*Note: I wanted to upload sooner but my internet was very bad today so I couldn't, sorry.
...
The two guards assigned to night duty in the interrogation chamber broke into cold sweat the moment they heard Bibi Dong's order.
Pour concentrated salt water and acid.
Every fifteen minutes.
Alternating.
After Bibi Dong left, the two guards walked into the interrogation room with trembling legs.
Even for men accustomed to blood and violence, the scene before them sent a chill down their spines.
The four men suspended by iron chains no longer had a single patch of intact flesh. Large strips of skin had been flayed open, exposing raw muscle beneath.
"Brother… if we keep pouring salt water and acid like this, won't they just die here?"
"Are you stupid? Whether they live or die has nothing to do with us. We're lackeys. We just follow orders."
"That… makes sense."
After leaving the interrogation chamber, Bibi Dong slowly walked to the small garden behind the Papal Palace.
This was the place she came to most often.
Whenever she was unhappy, she would sit here alone.
Leaning against the cold stone steps, she lifted her gaze toward the star-filled sky.
Memories resurfaced.
Warm tears slipped silently down the corners of her eyes.
If she hadn't been the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall…
Would she have been able to be with him openly?
Would he have avoided being tortured to death by the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan?
Her vision blurred with tears, but her eyes burned with hatred.
Hatred for the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Hatred for Yu Xiaogang.
If she could, she wanted to slice him apart piece by piece.
"I'll make all of you pay with your lives… for him…"
(╥╯^╰╥)
Hidden in the shadows, Qian Xunji watched everything silently.
The dead could not return.
All he hoped was that his disciple would one day be strong enough to uphold the banner of Spirit Hall.
Of course—
The dead could not return.
But Fu Ye wasn't dead at all.
"System, can I dig the Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena out of the ground during the Douluo I era?"
[Ding. This is the Douluo I world. Characters and beings that only appear in Douluo II and Douluo III do not exist here. Even if the Host overturns the Star Dou Forest, the Ten Great Beasts of Douluo II do not exist. Gu Yuena of Douluo III does not exist either.]
Fu Ye felt that explanation was a bit strange, but it didn't matter.
Whether the Ten Great Beasts existed or not had nothing to do with him.
"Then I'll head to Yuexuan and court Tang Hao's little sister. Since he dared to cause trouble in my territory, I won't be polite."
With that thought, Fu Ye vanished from the spot.
This yellow-haired role—
He was definitely going to play it.
Yuexuan wasn't far from Ju Xiang Pavilion. An ordinary person would need about fifteen minutes on foot.
Fu Ye was much faster.
As the scenery shifted, he arrived at a quiet yet luxurious avenue.
Before him stood a red plaque with golden characters:
Yuexuan.
To be honest, Fu Ye had never really interacted with the royal aristocracy. In the past, he had focused on cultivation—occasionally treating people to meals, tea, or leisure outings.
He had seen Tang Yuehua a few times from afar.
They did not know each other.
Because Fu Ye's appearance and bearing were extraordinary, the two guards at the entrance barely glanced at him before letting him in.
He couldn't help but admit—
Being handsome and refined really did open doors everywhere.
Inside Yuexuan, gilded walls radiated elegance and nobility. The courtyard at the entrance was planted with vibrant purple flowers, and the light brown corridors were spotless.
Water flowed gently over an artificial rock formation.
Fu Ye felt his heart calm instantly.
Students walked unhurriedly toward their classroom. Fu Ye followed and entered a spacious, well-lit hall.
"Brother, where are you from? I've never seen you before."
"Damn, your face is ridiculous."
"Handsome, can we be friends?"
"Can I sit next to you?"
His arrival disrupted the classroom's order.
Fu Ye ignored them.
His goal was clear.
He was here to abduct Tang Hao's little sister.
He still remembered that in the original story, Tang Yuehua had feelings for Tang Hao. Whether that was true or not, Fu Ye felt obligated to correct her aesthetic standards.
Forbidden sibling romance?
Absolutely not.
Looking at the instruments laid out on the tables, today's class was clearly about zither practice.
Fu Ye opened the system store.
[Item: Perfect-Level Zither MasteryStock: 99,999Limit: One per purchaseCost: 0]
[Congratulations, Host, for purchasing Perfect-Level Zither Mastery ×1]
[Congratulations, Host, for using Perfect-Level Zither Mastery. Your zither proficiency has reached Perfection Level.]
An overwhelming flood of musical insight poured into his mind.
As his fingers brushed the ancient guqin before him, it felt incomparably familiar—
As though he had devoted decades to the art.
"Hey, new guy. Since Yuehua Instructor isn't here yet, want to compete?"
Fu Ye raised an eyebrow.
There it was.
The challenge.
He had already felt several hostile gazes.
"You want to compete in what way?" he asked calmly.
The young noble straightened arrogantly.
"Original composition. Let the students judge."
Original?
Fu Ye almost laughed.
His mind was filled with masterpieces from his previous life.
Any one of them could stun this room for an entire year.
The challenger mistook Fu Ye's expression for hesitation.
Before he could mock him—
Fu Ye nodded.
"No problem."
"I'll go first," the youth snapped. "Watch how thoroughly I crush you."
Fu Ye blinked.
Why was he so agitated?
"I composed this piece over a month. It's called 'Longing.'"
The young man's eyes gleamed with cruel anticipation.
But Fu Ye didn't even look at him.
He simply gazed at his own guqin, as if lost in thought.
"You—!"
There it was again.
Temper issues.
"Go ahead," Fu Ye said lightly. "I won't interrupt."
The youth's blood pressure visibly rose.
Still, he restrained himself.
His fingers descended upon the strings.
Dang—dang—dang dang dang dang…
Dang—dang—dang dang dang dang…