Douluo Continent: The Eternal Order of the Azure Sky.

Could she already be...?

"It's her first time. It's a pity it's not with you."

A voice, like a devil's whisper, rang in his ear without warning.

Tang San let out a wild roar.

Do you want to save your girl?

The voice rang out again. This time, it had a slight, almost imperceptible undulation, like the cruel patience of a hunter watching his prey make its final struggle in a trap.

Tang San's breathing suddenly stopped.

"Then let's add spirit rings to your second martial soul, the Clear Sky Hammer. For every spirit ring you add, I'll use your girl that many times. Heh, hiss—"

The laughter was quite wicked, ending with a faint inhalation, as if savoring some wonderful taste.

Tang San felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over his brain, chilling him to the bone.

How many times?

How many years is that many times?

If it's a thousand-year soul ring, then it's one thousand times? If it's a ten-thousand-year soul ring, then it's ten thousand times?

His stomach began to spasm violently. Tang San felt something churning up from the bottom of his stomach, sour and burning, stuck in his throat, but he couldn't vomit it up.

How could Xiao Wu possibly withstand a thousand times?

Just then, Tang San felt the immense force that had been binding him suddenly disappear. The two towering men had released their grip at some point and retreated to his side and front.

Their faces were expressionless, and their blue and brown eyes remained cold.

Tang San didn't look at them. His entire attention was captivated by the white figure bobbing up and down in the lake.

Tang San frantically crawled towards the lake. His limbs were all shattered and he could not support his body. He could only move forward inch by inch on the ground like a snake with its limbs severed.

However, he found that everything was getting further and further away from him, and two towering giants stood in front of him like a city wall.

He could only watch as that white-clad figure fell, and fell again, as if it were undergoing an endless cycle of depravity.

With each fall, Xiao Wu's voice carried something he couldn't quite make out.

He dared not discern, dared not think, dared not let those voices linger in his mind for even a second longer.

But he still heard it.

Xiao Wu's voice suddenly held a clear and irrepressible joy.

The joy was subtle, hidden deep within those broken cries; fragile, insignificant, yet undeniably real.

But this tiny bit of joy is more cruel than any screams, cries, or curses.

Xiao Wu's body is betraying her.

Tang San was instantly gripped by immense fear, as if he had been lashed hard by a long whip. He roared as he raised his head and looked around blankly.

He needs to find a soul beast! He wants to add soul rings to his Clear Sky Hammer!

Any kind is fine, as long as the age is young enough, as long as it can save Xiao Wu!

Tang San's gaze frantically searched the forest. He had pushed his Purple Demon Eyes to their limit, and new blood vessels were even beginning to seep from the depths of his pupils.

The Serpent Dragon Orchid, a thousand years old, no good. The Green Vine Willow, ten thousand years old, no good. The two Forest Kings, a hundred thousand years old, no good, no good! This damned place doesn't have a single soul beast less than a thousand years old!

No, absolutely not! How could you, how could you let Xiaowu endure this a thousand times… She would die, she might even—

Tang San's gaze suddenly stopped.

On a hillside not far away, a bamboo grove lies serene and secluded.

It was a newly grown bamboo grove. The bamboo stalks were emerald green, and the leaves rustled softly in the breeze, making a delicate and pleasant sound. Each bamboo stalk was tall and slender, like a jade sword pointing to the sky.

Tang San certainly recognized this plant-type soul beast; the Grandmaster's teachings still resonated in his ears:

"Look, that lone bamboo over there. That's also a kind of spirit beast, a plant-type spirit beast. It will be useful to you. Lone bamboo is inherently tough; while its offensive capabilities aren't strong, its defense is quite good. This is a ten-year-old lone bamboo, because its height doesn't exceed ten meters."

Ten years in Guzhu. Ten years. Ten years of soul rings. Only ten times are needed.

Just ten times, and Xiao Wu will be free. Just ten times, and this nightmare will end.

Tang San gritted his teeth, making a grinding sound. Just ten times, just ten times, just ten times—

"what--!"

Xiao Wu let out another joyful first cry.

Although she was clearly trying her best to suppress it, the instinct to break through her bloodline was like a knife cutting into Tang San's heart.

"This is the second time."

That devilish voice rang out again, still with that nonchalant tone.

"Stop, stop!"

Tang San helplessly vented his anger at the sky, his body twisting wildly on the ground as he rolled toward the bamboo forest at the fastest speed he had ever seen.

Twenty meters, ten meters, one meter. The broken bones rubbed and crushed inside his body, each inch of movement feeling like a dull knife cutting into his flesh. But he couldn't feel it anymore; an emotion stronger than pain suppressed all the other sensations.

His gaze lingered on the smallest, solitary bamboo.

Ten years in Guzhu.

The bamboo shadows were serene, and a gentle breeze carried a slightly fishy, ​​damp scent. The lush green bamboo leaves swayed gently above Tang San's head.

