Suspicion Among Them

"I, Ning Fengzhi, swear by the ancestors of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School that I never betrayed the Clear Sky School! This is clearly a scheme of alienation by Spirit Hall; they want to watch us turn on each other and defeat ourselves without a fight!"

Tang San was certainly no fool.

Though a trace of suspicion sparked in his heart, he knew his current situation all too well.

The Clear Sky School had cut off contact and his father was heavily injured. If he lost Ning Fengzhi as a shield on top of that, he could only wait for death.

"Uncle Ning, please don't say that!"

Tang San's eyes reddened as he waved his hands repeatedly, speaking in an earnest tone,

"How could Xiaoyuan doubt you? For our sake, you even abandoned your sect's territory, and Grandpa Gu Rong was heavily injured. Xiaoyuan will never forget the kindness you've shown him! This is definitely Spirit Hall's trick, and First Uncle and the others were momentarily confused and fell for it."

Seeing Tang San be so sensible, Ning Fengzhi's expression softened quite a bit.

Although a thorn had been planted in everyone's hearts, at least on the surface, they still seemed harmonious.

"Daddy."

Just as the atmosphere in the secret chamber had relaxed slightly, a sweet voice with a touch of innocence and ignorance suddenly sounded from the corner.

Little Ning Rongrong, who had been sitting obediently in a chair and fiddling with a glazed hairpin in her hands, blinked her clear, large eyes and looked curiously at Ning Fengzhi, asking crisply,

"Daddy, stop arguing. When can Rongrong go awaken her martial soul with Brother San?"

As soon as these words came out, the newly softened atmosphere turned eerie once again.

The bodies of Tang San and Yu Xiaogang stiffened abruptly, and their expressions instantly turned somewhat unsightly, even carrying a hint of awkwardness.

Awakening a martial soul.

These four simple words were currently even more agonizing for Tang San than being killed.

The ironclad rule of Douluo Continent was that one could only awaken a martial soul at six years old.

Yet ever since his rebirth, those prominent figures from his past life not only carried their memories, but their martial souls had also awakened early on, and their cultivation speeds were much faster than in his past life.

Yet look at him, Tang San.

He had held the supreme status of the twin gods in his past life.

Living a second life, he hadn't even awakened his martial soul yet.

Ning Rongrong's seemingly innocent childish words were like a resounding slap, fiercely striking the faces of him and Yu Xiaogang.

"Rongrong, stop making a fuss. Martial soul awakening happens at six years old; your Brother San hasn't reached the age yet."

Ning Fengzhi frowned slightly and reprimarded her softly.

Yet after the reprimand, a deep contemplation—and even a hint of wavering—flashed through the depths of Ning Fengzhi's eyes.

That was right.

Tang San hadn't awakened his martial soul yet.

The reason Ning Fengzhi was willing to withstand the pressure of Spirit Hall and even abandon his sect's territory, unhesitatingly placing all his bets on Tang San, was manifold.

On one hand, it was because of Tang San's destined future of becoming a god in his past life.

On the other hand, it was his own selfishness: he wanted his daughter, Ning Rongrong, to have the advantage of being close to the water to get the first look at the moon before Xiao Wu appeared, firmly seizing the most core position by Tang San's side.

That way, he himself would become the father-in-law of a god.

Yet now, looking at the five-year-old boy before him, Ning Fengzhi's heart shrank slightly.

Tang San hadn't awakened his martial soul yet, which meant that right now, he was merely an ordinary child with no power to truss a chicken!

For a child who still needed at least twenty years to grow up...

Was all of this... really worth it?

What if... what if an accident occurred in this life, Tang San's martial soul awakening went wrong, or he died prematurely halfway?

Wouldn't the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School be doomed to eternal damnation along with him?

Ning Fengzhi's eyes narrowed slightly as he sized up Tang San without a trace, scheming in his heart.

Feeling Ning Fengzhi's gaze, Tang San's heart skipped a beat.

Having lived three lives, he excelled at reading expressions and understood all too well what a sect master of merchant origin like Ning Fengzhi was weighing in his mind.

The moment Ning Fengzhi felt he had lost his investment value, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School would cast him aside at any moment.

"Uncle Ning..."

Tang San forcibly suppressed the humiliation and panic in his heart, took a deep breath, and said with a feigned calmness,

"Rongrong is right. When Xiaoyuan reaches six years old, he will definitely go awaken his martial soul together with Sister Rongrong. Rest assured, with his past-life experience and hidden weapon techniques, even with a late start, Xiaoyuan can still become a god at the fastest speed!"

Tang San was desperately throwing out his chips, attempting to steady Ning Fengzhi's beginning-to-waver heart.

"Xiaoyuan is right."

Yu Xiaogang also sensed that something was amiss, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and said,

"Master Ning, it is always darkest before the dawn. As long as we endure this period, the future of this world will undoubtedly belong to us!"

Listening to the grand blueprint painted by this pair of master and disciple, the gloom on Ning Fengzhi's face dissipated slightly. He smiled warmly, nodded, and said,

"Grandmaster and Xiaoyuan make sense. Naturally, my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School will share weal and woe with you, but... the misunderstandings with the Clear Sky School run too deep right now. We shouldn't show our faces for the time being; let us lie low in the secret chamber for a while."

With that, Ning Fengzhi turned around and gave Sword Douluo a meaningful look.

The two of them quietly retreated to another corner of the secret chamber, widening the distance between themselves and Tang San's group.

Watching Ning Fengzhi's retreating back, although Tang San let out a breath of relief, his back was already soaked in cold sweat.

He knew that Ning Fengzhi's trust had already cracked.

Right now, he was walking a tightrope on the edge of a cliff.

Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong, who had been sitting obediently in her chair watching this scene, lowered her head slightly.

Deep within her eyes, concealed by shadows, a flash of morbid excitement gleamed.

Daddy is already suspicious...

Brother Xiaoyuan, I miss you so much...

Inside the council hall of the Heaven Dou Sacred Hall.

The air was permeated with a faint scent of sandalwood, yet it failed to conceal the pungent smell of blood that had just drifted in from outside the hall.

Qingluan Douluo and Lion Douluo strode into the hall.

Although the two elders bore no wounds, their clothes inevitably carried some bloodstains.

"Hahaha! Exhilarating! Truly exhilarating!"

The moment Lion Douluo entered, he casually found a chair and sat down, casually picked up the wine jar on the table, took a heavy gulp, and laughed with a booming voice:

"This old man was pent up for so long in Jialing Pass during my past life; tonight at Luoma Slope, I finally got to slaughter those scum of the Clear Sky School to my heart's content!"

Qingluan Douluo also walked over and sat down. Though not as boisterous as Lion, the raw gratification in the depths of his eyes could not be concealed no matter what.

He looked toward Ye Yuan, who was seated in the primary seat, nodded slightly, and praised,

"Your Holiness the Holy Son, the battle at Luoma Slope has concluded."

"The Clear Sky School's Third Elder, Seventh Elder, and five hundred secluded elite members—not a single survivor was left."

"Furthermore, that old man Yu Yuanzhen was indeed frightened out of his wits and proved extremely cooperative. He has already used the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon School's top-secret channel overnight to send that traitorous leak letter via an eight-hundred-li urgent courier straight to the Clear Sky School's mountain gate!"