"Roar—!"
Zhao Wuji's roar shattered the ice.
His Spirit True Body, over five meters tall, stomped through the forest, its immense Soul Power like an out-of-control tidal wave, washing over every inch of land repeatedly.
"How far could you have escaped in such a short time?!"
He scanned the broken branches, snapped wood, and muddy potholes.
Nothing!
Still nothing!
Not a single trace of aura could be detected!
Just then.
The rain gradually stopped.
A faint, pale grey appeared on the horizon.
This made Zhao Wuji's anxiety even worse.
But no matter how he urged his Soul Power to sense.
Li Dixian's aura had vanished completely, as if he had evaporated into thin air.
"That kid was grazed by my Spirit True Body; there's an eighty percent chance he's dead!"
"But I can't gamble…"
"This child is too monstrous!
"He absolutely cannot live!"
His killing intent solidified.
He no longer tried to sense in vain.
Instead, he began the most savage destruction.
Boom, boom, boom—!
Giant fists crashed down like meteors.
Trees snapped in rows.
The ground was churned up by the violent force, deep pits forming a continuous expanse.
He wanted to completely turn this entire area upside down, digging three feet deep if necessary to find Li Dixian.
The roaring sound tore through the morning's tranquility.
Without the cover of the night rain.
Such a commotion was especially jarring in the brightening sky.
In the distance, footsteps and voices faintly approached.
Zhao Wuji's massive body suddenly froze, his expression turning extremely ugly.
"Damn it!"
He remembered Qin Ming's warning.
Li Dixian had many friends!
This was not a place to linger.
Zhao Wuji dispelled his Spirit True Body, and his burly figure disappeared into the depths of the ruined forest.
He had to immediately take Ma Hongjun and flee far from Heaven Dou City.
Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.
Xue Qinghe, who hadn't slept well last night, had just finished the Crown Prince's morning lessons.
Walking under the towering red walls.
At this moment, she was physically and mentally exhausted.
But as soon as she thought about going to Lotus Lake later.
To have a meal with that scoundrel, her mood brightened again.
"I need to return to the sleeping quarters quickly."
It had rained heavily all night.
Making the weather muggy like a steamer.
She needed to go back to wash up, then bring the Three Immortals Chicken to the appointment.
That scoundrel was very picky about his food.
He could tell with one bite if the chicken was steamed for too long or too short.
Thinking this, Xue Qinghe's lips curved into an almost imperceptible smile.
Crown Prince's sleeping quarters.
Xue Qinghe was wiping her long hair; although she still wore male attire, one could glimpse a breathtaking softness.
And just then.
Snake Lance hurried over with a grim expression, glanced at Xue Qinghe, and gritted his teeth:
"Young Master, there's some news. Please… remain calm after you hear it."
"Hmm?"
Xue Qinghe's motion of wiping her hair paused.
An ominous premonition suddenly surged in her heart.
"Speak."
"Last night, a Spirit Master battle occurred in the eastern suburbs of the city. Judging by the aura, it may have been at the Spirit Saint level."
"Eastern suburbs of the city…"
Xue Qinghe's body stiffened abruptly.
She immediately understood what Snake Lance's words implied.
The eastern suburbs of the city—that was Li Dixian's residence.
"Li… Li Dixian… where is he?"
"There was a faint smell of blood at the scene, and Li Dixian… has gone missing."
All color drained from Xue Qinghe's face.
Her body swayed three times, and she barely managed to steady herself by grabbing the corner of a table behind her.
Whoosh—!
Xue Qinghe's figure flashed away.
Disregarding her unbound hair and wearing only socks, she had rushed out of the hall.
From afar.
A bone-chilling voice pierced Snake Lance's ears.
"Seal the entire city!"
"No one is allowed to leave!"
Dugu Family Manor.
The kitchen.
Dugu Yan watched over a pot of soup.
From time to time, she pinched a bit of powder and sprinkled it in.
Making the several house cooks nearby tremble with fear.
Miss Dugu had never cooked before; she shouldn't confuse cooking with making poison.
Just then.
Several servant women who had gone out to buy groceries returned.
They didn't notice Dugu Yan, and excitedly discussed among themselves:
"You wouldn't believe it, last night Spirit Masters started fighting in the eastern suburbs of the city!"
