Chapter 294: Thoroughly Exposed
"Want to take him away? Have you asked for my permission?" Dugu Bo sneered, his voice sending chills down the spines of the gathered soul masters, commoners, and nobles in the imperial city.
As soon as they saw Dugu Bo's poisonous mist, everyone avoided it, retreating quickly, afraid of coming into contact with it.
They had heard about the poison's effects on the battlefield.
While it didn't kill, it could damage nerves, leaving victims bedridden for years.
Many soldiers were now paralyzed at home, unable to move.
Dugu Bo's poisonous mist descended like a waterfall, driving away all living things around and finally sealing the cage where Tang San was held.
"Dugu Bo! What do you think you're doing?!" Tang Xiao was instantly enraged by Dugu Bo's actions, shouting at him. Simultaneously, a deep worry for Tang San arose within him.
If Dugu Bo exposed Tang San's identity now, not only Tang San but all of the Heaven Dou Empire's top officials would be humiliated!
A godly inheritor stripped naked…
Tang Xiao couldn't even bear to imagine it.
Thus, while he verbally reprimanded Dugu Bo, he quickly sent a private transmission to him: "Dugu Bo, you were once a member of our Heaven Dou Empire and a guest elder of the royal family. Are you really going to go this far?"
Dugu Bo, hearing this, immediately understood.
It seemed Tang Xiao knew his true purpose.
He coldly replied via transmission, "How did your Heaven Dou Empire treat me back then?"
"And now you dare reprimand me?"
Without any hesitation, he loudly proclaimed, "Everyone, the person in this cage is none other than your so-called Tang San! Hahaha!" Dugu Bo laughed heartily, his words causing shock among everyone present, except for Tang San and his allies.
"The person in the cage is Lord Tang San?!"
"How is that possible?!"
"Nonsense, Lord Tang San is the inheritor of divine power. How could he be caged?"
"Indeed, it's said that Lord Tang San's power has surpassed Sword Douluo's. There are few who could defeat him. He even possesses divine strength. Who could defeat him?!"
Many refused to believe Dugu Bo, thinking he was making things up.
They had seen Tang San sparring with Sword Douluo, and those battles were incredibly inspiring.
Many in the Heaven Dou Empire had gained confidence in resisting the Spirit Empire because of Tang San's growing strength.
However, while the fanatical commoners refused to believe Dugu Bo, many nobles began to harbor doubts, turning their gazes to the cage.
Though often arrogant, the nobles were not fools.
They had heard of Dugu Bo's character when he was a guest elder to Prince Xue Xing. He was a maverick who wouldn't lie casually.
Could it be… that the person in the cage was really Tang San?
But how could that be?
As these thoughts swirled, they also remembered another prodigious youth from the Spirit Empire.
Su Yun!
Could it be that Tang San was defeated by Su Yun after leaving the empire?
"Utter nonsense! My nephew Tang San is incredibly gifted. How could he be a mere servant in a cage?!"
"Exactly, Tang San is the son-in-law of my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, unrivaled in battle. Who could defeat him?"
Tang Xiao and Ning Fengzhi knew Dugu Bo's words were true, but they couldn't admit that the person in the cage was Tang San.
If they confirmed Dugu Bo's claim, it would mean admitting that Tang San was not only defeated but also humiliated like a dog!
"You think denying it will make it false?"
Dugu Bo sneered again, looking down at them with contempt. "Why don't you open the cage and let everyone see for themselves?"
The crowd stirred. The nobles, now even more curious, urged to see the truth with their own eyes.
Facing this escalating situation, Tang Xiao knew they had no choice but to act swiftly.
"Prepare to take Tang San away!" Tang Xiao transmitted to the others, signaling them to move quickly.
However, before they could act, Dugu Bo unleashed a massive cloud of green poison, enveloping the area around the cage and preventing anyone from approaching.
"Do you think I'll let you take him so easily?" Dugu Bo's voice was filled with malice as he laughed sinisterly.
Desperation and anger surged within Tang Xiao and the others. If they couldn't get to Tang San soon, the situation would spiral out of control.
But at that moment, a booming voice echoed through the sky.
"Enough!"
A powerful aura descended, dispelling Dugu Bo's poison and creating a path towards the cage.
Everyone turned to see a new figure entering the fray.
Dugu Bo sneered sinisterly, launching a palm strike to destroy the cage holding Tang San, aiming to reveal his true identity.
Boom!
As the palm wind surged, a sword light cut through the space, instantly nullifying Dugu Bo's attack.
Sword Douluo!
"Hmph, if he's not Tang San, why are you so eager to interrupt my attack, Sword Douluo?" Dugu Bo mocked, looking at his opponent. "Are you saying a mere slave is worth saving?"
Sword Douluo stood on his Seven Kill Sword, floating in the air with his hands behind his back. He stared at Dugu Bo, saying, "Even if it's just a blade of grass, it's still the property of the Heaven Dou Empire. How we handle it is our business."
"Dugu Bo, now that you're with the Spirit Hall, you have no say in how we deal with our slaves."
Hearing this, Dugu Bo laughed heartily, "Hahaha… You're just afraid of Tang San's identity being exposed, yet you pretend to be so righteous."
"These years, you've dealt with more slaves in secret than the people I've killed on the battlefield."
"Today, you're really going all out to protect Tang San."
Then, Dugu Bo looked down at the commoners and suddenly spoke, "Who wants to see this person's true identity? I'll give you a chance."
Dugu Bo's words caused Tang San and the others' faces to change drastically.
Dugu Bo's intention was clear: to shift the conflict.
At this moment, the identity of the slave in the cage had become a burning question in many people's minds.
Most people certainly didn't want the person inside to be Tang San.
