Chapter 114: Qian Daoliu — Was I Wrong?
Tang Xiao turned into a cloud of blood mist and vanished completely into the black vortex, as if he had never existed in this world at all.
Gui Mei slowly retracted his soul power, hovering in midair as the terrifying aura around him gradually dissipated.
The black vortex that had blotted out the sky receded like a retreating tide, eventually disappearing without a trace.
When everything finally returned to calm, all that remained was a battlefield in utter devastation.
The once-majestic mountain had collapsed by more than half. Massive boulders lay scattered everywhere, and clouds of dust still lingered in the air.
The earth had split open with deep, bottomless fissures. Trees lay toppled in every direction—some uprooted entirely, others snapped in half by the shockwaves—strewn chaotically across the ground.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Fifteen Ton Douluo had exhausted his last bit of strength and fled the battlefield long ago.
Surveying the wreckage before him, Yue Guan flashed forward and appeared beside Gui Mei.
"Old Ghost, the power of that Ring Fusion skill was absolutely terrifying. It must consume an enormous amount of soul power, right? Are you alright?"
Gui Mei smiled faintly.
"I'm fine. This was my first time using Ring Fusion, so I overdid it a little. After three consecutive fusions, my soul power was heavily depleted. I'll need about three days to fully recover."
As he spoke, he slowly raised his right hand.
Two soul bones appeared above his palm.
Judging from their shapes, one was a head soul bone, emitting a gentle blue glow that carried a chilling, icy aura.
The other was a left arm soul bone, shimmering with a faint red light and radiating scorching heat.
Seeing the two soul bones, a flash of excitement passed through Yue Guan's eyes.
"Old Ghost, these two soul bones dropped from Tang Xiao?"
Gui Mei nodded slightly and explained:
"They both came from Tang Xiao. This left arm bone should be an Inheritance soul bone of the Clear Sky Sect."
"Two more soul bones—what an unexpected gain. Let's find a quiet place to recuperate. In three days, you should be fully recovered."
"Mm. Once I've recovered, I'm going to Spirit City."
"Spirit City?"
Yue Guan frowned slightly, concern evident in his expression.
Spirit City was home not only to Qian Daoliu and Bibi Dong—two peerless experts whose soul power had reached rank ninety-nine—but also to the rank ninety-eight Golden Crocodile Douluo, as well as the rank ninety-seven Azure Luan Douluo and Mighty Lion Douluo.
With Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo dead this time, Qian Daoliu and the people of Spirit Hall would definitely not let this matter rest.
Although Gui Mei was extremely powerful, facing so many top-tier experts at once would be overwhelming.
"Old Ghost… are you sure you want to go to Spirit City?"
Gui Mei nodded, his gaze firm.
"We never intended to become enemies of Spirit Hall, yet they kept pressing us again and again. Now that Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo are dead, they'll be even less willing to let things go. Rather than waiting for them to come looking for me, I might as well strike first. Only by defeating Qian Daoliu will we finally be free of their interference."
"Alright! Old Ghost, when the time comes, I'll go with you."
"Mm. But I'll go to the battlefield alone."
Although Yue Guan possessed a hundred-thousand-year soul ring, he was still only at rank ninety-seven. Against three top-tier experts like Qian Daoliu, Bibi Dong, and Golden Crocodile Douluo, he would have no real advantage.
There was no way Gui Mei would let him take such a risk.
Fifteen Ton Douluo fled at full speed and finally managed to escape back to Spirit Hall.
Dragging his exhausted, heavily injured body, he staggered into the Douluo Hall.
Hearing the commotion, Qian Daoliu immediately stood up.
When he saw Fifteen Ton Douluo in such a miserable state, his brows knitted tightly together, and a sense of ominous foreboding surged through his heart.
"Qian Jun, what happened to you? What on earth took place?"
