Tang Hao's Killing Intent!

Piaoxiang Village, village entrance.

A tall, stubbly middle-aged man holding a wine flask walked over unsteadily.

He wore a dusty, coarse-clothed outfit, his hair as messy as a chicken coop, with a hint of drunkenness on his face, looking for all the world like a down-and-out drunk.

It was Tang Hao.

"Boss, fill a flask of wine."

Tang Hao walked up to the small wine shop at the village entrance and plunked the wine flask down on the counter.

The wine shop boss was a plump, middle-aged fellow who glanced at him and briskly took the flask.

"Old Tang, how come you ran all the way to Piaoxiang Village for wine today? Did the wine shop over at Shenghun Village close down?"

"I'm sick of the wine over there, wanted a change of taste."

Tang Hao casually prevaricated, his eyes nonetheless darting a glance toward the village.

Strange.

Usually at this hour, Piaoxiang Village should be quite quiet.

Yet today, a large crowd surrounded the village entrance square, shouting and clamoring as if celebrating something.

"Why is your village so lively today?" Tang Hao took the wine flask and asked casually.

The wine shop boss's eyes lit up, and he said with beaming excitement, "You didn't know? Lord Soul Master came to our village today to awaken martial souls!"

"Awaken martial souls?"

Tang Hao took a swig of wine, unconcerned. "They awaken every year, what's there to get excited about?"

"Bah! This year is different!"

The wine shop boss slapped his thigh and lowered his voice. "Our village produced a genius!"

"A genius?"

"You bet! The kid's name is Jiang Hao. The kids say that when his martial soul awakened, the room was full of light, shining as bright as day! And he even has Innate Full Soul Power. This is the first soul master in Piaoxiang Village in ten years, how can we not celebrate..."

The more the wine shop boss spoke, the more excited he became, spittle flying everywhere.

Tang Hao's action of drinking paused, his brow furrowing imperceptibly.

Innate Full Soul Power?

This was a once-in-a-century talent. If Tang San did not have Twin Martial Souls, he might not even possess it.

Yet a commoner born in a remote village—how could he possess such talent?

Thinking of this, a trace of crimson flashed across the bottom of Tang Hao's eyes, and he probed tentatively, "With talent this strong, the people of Spirit Hall will definitely try to recruit him, right?"

"Of course."

"Then did he agree?"

"That, he didn't."

Tang Hao frowned slightly, thinking to himself that it was a pity.

"However..."

The wine shop boss suddenly changed the subject, "The village chief is already persuading him, and I reckon in the end he'll still choose to join Spirit Hall."

"If this matter goes through, the village will hold another banquet. If you want to come, I can notify you in advance."

"Is that so?"

Tang Hao lowered his gaze and took a swig of wine, saying offhandedly, "Where does that kid live?"

"Bah, just that broken thatched cottage at the eastern end of the village. His parents left early, leaving him all alone."

As the wine shop boss spoke, he even raised a finger to point the direction. "If you want to see him, you can come over for a bite to eat tonight. Anyway, our village is happy today, we won't mind an extra pair of chopsticks."

Tang Hao waved his hand. "Forget it, I'm an outsider, what am I joining the fun for?"

He picked up the wine flask and turned to leave, though his face no longer held the drunkenness from just moments ago.

The wine shop boss watched Tang Hao's departing back and scratched his head. "This drunkard, how come he talked so much today..."

Night, stars sparse and moon bright.

Jiang Hao rubbed his belly and strolled leisurely along the road home.

He hadn't originally wanted to eat so much, but he couldn't resist the villagers' enthusiasm.

Just using water to substitute for wine had almost bloated him.

Fortunately, after awakening his martial soul, his physical constitution had received a wave of enhancement, otherwise he really wouldn't have been able to withstand it.

Suddenly, the system prompt rang in his ear.

[Detected that a mysterious protector has appeared for the suppression object, generating hostility toward the host. Returning suppression reward: one ninety-sixth-level Titled Douluo protector!]

