Chapter 347: The Dutiful Son, Tang San
"But…"
Tang Hao's gaze turned to Tang San, his voice ice cold. "I realized something was very wrong with this child who had come back to life!"
"From the moment he was born, he never cried or fussed!"
"He would even cry in advance when he needed to relieve himself as if he was warning me!"
"At first, I thought he was just exceptionally gifted, or maybe it had something to do with his soul beast bloodline, making him different from ordinary children."
"But as he grew older… I noticed something unnatural he was too mature, too understanding!"
"But most importantly…" Tang Hao's eyes grew colder, filled with both ridicule and self mockery. "This child started secretly cultivating on his own. From the age of one, he would sneak off early in the morning, running long distances to the mountain peak, staring at the sun while practicing a unique eye technique. He even knew strange skills that no child should possibly know…"
"No matter how much I wanted to deceive myself, the truth was undeniable. This child who had 'come back to life' was some unknown being that had taken over my son's body!"
Tang San smiled bitterly. He had always been careful, but he had underestimated his father. He had assumed that Tang Hao was just a drunken, washed up blacksmith, but in reality, he was a top tier expert. Nothing he did had ever escaped his father's notice not his early morning runs, his inner cultivation, or his use of Tang Sect techniques.
No wonder… No wonder he remembered that, as an infant, Tang Hao had treated him differently. Back then, he had been patient, gentle even for a rough, burly man, he had carefully soothed and cared for him. He hadn't drunk heavily; he had spent his time forging and tending to his child.
But at some point, everything changed.
Tang Hao had gradually become distant. He had stopped caring for him, started drowning himself in alcohol, living each day in drunken oblivion.
So… it was because he had realized I wasn't really his son?
"Then, since you knew I had taken over your son's body, why didn't you kill me?" Tang San asked.
"Kill you? What would be the point?"
Tang Hao let out a self deprecating laugh. "Killing you wouldn't bring my son back. And since you genuinely seemed to think of me as your father, I decided to wait."
"Wait for what?" Tang San asked, a terrifying suspicion forming in his mind.
"For your martial soul awakening."
Tang Hao spoke bluntly. "If your martial soul turned out to be exceptional, I wouldn't mind accepting you as my son. After all, my son wasn't killed by you you just took over his body after he died. If you truly saw me as your father, I could treat you as my son."
"But if your talent was poor, or if your awakened martial soul wasn't either the Clear Sky Hammer or the Blue Silver Grass… then I would have killed you." His voice turned chillingly cold.
Tang San's expression turned numb. He had never realized that, on the day of his martial soul awakening, he had unknowingly walked the thin line between life and death.
"But when you awakened your martial soul, your talent exceeded my expectations!" Tang Hao's face lit up with an almost manic excitement. "Innate full soul power! Twin martial souls! Your extraordinary talent gave me hope for revenge against Spirit Hall!"
Hearing this, Tang San recalled the day he awakened his martial soul. Tang Hao had embraced him with overwhelming joy, repeating over and over, "My son! My son!"
That memory had once been a source of warmth.
But now, knowing the truth, it felt hollow.
So… he only accepted me because I was talented.
If my talent had been poor, that day would have been my death sentence.
Such a brutally pragmatic mindset it was impossible to feel moved by it.
"From that day forward, I forced myself to see you as my real son," Tang Hao continued. "I pretended to be blind and deaf, ignoring all your oddities… Because your talent was my only hope for revenge! You had to be my son! I began watching you closely, secretly guiding you, teaching you my most powerful techniques…"
He laid out the truth, plain and harsh.
Tang San struggled to process it. What he had believed to be genuine fatherly love was, in the end, nothing but a cold, calculated decision.
"Then why did you suddenly attack me today?" he asked. Based on everything Tang Hao had just said, he should still be pretending to be a father so why was he trying to kill him now?
"Because you're no longer useful to me."
Tang Hao's gaze fell upon the White Bone Trident in his hand, a feverish glint in his eyes.
"This is undoubtedly a divine weapon!"
"As long as I have this, revenge is no longer out of reach!"
"If becoming a demon is the price, then so be it!"
He spoke without hesitation.
"Just because of that?"
Tang San's eyes dimmed with disappointment. His voice was low. "Father… If you wanted this weapon, all you had to do was ask. I would have given it to you willingly. Why… Why did you have to turn on me?"
At that moment, the last remnants of warmth in his heart shattered.
His emotional collapse perfectly aligned him with the Abyss. The sliver of demonic power inside him surged, stronger than ever.
"Because this weapon has already chosen you. Unless you die, I can't claim it for myself!"
Tang Hao had nothing more to say. He raised his Clear Sky Hammer, preparing to end Tang San's life.
But just as the hammer was about to strike
Tang San suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha! Hahahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!"
His laughter was wild, deranged.
"What's going on?!"
Tang Hao's expression changed he suddenly realized he couldn't move.
Tang San, bloodied and broken, slowly rose from the ground. His demonic body had already healed most of his wounds in mere moments.
"This… This is your doing!" Tang Hao's eyes burned with rage.
"Did I forget to mention?" Tang San's voice was ice cold. "Anyone who has been transformed by the White Bone Trident is naturally bound by my power."
"From the moment you accepted the Abyss's blessing, you could no longer defy me!"
He stepped forward, pried open Tang Hao's fingers one by one, and reclaimed the White Bone Trident.
"Goodbye, Father."
Without hesitation, Tang Filial Son San plunged the White Bone Trident into Tang Hao's chest.
"You !"
Tang Hao's eyes bulged in shock, but he could no longer speak.
The White Bone Trident mercilessly drained his soul, his flesh, his very essence.
Tang San closed his eyes, savoring the sensation of overwhelming power surging into him. A twisted smile spread across his face wild, unhinged.
At that moment, he had completely embraced the Abyss.
(End of Chapter)
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