At least her eldest uncle, who was also a Titled Douluo, absolutely could not have done that.
Moreover, even a Titled Douluo could not have temporarily robbed her of her voice the moment she tried to tell her father about Zhao Ling's Diary Copy.
Then there was the first reward unlocked when the number of diary readers reached three. It had directly granted all three of them thirty additional years of life and reduced their aging rate by 10%. That was absolutely beyond the capabilities of a Titled Douluo.
Connecting this series of exceedingly bizarre events, Liu Erlong suddenly felt her thoughts clear. She realized that some mysterious figure or force must have been controlling all of this.
Perhaps the diary really had been written by this man named Zhao Ling, but the one who had delivered the copy to her was certainly that mysterious figure or force. She had yet to guess its precise purpose.
As for why Zhao Ling knew about the future romantic entanglements between that woman named Bibi Dong, her nominal cousin Yu Xiaogang, and herself, Liu Erlong naturally attributed it all to the possibility that he had traveled back from the future.
Although that conjecture was absurd, so incredible that even she found it hard to believe, the vast world held every conceivable wonder. The very existence of Zhao Ling's Diary Copy, which could grant her thirty years of life and slow her aging, was already a miracle.
That night, Liu Erlong thought about many things. She felt that the existence of Zhao Ling's Diary Copy might be a major opportunity to change her life.
After all, its author was a Titled Douluo, while the mysterious figure or force that had delivered the diary copy to her was probably far above even a Titled Douluo.
If she could win that mysterious figure or force's favor, perhaps she, too, could become a Titled Douluo like that man surnamed Zhao, climbing to the very top of the Douluo Continent's food chain. It might even take her further.
At that thought, Liu Erlong's breathing involuntarily quickened. Now she felt she had figured out why those two women, Bibi Dong and Ah Yin, had taken the initiative to get close to Zhao Ling...
Chapter 48: Lost in fantasies
Over the next two days, the opponents Bibi Dong encountered were all roughly between levels 51 and 60. The Great Soul Arena no longer deliberately arranged opponents far beyond level 60 to stop her.
However, with her level 53 strength, achieving a perfect winning record against opponents between levels 51 and 60 was no easy task.
As a result, she could no longer defeat ten or even fifteen opponents in a row as easily as she had in the Iron Soul Fighter matches, even if she could still beat opponents at higher levels.
Often, however, after two or three arena matches, she had already depleted more than half her Soul Power and could only obediently leave the arena to rest and recover it.
Over those two days, Zhao Ling noticed that Yu Xiaogang had not appeared before him again. He did not know whether the fellow had left the Great Soul Arena or finally learned his lesson and realized he needed to lie low rather than recklessly provoke him.
Zhao Ling was quite pleased with this. It was best if Yu Xiaogang stayed out of sight and stopped trying every possible means to get close to Bibi Dong.
That way, he could slowly win Bibi Dong over and have her gradually accept him. Letting affection grow with time was the right path.
What Zhao Ling did not know was that Yu Xiaogang had not left the Great Soul Arena. More precisely, the fellow had been nursing his injuries while thinking of ways to deal with him.
In Yu Xiaogang's eyes, Zhao Ling was simply too bizarre. He could actually transfer injuries to him.
Zhao Ling had slapped his own face twice, yet those two slaps had swollen Yu Xiaogang's face into a pig's head and knocked out roughly ten of his teeth in total.
Now air whistled wildly through the gaps whenever he spoke, and he had lost all face. Even the maid the Great Soul Arena had assigned to care for him frequently looked at him as though he were an idiot, sometimes with pity in her eyes.
Yu Xiaogang simply could not understand it. She was only a maid. What right did she have to look at him with pity? His strength might not amount to much, and his aptitude might be utterly worthless.
But no matter what, he was still the second young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. That status alone placed him beyond the pity of a mere maid.
He knew Zhao Ling was responsible for all of this, so he wanted revenge. To achieve that goal, he had paid an employee inside the Great Soul Arena to investigate Zhao Ling.
After two days, the man Yu Xiaogang had hired finally learned Zhao Ling's name. He also discovered that the beautiful woman accompanying him was named Ah Yin, and that she and Zhao Ling appeared to be lovers.
The two were extremely close and flaunted their affection in public from time to time.
The man investigating Zhao Ling's background also told Yu Xiaogang that Bibi Dong's group came from Spirit Hall, which was at odds with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
But to Yu Xiaogang, what did it matter if Bibi Dong came from Spirit Hall? He wanted to pursue Bibi Dong, not Spirit Hall.
Even if she came from Spirit Hall, did that mean he could not pursue her? Did she have to remain in Spirit Hall for the rest of her life?
He was confident that he could persuade Bibi Dong to leave Spirit Hall. After all, she was such a beautiful, outstanding, reasonable woman. Surely she would not spend her whole life helping tyrants commit atrocities in a place like Spirit Hall.
As long as he was willing to plead with his father, given his father's affection for him, Bibi Dong would also be qualified to enter their Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
He was one hundred percent certain that his father would never refuse him. When the time came, Bibi Dong would leave Spirit Hall, join their Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and become his wife. What a wonderful life that would be.
