As they listened to Ghost Emperor's unbridled mockery, Guan Yue's and Zang Xin's eyes filled with fury, while guilt also rose in their hearts.
Ya Li was their sister-in-law. Yun Ming had entrusted her to their protection, yet they had failed to keep her safe. Now neither knew how to face Yun Ming when they returned.
Ghost Emperor's words were like sharp blades, every sentence stabbing into their hearts until their eyes turned bloodshot and they panted like oxen.
Just as the two sides remained locked in a standoff, another immensely powerful presence came charging over. Everyone turned to look and saw a brown streak of light hurtling toward them. It was Xuan Zi!
"Ye Xishui! Holy Spirit Cult! You bastards! Come at this old man if you have the guts!"
Xuan Zi's eyes were bloodshot. His roar, filled with endless fury, resounded throughout the entire space before he slammed into Ye Xishui.
Boom!
The surrounding space shattered layer by layer. Ye Xishui spat out blood, clearly badly hurt by the collision, while Zang Xin struck without hesitation, severely wounding Dark Blood Demon with a slash of his sword.
Seeing Shrek Academy's reinforcements arrive, Ghost Emperor chose to retreat without the slightest hesitation, tearing open space and disappearing into it.
Ye Xishui and Dark Blood Demon also tore open space and fled, while Guan Yue and Zang Xin immediately gave chase in the direction Long Xiaoyao had gone.
"Sister-in-law! You have to hold on! We're coming to save you!"
The two raced in the direction Long Xiaoyao had left. When Xuan Zi heard that Ya Li had been captured, his pupils shook violently, and his eyes filled with grief. It had happened again...
When Zhang Lexuan had led the team, the students' casualties had been eight injured, one dead, and three crippled. When Huo Yuhao had led the team, the students' casualties had been one dead, three crippled, and three injured. Every time he accompanied a team, he managed to ruin things... No! I have to make amends!
With that thought, Xuan Zi immediately followed Guan Yue and Zang Xin, joining them in searching for Long Xiaoyao's trail.
Meanwhile, Long Xiaoyao had brought the captive Ya Li to Heaven Dou City, a city both familiar and unfamiliar to him. He had no intention of hurting her and only wanted to complete Ye Xishui's task.
He had brought Ya Li to such a bustling city to make it easier for her to return on her own afterward.
"Hand over the rewards bestowed by the God of Games. This old man doesn't want to hurt you."
Long Xiaoyao sealed her Soul Power and set her on the ground, signaling for her to hand over the rewards. Ya Li clenched her teeth and questioned him.
"I haven't sensed any trace of an Evil Soul Master on you, which means you aren't one. Yet you willingly debase yourself and help a tyrant commit atrocities. Why?"
She could not understand. What could a Limit Douluo like Long Xiaoyao possibly lack? Why would he willingly sink to becoming an Evil Soul Master? Yet historical records only stated that Long Xiaoyao had been an Evil Soul Master of the Holy Spirit Cult and later died in Mingdu. Nothing else had been recorded.
Faced with her questioning, Long Xiaoyao avoided answering, choosing silence before taking the items himself. With a beckoning gesture, he drew out the Soul Tools on Ya Li's person.
He took everything except the Federation Coins, clothes, and daily necessities, then tossed the Soul Tools back.
Long Xiaoyao did not want to kill Ya Li. Even though he had only just arrived in this era, the Holy Spirit Douluo's name had thundered in his ears-the kindest and most beautiful woman on the continent. He, too, respected a saint who brought salvation to all living beings.
After obtaining what he wanted, Long Xiaoyao turned to leave. But in the very next instant, a sense of mortal danger swept over him.
High in the sky, dazzling sacred radiance locked onto him, followed by a ten-meter-long sacred greatsword crashing down.
Long Xiaoyao immediately formed a Dark Dragon Scale Shield, barely managing to block the blow. Rumble!
The unfinished buildings nearby collapsed, and countless chunks of rubble came crashing down. Watching the stones about to strike her, Ya Li immediately covered her head with both hands and curled into a ball to reduce the area exposed.
Rumble!
The entire unfinished building collapsed, but the pain she expected never came. Ya Li raised her head and opened her eyes, discovering a golden shield of light protecting her within.
Long Xiaoyao spat out a mouthful of blood. As he watched his Soul Power being purified, he also felt the absolute suppression Ultimate Attributes exerted over other attributes.
He looked up and saw a gigantic Angel Phantom manifesting in the sky. Sacred radiance showered the world, and a blond man hovered before the Angel Phantom.
"You're... Spirit Hall's Angel Douluo, Qian Daoliu!"
At the sight of the newcomer, Long Xiaoyao's expression turned horrified, his eyes full of disbelief. He had never imagined Qian Daoliu had been following him all along.
Looking down at Long Xiaoyao, Qian Daoliu sensed no evil presence on him, only pure darkness. That meant he was not an Evil Soul Master, yet he colluded with them, which filled Qian Daoliu with disdain.
