Seeing Xiao Wu's affectionate demeanor, Tang San couldn't help but imagine himself leading her through the trials of the Spirit Hall, defeating all obstacles along the way, winning in the end, obtaining the soul bone of Xiao Wu's mother, and then—when the Spirit Hall threatened to take Xiao Wu—standing bravely in front of her.
Surely by then, he'd win back her heart. Tang San was soon lost in his fantasies.
After Xiao Wu sent Tang San away, Yu Tianheng, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Oscar, Er Ming, and Tai Long all came to find her.
"Xiao Wu, is that Soft-Boned Rabbit soul bone…?" Yu Tianheng asked.
"Yes, it was my mother's soul bone. On the entire Douluo Continent, aside from me and my mother, there are no other 100,000-year Soft-Boned Rabbits," Xiao Wu replied.
"But didn't you say that soul bone was in Tang Hao's hands?" Dai Mubai asked. "How did it end up in the hands of the Spirit Hall?"
(Dai Mubai actually hoped it was the Spirit Hall who killed Xiao Wu's mother—not Tang Hao.
Not because he wanted to defend Tang San, but because he knew what it meant to be enemies with Tang San—who had the Asura backing him.
But if it really turned out that Tang Hao killed Xiao Wu's mother, then Dai Mubai wouldn't hesitate to side with Xiao Wu.)
"I didn't say anything wrong. My mother was killed by Tang Hao. That soul bone was in his hands. In fact, that 100,000-year Blue Silver Emperor soul bone also used to be in his possession," Xiao Wu reminded.
When the name "Ah Yin" (Blue Silver Emperor) came up, Dai Mubai suddenly realized something. Most likely, the Spirit Hall had a reincarnator among them. In their previous lives, the Shrek Seven Monsters had defeated the Spirit Hall, and history across the continent sang songs of their victory.
Tang Hao's six years of decline, followed by his reawakening upon seeing Tang San's spirit awakening, had been framed in history as a tale of endurance and hidden strength. His tragic love with Ah Yin, which transcended the boundaries between human and spirit beast, was hailed as legendary. And among those stories, the cave behind Holy Soul Village was explicitly recorded.
From a reincarnator's point of view within the Spirit Hall—if you were determined to oppose Tang San—what should you do?
Intercept.
Just like they intercepted immortal herbs, intercepting his mother's soul bone and Blue Silver Emperor's life seed was also viable. So the soul bone of Ah Rou (Xiao Wu's mom), which had been placed beside Ah Yin's, naturally "accidentally" ended up in Spirit Hall's hands.
(Elsewhere…)
A frustrated Tang San suddenly slapped his forehead.
"I get it now. Intercepted. It was intercepted! How did I overlook this?
That damned reincarnator in the Spirit Hall must've known about the Water Curtain Cave behind Holy Soul Village from their past life—and snatched it before I could."
Realizing this, Tang San's eyes turned bloodshot. He was panting like a raging bull. His arms flung wide like an ape, pounding on his chest, and he let out a furious roar:
"AAAAHHHHHH!! Spirit Hall's reincarnator! How dare you intercept my mother's soul bone!
You dare defy the rightful flow of Douluo Continent's history—death will be your only fate!"
"Xiao Wu," Dai Mubai said firmly, "Don't worry. I, Dai Mubai, will win back your mother's soul bone."
"So will I," Yu Tianheng added.
Soon after, every man in Xiao Wu's orbit began pledging themselves to her cause.
Meanwhile, Tang Hao quietly arrived at the outskirts of Shrek Academy.
"It's been so many years since I've seen Little San… I wonder how he's doing now," Tang Hao said proudly.
Just thinking about his son, a proud smile crept onto his face.
Tang Hao was incredibly proud of Tang San—wherever he stood, he shone brightest.
He assumed that Tang San must now be the most outstanding student in Shrek Academy, leading his peers to disrupt Spirit Hall's planned tournament.
But as Tang Hao dug deeper, something seemed off…
Shrek had three Soul Kings? The rest of the main team had already reached Soul Ancestor level???
But among the three Soul Kings—his precious son wasn't one of them?!
Xiao Wu, the strongest in Shrek, was already level 52. Meanwhile, Tang San was only level 41?!
What the hell was going on??
