"The old man, I won't be polite then," Ning Tianchen chuckled lightly as he stored the soul bone in his possession.
"Don't damage his body—we need to hand it over to the organizing committee."
Dugu Bo rummaged through the corpse for a moment, and after confirming there were no more soul bones, he stopped.
"What about this kid?"
Tang San had fallen into a deep coma. If left unattended, he might be robbed by some evildoers.
Ning Tianchen smirked mischievously. "The evildoer was Shi Nian, and we just happened to pass by and save him."
Dugu Bo understood his plan and reminded him, "His soul-guided device has a mental imprint. For me, breaking it is easy. But when he wakes up, he'll realize someone tampered with it."
The blueprints of hidden weapons and Tang Sect techniques in Tang San's possession were all priceless treasures.
Such a good opportunity—how could Ning Tianchen let it slip by?
Dugu Bo bent down and lightly touched the Twenty-Four Bridges Under the Moonlight, instantly breaking Tang San's mental imprint.
He casually removed it and tossed it to Ning Tianchen.
Without hesitation, Ning Tianchen thoroughly examined every piece of jade within the device.
The Twenty-Four Bridges Under the Moonlight mostly contained hidden weapons and various types of metal. After searching for a while, Ning Tianchen only found blueprints for some hidden weapons but no trace of Tang Sect techniques.
"Right... such important techniques would definitely be memorized in Tang San's mind—he wouldn't leave a paper trail." Ning Tianchen sighed inwardly.
Dugu Bo picked up one of Tang San's hidden weapons and tested it himself.
"These weapons are quite powerful. I've never seen anything like them on the continent. Where did this kid get them?" Dugu Bo couldn't help but ask.
Ning Tianchen handed him the blueprints and said casually, "They probably came from ancient ruins. When I was at Shrek Academy, I saw him tinkering with these weapons."
"Old man, with your mental strength, how long will it take you to copy all these blueprints?"
"Copy?" Dugu Bo was puzzled. "Just take them directly. We saved him, so this is our reward."
Ning Tianchen shook his head.
Taking things openly like that would count as robbery. As civilized people, how could they rob someone?
Moreover, if Tang San discovered the blueprints were stolen, he might send Tang Hao to wipe out any suspicious individuals.
To avoid trouble, it was best to make a quick copy on the spot.
"Bring paper and pen—it'll take about an incense stick's time."
A Title Douluo's mental strength was extraordinary; copying blueprints wasn't difficult.
As Dugu Bo worked on the drawings, Ning Tianchen busied himself setting up the crime scene, disguising it as a robbery. He scattered Tang San's hidden weapons randomly around the area.
After an incense stick's time, Ning Tianchen stored the copied blueprints in his soul-guided device.
"Old man, take Tang San and Shi Nian's body back. Remember—don't mention seeing me."
With their stories aligned, the two parted ways.
---
Two hundred miles east of Tiandou City, in the countryside
The battle between Tang Hao and Gu Rong was nearing its end.
Tang Hao had internal injuries that prevented him from unleashing his full strength, leaving him unable to overwhelm his opponent.
Gu Rong, a defensive-type soul master, lacked powerful offensive abilities and couldn't inflict serious harm on Tang Hao either.
The fight ended in a stalemate.
"Bone Douluo, do you want to continue?" Tang Hao held his Hao Tian Hammer and spoke in a low voice.
"This generation's Hao Tian Douluo isn't very strong. If it were Old Sword Man, he could easily defeat you." Smiling inwardly, Bone Douluo replied, "This isn't a life-or-death battle, so why drag it out? Let's call it quits here."
With that, Gu Rong tore open a spatial gate in front of him. "Tang Hao, if you're not injured, don't appear in Tiandou City again to avoid misunderstandings."
Even without him saying so, Tang Hao wouldn't return.
After this battle, his internal injuries worsened, and he needed to find a safe place to recover for a while.
---
Dugu Bo carried Tang San in his right hand and dragged Shi Nian's corpse with his left as he entered the tournament venue.
