Douluo Dalu II: The Peerless Tang Sect

Chapter 378 Those who usurp the name of Death will be executed without mercy! (4.7k)

On the arena, the projection of the divine weapon was ultimately more powerful. The fusion skills of the two evil soul masters were no match for it. This scene deeply shocked every audience member present.

There are many reasons for this, such as the angelic martial soul restraining evil soul masters, the angelic holy sword containing the power of judgment, and Qian Lingyi bearing the inheritance of a godhood. But the audience can't think of so many things. All they know is that this angelic girl, whose cultivation is only at the Soul Saint level, defeated two evil soul masters at the Soul Douluo level by herself. She is really too powerful!

On the arena, Qian Lingyi was preparing to deliver the final blow to the Wu Yun and Wu Yu sisters. Although the two sisters were able to stand up supporting each other, they were being ravaged by divine power, forcing them to use their remaining strength to maintain the safety of their bodies. They had no strength left to deal with Qian Lingyi's deadly attack.

"We surrender—" In order to survive, they chose to surrender without hesitation, but Qian Lingyi's holy sword ignored them and pierced the heart of one of them as they shouted their last words.

"Stop!" Zheng Zhan shouted, trying to stop them.

The holy sword did not stop, piercing the heart of another person. The two sisters' faces were filled with resentment and disbelief. The flames ignited by the holy power directly enveloped the two of them. In just a few seconds, the witch clouds and rain completely disappeared.

"I told you to stop, why didn't you stop?" Zheng Zhan began to interrogate him, but he clearly had a chance to save one of the two sisters just now.

"Hmph!" Qian Lingyi snorted coldly and said, "I've said it before, there's never a chance for an evil soul master to survive under the sword of an angel!"

Qian Lingyi's words were filled with unwavering determination and an unquestionable resolve, which resounded throughout the entire venue. Immediately, the audience erupted in unprecedented cheers, with all the spectators chanting the name of "Angel." At this moment, Qian Lingyi's reputation reached its highest point in this competition.

"Hehehe..." Just then, a sinister laugh rang out, and all the audience members seemed to have been choked. All the cheers came to an abrupt halt, and in the huge venue, only the sinister laugh and the increasingly heavy atmosphere remained. An indescribable pressure appeared on everyone.

"Very good, very good!" Under everyone's gaze, the black-robed Grand Preceptor on the platform stood up. His face revealed no emotion, but his words were filled with murderous intent. "Truly worthy of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul, good, very good!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a thick black aura slowly rose from behind the black-robed national teacher, and a bloody, chilling, and evil aura spread throughout the entire venue.

"An evil...evil spirit master!"

"The person beside His Highness is actually an evil spirit master!"

"Heavens! Grand Preceptor Zhongli is actually an evil soul master? Could it be that the Holy Spirit Sect is his sect?"

"..."

The audience was utterly shocked, for they never imagined that the Imperial Preceptor, personally appointed by the Crown Prince and Regent, was actually a demonic spirit master! This was a shock to their understanding, as they had never considered that the royal family would accept a demonic spirit master—wasn't this going against the will of the world?

Xu Tianran's expression was also extremely ugly at this moment, because the actions of the black-robed national teacher Zhongli Wu would completely expose his collusion with the evil soul masters. Wasn't this just causing him more trouble? Sure enough, evil soul masters are all a bunch of ungrateful wretches!

Zhongli Wu couldn't care less about anything else at this point. Qian Lingyi's series of actions had deeply affected him. He absolutely could not let this scourge with the six-winged angel martial soul live. Judging from her performance today, once she became a Title Douluo, it would be the end of all evil soul masters in the world. Perhaps, she would become another Angel God!

They, the evil spirit masters, had finally escaped the suppression of the angel god, and they didn't want to experience the same humiliating situation as the ancient evil spirit masters. Therefore, they had to kill this girl with the six-winged angel martial soul before she fully matured!

Otherwise, they wouldn't have a new sea god to help them kill the new angel god!

