"Ten Thousand Ghost Douluo, what a Ten Thousand Ghost Douluo!"
Seeing the soul bone taken away and, worse, feeling as though even his mother had been taken from him, Tang San felt a stabbing pain in his chest, as if a knife had been driven into his heart. Uncontrollably, he let out an explosive roar, after which he collapsed to the ground, sitting like his father Tang Hao.
After a long while, Tang Hao stood up, unwilling to give up, and ventured into the stone chamber where A Yin's seed had once been buried. What he found was a clear trace of digging on the ground. Reaching out to search for the iron box that had contained the hundred-thousand-year soul bone, he found nothing. Only then did he finally give up, realizing that A Yin and the soul bone had been taken away by the soul master who had called himself Ten Thousand Ghost Douluo.
Gazing at the now-empty stone chamber, Tang Hao couldn't hold back any longer. A mouthful of blood burst from his lips, and he fainted on the spot. His aura dropped dramatically as if he were plummeting into an abyss.
But in truth, there was no such thing as a Ten Thousand Ghost Douluo soul master. It was just a ruse Chen Ming had left behind years ago to disgust Tang Hao. Back then, Tang Hao hadn't bothered to check the cave, and as Chen Ming's strength grew, he paid no further attention to the words he'd left behind.
Even Chen Ming himself probably wouldn't have expected that this prank would take so long to finally strike its target.
Though Chen Ming's approach may have been somewhat crude, it proved surprisingly effective. If Tang Hao had checked earlier, he might have been furious but not to this extent. However, after repeatedly detonating his soul rings, Tang Hao's body had accumulated numerous internal injuries. Seeing these words triggered an explosive reaction in his condition, causing him to vomit blood and almost die from sheer anger.
At that moment, the Asura God's divine consciousness within Tang Hao's mind reawakened. Watching Tang Hao nearly die from rage once again, the Asura God's consciousness felt as though it too might be driven to death by this idiot.
After scanning Tang Hao's mind and understanding what had happened, the Asura God's consciousness erupted in fury, wishing it could pulverize Tang Hao on the spot.
Tang San was a crucial pawn in the Asura God's plans. He had been noticed long ago in his previous life at Tang Sect and painstakingly nurtured over time, only to be sent to the Douluo Continent to counter the Angel God's successor and disrupt the world.
But now, thanks to Tang Hao, this pawn hadn't been properly cultivated! A perfectly good piece was now half-crippled if not entirely ruined.
While the Asura God's intervention could still salvage the situation, doing so at this time would only worsen matters. If it left any traces and was discovered by other gods, there would be serious consequences.
Intervening wasn't worth it, but doing nothing would hinder the pawn's growth.
"Forget it. What a useless idiot," the Asura God muttered, cursing Tang Hao while reluctantly stabilizing his condition. At the same time, it implanted a subconscious suggestion into Tang Hao's mind: stop worrying about yourself and focus on Tang San. Let Tang San grow stronger first.
Once or twice was tolerable, but if every issue required divine intervention, the Asura God might as well scrap the plan and let Tang Hao, this supposedly key piece, exit the stage early, handing the mission to someone else.
Having barely contributed anything, Tang Hao was already causing more trouble than he was worth. The Asura God's consciousness felt like it was being driven mad by this fool.
How had Tang Hao become the Deathgod in the first place? His character was rotten to the core, capable of scheming against even his wife and child, yet his heart was so fragile.
"Soul Masters, the Slaughter City... Let's enhance Tang San's Blue Silver Grass martial soul a bit. Dark and evil life attributes—Poseidon might not accept them, but there's no other choice. If necessary, I'll have this kid inherit the Sea God's position with the Clear Sky Hammer and then find an opportunity to pass him the Asura Demon Sword."
"Dark and evil Blue Silver Grass... modifying it into a plant-based tool martial soul that mimics the Asura Demon Sword isn't impossible. But there must be one or two trials to justify the transformation. I can't just throw in an eighth trial—it would waste the energy and affinity Tang Chen accumulated over the years."
"Tang San's head bone skill is decent, and it can help him grow quickly. While this might make his soul power somewhat chaotic, I had already planned to have him undergo further trials to refine his martial soul, so it's not a big deal. I'll just set up a divine trial to purify his soul power later. For now, rapid strength growth is more important. At level thirty-one, even with a head bone, external soul bone, and the Clear Sky Hammer martial soul, he's no better than a stray dog on the roadside. Without Tang Sect's hidden weapons, this kid would be utterly useless."
After sorting out his thoughts, the Asura God's consciousness slowly allowed Tang Hao to wake up. Unlike before, when it would intervene and then go dormant, this time the Asura God left a trace of its consciousness partially fused with Tang Hao's mind. As long as Tang Hao didn't cross the line, it would remain dormant. But if he triggered any pre-set conditions, the Asura God's consciousness would seamlessly take over his body.
Meanwhile, as Tang San supported Tang Hao and tried to nourish his body with the soul power of the Mysterious Heaven Skill, Tang Hao slowly opened his eyes, blood still staining the corners of his mouth. Seeing Tang San desperately channeling soul power into him in an attempt to save him, Tang Hao's gaze softened with a hint of affection.
"Xiao San, there's no need for this. I know my condition. My body is already extremely fragile. Even without this incident, I've been so gravely injured that I can't engage in intense battles anymore. This was just... a bit too much for me."
As he spoke, Tang Hao suddenly vomited another mouthful of black blood, but his spirit seemed to improve significantly.
"It just... upset me a little."
Seeing Tang Hao's sudden improvement, Tang San momentarily thought it was a sign of his father's imminent death. Tears welled up in Tang San's eyes, falling in large drops. Though he was genuinely heartbroken, another thought crept into his mind.
"Father just said he has a full set of soul bones. If he dies... then his soul bones..."
"No, no, Tang San, how can you think like this?! The first rule of the Tang Sect is to never betray your master or ancestors. Have you forgotten?"
"But if Father dies, then his..."
As Tang San entertained thoughts of inheritance, Tang Hao reached out and lovingly patted Tang San's head, a bitter smile appearing on his face.