Beaten to Death Sooner or Later

Tang Hao set the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot before him, then glanced at each in turn.

"Are you sure you don't want to check them one more time?" Dugu Bo asked.

"That's the eighth time you've said that!"

"I just don't want you dying here and fouling my herb garden."

"Don't worry. Before I die, I'll smash the garden flat so you won't have that problem."

Dugu Bo's face darkened.

Standing beside the Stone House, Dugu Yan was at a loss for words.

The two of them clearly cared about each other, yet each had a fouler mouth than the other.

Tang Hao was not as relaxed as he appeared.

He had only recently arrived in this world, but he had inherited a body tormented by old injuries for six years.

Tang Hao's original memories held the knowledge of how to wield the Clear Sky Hammer and perform Ring Detonation. They also held the pain of his heart meridians being torn apart whenever he circulated Soul Power.

Memories, in the end, were not the same as living through it.

But lately, he had tasted more than enough of that pain himself.

If he put this off any longer, it would kill him sooner or later.

Tang Hao picked up the two Immortal Herbs. "Once I go in, if the spring water spills onto the bank, protect the herb garden. Don't touch the water, and don't try to haul me out with Soul Power."

"I know."

"And don't let the water reach that Blue Silver Grass."

Dugu Bo glanced toward it.

The Blue Silver Grass was thriving, and Tang Hao had tended it with particular care. He must have found the rare variety somewhere.

"I know. Since you have so much to say, why not give me your last words while you're at it?"

"Don't worry. I'm not going to die."

Dugu Bo snorted and raised a hand, laying a barrier of Soul Power around the Blue Silver Grass.

Tang Hao wasted no more time. He swallowed both Immortal Herbs at once and leaped into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

The red and white waters surged upward, then slowly closed again where they met.

A bitter chill and a wave of heat rushed into his body together.

Tang Hao gritted his teeth and circulated his Soul Power along the route he had worked out beforehand.

The two herbs' medicinal powers held each other in check. They did not immediately destroy his meridians, but they brought every old injury to the surface.

Years of hidden injuries lay throughout his body. The most troublesome remained the Angel Soul Power near his heart meridians.

Sensing the onslaught of ice and fire, it flared gold and burrowed deeper.

Tang Hao did not rush after it.

He had paid the price the night before when he forced out a lingering wisp.

The Angel Soul Power had been tangled in his damaged meridians for years. Tearing it out by force would tear him apart first.

He let the herbs' power circulate with the cold and hot currents of the spring, gradually shielding the meridians around his heart.

On the bank, Dugu Bo stared at the water.

Fifteen minutes passed without a stir.

Dugu Yan could not help asking, "Grandpa, is Senior Tang Hao all right?"

"A scourge lives a thousand years. He won't die."

Dugu Bo answered at once, but his hand remained raised.

After a while, several strings of bloody bubbles suddenly rose through the water.

Dugu Bo's face changed sharply. He stepped to the edge of the spring.

"Tang Hao!"

No answer came from below.

He lifted his hand, Soul Power already gathered in his palm, but could not bring himself to reach into the spring.

Disturbing the currents where the waters met might prove deadlier than doing nothing.

Dugu Bo looked back at Dugu Yan. "Go back to the Stone House."

"But..."

"I said go back!"

Dugu Yan had never seen her grandfather so stern. She had no choice but to retreat.

Dugu Bo turned back to the spring and cursed under his breath. "You bastard, don't you dare die. I still haven't found a Soul Bone, and Yan Yan's poison isn't cured."

Deep beneath the water, Tang Hao faintly heard him.

Unfortunately, he had no time to answer.

The bloody bubbles were stagnant blood he had forced out. The herbs' power had shielded his damaged meridians; now came the crucial step.

Tang Hao summoned the Clear Sky Hammer.

Nine Soul Rings lit up in succession beneath the water. Dense Soul Power sank into his body and pressed toward the mass of golden light through the meridians protected by the herbs.

The Angel Soul Power struck back fiercely.

Pain tore through Tang Hao's chest, nearly breaking his control over his Soul Power.

