Starting from Douluo to Capture Goddesses

For a long while, Xu Ran had been lying on Xiaowu's long legs to recover his energy.

Smelling the fragrance emanating from Xiaowu's body, Xu Ran felt utterly comfortable. Of course, there was also a faint salty scent on Xiaowu, perhaps because she had come over too anxiously, and the intense activity had caused it. It couldn't possibly be anything else, as Xiaowu was pure and chaste, surely devoid of any other thoughts.

"Shameless 'Host,' always taking advantage of Xiaowu," the System said grumpily, watching Xu Ran so contently lying on Xiaowu's legs, she couldn't help feeling a bit jealous. The 'Host' was too bad, clearly without a single injury on his body, yet still pretending to be greatly weakened. Was lying on Xiaowu's legs in the sun really so comfortable?

Xiaowu wasn't even as pretty as her, how could it be comfortable?

"How could that be? I'm just pretending to be injured, aren't I? Otherwise, how could I gain Xiaowu's trust? And how could I show off to Tang San?" Xu Ran flatly denied. Was he that kind of person? He wasn't the lecherous type.

"Hmph, shameless indeed," Sister System was somewhat unhappy.

"Then I won't lie here anymore. I still have to show off to Tang San," Xu Ran said. His eyes suddenly flared open, sparkles of sharpness twinkling within, and the aura on his body surged again, giving off the impression that he had regained his strength.

"Lord Auspicious Beast, are you awake?" Xiaowu asked, a hint of embarrassment flashing in her charismatic eyes. Lord Auspicious Beast had been lying on her for so long, her leg had gone numb from being used as a pillow.

"Yes, I have regained some of my strength. Let's leave this place quickly. That Titled Douluo might still be searching for me, and it's not safe to stay here too long," Xu Ran said, his eyes brimming with solemnity.

Lucky for Tang San to have a cheap old dad; otherwise, it would be quite difficult for him to catch up to Xiaowu.

"Titled Douluo, living nearby?" Xiaowu's face drastically changed, and at the same time, a question emerged in her heart. If there really was a Titled Douluo, why hadn't he killed her?

"That Titled Douluo, his Soul Rings and soul bones are already complete. Killing you would be of no benefit to him. I think he has been watching you for years. When the time is right, he would kill you and take your Soul Rings and soul bones," Xu Ran explained.

"How could this be?" Xiaowu's face turned pale and her body trembled. She had assumed that coming to such a remote place like Notting City would keep her hidden from powerful beings, but to think that even here there could be a Titled Douluo.

She didn't doubt Xu Ran's words for a second. As an Auspicious Beast, Xu Ran had no reason to deceive her about such matters. Besides, it was also here that the Auspicious Beast encountered danger. This alone was enough to prove the presence of a Titled Douluo nearby.

"Lord Auspicious Beast, when will he make a move on me?" Xiaowu asked, her voice trembling, eyes reddening. She wasn't afraid of death—had she feared it, she would never have Transformed into a human. Her fear was of dying a mundane death; how would she then avenge her mother? If she died too, who would take revenge for her mother's great wrong?

"Lord Auspicious Beast, I beg you, show me the way to safety. I can't die, for if I do, I won't be able to avenge my mother," Xiaowu pleaded as she knelt in front of Xu Ran, her forehead touching the ground and her youthful yet full flanks sticking up.

Why did she simply kneel like that?

And in that position?

Wouldn't this cause misunderstandings?

"Don't kneel, I've said I would help you. You saved me, so I will take care of these troubles for you," Xu Ran lifted Xiaowu from the ground. He gave a smile, naturally having a way to shatter the feelings between Xiaowu and Tang San.

Once their emotions fell apart, he could then have Xiaowu.

As an Auspicious Beast, as the Emperor of soul beasts, what was wrong with taking a concubine? Who would dare to object?

"The Titled Douluo's name is Tang Hao, a peerless powerhouse of the Hao Tian Clan, the foremost sect in the world. Ostracized from the Hao Tian Sect for having offended the Martial Soul Hall, he has been living in seclusion in Saint Soul Village outside Notting City all these years," Xu Ran said with a smile.

"Hao Tian Douluo?" Xiaowu couldn't help but feel shocked. As a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, she was not ignorant. Hao Tian Douluo had disappeared from the Continent long ago, and no one knew where he had gone. So he was hiding in this remote place after all.

No wonder Martial Soul Hall couldn't find him.

"But I heard Hao Tian Douluo was a good man, didn't I? The relationship between Hao Tian Douluo and Sister A Yin was so touching. Their love moved heaven and earth," Xiaowu couldn't help but ask. As a soul beast, she was moved to tears the first time she heard their love story. She also had a very good impression of Hao Tian Douluo.