Determined to kill Qian Lingyi, Zhong Liwu made his move. Nine soul rings—six black and three red—appeared behind him, instantly silencing the chattering noises in the arena. Then, he raised his hand, and a large hand made of black energy appeared, pressing down on Qian Lingyi on the stage.

When the true intentions were revealed, Zhu Ziyang could not stand idly by. With a thought, he instantly appeared on the arena, protecting Qianling behind him. Then, he raised his hand and struck out with a palm, the dense light instantly shattering Zhongli Wu's black qi hand.

"Who are you? How dare you touch my people!" After shattering Zhongli Wu's attack with a single palm strike, the Jing Shi Xiu Ming Scythe appeared in Zhu Ziyang's hand. Holding the golden scythe, he asked in a calm tone.

"Good! Very good!" Zhongli Wu narrowed his eyes. He had thought that attacking Qian Lingyi would attract the appearance of the Shrek Academy's experts, but he did not expect that the Shrek Academy's experts would not appear. Instead, Zhu Ziyang, whom he also wanted to kill, appeared and was able to break through his attack with a single palm. He was very surprised.

However, he was also pleased, because in his view, he could take care of Zhu Ziyang at the same time. So he said, "Today, I will let you die knowing why. I am Zhongli Wu, titled God of Death!"

"The Grim Reaper?" Zhu Ziyang raised an eyebrow, looking at Zhong Liwu with a half-smile, and said, "Wouldn't you say this is a case of the imposter meeting the real deal?"

"Die!" Zhongli Wu didn't understand the meaning behind Zhu Ziyang's words, but that didn't stop him from attacking Zhu Ziyang directly. Dense death energy gathered into long, needle-like objects, each three meters long, each shrouded in a bloody aura of death. Added together, there were hundreds of them, filling the entire arena with a suffocating atmosphere. With a wave of Zhongli Wu's hand, all the needles rained down on the arena where Zhu Ziyang and Qian Lingyi were located.

This is Zhongli Wu's eighth soul skill, Death Needle!

Facing Zhongli Wu's attack, Zhu Ziyang remained calm and composed. He lightly tapped the ground with the Jing Shi Xiu Ming Scythe in his hand, and golden light immediately rose from beneath his feet, forming a golden shield that protected both him and Qian Lingyi. Zhu Ziyang's application of the light element had now reached a point of complete mastery, where he could act as he pleased. One more step and he could ascend to the level of laws.

This Shield of Light originated from this.

Zhongli Wu's Death Needles all struck the Light Shield that Zhu Ziyang had casually raised. However, to everyone's astonishment, all the Death Needles turned into black smoke and disappeared immediately after touching the Light Shield. On the contrary, the Light Shield was completely unharmed, remaining exactly as it was before.

Zhongli Wu was stunned, utterly bewildered. This was his eighth soul skill, the eighth soul skill of a level 98 Super Douluo, and a hundred-thousand-year soul skill at that! Yet it couldn't even break the shield casually swung by a mere youth. What... what's wrong with this world? Is he getting old? Is the Ultimate Light really that terrifying? He was completely bewildered.

"It's only polite to return a favor, so you'll have to take one of my moves too!" Zhu Ziyang said.

Nine spirit rings of the Life-Saving Scythe appeared behind him, the nine red rings shocking everyone's senses. However, the move Zhu Ziyang was about to unleash was not any of the nine spirit rings; his purpose in revealing them was merely to intimidate. He placed the Life-Saving Scythe before his chest, and the power of light transformed the scythe into the most dazzling presence in the world in the blink of an eye. With the handle as the vertical axis and the blade as the horizontal axis, the world was divided into four.

Then, Zhu Ziyang spoke.

"I say, light will last forever!"

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone felt their vision being filled with golden light. No matter where they looked, there was only light; they could not see their own bodies or the bodies of others. They could only hear a magnificent, godlike voice saying, "Stop!"

