Boom-!!!
The giant hammer struck the ground with a thunderous crash.
It smashed a huge crater into the ground. It didn't look like anyone could have survived in that sunken pit, and yet...
"How is that possible? How did a mere brat who just awakened his Martial Soul master spatial abilities and even escape from my grasp?!!!"
Beneath his black robes, Tang Hao's expression changed drastically. The instant the Clear Sky Hammer fell, he saw the boy's figure suddenly vanish. If his senses weren't mistaken, a spatial fluctuation had rippled through the air at that moment, just like when Bone Douluo Gu Rong had used his Soul Skill back then.
"No! I absolutely can't let him escape! He isn't even a Soul Master. Even if he somehow mastered a spatial ability, there's no way he could have gotten far. The city-he must still be in the city!"
Tang Hao's killing intent was laid bare.
He had attacked Gu Chen. Even if the boy hadn't guessed who he was, he was still a potential risk. That risk had to be eliminated, so he had to die.
Otherwise,
how could that Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast's heart turn toward his son?
He knew all too well that newly transformed Soul Beasts were innocent, and the first person they grew fond of was often the one who stayed with them for life. So only by killing Gu Chen and letting that Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast know he was dead would Tang San have a chance to get close to her.
That was the decision he had made when he saw how close Xiao Wu, that transformed Soul Beast, was to Gu Chen.
He knew all too well how much a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring could improve a Soul Master, so how could he let this Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast strolling right under his nose slip away? Thus...
He had devised a plan.
Kill Gu Chen.
Cut off Xiao Wu's attachment to him.
Then have Tang San get close to Xiao Wu.
In the future,
he would have Spirit Hall make a move and drive her into a desperate situation. In the end, relying on her feelings for Tang San, she would choose to sacrifice herself to him.
The plan was perfect.
Unfortunately,
he had only just begun the first step when he ran straight into a wall.
No one had told him the boy had mastered a spatial ability!!!
Tang Hao was truly speechless.
It was bad enough that he, a dignified Titled Douluo, had attacked a brat who had only recently awakened his Martial Soul, but he hadn't even managed to finish him off. If word got out, wouldn't he become a laughingstock among Titled Douluo?
Even so,
he still set to work. A Titled Douluo moved swiftly, and by the time he finished, only half an hour had passed.
"Nothing. There's no trace of that brat anywhere in Nuoding City!"
Tang Hao's expression was ugly.
"Forget it. If I can't find him, so be it. He's just a piece of trash with level one Innate Soul Power. He can't pose any threat at all. As long as he doesn't appear before that transformed Soul Beast, that's enough. I'll leave the rest to you, Little San. I hope you won't disappoint me, Little San!!!"
The continent was vast, and finding the boy would be no easy task. Tang Hao could only give up the search in resignation.
Holy Soul Village.
Inside a dilapidated house.
Hum-!!!
A spatial fluctuation rippled outward, and a figure suddenly appeared. It was none other than Gu Chen, who had just escaped from Tang Hao. As soon as he landed, he began gasping for breath.
As the Blue Silver Grass killer, he naturally couldn't gain any killing intent through such an act.
But
Tang Hao's killing intent toward him had been all too real. There was that feeling of being unable to move, as though he were trapped in a sea of blood, and the crushing pressure of the heaven-supporting giant hammer falling toward him, leaving him nowhere to escape.
Fortunately, he had activated the Soul Skill in the Space Ring, allowing him to jump straight to the Space Mark. Otherwise, he would have been meat paste by now.
After a long while,
he finally managed to calm his wildly pounding heart.
Once he had calmed down,
Gu Chen turned his gaze to the only table in the room. A stack of bowls and chopsticks sat on it, and the Space Mark he had condensed was on one of the bowls. Some time ago, he had spent a little money to have quite a few things delivered to the village. Using the bowls and chopsticks as cover, he had the old village chief put them in his home.
That sort of thing was neither out of place nor conspicuous.
And surely no one would steal a few bowls and chopsticks!
Even if they were stolen, it wouldn't matter. But more than that, he was furious at what Tang Hao had done. The man had actually been willing to bully someone weaker and try to kill him.
It seemed he had still underestimated the allure of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast.
But thinking of Tang Hao,
"Tang Hao, I fuck your mother..."
"..."
The moment Gu Chen opened his mouth, a string of native Zaunese spilled out. He cursed Tang Hao in that house for more than ten minutes. Back when he read Douluo fanfiction, he had seen readers comment that transmigrating to Holy Soul Village was asking for death. He had only laughed; he was reading for fun, so who cared about the details?
Now that he had transmigrated himself,
all he could say was that those esteemed readers had been absolutely right.
After venting his fury,
Gu Chen felt his thoughts flow a little more freely.
"Tang Hao, just you wait. A gentleman can wait ten years for revenge, but I'm a petty man. I'll take revenge from dawn to dusk."
He had never been the sort of person whose belly could hold a boat like a prime minister's, but neither was he someone who liked to stir up trouble. If Yu Xiaogang and Tang San hadn't gone looking for trouble, he probably wouldn't have had much contact with them during his six years at Nuoding Academy.
But now he had thoroughly fallen out with Tang San and his lot. If he did nothing, even he would look down on himself.
Therefore,
he intended to prepare a little surprise for Tang Hao.
But the road had to be walked one step at a time.
"No. I don't know whether Tang Hao will come back to check on things, but I shouldn't stay in Holy Soul Village for long. I have to find another base."
After looking around, Gu Chen made his decision.
Then,
he took the bowl bearing the Space Mark and left Holy Soul Village without a sound, without anyone knowing. For him, it was best not to have contact with the villagers. Otherwise, if Tang Hao discovered what had happened, it might bring disaster upon the village.
Nuoding Academy.
"Damn it! Where are my Soul Beast records? Why have all the Soul Beast records I painstakingly copied vanished?"
"You despicable, shameless thief! How dare you steal my, Yu Xiaogang's, research results! You have a way to your death!!!"
Perhaps because of what had happened with Tang Hao, Dean Chen had promptly invited Yu Xiaogang back once he came out. But when Yu Xiaogang returned and discovered that many of the records in his office had vanished, his eyes immediately turned red and he began panting like a bull.
Those were the records he had painstakingly copi... no, researched himself!
Who was it?!
Stealing them without a word-did they have no morals?
"Teacher!"
Just then, Tang San walked in. His expression was the same as Yu Xiaogang's: his eyes were red, and he was panting like a bull.
"That damned Gu Chen ran away. Otherwise, I would certainly have killed him!!!"