Haozi Appears, Then Flees in Defeat

"Ha ha, boy, I never thought I'd see the day you came begging this old man for help."

A hearty laugh echoed through the empty surroundings. The next instant, a man who looked like a rosy-lipped, white-toothed youth appeared before Xu Peinian and the others.

This old rascal... Xu Peinian felt rather helpless, but since he was asking for help, he still greeted him with a smile.

"Fifth Grandpa, quit messing around. Let's deal with this first, so we don't become a joke to others."

"Then when you go back this time, you'd better bring me some more fun things. I've already gotten tired of that little thing called a 'Rubik's Cube' you gave me last time."

As Light Feather Douluo spoke, nine Soul Rings of varying colors lit up beneath his feet.

Gangzi and Flender, who stood not far away, trembled all over at the sight, even leaking a couple drops of urine.

"So you're the ones who wanted to bully the young and lay hands on the boy under my protection?"

An enormous ice-blue longbow emanating a chilling aura appeared in Light Feather Douluo's hand. The pressure it radiated forced Yu Xiaogang directly onto the ground, while Flender's knees slowly sank until they touched the earth.

"Y-Your Excellency, this is all a misunderstanding."

Flender, whose martial soul was the flying Cat Eagle, begged for mercy in a stammer under the crushing pressure.

"Heh, that wasn't what you were saying when my Fifth Grandpa wasn't around."

Xu Peinian sneered, then casually said to Light Feather Douluo,

"Kill them. Leave that rabbit alive for now; it'll still be useful later."

A cold glint flashed through Light Feather Douluo's eyes as he gave a slight nod.

He had long since noticed the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast rabbit among the group. Even if Xu Peinian had not said anything, he would never have let these people go.

His slender fingers drew back the bowstring. Light Feather swirled around the divine bow, and an icy arrow condensed entirely from Soul Power appeared upon it.

The charging process seemed slow, but the arrow was actually released in an instant.

Seeing the ice arrow attack with the force to shatter formations, Flender's eyes filled with despair.

Before a Peak Douluo, a mere Soul Sage like him could only dream of moving, much less Yu Xiaogang, who had already been knocked unconscious by the pressure and lay on the ground.

Just then, a somewhat weaker aura suddenly emerged from midair. An enormous pitch-black hammer engraved with patterns descended from the sky and shattered the arrow Light Feather Douluo had casually fired.

A slovenly middle-aged man in tattered clothes arrived immediately afterward. He pulled the hammer from the massive crater in the ground, then stared warily at Light Feather Douluo.

So the Haozi hiding in the shadows had finally shown himself... Xu Peinian pulled Zhu Zhuqing back to a safe distance, crossed his arms, and prepared to quietly watch the good show about to unfold.

"The Clear Sky Hammer? You're Tang Hao!"

Light Feather Douluo's expression shifted slightly. He had vaguely sensed a Titled Douluo-level expert hiding nearby, but he had not expected him to be the Clear Sky Douluo before him.

"Since you know my identity, could you spare their lives?"

Though Tang Hao spoke words of pleading, his gaze remained fixed firmly on Light Feather Douluo.

A level ninety-six Peak Douluo. Though he had never met this man, Tang Hao could roughly guess where he came from. Other than Spirit Hall, the odds of such an unfamiliar Peak Douluo existing on the continent were not high.

"Boy, you're quite famous on Spirit Hall's wanted list. Do you think there's much chance I'll let you go?"

By seniority, Tang Hao was indeed at least a generation below Light Feather Douluo.

At those words, Tang Hao's eyes darkened sharply. He immediately released his pressure to offset the force Light Feather Douluo was exerting on Flender and the others.

"Take them and leave first. Take as many as you can!"

Flender knew this was no time for idle talk. He immediately unleashed his Martial Soul Avatar and, in his urgency, grabbed Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, and the others before flying into the distance.

But he was alone and could not take everyone with him. He failed to bring Tang San, the master, and Ning Rongrong along.

"Trying to leave?"

Light Feather Douluo gave a cold snort. A black halo lit up on the Light Feather Divine Bow, and an arrow with such terrifying energy that the air around it twisted instantly gathered on the bow.

His fingers released the string, and the ice-blue arrow vanished in a flash, shooting straight toward Flender's escaping direction with lightning speed.

Seeing this, Tang Hao immediately unleashed his Martial Soul Avatar. The Clear Sky Hammer in his hand instantly expanded several times over in the wind. Then, a red Soul Ring lit up at the same time as he used the massive hammerhead to intercept the arrow.

The entire sequence flowed smoothly, and at the very last moment, he barely collided with the incoming arrow.

Boom—

The collision kicked up an enormous cloud of dust.

When the dust settled, two long, deep gouges could be seen extending from beneath Tang Hao's feet.

A single ordinary soul skill from Light Feather Douluo had sent Tang Hao, who had both unleashed his Martial Soul Avatar and used his strongest soul skill, plowing across the ground for hundreds of meters.

"Hmm?"

Light Feather Douluo gave a puzzled sound, then frowned slightly as the Light Feather Divine Bow in his hand abruptly grew larger.

He had to use his full strength now, or that owl would truly get away.

Seeing this, Tang Hao released Divine Slaughter's Domain, expanding it to envelop Light Feather Douluo.

That was not all. Several Soul Rings on Tang Hao's Clear Sky Hammer shattered at once and fused into the hammer, causing energy several times more immense than before to surge from it.

Divine Slaughter's Domain had little effect on Light Feather Douluo. He had already gathered his killing move, and a rain of arrows filled the sky as it shot directly toward Tang Hao.

Tang Hao swung his Clear Sky Hammer at the same time, and their clash once again unleashed a raging tide of energy.

From afar, Xu Peinian watched as the dust raised by the energy surge dissipated. Tang Hao was already gone from the center of the field, along with Tang San and Gangzi, who had been lying on the ground. Only Ning Rongrong remained unconscious on the ground.

Shifting his gaze into the distance, he saw that Tang Hao had used that strike as cover to flee with Tang San and Gangzi. He had never intended to keep fighting.

Light Feather Douluo recovered from the energy clash and saw that Tang Hao had already put a considerable distance between them. Rage immediately rose within him, and he forced himself to condense another arrow despite the backlash to his blood and energy.

Whoosh!

An ice-blue streak carrying the towering fury of a Peak Douluo tore through the air.

It caught up at incredible speed with Tang Hao and his group, who had nearly become black dots on the distant horizon.

Then Xu Peinian saw that black dot plummet stiffly into the forest.

"Boy, stay here for now. I'll go check on the situation!"

Light Feather Douluo left behind that instruction, then turned into an afterimage and rushed toward where Tang Hao had fallen.

Xu Peinian and Zhu Zhuqing were still unable to take part in a battle of this level. Thus, Xu Peinian could only pull Zhu Zhuqing over to sit beside Ning Rongrong and wait quietly for news from Light Feather Douluo.

"Peinian, I'm sorry. I caused you trouble again."

The cool, pleasant voice drifted into Xu Peinian's ears, making him turn to look at her.

"You silly kitten, what are you thinking about again? Even if this had nothing to do with you, Fifth Grandpa wouldn't have let a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast and Spirit Hall fugitives go."

Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing still wanted to argue, Xu Peinian directly used two fingers to cover her cherry-red lips. Then he placed the index finger of his left hand against his own lips in a silencing gesture and said,

"Shh. All right, be good. Just wait here for news and don't overthink it."