Chapter 180: Tang San Gets Exposed by Guang Ling Who's the Real Villain Here?
After Qian Renxue left the room, Guang Ling turned to his disciple with a strange expression. "Is this how you two always interact? Your relationship seems pretty good." He kept his voice low as he spoke.
"Yeah, it's always been like this," Han Li replied casually, glancing at his master.
"Not bad, keep it up," Guang Ling said, looking quite pleased as he gave Han Li a thumbs up.
Han Li finally realized what he was implying and shook his head in exasperation, choosing to ignore his mischievous master.
True to her word, Qian Renxue ensured that the meal was nothing short of exquisite. Even by the time Han Li was full, he hadn't managed to taste everything that had been served. After dinner, they chatted idly for a while. Once it got late, the two of them took their leave.
On the way back, Guang Ling finally voiced his curiosity. "You seem really interested in the so called 'Shrek Seven Devils.' They don't seem all that remarkable. Even among their peers, they're not exactly top tier. Are they really worth your attention?"
Although Qian Renxue was familiar with Han Li's background, she didn't understand him as deeply as Guang Ling did. Naturally, she hadn't noticed anything unusual about his behavior. But Guang Ling was sharp he easily picked up on Han Li's focus. Even though he phrased his question casually, he could tell that Han Li's interest in them was out of the ordinary.
"They're an interesting bunch, aren't they? Master, maybe you haven't noticed, but two of those innate full spirit power individuals, just like me, came from Notting City." Han Li smiled meaningfully.
Guang Ling was momentarily stunned. "The two innate full spirit power kids that Qian Renxue mentioned refusing recruitment… they're both from Notting City? Including you, that means three innate full spirit power individuals appeared there at the same time?" He frowned. "How come I never heard about this? What were our people doing?"
Guang Ling furrowed his brows before recalling something. He turned to Han Li. "Wait, wasn't Su Yuntao and Master Matthew Nuo in charge back then? Your information was reported, so there's no reason the other two wouldn't have been as well."
Han Li shook his head. "Tang San's information was reported, but it was sent to the Supreme Pontiff's Hall, and his martial soul was listed as Blue Silver Grass. As for that girl, Xiao Wu, I've seen her registration before her spirit power was recorded at only level seven."
"They probably didn't dare to lie to Qian Renxue, which means they deliberately hid their true levels from Spirit Hall. Hmm, I'll inform Qian Renxue later let's just have them quietly dealt with," Guang Ling said, his eyes flashing coldly. He was never one to show mercy. Better to kill them all than to let a threat slip through.
"Wait a second an innate full spirit power Blue Silver Grass? Qian Renxue isn't stupid; she wouldn't believe that. That kid must be hiding something, and it's something big," Guang Ling muttered, sensing that something was off. This might fool ordinary spirit masters, but among experts like them, it was a blatant flaw.
An innate full spirit power rabbit was one thing some rabbit type martial souls could possess rare attributes that remained dormant until a certain level was reached. If an inexperienced appraiser examined such a martial soul, they might not recognize its true potential.
But Blue Silver Grass? No spirit master would mistake that. Guang Ling knew Su Yuntao personally. The young man wasn't well traveled, but he was meticulous and wouldn't make such a basic mistake.
"Besides, you said Tang San's information was reported to Spirit Hall. What's that Blue Silver Grass kid's full name?" Guang Ling suddenly asked.
"Tang San," Han Li replied without hesitation.
"Tang San… surname Tang? Blue Silver Grass… Bibi Dong." Guang Ling muttered a few times before abruptly stopping in his tracks, deep in thought.
"Han Li, you head back first. I need to check on something," he said.
"You're going to confirm if Tang San and Tang Hao are related?" Han Li asked, smiling knowingly.
"You already confirmed it?" Guang Ling halted his steps and looked at his disciple in shock.
"I've known for a long time," Han Li said nonchalantly, spreading his hands.
"Then why didn't you say anything sooner? If I had known he was Tang Hao's son, I would've dealt with both of them ages ago!" Guang Ling grumbled, though he didn't leave. Han Li was clearly up to something there had to be a reason he hadn't acted.
"It's not just me Bibi Dong knows too. Besides, Grandfather Qian hasn't killed Tang Hao yet. Why should you be in such a rush?" Han Li replied confidently, showing not a trace of guilt.
"That's because…" Guang Ling started, but then he hesitated. He wasn't sure how much Han Li knew.
And now that Han Li mentioned it, he realized he didn't actually have a personal grudge against Tang Hao. He more or less understood the truth of the past. And as for avenging Qian Renxue? That wasn't really a solid reason, either.
"You don't have a reason, Master. Some things are better left for people to handle on their own. Besides, in a way, Tang Hao could be considered Bibi Dong's benefactor. Let Qian Renxue deal with it in the future," Han Li said, laying out the truth in a way that made it clear he knew more than he was letting on.
Guang Ling took a deep breath, feeling a headache coming on. He stared at his supposedly innocent looking disciple. "Big Brother really told you everything, huh?"
