But she and Tang Chen liking each other was one thing. Because that blockhead Tang Chen had failed to grasp Bo Saixi's unspoken meaning, he had left Sea God Island to search for a godhood inheritance.
As a result, Bo Saixi and Tang Chen had never formally become lovers, and Tang Chen had disappeared for decades.
This directly meant that Bo Saixi had been single from birth for as long as she had lived.
Now, hearing the couple next door flaunting their affection like mad, she felt both sour and bitter inside.
Chapter 112: Why Was She Slapping Her Own Face?
The following afternoon, Zhao Ling and Ah Yin walked out of their room hand in hand and stepped outside the cabin.
They saw Bo Saixi sitting against the cabin door, looking as though she had nothing left to live for. Her eyes were bloodshot, her eye sockets sunken, and the bags beneath them were so pronounced that she looked as though someone had landed two solid punches on her eyes.
Her appearance gave both Zhao Ling and Ah Yin a fright. Holy shit, what the hell happened?
Had this Sea God Douluo encountered some terrifyingly powerful opponent last night and depleted her vitality in a great battle?
That shouldn't be possible. The only people on the Douluo Continent who could currently fight Bo Saixi on equal footing were Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu, and neither would ever fight her.
Or had this woman stayed awake all night, leaving her exhausted?
But that didn't make sense either. She was a mighty Limit Douluo. Never mind one sleepless night-even a sleepless week shouldn't leave her in such poor spirits, should it?
Seeing the two emerge from the cabin, Bo Saixi ground her teeth audibly.
It was bad enough that these two had sickened her with their mushy talk in the middle of the night, but could they at least refrain from doing things unsuitable for children in the poorly soundproofed room next door?
Recalling what those two beasts had done next door last night, Bo Saixi truly wanted to cry.
She felt she had never been so pitiful in her entire life. She had clearly grown accustomed to being alone, yet their actions last night had forcibly shattered her defenses.
Listening to the noises from the next room in the middle of the night, Bo Saixi had felt indescribably miserable. She had truly wanted to charge over to their door and roar.
"Could you two shut up for me?!"
But Bo Saixi knew perfectly well that this Cloud-Piercing Shuttle belonged to someone else. Their willingness to let her stay was already kindness enough.
Of course, leaving would have been child's play if she wanted to. It wasn't as though she truly lacked money or a Soul Master Handbook. She could go wherever she pleased, couldn't she?
But Bo Saixi knew she couldn't leave like this. She needed to learn Tang Chen's whereabouts from Zhao Ling. If she left, obtaining Tang Chen's whereabouts from her again would probably be difficult, so she had to endure it.
Endure a moment, and the wind and waves would calm; take a step back, and the sea and sky would open wide, Bo Saixi kept telling herself.
It was fine. To pry Tang Chen's whereabouts out of Zhao Ling, it would be worth it no matter what.
Bo Saixi's gaze made Zhao Ling and Ah Yin's hair stand on end. They couldn't understand why she looked ready to stab someone.
"Bo Saixi, what's wrong? Why do you look so exhausted?" Zhao Ling asked with a little concern.
Ah Yin also asked, "Sister Bo Saixi, did you not sleep well last night?"
Only then did Bo Saixi roll her eyes and complain irritably, "Isn't it because of you two? Don't you know wooden walls are terrible at blocking sound?"
Ah Yin's pretty face instantly flushed crimson. She hid directly behind Zhao Ling, buried her head against his back, and muttered.
"I can't face anyone anymore. I can't face anyone anymore. It's all your fault, you rotten husband. I told you not to get so carried away last night..."
Zhao Ling pulled her around from behind him, wrapped his arms around her waist, and gently kissed her between the brows, soothing her softly.
"Silly girl, there were only the three of us near the forest last night anyway. Nobody else heard us, so why can't you face anyone? As for you, Bo Saixi, you weren't very decent last night. How could you eavesdrop on us?"
What the fuck?! Bo Saixi nearly exploded on the spot. Are you kidding me? Did I want to eavesdrop?
You two were doing things unsuitable for children next door without a shred of restraint. Even a deaf person could have heard that racket! And now you have the nerve to blame me for eavesdropping?
Even if you're fairly good-looking and I'm quite fond of you, you shouldn't tell blatant lies with your eyes wide open!
Bo Saixi glared at Zhao Ling, but when she met his smiling eyes, fondness involuntarily stirred within her, while the anger she had accumulated actually began to slowly dissipate.
She couldn't understand why this seemed to happen whenever she looked at Zhao Ling.
Moreover, she felt that once her gaze met Zhao Ling's, looking away from him became increasingly difficult.
This involuntarily reminded her of the first time she had seen Zhao Ling. Their eyes had met then too, and she had been completely unable to look away.
During that process, fondness for him had involuntarily welled up within her. In contrast, her original affection for Tang Chen had actually dwindled, and even his impression in her heart had slowly worn away.
To force herself to look away, she had even pinched her waist hard.
Now, unable to tear her eyes away from Zhao Ling again, she hurriedly repeated the same trick. Finally, grimacing in pain, she regained her senses and hastily averted her gaze.
