How could Tang San describe his current mood?
It felt like spotting a treasure chest full of gold bars on the ground—only to arrive a moment too late and see someone else take everything. Worse yet, they even left a note detailing exactly how much gold had been in the chest.
"What a cruel twist of fate!"
Tang San was on the verge of tears. He hated himself for arriving just a step too late.
At first, he'd been secretly relieved—sure, he'd been caught and dragged here by Dugu Bo, but at least he had stumbled upon a heaven-sent treasure trove. Misfortune wrapped in fortune… or so he thought.
But now?
The misfortune remained, and the fortune was gone.
Tang San was furious. So many immortal herbs—each one of immeasurable value—had been here, yet now only bare stems remained.
"If only I'd pissed off Dugu Yan a little earlier! If her grandfather had come for revenge sooner, maybe I wouldn't have missed out on all these herbs…" he muttered bitterly.
Behind him, Dugu Bo's cold, raspy voice rang out:
"What the hell are you mumbling about, kid?"
"Oh, uh… nothing." Tang San quickly shut his mouth.
Dugu Bo snorted.
"Didn't I tell you to gather herbs? Where's the medicine? Not a single plant to show for it?"
Tang San tried to explain.
"I—"
But Dugu Bo cut him off.
"I get it now. You wandered around for half an hour trying to see if there were any leftover immortal herbs, hoping to scavenge something, didn't you?"
His expression grew even darker as he jabbed his finger at Tang San.
"Let me be clear. The poisons in both me and Yan Yan have already been cleansed. It's only a matter of time before we fully recover. We don't need you playing doctor!"
"You're just a little brat—always scheming to get your hands on things that don't belong to you. Call it what you like, but if we're being honest, that's just stealing!"
"Still standing there? What, you think I still need you?"
"Get a hoe and go plow me two acres of farmland!"
And just like that, under Dugu Bo's authoritative glare, the proud disciple of Yu Xiaogang, the leader of the Shrek Seven Devils—Tang San—picked up a hoe and began his peasant labor journey, facing the earth and turning soil like a proper farmer.
Not long after, the Golden Iron Triangle arrived together.
Dugu Bo, hands behind his back, proudly displayed Tang San's "achievements."
"Sigh… I'm a simple man," he said.
"I just wanted to vent a little anger for my granddaughter. That's all. If you want to take the boy, go ahead. As for the plowing? I can just find a real ox instead."
Flender, Yu Xiaogang, and Liu Erlong stood speechless, choked up and unable to respond.
What could they say? Dugu Bo had already agreed to release Tang San. If they dared to push their luck and anger a Title Douluo further, who knew what might happen?
Poor Tang San. Not only had he missed out on the herbs—he didn't even get a single blade of grass. He'd spent all his time… plowing land.
Starfall Empire – Breaking Clan
After a few days of rest, Yang Dianfeng's mental injuries had healed. The once-proud genius of the Breaking Clan had finally set aside his pride and agreed to join Chen Feng's soul master team.
Chen Feng's team was becoming more complete by the day.
Wasting no time, they immediately moved on to the next stop.
Chen Feng's plan was quite tightly arranged. After recruiting Yu Tianlong and Yang Dianfeng, he still needed to find two more teammates to complete the seven-person lineup.
And that count already included Ning Rongrong and Oscar.
"Should I go dig up a couple more from Shrek?" Chen Feng rubbed his nose, thinking.
But almost immediately, he shook his head in denial.
Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun? Forget it. Frequent visitors of brothels—not his type.
Tang San? An enemy.
Xiao Wu? A soul beast.
That only left Zhu Zhuqing, who seemed decent, but Chen Feng wasn't the type to break up couples. Unless Zhu Zhuqing willingly left Dai Mubai on her own, he wouldn't go sticking his nose into their business.
At that moment, Yang Dianfeng offered:
"If you're still short on people, I might have someone in mind. Just a suggestion, of course. If you've already got plans, feel free to ignore it."
Chen Feng's eyes lit up.
Anyone Yang Dianfeng thought was worth recommending must be impressive.
"If you have someone suitable, by all means—let's hear it," Chen Feng replied.
Yang paused briefly before saying:
"Since you know about our Breaking Clan, you've probably heard of the Defending Clan (Yu Zhi Yi Zu), right?"
"The Defending Clan? Martial Soul: Armored Giant Rhinoceros?"
Chen Feng and Yu Tianlong exchanged a glance. Of course, they knew the name.
If the Breaking Clan specialized in pure offensive strength, then the Defending Clan was the epitome of pure defense. In terms of toughness and durability, even the Elephant Armored Sect was slightly inferior.
Still, as far as Chen Feng could recall, the Defending Clan had never produced any truly outstanding talents. Not even in the future did they have any members who reached the Title Douluo level.
Would recruiting a soul master from a defense-focused clan throw off their team's balance and hurt their chances in the tournament?
Chen Feng wasn't a snob, but this matter was directly tied to his Asura God Trials. He couldn't afford to be careless.
"How about this—since it's your recommendation, we'll go take a look first before making any decisions. Sound good?"
Yang nodded confidently.
"Of course! But I can guarantee—you'll absolutely like this one."
The reason Yang Dianfeng recommended someone from the Defending Clan had a deeper rationale, too.
Among the original four single-attribute clans affiliated with the Clear Sky Sect, only the Strength Clan remained blindly loyal. Their leader, Tai Tan, still referred to Tang Hao as "Master" at every turn.
The Agility Clan may have been poor, but they were still relatives of the Clear Sky Sect by blood.
Only the Breaking Clan and the Defending Clan were non-relatives and suffered the worst reprisals from the Spirit Hall after the Clear Sky Sect's disappearance. They were also the two clans that held the deepest grudge against Tang Hao and his sect.
As such, whenever the Breaking Clan needed allies, they'd always think of the Defending Clan first, before the other two.
The trio bade farewell to Yang Wudi and headed for Longxing City in the Starfall Empire.
The Defending Clan had now established themselves there and lived well by leveraging their skill in construction and architecture.
Longxing City wasn't too far from the Breaking Clan's territory, and soon, Chen Feng and the others arrived.
Under Yang Dianfeng's guidance, they came to a large estate.
The residence occupied a massive area. The outer walls towered over five meters high, and the main gate was two feet thick—incredibly solid. Without great strength, one might not even be able to push it open.
Chen Feng nodded in admiration. The rumors were true—the Defending Clan truly had remarkable skill in construction. This place looked more like a small fortress than a residence.
Rumor had it that the Strength Clan's compound looked very similar—and it was the Defending Clan who had built it for them.
With Yang Dianfeng leading the way, the group passed through two courtyards and entered smoothly.
Just then, a booming laugh echoed from ahead.
"Brother! I heard you came to see me—after a whole year apart, I missed you like crazy!"
A towering man over two meters tall strode out, his short hair spiked like steel bristles.
His chest was broad, his shoulders wide, and his bronze-like eyes were bright with spirit. His massive frame resembled a walking fortress. Even among the Defending Clan's disciples, no one could match his sheer size.