Bai Ling

In a mountain range on the way to Heaven Dou City, Yang Xiu and Hua Xiong stood on a peak, watching the scene below.

Bodies lay everywhere. A wounded level 72 Soul Saint shielded a twelve-year-old girl as he faced two men. One was his sworn brother, a level 71 Soul Saint. The other was a level 82 Soul Douluo from Spirit Hall.

"Second Brother? Why you? Why? Why did you tell Spirit Hall that Ling'er has Innate Full Soul Power?"

"Big Brother, I did it for your family's sake! If Ling'er joins Spirit Hall, our family will have someone powerful to rely on."

"Besides, Spirit Hall promised to make me an administrator at the Spirit Hall Main Hall."

"Big Brother, why are you so stubborn?"

"With Spirit Hall's resources, Ling'er's talent will surely carry her to Titled Douluo."

"She's only twelve and already a level 27 Soul Grandmaster. With Spirit Hall's resources, she might even be a Soul Elder by now."

"Don't you know what Spirit Hall is like? Haven't enough talented people been killed across the continent?"

"And I'll never lead the Bai Family into becoming Spirit Hall's dogs. If you want to be one, go alone."

"I always treated you like a brother. I never imagined you could be this cruel. The six of us have been sworn siblings for over twenty years, and you still found it in yourself to kill them."

"Anyone who stands in my way dies."

At that moment, the man from Spirit Hall spoke.

"Why waste so many words on him?"

"Bai Kai, I'll ask one last time. Will you hand over Bai Ling, or must we kill you and take her?"

Hearing that, Bai Kai seemed to have heard the most absurd joke in the world.

"Hahaha!"

"More than fifty members of my family, young and old, died at your hands, and you still think I'd agree? Impossible!"

He looked back at his daughter, who was crying silently.

"Ling'er, don't blame your father. I'm useless."

"Don't worry. Even if I die, I won't let you become Spirit Hall's puppet."

"If there's truly no other way, I'll have to take you to find your mother," Bai Kai said softly at last. His wife had already fallen on this land. By "find your mother," he meant taking his daughter with him in death.

Bai Ling was so overwhelmed with grief that she heard none of her father's words and gave no answer.

"Hmph. Still stubborn."

"What are you waiting for? Do it."

"Yes, my lord," Blood Knife said, bowing and scraping.

"Big Brother, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Don't call me Big Brother. You don't deserve to, you beast."

Blood Knife's face twisted at Bai Kai's words.

"Bai Kai, it seems you want to die."

Blood Knife was weaker than Bai Kai, but now someone powerful stood behind him, and Bai Kai was wounded. Like a dog whose master had appeared, he began to bark.

"Even wounded, I'm more than a beast like you can defeat."

Neither man wasted another word. Their fury had reached its peak.

They clashed. In less than three minutes, Bai Kai's reckless attacks had left Blood Knife badly wounded, but Bai Kai himself was a bow at the end of its strength. Seeing how useless Blood Knife was, the Soul Douluo had no desire to save him.

He walked toward Bai Ling.

Though Bai Kai was fighting for his life, he had kept his eye on the Soul Douluo. When he saw the man move, panic seized him. He suddenly erupted with greater strength and sent Blood Knife flying with a single blow, blood spraying from his mouth.

Bai Kai rushed to his daughter and prepared to make one final stand.

"Sect Master, should we save them?"

"Things like this happen every day in this world. Can we save them all?"

"The show's nearly over. Let's go."

Yang Xiu was about to leave with Hua Xiong, but the system had other ideas.

"Ding! System mission: Save Bai Kai and his daughter, and kill Blood Knife and Liu Lin. Reward: Increase the age of your third Soul Ring to ten thousand years.

"Invite Bai Ling to join the Flame Emperor Sect and send her to study at Shrek. Reward: One Intermediate Summoning Card."

"Hm? System, are you messing with me?" Yang Xiu grumbled.

"Hua Xiong, save them. Kill those two while you're at it."

"Haha! I knew you were kind, Sect Master!"

Hua Xiong released his Martial Soul and flew out. Before the Soul Douluo could react, he unleashed Hundred-Mile Slash. Liu Lin died beneath the blade before he knew what had happened. He had still been planning to show off. The sudden turn left the three people who remained stunned.

