Tang San Yu Xiaogang's death. At that moment, Tang San broke down.
He was ready to embrace a new life, ready to be a good husband and a good father. But his teacher's death caused the repressed hatred and pain deep within him to erupt instantly. He felt that he had killed his teacher, that his desire for comfort had killed the person who raised him.
"In extreme pain and regret, Tang San made the most foolish decision ever."
Tang Yuehua closed her eyes, two lines of tears sliding down her cheeks. "To avenge his teacher, he assassinated Xu Hong in the dead of night."
Xuan Ming raised an eyebrow. " Xu Hong is dead?"
"No," Tang Yuehua shook her head. " Xu Hong is, after all, Level 9 Soul Engineer, Peerless Douluo powerhouse. Although Tang San severely injured him with a sneak attack using Level 9 Soul Tool, he himself was also captured by the combined forces of the Sun Moon Empire's elders."
"But this completely stirred up a hornet's nest. Xu Hong was seriously injured, and the entire Sun Moon Empire's high command was furious. What was originally just Yu Xiaogang's fault has now become a betrayal of the entire Clear Sky Sect."
Before falling into a coma, Xu Hong issued his final order: arrest all members of the Clear Sky Sect, along with the four clans of Strength, Destruction, Defense, and Agility who had followed them. Furthermore, in order to demonstrate its stance to the Spirit Hall Empire and clarify any misunderstandings, the Sun Moon Empire decided to label all these individuals as traitors and send them back to the Douluo Continent to be dealt with by the Spirit Hall Empire.
Chapter 482 Fear and Madness
At this point, Tang Yuehua could no longer control her emotions. She turned around and tightly grasped Xuan Ming's hand, her eyes filled with pleading.
" Xuan Ming, I know they've made a grave mistake. Tang San assassinated a high-ranking official of an allied nation, Yu Xiaogang incited war—these are capital offenses. But... there are still many innocent people in the Clear Sky Sect! Those ordinary disciples, those women, children, and the elderly, and the people from the Four Single-Attribute Clans... they did nothing; they simply followed the sect's lead."
"They have now been escorted to Spirit City and imprisoned in a dark and dreary death row cell. The elders of the Spirit Hall Empire are advocating for their execution as a warning to others."
" Xuan Ming, I beg you... can you spare those innocent people? I don't ask for Tang San and Tang Hao, but for the others... can you give them a way out?"
Looking at the woman before him, her face streaked with tears, Xuan Ming sighed softly.
He reached out and gently wiped away the tears on her face.
"I thought it was something earth-shattering. Since you've brought it up, how could I possibly refuse you this small favor?"
"However..." Xuan Ming changed the subject, a hint of inquiry in his eyes, "These things happened in the Sun Moon Empire, and also in the death row of Spirit City. You've been staying at the Moonlight Pavilion the whole time, how did you know so much about it?"
They even know the details of Tang San's engagement and assassination attempt perfectly; this is not something that can be obtained through ordinary information channels.
Tang Yuehua sniffed, calmed herself down, and said, "It's... Bai Chenxiang."
" Bai Chenxiang?" A blurry figure surfaced in Xuan Ming's mind, "That little girl from the Speed Clan?"
"Yes." Tang Yuehua nodded. "It's her. She's the granddaughter of Bai He, the patriarch of the Speed Clan, which makes her my uncle's granddaughter. By seniority, she should call me aunt."
"That child... has stayed by Tang San's side all these years. Perhaps it's because of shared suffering, or perhaps it's for other reasons, but she has always been devoted to Tang San. This time, Tang San's assassination attempt failed, and although she wasn't involved, she was captured as a family member."
"Last year, I received word and secretly went to the death row in Spirit City," Tang Yuehua said in a low voice. "I saw that child. She was skin and bones, and her eyes had lost all their light. She cried as she told me everything that had happened over the years."
She said she didn't hate anyone, only the cruel twist of fate. She begged me, if there was any way, to save those children who hadn't even grown up yet. They were born into a life of constant fleeing, never having experienced a single day of peace, not knowing what home was, not knowing what tomorrow was...
At this point, Tang Yuehua's voice choked up again.
"That child is truly innocent. There are many innocent people like her in death row. Xuan Ming, now that the Spirit Hall Empire has unified the continent, and you have even become a god, the remaining power of the Clear Sky Sect poses no threat to you or the empire now."
"In that case, could you... perhaps refrain from using the same deadly methods you employed against the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan back then?"
Looking into Tang Yuehua's expectant eyes, Xuan Ming smiled.
