Qian Renxue's Heartbreak
Within the Heaven Dou Empire stood the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
As the sect possessing the continent's foremost support Martial Soul, they were exceptionally wealthy.
They were also the richest sect on the entire continent, their wealth rivaling that of a nation!
Even the Heaven Dou Empire's wealth could not compare to theirs.
After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was an old sect that had existed for a very long time.
The Heaven Dou Empire, on the other hand, had been formed later from numerous princely domains and small kingdoms.
It ultimately came under the rule of the Xue Family.
The Xue Family had also been brought to power with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's backing.
Inside the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's main hall stood three people.
One was a middle-aged man with a graceful manner and a refined bearing.
This man was none other than Ning Fengzhi, the sect master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
The middle-aged man in blue beside him was considerably older than Ning Fengzhi, his body as straight as a sword.
A sharp edge radiated from him, like a keen blade that might leave its sheath at any moment.
He was Sword Douluo Chen Xin, one of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's guardian elders.
The man beside them, dressed in dark blue armor, looked somewhat gloomy and gave off a distinctive presence.
He looked considerably older than the other two.
He was Bone Douluo Gu Rong, one of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's guardian elders.
These days, the three were practically inseparable.
They were discussing Spirit Hall, the Clear Sky Sect, and Tang Hao.
Ning Fengzhi exclaimed, "I never expected Qian Xunji, a Level 95 Titled Douluo, to be killed by Tang Hao!"
Gu Rong said, "Spirit Hall has formally declared war on the Clear Sky Sect. What should we do next? Should we go help them, or keep ourselves out of harm's way?"
Chen Xin said gravely, "Spirit Hall has a great many Titled Douluo. Our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect cannot confront them head-on. My father went in back then and never came out. If the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect truly gets involved, we may well be doomed beyond redemption."
"According to what my father said before he left, a Level 99 Peerless Douluo is hidden within Spirit Hall."
"My father's cultivation had already reached that of a Level 98 Super Douluo back then, and he still never came out. So this rumor must be true."
Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong both looked grave after hearing Chen Xin's words.
A breeze blew past, lifting their hair.
"Then we'll wait and see how things develop," Ning Fengzhi said gravely.
After all, the Upper Three Sects were not truly of one heart. They could not offend Spirit Hall, whose strength they could not fathom, for someone else's sake when they had no assurance of success.
"Come on. Now that we've made up our minds, there's no need to worry."
"When soldiers come, a general will stop them; when floods come, earth will dam them."
"Let's go see our Rongrong."
"I've been missing her."
With that, the three left the main hall and headed for the sleeping quarters.
At the Clear Sky Sect,
the atmosphere in the main hall was exceptionally heavy.
"Hmph! That boy Tang Hao is bringing disaster upon us!"
"Why doesn't he think about the consequences of what he does?!"
"Our ancestor Tang Chen has disappeared, yet Spirit Hall's Peerless Douluo is still around. How are we supposed to resist?"
"Hmph! What are you afraid of? At worst, we fight! We have no shortage of Titled Douluo ourselves!"
"As long as that Peerless Douluo doesn't appear, we still have a fighting chance!"
"And I bet he wouldn't dare wipe us out! He still doesn't know whether our ancestor is alive or dead! He must be wary too!"
"We can use that to frighten them!"
The people in the main hall continued to debate.
Some complained; others were angry.
"Tang Xiao, why don't we hand Tang Hao over?"
"To drag our entire Clear Sky Sect into this for the sake of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast simply isn't worth it!"
"Our Clear Sky Sect has no intention of becoming enemies with Spirit Hall!"
"I propose that we expel Tang Hao from the Clear Sky Sect and publicly declare that killing Pope Qian Xunji was not their intention, but Tang Hao acting on his own impulse. We won't pay for his actions! And we should make it clear that our Clear Sky Sect has no intention of becoming enemies with Spirit Hall!!"
"Silence!!"
The middle-aged man sitting in the center shouted, his face dark.
Everyone calmed down.
Tang Xiao was Tang Hao's eldest brother, and when it came to choosing between the sect and his own younger brother,
he was deeply conflicted.
"I won't hand Hao over. If they want him, they can find him themselves!" Tang Xiao said coldly.
He looked at all the elders with icy eyes and said, "If they want a fight, then we'll fight! The people of my Clear Sky Sect aren't so afraid of Spirit Hall!! If you're too scared to fight, that's your business!!"
Tang Xiao released the presence of a Titled Douluo.
His words carried great weight.
But he could not disregard the Clear Sky Sect's safety either, because he was its sect master.
He truly could not sacrifice the lives of the entire sect for one person.
Everyone fell silent.
Each had already made his own plans.
As for the affiliated sects, they could barely protect themselves now, so naturally they would not concern themselves with those sects.
Inside the Worship Hall, after news of Qian Xunji's death spread,
Qian Nuo confirmed that his theory was correct.
There was naturally anger in his eyes.
Bibi Dong was clearly the one who had killed him, yet Tang Hao was being made to take the blame.
He had read the original story. Although Tang Hao had gone mad, he had not truly lost his reason and killed Qian Xunji.
For he also understood that killing Qian Xunji would surely bring an irredeemable calamity upon the Clear Sky Sect.
So he had held back.
The real culprit who had killed Qian Xunji was Bibi Dong.
Because he had sensed Qian Xunji's presence on her.
"Boo-hoo, brother, Xiao Xue doesn't have a father anymore!"
"Tang Hao! The Clear Sky Sect! Xiao Xue will wipe them out and avenge Father!!"
In the room, Qian Renxue, who had learned the news, lay in Qian Nuo's arms and sobbed without cease. Tears streamed down her face like rain on pear blossoms, and she looked utterly pitiful.
Her own mother did not love her, and now her father, who loved her most, had been killed by Tang Hao. She was truly heartbroken.
Unaware of the circumstances, she had always believed that Tang Hao had killed her father.
If she were to learn that Bibi Dong had killed Qian Xunji,
who knew what would happen?
She would surely fall into the depths of despair.
That was why, in the original story, Qian Daoliu had only told her the truth when he was dying.
Seeing how grief-stricken and heartbroken she already was,
Qian Nuo still did not tell her the truth.
He did not want his only younger sister to become someone driven mad by grief as well.
I never thought I'd make the same choice as Qian Daoliu, Qian Nuo thought, stroking Qian Renxue's head.
"It's all right, Silly Xue. You still have your brother from now on. I'll protect you." A humanlike emotion appeared in Qian Nuo's eyes as he comforted Qian Renxue.
"Brother, can you go kill Tang Hao? Avenge Father! Xiao Xue can't wait any longer! Xiao Xue wants him dead right now!! Brother, you're so strong that even Grandpa is no match for you. Tang Hao definitely isn't your match either!"
Qian Renxue raised her hand and looked at Qian Nuo with tearful, reddened eyes, pleading with him.
Qian Nuo said, "All right, I promise you. Once I find him, I'll avenge Father."
"You're tired now. Get some sleep first."
As he spoke, the hand stroking Qian Renxue's head pressed lightly against her neck.
Qian Renxue immediately lost consciousness.
Qian Nuo laid her on the bed and tucked the covers around her.
He turned to look out the window, a sharp scarlet gleam flashing through his eyes.
"Bibi Dong, it's time to settle the score."
Whoosh!
His figure became an afterimage and vanished from the room.