Chapter 197: Even Ring Explosion Failed, So Running Was Still the Only Option
Yu Tianlin was genuinely surprised when he saw his grandfather's overwhelming lightning domain suddenly surge.
What happened? Grandpa had completely taken control. Why did the situation flip in an instant?
The next moment, Yu Tianlin saw a huge gash rip open in the lightning domain ahead. Tang Hao shot out from that domain like a shadow slipping through a crack in the world.
Tang Hao had actually torn open Yu Yuanzhen's domain.
But he looked miserable. The Clear Sky Hammer had already shrunk back to its normal size after exiting Martial Soul True Body. More importantly, only 6 Spirit Rings remained around him, 2 yellow, 2 purple, and 2 black. The other 3 were gone.
"This is ring explosion!" Yu Tianlin's eyes widened, then he immediately understood. "No wonder he could force his way out. He actually used that move."
Spirit Rings did not vanish for no reason. Tang Hao was missing 3, which meant only one thing.
The Great Sumeru Hammer, Ring Explosion.
So called ring explosion meant directly shattering one's own Spirit Rings, then pouring the released power into the next strike, forcing out strength far beyond one's realm. The higher the Spirit Ring's quality, the more terrifying the burst.
From what Yu Tianlin was seeing, Tang Hao had detonated his 7th, 8th, and 9th Spirit Rings, including the 100,000 year ring.
With that kind of price and that kind of power, ripping through Yu Yuanzhen's domain and breaking free was not strange at all.
After bursting out, Tang Hao retreated without hesitation, not even pausing to breathe. But at that moment, a dragon claw that gleamed with a translucent sheen suddenly appeared in front of him and viciously grabbed toward his chest.
Tang Hao remained calm despite the shock. Among the 6 Spirit Rings he had left, the 6th ring lit up.
Instantly, the Clear Sky Hammer in his grasp fused into his body. At the same time, layers of Spirit Power shields condensed around him, tightly wrapping him in protection.
A pure defensive Spirit Skill.
Tang Hao was clearly confident in it. He did not slow down at all, charging forward as if the translucent claw did not exist.
"He must have suffered backlash from forcing open that old dragon's domain," Tang Hao judged coldly, "so this claw is just a rushed strike. Nothing to fear."
"Even if it's strong, Clear Sky Protection will weaken it. At worst, I'll get injured."
"Either way, I have to push through. If I get stalled here, it'll become truly troublesome."
He forced himself to ignore the attack, but that faint sense of danger still clung to him like a thorn.
Then, something that made his scalp go numb happened.
The translucent dragon claw did not collide with the Spirit Power shields at all.
It pierced straight through them and struck Tang Hao's chest.
Spatial abilities.
That was the only explanation.
Yu Yuanzhen possessed 4 god level true dragon Spirit Bones. The lightning domain earlier came from the Thunder Sacred Dragon torso bone. The translucent dragon claw in front of Tang Hao was the ability of the Space Sacred Dragon left arm bone.
It ignored Clear Sky Protection entirely.
At the instant the claw was about to tear him apart, Tang Hao only had time to summon the Clear Sky Hammer again and barely raise it in front of him. That was all. There was no time left to release any Spirit Skill.
Without Spirit Skills, the Clear Sky Hammer only carried its most basic traits: hardness and weight. Those alone were not enough.
The hammer was knocked aside by the claw. It weakened the claw's power slightly, only slightly.
Then the claw came down again, fierce and merciless, as if it would end Tang Hao with a single stroke.
Yet for some reason, Tang Hao only coughed out a mouthful of blood and was flung backward. He was injured, but not gravely.
And for some reason, the translucent dragon claw froze in midair. Yu Yuanzhen did not continue the strike through it, as if he had been stunned.
"Ah!"
Tang Hao's eyes instantly turned blood red. Like a wounded beast, he let out a painful roar. Without hesitation, he detonated the remaining 6 Spirit Rings on his body.
All the power from those 6 rings poured into the Clear Sky Hammer in that instant. The hammer expanded by an entire circle, and thick black light exploded outward from its surface.
Then Tang Hao swung and smashed it straight into the translucent dragon claw in midair.
That strike contained terrifying might. It even briefly sealed space, ensuring the claw could not phase through the blow and slip away.
The claw could not leave.
But that did not mean someone outside could not enter.
A moment ago, only a translucent claw faced Tang Hao's hammer. In the next instant, that claw extended backward, rapidly forming an entire arm, then a torso, a head, and the other 3 limbs, transforming into a half human, half dragon figure.
The dragon shaped humanoid had been translucent, but it instantly regained its true color.
It was Yu Yuanzhen.
Within the sealed space, he could not retract the dragon claw. But he could teleport himself directly to it.
Even Yu Yuanzhen did not dare to take Tang Hao's desperate hammer strike lightly. The moment he appeared, his 9th Spirit Ring lit up.
The giant hammer slammed down. Lightning flashed, swallowing everything and obscuring the scene inside.
Tang Hao retrieved the Clear Sky Hammer. His face was twisted with unwillingness, but he had no choice. He turned and fled.
He did not see what happened inside the lightning, but he knew one thing clearly.
Even if that final hammer strike was strong enough, it could not defeat Yu Yuanzhen, nor could it seriously injure him. Now that all his Spirit Rings had been detonated, and his Spirit Power was heavily depleted, the moment Yu Yuanzhen recovered, he would have no ability to resist.
So he could only seize the chance to escape.
"I really am trash," Tang Hao muttered as he fled, the dejection on his face impossible to hide. "What's the use of becoming a Titled Douluo? I'm still trash."
"I couldn't protect Ah Yin before, and I can't protect her now either."
"That thing was taken."
Just now, when the translucent dragon claw tore at Tang Hao's chest, it was that thing that blocked the fatal blow. And because of that, it fell into the claw's grasp.
Tang Hao had intended to gamble everything. If nothing unexpected happened, he should have been able to shatter the claw and seize it back.
But Yu Yuanzhen's appearance ruthlessly crushed that hope.
"Ah Yin and I have suffered enough in this life. I can't let our child walk the same road."
With that thought, Tang Hao forced himself to steady his emotions and hurried toward Heaven Dou City.
If it were not for his son, Tang Hao probably would not have even had the will to keep running just now.
.....
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