Chapter 111: Draining All of Tang Hao's Value, A Fate Worse Than Death
Qi Tian looked at the captured Tang Hao and deliberately taunted him.
"Tang Hao, I really have to thank you."
"When Xiao Wu sensed the Clear Sky Hammer martial soul on you, she immediately offered her soul ring to me. Without you, I wouldn't have been able to absorb it at all."
"A hundred-thousand-year soul beast's sacrifice releases an overwhelming surge of energy that freezes the surrounding space-time… It practically saved my life."
"And your Clear Sky Hammer martial soul revealed your identity. Xiao Wu recognized you instantly as her mother's killer. That's why she made her decision so quickly."
"So Xiao Wu was that soul beast's daughter… No wonder. I really should've realized earlier," Tang Hao murmured, dazed.
His mind drifted back to the past.
After he failed to hunt Ah Yin back then, the Clear Sky Sect faced calamity. Spirit Hall, led by the then–acting Supreme Pontiff Bibi Dong, surrounded and attacked the sect.
Realizing his strength was far too lacking to defend against Spirit Hall's army, he fled to the Star Dou Forest in desperation to hunt a soul beast and increase his power.
By sheer coincidence, he found a hundred-thousand-year-old transformed Soft Bone Rabbit and seized her soul ring and soul bone.
He never imagined that, in his frantic rush back to the sect, he completely failed to notice Xiao Wu hiding nearby.
All this—everything—led to today's consequences.
Tang Hao sat there lifeless, unable to argue anymore.
Qi Tian wrapped his Blue Silver Grass around Tang Hao's remaining left arm and right leg, then tore them off with force.
Tang Hao trembled violently. Cold sweat streamed down his forehead and nose, but he didn't utter a single sound.
Once again, he activated the Clear Sky Sect's bone-separation secret art. His soul power dropped sharply to rank fifty.
Now missing both arms and both legs, he would never again wield the Clear Sky Hammer.
"…This aura… Blue Silver Emperor?"
Tang Hao finally understood Qi Tian's deep hatred.
So this boy was tied to Ah Yin—the very soul beast he hunted twelve years ago.
Everything, absolutely everything, stemmed from his own greed.
Reduced to a limbless husk, Tang Hao could no longer stay conscious. Regret and agony flooded through him, and he passed out cold.
Qi Tian collected the soul bones taken from Tang Hao's limbs. Then his eyes wandered toward Tang Hao's scalp and chest—two more soul bones lay within.
'…Forget it. I'll take my fair half. Asking for his Wisdom Bone and Torso Bone as well would be going too far,' Qi Tian thought.
Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo exchanged glances, fear flickering through their hearts as they watched Qi Tian's ruthlessness.
They privately thought: This boy… has a few shades of the Supreme Pontiff's viciousness.
They had clearly seen the soul bones Qi Tian seized. As Titled Douluo, they had only ever managed to gather a single soul bone—Ghost Douluo's.
Of course, they coveted the other two… but they said nothing.
Qi Tian was someone they could neither afford to provoke nor offend, and on top of that, he was their lifesaver.
From any angle, they would never try to snatch Tang Hao's bones from him. At most, they would simply report Qi Tian's actions to Bibi Dong.
"Lord Qi Tian, what should we do with Tang Hao?" Chrysanthemum Douluo asked cautiously.
Qi Tian disliked the man's overly "elegant" and feminine demeanor, but he didn't bother commenting on it.
He did find it amusing, however, that they had come to him, an outsider, to ask how Tang Hao should be handled.
"Please wait. I'll ask Her Holiness the Supreme Pontiff," Qi Tian said.
Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo exchanged a deep look— They had only asked casually, yet they accidentally uncovered something astonishing.
Qi Tian actually had a way to privately contact the Supreme Pontiff?
Their relationship… was far too close.
Qi Tian closed his eyes and reached out telepathically to Bibi Dong and Ah Yin, asking for instructions regarding Tang Hao's fate.
