If You're So Capable, Could You Protect Her When Spirit Hall Came Knocking?
Beyond the Heavenly Screen, during the era of Douluo I.
A disciple of the Clear Sky Sect squatted at the edge of the ravine, parting the weeds to reveal a half-collapsed earthen cave. He blinked, dug up some soil, and found it was all freshly turned.
He tried to venture deeper into the passage, which stretched inwards, intermittently, with no end in sight.
He immediately turned around and shouted, "Seventh Elder, there's a tunnel here, we didn't dig it!"
The Seventh Elder strode over, squatted down to take a look, and then reached out to probe the aura inside the cave. The residual aura was faint, somewhat familiar, like that of their Clear Sky Sect. He withdrew his hand, his face darkening. "Since it wasn't you who dug it, and the Soul Power is so thick, then it must be Tang Hao without a doubt."
"Seventh Elder, should we pursue them or not?" the disciple asked.
The Seventh Elder stood up and said, "Let's summon the Sect Master and the other elders first. Once we're all here, we'll enter the cave. He'll be trapped in a dead end then, with no way to escape."
The disciple accepted the order and left.
The Seventh Elder stood at the cave entrance, gazing at the dark tunnel, and sneered, "Tang Hao, how long can you hide? You'll eventually dig to the bottom."
He didn't have to wait long; in less than half a day, Tang Xiao arrived with the First Elder, Second Elder, Fourth Elder, and others. The various groups converged in the ravine, and the disciples surrounded the cave entrance tightly.
"Are you sure it's Tang Hao?" Tang Xiao stood at the cave entrance, his voice a little hoarse, as if he was still clinging to that insignificant bit of family affection.
He was actually heartbroken because Tang Hao had caused Ah Yin's death.
My brother's wife is more important than my brother's younger brother.
"Yes, this residual aura is unmistakable. Even if it were reduced to ashes, I would still recognize it. Apart from Tang Hao, there is no other like him on the entire continent," the Seventh Elder said, his words righteous and stern.
Tang Xiao remained silent for a moment before disappearing into the tunnel, followed closely by several elders, while the disciples of the Clear Sky Sect brought up the rear, carrying lanterns.
The tunnel was narrow, only wide enough for one person at a time, and the deeper they went, the wetter the ground became. Strangely, this time the soil seemed to be naturally separating to make way for them, but everyone sensed something was amiss.
It was as if it were meant to be.
That's right, the Plane Spirit are opening tunnels for these people.
He would provide support with both hands and feet as long as it was for the purpose of killing Tang Hao.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, a natural cave appeared before them, with stalactites hanging from the ceiling and the ground having been man-made.
"Someone lived here." The First Elder crouched down and touched the dampness on the ground. "They haven't been gone long. Keep chasing."
They continued their pursuit, circling the cave. Soon they noticed an inconspicuous crack.
The crack was covered up with rubble.
After moving aside, there was an even narrower passage inside, winding downwards. Tang Xiao was the first to crawl in, and after walking about a hundred steps, a faint light suddenly appeared ahead.
At the end of the passage was an even smaller stone chamber.
In the center of the stone chamber, a man sat cross-legged. His hair was gray, his face was covered in stubble, and his clothes were so tattered they were no longer wearable.
He looked up and saw Tang Xiao, then the elders following behind him, his face expressionless.
"Big brother, what are you doing here?"
Tang Xiao stood three steps away from him. "Don't call me 'big brother.' I don't have a heartless brother like you."
The moment those words left his mouth, Tang Hao's face showed a look of astonishment. He opened his mouth, his voice trembling, "Big brother, what do you mean by this?"
There was a moment of silence in the stone chamber, then a drop of water fell from above, its sound clearly audible as it hit the ground.
"You..." He looked at the elders around him, "Are you all here to kill me?"
The Seventh Elder was the first to burst out laughing, "Of course! You've killed so many people from my Clear Sky Sect! And you still have the nerve to ask us what we're here for!"
"That was done by the Spirit Hall!"
"That was clearly you! It's all because of you that the Spirit Hall attacked us." The elder's voice rose, his words filled with resentment.
Tang Hao's lips moved, his voice trembling. "I didn't!"
The Seventh Elder stopped wasting words, raised his hand, and the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul erupted, causing the giant hammer to appear out of thin air, its body Entanglement with lightning.
The first hammer blow created a deep crater in the room.
Tang Hao dodged, but the stone chamber was too narrow, leaving him nowhere to avoid it. His Clear Sky Hammer struck almost simultaneously, the two black hammers colliding head-on in the stone chamber, the hammer blows shattering the surrounding stalactites into pieces.
"Brother, are you just going to watch?"
Tang Xiao stood motionless in the stone chamber, looking at his younger brother who was missing limbs. In the end, he did not choose to intervene, but that was enough.
The First Elder, Second Elder, and Fourth Elder also surrounded him, and three Clear Sky Hammer simultaneously struck Tang Hao from three directions. Tang Hao's current cultivation level certainly couldn't withstand it.
The Seventh Elder's first hammer blow struck his chest, and Tang Hao spat out a mouthful of blood. The second blow grazed his shoulder, and blood immediately gushed from his arm.
The third blow struck his leg; he groaned and fell straight down.
Given that he has lost two Soul Bone, how could he possibly be a match for three Titled Douluo?
Then he collapsed to the ground, blood gushing from his chest, shoulders, and legs. He tried to prop himself up with his arms, but his body, missing two Soul Bone, was no longer under his control. He managed to lift himself half an inch before falling heavily back down.
The Seventh Elder put away his hammer, walked up to him, and looked down at him. "Tang Hao, it's been so long, how come you've become so weak? A stray dog is a stray dog, and will always be a stray dog."
"You harmed the Clear Sky Sect, and you harmed your so-called wife. You'll stop at nothing for her Soul Ring!"
"I didn't!" Tang Hao said.
"For the sake of a Soul Beast woman, you caused the Clear Sky Sect to be hunted down by the Spirit Hall. For that 100,000-year Soul Ring, you sent Ah Yin to her death." The Seventh Elder grew angrier as he spoke. "How dare you say that?"
"I didn't!" Tang Hao said, "She sacrificed herself willingly..."
"Sacrifice." The Seventh Elder sneered, patting his face. "Why would she sacrifice herself? It's because you took her all over human territory that the Spirit Hall discovered you. You're so capable, unafraid of the Spirit Hall Spirit Hall, but when they come knocking, can you protect her? You can't. You never intended to protect her from the beginning. All you wanted was that Soul Ring."
After saying that, he spat and spat directly onto his face.
Tang Hao's body stiffened; the humiliation was unprecedented.
"Take him back and kill him in front of my father and all my disciples," Tang Xiao said.
"I don't believe it. This kind of person doesn't deserve to die in the Clear Sky Sect," the Seventh Elder said.
"But I have to give my father an explanation," Tang Xiao said.
Upon hearing this, the Seventh Elder agreed, after all, it was Tang Hao who had killed the old sect master.
Meanwhile, in the Heavenly Screen, Yin Hongye was doing something else, crafting the dragon bones he had obtained from Dragon Valley into other things in preparation for the future Demon Plane.
However, a member of the South Sea Legion came to visit.
It is a knife.