"As a Level 99 Peerless Douluo, you collude with Evil Soul Masters and help a tyrant commit atrocities. You're unworthy of all that cultivation."
As Qian Daoliu spoke, he reached out and closed his hand. The space before him instantly shattered, and a golden holy sword appeared in his grasp. It was the divine artifact, the Angel Holy Sword!
Seeing the situation turn against him, Long Xiaoyao immediately tore open space and fled. Qian Daoliu did not pursue him. Instead, he withdrew his Martial Soul and slowly descended to the ground.
If a Limit Douluo wanted to escape, there was nothing he could do. His battle against Underworld Emperor had been different because both of them had been inside that arena, where a winner and loser had to be decided.
Moreover, Long Xiaoyao possessed only a dark presence, with no evil presence, so the sacred attribute's special damage bonus had not applied.
Against Long Xiaoyao, only attribute suppression applied. Against Evil Soul Masters, both attribute suppression and the sacred attribute's special damage bonus applied, so taking Long Xiaoyao down was not that easy.
If Qian Daoliu faced Ye Xishui or Dark Blood Demon, he could kill them within ten exchanges. Of course, that included the effects of Angel Divine Power and his divine artifact. Under normal circumstances, Limit Douluos generally could do nothing to one another.
Only absolute attribute counters like Qian Daoliu's allowed one to kill the other. After driving Long Xiaoyao away, he approached Ya Li and extended a hand.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. Thank you, Your Eminence Angel Douluo. Thank you for saving my life."
"There's no need to thank me. That fellow didn't seem to intend to kill you, so I spent some time evacuating the crowd."
Qian Daoliu shook his head slightly. Heaven Dou City was quite crowded, and he did not want civilians caught in the fighting. Thus, before driving Long Xiaoyao away, once he saw that Long Xiaoyao had no intention of killing anyone, he had chosen to evacuate the civilians first.
"I understand. Your Eminence cares for all living beings. This junior admires you."
Qian Daoliu pulled Ya Li to her feet. Her face was rather pale, and she looked somewhat weak. A battle between Limit Douluos was not something one could easily participate in. Even with Zang Xin protecting her, she had been caught in the fighting and suffered some internal injuries.
"I'll escort you back. To prevent them from doubling back for another attack, this old man doesn't mind accompanying you and ensuring your safety."
"Thank you, Your Eminence. Sorry for the trouble."
Qian Daoliu thought that a favor from a Level 98 healing-type Super Douluo was quite valuable. Who knew whether he might need it someday? He might as well see his good deed through to the end and escort the Buddha all the way west.
After removing the seal on Ya Li's Soul Power, Qian Daoliu enveloped her in his own Soul Power and set off toward Shrek City. His granddaughter and disciple were still there.
"Your Eminence, although this question may be somewhat presumptuous, I still want to know... had you already sensed those Holy Spirit Cult members lurking in the shadows?"
On the return journey, Ya Li treated her injuries. Because everything inside her Soul Tools had been taken, she temporarily had no way to contact Shrek Academy.
All she had left was a little money and some daily necessities. Then she suddenly thought of how perfectly timed Qian Daoliu's arrival had been. No matter how she looked at it, he seemed to have known all along.
Once this thought arose, Ya Li could not help feeling somewhat apprehensive. She was very weak now and inevitably a little more sensitive. Mainly, Qian Daoliu had left a fairly good impression, and she did not want to overthink things.
Besides, those with the Angel Martial Soul were generally open and upright, so she chose to ask directly to avoid a misunderstanding. Hearing her question, Qian Daoliu nodded in acknowledgment.
"That's right. This old man discovered traces of those fallen ones while guiding you in cultivating your states of mind."
"However, at the time, I thought those fallen ones were coming for me, so I said nothing. But the outcome exceeded my expectations. They were actually coming for you, catching this old man off guard."
Listening to his explanation, Ya Li carefully thought back. A group consisting of the Quasi-God Ghost Emperor and three Demigods could indeed very likely have come to eliminate the enormous threat that was Qian Daoliu.
If she were Qian Daoliu, she would naturally have been cautious as well. He really could not be blamed. Yet no one had expected those fellows to attack her directly. Qian Daoliu had only met her twice, and his help had come from kindness.
"I understand. I didn't expect the Holy Spirit Cult to deploy a full four Limit Douluos this time either, including the long-renowned Ghost King Douluo and Dark Blood Demon, as well as Death God Douluo and Dragon Emperor Douluo from ten thousand years ago."
Ya Li lowered her guard. As long as Qian Daoliu bore her no ill will, that was enough. And so, chatting along the way, the two arrived at the Spirit Pagoda in Shrek City.
Inside the Spirit Pagoda, the little girl Qian Renxue had long since finished absorbing her Soul Spirit and was now a rank twenty-one Soul Grandmaster.
"A single Hundred-Year Soul Spirit actually produced two Soul Rings! Soul Spirits really are miraculous creations."
