Douluo Continent: Reborn as Yuhao, they all have ulterior motives.

Chapter 353 What if I join in? (Two-part series)

Back on the top floor of the Mingyue Hotel, Huo Yuhao keenly sensed that something was amiss.

It's too quiet.

The teams that advanced to the semifinals of the tournament suddenly disappeared, as if they had all agreed to do so, as if they had encountered some kind of emergency.

I stopped a hotel staff member and pointed to the room in the corridor with some confusion.

"Hello, where are the other participating team members who were staying here? If I remember correctly, the Soul Master Tournament shouldn't be over yet, right?"

Seeing Huo Yuhao's face so closely, the man's breath caught in his throat for a moment. It took him a while to realize what was happening before he patiently explained.

"You must be Huo Yuhao, right? Just yesterday, the Heavenly Soul and Douling Empires joined forces with various sects to attack the City of Original Sin. By the time the news reached Mingdu, the battle was already over, and the contestants from the hotel have all rushed over to help the wounded."

Before she could finish speaking, she felt the temperature around her suddenly drop, and her body involuntarily shivered.

A chilling feeling welled up inside me, like an invisible hand gripping my throat, bringing the coldness of death.

But soon, all of this faded away like a receding tide with Huo Yuhao's apologetic apology, as if he had just woken from a dream.

"Feel sorry."

Huo Yuhao tried to soften his voice as much as possible, suppressing the pressure he unconsciously released, but he still couldn't hide the urgency in his tone.

"Could you tell me the specifics? What's the situation in the City of Original Sin right now?"

"No, it's okay, I understand."

The staff member waved his hand and recounted everything he had heard.

"I heard that the city of original sin was immediately guided to take refuge in the inner city after the attack and the protective shield was activated. As a result, apart from the law enforcement team that was fighting the enemy, the overall casualties were not too serious. However, most of the outer city was reduced to ruins."

Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao's gloomy expression did not improve at all.

The massive, interconnected protective shield that covered the entire inner city was made by him personally. In the process, he used up most of the rare metals that the Holy Spirit Cult had accumulated over the years, so he knew its defensive capabilities better than anyone else.

Although its overall defensive power is not very high due to its large coverage area, it is by no means something that a Limit Douluo could break through.

In other words, even if an attack were to occur, as long as the law enforcement team and the residents inside remained within the inner city, there shouldn't be too many casualties.

But now, the staff in front of him told him that the law enforcement team had come out to meet them.

This means that among the enemies being attacked, there may be beings surpassing the Limit Douluo level, capable of breaking through the protective shield.

Huo Yuhao took a deep breath, casually took out a level-three soul tool he had made before, and handed it to the staff member.

"Thank you for telling me all this. Consider this compensation for my earlier offense. You can find a chance to secretly sell it."

The staff member was stunned for a moment, subconsciously reached out to take it, wanting to thank him, but when he looked up, he found that Huo Yuhao had already disappeared.

"Thanks"

one day ago.

Outside the City of Original Sin, in a huge man-made cave in the Mingdou Mountains, lights shone brightly.

Hundreds of powerful individuals, all at least at the Soul Douluo level, were gathered here, casually munching on their dry rations. Judging from the obvious impatience on their faces, they seemed to be waiting for something.

Finally, unable to contain his eagerness, Du Busi stuffed the dry rations in his hand into his mouth and frowned as he looked at the two Haotian Sect elders in the crowd.

"When exactly will your sect leader arrive?"

The two elders exchanged a glance and slowly shook their heads: "The sect leader only told us to wait for him to arrive before taking action, but he didn't tell us the specific time."

"So, are we just going to keep waiting if he doesn't come?"

Poison Immortal's eyes widened: "Many forces are currently tied up in Mingdu by the competition, which is the perfect opportunity for us to make our move. If we wait any longer, who knows what changes might occur once the competition ends?"

The elder who spoke seemed somewhat hesitant: "But the sect leader said..."

"Alright, he's probably held up by something, there's no need to wait for him any longer."

Looking around at everyone, Du Busi spoke in a high-spirited tone as he gave his pre-battle mobilization speech.