He gently pinched her cheek. "Why are you crying? Didn't I already promise you?"
Let's go.
Tang Yuehua was taken aback. "Where to?"
"Of course, we'll go to Spirit City, to the death row."
"Go and pull your unfortunate relatives back from the brink of death. And while I'm at it... I also want to see what a sorry state Tang San is in now, the one who almost had a wife and kids and a warm bed, but ended up landing himself in a death row."
He didn't kill Tang San back then because of Xiao Wu. After all, Tang San had spent those years with her at the Nuoding Academy and was one of her few good friends.
Since Tang San can't cause any trouble anyway, there's no harm in sparing his life.
I just didn't expect things to develop so ridiculously.
Space tore apart, and the stars shifted.
When Tang Yuehua stepped back onto solid ground, the scene before her made her momentarily lost in thought.
That's Spirit City.
But it was no longer the Spirit City she remembered.
If viewed from above, one would discover that this city, which was once merely a sacred place for Soul Master, has now expanded outwards several times over.
The original city walls have long been demolished, replaced by rings of brand-new, well-planned urban areas.
The towering Soul Guidance buildings and the simple Douluo- style buildings complement each other, and the wide streets are bustling with traffic, making it even more prosperous than the Heaven Dou Imperial City of yesteryear.
It is no longer just a symbol, but a real super capital city capable of housing millions of people, a dazzling pearl set in the center of the continent.
"Let's go to the council hall."
Xuan Ming didn't take her for a stroll around the city. With a thought, the two of them traversed space like phantoms and landed directly in front of a magnificent and solemn black palace.
This was once a side hall of the Pope's Palace, now the highest power center of the Spirit Hall Empire —the Imperial Parliament Hall.
At this moment, the atmosphere in the hall was heavy and tense.
The long conference table was filled with high-ranking officials from the Spirit Hall Empire.
Among them were former cardinals of the Spirit Hall, clan leaders of various sects who later submitted, and high-ranking military officials.
And sitting at the head of the table was none other than Ning Fengzhi, the current Regent of the Spirit Hall Empire.
The passage of time seemed to have left few traces on the refined sect leader's face; instead, it made him appear even more composed and profound. However, at this moment, his brows were furrowed, clearly indicating that he was facing a thorny situation.
" Chairman Ning, I don't understand what you're still hesitating about!"
An elderly man in a red robe slammed his fist on the table, his eyes wide with rage. "Those remnants of the Clear Sky Sect colluded with the Sun Moon Empire to assassinate Grand Preceptor Xu Hong, and even dared to borrow troops to launch a counterattack on the continent! What treason! This is treason! If we don't execute them all to serve as a warning to others, where will the prestige of my Spirit Hall Empire be? If other forces follow suit, how will the empire rule the continent?"
The old man's words immediately resonated with many people.
"Yes! If you don't nip it in the bud, it will grow back in the spring! We shouldn't have let them escape to Sea God Island back then!"
"They must be killed! And those Four Single-Attribute Clans too, leave no one alive! Let the world see the consequences of betraying the empire!"
A chorus of agreement rose and fell, filling the entire conference room with a strong, oppressive atmosphere.
In the eyes of these hardliners who have come through blood and fire, only bloodshed is the best tool to maintain their rule.
Ning Fengzhi sat in the main seat, quietly watching the scene until the noise subsided before he slowly spoke.
"Kill them all? Kill them all, and then what?"
Ning Fengzhi's gaze swept over everyone present. " In the Douluo Continent now, who dares to rebel against the Spirit Hall Empire?"
The group looked at each other, but no one answered.
"No." Ning Fengzhi answered himself, his tone calm and firm, "From everyone present here to the common people in the fields, and even the Sun Moon Empire across the ocean, who doesn't hold the Spirit Hall Empire in deep awe? Who dares to offend the empire's majesty?"
"If that's the case, why should we continue to squander violence?"
"Gentlemen, the empire's prestige was built through a combination of benevolence and severity. The previous purges have already shed enough blood. The hatred of national annihilation and the resentment of exterminated races have now transformed into a deep fear, weighing on the hearts of everyone."
"Under these circumstances, continuing the indiscriminate killing will only backfire."
"A near-death experience brings fear, because people believe that as long as they are obedient, they can survive."
"But if there's no chance of survival... then all that's left is madness!"
"When people realize that no matter what they do, they are doomed, they will become the most terrifying beasts, willing to splatter the empire with blood even if they can't take a piece of it!"
