Chapter Sixty-Three: Sending Tang Hao Away

“Tang Hao, I’ve come to find you because there’s something I want you to do for me,” Xiao Yu’s voice was calm as he made his intentions clear. “There’s a Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent on the Hell Road of Slaughter City. I want you to retrieve its inner core for me.”

The inner core was merely a pretext; Xiao Yu’s true aim was to send Tang Hao away so he could seize the Blue Silver Emperor’s right leg bone and gift it to Ye Lingling, enhancing her cultivation and talent.

After all, if Tang Hao were wandering outside and happened to return out of longing for his wife, it could coincide with Xiao Yu’s attempt to acquire the soul bone, and that would spell disaster. Coveting Tang Hao’s wife’s soul bone would surely drive Tang Hao to risk his life against them, so Xiao Yu had to devise a way to trap Tang Hao somewhere for several months, preventing his return to Holy Soul Village.

Slaughter City was the perfect choice.

It was a completely sealed place. Even with Tang Hao’s status as a God of Slaughter, it would take him three to five months to escape. That span was more than enough for Xiao Yu to locate, seize, and deal with the aftermath of acquiring the soul bone.

As for the Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent’s inner core, that was purely incidental—a chance to intercept Tang San’s fate, and having his own father do it was thrilling to contemplate.

Moreover, the inner core possessed remarkable effects. In the original story, it was through this core that Ma Hongjun’s spirit evolved into the Nine-Headed Phoenix, granting him the Phoenix Domain.

If Ma Hongjun could benefit, then it would surely offer unexpected improvements to Ikki, who also possessed a Phoenix spirit. Even those with fire-affiliated spirits, like Cang Mo and Huo Wu, might reap extraordinary results.

The Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent!

That was the giant serpent on Hell Road!

Back when Tang Hao traversed Hell Road, he was only at the Soul Emperor level and nearly perished at the serpent’s hands, barely evading its attacks and escaping in disgrace. Now, however, as a Title Douluo with the God of Slaughter Domain allowing him to use soul skills within Hell Road, he was confident he could kill the serpent.

Yet, Tang Hao was a man of immense pride, and Xiao Yu’s almost commanding tone greatly displeased him. “Why should I help you?”

“Tang Hao, you have no choice.”

Xiao Yu’s voice turned icy. To him, Tang San and Tang Hao were destined to be his enemies, and he saw no reason to show them even the slightest courtesy. “If you refuse, I’ll simply force myself to take an interest in your son and that little rabbit!”

“You wouldn’t dare!”

Tang Hao’s agitation triggered a violent bout of coughing.

“What wouldn’t I dare?” Xiao Yu sneered. “Even if I don’t need the rabbit’s soul ring or bone myself, I can sell the information for a handsome price. Take Spirit Hall, for example—I imagine the Pope with twin spirits would be very interested!”

“You…”

Forced by a junior more than thirty years his junior, Tang Hao’s face flushed a deep, livid red.

“So, Tang Hao, don’t even think of bargaining. Complete the task I’ve given you, and your son and that rabbit will remain unharmed.”

Ignoring Tang Hao’s murderous glare, Xiao Yu continued, “A twelve-year-old with a useless Blue Silver Grass spirit at level twenty-nine? Tang Hao, I’m sure your son has twin spirits. That’s your only hope for vengeance! If anything happens to him, with your crippled body, do you still think you have hope for revenge?”

“Fine, I’ll do it!”

With his weakness grasped, Tang Hao had no choice but to bow his head. In his heart, however, he swore that one day he would tear this hateful youth to pieces, pulverizing him to dust to avenge today’s humiliation.

Xiao Yu understood Tang Hao’s thoughts clearly, but he didn’t care. Sooner or later, he intended to kill Tang Hao himself; for now, he had his own reasons for letting Tang Hao live.

First and foremost was the matter of the God of Shura. Xiao Yu recalled two prevailing theories about the God of Shura from his previous life.

The first, most common theory held that everything from Tang San’s transmigration into the Douluo world was orchestrated by the God of Shura, who even collaborated with the Sea God to pave the way for Tang San. Otherwise, how could the Sea God, a first-tier deity, interfere with the Angel God’s assessment, also a first-tier deity? The suspicion naturally fell on the God of Shura, one of the five Divine Kings and an enforcer in the divine realm.

The second theory suggested that the God of Shura only began paying attention to Tang San after he completed Hell Road, as Tang San’s destruction of Slaughter City prevented subsequent candidates from taking the trial. At the time, the God of Shura was eager to escape the tedious duties of a divine enforcer and travel the mortal realm, so he had to choose an heir from the existing God of Slaughter candidates.

Among these candidates, Tang Chen was parasitized by the Nine-Headed Bat, Bibi Dong had accepted the test of the Rakshasa God, Tang Hao had crippled himself and was stuck at level seventy-nine, and Hu Liena was more of a supporting character—without Tang San’s help, she might not have survived Hell Road. Calculating the options, the God of Shura was left with only Tang San, and from that moment, he began to nurture him.

If the second theory proved true, then Xiao Yu’s preemptive entry into Slaughter City to acquire the God of Slaughter Domain would intercept Tang San’s greatest backing.

Yet, Xiao Yu was cautious. The risk of this interception was too high; if everything was orchestrated by the God of Shura, obtaining the God of Slaughter Domain would place him entirely under the deity’s watchful eye. Should the God of Shura discover his chosen heir, Tang San, was losing, he could secretly inject divine power into Xiao Yu through the domain, causing him to explode from within, leaving him nowhere to cry.

Another reason for not eliminating Tang Hao now was the Clear Sky Clan. Though the elders resented Tang Hao for killing Qian Xun Ji and implicating the clan, blood was thicker than water. Regardless, Tang Hao was their nephew, the younger brother of the current clan leader Tang Xiao, and the grandson of Tang Chen, the peerless Douluo who created the Clear Sky legend. If Tang Hao truly died at Xiao Yu’s hands, the Clear Sky Clan wouldn’t hesitate to cause trouble, even if they didn’t confront him openly.

Now that the Nine Star Hall was riding the wave of rapid development, Xiao Yu couldn’t let the Clear Sky Clan interfere.

Furthermore, Xiao Yu had an immature idea regarding the Clear Sky Clan. In the original story, pressured by Spirit Hall, the clan sealed its gates, and the forces allied with them gradually dispersed, leaving the clan greatly weakened. Yet, during their years of seclusion, the Clear Sky Clan focused intently on development; besides Tang Xiao, all six elders advanced to Title Douluo, boasting a formidable seven-Douluo lineup, not counting Tang Hao.

After the Soul Hunt campaign and the Battle of Jialing Pass—two pivotal events—the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan was wiped out, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan suffered heavy losses, and its two Douluo, Sword and Bone, perished. Apart from the married couple Ning Rongrong and Oscar, who sided with outsiders, nearly all their top combatants were gone. The Clear Sky Clan, appearing last and losing least, was the undisputed final victor.

With his omniscient perspective, Xiao Yu couldn’t allow such a powerful force to lurk in the shadows and emerge victorious at the end. Thus, he sought to use Tang Hao and Tang San as bait, opening a breach to drag the entire Clear Sky Clan into the mire of power struggle, ideally setting himself up as the benchmark and making them the primary target of Spirit Hall’s suppression.