As Chen Xin's third sword was about to fall, Tang Hao, with no other choice, charged at Tianlin—accepting Tianlin's challenge was better than facing Chen Xin.
Seeing this, Chen Xin withdrew his third sword. His goal was to force Tang Hao to fight Tianlin, so Tianlin could personally avenge Oslo. In Tang Hao's current state, he was no match.
With no further interference, Tianlin launched a fierce attack.
Blown away again, Tang Hao's aura weakened, but as a Super Douluo with six soul bones, Tianlin couldn't easily kill him.
With his Clear Sky defense and several life-saving soul bone skills, Tang Hao deliberately dragged out the fight, focusing on dodging and defense. He saw that Tianlin's dual-god mode exhausted soul power quickly; once it faded, Tang Hao would have a chance.
"This is troublesome. I'll lose my dual gods at this rate. Fine, return!" Sensing his soul power drain, Tianlin withdrew the dual gods.
Tang Hao breathed a sigh of relief—the dual gods were stronger than him at full power. Had it lasted three more minutes, he'd be dead.
Seeing Tang Hao relax, Tianlin sneered, Holy Spirit Pearl shifting to Demon Sword, sixth soul ring lighting up: "Tang Hao, you're too happy too soon. Sixth soul skill—Myriad Spirits Restoration Light!"
Tianlin's sixth skill could instantly restore his full soul power, for self or others—once a day.
Tang Hao's eyes widened. Restoring to peak instantly was something even the best support types struggled to do. Tianlin's Demon Sword already surpassed his Clear Sky Hammer; now with this recovery, it was terrifying.
Tang Hao was truly desperate—he couldn't withstand Tianlin now.
"Tang Hao, this time you're finished! Sixth soul skill—Three Talents Demon-Breaking Array—"
"Stop! Jun Tianlin, if you don't want Oslo's body destroyed, stop now." At this moment, Tang San dashed over to save his father.
His words made Tianlin suppress his power and anger. "What did you say—Oslo's body is in your hands, you didn't destroy it?"
"Yes. After I killed him and took his soul bone, I preserved his body with a secret technique, hidden where only I know. Don't worry, it won't rot," Tang Hao said—he'd kept Oslo's body for this moment.
"Give me back Oslo's body!" Tianlin was overjoyed. If Oslo's body was intact, he could revive him.
"It's not that simple, Jun Tianlin. Swear by your martial soul that you'll never trouble my father and me for this incident again, or you'll never get his body back," Tang San threatened.
"Tang San, are you joking? Oslo's dead already; even if you return his body, I can only give him a proper burial. Do you think this will buy your lives? At most, I'll leave your bodies intact," Tianlin said angrily.
"Hmph, full corpse! Do you think I care? I only live for revenge against Spirit Hall. Jun Tianlin, after Spirit Hall is destroyed, I'll come to your sect to die. If you agree, I'll return Oslo's body. Otherwise, we'll drag each other down." Tang Hao vowed, his character always unyielding.
Hearing this, Xue Ye seized the chance to persuade: "Yes, Sword Prince, Spirit Hall's ambition is clear. Clear Sky Douluo is a great help in resisting them. We can't weaken ourselves. Besides, he promised to turn himself in after Spirit Hall's defeat—please, for the greater good, spare him for now."
"If you kill the Tang father and son today, the Clear Sky Sect will become your enemy. Even if they can't touch you now, they might target the Ao family. Even my empire might not protect them."
"You don't want your good brother's family destroyed after his death, do you?"
This mix of moral pressure and threat showed Emperor Xue Ye's cunning.
Tianlin wanted to say he'd just destroy the Clear Sky Sect too, when Sky Dream Iceworm's soul voice rang out: "Wait, Xiao Tian, let Tang Hao go for now."
Tianlin was puzzled. "Brother Skydream, why? This is the perfect chance to kill Tang Hao—why let him go?"
"Xiao Tian, since Oslo can be revived, don't let hatred blind you. Killing Tang Hao here isn't worth it. First, you'd only get his life; his six soul bones would be reclaimed by his sect. Snatching them would ruin your reputation—people would say you only avenged Oslo to get the soul bones. You want to rule the world, reputation matters."
