Farewell to the Lecherous Three Scoundrels

With the Human-Skin Mask, Ning Chen finally no longer needed to hide from the eyes of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School.

He could openly go wherever he wanted and do whatever he wished.

As for the Human-Skin Mask's side effects, they were easy enough to avoid. He simply had to strictly keep each alteration of his physical state within half an incense stick's time.

After selling off his unwanted odds and ends at low prices, Ning Chen gave up the house he had lived in for several months in Soto City and prepared to set out for Heaven Dou City, the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.

His next target was the immortal herbs surrounding the Icefire Yin-Yang Well in Sunset Forest near Heaven Dou City.

As one of the must-have opportunities in Douluo, it was an encounter he absolutely could not miss, just like Whale Glue.

Leaving such a treasure in Dugu Bo's hands was truly a waste. Rather than letting Tang San and the Shrek Seven Devils benefit from it in the end, Ning Chen might as well claim it for himself.

With everything ready, Ning Chen prepared to leave Soto City.

This time, he did not buy a carriage.

With his current strength, combined with the speed boost of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda and the Wind-Chasing Boots, he was far faster than ordinary horses.

As he headed toward Soto City's gate, three people followed him sneakily one or two hundred meters behind.

They were none other than Bule, Tianya, and Ekao—the Lecherous Three Scoundrels who had tried to attack Ning Chen in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Bule, who was at the front, glared viciously at Ning Chen's back. "That brat finally came out!

"It's been two months since we spotted him in Soto City, and he's stayed cooped up at home every day!"

The gaunt Ekao was somewhat displeased. "I say, Bule, why are you so determined to go after this kid?

"It was just a soul tool. Maybe he got it by chance. He stayed home for two whole months—no matter how you look at it, he doesn't seem rich."

Tianya was equally speechless. If Bule had not insisted on squeezing a hefty sum from that brat, they would not have spent two months lingering in the eastern district.

"I wanted to make a move back in the Star Dou Great Forest, but that brat got lucky and escaped."

Bule snorted coldly. "I had to go hunt soul beasts then. Otherwise, with my temperament, how could I have returned empty-handed?

"Now that I've seen him again, it's Heaven's sign that I should get what I want!

"Money is secondary. What matters is venting this anger."

Tianya shot Bule a sidelong glance and spoke in his magnetic voice. "You were the one trying to rob him. Why are you the angry one?"

"Enough, Old Goose, Tianya. Just help your brother out this time. Whenever you two had trouble, when did I ever let you down?"

Bule was not lying. Although the three were Soto City's notorious lecherous scoundrel trio, their bond was genuine.

Otherwise, Tianya and Ekao would not have stayed in the eastern district for two months just because Bule said so.

"Fine. Let's make this quick. I haven't gone out to let off steam in two months—I'm about to burst."

Ekao urged Bule, "That brat is about to leave the city. Hurry up. We'll kill him directly outside the city and be done with it."

The other two nodded and quickened their pace.

In the Soul Master World, fighting each other was commonplace. Even accidentally killing an opponent was no big deal.

Thus, the three casually decided Ning Chen's final fate.

Ning Chen, however, knew nothing of what was happening behind him. Only after leaving the city, when there were fewer people around, did he notice something amiss.

He immediately activated the Wind-Chasing skill attached to his Wind-Chasing Boots.

The level-four Wind-Chasing Boots' Wind-Chasing skill provided an explosive two-hundred-percent movement speed increase and lasted ten seconds.

Combined with his already considerable speed, even without the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's speed boost, ordinary Soul Ancestors could not catch him.

As expected, Bule's group soon lost Ning Chen's trail again.

"Damn it, he got away again?"

Bule and the others quickly reached the forest where Ning Chen had vanished, but it was already completely empty.

The scene was practically a replay of what had happened in the Star Dou Great Forest.

"That brat is as slippery as a loach. At the slightest disturbance, he hides who knows where," Ekao said from the side.

"What do you say, Bule? Still chasing?" Tianya asked Bule as well.

"Chase. Keep chasing. I refuse to believe it. At most, he's a Grand Soul Master—can he really escape the pursuit of three Soul Ancestors?"

Bule said viciously.

At that moment, he felt as though Ning Chen had toyed with him like a mouse, and he was nearly bursting with rage.

He made up his mind that he would not rest until he caught Ning Chen this time!

But just then, a slightly teasing voice came from the trees above them. "Who are you three looking for?"

The three looked up and saw a tall, upright young man in fitted azure clothing standing on a branch overhead. His face was utterly unfamiliar.

"Who are you?"

Someone had approached them without making a sound. The three immediately became alert, summoning their Martial Souls as they stared gravely at the stranger above.

This person was naturally Ning Chen. He had merely used the Human-Skin Mask to assume a face the three had never seen, while his physique had also changed somewhat.

"Who I am isn't important. What matters is that I know who you are—Bule, Ekao, Tianya, right?"

Ning Chen said.

"Who exactly are you? The three of us do not seem to know you, sir."

Tianya was the most composed, so he naturally stepped forward at this moment.

"I already said it. Who I am isn't important. I came to find you this time at someone's request, to deliver something to you."

As he spoke, an azure bead appeared out of thin air in Ning Chen's hand, and he casually tossed it toward the three.

"What is that?"

The three did not dare catch it and allowed the Azure Flame Pearl to fall to the ground.

Unfortunately, avoiding the Azure Flame Pearl did not mean they would be safe.

The Azure Flame Pearl landed less than a meter away from them.

A triumphant smile appeared at the corner of Ning Chen's lips.

The three immediately sensed danger and tried to retreat, but it was already too late.

"Explode!"

As Ning Chen uttered that single word, a pale azure glow surfaced across the Azure Flame Pearl's surface.

The instant that glow appeared, the Azure Flame Pearl erupted in a violent explosion.

The tremendous blast was even louder than the simultaneous detonation of the eight Thunderfire Thunderbolt Bombs that had ambushed the Rock Crystal Beast.

When the smoke cleared, a crater more than ten meters across had appeared where the Azure Flame Pearl had fallen. Its interior was charred black, with only scattered azure flames still burning.

Bule and the others lay at the edge of the crater blasted out by the Azure Flame Pearl. Ekao and Tianya had collapsed on the ground, their bodies completely blackened and their breaths exceedingly weak. They looked as though they would not survive.

As for Bule, the two semicircles formed by his Heavenly Net Twin Shields Martial Soul protected him within them.

Though he was not grievously wounded to the point of death, his Martial Soul had been blown apart, and he had also suffered injuries from the Martial Soul's backlash. At the very least, he would be unable to use his Martial Soul for several months, leaving his combat strength drastically reduced!