The Clear Sky Sect's Dismal Departure, Tai Nuo's Death
No one had expected Tai Nuo to die.
The young man had actually killed Tai Nuo.
With a boom, eight Soul Rings rose from beneath Tai Tan's feet, and the phantom of a Great Strength Gorilla hovered behind him. He charged at Qian Xunling. "How dare you kill my son? I'll make you pay with your life!"
Gu Rong rushed forward and shouted, "Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul Avatar!"
A Bone Dragon rose from the ground and blocked Tai Tan, its two enormous wings poised against him, ready to strike at the slightest movement. Gu Rong sneered. "Sir, are you no longer going to abide by the rules?"
Tai Tan swung his Great Strength Gorilla Martial Soul and said angrily, "He killed my son. I no longer care who's right or wrong. I want him dead."
"Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul Avatar!" Tai Tan's eyes were red now. Gu Rong was somewhat at a loss and looked toward Ning Fengzhi. Just then, a Platinum Bishop of Spirit Hall stepped forward and said with an even more arrogant bearing, "Everyone, settle down."
"Hm?"
Qian Xunling was the first to look at the Platinum Bishop.
The Platinum Bishop, meanwhile, looked at Qian Xunling with satisfaction in his eyes and nodded. Then he turned to Tai Tan and said, "I saw the whole thing clearly, and I understand what happened. Spirit Hall has a duty to maintain order among the world's Soul Masters. What happened just now was entirely reasonable. Tai Tan, does the Clear Sky Sect refuse to acknowledge that?"
The Platinum Bishop looked at Tang Xiao.
Tang Xiao gripped the Clear Sky Sect tightly. No matter how much he acted like a turtle, he knew the Clear Sky Sect had suffered a great loss that would affect it from now on.
What Tang Xiao had least expected, however, was for Spirit Hall to step in.
Spirit Hall clearly had an agreement with his grandfather.
Tang Xiao said coldly, "Platinum Bishop, I remember my grandfather had an agreement with Spirit Hall that we wouldn't interfere in each other's affairs at will, didn't he?"
The Platinum Bishop replied, "Young Master Tang Xiao, you must be remembering wrong. As I recall, Spirit Hall's agreement with your Clear Sky Sect was that no one from Spirit Hall except the Great Enshrined was permitted to set foot in the Clear Sky Sect's mountain range. It said nothing about not interfering in each other's affairs. Besides, this can no longer be considered an internal matter of the Clear Sky Sect. It concerns everyone in the one hall, two empires, three upper sects, and four lower sects."
Seeing that even Spirit Hall had stepped in,
the various sects, large and small, that had been wavering and were originally at odds with Spirit Hall also had no choice but to distance themselves from the Clear Sky Sect.
In this matter, the Clear Sky Sect had indeed been given an inch and tried to take a mile.
Seeing their behavior, Tang Hao had no idea of the underlying reasons and thought only that the smaller sects had betrayed them. His Clear Sky Hammer slammed into the ground. "You bunch of bastards."
Qian Xunling hadn't expected things to develop this way either.
But that didn't matter, as long as it didn't get in his way.
Qian Xunling looked at Tang Hao. "How imposing you are! Do you think that because your grandfather is unrivaled under heaven, you are too?"
"Hm?" Everyone turned to Qian Xunling in shock once again.
Hadn't the young man had enough?
He actually dared to open fire on the Clear Sky Sect again.
And his target was the Limit Douluo's own grandson, the most renowned genius in the Clear Sky Sect and even the entire continent.
But only then did they remember that Qian Xunling seemed to be an even greater genius. He could no longer be called a genius; he ought to be called a monster.
The Platinum Bishop glared at Qian Xunling and said quietly, "Young man, say a little less. If this goes on, it won't be good for anyone. The Clear Sky Sect may be a bunch of brutes, but they're no less devious than any other sect. Just look at Tai Tan."
"He doesn't dare make a move now because we're protecting you, but once you leave here, once you leave Heaven Dou City, there's an eighty or ninety percent chance they'll come after you."
Qian Xunling looked calmly at the middle-aged Platinum Bishop.
The Platinum Bishop smiled deviously. "I'm risking the consequences of offending my superiors to protect you. The value you've shown is enough for me to take that risk. So you'll have to come with me later and join Spirit Hall. Understand?"
His gaze carried a hint of both threats and enticement.
Qian Xunling asked, "What's your name?"
The Platinum Bishop was puzzled, but he replied, "Salas."
"All right, I'll remember you. But thank you for your kindness; I won't be going with you," Qian Xunling said bluntly.
"What!?" The Platinum Bishop flew into a rage out of embarrassment.
