Shed your armor

Whoosh~

Naturally, no armor appeared.

But deep violet wings wreathed in flames did indeed emerge from Liu Hao's back.

Not only that, his hair suddenly turned dark purple, and a violet flame mark appeared on his forehead.

After martial soul possession, Liu Hao felt something strange.

With a thought, a ball of flame appeared out of thin air before him. Then it kept changing shape at his will.

One moment it became a butterfly, the next a bird, and then a little snake.

The flames seemed to have become part of his body, answering his will as effortlessly as his fingers answered his arm.

"Brother Hao, you're amazing~ Your control over flames is so strong!"

Bai Chenxiang's soft, sweet voice brought Liu Hao back to his senses.

"Haha, of course. As I am now, I could stand still and let every fire-type soul master on the continent attack me, and they wouldn't be able to hurt me in the slightest."

"Huh? Why is that?"

"Hehe, after my martial soul evolved to God King level, I gained absolute control over the flames of the Douluo Continent.

Whether it's fire elements drifting through the air, ordinary flames lit by mortals, or flames unleashed by soul masters' martial souls.

Before me, they're all like subjects before their emperor, able only to bow their heads and submit.

Tell me, would ordinary people dare defy an emperor?"

"Ordinary people wouldn't, but I would. What's an emperor worth? We're soul masters." Bai Chenxiang smiled slyly.

"Oh? You little minx, how dare you defy your emperor? I command you to shed your armor!"

"Ooh~ Brother Hao, what does 'shed your armor' mean?"

"...Ahem, ahem, nothing, nothing. It's getting late. I need to acquire soul rings for my second martial soul. Come on, come with me."

"Hehe, okay."

Bai Chenxiang did not press him. She nodded obediently, hugged Liu Hao's arm, and rested against his shoulder like a docile kitten.

Liu Hao wrapped an affectionate arm around her. With a gentle beat of the wings on his back, he carried the beauty into the air.

Soaring through the sky on his wings, feeling the breeze brush his face with a beauty at his side, Liu Hao felt his heart open and his spirits lift.

Only after flying like this for two and a half minutes did he call to the system in his mind, asking it to simplify acquiring soul rings for his second martial soul.

"Ding, host request received. Acquiring soul rings for the second martial soul. Simplifying..."

"One simplification chance consumed. Remaining chances: 53. Simplification complete. The method of acquiring soul rings has been simplified from hunting soul beasts of suitable ages to killing living beings with a life value greater than 1,000, granting soul rings of the optimal age."

Huh? The requirement is different from my first martial soul's.

My first martial soul only required hunting living beings with a life value greater than 1, but my second martial soul now requires living beings with a life value greater than 1,000.

A thousandfold difference.

Forget it. Living beings with 1,000 life value are easy enough to find. Better not provoke this damn system, or I'll get cursed out again.

"You damn host, you know what's good for you. I like that."

"..."

Living beings with a life value greater than 1,000 were practically everywhere in the Star Dou Great Forest, so he easily gathered all he needed.

With Liu Hao's current physical strength, the soul rings for his second martial soul, the purple flame ultimate emperor phoenix, started at 300,000 years.

His ninth soul ring even broke through the million-year threshold, reaching 1.1 million years.

His soul ring configuration was a terrifying red, red, red, red, red, red, red, red, gold!

Eight reds and one gold. If outsiders saw such a soul ring configuration, their jaws would probably drop.

Of course, even someone close to him would be shaken beyond words.

Bai Chenxiang, for instance, was already staring dumbfounded.

"Brother Hao, how did you do that? You actually have eight hundred-thousand-year soul rings, and the ninth is a golden soul ring I've never even heard of. How old is it?"

"As a descendant of a God King, isn't it perfectly normal for me to have a few divine tricks? You need to get used to it, understand?" Liu Hao affectionately brushed a finger over Bai Chenxiang's nose.

"Yes, yes, my mighty god is the most amazing of all," Bai Chenxiang said with a coy pout.

"Now that's what I like to hear. This golden soul ring is a million-year ring."

"Gasp~ A million years? How powerful would a soul beast like that have to be?"

And so, the two spent another day and night wrapped up in each other.

On the day of the investiture ceremony, Liu Hao finally, reluctantly, took Bai Chenxiang back to the Speed Clan.

Then he said goodbye and flew toward Spirit City.

Spirit City was bustling with activity, its crowds several times larger than usual.

All because today marked one of Spirit Hall's rarely seen elder investiture ceremonies.

Banners snapped in the wind along the streets, and squad after squad of knights patrolled back and forth, lending the city a solemn air.

In the enormous circular plaza before the Papal Palace, rows of seats had been arranged neatly, every one occupied.

The Heaven Dou Imperial Family, the Star Luo Imperial Family, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the Elephant Armor Sect, and others-with the exception of the Clear Sky Sect and other factions that Spirit Hall had hunted down, the continent's famous sects had all sent representatives to witness the ceremony and catch a glimpse of Spirit Hall's newly appointed Ninth Elder.

Of course, their most important reason for attending was a rumor that this Ninth Elder might very well be the continent's second level-99 Limit Douluo, besides Tang Chen, who had vanished many years ago!

If that news was true, wouldn't Spirit Hall possess two Limit Douluos at once?

In that case, the delicate balance the continent had barely managed to maintain might be shattered completely!

Yet what no one had expected was that, despite having been seated for so long, the investiture ceremony still had not begun. Had something gone wrong?

In truth, Bibi Dong was far from calm herself.

She had learned from Ghost Douluo that after Liu Hao sparred with him, he had never returned to Spirit City.

If Liu Hao's younger brother Liu Yao had not remained obediently cultivating at Spirit Hall Academy, Bibi Dong would have thought Liu Hao had run away.

Even so, Bibi Dong was quite displeased with Liu Hao.

They had agreed to hold his investiture ceremony today, yet the sun was already high, and the man himself was nowhere to be seen.

Where did that leave her dignity as Pope?

But no matter how angry she was, she could do nothing but wait.

After all, what else could she do?

Would getting angry make Liu Hao appear immediately?

Just then, a black figure slowly appeared inside the Papal Palace.

"Reporting to His Holiness the Pope, there is still no sign of His Eminence Liu Hao within Spirit City."

Ghost Douluo delivered his report cautiously, not daring to raise his head.

Thud!

The scepter struck the floor of the Papal Palace so hard that even the solid marble cracked.

Clearly, Bibi Dong could no longer quite contain herself.

"What in the world is that bastard doing?!"

Her cool, mature voice echoed through the Papal Palace. Though brimming with anger, it was still an exquisite pleasure to hear.

"My dear Pope, what has made you so angry?"

The voice that suddenly rang out startled both Bibi Dong and Ghost Douluo.

It had come far too abruptly, without the slightest warning, as though appearing out of thin air. It was utterly uncanny.

But a moment later, both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

For they had recognized the person who had appeared out of nowhere.