Kill Me? Seriously?

Dai Mubai quickly swept past Li Changqing. Apology in his eyes, he called out as he ran, "Brother, run!"

Li Changqing acted as though he hadn't heard. Unmoved, he continued strolling along.

The six men in black behind him spotted Li Changqing too.

One of them called to the Gray-Clothed Man at the front. "Boss, there's someone up ahead. He looks young."

The man at the front was clearly their leader.

The leader said, "The First Prince ordered us to kill everyone we encounter."

Hearing that they meant to kill him, Li Changqing stopped and turned toward the six men. His lips curled in disdain. "You said you were going to kill me?"

"Enough talk. Kill him, then kill the Third Prince," the leader said.

All six men revealed their Soul Rings at once, lighting up the dim forest.

"Fools with a death wish!"

The Thunderblade Sword appeared in Li Changqing's hand. Without even revealing his Soul Rings, he gave a casual swing toward the six men.

A sword strike of peerless sharpness shot out. Before the six men could react, it sliced through their waists. It kept going, cutting down a broad swath of trees before finally dissipating.

Trees toppled one after another, striking the ground with thunderous crashes.

From above, the once-dense forest looked as though a patch had been shaved bald, exposing the earth below.

The six men lay on the ground, severed at the waist. Their intestines spilled out amid the blood, making for a gruesome sight.

They screamed in agony, their eyes filled with terror.

"Who the hell are you?!"

Li Changqing looked at the carnage without the slightest change in expression. To him, it was no different from crushing a few ants.

He gave no answer. He turned and continued on his way.

In the Star Dou Great Forest, the smell of blood would soon draw Soul Beasts. Severed at the waist and unable to move, the six men had no chance of surviving.

Li Changqing had done it deliberately. He wanted them to watch themselves inch toward death and suffer every moment of it.

He was that cruel. Anyone who showed him murderous intent would die in agony.

Dai Mubai was startled by the tremendous crashes behind him and the screams that rose one after another.

When he looked back, he saw a sight he would never forget: a vast stretch of fallen trees, blood and intestines scattered across the ground, and six men crawling along, dragging their entrails behind them.

Dai Mubai's stomach churned. He nearly threw up.

As for the young man from before, he strolled on as though he hadn't seen a thing.

Dai Mubai understood. The young man, who looked little older than him, had done this.

He was unquestionably powerful—at least a Soul Emperor, perhaps even a Soul Saint.

Dai Mubai thought of his own predicament. He had talent, but his elder brother was so much older that he had no time to catch up.

If he could become this man's disciple, he would surely cultivate faster and grow stronger. He might even have a chance to contend for the throne.

With that thought, Dai Mubai rushed in front of Li Changqing and dropped to both knees. "Senior, I am the Third Prince of the Star Luo Empire. I was being hunted, and you saved me. I have Level Nine Innate Soul Power and the Evil-Eyed White Tiger Martial Soul. Please accept me as your disciple!"

Li Changqing frowned. He had no intention of dealing with Dai Mubai and walked straight past him.

Dai Mubai refused to give up.

Li Changqing grew annoyed. He shot Dai Mubai a glare. "Get lost. Keep pestering me, and you'll end up like those men crawling on the ground."

With that, Li Changqing resumed his leisurely walk.

The killing intent in Li Changqing's glare made Dai Mubai's heart leap into his throat. It had been terrifying. Dai Mubai felt that the force of that single look even surpassed his father's—the Star Luo Emperor's.

Dai Mubai swallowed. His father was a Soul Douluo who had reigned for over twenty years. Even some Titled Douluo might not surpass the commanding presence he had developed.

Yet this young man had surpassed his father with a single look. Did that mean he was a Titled Douluo?

Stunned by his own guess, Dai Mubai remained kneeling where he was, watching blankly as Li Changqing disappeared from view.

Only when the roars of Soul Beasts began to sound around him did he come to his senses.

The roars drew closer. Dai Mubai knew it was time to leave. He glanced at the six men still sprawled on the ground, and his stomach churned again.

Hearing the Soul Beasts, the six men grew even more terrified. One frightened himself into unconsciousness.

The others all looked toward Dai Mubai.

"Third Prince, please save me!"

"Third Prince, I was wrong! I shouldn't have obeyed the First Prince's order to hunt you down!"

"Third Prince, kill me! Please!"

Dai Mubai ignored them and ran on in the direction he had been fleeing.

A moment later, human screams rose from that bare patch of forest, mingled with the sounds of Soul Beasts tearing flesh and crunching bones.

The sounds made one's skin crawl.

After leaving the Star Dou Great Forest, Li Changqing visited the Hundred Beasts Hall to catch up with Wu Guangcai.

Though it was nighttime, Wu Guangcai welcomed Li Changqing warmly. Li Changqing did not leave until noon the next day.

Back at his residence in Haagen-Dazs City, Li Changqing absorbed the Titan Giant Ape Left Arm Bone.

Its Soul Bone skills were the same as in the original story: Titan Sky Shatter and Gravity Mire.

Titan Sky Shatter compressed air into a terrifying wave of energy and unleashed it as an attack;

Gravity Mire allowed him to control gravity within a certain range, much like the Titan Giant Ape's Gravity Control Domain.

After absorbing a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone in succession, Li Changqing's Soul Power rose straight to Level Eighty-Two.

If his Soul Power had not been so abundant, his Soul Power Level would have climbed even higher.

After such a tremendous breakthrough, what should he do next?

Enjoy himself, of course. And so Li Changqing once again frequented the pleasure houses, living in utter comfort.

The Gao Family of Northern Qi would have said: this boy has mastered our family's ways. What a pity he never became emperor of Northern Qi.

(Note: Northern Qi was a state during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Whenever a new emperor took the throne, he inevitably put pleasure above all else and indulged in boundless debauchery. Curious readers can look up the details online.)

A few days later, Soul Masters from Spirit Hall discovered the valley where the Titan Giant Ape's corpse lay.

The enormous corpse stunned those who found it. Though Soul Beasts had gnawed much of it away, they could still feel the astonishing power lingering in its remains.

Word soon reached Spirit Hall's leadership, and a man wreathed in a chilling aura and ghostly shadows came to inspect it himself.

He was Gui Mei, the Spirit Hall elder known as Ghost Douluo. He and Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan served under Bibi Dong and were known to countless netizens as her two mighty henchmen.