The Enemy of My Enemy

Yue Guan and the other four flew for nearly half an hour without stopping.

The terrain beneath their feet shifted from the dense thickets of the Star Dou Great Forest to rolling hills, and finally to open plains. On the distant horizon, the silhouette of a massive city gradually emerged, its walls draped in Spirit Hall banners that fluttered in the evening breeze.

Yue Guan sensed the movements within a radius of several dozen kilometers behind them, and only after confirming there were no signs of pursuers did he slow his pace.

"Land."

Yue Guan's figure descended vertically from the high altitude, landing steadily on a patch of flat grass. He gently lowered Xie Yue, whom he had been carrying on his shoulder, and leaned him against a rock. Yan was also released, collapsing onto the grass and gasping for air.

Qin Chuan descended from another direction with Hu Liena, landing two seconds after Yue Guan.

The moment Hu Liena's feet touched the ground, her knees buckled, and she nearly collapsed.

Qin Chuan reached out to support her by the crook of her elbow, preventing her from falling.

Almost everyone's gaze turned toward Qin Chuan at the same time.

Yue Guan was the first to speak: "Many thanks for your assistance, young friend."

Yue Guan's tone was very polite, carrying the gentleness of an elder toward a junior, but his eyes were filled with scrutiny. A strange youth who had descended from the sky and used a spirit skill from a white spirit ring to force Tang Hao to stop—the more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed.

"Thank you for saving us," Hu Liena added.

Her voice still trembled slightly. Her purple-red dress was covered in dust, and the left shoulder strap had slipped down to her upper arm, revealing a large expanse of fair shoulder and arm. Her loose hair was disheveled by the wind, clinging to her cheeks and neck, and her golden earring hung crookedly.

She looked utterly disheveled, yet her slightly upturned eyes held clear curiosity and appraisal.

"You're welcome." Qin Chuan released his hold on Hu Liena's elbow.

Yan sat on the ground, legs splayed, hands braced behind him. He stared at Qin Chuan for several seconds before asking the most blunt and straightforward question.

"Who are you?"

Qin Chuan stood where he was, the hem of his black robe fluttering slightly in the wind.

"Qin Chuan of the Heaven Dou Empire. I previously attended Shrek Academy in Soto City, Heaven Dou Empire."

"What?" Yan jumped up from the ground. "Shrek Academy? Then do you know Tang San?"

Qin Chuan nodded.

Yan's expression shifted. He had nearly been smashed to death by Tang Hao's hammer just moments ago, and now another person connected to Tang San had appeared; anyone would be on edge.

"Then are you with him?"

Yan's tone hardened, and his right hand clenched into a fist involuntarily. He had just finished absorbing a spirit ring and his body was still weak, but he had already assumed a defensive stance.

Qin Chuan shook his head: "No, he is my enemy."

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of everyone present changed.

Yan froze, his mouth agape, unable to process the statement for a moment.

Yue Guan's eyebrows arched.

Hu Liena tilted her head to look at Qin Chuan, the curiosity in her eyes deepening.

Qin Chuan's gaze rested on the distant horizon: "Furthermore, I am at irreconcilable odds with the entire Clear Sky Sect."

Silence reigned for two seconds.

Yue Guan was the first to break the silence: "Oh?"

Having spent decades in Spirit Hall, there was no one Yue Guan hadn't seen. A fifteen or sixteen-year-old youth, a level 56 Spirit King, twin spirits, capable of flight, and able to freeze Tang Hao with a white spirit ring skill.

Such talent was impossible to find even with a lantern.

Yue Guan only had one major concern.

What was this youth's relationship with the Clear Sky Sect? What was his connection to Tang San? If he were someone from the Clear Sky Sect, then this "debt of gratitude" would have to be weighed very carefully.

But Qin Chuan's previous statement had directly dispelled that concern.

At irreconcilable odds with the entire Clear Sky Sect.

The enemy of an enemy is a friend.

The look in Yue Guan's eyes as he watched Qin Chuan shifted from scrutiny to appreciation.

"Good. Very good." Yue Guan stepped closer, his voice softening. "Qin Chuan, are you a twin spirit user?"

Qin Chuan nodded and raised both hands.

Above his left palm, a purple, translucent bell slowly emerged, its surface etched with intricate patterns.

Above his right palm, a primitive and desolate long sword materialized; the blade was narrow and long, radiating a cold, chilling light.

The Illusion Bell and the Zhu Xian Sword appeared before Yue Guan simultaneously.

Yue Guan's gaze lingered on the Illusion Bell for a second before quickly shifting to the Zhu Xian Sword.

His pupils contracted sharply.

As a level 95 Title Douluo, Yue Guan's judgment of spirit quality was more accurate than any instrument.

The Illusion Bell was a control-type spirit, which he had seen many times before; it was nothing rare.

But the energy fluctuations radiating from the sword in his right hand caused his breath to hitch.

He had only ever felt this level of razor-sharp Sword Intent from one person in his entire life.

Sword Douluo Chen Xin, and his Seven Kill Sword.

Yet, the energy level of the sword before him was a cut above the Seven Kill Sword.

In fact, the vague sense of oppression it exuded reminded Yue Guan of the Clear Sky Hammer that had nearly claimed his life earlier that day.

"What kind of sword is this?" Yue Guan's tone turned involuntarily serious.

"Zhu Xian Sword."

"Zhu Xian Sword?" Yue Guan repeated the name, searching through his mind.

Nothing!

He had lived for more than half a lifetime and scoured the archives of Spirit Hall, yet he had never once encountered this name.

Yue Guan glanced at the Illusion Bell in Qin Chuan's left hand, finding it rather ordinary and unremarkable.

However, he recalled the move used against Tang Hao just moments ago.

"What soul skill did you use just now to trap Tang Hao in that state?"

It wasn't just Yue Guan who wanted to know.

Hu Liena pricked up her ears to listen, Yan stopped gasping for air, and even Xie Yue, who was half-leaning against a rock, lifted his eyelids.

"Fourth soul skill, Memory Kill," Qin Chuan replied.

Yue Guan pondered for a moment.

"If I'm not mistaken, that should be a soul skill from the Lovesickness Heartbreak Butterfly."

Qin Chuan was slightly surprised; this Chrysanthemum Douluo was indeed remarkably knowledgeable.

"That is correct."

Yue Guan nodded, his fingers stroking his chin.

"Interesting. A soul skill from a ten-year soul ring capable of producing mental interference of this caliber. But there is one thing that is very strange." Yue Guan looked at Qin Chuan. "Tang Hao is a Title Douluo; his mental defenses are as thick as a city wall. For the mental fluctuations of your white soul ring to break through, he could have shattered them by moving a single pinky finger."

Qin Chuan did not deny it: "Yes, he could have woken up, but he didn't want to."

Yue Guan's expression shifted.

A fifteen or sixteen-year-old child possessed such profound insight into the human heart. He knew his soul skill lacked the power to control a Title Douluo, so he gambled on Tang Hao's psychological weakness.

What Tang Hao cared about most was A Yin. The Memory Kill unearthed exactly what he most longed to see yet feared to recall.

Faced with those images, Tang Hao chose not to resist.

This had nothing to do with soul power levels; it was a weakness of human nature.

Yue Guan took a long, deep look at Qin Chuan: "Qin Chuan, are you interested in joining Spirit Hall?"

Qin Chuan looked up, meeting Yue Guan's gaze.

"If you are willing, I will personally recommend you to His Holiness the Pope." Yue Guan's tone was sincere, devoid of any roundabout deception.