The Body

As the words fell, Song Que whipped his Zanpakutō through the air, and a gale swept across the entire courtyard.

Countless fine strands of green wind crisscrossed overhead, weaving into a deadly net that descended on the crowd.

Screams rang out one after another. Blood stained the courtyard floor red in an instant.

In moments, every disciple there was dead. Only Sect Master Tie Li remained, drenched in blood and standing rooted to the spot.

Song Que's eyes flickered as he began to chant:

"Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six!"

"Bakudō #61: Six Rods Prison of Light!"

Six rods of light appeared from nowhere and locked Tie Li in place, leaving him unable to move.

"I'll leave him to you, Tang Ya."

With that, Song Que flashed forward and collided with a figure lunging toward him.

"Who dares cause trouble in my Ironblood Sect?"

Three people rushed out of the rear courtyard.

One was an old man who looked remarkably like Tie Tang. The other two were about his age.

A cold glint flashed in Tang Ya's eyes.

"Old dog Tie Li."

At once, a thick strand of Blue Silver Grass wrapped around Tie Tang's neck and yanked hard.

Crack!

Tie Tang stiffened. His life vanished in an instant.

"You damned little wretch!" Tie Li, whom Song Que had forced back, roared and turned bloodshot eyes on Tang Ya.

But Song Que gave him no opening. White light flowed over Tsuchinamazuki in his hand as he readied his next strike.

"Bei Bei, take care of one Soul King."

Bei Bei formed a massive Thunder Dragon Head in his hand and sent it charging forward. A wide-ranging thunderstorm erupted, swallowing one of the old men whole.

"No problem!"

Song Que nodded, then abruptly switched targets. In a single stride, he appeared before the other old man at the gate and swept Tsuchinamazuki forward from behind him.

"Explosive Bullet Rush!"

Boom! Tsuchinamazuki unleashed a streak of white flame that engulfed the old man and exploded.

With Song Que no longer in front of him, Tie Li's expression changed drastically. He had no time to think and charged straight at Song Que.

He roared, and six Soul Rings appeared: white, yellow, yellow, purple, purple, and purple.

The Iron-Armed Bear entered Martial Soul Possession. Tie Li swelled to two and a half meters tall, his arms growing especially thick and the rest of his body powerfully built.

He swung those enormous arms. Bolstered by his third Soul Ring, they were hard as tempered steel, ringing as they collided with Song Que's short blade.

"Oh? Not bad. I wouldn't have guessed you were this tough!"

Song Que sneered. Green light blazed from his short blade, and wind blades clung to its edge as he sent it whistling forward.

"Try taking this one. I'll cut through those iron arms of yours!"

Meanwhile, several figures quietly appeared on the upper floor of the restaurant where the group had been moments earlier.

At their head stood a young woman with beautiful features and long dark hair falling down her back.

"Ao Tian, what do you think of those two inside?"

"They're impressive. Especially the boy with the blade. He's interesting enough to make me itch for a fight."

"What is it, Vena? Do you have something in mind?"

The young woman was Vena, princess of the Heaven Dou Empire. She smiled faintly but did not answer at once. Instead, she looked elsewhere.

"Hm? Spiritual fluctuations!"

Vena looked down at the two boys, surprise flashing through her eyes.

Blue light flickered in one boy's eyes. It was Huo Yuhao.

"His eyes? A Body Martial Soul?!" Vena exclaimed.

"Hm?!" Her words caught the interest of an old man behind her. He rose from his seat and looked down.

"Spiritual detection? Interesting. It seems the little fellow has noticed us," the old man said with a smile.

"It really is a Body Martial Soul, and his eyes at that. Excellent. What an unexpected find! Hahaha."

"Come on, let's go down and have a look. If he has a Body Martial Soul, we'll bring him back to the Body Sect."

Vena and Long Aotian exchanged a glance and nodded, then made their way downstairs.

"I really didn't expect this," Vena said softly. "It looks like they're all from the Tang Sect."

The old man smiled. "Every Body Martial Soul in the world belongs in the Body Sect. There's no question about that."

"The Tang Sect is nothing but a fallen sect, hardly worth mentioning. Joining the Body Sect is that boy's best choice."

Vena nodded. "The people inside are quite strong too, and they look about my age."

"It would be good if we could recruit them."

The old man nodded. The boy wielding the short blade had left a deep impression on him.

"Indeed. That boy is no ordinary fighter. He may be every bit as strong as Ao Tian."

"A pity he doesn't have a Body Martial Soul."

Watching the fight inside the Ironblood Sect, a sly look crossed his face. He turned to Vena with a smile. "Vena, this is perfect. An opportunity has fallen right into your lap."

"You might as well use it to bring them all in."

Vena's eyes shifted as she grasped his meaning. The corners of her mouth rose, and she nodded.

"I understand. Then I'll put these youngsters on the back foot first."

At the old man's assessment, Long Aotian's eyes flickered, his desire to fight growing stronger.

"I'd like to face him myself."

"The other boy with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon isn't bad either. Unfortunately, his Soul Power is a little too low. Otherwise, I'd like to test him too."

The three talked as they walked and soon arrived before Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong.

The sight of them made both Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong tense.

Huo Yuhao had detected them long ago, but the old man's Soul Power was unfathomable, so he had not dared make a move.

All he could do was watch and see what they wanted.

The three fixed their gazes on Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong.

Vena's eyes narrowed. She spoke first, her voice cold. "You have some nerve."

"The Ironblood Sect has stood in Heaven Dou City for years. It is a registered sect of the Heaven Dou Empire, yet you dared trespass on its grounds at night and slaughter its members. Do you think the laws of the Heaven Dou Empire mean nothing?"

She took a step forward, her presence bearing down on them.

"I am Vena, princess of the Heaven Dou Empire. You will explain what happened here tonight."

The old man said nothing. He merely stood with his hands behind his back, calmly observing the two youths.

Wang Dong frowned and was about to argue, but Huo Yuhao raised a hand to stop her.

Huo Yuhao remained composed, entirely undaunted by Vena's royal status. He looked straight at her and answered in a clear, firm voice. "Your Highness is right. The laws of the Heaven Dou Empire are strict. Private fighting is forbidden."

"But when Tie Li, the Ironblood Sect Master, bribed the Heaven Dou City garrison and slaughtered the Tang Sect's remaining members at its old estate in the dead of night, why did no one intervene?"

"Every defender at the Tang Sect estate died that night. Only one person escaped. Where were the laws of Heaven Dou City then? Where was the garrison's discipline? No one ever came forward to seek justice."

Huo Yuhao met Vena's gaze, neither humble nor defiant.

"All we've done today is reclaim what rightfully belongs to the Tang Sect and settle an old debt."