Meanwhile, Lin Mu had arrived at a sparsely populated area outside the city and thoroughly beat Yu Xiaogang and Salas until they were unconscious.
Then, without turning his head, Lin Mu said, "Come out."
As soon as he finished speaking, two figures flew in from a distance, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo.
They immediately followed Lin Mu as he left the vicinity of the Great Soul Arena.
Even seeing Lin Mu beat Yu Xiaogang and Salas unconscious, they didn't choose to help. After all, they only outwardly served Bibi Dong and Spirit Hall, but in reality, they had already sided with Lin Mu for survival.
"Your Majesty... I just happened to be passing by and didn't see anything," Chrysanthemum Douluo bowed slightly and spoke first, feigning ignorance.
"Me too," Ghost Douluo echoed.
Seeing their reactions, Lin Mu rolled his eyes and said irritably, "I didn't tell you to hide this matter; just tell the truth if asked. I don't care."
He had already tested Bibi Dong's strength when he attacked the Supreme Pontiff's Palace last time. Because of the ongoing Rakshasa God Trial, Bibi Dong's strength was significantly limited, and she was currently no match for him in a direct confrontation, so there was no need to worry too much about reprisals.
"Your Majesty, I have something to tell you."
"Speak."
"Yu Xiaogang took two potent herbs from me and then gave them to students from Shrek Academy, seemingly intending to bring them to the Spirit Hall team to defeat your Royal Fighting Team in the finals," Chrysanthemum Douluo explained simply.
Hearing this, Lin Mu instantly deduced that Yu Xiaogang probably wanted to bring Dai Mubai and Oscar to the Spirit Hall Golden Generation team.
Apart from the Golden Generation, the other members of the Spirit Hall team weren't particularly outstanding, certainly not as individually gifted as Dai Mubai with his top-tier White Tiger martial soul and Oscar with his genius food-type martial soul. If they absorbed rare herbs to boost their cultivation, it would indeed greatly enhance the Spirit Hall team's overall strength and versatility.
But soon, Lin Mu noticed a problem. He looked up at Chrysanthemum Douluo and asked, "Since there are herbs that can enhance soul power, why didn't Yu Xiaogang let the existing members of the Spirit Hall team absorb them?"
"Your Majesty," Chrysanthemum Douluo replied with a sneer, "Yu Xiaogang's disciple once absorbed a herb under his guidance, but some... accidents... occurred during the process. Since most members of the Spirit Hall team are elites with powerful backers in the Worship Hall, he dared not take the risk with them and could only use outsiders as test subjects."
As he finished speaking, Chrysanthemum Douluo glanced at the unconscious Yu Xiaogang lying on the ground, his eyes filled with disdain.
Hearing this, Lin Mu shook his head. 'This Gangzi was truly a menace, unscrupulous in achieving his goals, even betraying his own people.'
Perhaps in Gangzi's eyes, the ends always justified the means, and he assumed his "own people" would forgive his mistakes if he succeeded.
After a brief pause, Chrysanthemum Douluo's lips curled into a sinister smile as he continued, "The two herbs Yu Xiaogang took from me... unless taken using specific, secret methods, will produce irreversible side effects in any other way. They even affect a person's personality and mental state."
"Gangzi is still the same as ever."
Lin Mu's lips curled into a mocking smile. He dared to give these herbs to his allies without even understanding their full effects or asking for the proper consumption method. No wonder Gangzi had a history of "experimenting" on people and ruining them.
He wasn't particularly worried about this matter. Even with the Spirit Hall Golden Generation team's strength greatly increased, he was confident of winning the championship.
"Yue Guan, Gui Mei... Gangzi and this Platinum Bishop are in your hands now."
After a pause, Lin Mu suddenly remembered something and continued, "When Gangzi wakes up, remember to tell him that the bet has been changed to a soul bone over 30,000 years old, and the final battle will decide the winner."
Hearing this, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo exchanged a glance, both seeing the doubt in each other's eyes.
'Yu Xiaogang actually dared to bet with Lin Mu?'
With such a vast difference in strength, even if Yu Xiaogang were to win by some miracle, Lin Mu could easily renege on the agreement and crush him like an ant.
After explaining this matter, Lin Mu immediately left the area.
Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
On the training ground, the Royal Fighting Team members weren't training as rigorously as usual but were doing their own things. Some even went to watch the matches at the Great Soul Arena.
Lin Mu didn't restrict them. With their leader absent, the Royal Fighting Team was relatively relaxed, and as competitors, they naturally wanted to know the strength of the other teams.
At this time, Tang San was practicing the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's secret technique: Distraction Control.
For Tang San, who possessed twin martial souls, Distraction Control was crucial, improving his precise control over soul power and reducing its consumption.
For this technique manual, Lin Mu had given Ning Rongrong a pill in exchange. This pill contained some essence of the Beautiful Silk Tulip and was mixed with other immortal herbs.
With the help of this pill, Ning Rongrong broke through to Level 40 in one fell swoop.
However, perhaps because the Beautiful Silk Tulip's potency was diluted, Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda only evolved to the Eight Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda; it was unclear whether she could break through to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda in the future.
Although Lin Mu still had a pill containing the full potency of the Beautiful Silk Tulip, he didn't plan to give it to Ning Rongrong at the moment. Judging solely from the transaction, Ning Rongrong had already made a fortune getting the Eight Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda evolution.
After a while, Tang San slowly opened his eyes. Looking at Xiao Wu, who had fallen asleep beside him while waiting, a hint of tenderness flashed in his eyes.
Although Xiao Wu, like his mother, was a soul beast in human form, once she reached maturity, she would be considered a true human.
Just as he was about to wake Xiao Wu, a deep voice entered his mind via telepathy.
"Little San, I'll be waiting for you outside the school gate."
Hearing this familiar voice, Tang San's pupils suddenly contracted. After recovering from the shock, he hesitated again.
In the past six months, Tang Hao hadn't come looking for him. Tang San had begun to enjoy the peace.
Of course, he didn't want Tang Hao to disrupt his life now. Now that his mother had regained consciousness, she might be resurrected in a few years.
Then, their family could live happily together, possibly without Tang Hao if he continued to be unreasonable.
He absolutely wouldn't allow Tang Hao to ruin it!
After some thought, a resolute glint flashed in Tang San's eyes, and he immediately activated his right leg soul bone's flight ability, heading toward the school gate.
In no time, Tang San arrived outside the main gate.
Before he could react or look around, a figure in a gray robe suddenly appeared, grabbed him, and forcibly took him to a secluded alley nearby.
"Little San... in the past six months, I've thought things through. I did indeed wrong you and Ah Yin before, and I'm willing to spend my whole life making it up to you."
As he spoke, Tang Hao took off his hood, revealing an increasingly weathered and weary face.
Hearing this, a flicker of doubt crossed Tang San's eyes, but it quickly turned firm again. He shook his head and said, "It's too late to say anything. You've done so many wrong things in the past. Do you think you can just erase it all with a few words?"
"Little San, I know you harbor resentment, and I don't blame you. But we're family. Family should understand each other."
"Family?"
Hearing this, Tang San chuckled, a hint of mockery in his voice. "Why should I be the one to understand you, but you can't understand me or Mother?"
"Little San... what do I have to do for you to forgive me?"
"From now on, don't come looking for me again. Stay away from me and Mother. Whenever I want to see you, that's when I'll consider it forgiveness."
Hearing such resolute and cold words from his own son, Tang Hao's face twisted. He almost couldn't contain his anger and nearly raised his hand to slap his son again, but stopped himself at the last moment, trembling with suppressed rage and grief.