"Now that Huo Yuhao has been tied up and everyone else is gathered in Mingdu, it shouldn't be difficult for us to take down the City of Original Sin with our current lineup."

"Gentlemen, the evil spirit masters have developed to a point that cannot be ignored without our knowledge. If we let this go unchecked, it will surely lead to disaster."

"We may be injured or die in the process, but our spirit will live on forever!"

"The descendants who will enjoy this blessing in the future, living in the prosperous age created by our own hands, a time without evil spirit masters, will remember everything we have done. Our achievements will be written into history as a symbol of justice, and engraved on a monument!"

Under the increasingly intense gazes of the crowd, Du Busi's voice, like muffled thunder, struck straight into everyone's heart.

"For social stability and world peace, we have an unshirkable responsibility!"

"Now is the time for us to sacrifice ourselves for justice and slaughter those evil spirit masters!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

Almost simultaneously, in the City of Original Sin, several evil soul masters with cultivation levels exceeding ninety-five suddenly opened their eyes and flew into the sky.

"Vice Leader, you sensed it too? What exactly happened?"

"have no idea"

Hearing Zhang Peng, the Scorpion Tiger Douluo, Zhongli Wu's expression became more solemn than ever before: "But I just have a bad feeling."

As the person with the highest cultivation level in the entire room, his perception of danger was naturally much stronger than that of the others.

After careful consideration, as if he had determined the source of his unease, he turned his head and looked in the direction of the Mingdou Mountains.

"It's over there."

As if confirming his premonition, as everyone followed Zhongli Wu's gaze, they indeed saw thick, inky black clouds gathering above the continuous mountain range.

The immense energy fluctuations even made those of them, who were far away in the City of Original Sin, feel a tremor in their hearts.

Within those dark clouds, there seemed to be a gigantic creature with wings on its back, surging about.

"Is that Long Xiaoyao?"

Evil Phoenix Douluo Feng Ling frowned: "The sect leader spared his life back then, yet he still dares to come looking for trouble?"

"No, it's not just him."

Looking at the dark green giant, who was also faintly visible in the dark clouds and was a hundred feet tall, and the strange-looking yellow creature with ox horns and a sheep's body, Zhongli Wu's face grew increasingly gloomy.

"As expected, these guys came together. Since the Supreme Master is not here, I will temporarily take over the command."

Without showing too much panic, Zhongli Wu suddenly turned around and gave instructions to the group of senior executives beside him.

"Elder Minglei, you and Scorpion Tiger Douluo go and sound the alarm to inform everyone of the situation. Then, lead the enforcement team to guide the city's residents into the inner city for refuge as soon as possible. Anyone who takes advantage of the chaos to cause trouble should be killed on the spot!"

"Fengling, take some men to control the inner city's protective shield switch to prevent any inside traitors from colluding with us."

"The rest of you, come with me to the designated location outside the city to plant the fixed-position soul-guided bomb!"

"yes!"

The crowd responded in unison, but Zhang Peng, the captain of the enforcement team, pressed on, asking, "What happens after all the city's residents enter the inner city? Will the enforcement team engage the enemy?"

"Stay in the inner city for now. If there are any signs of the protective barrier being breached, immediately head out of the city to meet the enemy. We absolutely cannot let these guys set foot in the inner city!"

"Yes."

Seeing that everyone agreed again, Zhongli Wu paused for a moment, and when he spoke again, his voice was no longer as heavy as before.

"This is an inevitable battle, one that our City of Original Sin must go through. We have made changes and tried to integrate into this community, but that does not mean we will let them manipulate us."

"To gain a foothold in this world, a tough approach is indispensable. The leader has led us to where we are today and pointed out the path for the future. Now, it's time for us to learn to walk this path on our own..."

"Don't let him down and make all his efforts futile."

"yes!"

Soon, the vast City of Original Sin began to operate like a machine with unimaginable efficiency. All tasks were issued layer by layer, and under the high-pressure policy, every member of the law enforcement team, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, quickly carried out the tasks from their superiors.

"This way, this way, the elderly and children go first, then the women. If you don't have time to pack your things, ask the nearby law enforcement team for help; they will assist you!"

