Dugu Bo thought to himself, "You two are openly joining Spirit Hall and still say it has nothing to do with me. Who would believe that?"
The crowd glanced at Dugu Bo, wondering if he would say anything in response. Everyone knew that Dugu Bo had close ties with the Heaven Dou Empire, and now both his granddaughter and disciple had chosen to join Spirit Hall. What would he do?
"Why are you all staring at me?" Dugu Bo scoffed. "The only reason I stayed with the Heaven Dou Empire was out of loyalty to Prince Xue Xing. But years have passed, and I consider that debt paid. Today, I officially sever ties with Heaven Dou. I prefer a life of freedom and won't be bound."
These words were as much for Bibi Dong as for the crowd. Dugu Bo intended to make it clear that he wasn't interested in joining Spirit Hall—his loyalty was to Su Ming, not Spirit Hall.
Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong noticed that Bibi Dong hadn't extended an invitation to her, which she accepted; after all, she belonged to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
Bibi Dong was clearly pleased, however. Spirit Hall had gained five exceptionally talented soul masters, a significant boon for their future. Especially Su Ming!
With this matter settled, Bibi Dong turned to the crowd and announced, "I now invite the Spirit Hall and Thunder Academy teams to step forward to receive their rewards."
"Now that the Soul Master Tournament has concluded, please remain a moment longer. Spirit Hall promised an explanation," Bibi Dong said calmly.
Among the Thunder Academy ranks, Yu Xiaogang and Tang San, who was struggling to stay conscious, felt a chill of unease. Tang San had regained consciousness only recently, thanks to treatment from a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon healer, but the side effects of the medicine were so intense that he could barely hold himself upright. Now, though, it seemed something was amiss.
Even with his depleted energy, Tang San could sense the tense expressions of the Spirit Hall's Red-Robed Cardinals and guards.
At a gesture from Bibi Dong, silence fell over the arena. The crowd, too, was eager for an explanation, especially after hearing the rumors of Spirit Hall's attempt to eliminate Tang San with titled Douluo. Now, Spirit Hall had promised a clarification.
Gui Mei stepped forward. "I am one of the titled Douluo who recently took action, so I will explain."
"We at Spirit Hall had reason to believe Tang San and his companions were practicing dark arts, potentially dabbling in the ways of an evil soul master. With tangible evidence to support our concerns, we acted. This wasn't just because Tang San is the son of Tang Hao."
"You are all aware that Spirit Hall offers free soul awakenings at age six. Tang San's martial soul was awakened here—a Blue Silver Grass, with innate full soul power."
"Now, ask yourselves: does an ordinary Blue Silver Grass justify innate full soul power? It doesn't add up. Given the records we possess, no soul master with a Blue Silver Grass martial soul has ever awakened with more than level one innate soul power. This anomaly warranted a thorough investigation."
Su Yuntao thought to himself, "Was I the only one kept in the dark?"
"As I continue, it should become clear. In fact, our Pope had already discerned Tang San's true identity when he was only six. It wasn't difficult—Tang Hao was a blacksmith from Holy Soul Village who didn't even change his name, so finding him was easy."
"Truthfully, if Spirit Hall had intended to act against him, we could have done so seven or eight years ago. Despite Tang Hao's enmity toward Spirit Hall, our Pope chose to show mercy, as children are innocent. Spirit Hall even continued paying soul master stipends."
"Yet, Tang Hao assumed us fools. He repeatedly assassinated Spirit Hall's talented youths, Red-Robed Cardinals, and even Elders."
"Recently, we detected another anomaly: Tang San's cultivation advanced rapidly, as did that of his companions, Dai Mubai and the others. Just look at Dai Mubai—half his hair has turned white. Even Oscar and Ma Hongjun show strands of gray. This indicates training in dark, unorthodox methods!"
A murmur rippled through the crowd as they turned their attention to Tang San and his teammates, suspicion and anger flashing in their eyes.
Some were visibly angered. Many of them had lost loved ones to evil soul masters, so if Spirit Hall's claims were true, they would see Spirit Hall's actions as a public service, not merely a vendetta against Tang Hao.
Tang San, struggling against his fatigue, felt a jolt of panic, while Dai Mubai and the others looked grim.
Tang San protested, "What proof do you have that I am an evil soul master? My strength comes from a few rare herbs I happened upon!"
"As for Dai Mubai's hair turning white, that's just a minor side effect. None of us have killed to cultivate. Evil soul masters are bloodthirsty killers. Look at us—do we look insane?"
After all, those assassinations had been his father's doing, not his. How could Spirit Hall possibly prove it?
"That sounds reasonable," murmured some in the crowd. "Tang San's power may have grown quickly, but his hair is still black, unlike Dai Mubai's."
Seeing the tide shift, Tang San's lips curled slightly. As long as they had no proof, they couldn't detain him.
"Everyone, silence!" Gui Mei's voice boomed. "How about a simple test? Tang San, release your Blue Silver Grass and let us analyze its properties. Based on our observation, it seems to possess resistance to lightning, fire, and water. If you have nothing to hide, why not prove it?"