Bambieta stood silently on the rooftop of the inn, her sharp eyes scanning the night.
Through the window below, she could faintly see Kazui's outline as the boy drifted into sleep, utterly unaware that she was his unseen guardian.
She exhaled softly, then turned her gaze toward the north.
Her senses tingled. That pressure, it was unmistakable.
The aura of a Titled Douluo, heavy and sharp like a blade pressing against her skin. Though it was like an ant compared to her true power, for people of this world, it be considered decent.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Strange," she muttered under her breath. "This shouldn't be possible. Heaven Dou Empire should only have one, that Poison Douluo. So what the hell is one doing here, this close to Suotuo?"
Without hesitation, she kicked off the rooftop and soared into the night sky.
She moved fast but silent, her cape fluttering behind her. For once, she didn't bother concealing her presence completely.
Instead, she deliberately let a fraction of her reiatsu bleed into the air, a signal that no seasoned expert would fail to notice.
Sure enough, the Titled Douluo reacted. A ripple of spirit power surged across the city, pressing against her reiatsu like a challenge.
The two met on the rooftop of a tall building that overlooked the lantern-lit streets.
The figure cloaked in brown stood waiting, his aura steady and oppressive. Spirit power radiated off him in steady waves, like a wall of pressure meant to test her resolve.
"Your Excellency," the man spoke first, his tone low and respectful despite the tension. "I did not expect to meet one such as you here in Suotuo City. May I ask your business in this land?"
Bambieta landed lightly, her boots clicking against the tiles. She crossed her arms under her chest, her eyes gleaming with faint amusement.
"My business?" she said flatly. "That depends. Who am I speaking to?"
The cloaked man chuckled, his voice deep and calm. "Your Excellency, isn't it just polite to give your name first before asking the others for theirs?"
Bambieta tilted her head, silently studying him. She didn't move, and didn't even speak, only letting her gaze bore into the shadow of his hood.
The silence stretched between them, broken only by the faint hum of their clashing energies.
Finally, the cloaked Douluo asked, his voice sharper than before, "If I may ask, I don't recall any of the Upper Three Sects having a female Titled Douluo...are you perhaps from the Spirit Hall?"
A smirk tugged at Bambieta's lips.
"And what if I am?" she replied, her tone dripping with mockery.
The man stiffened, and a visible surge of anger flashed across his aura.
In the next heartbeat, nine spirit rings rose around his body—two yellow, two purple, four black, and one blood-red ring pulsing with lethal power.
The night air seemed to thrum under the weight of his spirit.
Bambieta raised an eyebrow. Then, without hesitation, she released her own rings.
A perfect mirror of his—two yellow, two purple, four black, and one red—flared into existence around her.
Her reiatsu was heavily suppressed, and she can only display a reiatsu comparable to a Level 99 Limit Douluo.
But even so, if we're talking about pure combat power, there is no one native to Douluo Continent that can contend with her.
The cloaked Douluo's eyes widened in shock beneath his hood. His aura faltered, his composure cracking.
"You—!" he hissed, voice low but edged with disbelief. "Impossible. A hundred thousand year spirit ring!? How is that possible?!"
Bambieta smirked wider, lifting her chin with arrogance. "Scared already? I thought Titled Douluo like you were supposed to be impressive."
The man's fists clenched at his sides, the killing intent around him rising, yet he did not strike.
Instead, he stared at her like she was something unnatural, something that shouldn't exist.
"The Spirit Hall's power seems to be even stronger than I thought. Aside from those publicly recognised Titled Douluo, I wonder how many more are they hiding?"
Bambieta took a step closer, her rings glowing faintly against the dark sky. "Who knows? Maybe twenty? Or maybe thirty? Perhaps they even have an entire army of Titled Douluo hidden from public eyes. But who cares, I'm here to kill you anyway."
Her words cut like steel, each syllable laced with killing intent.
The Titled Douluo remained silent, his hand ready as if he was about to attack.
"It doesn't matter. If I kill you here, Spirit Hall will have one less Titled Douluo. I'm sure a loss of someone who has a hundred thousand year spirit ring would surely give them a headache."
