Star Luo Empire, Cloud Desert City.
The city stood on the empire's frontier. It was not so remote as to be cut off from the world, but it was a poor backwater through and through. Bordering the central region of Star Luo, its terrain was a patchwork of mountains and stony desert, with pitifully little farmland and woefully poor transportation.
That wretched geography had sent Cloud Desert City's economy plummeting. Three out of every ten shops on the streets had their doors shut, passersby wore clothes covered in patches, and even the city's largest tavern served nothing but ordinary ale and coarse-flour steamed buns.
Resources were scarce here. There were neither habitats for rare soul beasts nor deposits of ore containing soul power. Powerful soul master families could not even be bothered to spare the place a glance. After all, in the world of soul masters, resources meant strength. Who would waste their energy on a place where even birds would not bother to shit?
Yet no one had expected a great upheaval six years ago to turn Cloud Desert City's fortunes around completely.
The Breaking Clan, one of the Four Single-Attribute Clans affiliated with the Clear Sky Sect, had actually fled here with its entire membership and settled on a barren mountain outside the city.
When word spread, the entire Star Luo Empire was shaken. The Breaking Clan's name carried enormous weight in the soul master world, and its inherited martial soul, the Soul Breaking Spear, was unmatched in its ferocity. When that spear struck, even ghosts and gods gave way. It had ranked among the finest martial souls in the soul master world.
The Star Luo Imperial Family welcomed the Breaking Clan with extraordinary enthusiasm. Especially after Spirit Hall abandoned its pursuit of the Four Single-Attribute Clans, the imperial family repeatedly extended gestures of goodwill. Wave after wave of envoys arrived bearing gold, silver, treasures, and promises of high office and generous salaries, all in hopes of bringing the Breaking Clan under its banner.
Their little abacuses clicked away in their minds. Yang Wudi, the Breaking Clan's chief, had broken through to Soul Douluo after that great battle. With the ferocious might of his Soul Breaking Spear, he was unquestionably among the strongest fighters below Titled Douluo.
More importantly, the Four Single-Attribute Clans had always been branches of the same tree. If they could win over the Breaking Clan, they might be able to recruit the other three clans along with it. If that succeeded, the Star Luo Empire's strength in soul masters would undoubtedly rise to a whole new level.
But the Breaking Clan's response poured a bucket of cold water over the Star Luo Imperial Family. Faced with those generous offers, Yang Wudi rejected them without a second thought, time after time, without giving them the slightest face.
The Star Luo Imperial Family had its nose rubbed in the dust and felt deeply aggrieved, yet it dared not resort to force-no one wanted to provoke a Soul Douluo wielding the Soul Breaking Spear. With no other choice, it could only remain patient and keep waiting for an opportunity.
On this day, however, the Breaking Clan's compound outside Cloud Desert City was as lively as a New Year celebration.
Today was the gathering of the Four Single-Attribute Clans. After the great battle against Spirit Hall, the four clans had agreed to meet once every two years, both to maintain their bonds and to discuss important clan affairs. The previous gathering had been hosted by the Strength Clan in Heaven Dou City. This time, it was the Breaking Clan's turn in Cloud Desert City.
The Breaking Clan's compound had been built halfway up the mountainside, with walls of hard stone enclosing neat rows of wooden houses. Usually, the place was quiet, disturbed only by the fluctuations of soul power as its members cultivated and the whistle of Soul Breaking Spears cutting through the air.
Today, though, rich aromas of meat and wine drifted from the wooden houses. Boisterous laughter and conversation carried far beyond the walls.
More than a dozen wooden tables had been set up in the large courtyard beside the meeting hall. They were piled with heaping platters of roasted meat: wild boar roasted golden brown, mountain goat crisp outside and tender within, and a huge basin of beast-bone soup simmered until everything was soft. Jars of ale covered the ground, all a local specialty of Cloud Desert City. It was not particularly strong, but it carried a rich, mellow scent of malt.
As the sun sank in the west, the four clan chiefs finally finished their meeting.
Yang Wudi walked at the front. He was tall and dark-skinned, with a faint scar across his face-a mark left by that great battle.
Dressed in coarse black cloth, he carried two jars of ale. His steps were steady, and a keen, imposing aura radiated from him.
Behind him came the other three chiefs-Bai He of the Speed Clan, Niu Gao of the Defense Clan, and Tai Tan of the Strength Clan.
Bai He was thin, his hair graying, but his eyes shone as sharply as a hawk's. Niu Gao, meanwhile, was a burly man through and through. More than two meters tall, with a tiger's back and a bear's waist, he wore a thick beard, and the ground trembled faintly beneath his footsteps.
