Dust and smoke had yet to clear from the charred, collapsed crater.
An Jing brushed the rubble and dust off his white robes and stepped into the air from the bottom of the pit. Surveying the now-flattened Shrek Academy and the horizon where Tang Hao had fled, a thoughtful gleam crossed his eyes.
Standing still and taking Tang Hao's Ring Detonation strike head-on had indeed been a little overconfident.
Although the multiple barriers of "Boundless Expanse" and the ultimate defense of his Two-Word Battle Armor had spared him any real internal injuries, having his protective space shattered and being slammed into a deep crater was an embarrassing sight that had cost him some face.
But on second thought, An Jing could not help feeling a surge of astonishment.
Tang Hao had been grievously wounded by Pope Qian Xunji years ago, with lingering injuries rooted deep in his bones. Yet he had still dared to detonate six Soul Rings in succession and stake his life on that attack?
Anyone else would have suffered shattered meridians and died on the spot. Did Tang Hao really have divine-level luck watching over him? Even that had failed to kill him?
"Senior! Senior, are you all right?!"
A cool voice thick with anxiety rang out from the edge of the ruins.
Ignoring the lingering storm of scorching Soul Power, Zhu Zhuqing stumbled over broken tiles and splintered timber toward him.
The clash between those two peerless powerhouses had seemed to rend heaven and earth, leaving her trembling with fear as she watched from the outskirts.
She had seen it clearly: if this senior had not casually diverted several spatial barriers to protect the innocent citizens of Suotuo City at the instant they clashed, Tang Hao's desperate struggle as a cornered beast could never have forced him back even half a step!
"I'm fine."
An Jing landed on level ground, his expression returning to its usual composure as he casually brushed his sleeve.
"Unless he has the courage to detonate all nine rings, he couldn't harm this body of mine in the slightest, even with another ten hammer blows."
"I never imagined... that this slovenly, dejected man was actually the Clear Sky Douluo, whose name resounds across the continent..."
Zhu Zhuqing's chest heaved, her beautiful eyes filled with irrepressible shock and awe.
With Soul Power only in the seventies, he had confronted a Titled Douluo head-on, publicly shattered the might of the Number One Tool Martial Soul, and even forced his opponent to resort to near-self-mutilation by detonating his rings to escape.
If word of such a feat-defeating an enemy beyond his rank-spread, the towering waves it stirred would surely send the entire Douluo Continent into an uproar!
"Nothing but a rat clinging to its last breath, hiding in the shadows to stay alive. He'll never amount to anything."
An Jing delivered his assessment lightly. With a mere thought, his radiant Two-Word Battle Armor flowed like spilled mercury, silently disappearing into his body.
Zhu Zhuqing stared at him in a daze, unable to conceal the envy and yearning in her eyes.
"Senior, your strength is unlike anything I've ever seen... If I had even a tenth of your ability, I wouldn't have to..."
Thinking of the cruel, cold-blooded fate imposed on her by the Zhu Family, a shadow of gloom and resentment settled over the girl's cool eyes.
"What, you want to learn?"
An Jing turned and gazed down at Zhu Zhuqing, a girl with a delicately beautiful face and a figure that had already developed striking curves.
Suddenly, he raised his hand and hooked his slender fingertips beneath her elegantly shaped chin with a teasing gesture, studying her with a hint of aggression.
The unexpected intimacy and the oppressive masculine presence made Zhu Zhuqing stiffen. An alluring blush instantly spread across her pale, lovely face.
Her eyelashes trembled, but she did not retreat an inch. She merely bit her thin lip and forced out a few difficult yet resolute words. "I... want to be as strong as you, Senior."
"Gaining heaven-reaching power from me isn't all that difficult."
A teasing smile lingered at the corners of An Jing's lips as his gaze roamed unabashedly over her graceful figure.
"But nothing in this world is given for no reason. First, we'll have to see what sincerity you can offer."