"While the Clear Sky Sect is certainly guilty, the death row also holds a large number of ordinary disciples who are unaware of the truth and are simply going with the flow, including women, children, and the elderly. Executing them all would only create more hatred and panic, and would not substantially help the empire's rule."
Ning Fengzhi's words were a wake-up call, plunging the hall into a brief silence.
But he didn't convince everyone.
The red-robed elder sneered, " Chairman Ning, your words sound nice, but don't forget, that's the Clear Sky Sect! The former number one sect in the world! You know better than we do how tough they are. Keeping them alive is like raising a tiger to cause future trouble! If Her Majesty the Empress were still alive, she would never be so soft-hearted as you!"
Bringing up Bibi Dong would be a fatal blow in the current Spirit Hall Empire.
Although Bibi Dong has been ascended to heaven for over a year, the accumulated prestige she left behind still weighs heavily on everyone's heads like a mountain.
Chapter 483 Fate is hard to defy, yet it cannot be defied.
Ning Fengzhi narrowed his eyes, about to retort.
Just then, a detached, languid voice, yet carrying a chilling pressure, suddenly rang out at the entrance of the hall.
"You mean, if Bibi Dong were here, she would choose to kill everyone?"
The air in the hall seemed to freeze for a moment.
Everyone stiffly turned their heads to look in the direction of the gate.
The heavy mahogany door, which was at least five meters tall, opened by itself without any wind.
Against the midday sun, a man and a woman slowly walked in.
The man was dressed in black, with a tall and straight figure and a handsome face that was almost otherworldly. His deep eyes seemed to contain an endless abyss, and just one glance could give one the illusion of being swallowed up.
The woman beside him was elegant and graceful. Although she looked somewhat unfamiliar, her vaguely familiar features made Ning Fengzhi's heart skip a beat.
That's... Tang Yuehua?!
And that man...
"Your Xuan Ming Xuanming?!"
"Clang!"
Chaos erupted instantly in the hall. The sounds of chairs overturning and teacups shattering filled the air.
The moment all the elders, bishops, and generals saw who it was, their faces turned deathly pale, and their eyes were practically overflowing with fear.
To them, Bibi Dong was a majestic empress, an insurmountable mountain.
Xuan Ming, he is a god! He is a calamity walking among mortals!
He is the Grim Death God single-handedly wiped out millions of lives in a single night!
Welcome the deity!
Without any hesitation, without any doubt.
Everyone present, including Ning Fengzhi, left their seats and knelt respectfully on the ground, not even daring to raise their heads.
That tremor, originating from the depths of their souls, made it almost impossible for them to breathe.
Xuan Ming, holding Tang Yuehua's hand, slowly walked through the kneeling crowd to the front of the conference table.
He didn't sit in the main seat, but casually leaned against the edge of the table, his gaze sweeping indifferently over the trembling crowd below.
"Who was it that just said they wanted to wipe out the Clear Sky Sect?"
The old man trembled violently, cold sweat instantly soaking his back. He kowtowed desperately, the sound of his forehead hitting the ground jarring in the silent hall, "My lord, spare me! My lord, spare me! I... I was only thinking of the safety of the empire, I had no other intentions!"
"Alright, stop banging your head. The flooring is expensive." Xuan Ming waved his hand impatiently.
He turned his head and looked at Ning Fengzhi, who, though kneeling, still maintained a certain dignity, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.
" Sect Master Ning... oh no, I should call him Chairman Ning now."
"You're absolutely right. A near-death experience is terrifying, a certain death is madness. The Spirit Hall Empire of today doesn't need any more bloodshed to prove its strength."
Hearing this, Ning Fengzhi breathed a long sigh of relief. He knew he had made the right bet.
"Get up, all of you," Xuan Ming said calmly.
Everyone felt as if they had been granted a pardon, and stood up tremblingly, but still stood with their hands at their sides, not daring to breathe.
Xuan Ming glanced around, pointed to Tang Yuehua beside him, and announced calmly, "I'm here today to do only one thing. I'm taking those people from the Clear Sky Sect, including Tang San, as well as the people from the Four Single-Attribute Clans, with me."
These words, though the atmosphere in the hall remained oppressive, revealed a hint of surprise and doubt in everyone's eyes.
Releasing a tiger back into the mountains has always been a cardinal sin in military strategy.
What's more, this is the Clear Sky Sect, which once resolutely resisted the empire, and Tang San, who assassinated a high-ranking official of an allied nation.
Normally, even if Ning Fengzhi made such a request, he would probably be drowned out by the spittle of these hardliners.