The Clear Sky Hammer's power was every bit as legendary as they said.
Yue Guan didn't dare linger in the valley. He sprang forward, transforming into a streak of white light as he darted toward the southeast woods.
"Tang Hao! Let's talk this out!"
Tang Hao ignored him and gave chase. The Clear Sky Hammer dragged behind him, its head scraping across the ground and leaving a furrow of crushed earth.
The two figures raced one after the other, vanishing from sight beyond the valley in the blink of an eye. But the explosions and tremors that continued to rumble from afar made it clear the fight was still going on.
"Boom!"
"Boom, boom!"
The earth trembled. Rocks kept tumbling from the valley's cliff faces with a clatter.
Hu Liena stood rooted to the spot, her face pale.
The Soul Power pressure released when Tang Hao attacked still clung to her. For half a second, she felt as if her blood had frozen.
That overwhelming gap in power, the absolute might of a Level 95 Titled Douluo, had made her truly understand for the first time what it meant to be powerless to resist.
"Xie Yue, how much longer will Yan need?" Hu Liena turned to look at Yan, who was still sitting cross-legged as he absorbed his Soul Ring.
Xie Yue crouched and reached out to feel Yan's pulse.
"Almost done, but he'll need at least a few more minutes."
"We can't wait that long." Hu Liena bit her lip.
The sounds of battle in the distance grew more and more violent.
Qin Chuan could hear them clearly from his hiding place, too. The intervals between the booms were shrinking, which meant Tang Hao and Yue Guan's fight had reached its fiercest point.
Tracking their positions with his Samsara Eye, he saw that they were already two or three kilometers from the valley.
Tang Hao was fighting brutally. His Divine Slaughter's Domain was active, cloaking him in a layer of dark-red killing intent. It had a tangible effect, weakening his opponent's combat power by ten percent while increasing his own by the same amount.
Yue Guan was being beaten back.
There was no helping it. They were both Level 95 Titled Douluo, but their Martial Souls differed drastically in strength.
The Clear Sky Hammer was widely acknowledged as the greatest Tool Martial Soul in the world. Yue Guan's Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum was also a top-tier immortal-grade Martial Soul, but in a head-on clash with the Clear Sky Hammer, he was at a disadvantage.
On top of that, Tang Hao was in a state of fury. Having lost [Ah Yin], he was seeing red. He paid no heed to defense, smashing down blow after blow, each one carrying enough force to turn his opponent into a meat pancake.
Yue Guan could only defend while keeping his distance. His advantage lay in ranged attacks and wide-area coverage, so he could hold on as long as he stayed back. But Tang Hao was far too fast. The slightest lapse, and he would be right on top of him.
"Bang!" Another deafening crash.
Yue Guan took a blow to the left shoulder and was sent flying backward, smashing through three thick trees. He spun twice in midair and staggered several steps after landing before managing to steady himself.
A thin trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
His left shoulder had caved in. The bone was probably cracked.
Yue Guan raised a hand to wipe the blood from his mouth, his expression turning grave.
"Tang Hao, I told you, we never went to Holy Soul Village. What exactly are you after?"
"Enough talking!" Tang Hao wouldn't listen. His eyes were completely bloodshot, and deep in his pupils burned an almost-mad obsession.
Ah Yin was gone. The thing he had guarded for so many years was gone!
Even the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone he had used to protect Ah Yin's life was gone with her.
When he returned to Holy Soul Village, all he found was an empty cave.
Someone had disabled the energy barrier from the outside. The work was clean and precise, with no sign of brute force. It was as if someone had simply used a key to unlock a door.
Ordinary Soul Masters couldn't have done something like that.
Silently disabling an energy barrier set up by a Level 95 Titled Douluo required an exceptionally deep understanding of Soul Power structures, along with mental-analysis abilities beyond the ordinary.
Tang Hao's first suspect was Spirit Hall.
Spirit Hall had numerous high-ranking Soul Masters and all sorts of strange techniques. The Pope, Bibi Dong, was stronger than he was. If she had gone herself or sent one of her top subordinates, disabling an energy barrier would have been well within their capabilities.
Besides, Spirit Hall had killed his wife, giving them more than enough motive.
Tang Hao didn't need proof. He only needed something to vent his fury on.
The Clear Sky Hammer rose high once more, and light from the Seventh Soul Skill flared along its surface.
Martial Soul Avatar!
Tang Hao fused with the Clear Sky Hammer's origin, transforming into a blood-red giant dozens of meters tall. Scarlet lightning coiled around him, and killing intent surged through his body. The Clear Sky Hammer in his hand swelled to colossal size, its weight increasing dozens of times as red light coursed over it.
Yue Guan's pupils contracted.
"Madman!" He stopped holding back. "Seventh Soul Skill, Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum Avatar!"
A golden chrysanthemum a hundred meters across bloomed behind him. Countless petals spun like blades, shrouding the entire area in golden light.
The collision between the Martial Soul Avatars of two Titled Douluo unleashed a shockwave centered on them, sweeping out in every direction.
Trees within hundreds of meters snapped off at the roots. Rocks were ground to powder, and the earth collapsed into a crater more than a hundred meters across.
Even Qin Chuan, hiding several kilometers away, felt the ground beneath his feet shake violently. A swath of leaves rained down from the treetops.
On the battlefield, Yue Guan couldn't hold out any longer.
Even with his Martial Soul Avatar activated, he was still at an absolute disadvantage against Tang Hao.
After more than ten head-on clashes, the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum Avatar had already suffered several breaks, and a large number of its golden petals had shattered. More and more blood stained Yue Guan's lips, and he could no longer raise his left arm.
Just then, several voices came from the direction of the valley.
"Chrysanthemum Elder!"
Yan had finally finished absorbing the Soul Ring. He opened his eyes, and a surge of fire-attributed Soul Power, stronger than before, burst from his body. His five Soul Rings lit up one after another: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black—the standard five-ring configuration.
But the joy of his breakthrough lasted less than a second. He saw the Clear Sky Hammer, dozens of meters tall, in the distant sky, along with a golden chrysanthemum just as absurdly huge.
"What... what's going on?" Yan's face turned green.
"Don't ask. Run!" Xie Yue grabbed Yan by the arm and took off.
Hu Liena ran with them. Her long skirt billowed as she moved, her legs alternating through its high slit, her knees smeared with dust and mud.
The three of them ran toward Yue Guan.
When Yue Guan saw them coming, his heart sank.
"Get out of here! I'll hold them off!"
Yue Guan's voice came through the golden chrysanthemum's shimmering barrier, carrying an unmistakably commanding tone.
Xie Yue grabbed Yan and started to pull him away.
Hu Liena ran at the front. She was fast, but not nearly as fast as Xie Yue. Xie Yue held the Moon Blade in one hand and dragged Yan with the other, glancing back to judge the distance.
"Faster!" Yan had only just absorbed his Soul Ring, and his Soul Power hadn't fully stabilized. His legs felt weak as he ran. But he knew this wasn't the time to show off, so he dug in and drove his legs against the ground with all his strength.
Yue Guan blocked Tang Hao once more.
"Tang Hao! They're youngsters. If you have a problem, take it up with me!"
"Hmph! None of you are leaving! I'll keep you all here to join her in death!" Tang Hao had lost his reason.
Qin Chuan watched it all clearly from afar. Tang Hao was already close to madness. He didn't care whether the people before him were actually responsible; all he knew was that people from Spirit Hall had appeared near his territory,
On the distant battlefield, the situation had reached its most desperate point.