With a loud thud, Fifteen Ton Douluo dropped to his knees, his voice trembling as he spoke:
"Grand Worship… Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo… they… they have both fallen in battle…"
The moment he heard this, Qian Daoliu's expression darkened instantly. A flash of rage and shock flickered through his eyes.
His aura erupted without warning, and the surrounding air seemed to freeze solid.
Sensing the disturbance, Golden Crocodile Douluo and Mighty Lion Douluo hurried over as well.
When they heard Fifteen Ton Douluo's report, their faces changed drastically, their eyes filled with fury and grief.
Golden Crocodile Douluo glared, his eyes wide with anger, and demanded loudly:
"Qian Jun, what exactly happened? Was it Gui Mei and Yue Guan who killed Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo? And where is Tang Xiao?"
"Tang Xiao… he… also died in battle…"
The three of them stared at one another, shocked once again.
"Qian Jun, sit down."
Seeing how weak Fifteen Ton Douluo was, Qian Daoliu quickly activated his soul power.
A stream of golden light fell upon Fifteen Ton Douluo like gentle rain, easing his pain and stabilizing his condition.
"Qian Jun, tell us everything in detail."
After that, Fifteen Ton Douluo recounted everything that had happened on the battlefield to the three of them.
He described how Gui Mei released six hundred-thousand-year soul rings from his Body martial soul and two more hundred-thousand-year soul rings from his Ghost Demon martial soul; how he displayed the miraculous Ring Fusion technique three times; the deaths of Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo; and how Tang Xiao used the forbidden Ring Explosion technique, ultimately causing his body to explode and perish. He explained every step of the process in full detail.
After listening, Golden Crocodile Douluo was furious.
"So it's Gui Mei… and Yue Guan! How arrogant of them, daring to kill Spirit Hall's Great Worshippers! We must avenge Demon-Suppressing Douluo and Glowing Feather Douluo and make those two bastards pay a painful price!"
Mighty Lion Douluo echoed angrily from the side:
"That's right, Grand Worship. Gui Mei used Ring Fusion three times. Although its power is terrifying, the consumption must be enormous. His soul power can't possibly recover in a short time. Let's gather our forces immediately, find them, and reclaim justice for Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo!"
Qian Daoliu took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
His heart was filled with sorrow, self-blame, and guilt.
He had never expected Gui Mei's strength to skyrocket once again in such a short period of time, to the point where he now possessed eight hundred-thousand-year soul rings.
Such overwhelming soul power was something even he could not compare to, let alone the others.
It was precisely because he had misjudged Gui Mei's strength that this tragedy had occurred.
"This matter is my responsibility. I underestimated Gui Mei and never imagined that he had already mastered the Ring Fusion technique. We will definitely seek justice for the deaths of Glowing Feather Douluo and Demon-Suppressing Douluo, but we must not act rashly. They have most likely already left the area, and chasing after them blindly would be meaningless. Qian Jun, you've suffered greatly—go back and recover first. As for the rest of you, return for now. We'll discuss this matter again later."
Seeing Qian Daoliu take the initiative to shoulder the blame, the three of them said nothing more.
Mighty Lion Douluo supported Fifteen Ton Douluo as they left together.
Qian Daoliu's gaze grew deep as he pondered silently:
"Why has Gui Mei become so powerful…? What exactly has he experienced? If he hadn't been by Bibi Dong's side, would they have truly left Spirit Hall?"
"Back then, supporting Bibi Dong as Pope and sending Xiao Xue to the Heaven Dou Empire as an undercover agent… were those decisions all wrong?"
"It seems that Spirit Hall's sky is truly about to change…"
Losing two rank-ninety-six Great Worshippers in one stroke dealt a heavy blow to Spirit Hall's overall strength, filling Qian Daoliu with deep pain.
Bibi Dong was steadily tightening her grip over Spirit Hall, and now Gui Mei had emerged as an even more troublesome opponent.
Qian Daoliu could clearly feel that Spirit Hall was drifting farther and farther away from him—perhaps soon, it would no longer belong to the Qian family at all.
End of Chapter