Chapter 49: The Cost of Provocation
"Old Dragon, look around you. Do you still want to continue fighting?"
Dugu Bo's voice, tinged with schadenfreude, suddenly rang out. Yu Yuanzhen, who was fully focused on dealing with Aiolia, was startled. He quickly stepped back several paces to distance himself from Aiolia and looked around. Only then did he realize that the eight Soul Douluo he had brought with him had all been incapacitated.
At this moment, Milo and Dugu Bo slowly rose into the air, standing to the left and right behind Aiolia, glaring menacingly at Yu Yuanzhen.
Seeing the situation clearly, Yu Yuanzhen broke out in a cold sweat. A sense of impending death loomed over him. If he continued to fight, he might not make it out alive. Sensing the danger, Yu Yuanzhen turned to flee.
"Patriarch Yu, you can run, but you can't hide."
At this moment, Xiao Yu's voice coldly echoed: "The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan has a large estate. In a while, I'll bring some people to pay a visit to True Dragon Mountain!"
"You dare!"
Yu Yuanzhen stopped in his tracks and turned to glare at Xiao Yu, his eyes filled with murderous intent.
"Why so hostile, Patriarch Yu?"
Xiao Yu sneered: "We both know very well why you brought so many Soul Douluo here today. What, you can try to kill me, but I'm not allowed to retaliate? Don't be such a hypocrite!"
A flash of embarrassment crossed Yu Yuanzhen's face. He steadied his mind and said, "Kid, I admit I underestimated you, but don't get cocky. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan has stood strong on this continent for a thousand years, with many allies. If you really dare to attack my clan, you'll become the enemy of the entire continent!"
Yu Yuanzhen's words were partly true. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had many allies after being renowned for so long. For one, Ning Fengzhi, who always claimed that the Upper Three Sects were like branches of the same tree, would surely come to their aid.
However, the claim that Xiao Yu would become the enemy of the entire continent was clearly an exaggeration.
The disciples of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had been running rampant across the continent for years, making many soul masters resentful. Moreover, since Yu Yuanzhen had attacked Xiao Yu first, even if Xiao Yu slaughtered the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, he would still have some justification.
Xiao Yu didn't currently want to take drastic action against the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. For one, he was unsure of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's stance.
If the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan fully supported the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, with Sword and Bone Douluo plus Yu Yuanzhen, and Ning Fengzhi's assistance, the three Titled Douluo could act like six. He really couldn't handle that, although given Ning Fengzhi's nature, this was unlikely.
Secondly, Xiao Yu didn't want to lose his advantage of foresight just yet. If he wiped out the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan now, the entire Douluo Continent's power dynamics would undergo a major reshuffle.
The most crucial soul-hunting actions of the Spirit Hall would also undergo significant changes, which would severely affect Xiao Yu's future plans.
However, since Yu Yuanzhen brought a group to seize his opportunities and take his life, Xiao Yu couldn't let him go without some consequences, or he would seem easy to bully.
"Yu Yuanzhen, out of respect for the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's thousand-year heritage, I'll spare you today!"
Xiao Yu said coldly: "But you brought a group to deal with me. If I let you go just like that, it would signal to others that attacking Xiao Yu has no consequences!"
"What do you want?"
Yu Yuanzhen said in a deep voice, immediately realizing that Xiao Yu intended to extort something from him.
Xiao Yu pointed to the three members of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan still writhing in pain on the ground and said, "Here are three of your clan's Soul Douluo. I want one ten-thousand-year soul bone for each, making a total of three ten-thousand-year soul bones. And they must be over thirty thousand years old!"
"Three soul bones over thirty thousand years old!"
Yu Yuanzhen's expression became extremely grim. Even as a Titled Douluo, he only had three ten-thousand-year soul bones.
Furious, he gritted his teeth and said, "Kid, you're asking for a fortune. Even the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, no matter how wealthy, can't produce three soul bones over thirty thousand years old at once!"
"That's your problem, Yu Yuanzhen. I'm giving you one month. Whether you steal or rob, I want to see what I want in a month. Otherwise, I won't mind paying a visit to True Dragon Mountain!"
Xiao Yu said emotionlessly. Since Yu Yuanzhen had murderous intentions toward him, there was no need for Xiao Yu to be courteous: "If you dare to attack me, be prepared to pay the price. A light punishment won't teach you a proper lesson!"
"Fine, I will bring the soul bones in a month!"
With the situation against him, Yu Yuanzhen could only grit his teeth and agree, then he turned and flew away.
After watching Yu Yuanzhen leave, Aiolia, Milo, and Dugu Bo slowly landed. Xiao Yu glanced at the still partially petrified Meng Shenji and the other two, and said calmly, "Chief Meng Shenji, I have no enmity with the Heaven Dou Empire. How do you explain your actions today?"
Meng Shenji's face was full of regret. Like Yu Yuanzhen, he hadn't expected that the young, unremarkable Xiao Yu had such formidable backing.
Now in a dire situation, he had to push all the blame onto Yu Yuanzhen to save the Heaven Dou Empire and his own life, as well as those of his two old comrades:
"The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan is powerful. Yu Yuanzhen came to the academy, and we old fellows, intimidated by his power, decided on our own to follow him here. Now that we've fallen into your hands, Xiao Yu, do as you will with us, but please do not take it out on the royal family!"
Xiao Yu's lips curved slightly. Meng Shenji was indeed loyal to the Heaven Dou royal family, still trying to clear their name even at this point. However, Xiao Yu didn't bother to expose him.
He had let Yu Yuanzhen go, so there was no need to trouble these Soul Douluo whose strength was far inferior to his. The Nine Stars Palace would need to operate in the Heaven Dou Empire for a long time.
"I don't care whether the royal family was aware or not. The fact is that you came with Yu Yuanzhen to harm me. Since you acted, you must pay the price. I will let you go back and inform the royal family. You have one month to exchange five ten-thousand-year soul bones for the five Soul Douluo. If not, I won't mind paying a visit to Emperor Xue Ye's palace to collect!"
Xiao Yu said coldly: "Considering that you are the teachers of Lingling and Sister Yan, I'll give you a discount. The soul bones only need to be over ten thousand years old!"
"Five ten-thousand-year soul bones, the royal family simply can't produce that!"
Meng Shenji was on the verge of tears. If the Heaven Dou royal family could easily produce five ten-thousand-year soul bones, they wouldn't have struggled to recruit even one Titled Douluo.
"Then exchange them for items of equivalent value—heavenly materials, rare metals, soul tools, or gold soul coins."
Xiao Yu also understood the current state of the Heaven Dou Empire: "Currently, a ten-thousand-year soul bone is priced at five million gold soul coins on the black market. In a month, I want to see items worth a total of twenty-five million gold soul coins. Otherwise, face the consequences!"
(End of Chapter)
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