"As soon as you reach Rank 99, Grandfather Qian will naturally tell you everything, and you'll understand why he told me everything and how bold you were before," Han Li said with a mysterious smile at Guang Ling before dropping the subject entirely.
This only made Guang Ling even more uncomfortable. He was naturally a curious person, and now that he couldn't get an answer, it was like having an itch he couldn't scratch. No matter how much he pressed, Han Li simply smiled and refused to say anything, which only made him more anxious.
"Fine! Rank 99, right? Just wait. Give me at most six months no, a year and I'll break through right in front of you!" Guang Ling originally wanted to boast about achieving it in six months, but when he recalled how long it took Golden Crocodile to advance, he reconsidered. His foundation wasn't as deep as Golden Crocodile's, so he settled for a year.
"Then it's a deal. Keep working hard, Master," Han Li said, giving him an encouraging thumbs up as he laughed heartily.
Truthfully, he was doing this on purpose. Right now, telling his master about divine inheritance wouldn't be a big deal. But according to the calculations of the plane's will, Guang Ling's success rate for this breakthrough was less than 30%. It wasn't due to any external factors his foundation simply wasn't strong enough. If he failed, he'd have no choice but to slowly refine his Soul Core to make up for it.
By teasing Guang Ling like this, Han Li was essentially giving him a small buff. For people with strong curiosity, this could even act as a psychological drive. When the time came, Han Li planned to give him some luck based assistance, hoping his master could succeed in one go.
Now that he had made his declaration, Guang Ling let the matter rest and switched to another topic. "So that brat Tang San is really the son of Tang Hao and that hundred thousand year spirit beast? Then what exactly is he? Human? Spirit beast? Or some kind of half breed?"
Perhaps because he had been around Han Li for too long, Guang Ling had the strongest adaptability Han Li had ever seen. Just moments ago, he was frustrated about not getting any answers, yet now he had already moved on, diving into a whole new train of thought.
Without waiting for Han Li to answer, Guang Ling continued speculating. "Qian Xunji went after that spirit beast, and in the end, it still managed to complete a sacrifice? That means it wasn't in its mature stage yet… Damn, those Haotian Sect folks really have heavy tastes. Blue Silver Grass? He actually had the guts to go through with that?"
The more Guang Ling spoke, the more he shuddered. Who knew what kind of horrifying thoughts were running through his head?
"So what, that kid and those bandit wolves are the same species? No, I can't think about this anymore," Guang Ling said, shaking his head vigorously as if trying to rid himself of an intrusive thought.
"Fine, we won't kill him for now. But in the future, I have to personally deliver this wonderful news to the Haotian Sect. I wonder where Tang Chen is right now. If he found out about this, his expression would be priceless!"
A devilish grin spread across Guang Ling's face. If eerie "kehehehe" sound effects were added, he'd be a perfect fit for a villainous elder of Spirit Hall.
Watching his master sink into his fantasies, Han Li's mouth twitched. For some reason, it really felt like they were the real villains here.
Still, he didn't disagree with Guang Ling's sentiments. In fact, he had been thinking the same thing.
"If he has the bloodline of a hundred thousand year spirit beast, that would explain why he's able to cultivate so quickly. Tang Hao is probably guarding him as well. That's actually good news," Guang Ling murmured before looking at Han Li again.
"Since you'll be staying here for a while, keep an eye on Qian Renxue and make sure she doesn't slip up. As for Tang Hao, let him train his son. Once he's about to reach Spirit Sage, we'll make our move and harvest everything Haotian Sect included. That way, Qian Renxue will have enough power to truly stand on her own."
"First, he got his father killed, and now he's raising a half beast son. This is a gift wrapped scandal. It'd be a waste not to use it against him. We owe it to Qian Xunji's soul," Guang Ling said, his lips curling in satisfaction.
At this point, he was genuinely grateful to Tang Hao. If it weren't for his brilliant decisions, the Haotian Sect wouldn't have declined so quickly. And on top of that, he even sponsored the finishing blow. What a wonderful person.
"Haotian Douluo of Spirit Hall, huh?"
Han Li chuckled. Thinking from Guang Ling's perspective, it really did seem like everything had aligned perfectly for their benefit.
The so called hope of the Haotian Sect was instead the fuse that led to its downfall. From a god's perspective, it was a cruel but poetic irony.
"Let's see… The Haotian Sect's exiled Tang Clan heir, the Star Luo Empire's prince, the abandoned child of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's little princess, plus a 'genius commoner'… If Qian Renxue weren't replacing Xue Qinghe, they'd even have the backing of the Heaven Dou Empire."
"Damn, looking at it now, what a massive investment," Guang Ling said, his tone turning icy. "Here's your mission wipe them out."
"Understood," Han Li responded, grinning brightly.
The two, clad in black cloaks, exchanged devilish smiles in the middle of the night. Even though passersby couldn't hear their conversation, the eerie laughter from two shadowy figures was enough to make people take a long detour around them.
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