Bo Saixi couldn't help wondering whether Zhao Ling had used a "Charm"-type Soul Skill on her. Only "Charm"-type Soul Skills possessed such an enthralling effect.
But in the next instant, Bo Saixi rejected that thought. It shouldn't be possible.
First, although Zhao Ling was a powerful Titled Douluo, his Soul Power shouldn't have exceeded rank 95, no matter how she looked at it. She was a mighty rank-99 Limit Douluo, protected by a wisdom Soul Bone. She wouldn't fall victim so easily.
When she met Zhao Ling's eyes, she hadn't sensed any Soul Power fluctuations from him at all, so she could confirm that he hadn't used a Soul Skill.
The ability emanating from Zhao Ling that drew out her affection seemed more instinctive.
Whenever she saw him, simply looked at him, she would involuntarily be drawn to him. This feeling was strange, and it also gave her a sense of danger.
She even suspected that if this happened enough times, her original affection for Tang Chen might be completely replaced.
She felt Zhao Ling was far too uncanny. She even questioned whether she should stay at all. If she remained, Bo Saixi felt she would sooner or later fall into his arms.
At that thought, Bo Saixi glanced at Ah Yin, who was giggling happily in Zhao Ling's embrace, and a trace of envy involuntarily flashed through her beautiful eyes.
But she quickly wondered whether she had gone mad. Yes, I must have gone mad. She had actually envied Ah Yin for being held in Zhao Ling's arms.
For one fleeting instant, she had even imagined herself in Ah Yin's place. Mad. Absolutely mad. If I were remotely normal, I would never have such thoughts.
This man named Zhao Ling wasn't even quite as handsome as Qian Daoliu. I wasn't interested in Qian Daoliu, so how could I possibly be interested in this Zhao Ling? Hadn't Tang Chen always been the one I liked? I had come all the way to the Douluo Continent for him, too.
Bo Saixi raised her right hand and slapped her right cheek hard, then slapped her left cheek with her left hand.
The burning pain in both cheeks made Bo Saixi feel a little clearer-headed, but it gave Zhao Ling and Ah Yin another fright. What was wrong with this woman? Why was she slapping her own face? Didn't it hurt?
Chapter 113: A Chance Encounter
After putting the Cloud-Piercing Shuttle back into his storage space, Zhao Ling headed toward Heaven Dou Imperial City with Ah Yin and Bo Saixi.
The outskirts of Sunset Forest lay a hundred li from Heaven Dou Imperial City. If they traveled only at a pace Ah Yin could keep up with, covering that distance would take the entire afternoon, and they wouldn't reach Heaven Dou Imperial City until nightfall.
So Zhao Ling carried Ah Yin on his back and picked up speed, racing toward Heaven Dou Imperial City.
As a Limit Douluo, Bo Saixi naturally had little difficulty keeping up with Zhao Ling.
On the broad road, several horses galloped tirelessly toward Heaven Dou City.
Leading the riders was a man dressed in a python-patterned robe. He looked to be in his twenties or thirties, brimming with vigor and confidence. Judging by his bearing, he should have held a high position for a long time.
He flicked the riding whip in his hand from time to time, calling softly, "Hyah... hyah..."
The guards riding behind him kept shouting, "Your Highness, slow down! Don't ride so fast! If you get hurt, His Majesty will have our heads!"
"Yes, Your Highness, take it easy! Even if you're eager to see your newborn nephew, there's no need to be so impatient, is there?"
This young man addressed as prince was none other than Prince Xue Xing, the Heaven Dou Empire's only prince in the original work. At this time, however, he was still young and looked full of high spirits.
Prince Xue Xing looked back and rolled his eyes at his guards. "Could you hurry up? You're really holding me back. I've heard my little nephew looked as exquisite as carved jade the moment he was born, and he's absolutely adorable. What's wrong with me hurrying back to see him? Do you have a problem with that?"
With that, Prince Xue Xing lightly struck his white horse with his whip again, and the sting spurred it to even greater speed.
Just as the young prince was about to turn back toward the road ahead, he spotted two figures behind him.
The two figures rapidly approached from afar. From the moment he spotted them until they overtook his horse, less than half a minute had passed.
As the two figures swept past them, Prince Xue Xing heard only a roaring gust beside his ears, and his head involuntarily turned with them toward the road ahead.
But the two figures quickly widened the distance between them, and in less than a minute, they vanished completely beyond his sight.
Prince Xue Xing turned woodenly toward the dumbstruck guards behind him and asked tentatively.
"Those two people who just ran faster than our horses-did any of you get a good look at them?"
The guards all shook their heads blankly, but one spoke up.
"Your Highness, those two didn't use their Martial Souls or Soul Power, yet they ran faster than our horses. Could they be Titled Douluo?"
The other guards quickly echoed his guess.
"It's possible. Soul Douluo couldn't unleash such terrifying speed without using their Martial Souls or Soul Skills."
"Exactly. Those two must have been Titled Douluo. Who would have thought? Normally, seeing even one Titled Douluo is harder than ascending to heaven, but today we were fortunate enough to see two. Aren't we incredibly lucky today?"
