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Chapter 210: Harvest
🕑 Added 2025-01-31 17:57:19 +0000 UTCYang Podi no longer concerned himself with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and instead returned alone to Heavenly Academy.
During his time at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, Yang Podi had indeed contemplated a sneak attack. Given Sword Douluo's current state and strength, Yang Podi was confident he could easily kill him.
However, after some thought, he ultimately abandoned the idea. Currently, the Spirit Hall's power was too overwhelming. Leaving Sword Douluo and his group alive would at least serve as some form of check against the Spirit Hall.
Surprisingly, this fleeting thought of killing intent was sensed by Sword Douluo. Yang Podi couldn't help but shake his head: "Sword Douluo has indeed become far sharper since stepping into Rank 97. Unfortunately, he won't make any further progress in this lifetime unless Ye Lingling gives him her full treatment, which might offer a chance of restoring his right arm."
Yang Podi had always harbored a doubt: with Ning Fengzhi's ultimate support, combined with Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo, how did they lose to four Titled Douluo with lower soul power?
However, today on the battlefield, much became clear. If it were just a Soul Battle, Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Bone Douluo would have had no fear of the four Titled Douluo. Unfortunately, their opponents had an army of ten thousand soul masters, including many high-ranking ones. Essentially, the three were surrounded.
Under such circumstances, random soul skills and even Zhuge Divine Crossbows were constantly targeting Ning Fengzhi, preventing him from focusing on support. Bone Douluo had to protect Ning Fengzhi specifically, resulting in Sword Douluo facing a one-against-four situation regardless of Bone Douluo's presence.
When Yang Podi secretly returned to Heavenly Academy, he emerged from the secluded training chamber. During the days he had been away, he had explained his absence by claiming he was in seclusion, comprehending his martial soul.
But when he arrived at his grandfather's residence, it seemed like a heated argument was taking place. Besides his grandfather, Yang Wudi, his maternal grandfather, Niu Gao, and Dugu Bo, both Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo were also present.
However, Niu Gao and Ghost Douluo remained silent, both seemingly somewhat drowsy.
On the other hand, Chrysanthemum Douluo, Dugu Bo, and Yang Wudi were in a rather intense debate, seemingly about herbs.
Yang Podi walked straight into the room. "Chrysanthemum Douluo, Ghost Douluo, I've recently had some insights and just came out of seclusion. How come the two of you have the leisure to visit Mount Almo?"
Chrysanthemum Douluo retorted, "So, it's fine for you to visit us, but not for us to come here for a little fun?"
Yang Podi merely smiled and shook his head. "Heavenly Academy is always open to you two seniors. But Ghost Douluo, who rarely leaves the Spirit Hall and dislikes herbs, has suddenly found time to visit. That's unexpected."
"Little Podi, Old Ghost was simply bored staying in the Spirit Hall. He came out for a walk to pass the time."
Yang Podi was speechless. The excuses these two came up with were absurd. It was obvious they were here under orders to monitor him, yet they put on a nonchalant act. However, given the losses the Spirit Hall had suffered, it was likely they would leave soon.
Sure enough, as Yang Podi predicted, on the third day, someone came to inform Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo to return to the Spirit Hall.
After the two left, Yang Podi retreated to a secret chamber alone to assess his spoils.
This time, he had plundered three treasuries from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and three from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, yielding an incredibly abundant harvest. All ten storage soul tools he had prepared were fully loaded.
In the secret chamber, Yang Podi first took out all the lead boxes. Instantly, the chamber was illuminated with a dazzling, enchanting brilliance.
After some sorting, he found that he had obtained a total of forty-five soul bones this time. The highest-grade ones were, of course, the three from Yu Yuanzhen. These three were all at the 80,000-year level and included a skull soul bone, a left arm soul bone, and a right arm soul bone. What was odd was that although the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had other high-grade soul bones, Yu Yuanzhen hadn't absorbed them, instead choosing to hoard them. This seemed absurd; by not absorbing the bones, his strength fell short, leading to their confiscation.
Of course, these forty-five soul bones represented the entire stockpile of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and half of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's collection, reflecting the deep reserves of these two ancient clans.
Among these soul bones, six were over 50,000 years old, while more than thirty were over 10,000 years old. As for those below 10,000 years, there were fewer than ten, as the two clans likely deemed them unworthy.
Beyond the forty-five soul bones, there was an abundance of other treasures, including over a billion gold soul coins and countless rare herbs, among them many thousand-year-old spiritual plants. The collection also featured numerous other valuables.
According to Yang Podi's own estimation, the wealth he had amassed in this raid was sufficient to establish a new sect—and not a weak one at that.
In the Spirit City's Supreme Pontiff Hall, Bibi Dong sat on her throne, her face unusually dark. Below her, five Titled Douluo stood silently, trembling. Even the usually favored Holy Maiden, Hu Liena, dared not say a word.
A red-robed cardinal was reporting the results of the recent operation.
"Your Holiness, we deployed ten thousand soul masters to besiege the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, including a thousand from the lower four sects. During the assault, our operation was discovered by patrolling disciples, forcing us to attack head-on. We lost four thousand soul masters and had three thousand severely injured. The Devil bear Elder, Snakespear Elder, and Porcupinefish Elder were all seriously wounded. We were ultimately forced to retreat. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan is estimated to have lost about 2,500 soul masters."
Bibi Dong's face grew even darker. "We sent ten thousand soul masters for a surprise attack, outnumbering them three to one, yet our losses are double theirs. How can you even say such results out loud?"
