"Bei Bei, you bastard! Haven't seen you in so long, and you've actually become a Titled Douluo! Did you f***ing pop some pills or what!"
Inside a hotel in Lingdou City, Bei Bei, who had come here alongside Yan Shaozhe, met Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan. He hadn't seen them since they returned to their sect after the new emperor of the Dou Ling Empire ascended the throne.
Since bumping into a good brother he hadn't seen in ages, they naturally had to catch up properly. So, after getting Yan Shaozhe's permission, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi headed to the hotel for a get-together.
Upon meeting and learning that Bei Bei had become a Titled Douluo, Xu Sanshi's eyes turned red with envy. They were clearly on the same starting line, yet you've already surpassed your bro!?
Even before the food was served, Xu Sanshi punched Bei Bei in the chest. It was painless, yet it made a certain guy incredibly smug.
"Hehe—Jealous?" Bei Bei teased, his tone asking for a beating.
"Jealous? Who's jealous!?" Noticing that Bei Bei was all alone, Xu Sanshi's eyes darted around with a sudden idea. The next second, his right arm directly wrapped around the silent Jiang Nannan, who was planning to just watch the show.
This sudden intimate action instantly caused the unprepared Jiang Nannan to blush, followed immediately by a cold expression.
"Smooch—" Before Jiang Nannan could react, Xu Sanshi actually kissed her cheek right in front of Bei Bei. He used so much force that he even left a red mark on her face.
However, the consequences of such an abrupt action...
"Hiss—" Feeling a severe pain coming from the soft flesh of his waist, Xu Sanshi secretly sucked in a breath of cold air, but on the surface, he tried his best to maintain his composure in front of Bei Bei. At the same time, Jiang Nannan's mutter, which barely counted as a whisper, rang out, "Are you trying to die! Bei Bei is still here, how could you kiss me here! So embarrassing."
This scene left Bei Bei utterly dumbfounded.
What? What just happened? How did things progress to this point?
However, he soon understood Xu Sanshi's motive.
"Wifey, let's kiss again." But such a "request," without a doubt, naturally met the ruthless suppression of Jiang Nannan, who already had a thin skin.
"Get lost—"
"Wifey!?" Right now, Bei Bei completely ignored whatever Jiang Nannan was saying. Upon hearing Xu Sanshi's form of address, his entire spirit was jolted! His mind was entirely occupied by this.
When he finally reacted, he stared at the smirking Xu Sanshi. "You and Nannan got married!?"
"Mm-hmm."
Looking at Xu Sanshi proudly showing off to him, this time it was Bei Bei's turn to be red-eyed with envy.
'What kind of brother are you! It's only been a few years, and you actually got married behind your bro's back!'
Seeing Bei Bei's expression, the smug one directly switched to Xu Sanshi. With a teasing face, exactly like a mold carved from Bei Bei just moments ago, and a tone just as punchable, "Hehe—Jealous?"
With this, the tables had completely turned.
"Jealous? Who's jealous!?" Faced with this question, Xu Sanshi showed no mercy: "Of course it's a certain little virgin who's still at the hand-holding and kissing stage. Or could it be me, who's already married Nannan?"
"You bastard—" As soon as these words came out, it was like a knife to the heart. Bei Bei blushed and stared straight at Xu Sanshi. With teeth gritted in such a way that one would think Xu Sanshi was his father's killer.
Xu Sanshi didn't back down either, and just glared right back.
Looking at these two immature kids who seemed to have never grown up, the now slightly more elegant Jiang Nannan rolled her eyes gracefully. Noticing the situation outside the private room, she gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, slowly got up, and walked out.
Then, in less than half a second...
"Hahaha—" ×2
The two glaring guys suddenly blinked and burst into inexplicable laughter, laughing incredibly heartily!
"You blinked, you lost!"
"Bullshit! You lost! You blinked first!"
"Nonsense! It was obviously you!"
"You!"
"You!"
"..."
After arguing for ages, Bei Bei finally provided the most convincing explanation, which made Xu Sanshi choose to concede.
"Alright, I'll consider it your win. You're awesome!"
"What do you mean 'consider'?!"
"Alright, regardless of who wins or loses, it's time to eat."
Jiang Nannan personally carried the dishes in; she had long since sent the waiters away while the two were bickering, serving the food herself. Finally, she brought two jars of wine to the table, interrupting the two who were about to argue over another boring topic, complaining helplessly, "You're almost at the age to be fathers, yet you still act like children."
"Eh—Men are boys until death."
"Exactly."
"Yes, yes..."
Pouring a cup of wine for each of them, Jiang Nannan cooperatively yet perfunctorily nodded her head. "Then, you two 'big boys,' give it a try. Are you satisfied with these dishes and the wine?"
