Persuading Them to Surrender

The three elders wore remarkably identical expressions as they stared at Tang Hao's Soul Rings.

First, they froze for a moment. Then they rubbed their eyes in unison. Their faces went from white to green, then from green to purple, and finally flushed red with rage.

They stared at the sole white ring of light around Tang Hao as though they had seen a ghost in broad daylight.

A moment later, a roar rang out.

"Tang Hao! Have you lost your fucking mind?"

Tang Lie was so furious he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. He and the third elder took turns pointing at Tang Hao's nose and berating him.

"A Ten-Year Soul Ring? You made a white Soul Ring your Eighth Soul Ring?"

"You have the greatest talent in the sect of your generation! Back then, Ancestor Tang Chen taught you the profound secrets of the Great Sumeru Hammer, and the sect bestowed two inherited Soul Bones upon you. We had such high hopes for you. Fuck, even if you'd gone to the back mountain and slaughtered some random thousand-year wild boar, it would have been better than this ten-year piece of trash!"

"You took a ten-year white ring... How are the sects across the continent supposed to look at our Clear Sky Sect? Will they say that the dignified number one sect under heaven can't even hunt a Soul Ring for its own genius?"

"Are you trying to make the world laugh our Clear Sky Sect to death? If your father finds out, he'll come charging out of the sect with his hammer and break your damned legs!"

The second elder trembled all over with rage, nearly suffering an attack of Tang Syndrome.

"You've willingly fallen so low, willingly fallen so low! Tang Hao, you've utterly disgraced the Clear Sky Sect!"

That white ring, such a profound humiliation, was already the greatest blemish on Tang Hao's record.

Now that the three elders were pointing at his nose and berating him, Tang Hao's pride shattered on the spot. Burning with shame and anger, he roared:

"Shut up! I do what I want! I'll absorb whatever Soul Ring I damn well please. What the fuck is it to you?"

"If you want to fight, then fight! I can't be bothered to talk, and you're not worthy to listen! Kill!"

Tang Hao, completely enraged, swung his Clear Sky Hammer and smashed it at the weakest of them, the seventh elder.

Tang Xiao had no time to dwell on Tang Hao's Ten-Year Soul Ring. Seeing his second brother attack, he too let out an angry roar and struck alongside Ah Rou.

A chaotic battle erupted at once.

But there was never any question how the battle would end.

Tang Xiao and Tang Hao were indeed among the Clear Sky Sect's greatest geniuses, and Ah Rou was also a Level 80 Quasi-Soul Douluo.

But they faced the Level 94 second elder, the Level 92 third elder, and Tang Lie, a Level 90 Quasi-Titled Douluo.

The difference in cultivation was an absolute chasm that talent could never bridge.

What was more, Tang Hao had just exploded seven rings and been swatted around like a ball by the Titan Giant Ape. He was in a weakened state, and his newly acquired eighth Soul Skill was a pole vault with no combat power whatsoever.

Ah Rou had yet to obtain her Eighth Soul Ring, and she also had to divide her attention to protect Xiao Wu, who would take a long or short nap on the spot and drop her equipment outright if caught in the aftermath of an attack.

After just a few exchanges, the muffled booming came to an end.

"Pfft."

The second and seventh elders beat Tang Hao and Tang Xiao until they spat blood and retreated again and again.

Ah Rou was no match for the third elder. Each time she blocked his hammer, she had to use Invincible Golden Body and Nothingness, but she could only use Invincible Golden Body three times a day at most, while Nothingness, her sixth Soul Skill, consumed an enormous amount of Soul Power. A single mistake sent her flying backward under a hammer blow, vomiting blood.

It wasn't that Ah Rou hadn't considered fleeing with Xiao Wu, but she couldn't. Their opponents had three top experts, and Tang Hao and Tang Xiao could hold off two of them at the absolute most.

Besides, Xiao Wu's cultivation was too low. Her Teleportation Soul Skill could only carry her five meters at a time. Even if she exhausted all her Soul Power, a Titled Douluo could cover that distance in a moment.