"Oh my, I heard blood flowed like rivers, and there were arms and legs everywhere!"
"Tsk tsk, the one who died was a young man, and it was a truly gruesome sight!"
Clatter—
The ladle dropped to the floor.
Dugu Yan slowly turned around, and deep within her pupils, the emerald green that had dissipated earlier glowed faintly again, staring coldly at the servant women who had been talking.
"What… did you say?"
The servant women then realized, and hastily knelt down.
"Miss Dugu!"
"You just said… where… did a Spirit Master battle happen?"
"The… the eastern suburbs of the city, Miss, the death was so tragic…"
Before the servant woman could finish speaking.
Dugu Yan had already rushed out of the kitchen like a strong wind.
Dugu Bo, who was meditating in the courtyard, saw her so distraught and asked:
"Yan Yan, what happened?"
Dugu Yan bit her pearly teeth tightly, and said tremblingly:
"Li Dixian… something happened to him!"
"What?!"
Ye Manor.
"Mother! Come with me quickly!"
Ye Lingling, contrary to her usual quiet and gentle demeanor.
Almost dragged Madam Ye's hand, rushing out of the manor without explanation.
A trace of astonishment flashed across Madam Ye's graceful and serene face.
This was the first time she had seen her daughter so distraught.
"Lingling, for a young lady to disregard her manners like this, what kind of decorum is that?"
Madam Ye frowned.
"Could it be that Li Dixian prefers rough women?"
"Mother!"
Ye Lingling's azure eyes were already brimming with tears, her voice choked with sobs.
"Li Dixian… it seems something has happened to him!"
"Hmm?!"
Madam Ye's expression changed drastically.
She gripped her daughter's wrist, her steps three times faster than Ye Lingling's.
"What happened? Tell me on the way!"
Eastern suburbs of the city.
The elegant small courtyard backed by the forest… perhaps, it could no longer be called a "courtyard" at this moment.
As far as the eye could see, bricks, tiles, and wooden beams were scattered everywhere, nothing but broken walls, charred earth, and deep pits.
Even the torrential rain last night couldn't completely wash away the faint smell of blood in the air.
It showed the ferocity of last night's battle.
The ruins were surrounded by a crowd of onlookers.
A team of Imperial Guards hurried over, sternly clearing the area.
Xue Qinghe's face was taut.
She stepped, one foot after another, into this once familiar courtyard.
The devastation that met her eyes made her already pale face lose its last trace of color.
Her steps were heavy and slow.
Her gaze swept inch by inch over the broken brick walls, the overturned soil, the charred deep pits… She carried a fear that was almost meticulous.
Afraid of not finding that familiar figure, and even more afraid… of seeing a sight she couldn't bear.
Just then.
There was another commotion from the outer perimeter.
Dugu Bo, accompanied by Dugu Yan, who exuded a chilling, murderous aura, and Madam Ye, pulling a tearful Ye Lingling, arrived almost simultaneously.
The four of them saw the tragic scene before their eyes.
The air instantly solidified, oppressively suffocating.
"Who… who exactly did this…"
Dugu Yan's delicate body trembled, and patches of green scales emerged on her neck.
Ye Lingling's azure eyes lost their focus.
"The most urgent task now is to find Dixian."
Dugu Bo's gaze was sinister.
Li Dixian had shown great kindness to his Dugu Family.
He was not one to forget a favor.
If Li Dixian was truly harmed.
He, Poison Douluo, would make that person understand what it meant to live a life worse than death.
Madam Ye clenched her hands tightly, and a cold frost crept onto her graceful cheeks.
"Investigate! Use all of the Ye Family's power in Heaven Dou City! Dig three feet deep, we must find Li Dixian!"
Li Dixian was the hope for her Ye Family's Nine Heart Begonia to surpass the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
She would not allow anything to happen to Li Dixian.
Xue Qinghe stood silently in the center of the ruins.
Her face was terrifyingly calm.
However, at this moment, her eyes suddenly trembled.
Her gaze.
Was fixed on something under a broken tile—
There, a familiar umbrella lay quietly.
The canopy was torn, the ribs broken, and it was covered in mud.
It was precisely the one… she had personally given to Li Dixian yesterday.
It's still three chapters today, tonight~
Thank you, dear readers~~