The Great Soul Arena employee who had accepted payment to work for Yu Xiaogang watched him sink into his fantasies, somewhat speechless.
He simply could not understand how this fellow's brain worked. The people at the Great Soul Arena had clearly told him long ago that the culprit who had knocked him unconscious several times was the very woman who had once wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
But the fellow simply refused to listen to the truth. He insisted that their Great Soul Arena was trying every possible means to break him and that woman named Bibi Dong apart.
Come on, do you and that woman named Bibi Dong even need anyone to break you apart? She has absolutely no interest in you, all right? Where did you get the nerve to claim that people want to break you two apart?
If this second young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had not held such distinguished status and offered some Gold Soul Coins as payment, who the hell would have been stupid enough to work for him?
But honestly, this second young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan really was an idiot, and he really was willing to spend money. Working at the Great Soul Arena, the employee originally earned only two or three Gold Soul Coins a year.
Yet this second young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan was remarkably generous. He had promised fifteen Gold Soul Coins for investigating a few matters and paid five upfront as a deposit, leaving the employee so excited that he wanted to dance on the spot.
With his experience working at the Great Soul Arena, investigating these matters was child's play. Naturally, he had agreed without hesitation and spent some time finding out the general information the other man wanted.
Now that he had told Yu Xiaogang everything he had discovered, he was naturally waiting for Second Young Master Yu to fulfill his promise and hand over the remaining ten Gold Soul Coins.
Only after the man had stared at him strangely for quite some time did Yu Xiaogang emerge from his fantasies. He took ten Gold Soul Coins from his Storage Soul Tool and handed them to the man who had worked for him.
"Sorry for the trouble this time, sir. This little sum is only a humble token of appreciation."
The employee's eyes went fixed at the sight of those ten gleaming Gold Soul Coins. He happily accepted them from Yu Xiaogang, smiling with a heart in full bloom.
"You're most generous, Second Young Master Yu. I'm endlessly grateful..."
After biting each of the ten Gold Soul Coins in turn to confirm they were genuine, the employee hesitated for a moment before speaking to Yu Xiaogang.
"Um, well... Second Young Master Yu, there's something I'd like to say, but I don't know whether I should."
Yu Xiaogang was in quite a good mood. He nodded and replied, "Go ahead. What else is there?"
Only after receiving permission did the employee speak solemnly.
"That man surnamed Zhao seems to have more than an ambiguous relationship with the woman named Ah Yin. He also seems very close to the woman named Bibi Dong. These past few days, I've often seen them sitting right up against each other. I'm afraid..."
"Enough. Please know what you should and shouldn't say, sir. How could Miss Dong'er possibly be close to that man surnamed Zhao? Don't falsely accuse an innocent person..."
Yu Xiaogang's expression abruptly chilled. To him, Bibi Dong was now the white moonlight in his heart, pure and flawless, lofty and unattainable. He would not allow anyone to profane her. How could she possibly be close to that man surnamed Zhao?
That despicable, shameless man surnamed Zhao must have forced the white moonlight in his heart to fall into the mortal dust. He, Yu Xiaogang, would never allow such a thing to happen...
Chapter 49: He wasn't the sort to cause trouble
Seeing Yu Xiaogang's displeasure, the employee hurriedly apologized again and again.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I spoke out of turn. I'll leave. I'll leave right away."
With that, he hurriedly turned and departed, seemingly unwilling to offend Yu Xiaogang over this matter.
There was no helping it. Yu Xiaogang might not be particularly strong, but he had the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan behind him. He was not someone the employee could afford to offend.
Watching the retreating figure, Yu Xiaogang's eyes flashed with anger. Zhao Ling already had that woman named Ah Yin by his side. Why did he still have to go after Miss Dong'er?
No wonder he had found that man surnamed Zhao utterly detestable from the very first glance, as though they shared the hatred of a murdered father or a stolen wife.
Apparently, this was where the root of the problem lay. From his first glimpse of Miss Dong'er, he had felt that she was the only woman he would marry in this lifetime.
Now that man surnamed Zhao had shamelessly gone after Miss Dong'er. Wasn't he competing with him for the woman he loved?
But that fellow already had the woman named Ah Yin. What right did he have to compete with him?
Yu Xiaogang felt he had to do something. He had to find a way to make Miss Dong'er recognize that man surnamed Zhao's shameless nature.
He had to make her understand that the fellow was no suitable partner, lest she fall into the tender trap Zhao Ling had laid for her.
If possible, it would be best to let the woman named Ah Yin recognize Zhao Ling's true nature as well. That way, he could save another young woman who might otherwise go astray in the future.
He felt that doing so would also be an act of immense merit.
At that thought, Yu Xiaogang stood and slowly walked toward the private room's exit.
After several days of recuperation, all his injuries had completely healed. After all, the Great Soul Arena's healing-type Soul Masters had treated him, so his recovery had been quite fast.
The only things that had not recovered were the ten perfectly good teeth he had lost.