Xiao Wu.

If I absorb a ten-year spirit ring, I won't be able to protect you! If I don't absorb a ten-year spirit ring, I still won't be able to protect you...

Tang San looked up at the sky and let out a mournful howl!

Alas!

What can be done?

He took a bite of the root of that ten-year-old bamboo.

The bamboo fibers snapped between his teeth, making a soft cracking sound. Juice dripped down his lip, mixing with the blood seeping from the wound on his lips, forming a thin, pale red stream.

A faint white light emanated from the roots of the bamboo, and Tang San's body trembled violently. An extremely weak power surged from the ten-year soul ring and flowed into his long-dried meridians.

The power was so weak that it evaporated as quickly as a drop of water in the desert before it could even nourish his body, only condensing behind him into a faint, blurry halo that completely merged with him.

Tang San, a peerless genius of his time, possesses the Blue Silver Emperor spirit, surpassing even the optimal spirit ring ratio; his second spirit is the Clear Sky Hammer; his first spirit ring is:

Ten years in Guzhu.

……

a long time.

"Ten times! Only ten times! You've exceeded it, you've exceeded it! Stop it now, ahhhhhh!"

"Heh, does your Clear Sky Hammer only have one spirit ring attached?"

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah!"

……

Kong Tianxu watched speechlessly as Tang San twitched while absorbing Gu Zhu's ten-year soul ring.

Each time Tang San absorbed one, his body would bounce as if he were being electrocuted, then go limp as if all his energy had been drained, then bounce again, then go limp again, like a grasshopper dancing on hot coals.

When it was finally over, Tang San looked like a dead man, staring blankly into the empty distance.

In the remaining illusion, there was a wound where white blood flowed continuously, unable to heal for a long time, just like his heart, which was riddled with wounds.

Is this old man really that twisted?

Kong Tianxu never expected that with just a little guidance, the Heavenly Heart Sword would sever such a mental demon.

In Kong Tianxu's estimation, the inner demon was at most a distorted projection of Tang San's desire for power, or his fear and resentment over Tang Hao's death.

But who knew that Tang San's deepest fear was that Xiao Wu would be with another man...

This was quite unexpected for him.

However, the final result was not bad.

A beam of emerald green light disappeared from Tang San's chest.

It was a rare soul bone, not only because it was the most important torso bone for a soul master among all soul bones, but also because of its age.

The soul torso bone of the ten-year-old Guzhu secret technique consisted of only one segment, smaller than a thumbnail, yet it took Kong Tianxu a great deal of effort to obtain it.

The so-called Secret Technique Soul Bone is obtained by killing one hundred soul beasts of any kind within half an hour and then using a secret technique to activate their soul rings. There is a 10% chance of obtaining a Secret Technique Soul Bone.

This is considered a relatively simple way to obtain soul bones. For some of the top forces in the original Douluo Three Kingdoms during Kong Tianxu's time, it was not a particularly surprising secret. However, because it was too cruel and had a low success rate, very few soul masters would do it.

Tang San's soul bone can be considered one of the best among the secret soul bones. If directly fused with it, it would give the soul master a 0.5% increase in soul power, which is astonishing.

Since he had agreed on the terms with Qian Renxue, Kong Tianxu would naturally not break the terms of the deal.

However, Qian Renxue's level was indeed not reassuring, and Kong Tianxu would not allow someone who had a grudge against him to grow up peacefully and become a potential problem in the future.

Now, with five ten-year-old Lone Bamboo Soul Rings and a piece of ten-year-old Lone Bamboo bone, the Clear Sky Hammer, the world's number one offensive weapon spirit, has its upper limit firmly locked by these five ten-year-old Soul Rings.

After Tang San absorbed all the spirit rings with all his might, Kong Tianxu specifically sensed his spirit power fluctuations and found that he hadn't even managed to increase his level by one.

This is Chunzhu; it's no wonder he deliberately controlled the intensity of his life force output.

Kong Tianxu sighed one last time.

The Golden Scale Saint's Sigh landed on Tang Hao's left leg again, the blade tracing the texture of the bone, peeling the second soul bone from Tang Hao's body.

It was a miniature version of the left leg bone, its deep, dark blue light restrained, but its powerful and violent energy fluctuations were terrifying.

Two of the Haotian Sect's inherited soul bones have now fallen into his hands.

So, it's time for the second guy surnamed Tang to die too.

Kong Tianxu was preparing to put the left leg bone into his storage soul tool.

At this moment, the venomous snake, which had been lurking in the darkness for too long, finally revealed its fangs at the most unexpected moment.

A streak of blood-red light suddenly appeared from behind him.

The speed of that blood-red light was unbelievable; it was so fast that even with Kong Tianxu's reaction speed, it seemed he only had time to slightly turn his body.