Amidst the piercing alarm, a somber, hoarse voice echoed: "Follow this road into the inner city. Someone will meet you and take you in. Don't try to cause trouble. Anyone who takes advantage of the chaos will be executed. Didn't you fucking hear me?!"

Halfway through his sentence, the voice suddenly turned into an angry roar.

The owner of the voice seemed to have discovered something, and without hesitation released his martial spirit to suppress the individual evil spirit masters who were disobeying orders and trying to cause trouble in the crowd, and then roughly dragged them out of the crowd.

Ignoring the man's struggles and pleas for mercy, they subjected him to a brutal and gruesome torture in full view of everyone.

Surprisingly, the people present did not feel too scared.

Even they themselves were surprised. Perhaps it was because they had experienced the harsh laws of the City of Original Sin for nearly a year, or perhaps they knew how cruel the law enforcement team was when dealing with those who broke the rules. Most of them had long since become accustomed to this and had no intention of doing evil.

After dealing with the ringleader, the seemingly short-tempered member of the enforcement team roared at the crowd, urging them to hurry up.

"Everyone, move forward in an orderly fashion, don't look back, and you all better hurry up, or I'll get punished!"

Their words made it sound as if they wished they had extra legs so they could push them along.

"Thank you."

Amid the noise, a child stopped abruptly as he passed by, and thanked him in a bewildered and innocent tone.

"Will I be able to join the law enforcement team when I grow up?"

His movements suddenly stopped, and after a long while, he impatiently waved his hand and pushed and kicked the child's parents forward a distance.

"Get out of here with your child. Don't get in my way. You parents should be executed for letting your children do this kind of dangerous job in the future."

Similar scenes kept playing out in the city, and were witnessed by Poison Undying and his men who were rushing towards them.

Gazing at the rising protective shield, Du Busi couldn't help but sneer. His voice, like a tangible giant wave, traveled a great distance and clearly reached everyone's ears.

"They're putting on quite a show. When did selfish and self-serving evil spirit masters start protecting the weak?"

"However, no matter how well you prepare, it's all just a futile resistance. Evil Soul Masters kill indiscriminately, which is intolerable to Heaven and Earth, and everyone has the right to kill them. You even dare to attempt to build a city. How could Heaven allow you to have your way?!"

"Today, we will act on behalf of Heaven and bring destruction upon you wicked people!"

"Hahaha, the hypocrisy of you guys spouting all that benevolence and morality is truly disgusting."

As if amused by these words, Zhongli Wu laughed and released his martial soul. A bone dragon, whose size was no less than that of Long Xiaoyao, appeared in the sky above the City of Original Sin. He stood on the head of the bone dragon, facing the crowd in the distance with a mocking expression through the barrier.

"What do you mean by being intolerable to Heaven and Earth, and impervious to poison? The sins your Body Sect committed thousands of years ago are so terrible that even the execution of the entire sect wouldn't be enough to atone for them. How dare you still have the nerve to act on behalf of Heaven?!"

"And you, Tianyang, if I'm not mistaken, your Douling underground auction house is probably selling people to those royal nobles right now. Your martial soul is naturally full of yang energy, so you've probably been involved in quite a bit of buying and selling, haven't you?"

"What? Could this also be the work of us evil spirit masters!?"

"You're talking nonsense!"

Tianyang Douluo's expression suddenly turned fierce, and he angrily shouted, "You dare to spout nonsense even when you're about to die? It seems you really want to die!"

"Hmph, why are you wasting your breath talking to him? Just fight!"

Poison Undying, standing to the side, was even more excited. After letting out a roar, he suddenly accelerated, broke away from the group, and charged towards the City of Original Sin.

"I'd like to see just how hard your shells can be!"

Suddenly, the giant, hundreds of feet tall, unleashed a ghastly green light from its fists, causing the surrounding air to distort wildly, and slammed them into the protective barrier without hesitation.

To his astonishment, the protective shield did not even tremble after withstanding his full-force attack; only a faint ripple appeared on its surface.

Poison Undying's pupils constricted, his heart filled with disbelief.

A protective shield strong enough to cover half a city, yet possessing such terrifying defensive power—what level of soul tool is this?!