When Ah Rou's identity was exposed, she had released her presence in an attempt to draw the two simp beasts from the core region to their aid.

But there was still no sign of movement from the core region, and she felt a wave of despair.

Faced with such a desperate situation, Tang Hao and Tang Xiao forced their battered bodies to stand before the gravely wounded Ah Rou and Xiao Wu, their eyes filled with the resolve to take their enemies down with them.

Seeing their determination to die rather than retreat, the second elder's movements involuntarily faltered.

He raised a hand, stopping the third and seventh elders from pressing their attack.

The second elder looked at the group opposite him without expression, quickly weighing his options.

The situation at hand was extraordinarily troublesome.

Tang Xiao was the sect master's eldest son, and Tang Hao was the inheritor of the Great Sumeru Hammer. Their talent was unmatched in the Clear Sky Sect.

Although Tang Hao had water in his brain and taken a white ring, his foundations still made him highly valuable.

The brothers were both children of the sect master, Tang Zhen, and grandsons of Ancestor Tang Chen. They were also destined to become Super Douluo and form the foundation of the Clear Sky Sect's future strength.

If they were truly driven into a corner today, Tang Xiao and Tang Hao would surely fight to the death and might even turn against the sect as enemies.

If the brothers were lost, the Clear Sky Sect's next generation would not be left entirely without successors, but it would certainly have no geniuses of such exceptional talent.

Then there were the spoils to consider.

Killing the two transformed Soul Beasts would indeed yield two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Rings and two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones.

But while the little rabbit's Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring could serve as Old Seven's ninth ring, what about the old rabbit's?

None of them could absorb that Soul Ring.

Trading the sect's two future Super Douluo for one usable Soul Ring and two Soul Bones, while wasting a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring for nothing...

That deal would lose them everything down to their grandmother's house.

With that thought, a plan took shape in the second elder's mind.

He slowly withdrew the Soul Power around him, and an uncharacteristically kindly expression appeared on his face.

"Enough, enough."

The second elder sighed, speaking in an exceedingly gentle tone:

"I watched you brothers grow up. How could I truly want your lives? Since you both care so deeply for them that you would protect them even at the cost of your lives, I will not be the villain who beats apart the mandarin ducks."

This sudden change did not put Tang Xiao and Tang Hao at ease. Instead, it sent a chill down their backs.

Their grips on their Clear Sky Hammers did not loosen in the slightest. Instead, their Soul Power surged more urgently than ever.

The second elder had always been stern and harsh in the sect. Just moments ago, he had been ready to kill without mercy and take the rings and bones, yet now he was all smiles.

When something was out of the ordinary, there had to be a demon behind it.

The brothers kept their guard up, afraid that the second elder was merely buying time, luring them into withdrawing their Martial Souls before striking like thunder.

The seventh elder, Tang Lie, grew anxious at once.

"Second Brother, those are Hundred-Thousand-Year..."

"Shut up!"

The second elder shot Tang Lie a cold sideways glance. Intimidated by the oppressive authority of the second elder, the most senior man in the sect, Tang Lie fell sullenly silent.

The second elder looked back at Tang Xiao and Tang Hao, his expression returning to normal as he spoke slowly:

"However, you must understand that the transformation of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast is no small matter. If Spirit Hall or another sect discovers them, a calamity will fall upon you. Even the Clear Sky Sect will be dragged down with you and may even be accused of colluding with Soul Beasts and betraying humanity."

"Therefore, I require you to return to the sect with me. You will live under its protection, and from now on, you must never parade about in the outside world, lest you bring disaster upon yourselves."

Tang Xiao thought for a moment before realizing what was going on.

The second elder knew that forcing the attack now would leave both sides injured, so he had settled for the next best thing: taking both the men and the Soul Beasts back to the sect together.

Once they entered the sect's territory, surrounded by elders, wouldn't the sect be free to mold them round or flat as it pleased?

At that thought, Tang Xiao grew even more wary. He ventured:

"Second Elder, Xiao Wu is still in the juvenile stage of her transformation, so it would be reasonable for her to return to the sect and remain hidden. But Third Sister has already passed the mature stage, and her presence is no different from that of an ordinary human Soul Master. Even if she traveled across the continent, a Titled Douluo would have difficulty discerning her identity. Must she also return to the sect and live under restrictions?"

