Tai Tan was dragged before Qian Xunqian. His face was swollen like a pig's, and several teeth had been knocked out.
"Ptooey! I'll never submit! This old servant has been loyal only to his master all his life!"
Qian Xunqian gave him a disgusted look and waved a hand.
"Take him away. Once we're back at Spirit Hall, cripple his cultivation and lock him up. When the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan comes to visit Spirit Hall, execute him, so they'll know there's no good ending for opposing Spirit Hall!"
Then she turned toward the remaining members of the Strength Clan.
"Your clan leader has already been captured. The rest of you can struggle all you like, but you're just making a last stand. Will you submit?"
Without old Tai Tan, the entire Strength Clan soon surrendered. Only Tai Tan's son, daughter-in-law, and grandson would rather die than yield.
Qian Xunqian shook her head and ordered her people to seize the three of them and lock them up. The adults could be crippled first. As for the child, that would depend on how he behaved. It was only three more bowls of prison food, after all; she could afford that.
She wasn't a bloodthirsty person, especially when it came to children. They posed no threat to her anymore, so whether she killed them or not made no difference. Keep them locked up long enough, and they'd eventually forget most of their hatred and gratitude anyway...
As for killing someone in front of a crowd to make an example of them?
She had considered it, but she disdained using such a method to secure loyalty.
She was certain that as long as Spirit Hall was strong enough and beloved by the people, there'd be no need to shore up so-called loyalty or prestige.
Because all she had to do was stand there, and countless people would want to come work for her of their own accord. That was a good reputation! That was confidence!
Now the entire Clear Sky Sect stood empty, with only a dozen or so stubborn souls still holding out against the gale.
Chrysanthemum Douluo stepped forward.
"Your Holiness, should we...?"
He made a throat-slitting gesture.
"Capture them all, cripple their cultivation, and lock them up in Spirit Hall's prison!"
And so, like leaves swept away by the autumn wind, every non-core faction of the Clear Sky Sect was subdued.
It was a pity she didn't know where the Clear Sky Sect had gone into seclusion. Otherwise, she would have taken Tang Xiao and the others down in one fell swoop by now.
"Those rats were quick to run. They'd better stay holed up in their burrow for the rest of their lives and never come out! Elder Ju, issue a proclamation across the entire Douluo Continent:"
"The Clear Sky Sect has been brought under the control of Spirit Hall. However, some remnants remain at large. The Clear Sky Sect's disciples are being reorganized into a new Clear Sky Sect. Anyone who discovers traces of suspected remnants of the original Clear Sky Sect must report them to Spirit Hall immediately. Verified information will be rewarded with 1,000 Gold Soul Coins!"
"Have those outer sect disciples draw portraits of Tang Xiao and the others. Put them on the wanted list across the entire Douluo Continent!"
"Withdraw the troops!"
After returning to Spirit Hall, Ghost Douluo had already been waiting in Pope's Palace for quite some time.
"Your Holiness, the person you ordered me to capture has been apprehended. I've assigned people to keep watch over her. May I ask what you intend to do with her?"
"Thank you for your hard work, Ghost Elder. Sorry for the trouble, but please have people distribute a notice across the entire Douluo Continent. State that Tang Yuehua, daughter of the former Clear Sky Sect leader and a criminal, has been brought to justice. If Tang Hao or any other members of the former Clear Sky Sect dare attack one of our Spirit Branch Halls, we'll parade her through the streets and subject her to public execution by a thousand cuts!"
"Also, send more personnel to all our Spirit Branch Halls. Each one must have at least one expert at the Soul Saint level or above. Equip each of them with a Level 8 Soul Guidance Defensive Shield and a Soul Guidance Gun, in case of emergency."
"As for Tang Yuehua, send her to the secret chamber first. I'm going to give that noble young lady a good, loving treatment. Heh heh heh..."
Gui Mei nervously swallowed. Had Her Holiness been suppressing herself for too long all these years?
Under Spirit Hall's ironclad policies, anyone who dared reveal a Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul would be thoroughly investigated. Their home address, their parents' places of origin, and even their ancestors going back eighteen generations would all be dug up.
They would be interrogated for three days and three nights, and wouldn't be let go until it was confirmed beyond doubt that they weren't remnants of the original Clear Sky Sect.
The Clear Sky Sect disciples who joined Spirit Hall couldn't stand the harassment. They all holed up in the new sect to cultivate, never going out unless absolutely necessary.
The Clear Sky Hammer had vanished entirely from the Soul Master World. Seeing one even once a year in the major Soul Fighting arenas was already rare.
Tang Hao now brought his wife's belongings and Tang San, who had come free with a phone top-up, to the place where the dream first began—
Holy Soul Village.
With his younger sister held captive by Spirit Hall, if he dared seek revenge on the Spirit Branch Hall, Tang Yuehua would be stripped naked and paraded through the streets. The Clear Sky Sect would lose all face!
Tang Hao cared more about the Clear Sky Sect's reputation than Tang San would one day care about Xiao Wu. For the sake of the sect's dignity, he didn't dare vent his anger on the Spirit Branch Hall.
But keep your anger bottled up too long without letting it out, and you'll explode. With nowhere else to vent his rage, Tang Hao could only take his blade to the weaker.
Tang San became the target of all Tang Hao's anger and resentment.
He was even crueler than in the original story!
Tang San had suffered violence at Tang Hao's hands since he was little. He'd get a minor beating every three days and a major one every five.
Afterward, Tang Hao would stand on the moral high ground and patiently console Tang San:
"Little San, your father's doing this for your own good! How can you become successful without going through hardships? All right! Go make me some food!"
Then Tang San would limp off to cook porridge for Tang Hao.
Tang Hao had always been a young master. The only skill he knew was blacksmithing, and even as a blacksmith, he could be a real nuisance.
Sometimes his laziness kicked in and he'd delay orders. Other times, he'd get the urge to hammer something and make whatever he felt like.
If someone asked for a hoe, he'd make them a hammer instead. In the end, villagers from every nearby village would rather travel all the way to Nuoding City to find a blacksmith than ask Tang Hao to do the work.
Without Ah Yin, Tang Hao became even lazier, and called it "the listlessness of a widower."
Ah Yin: Didn't I tell you to take good care of Tang San before I died? What are you doing now?
Tang Hao: Of course I'm taking care of him! My grandfather treated my father this way, and my father treated me this way. Our Tang family has passed down this abusive style of education for generations. Beating a child is just another way of teaching him!
Some villagers in Holy Soul Village felt sorry for Tang San. Even though they weren't keen on it, they still went to Tang Hao for blacksmithing work, just to help the poor child out.
Old Jack, the village chief, was especially kind to Tang San. Whenever his family had anything left over, he'd bring some to Tang San's home.
Though, in the end, most of it wound up in Tang Hao's stomach.
Still, compared with Tang San's beast of a father, the villagers of Holy Soul Village had truly done everything they could for him!
Unfortunately, as the original story went on, Tang San forgot the village chief, Old Jack, who had been so kind to him when he was young.
Instead, he could never repay the kindness of Tang Hao, who had abused him from childhood.
All that could be said was that Tang San had something of a masochistic streak.
Before long, while Tang San was being beaten by Tang Hao again, Tang Hao slapped him to death.
The most talented disciple of the Bashu Tang Sect had only lived to the age of two after being reincarnated before he was gone.