In that instant, scenes from the great battle in the original Tang Hao's memories flashed through his mind.

Qian Xunji. Ah Yin. The child in his arms. And the wound that had stayed with him for the six years since.

Tang Hao was not the man in those memories, bent on dying.

Since he had inherited this body, he would not waste the rest of his life on drink and silence.

Tang San was still at Nuoding Academy, and Ah Yin had finally begun to grow again.

Dying in a spring would be too rotten a bargain.

"Six years you've lived rent-free,"

Tang Hao growled through gritted teeth beneath the water.

"Now get out!"

The Clear Sky Hammer's Soul Power bore down.

Forced away from his heart meridians, the golden light retreated through his meridians.

The power of ice and fire followed close behind, mending the damage it left as it pulled free.

Tang Hao gave it no chance to latch on again.

His Soul Power advanced layer by layer, driving every trace of Angel Soul Power into his right arm.

The surface of the spring suddenly exploded.

A beam of golden light shot into the sky, unfurling six indistinct wings overhead.

Dugu Bo shoved Dugu Yan behind him, and his Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul possessed him in an instant.

Before he could act, the enormous shadow of a Clear Sky Hammer rose from the spring and struck the golden light head-on.

Boom!

The wings shattered. Golden Soul Power scattered, then quickly dissolved amid the ice and fire.

Dugu Bo sensed it carefully.

The foreign presence that had lurked inside Tang Hao was completely gone.

The spring gradually grew still.

But Tang Hao had yet to surface.

After waiting more than a dozen breaths, Dugu Bo finally cursed. "If you're fine, get out already! Planning to drink my spring dry?"

The next moment, a hand gripped the rock at the water's edge.

Tang Hao climbed out and lay on his back, taking several long, ragged breaths.

"What's the rush?"

Eyes closed, he said, "Is it a crime to rest a minute?"

Dugu Bo crouched and seized his wrist.

His meridians were still damaged, but the herbs had stabilized them. Most of the long-festering injuries had cleared.

More importantly, no Angel Soul Power remained near his heart meridians.

The injuries that remained would heal with rest. They would no longer tear open every time he circulated Soul Power.

Dugu Bo released his wrist. "Lucky you survived."

"You shouted so loudly I heard you underwater."

"I was afraid you'd die in there and foul the water."

"Good news: I didn't die." Tang Hao sat up. "Bad news: I took a piss in it."

Dugu Bo's mouth twitched. If Yan Yan weren't here, I'd poison you mute today.

Tang Hao stood and summoned the Clear Sky Hammer.

Nine Soul Rings appeared one by one. Powerful Soul Power surged from within him, but the familiar stabbing pain never came to his chest.

He tightened his grip on the hammer's handle and suddenly smiled.

Dugu Bo watched him. "Well?"

"I can fight."

"I asked about your injuries."

"The rest will heal with time." Tang Hao dismissed his Martial Soul. "I won't need to soak in your precious spring again."

"Good."

Dugu Bo's tone was cool, but his shoulders, tense for so long, finally relaxed.

Tang Hao walked over to the Blue Silver Grass.

Dugu Bo's barrier was intact, and the tender leaves had not been touched by the spring water.

"I'm leaving. Keep this grass here for now," Tang Hao said.

"What do you take me for?"

"A friend!"

Dugu Bo froze.

He knew the word, but no one had ever said it to him before.

"I'll take good care of it."

"Thanks."

Dugu Bo snorted and said nothing.

Tang Hao straightened his clothes, now tattered once more. "I'm off."

"What will you do?"

"First I'll visit my son in Nuoding City. Then I'll find a few old friends and have a chat."

Dugu Bo curled his lip. "You certainly have a lot of friends."

"Jealous?"

"Tang Hao, I'll kill you!"

Tang Hao ran off laughing, his insufferable voice drifting back from the distance.

"I'm off! Look after her for me. I'll bring you something wonderful when I get back."

Dugu Bo watched him go and muttered,

"With a mouth like that, someone's bound to beat him to death sooner or later. Yan Yan, don't you dare learn from him."