The afterglow of the setting sun dyed the sky a magnificent orange-red as Chen Yi, Dugu Yan, and Ye Lingling walked side by side along the broad streets of Heaven Dou City.
Unlike on the way there, Ye Lingling seemed to have set down a thousand-jin burden. The gloom between her brows and in her eyes had greatly eased. From time to time, she would point out to the two of them newly blossomed flowers by the roadside or the fresh decorations in a certain shop.
Those eyes that had always carried a trace of sorrow finally shone, reflecting the sky and clouds.
Obviously, after seeing Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong forced into a slump before the Grand Elder, the resentment that had accumulated in her heart for many years had finally been greatly relieved.
Dugu Yan held Ye Lingling's arm, feeling the light, refreshing warmth transmitted from her friend's body. She smiled, then glanced sidelong at Chen Yi, who was walking unhurriedly at her other side. Her amethyst-like pupils were bright with curiosity. She was thoroughly shocked by the strength Chen Yi had displayed today and the unfathomable Body Sect standing behind him.
Before long, the three arrived at the Ye residence in the eastern district of Heaven Dou City.
Servants were already waiting respectfully at the gate and led them through several courtyards. Along the way they passed meticulously maintained medicinal gardens. Various rare plants thrived with vitality, and the air carried a faint fragrance of grasses and woods.
At last they reached a side corridor covered by green bamboo. The furnishings inside were simple, but at the center stood a warm, lustrous rosewood tea table.
Seeing the three enter, Ye Cien set down his teacup and smiled gently.
Chen Yi, Dugu Yan, and Ye Lingling all hurried forward and bowed, not daring to be negligent.
"We greet Grandpa Ye, Grand Elder."
The two elders before them each stood at the peak of different domains within the soul master world. Especially the Grand Elder—he had just frightened Bone Douluo in mid-air. Only the heavens knew how strong he really was.
In particular, Dugu Yan, while bowing, quietly lifted her eyes, staring at the Grand Elder with blazing intensity, filled with reverence and yearning.
She had grown up protected by Title Douluo Dugu Bo since childhood, and thus understood far better than Ye Lingling or ordinary soul masters just how terrifying the power hidden within this seemingly ordinary old man was. It far surpassed that of her grandfather, Dugu Bo.
Chen Yi also bowed deeply once more to the Grand Elder and spoke sincerely.
"Thank you for your assistance today, Grand Elder."
The Grand Elder waved his hand lightly and replied indifferently, "It was a small matter. What is there to thank me for? If the sect's founding ceremony were not near, many of our experts would not be busy with important tasks. Otherwise, this old man would have personally twisted that old Bone's head off today, so he'd know how high the sky is and how thick the earth."
His tone was flat, as if he were discussing some trivial matter. However, the content of his words made Ye Lingling, Dugu Yan, and even Ye Cien beside him quietly draw in a sharp breath, their hearts shaken.
Twist off Bone Douluo's head?
There were not many in this world who could speak so lightly of such a thing. But this person was the Grand Elder, which somehow made it feel oddly… reasonable.
As head of the Ye family, Ye Cien thought even deeper. He had already learned from the Grand Elder that the Body Sect was about to be established. Combined with what he'd just heard, he now had a far more intuitive sense of the hidden strength of this sect.
The Grand Elder's power was already terrifying, and above him there still stood the mysterious and unfathomable Sect Master of the Body Sect. That Body Douluo's strength, by implication, was even higher than the man before him.
On the way here, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling had quietly exchanged messages and done some rough calculations. Counting the Titled Douluo on the Body Sect's surface, plus the unfathomable Grand Elder, the sect-master level Body Douluo, the former Titled Douluo who had once protected the Ye family, and the black-robed Douluo that Dugu Bo had mentioned—if one added the promised-future-Elder Dugu Bo himself, that meant there were at least five individuals with Titled Douluo-level combat power!
And that was without including any other unknown backgrounds. On the surface, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had only two Titled Douluo. The Body Sect's strength was truly beyond comprehension.
The Grand Elder paid no mind to the astonishment on their faces. His gaze shifted to Chen Yi, and he spoke directly:
"As for the matter of alchemy, the head of the Ye family has already agreed. Tomorrow, bring the Ye Patriarch to the sect. We shall begin the preparations for alchemy."