Those ten teeth were already beyond the ability of healing-type Soul Masters to restore. If he wanted a full set of good teeth in the future, he would have to pay to have replacements fitted.
After leaving the private room, Yu Xiaogang watched in every direction and listened for the slightest sound with every step, lest that sneaky bastard surnamed Zhao appear behind him unnoticed again and ambush him without a word.
He had had enough of that fellow's despicable shamelessness. No matter what, he could not repeat the same mistake...
Far away, outside the gates of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan in Heaven Dou Imperial City.
A man who looked like a servant stopped his carriage. As he looked at the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's magnificent mountain gate, a trace of envy flashed through his eyes.
He was merely an ordinary employee of the Great Soul Arena. This time, he had come to notify the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan of certain matters on the orders of the arena's higher-ups.
If not for that, someone of his status might never have entered the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's mountain gate in his entire life.
He had come with what could be described as the feelings of a pilgrim, excitement showing on his face.
After stopping the carriage, the servant hurried eagerly toward the mountain gate. However, when the four guards stationed there saw a stranger approaching, they quickly stopped him.
One of the guards looked the servant up and down, then frowned slightly and asked in an imperious tone.
"Who are you? Don't you know you can't just barge into our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan? State your identity and why you've come to our clan. Then we'll decide whether to go inside and announce you."
The servant was not annoyed at being stopped. They belonged to an Upper Three Sects power like the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, so a little arrogance was understandable.
If he had been born into the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, it would have been good enough if he did not look at everyone through his nostrils.
The servant hurriedly put on a fawning expression, nodding and bowing to the four guards.
"Greetings, brothers. I'm an employee of the Great Soul Arena. You can just call me Liuzi. I've come on the orders of our Great Soul Arena's higher-ups to inform your clan about your second young master's experiences at our arena."
Upon hearing the purpose of the servant's visit, the four guards exchanged glances, their expressions involuntarily turning serious.
Although Yu Xiaogang was notoriously poor in both strength and aptitude within their clan, he was, after all, the clan chief. Matters involving the second young master were not something they could take responsibility for.
One guard said gravely to the servant, "Wait here. I'll go in and report this immediately."
With that, the guard ran toward the main entrance without looking back, and the servant secretly sighed in relief.
Yu Yuanzhen, Yu Luomian, and the elders were discussing important clan affairs when they suddenly heard an announcement from outside.
"Clan chief, a man claiming to be from the Great Soul Arena requests an audience. He says it concerns the second young master."
Upon hearing the announcement, Yu Luomian and the elders all frowned, displeasure appearing on their faces.
In their eyes, Yu Xiaogang was a dispensable piece of trash. What right did his affairs have to be raised at a clan meeting?
Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Yu Xiaolong raised his brows and turned his gaze to Yu Yuanzhen.
"Father, this concerns my second brother. Should we summon the visitor and question him?"
Yu Yuanzhen frowned slightly and glanced at his second brother and the elders before instructing Yu Xiaolong.
"Go out and summon the man to question him first. Your second uncle, the elders, and I will continue discussing important matters."
Yu Yuanzhen knew very well that his second brother and the clan's elders were quite critical of his second son, regarding him as the clan's greatest disgrace.
Although his intimidating presence had always kept his second brother and the elders from making it too obvious.
Summoning the man for questioning while they were discussing important clan affairs was indeed inappropriate.
Therefore, he intended to have his eldest son handle the matter. That was also a relatively prudent approach.
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaolong nodded, rose from his seat, and quickly walked out.
Only then did the atmosphere in the council hall ease somewhat, and they resumed discussing important clan affairs.
Yu Xiaolong received the servant from the Great Soul Arena in the courtyard and asked impatiently.
"What happened to my second brother at the Great Soul Arena? He isn't the sort to cause trouble."
Yu Xiaolong still cared deeply about his second brother, Yu Xiaogang. They were brothers by blood, after all. Even if his strength and aptitude were trash, he was still his own younger brother. How could he remain indifferent?
The servant concealed nothing, quickly recounting everything that had happened to Yu Xiaogang at the Great Soul Arena in full detail, without hiding a thing.
He also faithfully recounted how the Great Soul Arena's manager had repeatedly hoped Yu Xiaogang would leave as soon as possible, only to be flatly refused. Yu Xiaolong's brows knitted tighter and tighter as he listened.
Chapter 50: He could finally take revenge!
After hearing everything, Yu Xiaolong could not help wanting to curse. What on earth was going on with his second brother?
With strength below level twenty, he had gone to the Great Soul Arena and used the clan's influence and connections to compete in the arena. Fine.
That showed that although his strength was lacking, he at least had some desire to improve.
But when an opponent more than ten levels above you told you to leave the arena, you should have hurried off when it was time.
Why were you standing up there shouting about making Father and the clan acknowledge you? Are you an idiot? Didn't you think that was terribly juvenile and embarrassing?
Even that aside, after being knocked out of the arena, you still shouted that you wouldn't give up and would make Father and the elders acknowledge you. You couldn't have looked more like a complete moron.
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