Sensing the undisguised primal desire in his eyes, Zhu Zhuqing's heartbeat faltered. She was at a loss, like a small animal that had blundered into a trap.
She lowered her head, her voice trembling, faint as a mosquito's hum. "I... what price would I have to pay...?"
"Price?"
An Jing withdrew his hand and walked on with his hands behind his back, no longer looking at her. Only his cold, lucid voice drifted into her ears on the breeze.
"That depends on what bargaining chips you have left that might catch my eye.
"Perhaps your body, your dignity, or even... your freedom and your life.
"Think it over carefully. Do you truly have the resolve to follow this road all the way into the darkness?"
"I..." Zhu Zhuqing dug her nails deep into her palms, caught in an agonizing struggle unlike anything she had experienced before.
When it came to Zhu Zhuqing, An Jing was perfectly clear about his own intentions.
He had always followed his own desires. It was true that he coveted this exquisite Catwoman's alluring figure, but expecting him to invest any love or affection in her was nothing but a fool's dream.
Now that his reach extended to the heavens, what peerless beauty on the Douluo Continent would not come at his call?
There was no need to hang himself from a single tree. If they suited each other, both would benefit, each taking what they needed.
Put plainly, as long as she served him well, he would not mind giving her a little genuine guidance.
"No hurry. You have plenty of time to think."
With his back to her, An Jing waved casually.
"For now, I have an important little side matter to attend to.
"Set off for Heaven Dou City first and rest at Old Poison's villa."
Zhu Zhuqing let out a long, heavy breath. Along with her relief, an unprecedented resolve appeared on her face.
She bowed deeply toward An Jing's departing back.
"As you command. Before you return to Heaven Dou City, Senior, I will give you an answer. Thank you for your guidance."
An Jing did not look back. Silver wings abruptly unfurled behind him, and he tore through the air, becoming a streak of light that split the sky in an instant and vanished into the distance beyond Suotuo City.
Beneath the vast sky, An Jing pushed his speed to its limit.
When he had passed Suotuo City's merchants' guild earlier, he had taken the opportunity to purchase the most detailed maps available of Fasinuo Province and the area around Holy Soul Village.
Now that Shrek Academy had been reduced to scorched ruins, the grievously injured Tang Hao had fled with his son, and would not dare show himself in any major city for some time.
That being the case, the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone Tang Hao had hidden inside the waterfall in the mountains behind Holy Soul Village, along with the physical form of the famed Blue Silver Emperor, "Ah Yin," naturally became spoils ripe for An Jing's taking!
Traveling day and night, he needed only a few days.
An Jing arrived soundlessly in the secluded forest in the mountains behind Holy Soul Village.
The instant he entered the mountain range, his immense divine sense spread out like a net cast across heaven and earth. Every vein of the terrain and every course of flowing water appeared in his mind with perfect clarity.
"Found it. What a secluded cliffside waterfall."
An Jing sneered. His figure flickered, and a moment later, he passed like a phantom through the roaring, towering curtain of water, landing steadily before a natural fissure in the rock behind the waterfall.
The cave was deep and damp, cut off from daylight throughout the year.
An Jing gathered a faint silver glow at his fingertips to illuminate the way. After feeling his way through the twisting, dark caverns for an hour, he finally stopped inside a concealed stone chamber carved out by hand.
At the center of the chamber lay a small mound of ordinary soil that had long since lost the nourishment of spiritual energy.
Rooted quietly in that soil was an exceptionally thin, frail blade of deep-blue grass.
Her leaves were dull and lusterless, and she gave off a faint yet pure aura of life. Struggling to survive in this dim cave that never saw the sun, she looked utterly forlorn and pitiful.
Sensing the faint movement of air brought by an approaching living being, the frail Blue Silver Grass swayed gently. She cautiously extended a tiny, translucent tendril from one of her leaves, trying to touch An Jing's robes.
"Blue Silver Emperor, Ah Yin... A fallen phoenix truly fares worse than a chicken."
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