He had thrown his full support behind Qian Xunling in front of so many people,
only to be rejected in public. Wasn't that a slap in his face?
Ning Fengzhi was somewhat surprised. He felt that Qian Xunling was indeed a free and unrestrained person, to have even turned down Spirit Hall's invitation.
Qian Xunling paid Salas no further attention and looked at the angry Tai Tan. "What are you looking at? If you can make a move, don't hold back. I'd like to see whether your love for your son is greater than your loyalty to the Clear Sky Sect."
"Damn it!" Tai Tan clenched his fists.
Just then, Tang Xiao called out in a heavy voice, "Uncle Tai Tan!"
"Young Sect Master." Tai Tan looked at Tang Xiao.
Tang Xiao's face was equally gloomy. He looked at Qian Xunling and said icily, "Your name is Ling, right?"
Qian Xunling picked at his ear. Instead of looking at Tang Xiao, he looked at Tang Yuehua and smiled. "You're here too?"
"Huh?" Tang Yuehua grew nervous and immediately lowered her head, but she replied quietly, "Mm."
Tang Xiao stepped in front of Tang Yuehua and stared at Qian Xunling. "Very well, I'll remember you, Ling. You've already reached the Soul Emperor level at such a young age. Even Brother Hao can't compare to you. You'll definitely have a place on the continent in the future, but you'll also learn that no matter how great your talent and strength are, if you don't get the chance to grow, you're still trash."
Even Tang Yuehua felt afraid of his threatening tone. For the first time, she suddenly became so afraid upon seeing her eldest and second brothers.
The others also pondered Tang Xiao's words carefully.
It looked like they would definitely make a move against Qian Xunling.
Qian Xunling, however, continued to ignore Tang Xiao and looked at Tang Hao. Tang Hao's eyes were full of fighting spirit and anger. Qian Xunling chuckled. "Nice look in your eyes. It's just that you seem the most like an idiot out of the lot."
"Damn it!" Tang Hao stepped forward, only to be stopped by Tang Xiao, who held back his anger and said coldly, "Who exactly are you?"
Qian Xunling's gaze also turned icy as he said, "If you're going to get lost, then get lost! Haven't you made enough of a spectacle of yourselves here? You've made a mess of His Majesty Xue Ye's ceremony. It's one thing not to offer any compensation, but who are you putting on those sour faces for?
"If you've got the guts, have your grandfather come here and kill me! I'll be waiting right here."
"?"
Arrogant. Everyone had originally thought Qian Xunling merely couldn't stand taking a loss and had an eccentric temperament, but they hadn't expected him to say something so arrogant.
He was getting right in the face of the strongest Soul Master alive today.
Salas, who had been looking at Qian Xunling with reproach, had to turn back and look at him approvingly. Perhaps this person could still be won over.
After all, they were also displeased with the Clear Sky Sect.
Tang Xiao clenched his fists. "Fine, we'll wait and see! Let's go."
With that, Tang Xiao led the Clear Sky Sect disciples away, taking Tai Nuo's corpse with them.
Seeing that the Clear Sky Sect had left, the other smaller sects didn't dare linger either. They asked Xue Ye for leave to depart one after another, and Xue Ye didn't stop them.
Salas looked at Qian Xunling. "I'll seek you out again later."
Qian Xunling nodded. "I'll probably send someone to find you too."
"?" Salas didn't understand, but he paid it no mind and hurried out, because he actually didn't dare provoke the Clear Sky Sect either.
Yu Yuanzhen came over to Qian Xunling and smiled. "What a talented young man. If the Clear Sky Sect weren't so powerful, I definitely would have stepped forward just now too. Ling, if you ever pass by our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, please be sure to stop in. I'll receive you personally."
"Of course, I'll definitely pass by your place." Qian Xunling grinned. Yu Yuanzhen felt somewhat uncomfortable, but after nodding awkwardly, he too walked out of the hall.
Only Xue Ye and Ning Fengzhi remained.
Ning Fengzhi looked somewhat gloomy and let out a sigh.
Seeing this, and considering that Ning Fengzhi had helped him somewhat just now, Qian Xunling raised a hand and patted his shoulder. "Young Master Ning, don't worry so much. The Clear Sky Sect may look like the sun at high noon, but in truth it's nothing more than a castle in the air. It won't be able to keep hopping around for many more years. Put your mind at ease."
"How do you know?" Ning Fengzhi asked, puzzled.
Qian Xunling didn't answer.
At that moment, Xue Ye smiled and stepped forward with an almost respectful air. "Immortal, may we speak alone?"
Qian Xunling raised a hand. "Don't ask. I'm not joining Heaven Dou."