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"Your Holiness!"
"Elder Ju!"
"Elder Demon Bear!"
Seeing that all three—Bibi Dong, Yue Guan, and the Demon Bear Douluo—had been struck by the Great Sumeru Hammer, the members of the hunting team could no longer bother with pursuing the Tang father and son. They immediately ran over to check on the trio, shouting their names.
Ultimately, it was Bibi Dong who crawled up from the ground in a state of utter wretchedness. Her entire body was filthy, covered in dust and mud; she no longer possessed the slightest air of a noble Pope.
Bibi Dong panted heavily as she stared in the direction where Tang Hao and his son had vanished, a look of resentment and hatred flaring on her face.
"What a formidable Great Sumeru Hammer... as expected of the ultimate secret technique that only successive generations of Clear Sky Douluo from the Clear Sky School can master! If I hadn't used Elder Demon Bear's body to block that strike just now, I'm afraid even I would have been severely incapacitated."
Just now, at the moment the Clear Sky Hammer was about to smash into her face, Bibi Dong had grabbed the body of the Demon Bear Douluo, using a form of "Defense Substitution" to let him bear the brunt of the damage for her.
Otherwise, if that Clear Sky Hammer had truly landed squarely on her body, Bibi Dong would have lost a layer of skin even if she didn't die.
Thinking of this, Bibi Dong couldn't help but look toward Yue Guan and the Demon Bear Douluo. The result was exactly as she expected: under Tang Hao's Great Sumeru Hammer, the Demon Bear Douluo had been smashed to pieces. Even his head had been reduced to a puddle of meat paste; he died without a whole corpse.
As for Yue Guan, thanks to the Demon Bear Douluo blocking most of the impact for him, he had merely fallen into a coma. Although his injuries were grave, he had at least kept his life.
Seeing Yue Guan's heavy injuries, the healing-type soul masters in the hunting team immediately stepped forward to treat him.
At this moment, the captain of the hunting team suddenly spoke to ask for instructions: "Your Holiness, should we pursue Tang Hao and his son?"
"..."
Bibi Dong did not speak. Instead, she looked toward the Lake of Life, then glanced at the direction where Tang Hao's pair had fled, and shook her head.
"No need. We go immediately to the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest. I must find out what exactly happened at the Lake of Life just now. Is someone hunting the Azure Sky Bull Python? If so, we must at least secure the hundred-thousand-year soul bone!"
As the Pope, Bibi Dong naturally knew of the Lake of Life, and likewise knew of the Azure Sky Bull Python that lived within it.
"But Tang Hao and the boy..."
Upon hearing this, Bibi Dong wore a sinister and ruthless expression, letting out a cold laugh. "Hmph, hmph, hmph. While the Great Sumeru Hammer is powerful, it carries immense risks for the user, potentially even shortening their lifespan. Tang Hao was struck by my poison and then exploded six soul rings in succession. Whether he can survive the night is still an unknown!"
"Leave him be. Two of you stay here to look after Elder Ju; the rest of you, come with me to the Lake of Life immediately!"
"As you command!"
After leaving the healing soul masters to tend to Yue Guan, the rest hurriedly followed Bibi Dong toward the Lake of Life.
"It looks like they didn't pursue us..."
After escaping to a tree hollow on the outskirts of the forest, Tang San hurriedly used his Purple Demon Eye to confirm the surroundings. Seeing that the Spirit Hall hunting team had not followed them, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and rushed back into the hollow to tend to the heavily wounded Tang Hao.
"Dad, Dad, how are you feeling?"
Staring at Tang Hao's pale face, Tang San spoke urgently, yet he couldn't bear to look at the bloody, mangled wound on Tang Hao's waist.
Reason told him that Tang Hao wasn't going to make it. Whether it was Bibi Dong's lethal poison or the side effects of using the Great Sumeru Hammer, the combination meant Tang Hao was doomed. But Tang San didn't believe it; he refused to accept such a reality.
"Little San, I'm afraid... I won't make it..."
"Dad! Don't say that! I'm going to find herbs right now, I can definitely heal you!" With that, Tang San prepared to run out of the tree hollow, comforting himself in his heart.
I know so many medicinal herbs. I'll definitely be able to find the right ones to purge the toxins from Dad's body and help him recover!
Just as Tang San was about to dash out, Tang Hao grabbed him—a move that exhausted the last of his soul power.
"No, Little San, listen to me, cough, cough, cough..." At this point, Tang Hao coughed violently, and Tang San hurried back to his side.
"Dad..."
"Little San, listen to me..." Pausing, Tang Hao gasped for air before continuing.
"Little San, I know my own body. Bibi Dong's poison is incredibly potent. I fear I won't survive the day. I have a few words I must say to you!"
"Dad..." Looking at Tang Hao's increasingly pale, bloodless face, Tang San couldn't help but let tears fall like rain. "Dad, speak, I'm listening..."
"Good boy. That move I used earlier, you saw it clearly, didn't you?"
"Dad, I saw it all!" Tang San nodded heavily. With his Purple Demon Eye, he had seen the force-generation method of the Great Sumeru Hammer with perfect clarity.
"It's good that you saw it. That move is called the Great Sumeru Hammer! It is the final and strongest secret technique of the Clear Sky School!"
"Great Sumeru Hammer..." Tang San murmured, his mind constantly replaying Tang Hao's world-shaking strike.
"Correct. Although you have already learned the Nine Heart-Cleaving Hammer Techniques, only by mastering the Great Sumeru Hammer are you qualified to become the next Clear Sky Douluo! Originally, I wanted to teach you personally, but now it seems... I won't be able to."
"Dad."
"Remember, Little San, you must learn the Great Sumeru Hammer, but never use this move unless it is a life-or-death crisis. Otherwise, you will end up heavily injured just like me!"
Pausing, Tang Hao swallowed hard and continued: "And one more thing. Aside from your external soul bone, you don't have a single soul bone yet. But I have gathered a full set of six soul bones on my person, including two legacy soul bones of the Clear Sky School.
After I die, you shall absorb these six soul bones. I believe they will significantly boost your strength..."
"No, Dad! Don't say that! I believe you won't die!"
"Cough, cough... Little San, stop. I know my own body. To be honest, my heart died twenty years ago. I only clung to life until now to avenge your mother. I didn't expect that in the end, I couldn't even protect the Blue Silver Emperor she transformed into, nor her soul bone..."
By now, Tang Hao's face was becoming even paler—it could be described as ghostly, without a hint of color, looking exactly like a dead man's. Yet, he still forced out the words.
"Little San, you must promise me three things..."
"Dad, tell me."
"First, you must find your mother's soul bone; second, you must destroy Spirit Hall to avenge your mother; third, you must become the new Clear Sky Douluo and return to the Clear Sky School to atone for my sins. Do you understand?!"
"Dad, I understand."
"Good boy..."
After saying those words, Tang Hao closed his eyes and never opened them again. Tang San's eyes nearly split with grief as he let out a hysterical, sky-shaking howl.
"DAD!!!"
As he cried out, Tang San's eyes turned blood-red, and a sky-piercing killing intent erupted. The Deathgod Domain unfolded involuntarily, causing all soul beasts within several hundred meters to flee in terror, not daring to approach Tang San even by a fraction.
Only after a long time did Tang San calm down. He extracted the six soul bones from Tang Hao's body and subsequently buried Tang Hao's remains next to a stalk of Blue Silver Grass.
"Dad, rest assured. I will definitely destroy Spirit Hall and avenge your death!"
(End of Chapter)