Tang Hao added in a low voice, "That's right. If we return to the sect, must they spend the rest of their days under its watch?"

"Insolence!" The second elder's face darkened, and he snorted coldly. "This is the sect's protection for you."

"I am willing to discuss this with you because you brothers are members of our sect and care so deeply for these two... people. If the three of us truly showed no consideration, we could simply knock you unconscious, then capture those two beasts and take their rings and bones. In your current condition, who could you stop?"

"We are willing to take half a step back and leave you your dignity. Do not take a mile when given an inch and fail to appreciate our goodwill."

Those merciless words struck Tang Xiao and Tang Hao to the core.

They knew full well that the second elder was right. If they truly fell out with him, they would have no room to maneuver.

For the elders to take a step back and spare their lives was already an enormous concession.

Tang Xiao suppressed the reluctance in his heart, exchanged a glance with Tang Hao, and bowed.

"Your reprimand is justified, Second Elder. We spoke out of turn. We will obey."

Xiao Wu's walnut-sized brain could not make sense of why their attitude had changed so quickly.

She only thought that although the Clear Sky Sect's elders were fierce, since they were willing to accept her and her mother and take them back to the sect, wouldn't she be able to live a peaceful life under the wing of the continent's number one sect, with Brother Hao by her side day and night?

By comparison, those two simp beasts, Da Ming and Er Ming, had actually dared to hurt her Brother Hao and made him absorb Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo.

Just look: the people of the Clear Sky Sect only wanted her and her mother's Soul Rings and Soul Bones, while Da Ming and Er Ming wanted to hurt her beloved.

On a continent where love-brained thinking reigned supreme, Xiao Wu immediately concluded that the Clear Sky Sect were very, very good people.

Beside her, a chill spread through Ah Rou when she heard their decision. They were going to keep her and Xiao Wu in captivity.

If her identity as a Soul Beast had not been discovered, there would have been no problem with her marrying into the Clear Sky Sect.

But now, once they entered, she and her daughter would be turtles trapped in a jar, their lives held in others' hands at all times.

Looking at the three imposing elders before her, Ah Rou's eyes held nothing but sorrow and helplessness.

Before absolute strength, they had no right to choose at all. Even knowing that danger lay ahead, they could only grit their teeth and endure.

Watching them submit obediently, the second elder felt a flash of satisfaction that only he understood.

His compromise was by no means an act of mercy. He had seen the enormous benefits behind it.

As long as he brought the two rabbits back to the Clear Sky Sect, he could keep them secret from outsiders and firmly secure the hearts of the brothers Tang Xiao and Tang Hao within the sect.

Not only that, the second elder had another calculation in mind.

If, during that time, the two Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beasts bore children with the sect's two geniuses, what kind of talent would their offspring possess?

Although most offspring born of humans and beasts were likely to be hybrids, with both the Clear Sky Sect's supreme Martial Soul and the foundations of Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, their descendants' talent would surely be terrifying.

They could simply keep raising them until Tang Xiao and Tang Hao broke through to Titled Douluo. Then the two Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts would serve a second purpose.

When the time came, the sect only had to make a few arrangements and have the old rabbit "voluntarily sacrifice herself" for her beloved's future. Wouldn't a tailor-made hundred-thousand-year ninth ring and Soul Bone then naturally fall into place?

By the time Tang Hao attempted to reach Level 90, the little rabbit would have been fattened up as well, ready to sacrifice herself to him in the same way.

That way, the sect would gain exceptionally talented descendants and preserve two future top-tier Titled Douluo, while keeping both Hundred Thousand Year Soul Rings and both Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones firmly within the sect-not a drop of the rich water would flow into an outsider's field.

The second elder laughed long and hard in his heart.

Young people were young people, after all. They thought they were fighting for love, unaware that, in his eyes, this was called casting a long line to catch a big fish.

Thinking of his plan, he could not help but marvel at his own world-shaking wisdom.