Tang Xiao's gaze was like a torch, directly looking into Tang San's eyes, his voice deep and powerful: "Has that head Spirit Bone been completely absorbed?"
Tang San nodded solemnly, his Purple Demon Eye faintly glowing purple in the setting sun, and a purple Spirit Bone appeared on Tang San's forehead.
Amidst the whistling mountain wind, Tang Xiao slowly raised two fingers: "Now, I give you two choices." His voice suddenly deepened, "First, like your father back then, carve out a bloody path from Slaughter City."
Under the setting sun, his second finger was held straight: "Second, return to Heaven Dou City with your aunt—" His tone suddenly grew heavier, "But before breaking through to Spirit Saint, you must not step half a step out of Heaven Dou City! If you need a spirit ring, have your aunt personally send me a message."
Tang San noticed that when his uncle said this, the veins on the back of his hand bulged, and those giant hands that could wield the Clear Sky Hammer were trembling slightly. In the distance, the cry of a night owl came, adding a few more hints of a murderous aura to this difficult choice.
Tang San's Purple Demon Eye suddenly lit up in the night. He straightened his back, his voice as firm as iron: "I will listen to my father—" Every word was resounding, "If this revenge is not taken, I am unworthy of being a son!"
Tang Xiao's body trembled, his eyes a mix of relief and pain. He heavily patted Tang San's shoulder, making the young man sway: "Good! Truly Brother Hao's offspring!" As he turned, his gray robe flapped in the wind, "Go bid farewell to your aunt. We will depart immediately."
The setting sun stretched Tang San's shadow long as he walked towards Tang Yuehua with heavy yet determined steps.
Tang San turned to look at Tang Yuehua, only to see her gilded hair ornament gently swaying in the setting sun, her skirt trailing like clouds as she slowly approached. She reached out and embraced Tang San, her warm tears soaking the young man's shoulder: "Little San…" Her voice was choked, almost incoherent, "Since your mind is made up, Aunt… Aunt will no longer stop you."
"Don't worry, Aunt," Tang San gently stroked her trembling back, a determined light flickering in his Purple Demon Eye, "I will definitely come out of Slaughter City alive, just like Father did back then."
Tang Yuehua slowly released him, lightly wiping the corners of her eyes with her fingertips. Under the setting sun, her elegant face held an unprecedented resolve: "Good child…" She suddenly lowered her voice, "Use those Spirit Bones when you need to, don't hold back." She glanced meaningfully at Tang Xiao's back, "Staying alive is more important than anything."
The mountain wind swept up fallen leaves from the ground, and Tang Xiao's voice came from the cliff edge: "Alright, we should depart." Tang Yuehua adjusted Tang San's collar one last time, her fingertips lingering on his chest for a moment.
Then Tang Xiao said no more, extending his iron arm and lifting Tang San by the waist. Before the young man could react, this Titled Douluo had already taken him and leaped off the ten-thousand-foot cliff!
"Uncle—!"
Tang San's startled cry was instantly swallowed by the whistling mountain wind. Tang Xiao's sturdy figure moved up and down the cliff face in a few bounds, each light touch of his toes precisely landing on hidden crevices. Under the moonlight, their figures descended like shooting stars, yet suddenly paused just as they were about to hit the ground.
"Hold on tight!"
Tang Xiao let out a low shout, and the Clear Sky Hammer suddenly appeared. The massive hammer struck the mountain wall, using the recoil to land steadily, kicking up a cloud of dust. Tang San then realized that his back was already soaked with cold sweat. On Tang Xiao's face, however, a sharp edge, unseen for many years, had emerged.
Tang San's heart trembled, and a hint of surprise flashed in his Purple Demon Eye: "Such precise control!" he marveled inwardly. The recoil force of that hammer blow was perfectly managed—it both counteracted the downward momentum and did not damage the mountain in the slightest. Not even a single crack was left on the rock face. Such effortless mastery was simply…
He couldn't help but look at Tang Xiao's resolute profile. Under the moonlight, his uncle's gray robe flapped in the wind, and his action of retracting the hammer was fluid and graceful. Tang San suddenly realized that between that leap and that hammer blow, Tang Xiao had perfectly integrated the Clear Sky Hammer's might with the lightness of his movement technique. This kind of effortless control, perhaps even his own father...
Tang San's thoughts were interrupted by Tang Xiao's deep voice.
"Lead the way."
These simple three words instantly brought Tang San back to his senses. He quickly composed himself, nodding solemnly. His Purple Demon Eye flickered slightly in the night, rapidly discerning the direction.
"This way." Tang San pointed towards a dense forest in the northeast, his voice returning to its usual steadiness. He noticed that when Tang Xiao stepped, his combat boots landed without disturbing a single fallen leaf, a mastery of power that secretly astonished him.