"Ahh~"
The audience, who had never witnessed such a bloody scene, screamed in horror.
Some even fainted upon seeing the headless corpse.
The tournament venue descended into chaos for a time.
The ongoing matches on the stage were forced to halt.
Upon recognizing Tang San in Dugu Bo's hands, the members of Shrek Academy immediately rushed out of the rest area and shouted angrily, "Dugu Bo, what did you do to Xiao San?!"
On the high platform, Ning Fengzhi and Xue Ye exchanged glances.
Knowing the relationship between Prince Xue Xing and Dugu Bo, Xue Ye hurriedly asked, "Xue Xing, what exactly happened?"
How would Xue Xing know the reason? He hadn't ordered Dugu Bo to kill anyone.
"Mr. Dugu, what exactly happened?"
最⊥新⊥小⊥说⊥在⊥六⊥9⊥⊥书⊥⊥吧⊥⊥首⊥发!
In the rest area, many contestants began discussing. "Shrek Academy has always been arrogant, and Tang San didn't even put His Majesty in his eyes. Offending Poison Douluo was asking for trouble—it's entirely their fault."
"You can't say that. Let's wait for Poison Douluo to clarify the situation."
"Did you notice? That headless corpse looks a lot like the principal of Canghui Academy."
Dugu Bo casually tossed Tang San to the Shrek team and flung Shi Nian's corpse toward the stage.
"Today, when I left the city, I caught Shi Nian robbing Tang San. He even tried to attack me, but unfortunately, his mental power cultivation wasn't refined enough. My mental shock backfired, blowing his head off!" Dugu Bo stated calmly.
A soul academy principal attempting to rob another team's contestant—this was undoubtedly the most explosive event of the tournament.
Many spectators perked up their ears, eager to hear more.
Flender immediately checked Tang San's condition and said, "Xiao San has no external injuries, but he's in a deep coma. It must have been Shi Nian's doing."
"Damn Canghui Academy! If anything happens to Xiao San, I'll grind you all to dust!"
Yu Xiaogang clenched his fists tightly, his chest heaving rapidly as he breathed heavily.
---
Title Douluos like Dugu Bo were extremely concerned about their reputations.
Therefore, no one doubted the truth of Dugu Bo's words.
After learning the situation, Xue Ye announced, "The match is suspended. All members of Canghui Academy will undergo investigation by the organizing committee. Anyone who resists will be executed on the spot."
Xue Ye had already heard rumors about contestants going missing.
Now that Dugu Bo had captured the culprit, they naturally had to investigate further.
At this point, teams with missing members immediately surrounded the entrance to Canghui Academy's rest area, demanding answers.
Xue Ye and Ning Fengzhi descended from the high platform and entered the meeting room.
"Ning Sect Leader, do you know where Bone Douluo is?" Xue Ye couldn't help but ask.
Interrogating Canghui Academy required Bone Douluo's expertise.
Ning Fengzhi responded with a faint smile, "Your Majesty, Principal Ke is more skilled at this. Why not have him handle it?"
"I only need to know the truth—it doesn't matter who conducts the interrogation."
---
The interrogation process was quite lengthy.
During this time, Tang San quickly regained consciousness through sheer willpower.
"Xiao San, how are you feeling?" Yu Xiaogang anxiously asked.
"Gentlemen, Tang San is involved in the case of the missing contestants. We need his testimony. Until then, you mustn't speak to him." The referee guarding the Shrek team's rest area immediately blocked Yu Xiaogang.
"That's fine. But we request to observe the proceedings." Flender, aware of the gravity of the situation, didn't dare defy the referee.
"At most, two people can stay. The rest must leave."
------------------------------------------------------
Thank you to our new Patrons: Diogo Frazão, Unknown, Jared Toussaint, zFuriaMz, bwuooq and Mike Foster! Your support means the world to me <3 We are up to 'Chapter 275: The Dream Asura, Acquiring the Sixth Soul Ring' on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
40+ Chapters Ahead Guaranteed.