Douluo Guang Ling

Su Xianling looked at Chu Heng, the same question showing on her face.

"To see my teacher."

"..."

Chu Heng could only let her pull him farther up the Holy Mountain. But as they walked, his expression gradually stiffened.

The Papal Palace was already behind them, and they had passed the Elder Hall without going in. Yet Su Xianling kept leading him higher up the Holy Mountain.

What else was up there?

Chu Heng's throat bobbed.

Gulp...

It couldn't be, could it? Douluo Hall stood higher up, but it enshrined Spirit Hall's Titled Douluo of generations past. No one living was there!

That left only one place: the Worship Hall.

Chu Heng's steps turned mechanical. The vague suspicion in his mind suddenly came into focus.

Spirit Hall had only seven worshippers, each a powerhouse at the pinnacle of the continent. One of them was Su Xianling's teacher. Then there was her Martial Soul: the Starbreak Bow.

A figure flashed through Chu Heng's mind. There seemed to be only one answer.

Spirit Hall's Fifth Worshipper. A rank ninety-six Super Douluo. Douluo Guang Ling. His Martial Soul: the Lightfeather Divine Bow.

Chu Heng shot Su Xianling an aggrieved look.

Come on, you could've warned me your teacher was a little more important than I expected!

Chu Heng followed Su Xianling all the way to a palace at the summit of the Holy Mountain. When she stopped outside, he stopped beside her.

The palace before them was not as splendid as the Papal Palace, but it carried a quiet, imposing majesty of its own. The surroundings were strangely still. There was not even a guard in sight.

Su Xianling straightened her sleeves, faced the closed doors, and lowered her head slightly.

"Teacher, your disciple has returned."

With that, she waited quietly outside. Chu Heng stood obediently beside her.

Before long—

Rumble...

The closed doors slowly swung inward. The instant they opened, a vast surge of Soul Power burst from the palace.

Chu Heng had no time to react. The force drove him back one step, then another, until his heels reached the edge of the stone steps and he was about to lose his balance. Just as his foot threatened to slip into empty air, Su Xianling grabbed his wrist and pulled him back.

Chu Heng's heart jolted.

So this was a Super Douluo? A casual release of Soul Power was enough to keep me from standing my ground.

"Come in..."

A distant, cool male voice came from inside. Before either of them could move, another invisible force of Soul Power enveloped them. Chu Heng felt his body grow light as it propelled him into the hall, taking Su Xianling in with him.

Bang.

The doors shut behind them. They had barely found their footing when Su Xianling dropped to one knee, bowed her head, and cupped her hands.

"Greetings, Teacher!"

Seeing how formally she greeted him, Chu Heng prepared to kneel as well. But the moment he bent his knees, an invisible force held him up.

Chu Heng froze. He tried again, but still could not kneel.

???

What was that supposed to mean?

Bewildered, Chu Heng finally worked up the nerve to raise his head and look at the figure in the hall. One glance, and his gaze locked in place.

The man looked no older than a boy. He wore plain white fitted clothes, and his fine features had a youthful delicacy to them. Leaning against a stone pillar, he idly moved his fingers while a faint thread of icy blue light flowed between them.

He looked only fifteen or sixteen, yet the mere sight of him stirred an instinctive sense of danger in Chu Heng.

Douluo Guang Ling.

"Little Xianling has every reason to kneel before me."

The man spoke evenly, his gaze settling on Chu Heng.

"But who are you, little one?"

Chu Heng opened his mouth to answer, but no sound came out.

Worse, he soon realized he could not move any part of his body.

"..."

So he wasn't asking me at all?

Sure enough, Su Xianling raised her head.

"Teacher, Chu Heng is a young genius I met during my travels."

She paused, her expression utterly serious.

"I believe you are the only person in the world fit to teach him. That is why I brought him here without asking, so you could take a look at him."

The icy blue thread turning between Guang Ling's fingers went still. In the next instant, his figure vanished before Chu Heng could make out a single movement. When he reappeared, he was already standing before Su Xianling.

He caught her by the wrist and pulled her straight to her feet. The coolness on his face gave way to a smile.

"Well, well, Little Xianling. Are you praising your teacher, or finding a roundabout way to praise this little fellow?"

Su Xianling's face stiffened. She promptly shook off Guang Ling's hand and turned away.

"See for yourself, Teacher. I rushed all the way back and I'm tired. I need to rest."

With that, she actually skipped over to a chair in the hall and sat down.

Chu Heng could only stare.

Wait, what? She was kneeling so respectfully and calling him Teacher a moment ago. How had things changed this much after two sentences?

And this was Spirit Hall's Fifth Worshipper? A rank ninety-six Super Douluo? He was nothing like Chu Heng had imagined.

"No manners."

Guang Ling tossed out the rebuke, but there was little real reproach in his voice.

When he turned back to Chu Heng, however, his smile vanished. The air of a somewhat frivolous boy fell away, and his entire bearing changed in an instant.

As that gaze settled on him, Chu Heng's heart tightened for no apparent reason.

"Little one."

Guang Ling's voice turned cold.

"You've got quite a lot on your mind."

Chu Heng's pupils contracted, and his heart gave a violent thump.

What did he mean? What had he seen?

Countless thoughts raced through Chu Heng's mind.

Fortunately, Guang Ling said no more. The force holding Chu Heng in place suddenly dispersed.

Chu Heng was about to catch his breath when another force pressed toward him from the front.

"Urgh!"

He lost his balance at once and fell backward, landing in a chair.

At the same time, Guang Ling waved a hand, and a chair appeared behind him. He sat down unhurriedly, propped his cheek on one hand, and watched Chu Heng.

"Tell me. Who sent you to get close to Xianling?"

The moment he spoke, the entire hall seemed to change. A soul-shaking pressure ran through Chu Heng's body. His breath caught, and his heart felt as though someone had seized it in a crushing grip.

Su Xianling's expression changed as she sat nearby.

"Teacher..."

She started to rise, but a surge of Soul Power forced her back down. Her brows drew tight, yet she could not break free.

Chu Heng gritted his teeth. Fine beads of sweat had gathered on his forehead. Under that crushing pressure, he could not think of a suitable answer.

Then I won't say anything.

Chu Heng steadied himself. Guang Ling did not press him further, merely watched him in silence.

After a long while, the nearly suffocating pressure vanished. Chu Heng's body went slack against the chair, and he gasped for air. When he raised his head again, there was unmistakable fear in his eyes.

A faint smile returned to Guang Ling's face, as though he had not been the terrifying figure from a moment before.

"Don't be nervous, little one."

He smiled at Chu Heng.

"I was only asking..."