Prince Xue Xing nodded in wholehearted agreement. "Yes, today's truly a fine day. First, my imperial brother was blessed with a prince, and then we encountered two Titled Douluo on our way back. From the looks of it, they should be heading to our Heaven Dou City too.
"If we could recruit those two Titled Douluo as Consecrated Elders of our Heaven Dou Imperial Family, perhaps our imperial family wouldn't be so constrained by others."
As Prince Xue Xing saw it, their Heaven Dou Empire did indeed have powerful Titled Douluo.
But they all came from the Upper Three Sects. The entire Heaven Dou Imperial Family lacked not only a single Titled Douluo, but even a single expert of Soul Douluo rank or above.
This meant that the Heaven Dou Imperial Family often had to watch the great clans' faces before acting. When the imperial family's interests clashed with those of the great clans, the imperial family sometimes had to sacrifice its own interests.
So he felt that if the imperial family could recruit these two Titled Douluo as Imperial Family Consecrated Elders, its voice would certainly carry greater weight. Recruiting two Titled Douluo, however, probably wouldn't be easy.
Half an hour later, Prince Xue Xing finally reached Heaven Dou Imperial City with his guards. Without even returning to his own Prince's Mansion, he headed straight for the imperial palace.
Compared with returning to his Prince's Mansion, going to the palace to see his newborn nephew was the most important thing now.
He swept into the imperial palace in a flurry. Every guard who saw him hurriedly saluted, and when the palace steward saw him, he too hastily bowed and spoke in a shrill voice.
"Your Highness, His Majesty is holding the prince in the imperial study."
Prince Xue Xing's face lit up at those words. It was even better that his imperial brother had taken the child to the imperial study. That saved him a trip to his imperial sister-in-law's palace.
After all, he was a prince. Although visiting his imperial sister-in-law's palace to see his newborn nephew was understandable, he still felt he ought to avoid giving rise to suspicion.
He made his way to the imperial study. Seeing a man coaxing a little child as exquisite as carved jade, he hurried inside, his face bright with delight.
"Imperial Brother, is this my precious newborn nephew? Mm, he looks so soft and pink. How adorable."
Clearly, the man soothing the child, respectfully addressed as imperial brother, was the Heaven Dou Empire's reigning emperor-Emperor Xue Ye from the original work.
At this time, however, Emperor Xue Ye was in his prime. His excellent imperial bloodline had endowed him with handsome features, sword-like brows, and star-bright eyes. The presence of someone long accustomed to holding power lent his handsome face a commanding dignity even without anger.
Hearing Prince Xue Xing's voice, Emperor Xue Ye, still in his prime, raised his head and glanced at him, his face wreathed in smiles.
"Second Brother, you're back? Come and see whether your nephew is handsome."
Prince Xue Xing reached out and gently poked the exquisite child's cheek. Perhaps because the child found him unfamiliar and he was touching him, the baby suddenly burst into loud, piercing wails and even squirmed and peed.
In an instant, Prince Xue Xing received a faceful, and even Emperor Xue Ye, who was holding the child, was caught in it.
Both Xue Ye, a new father, and Xue Xing, a new uncle, became flustered. The child could cry if he wanted, but why did he have to pee on their faces and bodies too? What rotten luck.
Emperor Xue Ye could only summon the wet nurse to take the child away and soothe him. Looking at each other's sorry state, the brothers couldn't help laughing.
"Hahaha, Second Brother, you're really lucky today. You just got back and already received a faceful from the child."
"Imperial Brother, that's hardly decent of you. Your darling son peed all over my face, and you're still making fun of me?"
Prince Xue Xing grumbled in dissatisfaction, but that only made Emperor Xue Ye laugh even more heartlessly...
Chapter 114: A Fickle, Faithless Woman
After finishing his heartless laughter, Emperor Xue Ye summoned a maid to bring Prince Xue Xing a dry towel and help wipe his face clean. Only then did Prince Xue Xing's mood improve considerably.
"Imperial Brother, you said I was lucky today, and you know, I really was. Just now, on the way back with my personal guards, I actually encountered two Titled Douluo.
"Moreover, those two Titled Douluo looked quite unfamiliar to me. They probably aren't from the Upper Three Sects. I just wonder whether we might have a chance to recruit them. If we could recruit them as our Imperial Family Consecrated Elders, then..."
"Oh? Two unfamiliar Titled Douluo?"
Emperor Xue Ye's eyes immediately lit up, but his brows soon furrowed slightly.
"Could they be from Spirit Hall or the Star Luo Empire? If they belong to either, there's no way we could recruit them."
Emperor Xue Ye sighed softly. He, too, very much wanted to recruit two Titled Douluo as Consecrated Elders of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family.
If that could be accomplished, he would willingly give away even the Heaven Dou Imperial Family's National Treasure.
Prince Xue Xing felt this was something they ought to pursue, so he spoke in a consultative tone.
"That isn't necessarily the case. We could certainly send people to investigate. If they have no connection to Spirit Hall or the Star Luo Empire, we could try recruiting them.
"As long as we succeed, our Heaven Dou Imperial Family's foundations will be greatly strengthened. What do you think, Imperial Brother?"
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