"Ah ah ah!!!"
As soon as Tang San entered the cave, he heard Tang Hao's hysterical, grief-stricken screams. His expression immediately changed, and he hurriedly stepped further into the cave.
"Father, what happened?" Tang San asked anxiously.
But Tang Hao was in no mood to respond. At this moment, tears streamed down his face as he cradled a handful of damp soil, his eyes filled with sorrow and disbelief. He muttered under his breath:
"Gone… My Ah Yin is gone… Gone…"
Tang San had an excellent memory. He vividly recalled that when he had first arrived in the Douluo Continent, Tang Hao had mourned in the same way. Back then, Tang San had already guessed that the name 'Ah Yin' likely referred to his mother.
However, confusion now flickered in Tang San's eyes. According to his earlier deductions, his mother should have died during childbirth, which explained why his father had been so distant toward him in the past.
But seeing this scene before him, Tang San realized there might be more to the story than he had initially thought.
After a brief bout of wailing, Tang Hao seemed to remember something. He quickly turned his gaze toward the location where the soul bone should have been, only to find himself staring blankly, utterly bewildered.
"Gone… All gone…"
If Tang Hao had previously appeared mad with grief, now he seemed completely soulless, as though his spirit had been drained.
Gradually, however, Tang Hao's breathing grew heavier. His once cloudy, yellowish eyes were now entirely bloodshot.
In the next instant, a terrifying surge of soul force erupted. Tang San, facing such overwhelming power, was completely powerless to resist. He was instantly blown out of the waterfall cave by the shockwave of soul force.
But this wasn't even the most shocking part. In Tang San's stunned gaze, Tang Hao, using nothing but the fluctuations of his soul force, caused the entire waterfall to collapse in on itself. The cave was obliterated, and Tang Hao burst through the waterfall into the air, roaring furiously:
"Who? Who took my Ah Yin?! Who did it?! Who?! Ahhhhh!!!!"
After venting his rage with a series of primal screams, Tang Hao still felt unsatisfied. Summoning his Heaven Splitting Hammer, he unleashed a destructive barrage of blows, reducing the surrounding area—several kilometers in radius—to a flat wasteland before finally calming down.
Ultimately, it was Tang San who risked danger to forcibly activate the Purple Extreme Demon Eye, having just broken through to the Mustard Seed stage, to bring Tang Hao back to his senses. Tang San urgently reminded him that making such a commotion could attract the attention of the Spirit Hall, and they needed to flee immediately.
Only after recalling the immense strength of the Spirit Hall and realizing that his current physical condition wouldn't allow him to use Ring Detonation or the Great Sumeru Hammer again did Tang Hao reluctantly regain his composure. With Tang San in tow, he fled the scene.
After finding a new secluded hideout, Tang Hao once again fell into his usual state of apathy.
To Tang Hao, Ah Yin's disappearance wasn't particularly devastating. After all, in his mind, he would never see Ah Yin regain human form in his lifetime. Moreover, the hiding place he had chosen for her was meticulously selected. If not for the Blue Silver Emperor's extraordinary vitality, Ah Yin would have perished long ago. Right now, Tang Hao was simply taking advantage of Ah Yin's inability to speak or communicate, along with her naive nature, to play the role of a doting father in front of Tang San, hoping to earn more of his son's approval.
After all, Tang Hao knew that the despicable things he had done to Tang San during his childhood weren't easily forgiven. No matter how obedient Tang San appeared, Tang Hao saw it as an act, because that was simply who he was.
But now, everything had fallen apart.
Not only had he lost his precious 'collection' in Ah Yin, but more importantly, he had lost that hundred-thousand-year soul bone!
Hundred-thousand-year soul bones were exceedingly rare across the entire continent. Tang Hao didn't know if the Spirit Hall, with its deep resources, possessed one, but he was certain that none of the upper three sects—including their own Hao Tian Sect—had one.
And yet, such a crucial soul bone, which Tang Hao had inexplicably failed to carry with him, had been left in what he believed to be an impenetrable cave behind the waterfall. Now, it has vanished without a trace!
Though Tang Hao's mind wasn't sharp during his days of apathy, he still retained some semblance of reasoning. Recalling the conspicuous rivets affecting the waterfall, he surmised that someone must have stumbled upon the cave during an adventure, entered, and discovered the soul bone.
As for Ah Yin, a seemingly ordinary Blue Silver Grass plant, it might have been mistaken for something valuable since it was stored alongside a hundred-thousand-year soul bone and taken away along with it.
Thus, Tang Hao roughly deduced that whoever used external means to enter the cave must have been weak—a commoner or low-level soul master—and certainly not a villager from nearby towns. After all, as a former blacksmith, Tang Hao understood the value of those rivets. Ordinary villagers wouldn't waste money on such an expedition without recovering their investment.
However, after analyzing these clues, Tang Hao's expression became even darker.
If a powerful individual had taken Ah Yin's soul bone, Tang Hao could have narrowed down the suspects by tracking sudden spikes in high-level soul masters' soul force within a short period. But if it had been a commoner or a weak soul master, the pool of suspects would be far too vast. Given his current condition, Tang Hao couldn't afford to draw attention to himself, leaving him utterly helpless, unable to take action to recover Ah Yin's soul bone.
Unwilling to give up, Tang Hao scoured several cities around Nuoding City thoroughly before finally resigning himself to failure.
With this, Tang Hao sank into even deeper despair.
He wasn't worried about the Hao Tian Sect itself. Even though he had embarrassed the Spirit Hall twice, according to the agreement between his grandfather Tang Chen and the Spirit Hall, as long as the members of the Hao Tian Sect remained within their ancestral grounds, they wouldn't face annihilation.
But Tang Hao couldn't accept this! Once the strongest sect on the continent, the Hao Tian Sect was now forced to survive in a remote, cramped corner of the world due to his actions. How could this be acceptable?!
After wallowing in depression for a while, Tang Hao, the once-disciplined servant of the sect, resumed teaching Tang San. However, having lost the 'teaching material' (Ah Yin), Tang Hao could only dryly recount his past experiences with Ah Yin, placing the blame for Ah Yin's disappearance squarely on the Spirit Hall.
To his surprise, Tang San actually believed him! Tang San's heart burned with hatred for the Spirit Hall, cursing them inwardly for their shamelessness. Not only had they harmed his mother, but they had also stolen her soul bone! It was unforgivable! Especially since, according to Tang Hao, that soul bone had originally been intended for him!
Under the influence of his growing hatred and the residual effects of the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng, Tang San finally reached rank 50 two years after the Soul Master Tournament.
At this moment, Tang San's expression was radiant with excitement. According to Tang Hao, his late mother had also taught Tang Hao methods to further enhance his martial soul.
Based on Yu Xiaogang's cultivation plan, Tang San's Blue Silver Grass grew weaker and less effective the more he trained, far inferior to other plant-type martial souls at the same level.
Now, with the prospect of advancing his otherwise useless martial soul, Tang San couldn't help but beam with joy.
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