Seventeen years ago, when Ao Tian first awakened, he discovered the slumbering ferocious beasts within the Star Dou Great Forest not long after.
But having faced countless years of beasts, he was already weary of them, which was why he had ignored those few creatures.
Furthermore, in his perception, those dragons with a dragon clan's aura were too weak.
Accompanying Xiao Wu into the Star Dou Great Forest this time piqued his interest, and he wanted to see what was different about the dragon clan that appeared after him.
He withdrew his divine sense, and incidentally glanced around the hotel. The number of those people lying in wait had increased to over a dozen.
Being able to casually produce over four hundred Gold Soul Coins, in their eyes, Ao Tian was a fat lamb.
Not long after, Xiao Wu came out after taking a bath.
She was dressed in pink, soft pajamas and pants, her face flushed, and her skin radiating heat.
With the storage soul tool, she put her changed clothes directly inside.
"I'm done," she said, giggling as she bounced onto the bed and flew over, landing with a thud.
Suddenly, she remembered Ao Tian beside her and paused, asking, "How about I sleep on the sofa tonight?"
She felt it was inappropriate for them to be alone together and still sleep in the same bed.
"Stop the nonsense," Ao Tian said, lightly pressing a finger on her sleep acupoint.
Xiao Wu's head tilted to the side, and she immediately fell asleep.
Ao Tian put her on the bed, pulled the blanket over her, then opened the room door and walked out.
There were some things he needed to go out and take care of.
Downstairs, the waiter from before was still behind the counter. Ao Tian didn't even glance at him as he walked out of the hotel.
The waiter saw Ao Tian leave and wanted to say something, but before the words could even leave his mouth, Ao Tian was already outside.
"Seeking his own death, what a pity..."
He's out, the fat sheep actually came out.
Under the dim streetlights, a dozen pairs of eyes suddenly lit up, unable to believe the fat sheep would come out at this time.
Before, they couldn't figure out Ao Tian's identity, and they were worried he might have other companions in this small town, so they didn't make a move.
But later, they discovered that Ao Tian had actually opened a room with that little girl, which meant there were really only two children.
If their target wasn't in the hotel, they would have already made a move.
Ao Tian didn't even glance at these people, heading directly towards the Spirit Hall.
In this small town, the Spirit Hall had also set up a branch hall. Ao Tian had sensed the auras of several Title Douluo within this branch hall.
Apparently, the Spirit Hall had also received news of the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's transformation, which was why they had sent Title Douluo over.
Ao Tian had to send these Title Douluo back. After all, with him around, who could possibly kill Xiao Wu's mother?
After walking for a few minutes, Ao Tian turned into a dark alley.
When the dozen or so people arrived, he was already standing there quietly, waiting for them.
"You're too slow," he said lightly.
The dozen or so people exchanged glances, spreading out and forming three groups.
Hearing Ao Tian's words and seeing his composed demeanor, a strange feeling washed over them.
They released their mental energy, cautiously scanning their surroundings for any ambushes.
After a moment of scanning, they didn't detect any Soul Masters lying in wait.
Then how did this child discover them?
"Who's afraid of him?" A burly man with a bushy beard stepped forward, his eyes like copper bells glaring at Ao Tian. "Kid, hand over all your Gold Soul Coins, and I'll let you go."
"Big Brother, didn't you just say this kid is good-looking, with soft, smooth skin, and that you wanted to have some fun?" a straightforward underling reminded him.
"Bullshit, am I some kind of pervert?" Hearing his secret revealed, the burly man with the beard quickly denied it.
The other two leaders of the groups sneered, simultaneously lunging forward, eager to seize Ao Tian first.
Who would waste time chattering?
These two leaders actually possessed the cultivation of Soul Emperors, and they were already fighting as they charged, quickly closing in on Ao Tian.
Their underlings also immediately joined the fray.
"Damn it, they beat us to it!" the burly, bearded man shouted, releasing his martial soul and charging forward.
Of the two leaders rushing towards Ao Tian, the one with slightly lower strength was knocked back, slamming into the alley wall.
The remaining leader, sneering, reached Ao Tian. His fingers were like eagle claws, raking towards Ao Tian's head.
He could easily crush a little kid's head, then escape with the body - it would be incredibly simple.
Ao Tian watched these guys' performance quietly, it seemed they really took him for a big fat sheep.
He'd seen this kind of situation a lot when he traveled the continent with Bibi Dong; it was usually people coveting her beauty.
"It's over," Ao Tian said softly, his voice echoing in everyone's ears.
What? The leader, who was preparing to crush Ao Tian's head, was startled. When he saw the ice-cold smile on Ao Tian's face, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Ao Tian raised a finger and drew a "cross" in the air towards the guy who was lunging at him.
Pshhh! A large amount of blood sprayed out, and this Soul Emperor-ranked powerhouse was cut into four pieces by an invisible blade in a "cross" shape.
The severed limbs twitched on the ground, and the spurting blood landed on the second leader, leaving him stunned.
Ao Tian wasn't stained with a single drop of blood. He looked at the second Soul Emperor and raised his finger with a smile.
"No!" The man screamed, his scalp prickling with fear, and he retreated rapidly.
Ao Tian ruthlessly waved his finger, and invisible spatial energy sliced the man into pieces.
The remaining dozen or so people were all frozen in terror.
"Run!" someone shouted.
Ao Tian spun, leaped, his hands seemingly playing a beautiful melody.
When he left, only a pile of mangled corpses remained in the alley.
Inside the Spirit Hall of the small town, three Title Douluo elders from the Spirit Hall, along with some Soul Douluo and Soul Saint powerhouses, sat together, discussing tomorrow's actions.
Just then, Ao Tian's figure materialized in the hall.
A group of powerful Soul Masters' expressions shifted. They stood up abruptly, releasing their martial souls.
"Who are you?" someone demanded loudly.
Ao Tian looked at Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, who were sitting at the front.
Both Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo trembled, quickly standing up and respectfully saying, "Mr. Ao, what brings you here?"
Ao Tian had appeared in the form of a young man, and Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo recognized him immediately.
Even if they had ten times the courage, they wouldn't dare to sit in front of Ao Tian.
"Put away your martial souls!" Chrysanthemum Douluo roared.
"Mr. Ao, please take a seat." Chrysanthemum Douluo's smile was radiant, his body nearly bent at a ninety-degree angle.
Ao Tian walked to the highest seat and sat down. Immediately, a maidservant hurried over to pour tea.
The hot tea rushed into the cup. Ao Tian looked at the maidservant in front of him, who had a delicate appearance, and grabbed her hand.
"The tea is full," he said with a smile.
"Ah—" The girl cried out in surprise, only then realizing that she had been so focused on looking at Ao Tian that she'd forgotten she was pouring tea.
Two blushes bloomed on her cheeks, followed by a look of fear.
"Please… please forgive me, Master," she stammered.
Someone even elders had to revere, what a status that must be! How could she not be terrified?
Ao Tian waved his hand, and said with a smile, "It's alright, go back."
"Thank you, sir," the maid said gratefully, then respectfully withdrew.
Ao Tian turned his gaze to the three elders and said, "I've come here to give you an order."