Joy flickered across Chen Yi's face. He nodded at once.
"Yes. Everything will be according to the Grand Elder's arrangements."
With Ye Cien's cooperation, once the Third Elder returned from Gengxin City with the pill furnace, all that would be left was to wait for the day the pills were successfully refined—that would also be the day the Body Sect was formally born!
…
At the same time, back in the Fourth Prince's mansion, the atmosphere was as dark and oppressive as a gathering avalanche.
Xue Beng, now back in his luxuriously furnished yet icy-cold estate, had already removed the mask from his face. What remained was twisted resentment and traces of fear that had yet to fully fade.
He stepped back a pace and sat alone on the broad agarwood chair in his study. His face was utterly pale, devoid of a hint of blood—an unvarnished manifestation of the mental trauma he had just sustained.
In front of the restaurant, the purple-clad youth had merely looked at him. Yet that gaze had felt like a heavy blow smashing into him, bringing a wrenching headache. He'd been left almost paralyzed on the spot before the public eye.
The soul-tearing pain, the shocked gazes of the surrounding citizens and guards that could not be fully concealed, and… the faint traces of contempt in those eyes all slithered like venomous snakes through his heart, gnawing away at him.
He was the Fourth Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire. When had he ever tasted such bizarre humiliation?
For years he had survived through the fierce struggle for the throne, exhausting every means—both overt and covert—to gradually paralyze his elder imperial brother Xue Qinghe, the one he was forced to call "Your Majesty" one day. He had disguised himself, taken on the persona of a domineering presence, and suffered many losses in secret, but never before had he experienced something like this—crushed from spirit to body, shamed so utterly.
"Bang!"
Thinking of this, Xue Beng suddenly slammed his hand down on the hard table, making the teacups rattle violently.
"Enough!"
His voice was hoarse, laced with anger he could no longer suppress.
The study door was quietly pushed open. The old steward who had been waiting outside entered with his head lowered, and bowed cautiously.
"Your Highness."
Xue Beng fixed him with a gloomy stare. "Have you confirmed it clearly? Who exactly is that purple-clothed youth next to Dugu Yan?"
The old steward's body trembled slightly. He bowed his head even lower, his voice flustered.
"R-reporting to Your Highness, this old servant is incompetent. I activated many of our connections and means, yet… this person's origin is extremely mysterious, as if he appeared out of thin air."
"He arrived in Heaven Dou City about a month ago together with a middle-aged man. After disappearing for some time, he suddenly appeared at the Dugu residence yesterday. He seems to be very closely connected with Dugu Bo and his granddaughter Dugu Yan."
"As for more… we truly cannot find anything. The Dugu mansion is keeping this matter extremely secret. Our people have no way to infiltrate it at all."
"Trash!"
Xue Beng roared, grabbing the white-jade paperweight at hand, intending to smash it to pieces. But the backlash of his earlier mental trauma made his head spin again. He could only press his forehead with a hand, set the paperweight back down heavily, his chest heaving violently as his complexion grew even paler.
An origin they could not even trace, a close relationship with Poison Douluo Dugu Bo, and that terrifying power despite such a young age…
This string of information poured into Xue Beng's heart like a basin of icy water laced with poison. The raging anger within him remained, yet an even deeper sense of powerlessness and chilling dread spread uncontrollably in its wake.
He realized that, according to his own calculations, this hatred might have to be buried for a long time. Given the other side's power, they were not something a prince who still had to hide his true fangs could easily shake.
The intense humiliation and resentment almost suffocated him.
At that moment, urgent yet restrained footsteps sounded from outside the study. A servant reported respectfully from beyond the door:
"Reporting to the Fourth Prince! His Majesty has sent word—Your Highness is to enter the palace at once!"
Xue Beng abruptly raised his head, a flash of suspicion crossing his pale face.
Why was his father suddenly summoning him at this time? Had news of today's events already reached his ears? Or… was there some other reason?
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his turbulent blood and chaotic thoughts. Straightening his slightly disheveled clothes, he tried to put on his usual somewhat exaggerated arrogant expression. But the haze lingering in his eyes and the pallor of his face were impossible to fully conceal.
"Understood. Prepare the carriage. I shall enter the palace immediately."
…
Bonus chapter at 300 PS