Moonlight dappled through the tree shadows onto the forest path, and their figures quickly vanished into the depths of the dark forest. Tang San walked in front, leading the way, but he could clearly feel the torch-like gaze behind him—a gaze that held both scrutiny and an unspoken expectation.
Watching Tang San's agile figure moving through the forest, a hint of relief couldn't help but appear on Tang Xiao's resolute face. His sharp gaze captured every subtle change in the young man's footsteps—those seemingly casual footfalls, in reality, contained profound mysteries.
"Marvelous…" Tang Xiao sighed inwardly. He clearly saw that many parts of this footwork incorporated the force generation methods of the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Method, only transforming the hammer method's powerful force into the lightness and agility of movement. What was even more remarkable was that this footwork had already become integrated and self-contained.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the branches, casting dappled shadows on Tang San. Tang Xiao noticed that whenever the young man's toes touched the ground, a faint spirit power fluctuation, barely perceptible, would arise—this was precisely the ultimate application of the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Method's essence of "using force against force."
"Footwork that gives the Disorder Splitting Wind flexibility, Brother Hao, Little San is even better than you were back then." Tang Xiao murmured to himself. The night wind ruffled his graying temples, and in his weathered eyes, relief and pain intertwined into a complex light.
Just a few days later, when Tang San led Tang Xiao back to the Blue Silver Forest of his memories, the scene before him struck him like a bolt of lightning—
"How is this possible?!"
Tang San's Purple Demon Eye contracted violently as he incredulously scanned his surroundings. The once lush sea of Blue Silver Grass had vanished without a trace, replaced by an ordinary patch of woodland. The remnants of trees shattered by battle were still there, and the scorched earth still bore traces of Spirit Ability impacts, but only the Blue Silver Grass, which should have been perpetually regenerating, was nowhere to be seen.
Tang Xiao keenly noticed that Tang San's hands were trembling uncontrollably. The young man squatted down, his fingertips digging deep into the soil, but he couldn't even find a single seedling of Blue Silver Grass.
"Something's wrong…" Tang San's voice was terribly hoarse, "Blue Silver Grass has extremely strong vitality; even if it were burned, it should have left behind…"
Tang Xiao paid no attention to Tang San's shock, his gaze distant as he looked into the depths of the forest, as if peering through time into the past. His rough fingers gently caressed the mottled bark of an ancient tree, his voice low and nostalgic: "Ah Yin also had this kind of ability back then." A gentle curve unconsciously appeared at the corner of his mouth, "Seemingly traceless, yet omnipresent."
A gentle breeze swept through, stirring scattered fallen leaves on the ground. Tang Xiao suddenly knelt on one knee, his broad palm pressing against the soil: "Look." He motioned for Tang San to come closer, "The soil is very loose; this entire area has been disturbed. They have left."
Tang San's hands continuously dug at the ground, but he found that the surface of the soil was no different from usual, yet it was unusually soft. When Tang Xiao stood up, he said nonchalantly: "Your mother back then could also make the entire forest's Blue Silver Grass migrate overnight. Those Blue Silver Grass should also possess this ability."
Hearing the words "mother," Tang San's Purple Demon Eye suddenly lit up, his voice trembling slightly: "Uncle, you… you know my mother? Can you tell me…"
Tang Xiao, however, slowly shook his head, his rough large hand pressing on Tang San's shoulder with such force that the young man's knees buckled: "Brother Hao never told you until his death, he had his reasons." His gaze was like a torch, as if to see through Tang San's soul, "The less you know with your current strength, the better."
With that, Tang Xiao turned to look into the distance, his gray robe flapping in the night wind: "Lead the way, to that waterfall your father mentioned." As he stepped, his feet left deep imprints in the ground, "There… hides your destiny."
A few days later, as the first light of dawn appeared, Tang San led Tang Xiao to the familiar waterfall. The rushing water cascaded down like a silver chain from a hundred-zhang height, stirring up deafening roars at the bottom of the pool.
"Uncle," Tang San raised his hand to point to the center of the waterfall, his Purple Demon Eye gleaming in the morning light, "Father said there's a cave hidden behind this waterfall."
Tang Xiao narrowed his eyes slightly, the sharp gaze of a Titled Douluo piercing through the roaring water curtain, and his brows suddenly furrowed tightly.
"Uncle, what's wrong?" Tang San keenly sensed the abnormality and asked softly.
Tang Xiao did not answer, his iron arm suddenly extended, embracing Tang San around the waist. With the booming appearance of the Clear Sky Hammer, majestic spirit power surged forth like a tide. He swung the hammer, and the furious spirit power actually cleaved an opening in the waterfall!
"Go!"
