Douluo Continent: The Eternal Order of the Azure Sky

Chapter 256 The Changes in Xiong Da and Xiong Er Over the Past Three Years

Of everyone present, only Xu Tianzhen felt slightly better; everyone else felt a strange silence when they heard that voice.

Even Kong Deming felt a tightness all over his body, and a tingling sensation like being electrocuted spread across his skin. The three Zhongli brothers even lost their sense of their own martial souls.

This is—the pressure of bloodline manifested as a physical manifestation of spiritual power?

Kong Deming's heart stirred. As the owner of the Purple Emperor Annihilation Dragon Martial Soul, the source of his Martial Soul came directly from the Purple Extreme Annihilation Dragon, and it did not completely belong to the Dragon God lineage. Therefore, it would not be greatly affected by the conventional dragon bloodline system.

Although they would still be somewhat suppressed in front of top-tier dragons like silver and gold dragons, that suppression came from the dragon race's own level, not from its bloodline rank.

But now, Kong Tianxu hasn't even released his martial spirit. He just uttered a light shout infused with his own spiritual power, yet it made even the level 98 Purple Emperor Annihilation Dragon feel a surge of blood. How is this possible?!

Unless, Kong Tianxu's Silver Dragon Martial Soul contains the bloodline power of that original Purple Emperor Annihilation Dragon, the ancestor of all dragons.

Or perhaps, his martial soul is no longer a simple silver dragon, but has undergone a true transformation, reaching the pinnacle of the dragon race's hierarchy, possessing a portion of the power of the dragon god, and naturally suppressing all dragons, and even all soul beasts.

Kong Deming cast a probing gaze toward Kong Tianxu, and immediately received a calm and affirmative spiritual response from the latter.

Kong Deming felt a sudden sense of relief and excitement welling up inside him.

The sacred dragon, the lord of the heavens, soars even higher in the sky than the chief of the nine sons of the dragon god, and is naturally powerful in its ability to intimidate all soul beasts.

Add to that the terrifying aura of the Dark Demon God Tiger, and even if the Dark Gold Terror Claw bloodline is incredibly strong, these two little guys would have to tuck their tails between their legs and act like bears.

After the big stick is used up, it's time to give the carrots a turn.

With a faint glow, Kong Tianxu took out several large pieces of processed century-old soul beast meat from his storage soul tool, and a rich aroma of meat immediately filled the air.

Upon smelling the aroma, the still bewildered little Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear in the storage box suddenly sprang to life. Instinctively, it wagged its short tail and trotted over following the scent, eagerly nudging the meat with its little nose.

Seeing that its brother was going to eat, the one in Xu Tianzhen's hand immediately became unhappy and began to wriggle violently. However, this time it did not dare to make a sound.

"Put it down." Kong Tianxu explained as he placed the piece of meat on the clean ground, "Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears don't drink milk from birth. Their first meal is even the placenta and umbilical cord of their mother bear. This race, which stands at the top of the soul beasts, is born with sharp teeth that are enough to tear flesh and crack bones."

Kong Tianxu clapped his hands, and Xu Tianzhen, upon hearing this, carefully put down the teddy bear in her palm, squatted down to the side, and began to observe it curiously.

Sure enough, although the two bear cubs had jet-black fur and no dark gold color yet, their teeth were already quite sharp. The several pieces of tough, hundred-year-old soul beast meat disappeared as quickly as jelly under the tearing of the two brothers.

Before long, most of the pile of soul flesh, which was even larger than their own bodies, was destroyed, and the two little bears' bellies only swelled up slightly.

"Naive, give them names. At this rate, these two Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears will probably become guardian beasts of our Sun Moon Empire before long."

Kong Tianxu watched as the two little Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears devoured their food. In the short time it took to eat a meal, their breathing became long and deep, and their eyes slowly opened.

The immense life force within them is like a volcano being ignited, erupting and giving birth to their bodies, and their sense of power is rapidly accumulating.

Xu Tianzhen's eyes immediately lit up.

"This big one," she pointed to the slightly smaller bear, whose fur was beginning to show a faint dark gold hue at the roots, "will be called the Super Invincible Heavenly Dragon King General!"

"This little one will be called Ultimate Shining Innocent Sun General II!" Xu Tianzhen looked at the one she had picked up earlier, then turned to Kong Tianxu with an expression that said, "How about you praise me?"

----silence.

A long silence.

Even Kong Deming's gesture of stroking his beard stopped, as if the small idea of ​​Xu Tianzhen's name had a more powerful impact on him than Kong Tianxu's martial soul evolution.

