Chapter 237. Tang Xiaoyi, who is about to become a god.
Tang Xiaoyi, on the verge of godhood, An Zhongdao thrust his sword once again towards Tang Xiaoyi's neck.
In the nick of time, Tang Feng intervened, hurling the Clear Sky Hammer with unparalleled force at An Zhongdao, forcing him to change his attack and dodge.
However, he was still struck by Tang Feng, sustaining serious injuries.
"I... I lost," Tang Xiaoyi said, his face gloomy.
Tang Feng patted Tang Xiaoyi's shoulder and comforted him, "Old man, you didn't lose. She just played a trick on you. A real swordsman should fight the enemy with dignity. How can you be a hero if you hide and dodge?"
An Zhongdao saw that Tang Feng was hinting at something, and his chest was shaking with anger. Even Blood Sword Douluo couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Zhongdao didn't dodge or evade. Is he going to take the Clear Sky Hammer head-on? The way of the sword is upright, but you also have to avoid its edge."
An auxiliary soul master stepped forward and repaired all of Tang Xiaoyi's injuries and soul power. After a while, Tang Xiaoyi recovered.
Tang Feng said, "Let's have another match. If you win, I will let you go."
"Don't compete with them, Zhongdao. I can see it now. In this battle, you have no choice but to lose. As long as you keep winning, they will definitely not let us go." Blood Sword Douluo said, "We're all going to die anyway, so let's fight it out."
"Master, how could I not know?" An Zhongdao moved his lips, looked at Blood Sword Douluo, and said, "I understand. He wants to defeat me and let me get rid of my inner demon. I have no chance of winning this battle. As long as I keep winning, Shrek Academy will not recognize it."
"Since you're going to die anyway, then you might as well become his inner demon and destroy all the things he's most proud of."
After An Zhongdao finished speaking with Blood Sword Douluo, he looked at Tang Feng with a sharp gaze.
"I hope Shrek Academy won't embarrass itself again."
An Zhongdao fought with great difficulty in the ensuing battle. In previous battles, she had either taken the initiative or dodged, but in this one, she relied solely on the power of the Clear Sky Hammer, forcibly blocking attacks from the Chaos Cloak, the Great Sumeru Hammer, and other Clear Sky Hammer attacks.
In the end, both sides were equally wounded. An Zhongdao persisted, but Tang Xiaoyi also felled!
Tang Xiaoyi failed again, his heart filled with grief and indignation. In the Soul Master Competition, he had made the arrogant mistake of underestimating An Zhongdao, losing twice in a row—once due to An Zhongdao's lack of martial ethics, and again due to his opponent's cunning. This time, An Zhongdao defeated Tang Xiaoyi, becoming the pride of the Clear Sky Sect for hundreds of thousands of years.
He thought of his fathers, his ancestors, his forefathers—each of them had dominated an entire generation.
But for him, it was a different store.
Twin martial souls, the noble Tang family bloodline, his father, his grandfather, generations of Divine King ancestors, the Clear Sky Hammer, the Clear Sky Secret Arts, the Tang Sect's secret arts, divinely bestowed spirit rings, the Clear Sky Sect, Shrek, the Tang Sect.
Logically, I should be the protagonist of this era.
But why...
Heaven gave me Tang Xiaoyi, and why did An Zhongdao?
Tang Feng's face darkened. What was going on with this era's child of destiny? Wasn't it said that the child of destiny could suppress an entire era?
Thinking of what the Plane Lord had said to him, he decided to defeat An Zhongdao completely today and free Tang Xiaoyi from his inner demons.
"This time, I won't give you another chance," Tang Feng said shamelessly to Blood Sword Douluo and An Zhongdao, no longer caring about his dignity.
With the help of a support-type spirit master, Tang Xiaoyi returned to peak form and challenged An Zhongdao once again. An Zhongdao had already defeated Tang Xiaoyi three times in a row, his spirit power completely depleted, and Tang Xiaoyi easily defeated him.
Although he defeated An Zhongdao, Tang Xiaoyi didn't feel that he could wash away his shame. He came prepared, but was defeated again and again by An Zhongdao. The reason he was able to defeat An Zhongdao was entirely because he had the huge logistical support of Shrek Academy behind him. If it was a one-on-one fight, An Zhongdao would have killed him with a single sword.
This made Tang Xiaoyi full of jealousy and resentment towards An Zhongdao.
I am the son of destiny of this era, but I am suppressed by you at every turn.
Tang Xiaoyi hated An Zhongdao to the core. He did not kill An Zhongdao, but instead destroyed An Zhongdao's soul power, turning An Zhongdao into a useless person!