The reporting cardinal broke into a cold sweat, as if weighed down by an invisible pressure.
Bibi Dong paused, her expression icy. "Continue. What about the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan?"
The cardinal resumed. "We deployed eight thousand soul masters for a surprise assault on the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, catching them completely off guard. The clan's 1,800 soul masters were entirely wiped out, but we lost three thousand. The Ninth Elder and Yu Yuanzhen perished together."
"During the battle, a massive earthquake caused significant collapses. Yu Yuanzhen's body was crushed to powder by falling rocks, along with his three soul bones."
"Additionally, we discovered that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's treasuries had been forcibly breached and thoroughly looted before our arrival. We have no clue who the culprit was."
Bibi Dong's phoenix eyes flashed coldly. "So, this operation yielded no gains at all?"
The room fell silent. No one dared to speak.
After a moment, Bibi Dong seemed to calm herself before speaking. "Chrysanthemum Douluo, Ghost Douluo, what's the situation at Heavenly Academy? Did those three Titled Douluo leave?"
Chrysanthemum Douluo shook his head. "During this time, Old Ghost and I have been staying with Yang Wudi, Niu Gao, and Dugu Bo. None of the three have left, not even Yang Zhentian. They've all remained at Heavenly Academy."
Bibi Dong's expression grew even darker. "So, the Upper Three Sects are indeed powerful. They cost me one Titled Douluo and 7,000 soul masters, yet we gained nothing from it."
"Ghost Douluo, investigate what happened to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Find out who took their treasures. I refuse to believe someone could appear out of thin air—or had prior knowledge of our plans."
Ghost Douluo quickly replied, "Understood, Your Holiness. I'll head to Thunderclap Canyon immediately to investigate."
The most miserable figure in this operation was undoubtedly Yu Xiaogang. Upon receiving Ning Fengzhi's notification, he and Liu Erlong hurried back to Thunderclap Canyon, only to be greeted by a scene of hellish slaughter.
The air was filled with the stench of blood. Even the protective river was littered with countless corpses, evidence of a brutal battle.
As Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong entered the clan grounds, they were met with corpses everywhere, many of whom were familiar to Yu Xiaogang. Based on the carnage, it seemed that almost the entire clan had been wiped out.
Especially when the two found Yu Yuanzhen's body—or rather, what could no longer be called a body but countless pieces of flesh—it was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.
Liu Erlong fainted on the spot, while Yu Xiaogang knelt before Yu Yuanzhen's remains. His heart filled with infinite hatred and overwhelming grief as he remembered his parents.
Meanwhile, the Heaven Dou Empire quickly dispatched troops to help bury the dead. However, there were far too many corpses, and the entire Thunderclap Canyon became a land of newly dug graves.
In the end, Yu Xiaogang, suppressing his tears and boundless hatred, returned to Heaven Dou Imperial Academy. As for what came next, he did not mention much. To him, only one thing mattered now: revenge against Spirit Hall.
But Yu Xiaogang was painfully aware of his own limited strength, making it impossible to shake the mountain that was Spirit Hall. By his estimation, Spirit Hall now controlled 70% of the soul masters on the Douluo Continent. No one dared to oppose them—not even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, which had chosen to shrink into the safety of Heaven Dou City.
The news of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's annihilation and the heavy losses suffered by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan—leaving only 500 soul masters—spread rapidly across the Douluo Continent. Countless small and medium-sized factions began aligning themselves, fearful of offending Spirit Hall and inviting disaster upon themselves.
At the same time, tensions between the two great empires reached unprecedented levels. The once mortal enemies, the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Dou Empire, now showed signs of forming an alliance to resist Spirit Hall.
What people didn't know, however, was that another intense battle had taken place apart from the conflicts involving the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. This battle was even more brutal and had far-reaching implications.
In the secret chamber of Heavenly Academy, Yang Wudi, Niu Gao, Dugu Bo, Yang Zhentian, Niu Jinfeng, and Yang Podi were all gathered. Even Yang Wushuang had returned. Their expressions were grave, clearly affected by the news from the outside world.
Yang Wudi addressed Yang Podi, "Podi, I never imagined Spirit Hall would be so ruthless, attempting to wipe out two great sects. It's clear their ambitions are far from small."
Yang Podi shook his head, replying, "This is simple to understand. Spirit Hall's next target is naturally the two empires. Ever since the battle with the Clear Sky Clan and their subsequent withdrawal, Spirit Hall has developed rapidly over the past decade. They now encompass the majority of the soul masters on the continent."
"Now that their strength has grown, Spirit Hall naturally seeks to unify the world. Their next step will likely be to consolidate control over the entire soul master world before turning their attention to the two empires."
Yang Wudi's expression grew more somber. "Podi, what should we do in this situation?"
Yang Podi smiled faintly, "For now, we do nothing. We stay in Almo Mountain and avoid getting involved in the disputes of the outside world. Those matters have nothing to do with us."
"But Podi, if Spirit Hall unifies the continent, we won't be able to remain untouched. Given our enmity with Spirit Hall, they'll come for us sooner or later," Yang Wudi expressed his concern.
Yang Podi quickly reassured him, "Grandfather, right now, we are only running an academy. We won't clash with Spirit Hall. Besides, don't forget we have Tianyue. Once she ascends to the Sea God's divine position, no one will dare to underestimate us."
Hearing Yang Podi's words, everyone gradually felt at ease.
