In Cloud Mist Mountain of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.
Within the Body Sect.
It had been a full year since Yang Xiong left, and during this time, the Body Sect underwent earth-shaking changes.
Not long ago, Lin Gong, the Grand Elder of the Body Sect, and Dragon Duke Meng Shu, the fifth elder, both broke through to become Title Douluo-level experts.
When the three great single-attribute families, including the Meng family, signed the mutual defense alliance with the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, one of the agreements included assisting each other in acquiring soul rings.
Ning Fengzhi was overjoyed at the breakthroughs of these two individuals. After all, Lin Gong was also an elder of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, and Dragon Duke had recently grown close to the sect. With such allies, the safety of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect was further secured.
Under the leadership of Sword Douluo, along with the five great elders of the Body Sect, everyone set out to hunt for soul rings.
With one Title Douluo and five top-tier Soul Douluos, there was practically no soul beast in this world they couldn't acquire. Besides, neither of them sought a hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
As a plant-type spirit master, Lin Gong already had a target for his soul ring—not in the Great Star Dou Forest, but in a special forest of plants. There resided a plant-type soul beast over eighty-five thousand years old, considered one of the finest among plant-type soul beasts.
If Yang Xiong were here, he would have recognized this soul beast as the Blue Silver Grass King from the Blue Silver Grass Forest—a truly top-tier soul beast. The Blue Silver Grass King possessed royal bloodline and extremely robust vitality, making it a perfect match for Lin Gong's Purple Bamboo.
Though the Blue Silver Grass King resided deep within the Blue Silver Grass Forest, facing Sword Douluo and five top-tier Soul Douluos, its resistance was futile. Ultimately, it was surrounded and killed by the group.
For Dragon Duke's ninth soul ring, everyone ventured into the core region of the Great Star Dou Forest, where they hunted an eighty-thousand-year dragon-attribute soul beast—another prime example of a top-tier soul beast, perfectly suited for his Dragon-Head Staff.
Now, Lin Gong and Dragon Duke Meng Shu had both reached the ninety-first level of Title Douluo. In terms of top-tier strength, the Body Sect was now on par with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family.
Yang Wudi, the second elder of the Body Sect, had reached level 85, Niu Gao, the third elder, had reached level 87, and Bai He, the fourth elder, had reached level 84. Their progress was rapid.
Moreover, under the joint research of Yang Wudi and Dugu Bo, Dugu Bo finally developed a method to transfer toxins into soul bones. However, Dugu Bo seemed particularly fascinated by poison refinement. Nowadays, he frequently visited Cloud Mist Mountain, spending most of his time in Yang Wudi's alchemy room.
Of course, this old man, Dugu Bo, sometimes acted arrogantly due to his Title Douluo status. But after several sparring matches with Yang Wudi, he became somewhat less confident. A Title Douluo being unable to defeat a mere Soul Douluo left him feeling rather humiliated.
According to Yang Xiong's earlier plans, both the Body Sect and the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect needed to remain low-key. Therefore, the breakthroughs of Lin Gong and Dragon Duke to Title Douluo were not publicized. Instead, more effort was invested in cultivating the younger disciples, especially the juniors of each family.
With the full support of everyone and the financial and resource backing of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, the overall strength of the disciples improved significantly. Several Soul Douluos even emerged within the sect.
Aside from ordinary resources, this progress was also due to some of the rare medicinal herbs Yang Xiong had left for Yang Wudi and Lin Gong.
Upon learning that Yang Xiong had gone to Slaughter City, the five great elders of the Body Sect displayed various expressions.
Some were worried, some admired him, and others appreciated his decision. However, no signs of chaos arose.
As Yang Xiong had previously instructed, all matters of the Body Sect were temporarily overseen by Lin Gong, and everything proceeded according to the original plan.
Especially given Lin Gong's formidable strength and close ties with the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, there was no need to worry about cooperation between the two parties.
Yang Xiong felt secure leaving because he knew that the interests of the Body Sect were intertwined with everyone's. Whether for personal gain or future development, leaving was unrealistic. Breaking the alliance would incur the wrath of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect and Lin Gong.
Moreover, the situation within the sect was clear—Lin Gong was clearly aligned with Yang Xiong, while Dragon Duke maintained close ties with him. Yang Wudi held Yang Xiong in high regard due to the Aromatic Silk Beauty. In the short term, no abnormalities were expected.
Aside from his own cultivation, Lin Gong also focused heavily on the training of over a dozen disciples with Body Martial Souls. They followed the physical training methods designed by Yang Xiong while fostering their loyalty to him.
…
At a secluded waterfall in the Fasinuo Province.
Tang San wielded a wooden hammer, furiously pounding away beneath the waterfall. Each strike seemed to carry boundless power, unaffected by the torrential force of the water.
Since switching to the wooden hammer, his cultivation speed had noticeably slowed compared to using an iron hammer.
However, under the impact of the waterfall, Tang San's physical condition improved rapidly, becoming far stronger than before.
His soul power also continued to grow without slowing down.
Tang San swung his wooden hammer continuously, each strike building upon the previous one. By the eighty-first strike, the wooden hammer moved like a black dragon, seemingly capable of splitting the waterfall apart.
Tang San exclaimed in joy: "Father, I've finally done it! I can now unleash eighty-one strikes!"
Tang Hao nodded approvingly: "Xiao San, you've performed exceptionally well these past two years. However, don't become complacent. Next, I will subject you to even harsher training."
Even Tang Hao now had great confidence in Tang San. Without any soul rings for the Hao Tian Hammer, Tang San's hammer techniques were no weaker than those of the Hao Tian Sect disciples.