Tai Tan was the eldest. His hair and beard had turned completely white, and wrinkles covered his face, yet simply standing there, he seemed like an immovable mountain.
"Sit down, all of you!" Yang Wudi set the jars on the table and called out with a hearty laugh. "Today, we four brothers aren't leaving until we're drunk!"
He was the first to pick up a large bowl and fill it with ale. Then he looked at Bai He and raised his bowl. "Old White Bird, stop dawdling and fill yours up! Nobody leaves until we've finished it all!"
Bai He smiled helplessly and picked up his bowl. "You old goat. Still as overbearing as ever." Despite his complaint, he filled his bowl to the brim.
Yang Wudi turned to Niu Gao and pointed at a huge platter of roasted meat sizzling with fat. "Old Rhino, look at this! I personally took a hunting party out into the desert to bring down an Ironback Savage Bull. Make sure you eat plenty!"
Niu Gao's eyes lit up. Grabbing a small knife, he cut off a large chunk and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing heartily as he mumbled, "Good! Good meat!"
Finally, Yang Wudi turned to Tai Tan, picked up a jar of ale, and handed it over.
"Old gorilla, this ale is unique to Cloud Desert City. It's nothing like what you drink in Heaven Dou City. If you don't put away eight or ten jars today, you're not giving me face!"
Tai Tan accepted the jar, a faint smile appearing on his face. "All right. Then I'll drink my fill with you!"
The four rough men, whose combined ages exceeded two hundred, sat around the table, drinking from great bowls and devouring large mouthfuls of meat.
They talked about their days in the Clear Sky Sect, their adventures through the soul master world alongside Tang Hao, and the strange people and extraordinary events they had encountered over the years. At the amusing parts, all four slapped the table and roared with laughter. When excitement rose, they raised their jars and clinked them together.
Yang Wudi was truly happy today, not just because the four brothers were reunited, but because a baby boy had been born into the clan three days earlier.
All these years, the Breaking Clan had been struggling to recover. It had suffered devastating casualties in that great battle, losing more than half its young and able-bodied adults. Even his own younger brother, Yang Wushuang, had vanished amid the fighting, his fate unknown.
Afterward, the Breaking Clan's ranks had withered. At its lowest point, fewer than eighty members remained.
As clan chief, Yang Wudi carried a burden as heavy as a mountain. He had to lead his people in cultivation and strengthen them, worry about their livelihoods, and guard against the covetous eyes of Spirit Hall and other factions. Over those six years, much of his hair had turned white, and the wrinkles on his face had deepened.
But three days earlier, a young wife in the clan had given birth to a healthy baby boy, finally bringing the Breaking Clan's numbers back to one hundred.
One hundred people meant nothing to the great soul master families. But to the Breaking Clan, which had endured so many hardships, they represented hope and a future.
At that thought, Yang Wudi lifted his bowl and swallowed a great mouthful. The ale's mellow flavor spread through his mouth, but it could not suppress the emotions in his heart.
He looked at the three old brothers around the table, then thought of the clansmen who had once fought beside him and his missing brother, Yang Wushuang. Without his realizing it, his eyes reddened.
The atmosphere around the table suddenly fell quiet.
Bai He, Niu Gao, and Tai Tan all stopped what they were doing. Seeing Yang Wudi's reddened eyes left them with bitter feelings of their own. They had all lived through it and knew better than anyone how difficult these years had been for him.
Bai He set down his bowl and said gravely, "Old goat, don't dwell on it too much. Wushuang was just as stubborn as you, with bones as hard as iron. If he saw you like this, he probably wouldn't be able to rest in peace."
"That's right, old goat." Niu Gao put down the meat in his hand, too, his voice carrying a faint tremor.
"Look at things now. Aren't our lives getting better and better? The clan is growing, and the children have good talent. Give it a few more decades, and the Breaking Clan will surely recover its former glory."
As Niu Gao spoke, sorrow welled up in his own heart. The Defense Clan had suffered heavy losses back then as well. Even now, its numbers had only recovered to just under two hundred.
What hurt him even more was that his own younger brother, Niu Yue, had disappeared in the fighting just like Yang Wushuang. Deep down, he knew his brother had most likely met with disaster, yet he would rather deceive himself into believing that his brother was merely hiding somewhere.
"Ah..." Niu Gao sighed, his voice very low. "I only wish they could have saved their own lives, even if it meant scraping by in disgrace."
Though he spoke softly, the other three heard every word.
Sitting beside them, Tai Tan suddenly snorted at those words and said gravely, "Wushuang would never have surrendered! Even Master once said that his unyielding pride..."
