Ma Hongjun rubbed his chin.
"Rongrong is the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
"Isn't he afraid Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo will come knocking?"
Zhu Zhuqing recalled the scene in the private room.
"He knew who Rongrong was."
"Even after Rongrong invoked Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo, he still refused to let her go."
"He even called the two Titled Douluos juniors."
The hall fell silent again.
Dai Mubai's brows knitted tightly.
Anyone who dared call two Titled Douluos juniors was either immensely powerful or bluffing.
Yu Xiaogang paced back and forth across the hall.
"There's no need to be too anxious."
Everyone turned their gaze toward him.
Yu Xiaogang clasped his hands behind his back.
"Zhu Zhuqing is only a Soul Elder. It's perfectly normal that she couldn't see through a high-ranking Soul Master's cultivation."
"Being able to suppress a Soul Elder with sheer pressure doesn't mean he's a Titled Douluo."
"By my deduction, his actual cultivation should be around the Soul Saint level."
Oscar hurriedly asked:
"Why did he take Rongrong away?"
"Most likely for money."
Yu Xiaogang offered his judgment.
"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's wealth rivals that of a nation."
"And Rongrong is Ning Fengzhi's only daughter."
"By abducting her, he can demand an enormous ransom from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
"As long as he hasn't received the ransom, Rongrong won't be in danger for the time being."
Zhu Zhuqing did not agree with that judgment.
When the white-haired man took Ning Rongrong's Storage Soul Tool, he had indeed taken plenty of valuables.
But he had never asked about a ransom from beginning to end.
The way he looked at Ning Rongrong was even less like someone looking at a bargaining chip he could exchange for money.
Zhao Wuji rose from his seat.
He rolled his shoulders.
"Just a Soul Saint."
"Let me go bring her back."
Oscar immediately stepped forward.
"Teacher Zhao, we're counting on you to save Rongrong."
Ma Hongjun chimed in:
"With Teacher Zhao taking action, there definitely won't be a problem."
Dai Mubai also cupped his fist in salute.
"Please find her as soon as possible, Teacher Zhao."
Zhao Wuji patted his chest.
"Don't worry."
"As long as that man is still in Heaven Dou City, I'll bring Ning Rongrong back in one piece."
He asked Zhu Zhuqing for the restaurant's exact location, then turned and left the hall.
As everyone watched Zhao Wuji leave, their tense expressions gradually eased.
Tang San had been standing in the corner all along.
He had not joined the others in speaking.
A white-haired man.
He could suppress Zhu Zhuqing without releasing his martial soul.
He dared take Ning Rongrong away despite knowing the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had two Titled Douluos.
Taken together, these things were by no means as simple as Yu Xiaogang had deduced.
Tang San looked up toward the outside of the hall.
Zhao Wuji was already out of sight.
Yet his heart simply would not settle.
This time, something truly disastrous might happen.
Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.
Council Hall.
Emperor Xue Ye sat on the throne, listening to several ministers report on affairs of state.
Hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the hall.
A royal guard strode into the hall and dropped straight to his knees.
His armor was damaged, and large bloodstains still covered his chest.
Once Emperor Xue Ye saw who it was, his brows immediately furrowed.
This guard was the captain of the Royal Guard assigned to protect Xue Beng.
"How did you get so badly injured?"
"Where is Xue Beng?"
The guard captain kept his head lowered, his body trembling uncontrollably.
"Your Majesty..."
"His Highness the Fourth Prince has been killed."
Emperor Xue Ye abruptly rose from his throne.
He stared at the guard captain kneeling in the center of the hall, unable to react for a moment.
"What did you say?"
The guard captain lowered his head even further.
"His Highness the Fourth Prince was murdered within Heaven Dou City."
"The killer cut off His Highness's head in the street."
Emperor Xue Ye staggered.
He braced a hand against the golden dragon's head beside the throne and only then barely steadied himself.
Xue Beng was dead?
That son who spent every day stirring up trouble, who never gave him a moment's peace, had actually died within Heaven Dou City.
This was the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.
The imperial family had large numbers of Soul Masters and troops stationed here.
Just who would dare behead a prince in the streets of Heaven Dou City?
Emperor Xue Ye's face flushed red.
"Where is the body?"
"Bring it in!"
The guard captain hurriedly beckoned outside the hall.
Several royal guards carried a stretcher into the hall.
A white cloth covered the stretcher.
Large amounts of blood had already stained the cloth red.
Another guard held something wrapped in a brocade robe.
They reached the center of the hall and all knelt.
Emperor Xue Ye descended the steps, one at a time.
He approached the stretcher and reached out to lift the white cloth.
Xue Beng's headless corpse appeared before his eyes.
His sumptuous brocade robe was already soaked with blood.
The severed surface of his neck was smooth, clearly cut through in a single strike by some powerful force.
Emperor Xue Ye's gaze fell on the brocade robe beside it.
"Open it."
The hands of the guard holding the brocade robe shook.
He carefully lifted the fabric.
Xue Beng's head was revealed.
His eyes were still open.
The terror he had felt before death lingered on his face.
Emperor Xue Ye froze in place.
He reached out, wanting to close Xue Beng's eyes.
But when his fingers touched Xue Beng's face, his movement stopped.
There was no warmth.
Xue Beng really was dead.
Even though Emperor Xue Ye was usually deeply disappointed in this son, he had never imagined Xue Beng would appear before him dead in such a manner.
"Beng'er..."
Emperor Xue Ye bent down and cradled Xue Beng's head in his arms.
Blood soon stained his sleeves red.
All the civil and military officials in the hall lowered their heads.
No one dared speak at this moment.
A long time passed.
Only then did Emperor Xue Ye place Xue Beng's head back in the brocade robe.
He slowly straightened, his eyes already bloodshot.
"Who did this?"
The guard captain hurriedly answered.
"This subordinate does not know his identity."
"He looked very young, with white hair, and a golden-haired woman accompanied him."
"He did not release his martial soul. He suppressed the entire Royal Guard unit with the pressure of his soul power alone."
Emperor Xue Ye turned around.
"You watched him kill Xue Beng with your own eyes?"
The guard captain pressed his forehead to the floor.
"This subordinate was incompetent."
"Please punish me, Your Majesty."
Emperor Xue Ye stared at the royal guards kneeling on the floor.
Xue Beng had been murdered in the street.
Yet not one of these guards responsible for protecting the prince had died.
They had not even learned the killer's identity.
"Incompetent?"
"Do I keep you all just to hear that word?"
Emperor Xue Ye drew the sword from the waist of an attendant guard beside him.
A cold gleam swept through the hall.
Squelch!
The sword pierced a royal guard's chest.
The guard looked down at the blade buried in his body, then collapsed to the floor.
Emperor Xue Ye pulled out the sword and slashed at the man beside him.
Blood splattered across the golden floor tiles.
Three royal guards fell in succession.
The remaining men knelt where they were, their faces pale, not daring even to breathe heavily.
Holding the bloodstained sword, Emperor Xue Ye pointed it at the guard captain.
"Go find him."
"Seal every exit from Heaven Dou City."
"Mobilize every royal guard in the city and distribute that white-haired man's portrait everywhere."
"I don't care what methods you use. You must find him!"
The guard captain hurriedly nodded.
"This subordinate obeys!"
Emperor Xue Ye threw the sword to the floor.
"If you fail to find him, every last one of you will join Xue Beng in death."
Before you continue