Chapter 241: Searching Tang Hao's Soul
At the entrance to the Clear Sky Sect's archive chamber, disciples stood guard.
But cloaked in his Ghost Veil, Luo Ling was completely invisible to their eyes.
Without hesitation, he passed straight through the wall like a shadow and entered the room—silent and unseen.
Once inside, his sharp gaze swept across the wooden shelves and ancient scrolls. At the center of the room stood a small platform upon which rested two carefully protected scrolls.
Luo Ling didn't touch them immediately. Instead, he prowled through the room first, plundering anything remotely valuable.
After years of isolation, the Clear Sky Sect's archives contained few true treasures—mostly ancient tomes and rare metals. Luo Ling took every shining fragment worth the trouble.
Only after stripping the room bare did he approach the central case.
The two scrolls were labeled "Chaotic Cloak Hammer Technique" and "Clear Sky Nine Absolutes."
A grin tugged at his lips. He slipped them both into his storage ring, then casually tossed a spark of fire onto the dry, wooden shelves. Flames quickly spread through the dusty space.
Without a backward glance, he melted through the wall and vanished.
His next stop—the small house where Tang Hao and Tang San were staying.
He had claimed the Nine Absolutes and the hammer technique. That left only two secrets still locked in Tang Hao's mind: the Great Sumeru Hammer and Ring Detonation.
Once, Luo Ling wouldn't have dared approach the man. But now? Things were different.
He summoned his Primordial True Form instantly, and his sixth spirit ring glowed faint crimson.
…
Inside the room, Tang Hao stirred suddenly. An overwhelming sense of danger prickled along his nerves. He shot upright from the bed, eyes scanning the darkness—
Too late.
An invisible force froze him in place. His limbs felt like lead. Even his thoughts dulled into sluggish silence.
He stared helplessly ahead as a pair of blood-red vertical pupils opened within the shadows, locking directly onto him.
The outline of a figure was barely visible—but all he could truly see was that single, unblinking eye.
Tang Hao struggled to summon his spiritual power, the strength of a Titled Douluo, but the red light radiating from that eye swallowed his consciousness before he could react.
Within seconds, his will sank into complete darkness.
Controlling a Titled Douluo's soul was no small feat. Luo Ling exhaled slowly, feeling his spiritual energy draining rapidly.
Though his mental strength already surpassed most Titled Douluo, his spirit power remained at the level of a Spirit Sage. Maintaining control over someone of Tang Hao's caliber demanded an enormous toll.
He estimated he could hold the control for ten minutes—no longer.
Tang San, still nearby, remained oblivious under the illusion of Luo Ling's sixth soul skill, lost in an induced dream state.
Without wasting another second, Luo Ling extended threads of soul essence from his fingertips, slipping them directly into Tang Hao's spiritual core.
A crimson gleam flickered through Tang Hao's eyes.
Now fully merged with his martial soul, Luo Ling could infiltrate memories seamlessly, even alter them if necessary.
From within Tang Hao's mind, Luo Ling drew forth the knowledge he sought— the complete principles of Ring Detonation and the Great Sumeru Hammer.
Once satisfied, he carefully erased every trace of the intrusion, removing any memory Tang Hao might retain of being controlled.
Then, like a phantom lost to the dark, Luo Ling disappeared into the night.
…
Meanwhile, back at the archive chamber, the fire he'd set had spread to the surrounding wooden walls.
Outside, the unconscious guard slumped by the door stirred awake, his skin flushed with heat.
Opening his eyes, he gasped in horror. The entire archive was engulfed in flames.
Panic surged through him. The last thing he remembered was standing watch—then darkness. Had he really just fainted? If he hadn't awakened now, he'd already be ash.
Relief was short-lived, replaced instantly by dread.
The archive is on fire!
And worse, he was the assigned guard!
The blaze was far beyond what he could handle. He turned and sprinted to alert the elders.
…
News of the fire spread quickly through the entire Clear Sky Sect.
Within minutes, every elder had gathered, grim-faced and alarmed.
Though all were powerful Contra or Titled Douluo-level soul masters, none could counter the raging inferno. The hammer-type martial soul excelled at destruction, not suppression.
"Have we found any disciples with water attributes?" the Second Elder demanded, voice sharp with urgency.
"Reporting to Second Elder—none within the sect, sir! All our disciples' spirits are variations of the Clear Sky Hammer!" cried a flustered guard.
"Then start hauling buckets of water! Put it out manually if you must!"
A pained wince spread across several faces.
"Elder, there's no water source on the mountain," one disciple said miserably. "We rely on the lower village for supply! The terrain here is all sheer cliffs—no rivers, no wells!"
The Second Elder froze.
He knew it was true.
Perched high among the cliffs, shrouded in mist, the sect was naturally damp—and thus rarely saw fire. But once flames took hold, quenching them quickly was impossible.
Water was precious here.
Cursing under his breath, the Second Elder barked, "Then summon the branch disciples from the village below! Tell them to bring every drop of water they can carry!"
The sect fell into frenzied motion as orders rippled down the chain.
Soon after, Tang Xiao and the rest of the elders arrived.
When they saw the building consumed by flames, their faces twisted in anguish.
The archive might not have held great wealth, but it contained the sect's most precious accumulation of history—records, manuals, and knowledge stretching back generations.
Their very foundation was burning.
Including, critically, the Clear Sky Nine Absolutes and the Chaotic Cloak Hammer Technique.
Together, the elders joined in desperate efforts to douse the flames. Water from the villagers below was hauled up in barrels by relay, and several Titled Douluo even used soul energy to disperse the fire's spread.
By dawn, the chaos had subsided, the fire finally dying down.
Blackened ruins remained where the archive once stood.
Staring at the ashes, Tang Xiao felt his heart bleed. The sect, already impoverished after years of isolation, relied heavily on the profits from Yuexuan in Heaven Dou City just to survive. Rebuilding this would cost a fortune they didn't have.
And it wasn't only the archive—the adjacent disciples' lodgings had burned to cinders as well.
Taking a slow breath, Tang Xiao stepped into the charred remains of the archive, hoping to recover at least some valuable metals that could be sold to fund repairs.
But as he reached the center, his expression froze.
The chamber was empty. Completely stripped bare. Not a single scrap of metal—or even stone—remained.
Cold dread spread across his chest.
If the fire had spread naturally, the metals would have survived. The only explanation for their disappearance was deliberate theft—and arson.
Tang Xiao's eyes widened as the realization set in.
Someone had done this on purpose.
(END CHAPTER)
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