And where was Zhu Zhuqing? She was gone—replaced by Yu Tianheng? And Er Ming?!
Er Ming?!
Wasn't he that gorilla from Star Dou Forest? That damned beast! Instead of obediently staying in the forest to sacrifice himself for Little San as planned—to be a good dog for the Tang family—he had run out to join the chaos?
And where were the immortal herbs?
If Tang San had absorbed the immortal herbs, there's no way he'd be this weak.
Did he not absorb them???
That very night, Tang Hao immediately lured Tang San out.
Father and son met again after years apart.
"Daaaaddy~"
Tang San threw himself tearfully into Tang Hao's arms.
Tang Hao gently patted Tang San's back with his broad palm, comforting him.
"Little San, can you tell me what's happened all these years?"
Tang San told him everything—well, almost everything. He left out the fact that Yu Tianheng was currently competing with him for Xiao Wu, and that his relationship with Xiao Wu hadn't gone beyond that of "siblings."
Tang San felt that he could handle this himself—getting parents involved would be embarrassing.
Thus, Tang Hao missed a huge red flag about what was going on with the "Shrek Eight Monsters."
(If he had known Yu Tianheng was pursuing Xiao Wu, he would've resolved the love triangle physically. After all, in his altered memory, Xiao Wu was the key to Tang San obtaining the God of Asura's divine position.)
Still, Tang Hao picked up on some key intel.
First, Tang San had not encountered Dugu Bo in this life.
And this Dugu Bo had actually died from his own poison.
That was a shame.
In the future war against the Spirit Hall, Jialing Pass would be an impenetrable fortress. Dugu Bo was a key player—he alone could unleash city-leveling poison, wiping out Spirit Hall's Soul Master army. Not to mention, he could wipe out all the rebels within Jialing who had backed Spirit Hall—then take the blame himself.
Perfect scapegoat.
But now Dugu Bo was dead.
So… who was going to massacre Jialing's defenders in the future?
Was Tang Hao supposed to hammer them to death, one at a time?
No, no. That wouldn't do.
He was the Father of Tang San, the future God!
How could he lower himself to such brutish labor?
(Never mind that Tang Hao was currently living like a rat in a sewer—destroying cities and villages on occasion to vent his pain and resentment. But once Tang San rose to prominence, Tang Hao would have to switch roles—he'd need to protect his reputation. After all, one day, he'd become a Lord of the Realm.)
Also, Dugu Bo's unexpected death meant another key matter had shifted—
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Tang Hao patted Tang San's shoulder and said with heartfelt emotion:
"Little San, you have a reason you absolutely must win this Soul Master Tournament, you know? That hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor soul bone is connected to your mother—it's her relic."
Hearing this, Tang San feigned surprise as he looked at Tang Hao.
(Even in front of his father, Tang San had no intention of revealing that he was a reincarnator.)
Meeting Tang San's searching gaze, Tang Hao deliberately kept a somber tone and said:
"As for your mother's past… child, you'll know about it in time. What you need to remember now is—win the championship and retrieve that soul bone. It's a keepsake your mother left you. Do you understand?"
"I understand, Dad," Tang San said firmly, eyes full of determination.
"Good!" Tang Hao gave his shoulder another pat, about to suggest they go to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well to help Tang San increase his strength, when Tang San suddenly spoke:
"Dad, I know there's a fortuitous place in the Sunset Forest. But I can't get close to it alone—can you take me there?"
Tang Hao was briefly stunned. He hadn't expected that even without Dugu Bo around, Tang San could still sense the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well. As expected of the Child of Destiny!
But hey, the Child of Destiny… is my own son.
"Hahaha! Good, I'll take you there myself!" Tang Hao said with a laugh, and with that, he secretly led Tang San away from Shrek Academy.
On the way, Tang San's mind kept turning. What would remain of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well after the damage done by Spirit Hall?
Rare herbs like Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot, with their toxic nature, probably weren't touched by Chrysanthemum Douluo—he likely didn't know they were meant to be taken together.
Even if he did, he wouldn't have dared let Spirit Hall's geniuses risk it.
In other words, his fortune likely still awaited him in the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
His Blue Silver Grass—before it awakened as the Blue Silver Emperor—was deeply restrained by both fire and ice. Those two herbs were absolutely crucial for him.
