out a large mouthful of black blood. Its Martial Soul Avatar was shattered outright, and it returned to human form, its face pale as paper.
Tang Hao walked over and looked down at him. "The Evil God Temple?"
Blood Shadow clutched his chest, his eyes full of fear and resentment. "Clear Sky Douluo, you... you're going to interfere in the Holy Temple's affairs, too?"
"You capture children and drain their blood. You deserve to die." Tang Hao's voice was icy.
Blood Shadow gritted his teeth, then suddenly pulled a black scroll from his robes and tore it to shreds.
A streak of dark red light shot into the sky and exploded, forming the image of a twisted eye.
"The Holy Temple's summons..." Blood Shadow sneered. "Just you wait. You can't withstand the Holy Temple's wrath!"
Tang Hao frowned and raised his Clear Sky Hammer, ready to deliver the final blow.
Just then, the Evil God Projection Tang Hao had driven back let out a piercing shriek. Its figure began to blur, but it did not disappear. Instead, it broke into countless streaks of dark red light that surged toward Blood Shadow.
Blood Shadow's body began to swell, and dark red patterns surfaced across his skin. His aura surged, and his Soul Power Level climbed from level seventy-three to level seventy-eight—and kept rising.
"Oh no!" Zhu Shen's expression changed. "He's absorbing the projection's power!"
Tang Hao sensed something was wrong, too, and brought the Clear Sky Hammer down with all his might.
But it was too late.
Blood Shadow took the blow head-on. He spat out several more mouthfuls of blood, but his aura had already stabilized at level eighty. Though he had no Eighth Soul Ring, his total Soul Power and physical strength had reached Soul Douluo level.
"Ha ha ha ha!" Blood Shadow roared with laughter. "Clear Sky Douluo, didn't see that coming, did you? You scattered the Holy Temple's projection, but its remaining energy is just what I need!"
He got to his feet, and his wounds healed at a visible rate. The dark red evil aura around him was several times thicker than before, turning even the air nearby viscous.
Zhu Shen's heart sank.
An level-eighty Soul Douluo, even without a Soul Ring, wasn't someone Tang Hao could take down easily right now. After all, Tang Hao had hidden injuries, and he also had to divide his attention to protect the children on the altar.
"Teacher!" Tang San's voice suddenly came from far away.
Zhu Shen turned and saw Tang San running toward them, several needles in hand.
"Xiao San, what are you doing here?" Zhu Shen cried anxiously. "Didn't I tell you to stay at the academy?"
"I was worried." Tang San ran to Zhu Shen's side, glanced at Tang Hao, then turned to Blood Shadow. "Father, Teacher, let's take him on together."
Tang Hao frowned but said nothing. This wasn't the time to scold him.
Blood Shadow looked at Tang San, greed flashing in his eyes. "Blue Silver Grass? No... you have the aura of Twin Martial Souls. Excellent. With talent like that, if you were offered to the Holy Temple..."
"Offer your head!" Zhu Shen cut him off. "Xiao San, get behind me. You can't get involved in a fight at this level yet."
Tang San hesitated, then stepped behind Zhu Shen. But he didn't just stand there. He pulled a small cloth bundle from his robes, containing ten poisoned needles.
Zhu Shen had bought them at the black market yesterday. The poison wasn't potent, but it could paralyze anyone below Soul Elder level for half an hour.
Tang San watched Blood Shadow, searching for an opening.
"Clear Sky Douluo, you think you can still protect them?" Blood Shadow sneered. "The power of a level-eighty Soul Douluo is enough to crush you, even without a Soul Ring!"
With that, he moved.
He was several times faster than before, almost turning into a dark red blur as he appeared in front of Tang Hao in an instant.
He threw a punch.
Dark red evil energy gathered around his fist, leaving blackened marks in the air wherever it passed.
Tang Hao didn't dare underestimate him. He held the Clear Sky Hammer across his body.
"Clang!"
Fist and hammer collided with a metallic crash.
Tang Hao staggered back two steps, his expression changing.
The power behind that punch was already close to that of a true Soul Douluo.
Blood Shadow pressed his advantage, throwing punch after punch. His dark red fists rained down on Tang Hao like a torrential downpour.
Tang Hao swung the Clear Sky Hammer, blocking each blow. But every punch left his arms numb and his blood surging.
"Father!" Tang San cried, about to rush forward.
"Don't move." Zhu Shen held him back, his expression grave. "You'd only be throwing your life away."
"But..."
"No buts." Zhu Shen took a deep breath. "Your father can handle him. We need to find a way to destroy that altar."
He looked toward the altar ruins.
Tang Hao's clash with the Evil God Projection had already destroyed most of the altar. But the dark red bead still rested in the hollow at its peak. Its light had dimmed considerably, yet it remained unbroken.
And the dark red mist around the bead was slowly gathering again.
"That bead is the core of the ritual," Zhu Shen said. "If we destroy it, Blood Shadow's power will weaken."
Tang San nodded. "Teacher, I'll go."
"Go where? You can't even get close." Zhu Shen rolled his eyes. "Watch. I'll teach you a move."
With that, Zhu Shen spread his Dragon Wings and flew into the air.
He didn't head straight for the bead. Instead, he circled around and approached from the side.
Blood Shadow was battling Tang Hao. Sensing Zhu Shen's intentions, he immediately sent a stream of dark red evil energy curling toward him.
"Careful!" Tang Hao warned as he struck with the Clear Sky Hammer, forcing Blood Shadow to pull some of his energy back to defend himself.
Zhu Shen narrowly dodged the stream of evil energy and kept flying toward the bead.
But Blood Shadow had already noticed him.
"Looking to die?" Blood Shadow sneered and swept his left hand. Another, thicker stream of evil energy shot out, moving at incredible speed.
Zhu Shen had no time to dodge and could only take the blow head-on.
Dragon Scale Possession!
Golden scales covered his body, and Zhu Shen raised both arms in front of him.
"Bang!"
The evil energy slammed into his scales with a piercing, corrosive hiss. Zhu Shen was knocked backward through the air and crashed to the ground, a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth.
"Teacher!" Tang San rushed over and helped Zhu Shen up.
"I'm fine." Zhu Shen wiped the blood from his mouth, his gaze even more resolute. "That bastard's evil energy is far stronger than before. We can't force our way through."
He looked at the poisoned needles in Tang San's hand, and suddenly his eyes lit up.
"Xiao San, how far can you shoot those needles?"
Tang San paused. "I can guarantee accuracy within fifty meters."
"That'll do." Zhu Shen took a small bottle from his robes. Inside was some emerald-green powder. "This is a paralyzing powder I bought at the black market. It isn't very potent, but it can paralyze anyone below Soul Elder level for half an hour. Coat the needles with it."
Tang San immediately understood what Zhu Shen meant.
He took the bottle and quickly coated five of the poisoned needles with the powder.
"Teacher, I'm ready."
"Good." Zhu Shen flew into the air again. "I'll draw his attention. Find an opening and shoot the bead. Remember, you don't need to pierce it. The needle tip just has to touch it. The bead is made of condensed evil energy, so the paralyzing powder should affect it."
Tang San nodded and gripped the needles tightly.