The instant the word "Master" left his mouth, the atmosphere around the table plunged to freezing point.
Yang Wudi jerked his head up, his gaze turning fiercely sharp as he stared fixedly at Tai Tan. Niu Gao turned as well, looking at Tai Tan with deep displeasure and anger.
Even Bai He's expression grew complicated.
"Old gorilla!" Yang Wudi's voice was low, heavy with suppressed fury. "That bastard brought all of us to this, and you still call him Master?"
Caught beneath Yang Wudi's icy stare, Tai Tan faltered. He opened his mouth, wanting to say more.
He did not think he was wrong. Tang Hao had always been his master, and surely Tang Hao had had his own difficulties back then.
But faced with Yang Wudi's nearly fire-spitting eyes and Niu Gao's hostile expression, he finally swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue.
His soul power level was higher than Yang Wudi's, but Yang Wudi's Soul Breaking Spear was famous for its unparalleled offensive might. If they truly fought, he might not be a match for him.
Besides, the four clans really had suffered terribly because of Tang Hao's withdrawal. No matter how fiercely he defended Tang Hao, he could not refute that.
Seeing the atmosphere turn tense, Bai He hurried to smooth things over. He patted Tai Tan's shoulder, then waved a hand at Yang Wudi and said with a smile:
"All right, all right. The old gorilla spoke without thinking. Don't take it to heart. How about this? Old gorilla, three jars as a penalty! Three jars!"
Though Tai Tan felt somewhat displeased, he still nodded. He picked up a jar from the table, broke its clay seal, and tipped it to his mouth.
As Yang Wudi watched Tai Tan finish the three jars, the anger on his face gradually faded. In the end, the four of them were brothers who had faced life and death together. There was no need to damage their friendship over this.
And just like that, the little incident passed.
The four picked up their bowls again and continued drinking and chatting, though Tang Hao never entered the conversation again. The night deepened, jar after jar was emptied, and more than half the roasted meat disappeared. The four rough men grew thoroughly drunk, their words rambling and disjointed as they laughed one moment and sighed the next.
It was not until well past midnight that the gathering gradually broke up.
Niu Gao and Tai Tan left first, taking their respective clansmen with them. Bai He was the last to leave. His Speed Clan members were all waiting outside the courtyard, several dozen people with faces flushed from the feast and food boxes in their hands, gifts from the Breaking Clan.
Yang Wudi escorted Bai He to the compound's gate, then suddenly stepped forward and gave him a great hug.
The slender Bai He could barely breathe in Yang Wudi's embrace. He patted Yang Wudi's back and said with a smile, "Old goat, what are you doing?"
Yang Wudi released him, took a gold card from the soul tool at his waist, and placed it in Bai He's hand.
"Old goat, this..." Bai He stared at the gold card in his hand, stunned.
"I can't take this! Over these past six years, our Speed Clan has already taken far too much money from you."
The Speed Clan excelled at speed, but not at producing goods, and its members had always struggled to make a living. Over the past six years, Yang Wudi had helped them many times, sending gold, silver, treasures, grain, and medicinal herbs again and again. Bai He was grateful, but he also felt guilty.
As he spoke, he tried to push the gold card back.
"Come now!" Yang Wudi reached out with his other hand and held Bai He's hand down, preventing him from returning it. A faint smile rested on his face.
"Old White Bird, what are we to each other? How could all these years of friendship ever be measured in gold and silver?"
He paused, then continued, "The Speed Clan has plenty of children. They're still growing and cultivating their soul power. There are plenty of things you need money for."
"It isn't much. Just think of it as a small token from your brother. If you keep refusing, then you don't consider me your brother!"
Bai He stared blankly at Yang Wudi. The gold card in his hand seemed to weigh a thousand pounds. Looking at Yang Wudi's dark face and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, he felt warmth well up inside him.
After a long silence, Bai He finally put away the gold card and bowed deeply to Yang Wudi with his hands clasped, his voice slightly choked. "Thank you, old goat."
Then he turned and waved to the clansmen behind him. "Come on. Let's go home!"
The Speed Clan members bowed respectfully to Yang Wudi, then followed Bai He into the night.
Yang Wudi stood at the compound's gate, watching Bai He and the Speed Clan members retreat into the distance. Only when that figure had vanished completely around a bend in the mountain path did he slowly draw back his gaze.
The night breeze brushed past, carrying a faint chill. He tilted his head toward the sky. Countless stars dotted the darkness, as though showing wandering souls far from home the way back.
He murmured softly, "Wushuang, little brother... where on earth are you?"