Tang Xiaoyi looked at An Zhongdao and said, "You are indeed a genius, but An Zhongdao, just give yourself to me. No matter how talented you are, divine authority in this world belongs to our Tang family. Only we can become gods. Those who obey us prosper, those who defy us perish."
"In the end, I will sit upon the divine throne, looking down upon you."
Led by Tang Xiaoyi, the Shrek Academy law enforcement officers departed, and Blood Sword Douluo was brought back to Shrek Academy by the Shrek law enforcement team to stand trial.
Shrek Academy announced that Tang Xiaoyi had defeated Sword Saint Douluo An Zhongdao, unstoppable. Tang Xiaoyi did not kill An Zhongdao, but instead kept him alive as a humiliation.
After his body was crippled, An Zhongdao became listless and was taken in by a family. The elder claimed to be his admirer and also wielded a sword, though his was a bamboo-broken sword devoid of soul power.
However, he did not give up his pursuit of the sword.
He sought instruction from An Zhongdao.
An Zhongdao couldn't summon his martial spirit for long periods of time, so he could only use an ordinary wooden sword to fight the old man.
However, the old man had devoted his entire life to studying the way of the sword, and even with a useless martial spirit, his sword skills were no less powerful than those of a Soul Master.
In this battle, An Zhongdao had originally intended to teach the old man, but now, he had been defeated by the old man.
The old man withdrew his martial spirit and said to An Zhong apologetically, "I'm sorry, I forgot you're not in good health right now."
An Zhongdao shook his head and said, "I didn't expect that after losing my martial spirit, I would be so vulnerable in the way of the sword."
"Little girl, do you want to hear what I have to say?" the old man said, looking at the bamboo sword in his hand.
An Zhongdao said, "Please speak."
The old man's swordsmanship was superb, and even An Zhongdao felt inferior to him. If his martial spirit was not useless, his name would definitely be heard throughout the entire continent.
"I've been a master of the sword since childhood. My brothers and sisters are all heirs of the Golden Sword, but I, due to a mutation of my martial soul, became this Broken Bamboo Sword," the old man said. "At that time, I was obsessed with the sword and became a disgrace to my family. The Tang Sect's condition was that we become vassals, but the patriarch disagreed, so I was abandoned. Later, the head of the Golden Sword Family expelled me."
"Ever since I was expelled, I have lived in seclusion here. At that time, I naively believed that since my martial soul was inherently flawed, why couldn't I create a unique sword path?"
After saying this, the old man pointed to a secluded cliff face covered in dense sword marks and said, "That's where I practiced swordsmanship back then."
"I've indeed made some progress. I can defeat hundred-year-old soul beasts, even some weak thousand-year-old soul beasts."
"As a disabled martial soul, I've tried my best, but this is all I can get. My brothers who inherited the golden sword martial soul have either become Soul Douluo or Titled Douluo. Facts have proven that I was too naive."
An Zhong said, "Old sir, I don't think you are naive. I once boasted that I was the most advanced sword spirit master, but after I was disabled, I realized how vulnerable I was without my martial soul."
Throughout history, whether it was the spear path, the sword path, or the beast path, they were all based on their martial souls. Self-created soul skills, spirit rings, and spirit bones are all part of the soul master system. The soul master system is our foundation. Is this our limit?
"I have traveled across the entire continent, met countless powerful people, and read many mythological books, but people like you, old sir, are unique. You have opened a new door for me. Perhaps, if I want to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship, I must break through myself and embark on a path of my own, the path of sword cultivation."
From then on, An Zhongdao no longer practiced soul master, but practiced swordsmanship with the old man. Gradually, An Zhongdao was suppressed and beaten until the strength of the swordsman increased greatly, and then he suppressed the old man.
An Zhongdao and the old man became friends regardless of age. The old man was obsessed with swords, but his comprehension was not as high as An Zhongdao. This was his life's work, while An Zhongdao embarked on the path of sword cultivation opened up by the old man. Her amazing talent as a soul master. On the path of sword cultivation, in the process of communicating with the old man, An Zhongdao also fed back his own insights to the old man.
Sword cultivators mainly cultivate swords, soul cultivators assist soul cultivators, sword cultivators assist soul cultivators, and even assist sword cultivators. An Zhongdao created his own exercises, which allowed the old man, who had originally abolished his martial soul, to slowly cultivate to the first realm.
However, the old man could not withstand the erosion of time. How much life span can a mere one-ring soul master increase? Two or three years later, the old man passed away.