The "Super Invincible Heavenly Dragon King General," who was engrossed in its food, seemed to understand something. It abruptly stopped eating, looked blankly at Xu Tianzhen, and then at its younger brother who was still eating foolishly. Without hesitation, it raised its little paw and smacked its brother on the head.

The two brothers, "Ultimate Shining Innocent Sun Generals," were stunned after being hit. They turned their heads at the same time, their two beady eyes looking innocently at Xu Tianzhen, as if silently protesting against this terrible title.

The three Zhongli brothers lowered their heads as much as they could, their shoulders trembling almost imperceptibly, clearly struggling to suppress their laughter.

Fortunately, there were only two—if there had been a third general, and two suns in the sky, this secret base would have had to be relocated. Kong Tianxu felt a pang in his heart.

"Ahem," he cleared his throat, turned around, and said solemnly to the three Zhongli brothers who were trying hard to maintain a serious expression, "The three of you have made a great contribution this time. Go back to the sect for now. The gathering is about to begin, and I will reward you handsomely then."

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!"

The three Zhongli brothers felt as if they had been granted a pardon. They quickly bowed and accepted the order, then hurriedly retreated, afraid that if they stayed any longer they would burst out laughing.

After they disappeared, Kong Tianxu finally couldn't help but look at Xu Tianzhen and sigh, "Tianzhen, you really have the air of Minato Namikaze."

"Then what do you suggest we call it?"

Although Xu Tianzhen couldn't understand what Kong Tianxu was saying, she could tell it wasn't some kind of praise. Dissatisfied, she ruffled the heads of the two little bears a few times, eliciting a series of howls.

"Let's call them Big Bear and Little Bear."

"It's about the same as mine."

"—If you say so, then so be it."

Kong Deming simply watched with a smile, saying nothing. After the two whispers gradually subsided, he stepped forward and picked up the two little Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears, one in each arm, who had finished eating and started to snore.

"Alright, since we're eating meat, things are much easier. I'll make sure these two little ones are well-fed and healthy. Xuji, Tianzhen, since you're going to the Holy Spirit Cult today, you don't need to stay here any longer. Go on, and remember to come back early. I still need to test your soul tool. If you fall too far behind, hmph."

"Yes, Grandpa." Kong Tianxu nodded and gave Kong Deming a slight bow.

After successfully condensing his soul core, he no longer needed to put himself in a state of complete meditation for cultivation. Even if he devoted some energy to studying soul tools, it would not have any impact on his cultivation in the short term.

Kong Tianxu was confident that with his current strength, he could definitely produce results that would shock his grandfather in a short period of time.

As for today, he has another event that he must attend in person.

Kong Deming nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Xu Tianzhen and smiled kindly: "Tianzhen, come visit more often when you have time."

Xu Tianzhen quickly and obediently bowed: "Yes, Grandpa Kong."

After bidding farewell to Kong Deming, the two embarked on their journey once more. The purple-gold Starry Wings unfurled, streaking across the sky as they flew southwest, their speed even faster than when they were over Mingdu.

As they flew, Kong Tianxu keenly noticed that the scenery below was significantly different from what he had seen a few years ago.

In many towns, villages, and even on the outskirts of some larger cities, one can see newly built, peculiar buildings, all with a unified and solemn style, and each rooftop adorned with a unique sign—

Between light and darkness, above the dragon coiled among the stars, lies the symbol of the Holy Spirit Church.

Some devout residents even hang small Holy Spirit Church symbols directly on their doorsteps.

"The Holy Spirit Cult enjoys a high reputation among the people now," Xu Tianzhen said softly, leaning against Kong Tianxu's chest, recounting what she knew. "They preach preferential treatment for commoners, purification of evil spirits, and protection of the weak. In many places, they have indeed helped the common people, exorcising soul beasts, curing diseases, and even teaching some basic knowledge of soul masters—they are very popular."

"However, Father and my elder brother don't seem to be very happy about this."

Upon hearing this, Kong Tianxu's lips curled into a faint smile as his gaze swept over the scattered churches and signs below.

"It seems that the strategy has been implemented very effectively."

Xu Tianzhen understood the deeper meaning in his words and felt a slight chill in her heart, but she did not ask any further questions. Instead, she pressed her body even closer to him.

In less than half an hour, a vast forest came into view in the distance.

The Star Dou Great Forest is located near the center of the Douluo Continent and has a temperate climate, while the forest in front of us is closer to the north, and as far as the eye can see, it is mostly coniferous forest.

Moreover, from a distance, one can see that many of the branches and leaves in this coniferous forest are dark gray, forming a dense, oppressive mass. Even before entering the forest, a sense of unease is already palpable.

