Douluo Dalu 2: The True God King-Chapter 294: [DD2]:

Each one possessed strength equivalent to a Super Douluo. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to assist in battling Du Busi.

After all, Rank Nine Soul Engineers were far rarer than Titled Douluo, and every single one of them wielded terrifying power.

"You lead the clean-up efforts. I'll go check below."

Jing Hongchen's face was filled with urgency. The damage here, though severe, was secondary.

If the thing below had been compromised, then that would be a true catastrophe.

Without another word, he descended into the underground tunnels, moving at high speed through a passageway.

Before long, he arrived at a location where a massive black metal door loomed before him.

Seeing the door intact, his heart eased slightly.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the metal door and stepped inside.

A vast laboratory unfolded before his eyes.

The circular chamber spanned over a hundred meters in diameter and stood thirty meters high.

At its center stood a towering metal humanoid, a colossus over fifteen meters tall.

Its massive body was entirely forged from metal, covered in thousands of core formations, each intricate beyond imagination.

Jing Hongchen's heart finally settled.

"Good... good, it's still here."

Seeing the metal giant intact, he let out a sigh of relief.

All other losses were explainable—but if this had gone missing, he would have been utterly doomed.

This was the culmination of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy's research, the pinnacle of the Sun Moon Empire's technological advancements.

Virtually all of the empire's high-end technological innovations were embedded within this creation.

It was the most ambitious research project in the Sun Moon Empire's history.

Every contributor was a Rank Nine Soul Engineer who had poured their life's work into this project. Its importance could not be overstated.

Had it been lost, even as the Hall Master of Illustrious Virtue Hall, he would not have been able to escape responsibility.

Fortunately, the Body Sect barbarians hadn't realized its significance.

Compared to this, even losing a hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo was trivial.

"I should have listened to Su Yu..."

Having breathed a sigh of relief, Jing Hongchen's face turned regretful.

Su Yu had warned him before—Star Luo Empire harbored ulterior motives, intending to use the hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo to stir up trouble.

He had advised heightened security within Illustrious Virtue Hall, urging vigilance against surprise attacks from the shadows.

Jing Hongchen had agreed on the surface but had dismissed the concern in his heart.

Illustrious Virtue Hall was heavily fortified. Not even a fly could sneak in—how could anyone possibly infiltrate?

Yet, against all expectations, the Body Sect had done just that... and they had used the primitive method of digging a tunnel!

Illustrious Virtue Hall was buried a hundred meters underground. This meant the Body Sect had to dig even deeper.

Honestly, this possibility had never even crossed his mind. But now, it had happened right before his eyes.

Faced with reality, he was filled with deep regret.

His arrogance had cost him dearly.

If only he had heeded Su Yu's warning instead of being so overconfident, today's disaster might have been prevented.

"My arrogance brought this upon me. I must remember this lesson for the rest of my life."

"And as for the Body Sect... Du Busi... you dared to invade Illustrious Virtue Hall and wreak such havoc? This debt—I will settle it with you one day."

Jing Hongchen growled, rage surging within him, his hatred for the Body Sect surpassing even that for Shrek Academy.

To him, this was an unprecedented humiliation that he would repay sooner or later.

Snorting coldly, he exited the laboratory and returned to the devastated hall.

Illustrious Virtue Hall had suffered great casualties and massive losses.

However, the Body Sect had paid dearly as well—two Titled Douluo had perished, and dozens of bodies were left behind.

For a mere hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo, was this cost truly worth it?

"Hall Master, we have a situation. The Shrek Academy instructor, Fan Yu, was at the explosion's epicenter and... unfortunately perished."

"If word of this gets out, will Shrek Academy take issue with us?"

A Rank Nine Soul Engineer approached and reported cautiously.

"Issue?"

"What issue?"

"What could they possibly complain about?"

"A mere instructor died. Did we not lose enough people?"

"If they want someone to blame, they should look to the Body Sect. They're the ones who killed him."

Jing Hongchen snorted, clearly displeased.

"Yes, Hall Master, but... Miss Meng and Young Master Xiao are still at Shrek Academy. Will they seek revenge...?"

Jing Hongchen shook his head. "No, they won't dare."

"First of all, Fan Yu wasn't killed by us. Secondly, given Meng's relationship with Su Yu, Shrek Academy wouldn't dare touch her."

"We operate based on evidence. Su Yu, on the other hand, only needs suspicion."

"Shrek Academy isn't foolish enough to make that mistake."

The Rank Nine Soul Engineer's face brightened and he flattered, "Young Master Su Yu is truly a pillar of Illustrious Virtue Hall. Hall Master, you are fortunate to have such a son-in-law."

Jing Hongchen remained noncommittal.

Su Yu and the Hongchen family were indeed close.

But whether Su Yu truly cared about Illustrious Virtue Hall was another question entirely.

Jing Hongchen had known Su Yu for years and understood him well.

Su Yu was undoubtedly affectionate toward them and Meng Hongchen.

But toward the Sun Moon Empire? Su Yu was not necessarily their ally.

Jing Hongchen was the Hall Master of Illustrious Virtue Hall, but ultimately, the hall belonged to the royal family and the empire.

That distinction might have led Su Yu to act very differently when the time came.

Not that it mattered to Jing Hongchen. He was loyal, but not blindly so.

He served the Sun Moon Empire, but he was also the leader of the Hongchen family.

Su Yu was his family's contingency plan.