"Zhongdao, before I met you, I thought my ideas were too naive, but now, I see hope for sword cultivation. "An Zhongdao, don't be angry, Lei. The phoenix will eventually be reborn in nirvana. The truly strong ones are not those who are always undefeated, but those who can stand up in the face of failure." After saying this, he looked at An Zhongdao and said earnestly.
Before An Zhongdao could speak, the old man was already dead.
Looking at the old man's gradually cold body, tears welled up in the corners of An Zhongdao's eyes. This was the second time that An Zhongdao shed tears in his life. The first time was because Blood Sword Douluo was executed by Shrek Academy.
After burying the old man, An Zhongdao began to perfect his own cultivation path. He traveled to various parts of the Douluo Continent to practice swordsmanship, fight soul beasts, and participate in underground killings.
Until one day, her meridians were opened up, and she became a soul master again.
However, An Zhongdao did not focus on soul masters. Instead, he added a soul ring to his martial soul, the Void Sword, and strengthened all the soul rings, making it a magic weapon. An Zhongdao's means of attack came from the sword.
After An Zhongdao's second advancement to the Soul Master stage, his cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds. In just a few years, he had returned to peak form and even reached a new level.
Simultaneously, he began recruiting sword spirit masters from within the Soul Master community.
An Zhongdao's spreading of his sword cultivation skills reached the three great factions: Shrek Academy, the Haotian Sect, and the Tang Sect.
Shrek Academy law enforcement officer Tang Feng even sought out An Zhongdao's Sword Cultivation Sect, attempting to apprehend him. However, the Tang Sect's Level 99 Ultimate Douluo was unable to withstand even a single blow from An Zhongdao and was slain by a single blow.
Subsequently, Shrek Academy, the Tang Sect, and the Haotian Sect successively came to his aid, but any who dared to cause trouble were slain by An Zhongdao's single sword strike. Even ordinary Soul Masters, even Level 99 Ultimate Douluos, could not survive An Zhongdao's sword.
With this single sword strike, she established herself in the world, standing tall against the Haotian Sect, the Tang Sect, and Shrek Academy.
However, An Zhongdao's true enemies were never spirit masters, but the almighty gods.
One day, Tang Xiaoyi returned from overseas and arrived at the Sword Sect where An Zhongdao resided.
Tang Xiaoyi emanated not only spirit power but also a vast surge of divine energy.
Clearly, he had embarked on the path to divine enlightenment.
Every ten thousand years, a man named Tang and a hundred-thousand-year-old spirit beast appear on the Douluo Continent.
Initially, the deity positions were normal, such as the God of Death, the God of Good, and the God of Evil. Later, when the positions were filled, a prominent figure in the divine realm, hoping to leave enough for their descendants, initially eliminated the old gods and expelled them from the realm, leaving them for future generations. Another method was to create new deities. For example, the Sea God, known as the Sea God, ruled over the oceans. He was a first-level god, while the Shark God, though seemingly ordinary, was actually a first-level god.
Tang Xiaoyi inherited the throne of the Hammer God, a deity created by the Tang family's ancestors. While the Hammer God might not sound impressive, he was still a God King.
As for Tang Xiaoyi's 100,000-year-old soul beast wife, she was even named a giant lizard, a first-level deity.
Tang Xiaoyi had been undergoing a divine test for years.
The giant lizard enthusiastically scooped a spoonful of icy peaches from a jar and handed it to Tang Xiaoyi. Tang Xiaoyi took a bite and said, "So cool..."
After finishing the jar, Tang Xiaoyi hugged the giant lizard and looked at An Zhong proudly. "An Zhong, do you know why I came to see you?"
An Zhong replied, "I'm not interested."
"No problem," Tang Xiaoyi said with a smile. "I'm about to become a deity. You're my stepping stone. I'll use your remains to forge the path to deification. Hahaha."
With that, Tang Xiaoyi unleashed his soul power, sensing its fluctuations for hundreds of miles.
"Last time, I left you behind. You'll never catch up. You're just an ordinary person. Level 99 is your limit. In this world, only I can reach level 99."
"And my wife," Tang Xiaoyi said, kissing the giant lizard.
"I noticed you were regaining potential years ago, but do you know why I tolerated you? Because I've waited so long for this day," Tang Xiaoyi said. "Now, I want to vent all the resentment I've accumulated over the past few decades."
An Zhong asked, "I see. Is the target of the ninth Divine Test me?"
"Yes, the ninth level of the Hammer God Test requires defeating and killing you," Tang Xiaoyi said calmly. "Don't even think about escaping. You can't escape from the gods. Just be my stepping stone."
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