Any Soul Master with a modicum of common sense would not attempt to fly over a forest teeming with Soul Beasts; that would be tantamount to suicide. Yet Kong Tianxu did not even slow down, choosing a direction and continuing to charge forward.

This was his confidence in his own strength. Occasionally, some overconfident soul beasts would try to ambush him, but under the oppressive power of the sacred dragon that Kong Tianxu could release and then withdraw at will, they would fall back into the forest without even the power to resist.

They landed slowly in what appeared to be an ordinary forest clearing at the edge of the woods. Xu Tianzhen stared wide-eyed in astonishment at the dark and terrifying forest before him: "The headquarters of the Holy Spirit Cult is actually here?"

"The most dangerous place is often the safest place."

Kong Tianxu chuckled lightly, retracted his Starry Wings, and beneath his feet, the seemingly ordinary ground quickly cracked open.

Holy Spirit Cult, Headquarters, a quiet room.

"Teacher Li, I'll leave the rest to you."

Tang Ya, who had just withdrawn the blue silver grass shrouded in black mist from a frowning, unconscious girl, wiped the fine beads of sweat from her forehead and turned to a white-clad man wearing a half-mask beside her.

The man in white replied calmly, "It's alright. But Tang Ya, I've already told you, if you continue to absorb the evil energy from others without restraint, you're very likely to die of exhaustion before you even become a true evil soul master. Even my Tree of Life can't save you; your body is already riddled with holes."

Tang Ya stood up and shook her head, her face becoming even rosier, and said firmly, "It's alright, Teacher Li. I know my own body best."

"I hope you take responsibility for your life," the man frowned. "Also, remember to send over the agreed-upon share of rare metals later. Ye Nongfeng's research materials are running low again."

"Of course." Tang Ya forced a smile and waved goodbye.

Her Dark Blue Silver Grass, after being purified by Kong Tianxu's divine power, strangely evolved the ability to devour the evil aura within the martial souls of others. With the help of the large amount of evil energy she devoured, Tang Ya's cultivation speed advanced by leaps and bounds, and she has now surpassed others among the younger generation of the Holy Spirit Cult, barely reaching the realm of a seven-ring Soul Saint.

The Teacher Li she mentioned was none other than Li Zhuangyun, a former teacher at Shrek Academy's inner court, who possessed the top-tier healing-type martial soul, the Tree of Life, and was a Soul Douluo with a promising future.

Although Shrek Academy's Soul Guidance System was already at the top level among the three kingdoms of the Douluo Continent, it was still far behind the level of the Sun Moon Empire and could not meet the requirements of an eight-ring Soul Douluo like Li Zhuangyun.

Therefore, after Star Soul Hunt, Li Zhuangyun made a special trip to Kong Tianxu to inquire about learning about soul tools.

Kong Tianxu was too lazy to teach him, and casually said "Sect secrets, not to be passed on to outsiders" to get rid of him. Unexpectedly, the old guy packed his things and came to Kong Tianxu's door the next day, showing that he was determined to seek the Dao.

A healing-type Soul Master who is destined to become a Title Douluo or even a Super Douluo in the future would be a highly sought-after figure in any power on the continent. Kong Tianxu would certainly not refuse, and he directly provided him with a one-stop service, sending him to the Holy Spirit Sect to work as a barefoot doctor at the grassroots level.

Of course, he will still be taught how to use soul tools; the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy and Mingde Hall are always open to him.

Now, although Li Zhuangyun's tone was calm, the look in his eyes beneath the mask no longer held the melancholy of the past. Instead, it revealed a focused and contented immersion in a completely new realm. He was clearly living a very comfortable life. Not only Tang Ya, but even Zhongli Wu treated him with great respect. In the Sun and Moon Folk, he was now practically a living bodhisattva.

After all, a Soul Douluo with the Tree of Life Martial Soul cannot bring someone back to life, but restoring flesh and bones is extremely easy for him.

In the development of soul tools, he and Ye Nongfeng, another genius soul tool master of the Holy Spirit Cult, were a perfect match.

One of them focused on developing various new soul tools with terrifying destructive power, while the other relied on the Tree of Life martial soul to ensure the survival of the experimental subjects as much as possible, so as to facilitate data collection.

In particular, Ye Nongfeng's recent experiment with aging rays can instantly evaporate a large amount of life force in a living organism, causing the target to age and die. Li Zhuangyun can inject life force into the experimental subject to prolong their life as much as possible. The process of slowly experiencing one's own life gradually withering away can be described as the ultimate pain.

As for the test subjects, they were naturally those unruly evil spirit masters. These evil spirit masters deserved to be paired with these two living devils.

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