Lu Yuan's residence.
"Lu Yuan, why on earth did you go head-to-head with Tang Hao!?" Qian Renxue's sharp voice echoed the moment she walked in, her golden eyes brimming with frustration.
She had warned him repeatedly—warned him not to make a spectacle, not to draw attention, not to reveal himself without disguise. And yet what did he do?
He fought Tang Hao.
And now, the boy was a name echoing across the whole continent.
Lu Yuan, the youth with the unique blade and one-of-a-kind spirit ring—instantly recognizable, impossible to mistake.
Tang Hao wasn't a fool. With a little inquiry, he would find out who had taken the Blue Silver Emperor.
Qian Renxue had already spent days spreading smokescreens—fabricating rumors, scattering misleading whispers across sects, ensuring that Tang Hao would have a hard time tracing the truth.
But how long could illusions really last?
"Xuexue, relax."
Lu Yuan tipped his wine jar back and drank leisurely, expression unbothered.
"If I didn't fight, how could I test the changes in my Martial Soul?" he answered casually. His lips curved as though the entire world's chaos was nothing more than mild entertainment.
Qian Renxue exhaled helplessly, a sigh escaping her lips. "You'll drive me mad."
With things already out in the open, there was no use in dwelling. She would simply have to take it further—deepen the smoke, stir more rumors until the seas of the Douluo Continent were so muddied no truth could be found.
Her gaze slid toward the windowsill, and she blinked.
The wine jar.
Inside it sat a plant.
Not just any plant.
Her eyes tightened slightly.
Was this… the Blue Silver Emperor?
She stepped closer, bending down to examine it. The delicate blades were unlike ordinary Blue Silver Grass. The sheen of the leaves, the elegant azure markings—it was undeniably different. Beautiful, in its own strange way.
And yet…
Why, in the name of the heavens, was it soaking in a wine jar!?
After everything that occurred in Martial Soul City, after seeing Tang Hao's hysterical rage—it didn't take much deduction to guess what Lu Yuan had "taken."
Her lips parted faintly. "So it's true…"
"Xiao Xuexue," Lu Yuan's grin widened. He leaned lazily on one arm, wine jar in his other hand. "Doesn't my green plant look good?"
He was oddly proud. Ever since Shui Bing'er came to tidy his home, this Blue Silver Grass had become the centerpiece of the room.
"Yes," Qian Renxue murmured, her delicate fingers brushing across the pot. "Indeed… pretty. Thank you for bringing it back."
Without hesitation, she scooped the jar into her hands.
Only for Lu Yuan's expression to shift. "Xuexue! Have you really become a robber in just a few days?"
Snatching it straight from his window, like plucking jewels from a thief's pocket? Absolutely not.
He moved instantly, catching the jar back against his chest.
It wasn't easy to obtain this thing. And now—even she wanted to take it? Unthinkable!
Qian Renxue rolled her eyes, exasperated. She knew this brat too well. Always twisting words, always acting shameless.
Say she was the robber? He pilfered Tang Hao's wife and now dared accuse her?
Outrageous.
"I asked you to help me," she said coldly, "so why does it suddenly belong entirely to you?"
This pot of grass was dangerous in Lu Yuan's hands. Beyond dangerous. Tang Hao was tearing the Martial Soul City apart like a rabid beast for it. If he discovered the truth—that his precious Ah Yin was now sitting in Heaven Dou City, soaking in wine—
Qian Renxue almost shuddered. She had come today to whisk it away into safety.
But Lu Yuan? The audacity of this man—to guard it like some drunken farmer guarding cabbage.
"Don't twist words," Lu Yuan retorted. "You told me to bring someone back, yes. But you never said to bring back grass. This," he pointed at the jar, "is my own reward. My accidental harvest. It has nothing to do with your orders."
Sharp. Shameless. Impossible to argue with.
Qian Renxue's lips pinched, her face tightening.
"Then fine—trade it. I'll offer you wine in exchange."
It was the only bargaining chip that worked on him. Everyone knew Lu Yuan's favorite thing was liquor.