"Hm, Hua Xiong has learned to ambush people," Yang Xiu murmured. It never occurred to him that Hua Xiong had learned from him. Yang Xiu had once ambushed and gravely wounded a thirty-thousand-year-old Soul Beast. That fight had shown Hua Xiong the value of an ambush, especially when it succeeded. Still, Hua Xiong could hardly bring himself to use such a tactic unless driven into a corner.

By then, Hua Xiong had reached Blood Knife. Instead of killing him at once, he asked Bai Kai,

"Want to do it yourself?"

Bai Kai and Blood Knife finally came to their senses. When Bai Kai saw Hua Xiong's nine Soul Rings shining overhead, excitement surged through him. Blood Knife nearly wet himself. He dropped to his knees and called to Bai Kai in the distance.

"Big Brother, I was wrong! They forced me! Spirit Hall forced me!"

"Big Brother, remember how good it was when the six of us were together? Spirit Hall made me do all of this!"

Bai Kai thought of the six sworn siblings, of how only he and Blood Knife remained, and of everything Blood Knife had done. He resolved to act. But just as he moved, Hua Xiong's blade took Blood Knife's head.

"I've never seen anyone so shameless."

"Pah..."

"You hem and haw over everything, wavering when it matters. No wonder your sworn siblings are dead."

Hua Xiong had forgotten that Zhang Liao had said much the same thing to him about a year earlier. Bai Kai stared at Blood Knife's corpse and thought of his dead siblings, his heart desolate. Even so, he immediately turned to Hua Xiong.

"Your Excellency, thank you for saving my daughter and me. We can never repay you for saving our lives, but please leave this place at once. Spirit Hall is very powerful."

By then, Yang Xiu had also arrived.

He came straight to the point with Bai Kai. "You understand your situation. Spirit Hall will hunt you and your daughter without end. Why not join our Flame Emperor Sect? Don't worry, the Sect won't restrict your freedom."

"The Flame Emperor Sect? The one with two Titled Douluo?" Bai Kai said. Then another thought struck him.

Wait. His Excellency is a Titled Douluo too. The Flame Emperor Sect isn't as simple as it appears.

He looked at his daughter, still crying as if her soul had left her, then at the body before her. It was his wife. His heart was exhausted, but without powerful protection, Spirit Hall would hunt them down. Sooner or later, his daughter would be lying there just like her mother.

"How should I address you, sir? Can you speak for the Flame Emperor Sect? My daughter and I are willing to join."

"Yang Xiu. Xiu as in 'never rest until death.' I'm the Sect Master of the Flame Emperor Sect, and my word decides its affairs," Yang Xiu said calmly.

"From now on, the Flame Emperor Sect is your home. Help your daughter through this. The dead are gone; the living matter more."

Two days passed while Bai Kai buried his family. His daughter, Bai Ling, also regained her composure, though the joy had vanished from the twelve-year-old's face. After another day of travel, they reached the Flame Emperor Sect. Its buildings and strength astonished Bai Kai.

Name: Bai Kai (52 years old)

Martial Soul: White Snake (yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black)

Soul Power: Level 27

Innate Soul Power: Level 6

Loyalty: 65

Name: Bai Ling (12 years old)

Martial Soul: Mutant White Snake (yellow, yellow)

Soul Power: Level 27

Innate Soul Power: Level 10

Loyalty: 45

Those were their stats. Bai Kai no longer had much potential for growth, and Yang Xiu had no plans to invest in him. He would probably reach no higher than level 78 or 79 in his lifetime.

Only Yang Xiu, Bai Kai, and Bai Ling were in Yang Xiu's villa.

"Bai Ling, I need you to study at Shrek. The Sect already has someone there, and three more members will go in three years. You'll form a team then. Your father can teach there too, but try not to reveal your identities. If you both agree, I'll have Hua Xiong take you along when he leaves shortly."

Yang Xiu knew Hua Xiong was going to visit his underling that day. Hua Xiong never disclosed who he was on those visits, so the people at Shrek still had no idea Zhao Wuji belonged to the Flame Emperor Sect.

"We'll follow your instructions, Sect Master," Bai Kai and his daughter said.

"I'll go to Shrek with my daughter," Bai Kai added. He could not bear to leave her alone. Lately, she often sat in silence and trained until she could train no more. Though cultivation was much faster at the Sect, they had lost too many loved ones. Faced with a choice between strength and his daughter, he chose his daughter.

"Since neither of you objects, it's settled."

"Go find Hua Xiong. Tell him why you're there, and he'll take you."

After a few final instructions from Yang Xiu, Bai Kai took his daughter to find Hua Xiong.