Bambieta's eyes gleamed with cold amusement as she studied the cloaked figure before her.
She tapped a finger against her arm as though piecing a puzzle together.
"Hiding your face beneath a ragged cloak, yet carrying the aura of a Titled Douluo. Not only that, but you bear a hundred-thousand-year spirit ring. In the whole continent, men like you can be counted on one hand. And fewer still are those who hide their names so carefully… while bearing such naked hostility toward Spirit Hall."
Her lips curled into a sharp smile. "Tell me, old man. Am I speaking to the Clear Sky Douluo, Tang Hao?"
The cloaked man froze, the silence answering louder than words. Slowly, he raised his head, the hood slipping back just enough to reveal piercing eyes burning with killing intent.
"…You guessed correctly," Tang Hao said at last, his voice gravelly and laced with hatred. "But unfortunately, knowing my name means you will not live past this night."
The words had barely left his mouth when Bambieta's smirk widened. In an instant, her figure vanished from sight, reappearing directly in front of him.
Tang Hao's eyes widened, too slow to react, as her gloved hand clamped around his face like a vice.
"Too slow."
With a sudden burst of strength, she lifted him off his feet and shot through the night sky, dragging him like a ragdoll.
In a heartbeat, the two were outside the city limits. Bambieta stopped midair, then hurled him downward with brutal force.
Tang Hao's body slammed into the earth, the impact carving a massive crater into the ground and sending cracks spiderwebbing for hundreds of meters.
Dust billowed high into the air as he coughed up, feeling his entire body ache from the impact.
Bambieta hovered above the wreckage, her cape fluttering, her eyes glowing like embers.
"I don't like people threatening me," she said, her voice echoing across the field like a judgment.
Tang Hao groaned, his body buried in the crater, but before he could summon his hammer or unleash a counterattack, Bambieta raised her hand.
A small orb of reishi floated at her fingertips.
Then another.
And another.
With a snap of her fingers, the air filled with dozens of glowing spheres. They descended like meteors, detonating against the ground in rapid succession.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
The earth quaked violently under the storm of explosions.
Flames and smoke consumed the night, lighting the sky in fiery orange.
From Suotuo City, startled citizens rushed into the streets, pointing at the flashes in the distance, their voices rising in panic.
Spirit masters stiffened as they felt the terrifying energy clash, whispering in disbelief about a battle between monsters.
When the final blast subsided, the ground was nothing but scorched earth and blackened craters.
Bambieta descended slowly, her boots landing lightly on the cracked soil. She looked at the ruined form of Tang Hao—his body charred, his cloak shredded, his breath shallow but alive.
"Still conscious?" she muttered, tilting her head. "Not bad. I suppose that title isn't just for show."
From within her cape, she pulled out a small, round pill that shimmered faintly with green light.
She crouched and tossed it onto Tang Hao's chest. The pill rolled down and stopped against his arm.
"That's a little gift," Bambieta said coolly. "A healing pill created by some annoying perverted scientist. It'll patch up that broken body of yours in less than an hour. Consider it a courtesy… because this is a warning, Tang Hao."
Her voice dropped, sharp as a blade. "I am not from Spirit Hall. I don't care about your vendettas. I don't care about your blood feuds. But if you interfere with my business here, then next time… I won't leave you breathing."
Tang Hao's lips trembled as though he wanted to speak, but blood dribbled from the corner of his mouth, silencing him.
He wanted to say that she was being unreasonable. He was minding his own business when she let out her Spirit Power as if calling out to him, then proceed to beat him up!
Of course, Bambieta knew that she was being unreasonable, but so what? If you're name is not Ichigo Kurosaki, then she won't even look at you in the eyes.
Bambieta stood, turning her back on him. "Heal. Crawl back to your cave. Do whatever you like. Just don't cross me again."
With that, she shot into the sky, disappearing into the night as swiftly as she had arrived.
The faint glow of her fake spirit rings faded into the darkness, leaving Tang Hao lying broken in the crater, staring at the pill in his hand, his eyes filled with both fury and confusion.