Douluo: Emerald Poison Emperor [487] (Patreon)

The soul power coursed through the Clear Sky Hammer as Tang Xiao advanced without hesitation, closing in and swinging his hammer directly at one of the spider legs of the Man-faced Demon Spider Emperor, which was stabbed into the ground. Yet, despite its seemingly massive body, it didn’t show the slightest sign of sluggishness.

Like a sword being unsheathed, the sharp spider leg instantly slashed through the ground, swinging in a huge arc towards Tang Xiao and colliding with the Clear Sky Hammer in his hands. The enormous body of the spider moved like a ballet dancer on stage, lightly touching the ground with the tip of its leg, then spinning abruptly, another spider leg slashing towards Tang Xiao.

“Clear Sky Nine Absolutes: Break! Clear Sky Nine Absolutes: Void!”

Tang Xiao’s expression was serious, fully unleashing all the techniques he knew. The massive Clear Sky Hammer left afterimages as it swung, responding like a rainstorm, clashing rhythmically with the spider legs, each collision causing the force on the hammer to build up further.

“Clear Sky Nine Absolutes: Collapse!”

Like a rainbow piercing the sun, like a meteor crashing to earth, the massive Clear Sky Hammer suddenly erupted with a speed entirely unbefitting its size. The stored power was unleashed in an instant, knocking back one of the giant spider legs and leaving a huge crack in its carapace.

But before Tang Xiao could even catch his breath, from the crack in the carapace, a host of palm-sized Man-faced Demon Spider phantoms surged out, lunging at Tang Xiao.

Though they didn’t look dangerous, each of these little spiders was brimming with soul power, so much so that a faint purple mist emanated from their shells. These soul skill-created derivatives fearlessly charged at Tang Xiao and detonated upon contact.

In that instant, the explosions almost shattered the layer of soul power protecting Tang Xiao, which had faltered for a moment due to the continuous use of the Clear Sky Nine Absolutes. The purple energy corroded Tang Xiao’s body, instantly turning one of his arms and a large patch of skin black and purple. His vitality quickly drained from those areas, even showing signs of necrosis.

“Martial Soul True Body!”

Tang Xiao didn’t know exactly what he’d been hit with, but he knew if he didn’t react right now, he’d lose his chance to ever react again.

His seventh soul ring lit up, and the Clear Sky Hammer instantly expanded. With his left hand, Tang Xiao swept the hammer horizontally, flinging the little spiders away and using the recoil to shoot himself backward like a cannonball. At the same time, his body flickered slightly, as a surge of soul power rippled through him.

An unknown torso bone soul skill activated, covering Tang Xiao in a layer of earth-yellow light. His body was slightly strengthened and his abnormal resistance rose; the color quickly returned to his previously numb right hand. Though he still couldn’t use much strength, he could at least move it again.

Tang Xiao was now on extremely high alert. His ninth soul ring faintly glowed, resonating with the torso bone, and his entire presence rose to a new level.

If it were a normal day, Tang Xiao would have already unleashed a ninth soul skill, and if he was losing, he’d choose to detonate his soul rings in response. But now, because he had so many people behind him to protect, he couldn’t help but hesitate.

Once he used Martial Soul True Body and his ninth soul skill, he’d be left weak for several days—a severe disadvantage in his current situation. Detonating his soul rings could unleash power beyond his limits for a moment, but afterward, even with the Clear Sky Nine Absolutes, it would be hard for him to resist the Title Douluos from Spirit Hall.

A big part of soul master combat is information. Tang Xiao had no idea who this soul master with the Man-faced Demon Spider Martial Soul True Body was, nor what their abilities or intentions were. This left him passive, so he leaned toward caution.

“Who are you? What do you want with us?”

As he adjusted his state, Tang Xiao asked warily.

“Heheheh, I am Ten Thousand Ghosts Douluo. I have some connections with your Clear Sky Sect. I had originally planned to visit you all in the future, but to think I’d meet you here today—truly, it must be fate.”

The Man-faced Demon Spider Emperor’s eight compound eyes stared at Tang Xiao, its mouth constantly opening and closing, but the voice came from the lifelike human face on its abdomen.

“Ten Thousand Ghosts Douluo…?” Tang Xiao thought for a moment, then immediately remembered something he’d heard in a casual conversation with Tang San.

It was something that, even now, caused him deep pain and regret over his past weakness.

“You’re the one who stole Ah Yin’s soul bone and desecrated her soul—Ten Thousand Ghosts Douluo?! How dare you show yourself?! You dare to appear before me?!”

Tang Xiao’s voice rose by several octaves, his caution turning to intense killing intent. His soul power boiled over, his soul rings lighting up one after another as augmentation-type soul skills were unleashed.

“Hey, how can you call it stealing in the world of soul masters? At most, I just took it.”

Controlling the Man-faced Demon Spider Emperor, Chen Ming hadn’t expected the usually cautious Tang Xiao to lose his composure as soon as he revealed his name. Because of Ah Yin, Tang Xiao was ready to fight to the death.

Chen Ming quickly controlled the Man-faced Demon Spider Emperor to spit out a giant web, temporarily blocking Tang Xiao’s charge and attack. Then, as his eyes glinted, a dark mist spewed from the human face on the spider’s abdomen, and soul after soul under his control was released.

There were the souls of powerful evil soul beasts like the Scorpion Lizard, Brain-Eating Ape, and Corrupt Demon Wolf, as well as countless distorted soul fragments that seemed forcibly pieced together, their true forms and origins unrecognizable.

From the depths of the black mist, a young woman with a blue-purple hue appeared, her once translucent body now solidified by soul power, her pink eyes filled with complex emotion.

At her feet, clusters of blue-black Blue Silver Grass, covered in thorns like brambles, rapidly grew, building a stage-like platform on the ground, while the twisted, blurry soul bodies crawled around her, seemingly showing their submission.

“Ah Yin! Is that you, Ah Yin?!”

The moment he saw the figure, Tang Xiao screamed. His piercing voice echoed into the cave, entering the minds of Tang Hao and Tang San, making them both lift their heads in disbelief toward the cave entrance.

“Ah Yin… Ah Yin? Ah Yin! Ah Yin!”

Inside the prison cart, Tang Hao excitedly raised his head, shouting Ah Yin’s name like a madman, struggling desperately, his eyes filled with longing for life.