Their figures were like lightning, instantly passing through the water curtain. The cave was damp and cold, but Tang Xiao's gaze was fixed on the ground—the overturned lead box was empty, and the soil pile next to it showed clear signs of being disturbed.
"Indeed…" Tang Xiao's voice was terribly low, and the veins on the back of the hand gripping the Clear Sky Hammer bulged. The temperature inside the cave seemed to plummet, and even the splashing water droplets solidified into ice crystals three feet around him. Tang San had never seen his uncle in such a state; the suppressed rage made the entire cave tremble slightly. Tang Xiao narrowed his eyes slightly, the sharp gaze of a Titled Douluo piercing through the roaring water curtain, and his brows suddenly furrowed tightly.
Tang Xiao's voice, deep as muffled thunder, echoed in the damp cave: "Did your father ever bring you here?"
Tang San shook his head, his Purple Demon Eye flickering faintly in the dim cave. Although he still didn't understand his father's true intention in having his uncle bring him here, the scattered lead box and the disturbed soil pile in front of him explained everything—someone had gotten there first and taken what was hidden here.
Water droplets dripping from the stalactites on the cave ceiling struck the lead box, making a crisp sound. Tang Xiao's Clear Sky Hammer was held in his hand, and the spirit power coiling around the hammer body made the surrounding air begin to distort. Tang San could feel that the extreme suppressed rage emanating from his uncle was like the dead calm before a storm.
Tang Xiao's fists clenched, knuckles turning white from the force. His deep voice echoed in the cave, every word seemingly carrying the wrath of thunder:
"What a Spirit Hall!"
The patterns on the Clear Sky Hammer suddenly lit up, and the terrifying spirit power fluctuations caused gravel to fall from the cave ceiling. Tang Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, his voice terribly hoarse:
"Forcing Brother Hao to a dead end wasn't enough…" He suddenly slammed a fist against the rock wall, making the entire cave tremble, "Even a child must be schemed against!"
Tang San saw that when his uncle said this, the veins on his forehead bulged like coiling dragons, and the rage suppressed for many years finally erupted at this moment. The temperature inside the cave suddenly rose, and even the splashing water droplets instantly vaporized, forming a hazy mist in the dim light.
"Uncle…" Tang San was about to ask, but Tang Xiao raised his hand to stop him.
Tang Xiao took a deep breath, his chest heaving violently a few times. When he spoke again, his voice had returned to calmness, but it carried an undeniable authority: "Little San, now take out those Spirit Bones and begin absorbing them." His gaze was like a torch, "Next, I will take you to find your fifth, sixth, and even seventh spirit rings."
Tang San's pupils contracted slightly: "But…"
"No buts!" Tang Xiao's voice was like a booming bell, shaking the entire cave. His towering figure stood unmoving like a mountain in the dim light, "Remember—"
Dense spirit power circulated around him, and the nine spirit rings on his completely black Clear Sky Hammer lit up in sequence, illuminating the entire cave as if it were daytime: "I am not only your uncle, but also the current Sect Master of the Clear Sky Sect!"
"Yes, Uncle." Tang San took a deep breath, lightly brushing his fingertips over the Twenty Four Moonlit Bridges. As a faint light flashed, the clear and translucent Spirit Bones emitted a soft glow in the dim cave.
Tang Xiao's gaze fell complexly on those Spirit Bones, his rough fingers unconsciously caressing the Clear Sky Hammer's handle. The departure of the Blue Silver clan, the mysterious disappearance of the Blue Silver Emperor's Spirit Bones, the signs of someone having gotten to the cave first—all of this made this Sect Master of the Clear Sky Sect feel a shock—as if an invisible net had long since enveloped all of them.
"Begin." Tang Xiao's voice was deep and resolute, the nine spirit rings slowly rotating around him, forming a solid spirit power barrier. He looked at the traces of energy breakthrough at the cave entrance, a hint of determination flashing in his eyes—the situation no longer allowed them any hesitation.
Tang Xiao gazed at Tang San, who had begun absorbing the Spirit Bones, his expression growing increasingly solemn. He knew that if all of this was truly the Spirit Hall's doing, the other party must have also calculated that Tang San would eventually return here. The roaring sound of the waterfall could not hide his inner vigilance—on this continent, there was no longer any absolutely safe place for Tang San.
"This kid must gain the ability to protect himself as soon as possible…" Tang Xiao gripped the Clear Sky Hammer tightly, his knuckles turning white. Looking at Tang San's pained yet resolute face, he made a decision: rather than letting Tang San struggle in a crisis-ridden environment outside, it would be better to send him into Slaughter City. At least there, there was only one enemy—Slaughter City itself.
Thinking of this, a bitter smile appeared at the corner of Tang Xiao's mouth. Who would have thought that for Tang San now, the dangers of the outside World were actually far more terrifying than the bloody Slaughter City?