Light Feather Douluo looked at the little white horse atop Qian Renxue's head and the two Yellow Soul Rings around her, clicking his tongue in wonder. This was all of their first time seeing something like a Soul Spirit.
Every one of them was like a country bumpkin, exclaiming in wonder whenever they saw something new. Ye Guyi looked at Qian Renxue, her eyes also filled with envy as she said:
"Congratulations on becoming a Soul Grandmaster, senior sister."
In terms of seniority, Ye Guyi should actually have belonged to Qian Xunji's generation and been Qian Renxue's martial aunt. However, to avoid making their seniority too confusing, she simply acknowledged Qian Renxue as her senior sister.
"Junior sister, with your talent, you'll definitely receive extensive support from Spirit Hall's resources too. When we return, we'll appoint you Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden. We absolutely can't let that stinking fox become Holy Maiden."
Qian Renxue patted her shoulder encouragingly, then thought of a certain ungrateful wretch with a Heavenly Fox Martial Soul. A shadow immediately flashed through her eyes.
As long as she was around, even if she gave the position of Holy Maiden to her little junior sister, she would never give it to that stinking fox.
"Holy Maiden? Me? What about you, senior sister?"
Hearing that Qian Renxue wanted to appoint her Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, Ye Guyi was somewhat bewildered. Wasn't Qian Renxue the legitimate heir of Spirit Hall? Qian Renxue waved a hand dismissively.
"Me? Whatever is fine. Later, I'll need to repair the Angel Godhood and won't have time to manage Spirit Hall, so I'll need you, my dear junior sister, to manage it! Speaking of which... Grandpa Guang Ling, where's my grandpa?"
Halfway through speaking, she suddenly realized that her grandfather, Qian Daoliu, did not seem to be there. Had something happened?
"Oh, the Great Enshrined had something to do and went out. He told us to wait here. It seemed quite important."
Light Feather Douluo lounged carelessly on the sofa, lying on his side in a sultry pose. Beside him, Azure Luan Douluo leaned against the sofa and offered a guess.
"At the time, the Great Enshrined's expression changed almost simultaneously with those two Moon-Controlling Realm Peerless Douluos. My guess is that they found traces of the God of Games. Otherwise, I don't think anything would warrant the Great Enshrined going personally."
"That makes sense. Third brother, what do you think that God of Games is cooking up this time?"
"How would I know? Ask the Great Enshrined yourself when he returns."
Light Feather Douluo sat up, feeling that Azure Luan Douluo had a point, but also wondering what the God of Games was cooking up this time. Azure Luan Douluo rolled his eyes. He was not the God of Games, so how could he know what the other was thinking?
Seeing that he could get no answers, Light Feather Douluo flashed over to Qian Jun Douluo, who was leaning by the doorway, and questioned him, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Sixth brother, I remember your name is Qiangu Jun, right? Is that a compound surname or a single-character surname? If both you and Seventh have the surname Qiangu, I remember this Spirit Pagoda's Pagoda Master also has that surname. Maybe he's related to you."
Light Feather Douluo suddenly recalled that the Spirit Pagoda's Pagoda Master seemed to be named Qiangu Dongfeng, with the title Spirit Transmitter, while Qian Jun Douluo's name was Qiangu Jun and Demon Subduing Douluo's was Qiangu Jiang Mo.
That had piqued his curiosity. Perhaps that Pagoda Master Qiangu was related to the two of them. Hearing Light Feather Douluo's question, Qian Jun Douluo replied indifferently:
"Even if Pagoda Master Qiangu really is a descendant of our Qiangu Family, so what? Would he think anything of us brothers' rank ninety-six cultivation?"
Qian Jun Douluo saw things clearly. The man was a Level 99 Moon-Controlling Realm Peerless Douluo, while the two brothers were merely insignificant rank ninety-six Super Douluos.
Would the man abandon his supreme position as Spirit Pagoda's Pagoda Master to come acknowledge his ancestry before two poor relatives and live under their roof? No normal person would do that, would they?
"I was just asking. But Sixth, your family's descendants have already become Peerless Douluos. Do you think my descendants with the Light Feather Divine Bow Martial Soul could produce a Peerless Douluo too?"
Light Feather Douluo draped an arm around Demon Subduing Douluo's shoulders and began indulging in fantasies. Perhaps in this era, there really was a Level 99 Peerless Douluo whose Martial Soul was the Light Feather Divine Bow?
"Heh... dreams have everything."
Qian Jun Douluo sneered and offered that mocking remark, immediately drawing a dissatisfied response from Light Feather Douluo.
"Was anything I said wrong? My Light Feather Divine Bow is no lower in quality than your Coiling Dragon Staff Martial Soul. If your Coiling Dragon Staff Martial Soul can produce a Peerless Douluo, why can't my Light Feather Divine Bow?"
Faced with Guang Ling's clamor, Qiangu Jun simply closed his eyes and ignored him, giving him the cold shoulder. That made him even more annoyed.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!"
A combined double chapter for October 30.