The Crown Prince Mansion!
After just waking up and washing, Xue Qinghe, who was eating breakfast, heard the report from the intelligence agent he had arranged that both Dugu Bo and Lu Chen had completely vanished.
They probably slipped away under the cover of night yesterday evening without a sound.
Xue Qinghe raised an eyebrow at this, feeling neither too surprised nor any anger.
Thinking about it, facing such a massive threat as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, remaining out in the open was simply too dangerous.
Instead, going from the open into the shadows and hiding temporarily meant that as long as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect could not find them, they were entirely safe.
For Dugu Bo, who was a venerable Title Douluo, to slip away with people under the cover of night while wanting to bypass those intelligence agents was truly too simple.
Xue Qinghe's expression remained calm as he gave instructions in a composed tone:
"Get up. This matter cannot be blamed on you; keeping watch over a Title Douluo indeed is not such an easy task."
"With Lan Chen's talent, as long as he does not die in the future, sooner or later he will become a Support System Title Douluo. That teacher of mine will not let him go easily."
"For the time being, you do not need to track Dugu Bo and Lan Chen. Go and secretly monitor the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect; the moment my teacher finds the traces of Dugu Bo and Lan Chen, he will inevitably fail to hold back and make a move."
"By that time, we can act as the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind, and find an opportunity to save Lan Chen. With the grace of saving his life, wanting to recruit him afterward will become much easier."
Hearing Xue Qinghe's instructions, the intelligence agent arranged by him acknowledged respectfully, then got up and went down to make arrangements.
After the person left, Xue Qinghe's double pupils flashed with the light of wisdom, and he thought to himself inwardly:
Lan Chen, your talent indeed makes me feel surprised, but whether you are truly worth me and Teacher making an enemy of each other still depends on your own value, what kind of Martial Soul you possess, and what kind of six spirit skills you have!
If your value is sufficient, I will not hesitate to invite out the Snake Spear Elder and the Pufferfish Elder, and I will definitely save your life.
If your value is insufficient, then I am very sorry; I will not risk exposure to become an enemy of my teacher.
If I wish to achieve great things, what I need are capable people to assist me. People without value are not worth me spending effort on.
Reflecting on this, Xue Qinghe forcefully shook his not particularly broad shoulders, as if an immense weight pressing down upon them, with the five great provinces, four kingdoms, and one duchy of the Heaven Dou Empire all carried upon his shoulders.
As the Heaven Dou Weightlifting Champion, he had to be exceedingly cautious.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
As the wealthiest sect on the continent, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had built an entire mountain into its sect territory, looking from afar much like a mountain city.
At the foot of the mountain was the area where commoners lived; they were basically the family members, friends, and relatives of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's spirit masters.
On the waist of the mountain was the area where Outer Disciples and vassal family members lived; they were the backbone strength of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect claimed to possess 5,000 spirit masters, the vast majority of whom were Outer Disciples and vassal family members living in the mid-mountain area.
On the peak of the mountain was the area where Inner Disciples and core family members lived; they were the true upper echelons of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Sect Master Ning Fengzhi usually handled work in the grand hall on the mountain peak, while Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo, the two Sect Protecting Douluo of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, guarded Ning Fengzhi's left and right most of the time.
Just this morning, Ning Fengzhi arrived at the summit grand hall, preparing to handle the day's work.
The intelligence agent he had sent out just yesterday returned today with an uneasy expression to report:
"Reporting to the Sect Master, that Poison Douluo and Lan Chen have vanished from the Dugu Mansion, and it is very likely they sneaked away under the cover of night yesterday evening."
"We failed to detect it in time, and we ask the Sect Master to inflict punishment."
Hearing these words, Ning Fengzhi's good mood of the morning was instantly shattered into pieces, and his two slanted eyebrows that soared into his temples knitted tightly together, showing that his heart was filled with intense anger.
Boom!
Before Ning Fengzhi could open his mouth to say anything, a powerful aura erupted from the body of Bone Douluo guarding at the side, and a visible ring of airwaves rippled outward.
Upon Bone Douluo's skull-like face appeared an expression of incomparable fury, and he sternly rebuked:
"Utter trash! The matter was assigned to you only yesterday, and you messed it up in just a single night's time. Your salaries are all received in vain if you cannot even handle such a small matter!"
Accompanied by Bone Douluo's rebuking words, that visible and ferocious airwave struck the body of that intelligence agent, directly blasting him flying outward.
He emitted a miserable shriek, spat out a large mouthful of blood in midair, and then dropped onto the ground with a thud.
Although he did not die, he looked to have sustained heavy injuries.