But the boy simply shook his head. "No deal."
"What?"
Lu Yuan smirked. "I've enough stock now. Meng Shenji already promised—should I represent Tiandou Royal Academy in the Soul Master Tournament, three hundred jars of top-grade wine would be mine. Wine isn't scarce to me anymore."
Her eyes widened. Even bribery failed!
"You…" For once, Qian Renxue was speechless.
Truly hopeless.
With a huff, she whirled around. "Forget it!"
She would have to find another way. Forcing him head-on would only make this stubborn drunk cling tighter.
Snorting, she flicked her sleeves and stormed off, leaving Lu Yuan happily staring at his potted treasure as if nothing in the world could be better.
The Li Clan Residence
Elsewhere, within one of the once-glorious Four Affiliated Sects—discontent festered.
"Master, did you see this wave?" A clansman leaned forward, eyes alight with schadenfreude. "Martial Soul Hall in chaos, all the blame tossed onto them. It's brilliant!"
Across the table, the massive Titan sat, brows locked tightly, deep memories carved into his expression.
"Dad, eat some peanuts," Tylenol muttered indignantly as he chewed. "What's the point of thinking about all that? No matter how strong Tang Hao is, he's still on the run. No matter how glorious the Clear Sky Sect was, in the end they abandoned their four affiliate Sects, tossing us aside like trash."
His tone was bitter.
"Used when useful, abandoned when not. If we hadn't been cast aside, we wouldn't have fallen so far. Just look at the Min Clan—"
"Silence!"
Titan's fist slammed the table, food scattering like raindrops. His copper-bell eyes flared.
"You dare slander Tang Hao in front of me? Get out!"
Tylenol's body shrank at once, muttering incoherently as he slipped away.
What kind of madness was this? Everyone else hated the man, yet his grandfather—the same Titan whose clan suffered abandonment—still defended Tang Hao.
"Ridiculous old loyalty…" he hissed under his breath, forgotten unheard.
Back in the hall, Titan's chest heaved. Rage at his grandson's carelessness fought against his own hidden bitterness.
For the truth was harsh. They had been betrayed by Clear Sky. Abandoned to ruin.
…And yet, Tang Hao was different. To Titan, Tang Hao was never just Clear Sky's scion. He was Master.
Which was why, when a strong voice thundered suddenly into his ears, Titan's body froze in shock, every hair standing on end.
"Titan. It's been a long time."
That voice—so familiar, carrying the echo of the past. In an instant, Titan felt as if a decade had peeled away, dropping him back into the years of loyalty, battles, and blood.
"...Master?"
His eyes widened, trembling. He turned.
And there he was.
Behind him, Tang Hao stood—weathered, scarred, his aura diminished by poison and time, yet still carrying that same overwhelming weight. His rough bronze palm fell heavy on Titan's shoulder.
"It's me. Tang Hao."
Titan's legs nearly buckled. He dropped onto one knee.
"Master!"
But Tang Hao caught him, voice low yet commanding. "No more. I am not your master. Call me Tang Hao now."
"Never," Titan said fiercely, eyes moist. "For me, for the Li Clan, you will always be Master."
In the lantern glow, Titan stared at Tang Hao's worn face, scarred by years of struggle. The proud, dashing figure of his memory was gone, carved away by hardship. Tears stung his vision.
Time had been cruel.
Tang Hao's lips trembled faintly. "Enough. Sentiment won't change anything. I came to ask a favor."
The Titan straightened immediately, fire rekindling in his chest. "Anything, Master. Anything at all."
Tang Hao nodded heavily.
For weeks, he had been hunted endlessly by Martial Soul Hall, forced into hiding within the depths of beast forests, cut off from all news.
But one matter burned constant in his heart—Ah Yin.
Her trail was gone.
When last he visited his son Tang San, he learned that the Li Clan had ties with Shrek. That made Titan his only path to gather information now.
At last, his scarlet eyes hardened.
"Help me, Titan. Help me find Ah Yin."
And Titan, swelling with pride, slammed his great palm to his chest.
"Yes, Master."
--
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