Heaven-Defying Sword Art, First Form: Question the Heavens!

Xiao Hei suddenly erupted, launching straight into a savage beating of Yu Xiaogang.

"That'll teach you to ask! Keep asking!"

"Do you feel it? I'm asking you, do you feel it? Speak!"

How else could she train? By getting beaten, of course.

He called it farming traits. Farming traits, her fucking ass. Wasn't it just beating her whenever she disobeyed?

Fine, Mo Lin could bully her. She couldn't beat him, so she accepted it.

But who the hell was this guy? Give him a smile and he bloomed like a flower. He really was climbing up her nose onto her face.

He had picked at her scars and jabbed her sore spots, so she would let him experience firsthand how she was trained.

Farming traits? She could do that too!

Hit the mouth first to stop him from begging, then the legs to stop him from running, then the head to stop him from resisting.

To avoid beating him straight to death, Xiao Hei even deliberately retracted her claws into her paw pads.

What followed was pure hand-to-hand combat, and Yu Xiaogang was beaten without the slightest ability to fight back.

Flender tried to step forward and stop her, only for Xiao Hei to sweep him flying with her tail.

Perhaps she had used too much force, because the blow knocked him unconscious on the spot.

Seeing this, Zhao Wuji sensibly chose to keep his distance.

Qin Ming stood where he was and watched, while Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan looked on from the other side, their faces full of confusion as Xiao Hei pinned Yu Xiaogang beneath her and pummeled him.

"What's gotten into her?"

"No idea, but she looks really angry."

"Angry? Why? He only asked about cultivation. Surely that doesn't warrant this."

"Who knows, then? Maybe she thinks he's ugly."

"..."

Ugly, her fucking ass. Did that even count as a reason?

Only after beating him for roughly a quarter of an hour did Xiao Hei stop.

Looking at Yu Xiaogang, whose face was so bruised and swollen that even his mother wouldn't recognize him, Xiao Hei spat disdainfully.

"Pah. Weakling."

If he was that weak, he should just stay put instead of coming out to make a spectacle of himself.

Still, she had to admit, giving him a beating had instantly left her feeling much more refreshed.

No wonder Boss loved pretending to be useless and picking fights. There really was something to it.

"Another trick learned. I really am a genius of a tiger."

Ever since she had started following Mo Lin, she had picked up new skills from him every so often.

Sure enough, she was a tiger who loved learning.

After beating Yu Xiaogang, Xiao Hei returned to lie beside Ye Lingling.

Watching Xiao Hei return, Ye Lingling couldn't help asking a question.

"Xiao Hei, why did you hit him? I don't mean anything by it. I'm just curious. If it upsets you, I won't ask."

Afraid Xiao Hei might be unhappy, Ye Lingling hurriedly added that last sentence.

But Xiao Hei didn't have much of a reaction to Ye Lingling's question.

She merely paused for a moment. After all, Ye Lingling was being far too polite.

"Nothing much. I just didn't like the look of him."

"And he talked too much crap."

Xiao Hei's answer was direct, but it was so direct that it left Ye Lingling a little dazed.

"Okay, um... well, how does a, uh... Martial Soul like you actually cultivate? Is it different from our normal Martial Souls?"

Ye Lingling was genuinely curious. As far as she knew, there were only Tool Martial Souls and Beast Martial Souls.

[Note: Plant Martial Souls fall under Tool Martial Souls.]

This was her first time seeing one like Xiao Hei, so curiosity was inevitable.

"There's nothing different about it. It's pretty much the same as yours."

"But Boss's methods might be different from most people's."

"Different? How?"

Dugu Yan's curiosity was piqued too. Everyone liked a bit of gossip.

"Let me ask you. What's the secret to becoming successful?"

Rather than answer directly, Xiao Hei posed a seemingly unrelated question.

"The secret to becoming successful? Cultivating hard?"

Dugu Yan scratched her head. In her view, didn't success mean improving your strength and growing stronger?

"No. Actually, the secret to success is simple. Just one sentence."

"First, believe in yourself. Then, feed yourself. Whatever you're doing, fill your stomach first."

That was right. This was something she and Mo Lin agreed on.

Heaven was vast and earth was vast, but eating came first. Chowing down was a sacred undertaking.

"Pfft!"

This time, Ye Lingling couldn't hold it in. She truly hadn't expected the little creature before her to be so amusing.

If she was a glutton, she was a glutton. Yet she made it sound so righteous.

"What kind of nonsense is that? You're pulling my leg."

Dugu Yan put both hands on her hips, clearly convinced that Xiao Hei was messing with her.

"Believe it or don't. And don't try to sneak in a touch. Careful, or I'll bite you."

Xiao Hei glared at Dugu Yan's hand as it crept toward her, her tone unfriendly.

Seriously, did this girl have no brains? Hadn't she already frightened her before? How did she still dare?

"Stingy. What's wrong with one little touch?"

Withdrawing her hand, Dugu Yan muttered unhappily, her cheeks puffed round. She looked every bit the picture of aggrievement.