Daring not to have the slightest grievance regarding this, after panting heavily several times, this person's face was filled with extreme terror.
Disregarding his injuries, he struggled to crawl up, his legs turning weak as he knelt on the ground, kowtowing until his head struck the floor with loud thuds.
Bone Douluo no longer looked at this person. He turned his head toward Ning Fengzhi, hostility fully revealed in his dual pupils, and said in a low voice:
"Fengzhi, Lan Chen was taken away by Dugu Bo. It seems Dugu Bo is utterly determined to make an enemy of our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
"Since that is the case, we do not need to stand on ceremony either. Dugu Bo's granddaughter is still studying at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy; this old man will go right now and abduct her."
"We will make Dugu Bo bring Lan Chen to exchange with us-one life for one life. Dugu Yan is Dugu Bo's only granddaughter; once we capture Dugu Yan, Dugu Bo will inevitably compromise."
Bone Douluo's idea could be said to be venomous to the extreme.
Using Dugu Bo's granddaughter to threaten Dugu Bo-if Bone Douluo truly succeeded and captured Dugu Yan, for the sake of his granddaughter, Dugu Bo might genuinely hand over Lan Chen.
Ning Fengzhi raised his index finger, tapping it against the table again and again. He neither nodded in agreement nor shook his head in refusal, instead still considering the matter.
While this idea was certainly feasible, it would also completely offend Dugu Bo. Should Dugu Bo harbor resentment in the future, it would prove highly disadvantageous for their Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had a vast estate, whereas Dugu Bo was a lone individual. Dugu Bo could not launch a frontal assault on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, but he could disgust them by every imaginable means.
Killing a spirit master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect here today, slaughtering a caravan of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect there tomorrow, and poisoning the vicinity of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's water sources the day after tomorrow.
These undefendable methods were enough to exhaust them and leave them hard-pressed to cope.
Either do not do it!
Or else do it thoroughly!
Ning Fengzhi was considering whether, after using Dugu Yan to lure out Dugu Bo and Lan Chen, he should bring Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo to stage an ambush, killing Lan Chen while simultaneously wiping out Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan, grandfather and granddaughter.
Only by thus completely eliminating future troubles could the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect truly rest easy.
However, at this moment, that intelligence agent spoke up tremblingly:
"Reporting to the Sect Master, according to the information sent back, Dugu Yan of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy also mysteriously vanished last night, very likely taken away by Dugu Bo together under the cover of night."
As soon as these words were spoken, Bone Douluo's plan completely went bankrupt.
After all, if Dugu Yan could not be captured, how was Dugu Bo to be threatened!
Hostility surged fiercely on Bone Douluo's face. With a wave of his large hand, a surge of spirit power burst forth, striking that intelligence agent and sending him flying outward once more.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Accompanied by a series of bone-fracturing sounds, the intelligence agent's sternum shattered, his eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness while still in midair. With a thud, he fell to the ground, evidently breathing out more than breathing in and having suffered severe injuries.
Bone Douluo still felt some lingering resentment, and he cursed angrily:
"Trash, this trash, unable to handle even a minor matter."
"Fengzhi, what should we do now?"
"That Lan Chen is a level 69 Support Spirit Emperor who will likely break through to level 70 spirit power soon. This person must absolutely not be spared!"
Ning Fengzhi's gaze was ice-cold; his usual scholarly gentleness vanished completely at this moment.
For the sake of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he absolutely would not allow Lan Chen to continue living.
Ning Fengzhi first waved his hand to have the unconscious intelligence agent taken away and the blood on the ground cleaned up.
After that, Ning Fengzhi stood up, placing his hands behind his back like a deity ruling over life and death, and spoke with detachment:
"To think that by hiding, our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would be unable to find them-naive, simply too naive."
"The manpower and financial resources of our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect are enough to surpass the entire continent. As long as Dugu Bo, Dugu Yan, and Lan Chen appear in any corner of the continent, they will inevitably leave traces."
"Issue the order immediately to mobilize all the manpower and financial resources of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to gather information on Dugu Bo, Dugu Yan, and Lan Chen across the entire continent."
"Once found, we will immediately go and silence them. Lan Chen must die. As for Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan, if they know what is good for them, we can spare their lives; if they do not know what is good for them, we shall root them out together."
"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Tagoda, as the continent's premier support Martial Soul, must never have this status shaken in the slightest."
Bone Douluo immediately accepted the order, saying:
"Fengzhi, it should have been done this way long ago. This old man will arrange it right away!"
As his voice fell, Bone Douluo turned and walked away, evidently to make preparations.