Martial Soul City, outside the Papal Palace.
Hu Liena found it strange. This time, her teacher hadn't punished her for failing to bring back Lucien. Instead, Bibi Dong had asked her a great deal about him.
Normally, if she returned empty-handed, she'd be locked away at least two months in punishment.
But not this time.
"Nana, where did you get this Strange Velvet Immortal Chrysanthemum? Tell me," Yueguan's voice floated over, unusually subdued.
The Chrysanthemum Douluo, once arrogant and untouchable, now looked almost desperate.
Ever since Hu Liena's return, Yueguan had fixated on that golden chrysanthemum she carried. If he could obtain one for himself, he might leap past his current bottleneck. Rank ninety-five to ninety-six wasn't just a step—it was an ascension in quality.
He'd hovered around Hu Liena like a moth for days, asking every which way. She hadn't cracked once.
But however desperately he craved it, he dared not push. She was the Pope's personal disciple—embarrassing her was as good as offending Bibi Dong directly. That, even he valued his life too much to try.
"Elder Yueguan, I've already said–" Hu Liena's eyes were steady. "I promised a friend I'd keep this a secret."
"That brat again!" Yueguan ground his teeth.
He didn't need to guess. Hu Liena had gone out looking for Lucien once. She came back with an immortal-grade chrysanthemum. Who else could that "friend" be?
He remembered clearly—being chewed out by the Pope for failing to bring Lucien back.
Now this flower was also tied to him. The boy was a walking thorn in his pride. But still… Yueguan didn't dare try to seize him. Who knew what traps Chen Xin and the Seven Treasures Sect might have laid around him?
"Nana," Yueguan said sweetly, "why not transfer your flower to me? Name your condition, I'll meet it."
"Don't." Hu Liena's eyes flashed coldly as she turned away. Whatever it took, she wouldn't hand over her hard-won immortal herb.
"Ah…" Yueguan's mouth twitched painfully. To have such a treasure set before him and not be able to obtain it gnawed his heart raw.
And then, a shudder.
A breath washed over him—strong, suffocating, all too familiar. A domination from long ago that he could never forget.
His blood froze.
"…Tang… Tang Hao!"
A voice howled across the sky. "Chrysanthemum—take your life!"
Like space itself was torn, Tang Hao appeared high in the sky. The massive Clear Sky Hammer roared down, his eyes blood-rimmed, murderous.
His A Yin— abducted by Spirit Hall. If he didn't storm their halls now, when else would he?
"The first soul ability, Strange Velvet Bodyguard!"
"The second soul ability, Light of Chrysanthemum!"
Yueguan panicked, opening both defensive skills at once.
Boom!
The Clear Sky Hammer blasted through his defenses like paper, sending him flying back a hundred meters, coughing blood.
"Tang Hao, you lunatic!" Yueguan shrieked furiously.
Old animosities alone had been enough—the death of a Pope, the countless old scores. But to come charging into Spirit City itself?! Was the man insane?
Tang Hao's hammer leveled straight at him. His voice thundered: "Tell me where you've hidden my wife, and I'll let you live."
"…What?" Yueguan blinked, stunned. Tang Hao's wife? That woman sacrificed herself years ago! And what did it have to do with him?!
"You've lost your wife and now you pin the pot on me? I'll go to your uncle!" Yueguan cursed between gritted teeth.
But already, relief flickered in his eyes. Just stall long enough and news would reach the Papal Palace. Then they'd see if Tang Hao could still swagger.
A shadow appeared silently at Yueguan's side.
Guimei.
"Looking at me like that isn't helping," Yueguan snapped at him. He knew what the Ghost Douluo was thinking, giving him that look. He had zero interest in women—not even Tang Hao's so-called "wife."
Tang Hao's face twisted darker. "Two dogs together? Very good. Today, you both die."
The Clear Sky Hammer grew larger, golden phantom swelling behind Tang Hao as his weapon's true spirit manifested.
"Seventh soul ability—Martial Soul True Body!"
The hammer howled with killing intent.
Yueguan's chrysanthemum expanded into a massive blossom more than ten meters wide, light spearing from its center. "The eighth soul ability—Gate of Holy Light!"
Guimei's body vanished into void, spectral and formless. "Fifth soul ability, Ghost Shadow Nether Hands!" Dark hands erupted from the street, clutching Tang Hao's legs.
BOOM! Hammer and hands clashed, the very streets of Spirit City shattering into rubble underfoot.
But Tang Hao roared, feet stomping down, ripping free.
Big Sumeru Hammer!
The weapon swelled more than ten meters long, Tang Hao's waist twisting with brutal force as he swung.
Yueguan gasped—his body slowed under the hammer's locked aura. He had no choice.
"The ninth soul ability! Chrysanthemum Incomplete, Ground Broken, Heart Torn!"
The massive flower in his grip shattered into a golden maelstrom. A tornado of razor-sharp petals roared up, tearing at Tang Hao.
"Chichi-chi-chi-chi!" The hammer smashed against the petal storm, shrieking sparks lighting the air.
But Tang Hao's roar shook the heavens. Boom! Three of his soul rings shattered at once—ring explosion.
Though risking permanent damage after using it so recently, he no longer cared.
A Yin had been stolen. He would carve a road to her in blood.
"The ninth soul ability—Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts!"
Above, a black hole ripped open. Countless spectral phantoms poured free, shrieking, rushing at Tang Hao.
"Die!"
The sky lit with the clash. Tang Hao's hammer, strengthened by exploding rings, broke apart Yueguan's ninth ability storm, the Clear Sky Hammer smashing into his body—his scream ripping through the air.
At the same time, the ghosts Guimei had summoned struck Tang Hao's frame, detonating in waves of shadow fire.
The streets of Spirit City trembled as titans clashed—hammer against ghost and chrysanthemum, hatred older than decades rekindled in blood and flame.
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