"Satisfied, very satisfied."
As a hotel in the capital of the Dou Ling Empire, plus being brought here by the "local snake" Xu Sanshi, the taste of both the food and the wine was naturally impeccable. However, as Bei Bei ate, he felt like he was chewing wax, and he was almost full.
Because...
"Hey—" Bei Bei suddenly spoke up. After putting down his chopsticks, he rolled his eyes at the two who were publicly displaying their affection. "Can you guys hold back a little? I'm almost full from eating all this dog food!"
To this, Xu Sanshi only replied with one sentence.
"If you're so capable, call Xiao Ya over."
'You motherf*cker, Xiao Ya didn't even come with me!'
Bei Bei gritted his teeth and angrily used his chopsticks to vent his frustration on the food and wine on the table. However, as he kept eating and the emotions in his heart calmed down, he gradually noticed a trace of incongruity.
It wasn't until he was almost getting used to Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan's public displays of affection that he finally understood where that incongruity came from.
Jiang Nannan's change seems a bit too big, right?! Is she the type to publicly show affection?
Regarding this point, Bei Bei held a skeptical attitude.
Since he held such an attitude, Bei Bei naturally wanted to know the answer. Don't get him wrong, he didn't want Xiao Ya to be like this too.
So, after a round of tactful questioning, Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan also saw through the real question Bei Bei wanted to ask, so what greeted him was naturally a certain someone's playful gaze.
"Oh—You want to know?"
Xu Sanshi smiled and dragged out his words, but then immediately put on a serious face. The speed of his expression change was faster than flipping a book.
It suddenly made Bei Bei turn serious too.
Of course, he also sensed the unusual nature of this question. After all, when Xu Sanshi asked the counter-question, Jiang Nannan also quieted down, and there was even a trace of complexity in her eyes.
Putting down his bowl and chopsticks again, "What happened before?"
"Sigh—" Xu Sanshi let out a long, drawn-out sigh, appearing quite melancholic. Then he rolled up his sleeves, "It's a long story..."
Bei Bei wasn't about to indulge him. He subconsciously implemented the resolute and decisive style he had cultivated over the past five years handling affairs in the Sea God Pavilion after returning from the Sea God Clan, "Then make a long story short."
"You..." Choked by this, Xu Sanshi's melancholy was instantly replaced by grievance. However, his mouth didn't stop. After isolating the private room with soundproofing, he recounted the events of those years.
After listening, Bei Bei gradually understood.
"So what you're saying is that the Emperor of your Dou Ling Empire felt you have great talent and possess the royal bloodline, so he wanted to marry his daughter to you to achieve the goal of drawing you even closer. Right?"
Xu Sanshi nodded, indicating that the summary was correct.
This made Bei Bei ponder for a moment, and he understood the implications. "It seems he wants to use you to truly subdue the entire Xuanming Sect to serve him. Right now, he still doesn't trust you guys very much."
"That's for sure."
Xu Sanshi agreed as a matter of course.
"Although this new emperor has been running the empire quite well, and the common people all approve of him, the things he did were indeed ruthless, so my mother and he are simply not on the same path. To him, he can only put fifty percent of his mind at ease regarding the entire Xuanming Sect."
"However, after I disagreed and even rejected him to his face, announcing that Nannan was my wife, that guy had to settle for second best and chose Yu Tianlong as the marriage partner."
Good guy!
Bei Bei directly gave a thumbs up, his eyes full of approval: [As expected of my kind of guy, daring to risk it all for his woman.]
[Of course!] Xu Sanshi, who could empathize with Bei Bei's look, had a face full of pride. [For Nannan, I wouldn't hesitate to do anything!]
[Really, I don't know what you two are so proud of? But what Sanshi did back then was truly too impulsive.] At this moment, Jiang Nannan used a gaze mixed with touched helplessness to cut into their channel, which finally made them sheepishly stop their eye conversation.
Changing the topic, Bei Bei frowned with a hint of worry. "Then, according to Nannan, did he make things difficult for your Xuanming Sect afterwards?"
"Not at all." Xu Sanshi waved his hand broadly, signaling Bei Bei not to worry.
"Nannan is just worrying out of concern. After all, he can at least put fifty percent trust in our Xuanming Sect, but in that Supreme Elder, at most twenty or thirty percent. If it weren't because he needs her power and relies on her to enhance the empire's future strength, how could that guy hand over the task of cultivating the new generation to Her Eminence?"
"Therefore, until that guy has finished using Her Eminence, and has the confidence to take her down, he will never make a move on my Xuanming Sect. After all, relying solely on the Tianlong Sect and the strength the empire currently possesses, they still don't have the ability to keep her in check."