"Second, if you kill him, you won't recover Oslo's body. As a Super Douluo, Tang Hao could self-destruct rather than let you read his soul. As you grow stronger, Oslo's case will haunt you."
"Third, I won't let Tang Hao die so easily, or have anyone to mourn him. His life belongs to us soul beasts. Don't worry, I have a plan. Soon, Tang Hao will die in agony. Even though I side with you, I'm still a soul beast at heart. As the continent's most powerful soul beast, I must avenge the soul beasts he slaughtered. I will tear him to pieces—so, Xiao Tian, please, leave his life to us!"
"If you and Di Tian had equal fighting power, you could be the soul beasts' leader," Tianlin sighed. "Fine, I'll let Tang Hao live a few more months. I have a plan for Tang San, too. You kill Tang Hao, I'll deal with Tang San, and Oslo can avenge his father. Fair enough."
"Thank you, Xiao Tian. Rest assured, Tang Hao won't live long. I've already picked a perfect opponent for him!" Sky Dream Iceworm promised viciously. "Just follow my plan, and bring your storage tool to collect his soul bones."
Decision made, Tianlin looked at Tang Hao and pretended to be reluctantly forced: "Fine, Tang Hao. I'll let you go today and swear not to pursue this matter personally. But I'll be taking these as well."
With a wave, Tianlin pulled over all three soul bones.
Tang San was anxious—these were prepared for his dual martial souls. Losing the Oslo one was fine, but why all three?
Tang Hao stopped him. Oslo's soul bone was theirs to begin with; using two soul bones to buy their lives was already a good deal.
Once healed, they could hunt for more soul beasts elsewhere—though not in Star Dou Forest anymore.
"Jun Tianlin, here is Oslo's body. Take it," Tang Hao opened his soul tool and released Oslo's corpse.
The body was incomplete—both arms gone, skull caved in, left leg missing.
A preservation spell had delayed decay.
Tianlin hadn't expected Tang Hao to hide Oslo in his soul tool; earlier, Tang Hao produced the Swift Wind Left Leg to keep Tianlin from investigating further. He'd even lied about another secret hiding place.
Tianlin had been tricked—if he'd known Oslo was inside, he'd have risked everything to snatch it earlier.
Seeing Oslo, Ao Siqin collapsed over his body in tears.
Tianlin, too, was pained. Although he could revive Oslo, seeing his brother's mangled corpse was hard to bear.
"Uncle Ao, let's bring Oslo home," Tianlin helped Ao Siqin up, lifted Oslo, glared coldly at Tang Hao, and said, "Tang Hao, remember, Oslo's grudge won't end so easily. My promise not to pursue this only represents me; the Royal Battle Team has more members. Others will come for you. Also, think about what other sins you've committed."
Tang Hao said indifferently, "I'll be waiting."
The Royal Battle Team members were all geniuses, but apart from Tianlin, Tang Hao didn't fear the rest.
He hadn't understood Tianlin meant he wouldn't pursue Oslo's matter so Oslo could personally avenge himself, but Tang Hao's slaughter of soul beasts had infuriated Sky Dream Iceworm. For the first time, the continent's top soul beast felt such murderous intent, even more than toward the Behemoth or Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear.
Tianlin, with Ao Siqin, Chen Xin, and Ning Fengzhi, prepared to leave—eager to return, not bothering with carriages.
Before leaving, Ao Siqin knelt to Xue Ye, "Your Majesty, I am bereaved and unable to perform my duties. Please allow me to retire and leave the court."
Today's events made Ao Siqin lose faith in Heaven Dou Empire. Xue Ye and Xue Beng had begged Tianlin to spare Tang Hao, not even seeking justice for his son.
But Tang Hao was an outsider. The Ao family had served Heaven Dou for generations—were their lives so cheap?
"Granted!" Xue Ye said coldly, not even bothering to look at him. He was angry—if Ao Siqin hadn't brought Tianlin, things wouldn't have gotten so out of hand.
So what if a son died? Was it more important than the peace of the palace?