"I won't let you touch me. Stew over it."

Seeing this, Xiao Hei promptly twisted the knife. What a joke. Ye Lingling was Boss's future wife. Who did this girl think she was?

Was her fur something just anyone could touch? Didn't she have any dignity?

If Boss hadn't stopped her earlier, she would have scratched her already.

Ye Lingling felt awkward watching them. How had they even started arguing?

"All right, Dugu Yan, don't be angry. If she won't let you touch her, then don't. It's hardly a big deal. If you really must, you can touch me. I don't mind."

As she spoke, she took Dugu Yan's hand and moved to rub it against her own face.

Dugu Yan hurriedly pulled her hand back, the displeasure on her face vanishing instantly.

"What are you doing? Who wants to touch you? Don't take advantage of me. I'm a proper young lady."

"I don't believe you."

The moment she finished speaking, Xiao Hei's retort rang out.

This sent Dugu Yan, who had only just been soothed, into another fury.

"What's it got to do with you?"

She had never suffered such indignity in her life. To think she would be bullied by a little tiger today. Was there no justice left?

"The mouth's on my body. I'll say whatever I want. What can you do about it?"

Xiao Hei tilted her head, beaming as she watched Dugu Yan seethe with frustration.

How had Boss put it again?

"I just love that look on your face when you want to kill me but can't do a thing about me."

Not happy? Come hit me, then.

Insufferable. So fucking insufferable.

How could a tiger possibly be this insufferable?

Qin Ming and Zhao Wuji exchanged a glance, each seeing a trace of speechlessness in the other's eyes.

Boom-!

A tremendous crash rang out, and the entire Life and Death Arena began shaking violently.

Xiao Hei, who had just been busy provoking Dugu Yan, shuddered all over. Her fur instantly stood on end, as though she had been startled.

"What's wrong, Xiao Hei?"

Ye Lingling hurriedly asked.

"Nothing. That was Boss. Things outside are almost over."

She checked the situation outside and discovered that Mo Lin had caused the commotion. His attack's range had reached this place.

The Life and Death Arena was a separate space, but it wasn't completely detached from the Main World, so attacks from outside could still affect it.

"It's almost over? Who won?"

Honestly, Ye Lingling really wanted to see what was happening.

But she also knew very well that, with her current strength, even the energy fluctuations produced by a battle at this level could very likely kill her.

So she would obediently stay here and wait for the result.

"Boss, of course. That hammer guy's no good. He's all hollow."

Xiao Hei's voice carried absolute confidence.

After all, he was someone who dared to attack even gods outright.

A Titled Douluo? How did that even qualify as an opponent?

If Boss hadn't been in such a playful mood, it would have ended long ago.

Meanwhile, outside.

What had once been Suotuo City had become a stretch of ruins.

Moonlight shone down from the sky as countless living beings wailed amid the rubble.

Fear spread through the crowd.

High in the sky, Mo Lin stood in the void with his sword in hand, looking down indifferently.

Amid the ruins, Tang Hao held the Clear Sky Hammer and forced himself to his feet.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and bloody wounds covered his body. His left arm was completely gone, the clean wound suggesting that his opponent had severed it with a single sword strike in their recent battle.

Tang Hao's face was filled with terror. He hadn't expected that even forcibly boosting his strength with the Ring Detonation Secret Technique would still leave him no match for his opponent.

"Damn it! Where the hell did he come from?"

He was already gravely injured, and the backlash from Ring Detonation had left him without even the strength to flee.

Now, even standing up was extremely difficult for him.

He looked up at the sky. That signature, toying smile was still on his opponent's face.

It was as though this wasn't a battle, but a game.

From the very beginning, I was nothing more than a game for his amusement.

And now, that game had reached its end.

"Time to end this. I'm bored."

Mo Lin raised the Heaven-Defying Sword high.

Behind him, nine crimson Soul Rings lit up one after another.

Then they fused together, forming a brilliant golden Soul Ring.

The Golden Soul Ring shone with dazzling light, dispelling all the surrounding darkness like the sun.

"Ring Fusion? A Golden Soul Ring!"

Tang Hao's pupils abruptly contracted. He stared at the Golden Soul Ring formed from those nine crimson Soul Rings, his eyes filled with horror.

"Since you've performed reasonably well, I'll give you a grander funeral."

"Using the move you taught me."

[Secret Technique: Ring Detonation!]

Gripping the Heaven-Defying Sword, Mo Lin slashed fiercely at the dazzling Golden Soul Ring.

The next instant, its radiance exploded into terrifying energy, engulfing Mo Lin like a surging tide.

Energy gathered along the blade, and a colossal sword hundreds of zhang tall materialized out of thin air.

The instant the illusory blade appeared, streaks of lightning emerged across the heavens.

Dark clouds blotted out the sky, and thunder surged within them.

A single move had summoned heavenly tribulation. Heaven and earth would not tolerate this sword.

But if heaven and earth would not tolerate it, then he would defy heaven!

"Heaven-Defying Sword Art, First Form: Question the Heavens!"