Too bad for Mubai, Fatty, and Oscar though.
Tang San thought for a bit—perfect, he'd take the top-tier herbs to catch up with Mubai, and throw the rest some lesser medicinal plants to keep them happy.
Tang Hao, meanwhile, had entirely different thoughts.
He felt it was too much of a waste to let people like Dai Mubai benefit from such a treasure trove. After all, no matter how close the Shrek Seven Devils were, they were outsiders.
Bloodline always came first.
So, he considered fencing off the place—making it a private garden for the Tang family.
Even if Tang San didn't need the herbs, his other sons could use them.
(Though he had accepted Tang San as his son, Tang Hao couldn't help minding that Tang San was essentially a soul usurper. His plan was simple: once Tang San revived Ah Yin, he'd get closer to her again and have many more biological children with her. They might not match Tang San's level, but surely some of them could reach first- or second-class godhood, right?)
Thus, with very different motives, father and son entered the Sunset Forest together.
Compared to the previous visit, they encountered many more dangers this time.
Ten-thousand-year soul beasts kept appearing, but Tang Hao effortlessly handled them all—taking the chance to demonstrate his fatherly might to Tang San.
Finally, they arrived at the Ice and Fire Valley.
To Tang San's surprise, the mists and poisonous fog that once surrounded it were gone.
The two of them climbed to the cliff edge.
Looking down, they saw a spring in the valley below—half of it icy blue, exuding a chilling cold from afar; the other half blazing red, releasing waves of heat.
All around the spring, rare herbs and spiritual plants filled the valley.
Each one was worth a fortune in the outside world.
But to Tang San, these were secondary. His focus was on the immortal-grade herbs.
He immediately activated his Purple Demon Eye to begin his search.
Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass—still there.
Infernal Delicate Apricot—still there. Autumn Water Dew—also still there.
At that point, Tang San finally breathed a sigh of relief. His three-piece set from his previous life was all intact. Perfect.
He scanned further:
Fiery Tripod Chrysanthemum—present
Beautiful Silk Tulip—present
Fragrant Immortal—present
Snowy Swan Kiss—present
Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone—present
Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid—present
And then, at the very end, Tang San couldn't help but shiver.
The Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well hadn't been raided by Spirit Hall at all—on the contrary, there were even more immortal herbs than in his previous life!
These resources were enough to train three full teams of Shrek Seven Devils.
Heaven is helping me! Hahahahaha!
Even someone with Tang Hao's experienced eye, as a former Plane Lord, could see that this was clearly an unclaimed treasure trove.
He trembled with excitement—so many resources! All of this belonged to the Tang family.
Until Tang San became a god, Tang Hao vowed to stay here and guard it.
Once Ah Yin was revived, he would build a whole soccer team—no, two, three teams of kids with her, and feed each one an immortal herb.
Every child would inherit a god position, and the Tang family would spread its branches in the God Realm!
Suddenly, a deep dragon roar echoed from the valley, snapping the father and son out of their daydreams.
Steam rising from the Ice and Fire Springs coalesced into two dragon-shaped projections above the valley.
"Who dares intrude upon our eternal slumber?"
The two dragons addressed Tang San and Tang Hao coldly.
Tang San and Tang Hao immediately recognized them—
The Ice and Fire Dragon Kings.
After becoming a god, Tang San had learned the origins of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
With plans to one day revive the Dragon God, he had monopolized the valley.
The dragon kings and their soul bones were seen as part of the Tang family's inheritance.
For tens of thousands of years, they had lain dormant, awaiting his son, Tang Wulin.
(Although that plan had been derailed before it began thanks to Huo Yuhao.)
So why had they awoken now?Could it be that I was wrong?
Was the previous damage to the Yin-Yang Well not caused by the reborn Spirit Hall member, but by the awakening of these dragon souls?
Damn it!
You two were supposed to stay buried at the bottom of the spring until my son and grandson came to claim you!
Why are you waking up now?
Still, so what if they were the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings?
I, Tang San, am the Shura God's chosen one!
My father, Tang Hao, is the Shura God's appointed guardian!
His Killing God Domain contains Shura's divine power—he smashes gods with his hammer, pulverizes buddhas!
What is there to be afraid of?!
This Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well belongs to the Tang family!