Could such a strong man who is married to Sister A Yin actually harm her and the Auspicious Beast? Xiaowu's heart couldn't be at peace; she always felt like a belief deep within her was collapsing.

"Hao Tian Douluo was good?" Xu Ran's lips curled up in disdain. Who believes in so much love and affection in this world? Only a naive girl would believe such things.

"Do you really believe that such wonderful things exist in the world? You should know about the sacrifice of the Bluesilver Emperor A Yin for Tang Hao, shouldn't you?"

"Even if a soul beast is willing to sacrifice itself to a Soul Master, it requires a crucial condition to be met: the "Cultivation Level" of the Soul Master must reach level ninety, and coincidentally, they must need a Soul Ring. But, how could such a coincidence exist in this world? Tang Hao isn't a user of Twin Martial Souls, where would he have an extra slot for a Soul Ring? Why didn't he hunt for a Soul Ring immediately after he reached level ninety?" Xu Ran said with a sarcastic smile. He did not believe in such convenient circumstances.

Moreover, Tang Hao knew of A Yin's identity, yet he allowed her to expose herself in front of Martial Soul Hall. Even if it was unintentional, he definitely knew that Xiaowu was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. He didn't stop her from going to Spirit City. After the competition, all powerful Soul Masters knew of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast named Xiaowu, but her current strength was very weak.

Even without Martial Soul Hall, other powerful beings would harbor killing intent towards Xiaowu. Hunting a hundred-thousand-year soul beast is difficult, but isn't a Soul Ancestor, a Soul King easily killed?

Tang Hao's deception was better than anyone's; A Yin's and Xiaowu's identities were exposed with him monitoring from behind. But in the original story, his character maintained a righteous and passionate facade that nobody unveiled.

"The strong always wear a mask of hypocrisy, no different from ordinary people. It's just that they are used to posturing,", Xu Ran said. Although he himself was shameless, he would not harm those he valued. His malice was reserved for his enemies, while his kindness was saved for those he cherished.

"Can it really be true? Can it really be true?"

"How can it be? How can Hao Tian Douluo be such a person?"

Xiaowu was disheartened, the truths Xu Ran revealed nearly shattered her worldview. The love story she had believed in for so many years had such a backstory?

"But, Hao Tian Douluo made his breakthrough while on the run with Sister A Yin," Xiaowu said, latching onto a loophole in Xu Ran's story. She still held some hope that perhaps the Auspicious Beast had made a mere conjecture.

"Given Hao Tian Douluo's strength, he could naturally control his own "Cultivation Level" to break through at any moment. Breaking through during a crisis would seem more convincing and could clear his name of any suspicion of wanting to kill A Yin. Moreover, Qian Xun Ji, who had pursued Tang Hao back then, had died, and the others disappeared. Naturally, whatever Tang Hao said would be regarded as the truth," Xu Ran said, destroying Xiaowu's last bit of hope.

Tang Hao had plotted to use the pressure from Martial Soul Hall to make A Yin willingly sacrifice herself to become his Soul Ring. Thereby, he would step into the realm of Titled Douluo in one fell swoop. With the power of the Hao Tian Sect greatly increased, and the hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring already absorbed, Martial Soul Hall would have no choice but to let matters rest.

But what he didn't expect was that Bi Bidong would kill the injured Qian Xun Ji and frame him for it. Killing the Pope—a crime like this put Martial Soul Hall and even Hao Tian Sect in an all-out war with him. All his ambitions were destroyed by Bi Bidong's hand. It could only be said that every villain is the grinder of another.

Tang Hao's daily drunkenness was not just due to his infatuation. It was because he was the mastermind behind A Yin's death, he was afraid, he regretted, he was despondent, he was in pain.

Some things are only cherished after they are lost. After losing A Yin, he did not achieve anything he wanted, and due to the dirty water splashed by Bi Bidong, he even faced being hunted down by Martial Soul Hall. This made him immensely regretful. If he hadn't schemed, he would have been the Sect Master of the Hao Tian Sect, with a loving wife, status, and position. How could he have fallen to the point of hiding in exile?

Even before meeting A Yin with Tang San, Tang Hao once went back to the sect and crippled one of his arms and legs. Not to make amends to the sect, but to punish himself, to repay A Yin.

These revelations naturally were not conjectures made by Xu Ran himself. He had no time to bother with such trifles. All of this was told to him by the System Miss, therefore there couldn't be any falsehoods in it.