When the light faded and the world returned to calm, everyone realized that Zhongli Wu, the black-robed national advisor who had been on the platform, was now sitting on the arena, less than five meters away from Zhu Ziyang.

At this moment, Grand Preceptor Zhongli was in a very sorry state. Blood was spilling from the corner of his mouth, his eyes were filled with terror, the black aura behind him had disappeared, the soul rings on his body had vanished, and even the soul power within his body seemed to have disappeared. He seemed to have become an ordinary person.

"What kind of trick is this? Why? Why is my power of death gone? Why can't I feel my martial spirit anymore?" Zhongli Wu's voice was filled with fear, because Zhu Ziyang's abilities had exceeded his comprehension. And how powerless humans are when faced with the unknown!

"Those who usurp the name of the Grim Reaper shall be executed without mercy!" Zhu Ziyang had no desire to explain to Zhong Liwu, but said indifferently. Then, he unleashed a blade of energy with the Jing Shi Xiu Ming Scythe.

"No! No! You can't kill me! My mother is a Limit Douluo! You can't kill her..." The voice stopped abruptly, and after her head hit the ground, it rolled to Zheng Zhan's feet, her terrified eyes staring straight at Zheng Zhan.

"Gurgle!" Zheng Zhan was so frightened that his legs trembled uncontrollably. He guessed he never wanted to be a referee again in his life; it was too dangerous.

The competition venue was as quiet as ever; the sound of a single drop of sweat hitting the ground could be heard throughout the entire venue. Everyone was still immersed in what had just happened and found it difficult to break free from it for a while.

Honestly, what happened in those few minutes was more exciting than what many people try their best to do in their entire lives. First, the Angel Soul Saint killed two evil Soul Masters in a one-against-two battle. Then, the Imperial Tutor, personally appointed by His Highness the Crown Prince, revealed his identity as an evil Soul Master and tried to kill the Angel Soul Saint. Then, the captain of Shrek Academy stepped in and shattered the Imperial Tutor's attack with a single blow.

Finally, and most magically, the Grand Preceptor's all-out attack was actually blocked by a shield casually deployed by the captain of Shrek Academy. A shield with absolutely no technical skill blocked the eighth soul skill of a Super Douluo's all-out attack. This is beyond the common sense of the world, so calling it magical is perfectly justified.

However, to everyone, the Light Shield blocking the eighth spirit skill was nothing short of a fantasy. What the Shrek Academy captain did next was nothing short of mythical. Leaving aside the fact that he was a twenty-year-old Title Douluo, the nine dazzling red spirit rings alone were enough to drive everyone mad. Normally, a Title Douluo's ninth spirit ring would be red, but this Shrek Academy captain had nine! Rounding up, that's equivalent to him having nine ninth spirit rings! How were the other Title Douluos supposed to compete?

Perhaps it was because Zhu Ziyang's abilities were so extraordinary that everyone felt it was perfectly reasonable for him to kill Zhong Liwu as easily as killing a dog.

After killing Zhongli Wu, Zhu Ziyang felt no emotion. He looked up at Xu Tianran on the platform. Coincidentally, Xu Tianran was also looking at him. Xu Tianran had an extremely respectful and even somewhat ingratiating smile on his face. It was clear that he was very flustered.

Xu Tianran was indeed very flustered. He knew Zhongli Wu's strength all too well. He was a level 98 Super Douluo, only one step away from the level 99 True God. How could he not feel scared, fearful and panicked when Zhu Ziyang killed him so easily?

If Zhu Ziyang wanted to kill him, no one on the scene could save him. Therefore, Xu Tianran understood the principle of being flexible and adaptable. When he saw Zhu Ziyang looking over, he immediately put on a respectful and flattering smile. No matter how unwilling and resentful he was in his heart, he could never show it on his face.

"Your Highness Regent, are you aware that your country's Grand Preceptor is an evil spirit master?" Zhu Ziyang asked with a smile.