Jiang Hao instantly felt a chill run down his spine.

The mysterious protector of the suppression object—wasn't this old schemer Tang Hao?

He hadn't provoked him, so how had hostility been generated?

Could it be...

Jiang Hao glanced around his surroundings and quickened his pace toward home.

Meanwhile, in a dense forest a hundred meters away.

A tall figure wearing a tattered bamboo hat stood under the shade of the trees, his black-and-white distinct eyes staring fixedly at Jiang Hao's departing back.

It was Tang Hao.

After learning of Jiang Hao's talent in the afternoon, he hadn't gone home at all, instead squatting near the village and waiting for a suitable opportunity to strike.

Even though Jiang Hao had no intention of joining Spirit Hall, after experiencing the Blue Silver Emperor incident, Tang Hao had cultivated a habit of nipping risks in the bud.

"Was I discovered..."

A trace of coldness flashed across the bottom of Tang Hao's eyes.

As expected of a genius with Innate Full Soul Power, he was actually able to discover hostility lurking in the dark.

That being the case, he couldn't be left alive all the more.

Tang Hao lowered his bamboo hat, and just as he wanted to step forward to deal with Jiang Hao, a large, knuckle-defined hand silently clamped onto his shoulder.

Immediately following, a cold voice rang out.

"My friend, trailing my young master in the middle of the night—do you think that's appropriate?"

Tang Hao's pupils constricted, his muscles instantly tightening all over.

This person was actually able to appear behind him without a sound; his strength was definitely not weaker than his own.

And the young master this person spoke of was most likely that Jiang Hao.

To have a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse above level ninety act as a protector—what mysterious background did this Jiang Hao actually have?

At this thought, Tang Hao chuckled softly, "My friend, I say this is a misunderstanding, do you believe it?"

His old injuries had not healed, and his strength was not at its peak.

Even if he took down this person, he would pay an extremely heavy price.

"A misunderstanding?"

The person behind him smiled contemptuously. "Then if I beat you up right now, can that count as a misunderstanding?"

The atmosphere instantly fell silent.

Only the whimpering sound of the night wind passing through the forest trees remained.

The next moment, the ground beneath the two men's feet cracked inch by inch, and the trees within a ten-meter radius snapped off at the roots.

Piaoxiang Village, village entrance square.

"Come, come, come, Old Zhangtou, have another cup!"

"Drink! We're happy today! Our village finally produced a soul master!"

Two dozen tables were packed full, the villagers shouting for finger-guessing games and bragging, lively enough to rival the New Year.

Grandpa Wang held a bowl of wine, his face glowing red.

He was bragging to several old cronies about how wise and mighty he had been back in the day, having long since seen that the kid Jiang Hao was going to amount to something.

Suddenly.

"Boom!"

The ground gave a violent jolt.

Bowls and dishes on the tables rattled loudly, and several jars of wine rolled off the tables, smashing to pieces.

The clamor abruptly ceased.

The villagers looked at each other in dismay, for a moment failing to react to what had happened.

"What is it? An earthquake?"

"Can't be, this place hasn't quaked for hundreds of years."

"Could it be the mountain god is angry?"

Grandpa Wang put down his wine bowl, frowned as he looked around, and then lowered his gaze to the ground beneath his feet.

There was no more movement.

"Bah! Reckon some mountain collapsed on one side, never mind it, keep drinking!"

As the words fell.

"Boom!!!"

Another muffled sound rang out, more violent than the previous one.

This time even the wine bowls on the tables bounced up.

A plump auntie failed to sit steady and landed flat on her backside, crying out in pain.

"Oh dear! This damn thing really is an earthquake!"

"No! Listen!"

A sharp-eared young man suddenly shouted, "The sound is coming from the eastern end of the village!"

The eastern end of the village?

Grandpa Wang was stunned. Wasn't that the direction of Jiang Hao's home?