By comparison, Tang San spent eight months mastering the *Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique* with an iron hammer, but it took a year and four months with a wooden hammer—slower than the original timeline by a full year. This discrepancy was primarily due to the absence of ice-fire tempering.
A year ago, Tang Hao gave Tang San a top-tier head soul bone, likely a supreme strength-type head soul bone with an age exceeding thirty thousand years.
After absorbing the head soul bone and undergoing rigorous training, Tang San had already reached level 50 six months ago.
But as Tang Hao explained, based on Yu Xiaogang's earlier research, even without absorbing a soul ring, soul power could continue to increase. Thus, there was no rush to absorb a soul ring.
Now that Tang San's wooden hammer training had reached mastery, the next step was to focus on cultivating his martial soul itself. Tang Hao decided to take Tang San to acquire his fifth soul ring.
However, when Tang Hao brought Tang San to the Blue Silver Grass Forest, the entire forest appeared lifeless, devoid of its usual vibrant vitality.
Tang Hao's eyes widened in disbelief: "How is this possible? How could someone have hunted the Blue Silver Grass King?"
Tang San carefully observed the surroundings: "Father, judging by the environment, it seems a massive battle occurred here several months ago."
Hearing this, Tang Hao spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes filled with regret. He muttered under his breath:
"What do we do now? Without the Blue Silver Grass King, how can Xiao San's martial soul undergo its secondary awakening?"
Tang San asked in confusion: "Father, is there something special about this forest? I see a lot of Blue Silver Grass around."
Tang Hao sighed deeply: "It's my fault, my mistake. I never imagined someone could hunt the Blue Silver Grass King. Now your training plan will likely be completely disrupted."
Tang San quickly asked: "Father, what's so special about the Blue Silver Grass King?"
Tang Hao shook his head: "The Blue Silver Grass King itself is extremely powerful, with an age of eighty-five thousand years. Normally, only plant-type spirit masters pursuing their ninth soul ring would choose it. It seems the continent has gained another plant-type Title Douluo."
"Xiao San, remember I once told you that by the time you absorbed your fifth or sixth soul ring, the weakness of your Blue Silver Grass would fundamentally improve. But now, it seems our plans have failed."
Confusion flickered across Tang San's face: "Is there something different about my Blue Silver Grass martial soul?"
Tang Hao sighed again: "At this point, I can no longer hide it from you. Your martial soul isn't just any Blue Silver Grass—it comes from your mother's Silver Emperor."
This was the first time Tang San had heard about his mother. He quickly pressed: "Father, I've never met my mother since I was little. What kind of person was she? Why did she pass on the Silver Emperor martial soul to me?"
A bitter smile appeared on Tang Hao's lips: "Xiao San, what I'm about to tell you may shatter your understanding. Your mother wasn't human—she was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast who had taken human form. Her true form was a hundred-thousand-year Silver Emperor."
Disbelief filled Tang San's eyes: "How could this be? How could my mother be a soul beast? Is my mother like Xiao Wu?"
Tang Hao nodded: "Exactly. Like Xiao Wu, your mother was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast who had transformed. But she was the kindest, gentlest person in the world. Unfortunately, fate didn't allow us to stay together."
Tang San quickly asked: "Father, where is my mother now? You know I've always longed for a mother's love more than others."
A look of desolation crossed Tang Hao's face: "Xiao San, I'm sorry. You'll likely never see your mother again. Back then, the Spirit Hall discovered our whereabouts and sent their former Pope, Qian Xunji, to hunt us down. Your mother sacrificed herself to save me."
"Your mother is dead now. All that remains is a seed of the Silver Emperor—the Blue Silver Grass you saw at the waterfall."
Hearing this, Tang San's eyes filled with rage, and his entire body trembled with anger. He never imagined he harbored such hatred toward the Spirit Hall, nor that his mother had been killed by them.
An oppressive silence fell over the scene. After what seemed like an eternity, Tang San slowly spoke: "Father, I must seek justice from the Spirit Hall. I must avenge my mother."
Tang Hao nodded: "Of course. These grievances will be repaid sooner or later. The former Pope Qian Xunji who chased me down was gravely injured by me and died shortly after returning."
"But the Spirit Hall took advantage of this opportunity to attack our Hao Tian Sect, resulting in heavy casualties. Our sect was forced to expel me, and the once-great number one sect had to retreat from the world. I will never forget these grudges."
…
After some discussion, Tang San came to understand the events of the past. His anger burned fiercely, and his hatred for the Spirit Hall intensified.
At this moment, Tang San wore a puzzled expression: "Father, why did you bring me to the Blue Silver Grass Forest this time?"
Tang Hao's expression turned serious: "Actually, your mother once brought me here. Your martial soul should have inherited her bloodline, though it hasn't fully awakened yet."
"There was an eighty-five-thousand-year Blue Silver Grass King here, once a subject of your mother. With the help of the Blue Silver Grass King, there was hope for your martial soul to awaken anew, evolving your Blue Silver Grass into the Silver Emperor."
Tang San quickly asked: "What should we do now? Is there still a way for my martial soul to awaken again?"
Tang Hao shook his head: "I have no answers now. When your mother sacrificed herself, she left behind a hundred-thousand-year soul bone, but it was stolen, and despite my efforts, I haven't found a trace of it."
"Now the Blue Silver Grass King has been killed, and your mother had barely begun to grow. I don't know how to make your martial soul awaken a second time. Perhaps this is divine punishment for me."
Ultimately, after some discussion, Tang San and Tang Hao decided to first find a suitable soul ring for the Blue Silver Grass.
As for the secondary awakening of the Blue Silver Grass, they had no solutions. There was no record in soul master history of any martial soul undergoing a secondary awakening, let alone the common Blue Silver Grass.
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