Zhongli Wu naturally wouldn't let this opening slip by. A purple phantom materialized behind him, and the crimson soul ring at the eighth position under his feet suddenly lit up. It was one of his signature skills, Death Needle.

The next second, a slender purple light, as thin as a hair, condensed from the void, piercing through the barrier in front of it as if it were nothing, and went straight for Poison Undying's head.

The sudden attack set off alarm bells in Poison Undying's mind. He never expected that the shield with such strong defensive power would be one-way.

He instinctively tried to raise his hand to block the needle, but was swatted away by Long Xiaoyao who arrived just in time, using his own scales to block the attack.

As a member of the Black Dragon Clan, renowned for their physical prowess, Long Xiaoyao's defensive capabilities after activating his Martial Soul True Form are undoubtedly among the most formidable of all Martial Souls.

Furthermore, as a Limit Douluo, his cultivation level was a level higher than Zhongli Wu's, which was like an insurmountable chasm. This Death Needle, which was enough to break through Du Bu Si's defense, was easily defended by him.

"madness."

After angrily rebuking Du Bu Si's reckless behavior, he turned his head and stared coldly at Zhong Li Wu across the barrier.

"Zhongliwu, out of consideration for our past relationship, you will all surrender. The City of Original Sin and the Holy Spirit Cult will be dissolved, and I will spare your lives."

"unnecessary."

Zhongli Wu sneered and refused without hesitation: "The sect leader spared your life and let you leave back then, and now, only a few short years later, you're already courting death again. Have you forgotten how utterly defeated you were?"

"It seems that what Tianyang Douluo said is true; you really want to die."

Noticing the strange looks from those around him, a dark glint flashed in Long Xiaoyao's vertical pupils as he spoke in a deep voice, "Back then, it was only because I underestimated my opponent and was careless that that kid managed to seize the opportunity and defeat me by sheer luck."

"Even if he were to return, I wouldn't lose to him if I gave it my all."

"Yeah?"

Zhongli Wu laughed heartily, completely disregarding Long Xiaoyao's words.

The owner will never come back?

Are you kidding me?

His cold gaze swept over everyone present: "I've remembered everyone here. Since you dared to provoke the City of Original Sin, be prepared for our Holy Spirit Cult to come knocking on your door in the future!"

"I'm sorry, you don't have that chance."

Having lost all patience and knowing that this campaign couldn't be delayed any longer, Long Xiaoyao immediately gave the order: "Attack together! Break through this barrier!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he spat out black flames, letting the intense heat, enough to distort space, scorch the barrier. Meanwhile, Poison Undying launched another attack, sending large swaths of dark green light hurtling down like a meteor shower.

Perhaps because he had lost face in front of so many people, or perhaps out of resentment towards Huo Yuhao for slaughtering the Body Sect members, his attack had a reckless and desperate nature.

Seeing this, the others also launched their attacks, but no matter how hard they tried, the barrier showed no sign of breaking.

Gradually, a sense of panic spread through everyone's hearts, and even the offensive they launched gradually slowed down.

Conversely, the hearts of Zhongli Wu and the others inside the barrier gradually calmed down. The thought that the barrier was made by Huo Yuhao himself made them admire him even more, and with the blessing of the master-servant contract, their respect for Huo Yuhao increased wildly at an unimaginable speed.

They didn't rush to make a move; instead, they watched this rare performance quietly, as if observing a group of clowns jumping around.

"Damn it, damn it!!!"

Poison Undying's eyes were bloodshot as he frantically unleashed his power. The feeling of having an enemy right in front of him, yet being unable to touch him at all, drove him almost mad.

"Is this the confidence you have to come knocking on our door? If that's all there is to it..."

Zhongli Wu sneered, but before he could finish speaking, a voice suddenly rang out from the sky, interrupting him.

"What if I join you?"

The sound wasn't loud, but it rang clearly in everyone's ears. Everyone looked up sharply and saw the blue-haired man, backlit and proudly suspended in the air.

Like a god, Niu Tian looked down at the people inside the barrier from above. His powerful aura spread out like a mountain, causing the originally solid protective barrier to creak and groan.

As the indifferent voice rang out again, fine cracks spread inch by inch from the surface of the barrier.

"You should all be executed."