Chapter 316: Fire Shadow Douluo and Nine-Heart Douluo
While fierce battles raged inside and outside the imperial palace, Tang San, accompanied by four Soul Douluo from the Star Luo Empire and two Soul Douluo experts from the Clear Sky Sect, took advantage of the chaos to slip through the palace grounds like ghosts, heading straight for the Crown Prince's bedchamber.
Most of the Imperial Guards had been reassigned to protect Xue Qinghe, leaving only a handful of guards stationed outside the Crown Prince's quarters.
"Go!"
Tang San gave a sharp command and dashed forward, releasing his Blue Silver Emperor martial soul. Two yellow, two purple, and four black rings rose around him—the ideal configuration. His first soul ring lit up as he unleashed his first soul skill: Entangling Vines.
Thick, blue-gold vines shot out from around Tang San, slithering like mandrake snakes and instantly wrapping around the guards outside the bedchamber. The sharp thorns sliced into their skin, injecting them with a terrifying poison. The guards didn't even get the chance to struggle before they collapsed, lifeless.
With the guards dealt with, Tang San and his team rushed toward the interior.
Boom!
Before they could even reach the doorway, a blazing red orb of light burst forth from within and exploded right in front of them. The fire-element blast caught them off guard and forced them several steps back from the impact.
"Tang San! You despicable scum! Not only have you used twisted, forbidden techniques that devour others to gain power—now you even seek to murder a child barely two or three years old!"
A clear and frosty voice rang out as a woman in a fiery red gown stepped out from within the room—Huo Wu.
"You're Huo Wu!"
Tang San instantly recognized her. She hadn't changed much from the time she'd participated in the Continental Soul Master Academy Tournament.
"You little brat! You've got no idea who you're messing with!"
One of the White Tiger Soul Douluo sent by the Star Luo Empire growled furiously. That earlier explosion had left him covered in soot—something a royal consecrate like him had never experienced before.
He stomped hard on the ground and shot forward like a cannonball, lifting his fist to strike Huo Wu.
"Senior, watch out!"
Tang San called out anxiously from behind.
He knew Huo Wu was Xiao Yu's woman, and there was no way Xiao Yu would treat her poorly. Now that Xiao Yu had already reached the realm of Limit Douluo, Huo Wu's strength likely wouldn't be weak either.
Huo Wu raised her right hand and threw a punch of her own. A wave of searing heat surged forward with it.
Before the fists even clashed, the intense fire-element aura made the White Tiger Soul Douluo falter. Unable to withstand the heat, he tried to pull back.
But Huo Wu had no intention of letting him retreat safely.
With a sharp whoosh, she closed the distance in a flash and drove her fist into the man's chest.
Crack!
A sharp cracking sound rang out as the White Tiger Soul Douluo flew backward like a broken kite, his chest bones clearly fractured.
"Aah! I'll kill you!"
A piercing scream followed, and a black silhouette darted out like an arrow released from a bow, so fast it left only afterimages in the air.
The figure was the wife of the White Tiger Soul Douluo—the noble lady of the Zhu Clan, one of the royal houses of the Star Luo Empire, and a powerful Soul Douluo at Rank 82.
Instead of attacking Huo Wu directly, she rushed to her husband's side.
Despite her fury, she hadn't lost her reason.
The fact that Huo Wu had managed to knock her husband flying without even using a martial soul proved that her strength was far superior. And since her own strength was even lower than her husband's, charging in would only mean death.
There was only one option—use a Martial Soul Fusion Technique.
The White Tiger Soul Douluo understood her intent. Enduring the excruciating pain in his chest, he reached out and pulled his wife into his arms.
Their two bodies quickly merged into one.
A massive white tiger over ten meters long emerged, roaring as it lunged at Huo Wu.
Facing the imposing Nether White Tiger, Huo Wu released her martial soul. A dazzling crimson light shot into the sky, and behind her, two yellow, two purple, three black, and two red soul rings floated into view—nine rings in total, the mark of a Titled Douluo.
Her title: Hokage.
"Sixth Soul Skill—Soul-Locking Fire Chains!"
Huo Wu's sixth soul ring lit up abruptly. Several chains made entirely of flame burst from the ground below and wrapped tightly around the Nether White Tiger. Though it struggled fiercely, it couldn't break free of the blazing bindings in a short time.
"Eighth Soul Ring—Heaven-Blazing Inferno!"
With the Nether White Tiger trapped in place, Huo Wu immediately followed up with her eighth soul skill. Her combo flowed like water, executed flawlessly with no delay.
Buzz—
The ground beneath the tiger suddenly turned crimson. Accompanied by a terrifying roar, a column of flame powerful enough to incinerate everything erupted from below, blasting a hundred meters into the sky. A scorching heatwave swept in every direction. Even the carefully cultivated flowers outside the bedchamber withered to ash in an instant.
As the light faded, the massive Nether White Tiger had vanished completely.
Two charred human figures fell from the sky and hit the ground with a brittle crack, shattering into ash.
Tang San's pupils trembled violently. Even though he had already prepared for Huo Wu to be strong, her performance still far exceeded his expectations.
That had been a Martial Soul Fusion Skill unleashed by two Soul Douluo—enough to match a Titled Douluo in a short clash.
And yet Huo Wu had ended it with just a single eighth soul skill.
Just how powerful had she become?
Tang San asked himself—within the Clear Sky Sect, only his uncle could have accomplished such a feat. The other Titled Douluo elders, though they might eventually win, would still need to go through a hard-fought battle.
The two Soul Douluo from the Clear Sky Sect and the Star Luo royal couple all showed visible fear. Whatever Tang San could imagine, they could as well.
All four took an instinctive step back.
"Don't panic!"
Tang San quickly shouted, "She's alone. We outnumber her. That doesn't mean we'll lose! Her eighth soul skill is powerful, yes—but the soul power cost must be far higher than a regular eighth skill. If we attack together, we can exhaust her!"
"Is that so?"
Just then, a crisp and gentle voice rang out.
A graceful figure no less stunning than Huo Wu stepped out of the room—Ye Lingling.
She wore a flowing white dress, elegant and serene, completely contrasting with Huo Wu's fiery and untamed aura. Even their enemies were momentarily dazed—everyone except the emotion-severed Tang God King, who had long since lost his heart with Xiao Wu's death.
Ye Lingling smiled softly. Her smile was like a spring breeze—gentle and calming.
To the four Soul Douluo, it was as if the world itself grew brighter in that instant.
But in the next second, their eyes went wide with shock.
Behind Ye Lingling, nine soul rings appeared—identical in configuration to Huo Wu's.
Another Titled Douluo.
Her title: Nine-Heart.
(End of Chapter)
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