Chapter 167: The Body Sect's Confrontation and Xiao Qiang's New Power
On the path where Du Bu Si and his followers were making their way out, a figure clad in a black robe with an indistinct face appeared, rapidly approaching them.
At first, the figure didn't seem like it would draw attention, but the words it uttered quickly captivated everyone's focus.
"The Body Sect has become the sect that protects the Sun and Moon Empire? How come I don't know about this?"
"Nonsense! You are from the Haotian Sect! How could you know the secrets of my Body Sect? Who knows the Body Sect better, you or I?"
Du Bu Si remained silent.
The black-robed figure continued: "The small Haotian Sect dares to come into my Body Sect's territory and act recklessly. As the young master of the Body Sect, I, Long Aotian, will never allow this. Prepare to face my Body Sect's secret technique, the Hammer of Killing!"
With a dramatic gesture, an ancient and mysterious hammer materialized in his palm. The immense pressure emanating from the hammer revealed that it was undoubtedly one of the world's most powerful martial spirits.
As soon as the hammer appeared, Du Bu Si recognized it with shock. "Clear Sky Hammer!"
The black-robed man sneered. "This is no Clear Sky Hammer! This is my Body Sect's ultimate weapon, the Body Divine Hammer! Don't compare it to your broken Clear Sky Hammer!"
With those words, eight soul rings—two yellow, one purple, four black, and one red—emerged around Long Aotian. The red soul ring, shining with brilliance, indicated his eighth soul skill.
"Watch as I use my eighth soul skill!" Long Aotian declared. "I, Long Aotian, will protect Liu Bo to the death!"
The moment he finished speaking, the Clear Sky Hammer became colossal and blood-red, its power clearly enhanced. When it struck one of Du Bu Si's Soul Douluo, the impact was so devastating that the Soul Douluo had no chance of resistance and was obliterated into dust.
Everyone watched in disbelief as the soul of the fallen Soul Douluo floated out from the wreckage, only to be ensnared by a black chain that pulled it toward Long Aotian, who laughed maniacally.
"Hahahaha! The soul of an eight-ring Soul Douluo, I, Long Aotian, will gladly accept it."
Seeing one of his strongest subordinates not only killed but also stripped of his soul, Du Bu Si's fury boiled over. Without hesitation, he slapped the black-robed figure. "How dare you!"
"Hahaha! Why wouldn't I dare?" Long Aotian taunted, his confidence unshaken. "There's nothing I, the young master of the Body Sect, wouldn't dare do. Body Bone Dragon, Undead Knights, cover me!"
At his command, a gate to the undead realm opened, and several undead knights along with a massive bone dragon emerged, charging at Du Bu Si's forces with deadly intent.
It was Jing Hongchen's group who had been chasing them, but now they were blindsided by the sudden appearance of these undead creatures. Worse, the soul beast embryo had been destroyed. Du Bu Si had used so much of his forces for this operation, only to face heavy casualties and zero rewards. His frustration reached its peak.
"I never imagined that the Body Sect was filled with evil soul masters," Jing Hongchen remarked, his voice dripping with scorn. "Humph, such a force is not fit to defend the Sun Moon Empire. My Sun Moon Empire won't accept such garbage."
Du Bu Si, seething with rage, retorted, "You talk nonsense! My Body Sect is not a group of evil soul masters!"
"And yet you dare to attack us!" Jing Hongchen snapped. "You are the remnants of the Haotian Sect, trying to cover your tracks with lies. Deny it all you want."
Du Bu Si, unable to bear the insults, fell silent once more.
"Send the order to Mingde Hall!" Jing Hongchen shouted. "Beat these Haotian Sect scum into the ground! Inform the mainland that the Sun Moon Empire will never accept the Body Sect, a sect of evil soul masters!"
The head of the Body Sect, Du Bu Si, was on the brink of losing his temper. "You are the true evil soul master!" he yelled.
———
Undead Space
"Ugh!" Xiao Qiang spat a mouthful of blood into the undead space, the place that had once belonged to Electrolux.
When Electrolux left Huo Yuhao's body and materialized to confront the Snow Emperor, it was unclear whether it was Huo Yuhao's original good fortune that allowed Electrolux to transform into Huo Yuhao's martial soul, or whether it was Xiao Qiang, who had absorbed Huo Yuhao's luck, becoming the new "son of luck" and overflowing with fortune.
Drawing from the soul ring of the Mirror Beast, which had evolved to 100,000 years, Xiao Qiang combined his third, fourth, fifth, and sixth soul rings. He used the Mirror Beast's martial soul replication ability and managed to extend it to over a million years of evolution. With the added bonus of his luck, Xiao Qiang successfully replicated Electrolux's abilities.
After Electrolux's abilities were fully replicated and his residual soul destroyed by the Snow Emperor, Xiao Qiang gained full control of Electrolux's Undead Space, along with the small tower he had planned to give to Huo Yuhao.
With Electrolux's Undead Space at his disposal, Xiao Qiang felt empowered. He quickly donned a black robe, resembling those of the Soul Palace, and activated the explosion ring of the Clear Sky Hammer to test the power of the 100,000-year soul ring while assuming the identity of the Body Sect.
It quickly became clear just how powerful the explosion ring was. A Soul Douluo of the Body Sect, whose soul power was no less than level 85, stood no chance against the blast, succumbing instantly. This was enough to prove the sheer strength of the Clear Sky Hammer's explosion ring.
Xiao Qiang recovered by drinking a mouthful of the Lake of Life, which had been filtered more than eight times, and began to recover his strength.
"Huh…" Xiao Qiang sighed. "The explosion ring is powerful, but it consumes too much energy. But…"
He turned his gaze to the Life Carving Knife in his hand. Previously, without Electrolux's abilities, he couldn't transform the Life Carving Knife into the Life Guard Blade. But now, with Electrolux's martial soul replication, he only needed time to turn the Life Carving Knife into the Life Guard Blade. Doing so would greatly increase his vitality, and he would no longer suffer the same strain from the explosion ring.
After testing the power of the explosion ring, Xiao Qiang took out the Silver Dragon Staff, transferring himself into the pre-established space. Using his mental detection ability, he immediately located Huo Yuhao.
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao was hiding and crying, his face twisted with despair. "Teacher, I will definitely find a way to revive you," he murmured pitifully.
Xiao Qiang, after confirming Huo Yuhao's location through his mental detection, couldn't help but laugh silently.
If only Huo Yuhao had made even the slightest effort to revive Electrolux or had considered saving him before he chose to die, Xiao Qiang might have been more inclined to help him. But now, he had completely given up on trying to win Huo Yuhao over.