Long Xiaoyao's body dissolved into nothingness—yet six objects remained, glowing softly where he'd vanished. Six orbs of light drifted gently before beginning their descent.
Whirr—!
Di Tian's dragon claw tightened slightly. The six orbs shot toward his palm as if magnetized.
Six soul bones. As a Limit Douluo, Long Xiaoyao had possessed a full set.
—
Holy Spirit Cult
Ye Xishui, mid-therapy beneath the Holy Emperor's statue, suddenly clutched her chest. Her eyes flew open—a chill of dread piercing her soul.
Unprecedented. Since becoming a Limit Douluo, she'd never felt such foreboding. Someone close—very close—had fallen.
Either Zhongli Wu… or Long Xiaoyao.
She feared the latter.
"Your heart is unsettled," the Holy Emperor's statue intoned, violet-black light flickering in its eyes. "I assumed one at your level had no attachments left."
Ye Xishui rose without a word.
"Since your focus is broken, we'll resume next time." The statue dimmed—cutting her off before she could speak.
She strode from the hall, summoning sect members.
To her surprise, Zhongli Wu—now State Preceptor—had returned to the sect.
"Why are you here?"
"Mother, I need you to intervene." He revealed Xu Tianran's plan to ambush Shrek Academy and Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect tomorrow. To prevent mishaps, he sought both Limit Douluos' presence.
But Ye Xishui's dread deepened. "Where is Uncle Long?"
Zhongli Wu's answer confirmed her fear.
—
Above the palace, Xu Tianran's eyes hardened as Di Tian ignored his threat. Simultaneously, Kong Deming shot downward from the sky—retreating toward the palace grounds.
Xuan Zi's group froze in alarm.
He's not fleeing from us—he's luring us into the soul-engineered artillery's kill zone!
"DI TIAN!" Xuan Zi roared—a warning.
Too late.
"FIRE!" Xu Tianran commanded.
The Sun Moon forces obeyed instantly.
Countless beams erupted from the palace's soul-engineered formations—blazing fire-rain, radiant meteors flooding the night sky. Interlacing laser grids tore through the void, heat and piercing force capable of vaporizing entire buildings in an instant.
Even Di Tian felt his scalp prickle.
But—
His oceanic soul power surged. A black dragon head coalesced behind him. Jet-black dragonfire, speckled with gold, erupted toward the barrage.
The flames detonated—shattering soul-engineered beams, warping the heavens. Space itself twisted under the cataclysmic collision.
Yet amid the explosion, Di Tian's golden eyes locked onto Xu Tianran. A claw tore through space—leaving jagged black rifts in its wake. Dragonfire and lasers detonated harmlessly around it; the claw existed outside this dimension.
Overwhelming dragon might crushed every heart below.
Xu Tianran's pupils contracted. Di Tian's attack couldn't be stopped—and it targeted him.
No hesitation. Titled Douluo power erupted.
Just as Chen Junting (Xiao Chen) predicted, the Three Great Empires' elites realized. Xu Tianran hid his strength—he's a Title Douluo! Relief flickered—they'd abandoned their original assassination plan. A wise choice.
All of Xu Tianran's Grade-9 defensive soul tools and defensive/amplification skills flared simultaneously. Kong Deming reappeared beside him—silver barrier forming the final line of defense.
The dragon claw descended—a force capable of seizing the sun and moon. Palace structures seemed to crumble beneath its shadow.
BOOM—!
Defenses shattered layer by layer.
At the last moment, Kong Deming's silver shield intercepted the claw—but the palace's majority lay in ruins. Including the chambers housing the soul-engineered artillery.
Di Tian withdrew his claw. His form melted into a colossal black dragon, vanishing into the night sky.
But the sharp-eyed Zhi Yong noticed something clutched in Di Tian's grip—a human silhouette. Recognition struck him like lightning.
"Go!"
A whisper reached Yang Zihan's ear. She disengaged instantly, soaring skyward.
Xuan Zi understood immediately. The act is over! "RETREAT!"
Shrek's elites feinted and broke away. Du Busi's faction followed suit.
They'd delayed long enough. And Long Xiaoyao—a Limit Douluo—was dead. Mission overachieved. Why stay?
Title Douluos streaked across the sky like shooting stars, vanishing into the horizon.
Xu Tianran's face darkened—but he forbade pursuit. With Di Tian lurking, chasing was suicide. Such power could only be countered by legions.
Then—
"Your Majesty." Jing Hongchen materialized, voice grave. "Mingde Hall reports… Three Great Empires infiltrated undetected. All soul tools and fixed-load artillery shells were stolen. The guarding Grade-9 soul engineer… died in service."
"What?!" Xu Tianran reeled. Again?!
But worse news followed.
Kong Deming's expression shifted. "Check the destroyed chambers!" Those vaults held Grade-7+ soul tools and artillery—volatile enough that Di Tian's strike should've triggered a chain reaction!
Yet… silence.
Scouts returned, trembling. "Y-Your Majesty… aside from rubble… nothing remains."
Xu Tianran's vision whited out. His mind went blank. He swayed—on the verge of collapse.
He understood. Everything.
Feint to the east—strike to the west.
Lure the tiger from the mountain.
Their target was never the palace!
"AAAAGH—!"
Light returned to his eyes—but now blazed with berserk fury. He resembled a rampaging tyrannosaur.
"WHO?! WHO DID THIS?!"
"WHO FISHES LIKE THIS?! BAIT IN THE PALACE—BUT THREE HOOKS! ONE FALSE, TWO TRUE—AND ALL OF THEM CAUGHT FISH!"
His rage silenced the court.
Only Kong Deming, Jing Hongchen, and Xu Guozhong seemed to grasp the implications. After a breath—
"Wait! My armory!" Xu Guozhong blurted. If Mingde Hall and the palace fell, the military armory—less fortified—was surely compromised.
Xu Tianran caught the implication. Xu Guozhong's suspicion became the final straw.
PFFT—!
Blood sprayed from his mouth. Darkness swallowed him—he collapsed in a rage-induced faint.
"YOUR MAJESTY!"
"WHERE ARE THE PHYSICIANS?! HEALING SOUL MASTERS?! TREATMENT-TYPE SOUL ENGINEERS?!"
Amid the chaos, Xu Tianran stirred awake.
His first act? Issue extermination orders against the factions—and command all soul masters/engineers (except guarding Grade-9s) to pursue the thieves. At any cost.
As for Di Tian?
Let him try to stop us.
Xu Tianran knew: if those weapons reached the Three Great Empires, unification would be delayed—and the price of conquest would multiply.
His gaze turned glacial, fixing on a Holy Spirit Cult elder. "Notify the State Preceptor. Summon Her Majesty the Death God Douluo."
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