This emperor was indeed extremely mean and ungrateful.
Bei Bei shook his head and kindly reminded him, "You still need to be careful."
"Don't worry." Xu Sanshi confidently patted his chest. "Although my strength progression isn't as fast as yours, I've also received guidance from Her Eminence, and my cultivation progress is much faster than before. Once Nannan's and my cultivations have both gone up, he won't act rashly either."
"Guidance from Her Eminence?" Bei Bei recalled the complex relationship between the two that Xu Sanshi had mentioned earlier. "Aren't you afraid the Dou Ling Emperor will misunderstand?"
"What's the use of misunderstanding? After all, an Ultimate Douluo is teaching you how to cultivate, who could refuse? Would he dare tell people not to go? Wouldn't that be cutting off everyone's benefits? Since he can't stop it, he might as well use someone else's resources for his own benefit. Besides, according to rumors..."
It seemed he had forgotten that the sound in the private room was already isolated, or perhaps because the following words had to be spoken stealthily, Xu Sanshi had developed a certain instinct. One could only hear him whisper, "...Her Eminence also seems to be spending more time cultivating a special soul master squad. Every single one of them is a genius."
This information was getting a bit serious.
Instantly, Bei Bei became incredibly earnest. "Give me the details!"
Unexpectedly, Xu Sanshi just helplessly spread his hands. "I can't give details. They're all just rumors, catching at shadows."
As he muttered, because he was eating hotly, he rolled his sleeves even further up, and eventually just took off his jacket altogether. As a result of this action, Bei Bei caught sight of an armband with a phoenix-like pattern on Xu Sanshi's shoulder.
"What's this armband?"
"Oh, you mean this." Xu Sanshi took off the armband and tossed it to Bei Bei. "It's a proof of identity, and with this proof, you can go to Her Eminence's lectures."
Holding it and observing it for a while without figuring out anything special, Bei Bei handed it back to him. "Are these armbands very rare?"
"Not really." Xu Sanshi put the armband back on and said, "You can get one as long as you reach the Soul King realm before the age of twenty."
"That's still not simple."
Just as the three were continuing their gathering, Bei Bei suddenly sensed something. His expression drastically changed, and he violently stood up.
Seeing this, Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan were both taken aback.
"Bei Bei, what's wrong with you?"
As it turned out, less than a second after those words left his mouth, the two Soul Douluos also successively sensed a terrifying aura rapidly approaching. Immediately after, they made the same move as Bei Bei.
Before they could even gather their wits, "Boom—" a terrifying pressure actually enveloped the entire Dou Ling City!
Under this pressure, the three of them looked out the window. They saw that in the sky above, the originally clear weather had changed. In just an instant, it was as if a great storm was imminent.
Accompanied by a violent roaring sound that suddenly erupted, a streak of flowing light tore through the sky. The dark clouds that had just gathered due to the imposing aura were ripped apart as if they had encountered something terrifying. At the same time, an astonishing aura spread out like a tidal wave.
At this moment, not only the experts within Lingdou City, but even the common civilians sensed the descent of terror. This sense of fear came from their hearts, yet it didn't paralyze their bodies physically; they could even scatter and flee once they reacted, leaving the streets completely empty.
Only those who were soul masters would feel the dual pressure from both psychology and physiology. Moreover, the stronger the cultivation and strength of the soul master, the greater the pressure they would feel.
For instance, right now in the Dou Ling Empire's reception hall, Yan Shaozhe was originally conversing with the Emperor of the Dou Ling Empire, Xue Feng, and the Supreme Elder, Shui Xiye. They were even touching upon the topic of their backgrounds.
It was Xue Feng who initially brought it up, "Dean Yan's Martial Soul is the Bright Phoenix, and the Supreme Elder's Martial Soul is also the Bright Phoenix; it's possible that the two of you might have a blood relation." His words carried a smile, sounding like a joke.
However, the moment these words left his mouth, Shui Xiye looked at Yan Shaozhe with a gentle gaze. "I did have a son whose surname was Yan. It's just that after he went out to venture into the world, there was no news of him."
As soon as these words were spoken, Yan Shaozhe's heart suddenly trembled! He was an old fox who had lived for quite a number of years; even though the Bright Phoenix Martial Soul was indeed rare and very likely from the same lineage, he wouldn't easily believe someone else's words. But regardless, the "lethality" of these words was truly extraordinary to him.
Facing Shui Xiye's kind-eyed gaze, just as Yan Shaozhe was about to speak, he and Shui Xiye successively sensed the pressure of a powerful aura. Immediately after, a terrifying coercion descended!
"Not good!"
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