At the same time, Qi Tian tried communicating with Xiao Wu's soul imprint to see if she could awaken early.
Meanwhile, Bibi Dong was still battling the Slaughter King.
Despite being a rank 99 limit Douluo, the Slaughter King still couldn't suppress Bibi Dong, whose soul power was restricted to rank 98.
The Slaughter King did not know any of Tang Chen's self-created ultimate techniques—he could only use Tang Chen's soul skills and the Asura Demonic Sword.
Bibi Dong, however, had cultivated both her martial souls to astonishing heights and could seamlessly switch between them.
Most of her soul skills came from hundred-thousand-year rings, and the power of those techniques easily compensated for the slight gap in their soul power.
If her cultivation wasn't suppressed, the Slaughter King would likely already be dead.
Forget the Slaughter King—even if Tang Chen in his prime appeared, he still wouldn't be able to win against Bibi Dong.
Before long, the Slaughter King found himself wavering.
The Death God ran off with his son… Tang Chen's consciousness probably won't emerge again, right?
Thinking this, he fought while gradually retreating. With his higher soul power and the Asura Demonic Sword in hand, it wouldn't be easy for Bibi Dong to force him to stay.
Meanwhile, Qi Tian used his soul-split ability to communicate with Bibi Dong, asking how they should deal with Tang Hao.
Should they kill him immediately to prevent any accidents? Or was there a better option?
"What do you think?" Bibi Dong asked, still pursuing the Slaughter King.
Qi Tian thought for a moment.
"Just killing him feels too merciful. I think we should make him suffer—make him wish he were dead."
"Oh? And how exactly do we do that?" Bibi Dong asked.
The two of them shared a deep spiritual connection from their past interactions, so neither needed to hold back their thoughts.
Qi Tian spoke without hesitation, unconcerned about appearing cruel.
"Cut off his limbs, seal his soul power, and imprison him. Slowly interrogate him and extract all of the Clear Sky Sect's secrets."
Tang Hao knew many techniques—Clear Sky Nine Absolutes, Great Sumeru Hammer… they could all potentially be extracted.
If Spirit Hall ever wanted to recruit Clear Sky Sect soul masters in the future, these secret arts would be extremely useful.
And even if they didn't recruit them, these methods could benefit other hammer-type martial souls.
Especially techniques like Ring Explosion—these explosive arts could be replicated.
"Good. I'll follow your suggestion. But make sure he truly suffers a fate worse than death," Bibi Dong said.
Qi Tian continued, "That's easy. Why not lock him up with a bunch of deranged, aggressive men? It'd be the ultimate humiliation for someone like him."
"With his status and pride… he'd never endure it."
"…Alright."
Even Bibi Dong—who was infamous for her ruthlessness—felt that Qi Tian might be even more twisted than she was.
Still, she believed her teacher Qian Xunji, wherever he was in the heavens, would wholeheartedly approve of this.
Qi Tian also asked Ah Yin for her opinion.
Ah Yin fully supported Qi Tian's decision.
When he asked whether he should bring her over to witness Tang Hao's downfall, Ah Yin refused, not wanting to cause any trouble for Qi Tian.
In the end, they agreed to spare Tang Hao's life—but only so they could drain every last drop of value from him and make him live a fate worse than death.
Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo carried off the unconscious, mutilated Tang Hao, while Qi Tian activated his Body Martial Soul to track Tang San and Yu Xiaogang.
Enhanced by his Body Martial Soul, Qi Tian's sense of smell sharpened dramatically. Amid countless odors, he locked onto two distinct trails.
"This one smells younger… that should be Tang San."
After confirming the direction, Qi Tian notified Bibi Dong and immediately chased after the scent.
However… what he didn't know was that Tang Hao had swapped Tang San and Yu Xiaogang's scents.
Qi Tian wasn't chasing Tang San.
He was chasing the "Grandmaster" Yu Xiaogang.
—
End of Chapter