The security guard was so angry he laughed. Just as he was about to lash out, the attendant squeezed through from the side and whispered a few words in his ear.
The guard's expression shifted from anger to confusion, then from confusion to shock.
He instinctively glanced at Tang Wulin and blurted out, "Someone from the Tang Sect?"
The attendant whispered a few more words.
The guard's expression changed again and again.
"Ah... well..."
The guard cleared his throat, the flesh on his face bunching into a smile that could almost be called friendly. He bent down and said to Tang Wulin,
"That's right, that Evil Soul Master did use the Blood Escape Technique to get away. We saw it wrong just now."
Tang Wulin blinked. "So I'm in the clear?"
"Yes, yes!" The guard waved his hands repeatedly.
"I'll report it to my superiors. You don't need to worry about it."
"Our security team also bears responsibility when Evil Soul Masters go from place to place committing crimes. Sorry for giving you a fright."
He turned and waved at the other two guards.
"Wrap it up, wrap it up. Record the scene. Just write that the Evil Soul Master escaped using the Blood Escape Technique and caused no civilian casualties."
The two guards exchanged glances, but didn't ask any questions. They obediently took out their notebooks and began writing.
Tang Wulin sighed silently to himself.
The Tang Sect's name still carried weight on the Douluo Continent.
Judging by the guard's attitude, he most likely took Tang Wulin for a disciple the Tang Sect had sent out to gain experience.
An eight-year-old child who could smash a three-ring Evil Soul Master to death with a single hammer blow-other than a sect with foundations as deep as the Tang Sect's, how many places could nurture a monster like that?
He neither admitted nor denied that he was from the Tang Sect.
If they wanted to misunderstand, so be it. It would save him a heap of trouble anyway.
The attendant began arranging for the passengers to move.
"Attention, passengers. Please proceed to the cars at the rear in an orderly manner. This car is temporarily out of service. Please cooperate."
The passengers picked up their luggage and lined up to walk to the rear. As they passed Tang Wulin, several stopped to give him a thumbs-up.
An auntie patted him on the shoulder and said in a booming voice,
"Good job! Auntie gives you a thumbs-up!"
The girl followed behind him, trotting to keep up with his pace.
From time to time, she looked back at the car that had been smashed to pieces, then turned to look at Tang Wulin's profile.
The train continued onward.
The attendant had sealed the damaged roof with a temporary Soul Guidance barrier, keeping the wind out, but the atmosphere in the car was completely different from before.
All the passengers were talking quietly about what had just happened, and Tang Wulin was unquestionably the center of the conversation.
An eight-year-old child, Twin Martial Souls, the killing of a three-ring Evil Soul Master, and a suspected Tang Sect disciple-any one of those labels was enough to talk about for a whole day.
The train began to slow.
Outside the window, the outline of Eastsea City drew closer and closer.
Towering white spires, crisscrossing Soul Guidance Train tracks, and shimmering waves reflecting sunlight on the distant sea horizon.
The station platform was already visible, with people coming and going and the sound of announcements faintly audible.
The train came to a smooth stop.
The doors opened, and the passengers began getting off.
Tang Wulin stepped out of the car, with the girl beside him.
She took a couple of quick steps, circled around in front of Tang Wulin, and tilted her head up to look at him.
"What's your name?"
Tang Wulin paused, then asked in return,
"What's your name?"
"My name is Xu Xiaoyan," the girl said seriously.
"What's your name?"
Tang Wulin turned the name over in his mind.
Xu Xiaoyan. He had never heard of her.
He thought for a moment and smiled.
"If fate brings us together again, it won't be too late for me to tell you then."
With that, he turned and walked toward the station exit, raising his right hand to wave.
Xu Xiaoyan stood where she was, stamping her foot as she watched his retreating figure. She was just about to run after him.
She had only taken two steps when a familiar voice called from behind her.
"Xiaoyan!"
Xu Xiaoyan stopped and turned to look.
A boy came running over from the other end of the platform. He wore a clean white casual outfit, his hair was neatly combed, and his features bore some resemblance to Xu Xiaoyan's, though their lines were more pronounced.
"Brother?"
Xu Xiaoyu raced over to her in great strides, placed both hands on her shoulders, and looked her up and down. His expression eased a little.
"You scared me to death. I heard a Soul Guidance Train bound for Eastsea City was attacked by an Evil Soul Master. Good thing it wasn't yours."
Xu Xiaoyan pursed her lips. "It was ours."
Xu Xiaoyu's hands froze.
"What?"
"That Evil Soul Master even grabbed me," Xu Xiaoyan said casually.
Xu Xiaoyu's face went white.
"He grabbed you?!"
His voice rose sharply, drawing glances from several nearby passengers.
"You're saying the Evil Soul Master grabbed you? Why didn't you say so sooner? If I'd known, I wouldn't have let you take the train alone. Dad even said something about letting you gain some experience. Experience, my ass! You nearly lost your life!"
Xu Xiaoyan leaned back under the barrage of words and reached out to shove him. "Brother, calm down. I'm fine."
"How could you be fine? An Evil Soul Master! A three-ring Evil Soul Master!"
Xu Xiaoyu anxiously paced two circles on the spot, then rushed back and grabbed her arm.
"Where are you hurt? Let me see!"
"I'm really fine." Xu Xiaoyan pulled her arm back. "Someone saved me."
Xu Xiaoyu stopped. "Who saved you?"
"A Tang Sect disciple with Twin Martial Souls."
Xu Xiaoyan's eyes lit up as she said it.
"He was about my age, eight years old. He had two Martial Souls: a pink rabbit and a black hammer."
"He was the one who saved me."
"Wait, wait." Xu Xiaoyu interrupted her, his expression complicated.
"You're saying an eight-year-old child with Twin Martial Souls smashed a three-ring Evil Soul Master into a mist of blood with one blow of his hammer?"
"Mm!" Xu Xiaoyan nodded emphatically.
"He was amazing! He brought his hammer down, and that Evil Soul Master just exploded. He went everywhere."
"All right, all right." Xu Xiaoyu quickly covered her mouth. "Stop talking. We're out in public."
He looked around and only let go after making sure no one was paying attention.
"Are you sure he was only eight?"
"I'm sure. He was about my age."
"Twin Martial Souls?"
"Yes."
"Someone from the Tang Sect?"
"He didn't say so himself, but that guard called him someone from the Tang Sect, and he didn't deny it."
Xu Xiaoyu fell silent for a few seconds.
Of course he knew about the Tang Sect.
There was no one on the Douluo Continent who didn't know about the Tang Sect.
A top-tier sect with a legacy spanning ten thousand years-Hidden Weapons, cultivation methods, Soul Guidance Technology, every one of them was first-rate.
When Tang Sect disciples traveled the continent, they were nearly invincible among those of the same rank, and challenging opponents above their level was nothing unusual.
But eight years old, Twin Martial Souls, and smashing a three-ring Evil Soul Master to death with one hammer blow-that really was a little unusual.
"Then what's his name?" Xu Xiaoyu asked.
Xu Xiaoyan's expression stiffened.
"I didn't find out."
"You didn't find out?"
"I asked, but he said he'd tell me when fate brought us together again." Xu Xiaoyan stamped her foot in a huff.
"Then he left. He went that way."
She pointed in the direction Tang Wulin had gone.
In that direction, the crowd surged, and there was no sign of Tang Wulin.