"This..." Xu Tianran was stunned, a surge of anger rising within him. He knew Zhu Ziyang was doing this on purpose, bringing up such an obvious matter—wasn't he deliberately trying to embarrass him? Xu Tianran maintained his composure perfectly, forcing a smile as he said, "I never imagined that Grand Preceptor Zhongli was actually an evil soul master. I was completely deceived by him!"

"Is that so?" Zhu Ziyang chuckled and said, "Then it seems His Highness the Regent was indeed deceived by the treacherous evil spirit master. That evil spirit master is truly despicable, daring to deceive His Highness the Regent! Unforgivable!"

"That's right! That's right!" Xu Tianran immediately chimed in, relieved. No matter what, Zhu Ziyang was a member of Shrek Academy and wouldn't actually attack him, the crown prince of the Sun Moon Empire. He was probably just going through the motions.

"Then how does Your Highness the Regent intend to retaliate against these despicable evil spirit masters? After all, the crime of deceiving the emperor is unforgivable!" Zhu Ziyang said with a smirk.

"Wh-what?" Xu Tianran was stunned, completely unexpected that Zhu Ziyang would pull this stunt.

"I say, Your Highness, how do you intend to punish these evil spirit masters? Or does Your Highness not intend to punish them and instead pardon their crime of deceiving the emperor?" Zhu Ziyang asked seriously and earnestly.

"This..." Xu Tianran paused, then said, "This is an internal affair of our country, so Your Majesty need not concern yourself with it."

"Exterminating evil spirit masters is the duty of Shrek Academy, and we naturally have an obligation to urge all countries to carry out the extermination of evil spirit masters. Does Your Highness not actually intend to pursue the crimes of evil spirit masters?" Zhu Ziyang said calmly.

"How could that be!" Xu Tianran immediately denied.

"In that case, Your Highness, why don't you take this opportunity to issue an order to exterminate evil spirit masters? This will allow your people and other countries on the continent to see the resolute attitude of your royal family towards evil spirit masters!" Zhu Ziyang said with a smile, his smile particularly happy.

"Very well! Very well! Thank you for your suggestion, Your Majesty." Xu Tianran gritted his teeth and forced a smile. "I hereby issue my decree: all citizens of my Sun Moon Empire have the responsibility to slay evil soul masters. I hope all my subjects will strive to fulfill this duty!"

"As you command!" All the people of the Sun Moon Empire stood up and shouted.

Xu Tianran looked at the subjects receiving the imperial decree with an extremely satisfied smile on his face, but in his heart he began to plan how to apologize to the others of the Holy Spirit Cult tonight. Although Zhongli Wu was dead, the Holy Spirit Cult still had two Limit Douluos. These two Limit Douluos were his reliance in dealing with Shrek Academy, so he must not let the two adults of the Holy Spirit Cult misunderstand!

At the same time, Xu Tianran also came to hate Zhu Ziyang completely.

"Thank you for your understanding and cooperation, Your Highness the Regent!" Zhu Ziyang said with a satisfied smile.

Regardless of the outcome, Xu Tianran has lost all his prestige today. Whether it was colluding with evil soul masters or being forced by Shrek Academy to issue an imperial decree, either of these actions would be fatal for an emperor.

Zhu Ziyang was truly grateful to Zhongli Wu from the bottom of his heart. If it weren't for Zhongli Wu's selfless dedication of his life, he wouldn't have found such a good opportunity to undermine Xu Tianran's prestige.

It is foreseeable that the people of Mingdu have reached a critical point of disappointment with Xu Tianran and the royal Sun Vein that Xu Tianran represents. Only one final blow is needed to completely abandon the Sun Vein by the people of the Sun Moon Empire. And Zhu Ziyang has already prepared this final blow for him!

Zhu Ziyang waved his hand, taking away Zhongli Wu's corpse. He then pulled Qian Lingyi off the stage. Xu Tianran also left hastily with a dark face. On the stage, only a somewhat bewildered Zheng Zhan announced the results of the match:

Shrek Academy wins!

(End of this chapter)