With Su Yu's influence, no matter what fate befell the empire, the Hongchen family would survive.

Jing Hongchen had high hopes for Su Yu—one day, this young man might reign supreme, surpassing all before him.

With Su Yu watching over them, his beloved grandchildren would always be safe.

That was why he had always treated Su Yu so favorably.

Otherwise, though he cherished talent, he would not have been so generous.

"Alright, enough standing around. Have the site cleaned up. I must report today's events to His Majesty."

Waving dismissively, Jing Hongchen sent the engineer away.

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Then, he turned and left the hall, heading for the imperial palace.

Such a large commotion would not have gone unnoticed by the royal court.

Yet despite holding off Du Busi for so long, no reinforcements had ever arrived.

That... stirred a troubling thought deep in Jing Hongchen's mind.

...

...

...

Outside Radiant City.

The members of the Body Sect were still flying at full speed.

Holding the supreme treasure of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo, they didn't dare to stop for even a moment. Only by returning to their sect's stronghold could they feel at ease.

Two Titled Douluo led the flight, but suddenly, an indescribable, immense pressure enveloped them.

Everyone from the Body Sect, still mid-air, was forcibly dragged toward the ground.

"Not good, it's a domain!"

The leading Titled Douluo shouted in alarm, realizing something was wrong.

Such a powerful gravity domain—it was clear that a formidable enemy had arrived.

They tried to resist, but the gravitational force was far stronger than they had imagined.

Nearly a hundred members of the Body Sect, whether Soul Douluo or even Titled Douluo, all plummeted like birds with broken wings, crashing heavily onto the ground.

Before they could react, an overwhelming chill, like an Ice Age, swept across the area. Snowflakes danced through the air.

Another domain!

The extreme cold spread rapidly, instantly freezing the Soul Sages and Soul Douluo of the Body Sect into ice statues.

Even the dozen or so Titled Douluo struggled under the dual suppression of these domains.

"Who are you? How dare you attack our Body Sect?"

The leading Titled Douluo gritted his teeth, resisting the dual-domain's pressure, his aura surging wildly.

Behind him, over ten Body Sect Titled Douluo radiated intense power, their presence formidable.

"The Body Sect?"

"And so what?"

"I came here just to beat up the Body Sect!"

A thunderous voice echoed from the sky as dozens of figures emerged.

At the forefront stood a towering man, over 2.5 meters tall, like a small giant.

Beside him was another imposing figure, a white-haired man nearly 2 meters tall.

Behind them, dozens more exuded the same bone-chilling aura.

Their presences intertwined—every one of them was at least a Soul Douluo-level expert.

Together, they unleashed a domain so powerful that even Titled Douluo turned pale in shock.

"This... this is a combined domain?"

The leading Body Sect Titled Douluo's expression changed drastically as he witnessed this terrifying sight.

A synchronized domain created by dozens of people—such a phenomenon could push domain power to its peak.

It wasn't just their sect; even the infamous Dugu Bo would struggle if caught in this.

Yet, such a large-scale combined domain was only a legend, unheard of in reality.

The requirements were simply too stringent.

First, all members had to possess the same type of martial soul.

Second, every participant needed to be at least a Soul Sage.

Third, there had to be at least fifty participants.

The first three conditions were already rare, but the most troublesome was the fourth: the martial souls had to be of a similar level, without significant disparities.

On top of that, they needed an extraordinary degree of coordination, achieved through strict training.

Even the Body Sect, with its unique body martial souls, had never been able to accomplish such a feat.

Yet, these people had?

And each of them was a Soul Douluo or stronger?

What kind of monstrous force was this?!

The leading Titled Douluo of the Body Sect could hardly believe his eyes.

"Oh? You recognize a combined domain?"

The giant man's voice carried a hint of surprise, as if amazed that lowly nobodies like them would know such an advanced technique.

His tone of condescension instantly irritated the Body Sect's Titled Douluo.

"What do you want?"

"Even if you have a combined domain, our Body Sect isn't to be trifled with!"

"Our Sect Master will be here soon!"

The Body Sect Titled Douluo bluffed, his voice forceful but lacking confidence.

The giant man scoffed. "You don't understand combined domains, do you? Even if Dugu Bo came, so what?"

"We'd just beat him up along with the rest of you!"

"Y-you... You're too arrogant!"

"Arrogance requires strength. And lucky for us—we have plenty."

The giant man's eyes narrowed in impatience. "Enough nonsense. Hand over the hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo."

"You... You're after the embryo?!"

The Body Sect Titled Douluo finally realized why they had been ambushed.

"Stop wasting time. Hand it over."

"Dream on! We risked everything to steal it from Illustrious Virtue Hall. There's no way we're giving it to you!"

"You bastards! If you want a hundred-thousand-year soul beast embryo, why don't you rob Illustrious Virtue Hall yourselves?! Why steal from us?!"

The giant man grinned. "How could robbing Illustrious Virtue Hall compare to robbing the Body Sect?"

"Besides, we're all law-abiding citizens. We'd never commit a home invasion."

"We just enjoy robbing dishonorable people like you."

"You steal from others—we steal from you. That's called enforcing justice."

"Justice, my ass! You sons of b—!"

The Body Sect Titled Douluo couldn't hold back anymore and erupted into a furious curse.

"Still daring to curse?"

The giant man raised a hand and slapped the Titled Douluo across the air.

In the next moment, he charged into the group, his body transforming into a massive white-furred giant ape, rampaging through the battlefield.