"Well, if that's how you want to interpret it, fine." Tokisaki Kurumi shrugged again. "Rather than investigating the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, you should focus on the brewing storm in Heaven Dou City."
"The Spirit Hall has dispatched two Title Douluos! And those two beings from the Star Dou Great Forest, comparable to Limit Douluos, are still in Heaven Dou City."
"What?!" Xue Qinghe was shocked.
Xue Qinghe was aware that Bibi Dong had sent people.
Not long ago, Qian Daoliu had sent a letter, but the fact that two Limit Douluo-level spirit beasts were still in Heaven Dou City was unexpected.
She had assumed that after the previous incident, the two spirit beasts with Limit Douluo strength had already returned to the Star Dou Great Forest. Who would have thought they were still in Heaven Dou City?
Were they planning to disrupt the funeral of Emperor Xue Ye and the coronation ceremony of the new emperor?
Xue Qinghe took a deep breath to calm herself. "Miss Kurumi, do you know where those two from the Star Dou Great Forest are?"
"Tsk tsk, scary scary~ Your expression is terrifying!" Seeing Xue Qinghe's stern face, Tokisaki Kurumi chuckled lightly.
"Your Highness Qinghe, I might sound blunt, but humanity currently stands no chance against the spirit beast realm. There are at least five beings in the spirit beast realm comparable to level 99. Are you sure you want to provoke them?"
"How do you know so much?" Xue Qinghe's voice carried surprise.
"That's thanks to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's intelligence-gathering capabilities. As a support sect, if we don't know our enemies, we might be wiped out without even realizing it."
Hearing this, Xue Qinghe fell silent.
"Enough warnings for now." The voice echoed in Xue Qinghe's ears again. "The day after tomorrow is Emperor Xue Ye's funeral, right? The sect master will attend as scheduled. These next two days, I hope Your Highness doesn't wander around here."
"If you accidentally disappear, it won't be our fault."
"Sometimes, knowing too much isn't good for you, isn't that right?"
After speaking, a dark spatial gate appeared beside Tokisaki Kurumi once more. Her body slowly merged into it before the gate vanished.
"Your Highness, who was that girl?" Meng Shenji cautiously inquired.
As a spirit-type Soul Master, he could keenly sense the sinister and terrifying energy emanating from her.
It was an aura that made even a Soul Douluo shudder, as if being stared at by a demon—especially those eerie eyes.
A single glance felt like being forcibly devoured.
"Tokisaki Kurumi. As for who she is, I'm not entirely sure. Rumors say she's the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's secret weapon, now bound to Ning Rongrong."
"And her strength…" Bai Baoshan trailed off.
"Likely no weaker than a Title Douluo. Not long ago, she led me and several members of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda to escape from a spirit beast capable of injuring Sect Master Tang Xiao and Sect Master Yu Yuanzhen."
"Tsk—"
The three educators exchanged glances, sucking in cold breaths.
"The Upper Three Sects truly cannot be underestimated!" Zhi Lin, one of the three educators, sighed deeply.
The yet-to-reemerge Clear Sky Sect had Tang Chen, a level 99 Limit Douluo.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda not only had two level 97 Title Douluos but also a mysterious girl capable of escaping from a Limit Douluo.
As for the often-overlooked Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect…
According to imperial records, they possessed a unique inheritance.
Under certain conditions, they could unleash a secret technique far surpassing their own strength—rumored to rival the Clear Sky Sect's Ring Explosion technique.
Of course, this was merely hearsay.
For centuries, no sect master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect had been seen using this ability.
With their own thoughts weighing heavily, Xue Qinghe and the three educators returned to the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.
"Looks like they've finally left." Back at the hotel's upper floors, Tokisaki Kurumi watched Xue Qinghe's departing figure. "Two Title Douluos as guards… Is this the Spirit Hall's power?"
She wasn't particularly concerned about She Long and Ci Xue.
Even if they had once schemed against her and left her severely injured, she had since undergone a rebirth. Besides, her current master's stance toward the Spirit Hall remained ambiguous.
Tokisaki Kurumi turned her gaze toward the suite.
"As the soul rings condense, the energy radiating outward will likely be detected."
"I hope nothing goes wrong."
She waited quietly.
Five hours, ten hours—even until the dead of night.
"They're here, huh?"
Tokisaki Kurumi murmured, leaving a clone behind.
"Stay here and keep watch."
After instructing the clone, she soared into the sky, transforming into a streak of black light that shot toward a location outside the hotel.
"Dead end." Kurumi blocked the path of a woman with a graceful figure and sage-like emerald hair.
"I've heard Di Tian mention you—the Dark Devilgod Tiger who dances with evil and darkness. But your current form is truly unbelievable."
"You don't seem like a spirit beast anymore." Knowing she couldn't evade, the woman stepped out from the shadows.
"What I am doesn't matter. Please leave." Tokisaki Kurumi aimed her gun at Bi Ji.
"Is it that girl, Ning Rongrong?" Bi Ji seemed utterly unperturbed. "A few days ago, you managed to evade Di Tian's detection. That was your doing, wasn't it?"
"The ability to manipulate the five senses… I don't recall Dark Devilgod Tigers possessing such power."
"How intriguing."
"Curiosity kills the cat, understand?" Tokisaki Kurumi's expression darkened. "I don't wish to fight you. Leave."
"I'm curious about the source of that power. If I can investigate it, I'll leave."
With that, Bi Ji transformed into a streak of green light, streaking across the sky toward the hotel.
"Stubborn fool." Tokisaki Kurumi's eyes turned cold as she whispered:
"Zafkiel."
Accelerating herself with time manipulation, her speed reached an unbelievable level.
In the blink of an eye, she overtook Bi Ji, cutting her off.
"Interesting."
Bi Ji studied Tokisaki Kurumi. "You're determined to stop me? I bear no hostility toward Dark Devilgod Tigers—especially since you seem to have shed that unnatural state."
"But if you stand in my way, I'll have no choice but to act."
"By human standards, I'm a level 99 Limit Douluo. Even if I'm not a combat-oriented spirit beast, I'm still beyond your current capabilities."
"Besides, with your fluctuating aura, how much of your 100,000-year spirit beast strength can you actually wield now?"
Bi Ji's words left Tokisaki Kurumi silent.
After all, she was now merely a spirit of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. Without Ning Rongrong's support, her usable power was limited.
Though she appeared more agile now, many of her abilities remained inaccessible.
"If Miss Kurumi isn't enough, what about adding us?"
A streak of white light shot over from the distance, its three overwhelming auras putting Bi Ji on high alert.
"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda…" As the Emerald Swan who had spent tens of thousands of years cultivating to reach 570,000 years of power, Bi Ji's insatiable curiosity had driven her to observe and learn everything.
She had spent these days studying human factions.
Shortly after Bi Ji spoke, three figures landed beside Tokisaki Kurumi.
They were Ning Fengzhi, the Sword Douluo, and the Bone Douluo.
Their auras seemed even more refined than when they had entered Zafkiel: City of Devouring Time.