But there were always those with darker intentions who wanted to see the mighty fall and be humiliated.
Especially some rogue cultivators.
"I will!" Indeed, a male soul master stepped forward.
However, as soon as he spoke, he suddenly felt a sharp sword intent locking onto him!
In that moment, a chilling sensation ran from his heels to the top of his head.
"Soul masters from a small country dare to cause trouble in our Heaven Dou Imperial City?"
"We are at war with the Spirit Empire. Don't think we don't have the strength to deal with you. If you don't want to cause trouble for your own faction, then get lost!" Sword Douluo transmitted his message to the man, causing him to pale and flee in panic.
His initial intention was just to join the fun, but he hadn't expected to almost bring disaster upon his faction.
"Heh, it seems you're quite good at threatening others." Dugu Bo laughed dismissively at the man's retreat, then turned his gaze back to the crowd, believing someone else would step forward.
Sure enough, several more people stood up.
Their reasons were remarkably consistent: if the person in the cage wasn't Tang San, what was there to fear about revealing their identity?
A mere slave wasn't worth the effort of several Titled Douluo.
Facing their words, Ning Fengzhi and the others found it difficult to explain or stop them.
They planned to privately transmit the message and warn them.
But while they were momentarily stunned, Dugu Bo suddenly struck, his terrifying attack destroying the cage!
His intention was to break the cage and injure Tang San.
Bang!
With a loud explosion, a figure flew out of the cage like a kite with a broken string!
"Not good!"
"Save him quickly!"
Ning Fengzhi and the others acted immediately, trying to cover Tang San's face to prevent it from being seen.
However, some sharp-eyed individuals still caught a glimpse of the extremely ugly face.
"It's Tang San!"
"It really is Tang San?!"
"My god, Tang San has been paraded around the empire all this time!"
"How could this happen?!"
Countless people were in shock, struggling to understand what was going on.
At this moment, Tang San's face was twisted with rage, veins bulging on his forehead.
Despite his best efforts to conceal his face, he had still been recognized!
Damn it!
"Isn't Tang San supposed to be a divine inheritor? How could this happen?!" someone shouted, questioning Tang Xiao and the others from the Clear Sky Clan.
Dugu Bo, laughing, explained for them, "Of course, it's because he was defeated by Su Yun of the Spirit Empire. But our Spirit Empire is merciful and doesn't wish to kill, so we let him live."
In the past, people would never have believed Dugu Bo's words.
But now, the truth was laid bare before them.
They had seen Dugu Bo blast Tang San out of the cage, now lying weakly in Tang Xiao's arms.
"Could it really be that Tang San was defeated by Su Yun again, as Dugu Bo said?"
They had witnessed several battles between Tang San and Su Yun.
Every time, Tang San was defeated.
There's a saying: "Three times the charm."
Tang San, the guardian deity in their hearts, was repeatedly defeated by Su Yun, making everyone uncomfortable.
Moreover, now Tang San had been caged by the Spirit Empire and paraded around the empire like a monkey for months.
And no one noticed!
Because no one in the Heaven Dou Empire was willing to believe Tang San could be treated this way!
But the truth was undeniable!
Boom!
Just as everyone was in shock and confusion, Tang San finally regained his strength.
He erupted with energy, aiming to take down Dugu Bo directly!
"Dugu Bo, if you dare to come alone, you'll lose your life here!" Tang San roared.
Regardless, his identity was already exposed.
So the only way to remedy this was to kill Dugu Bo publicly and shift everyone's focus.
Afterward, they could report that Tang San had endured humiliation and pretended to lose to lure Spirit Empire's Titled Douluo into a trap.
Tang San used himself as bait to lure the enemy.
Such a report would certainly restore Tang San's image.
However, this plan could only succeed if they killed Dugu Bo.
"Hahaha, enraged and wanting to kill me now? Tang San, you couldn't kill me before, and you think you can today?" Dugu Bo knew Tang San's strength well. While Su Yun could easily defeat Tang San, he was no Su Yun.
Even with the Spirit Hall's help, his soul power was only at level 92, far from level 93.
Tang San, however, was close to reaching level 100.
Head-to-head, Dugu Bo knew he would be the one to suffer.
So, seeing the divine Seagod Trident in Tang San's hand, he skillfully dodged while releasing poison mist, both protecting himself and restricting Tang San's movements.
With divine power and Xuantian Skill, Tang San could resist the poison for a short time.
But Dugu Bo's evolved martial spirit, the Seven-Colored Serpent Emperor, had even stronger poison.
Tang San initially planned to charge through the poison mist and pin Dugu Bo to the wall with his trident.
But the poison was more potent than he expected.
He had to hold his breath and retreat.
Just as he planned to signal everyone to join in and capture Dugu Bo, he heard Dugu Bo shout, "Haha, Tang San, if you try to kill me, I'll take the entire imperial city with me!"
Dugu Bo's words immediately terrified those who had hoped Tang San would deal with him.
They remembered the "Poison" in Poison Douluo!
If Dugu Bo self-destructed, his poison would spread like an enormous explosion, covering the entire city.
Only soul masters above Soul Emperor level could survive. Everyone else would likely be poisoned to death.
"Run!"
Someone screamed, and the crowd panicked, rushing towards the city gates.
They feared that Tang San and Dugu Bo might really fight to the death, dooming them all.
"Don't even think about running. I've already set up a poison array outside the city, a backup plan for my retreat."
Dugu Bo's words stopped those trying to flee, filling them with despair.
Were they really going to die here today?
Dugu Bo knew that while Tang San and the others hated him, they wouldn't let him self-destruct.
To the Spirit Empire, he was merely a bonus.
If he died, it didn't matter.
Moreover, he had a desire to repay Su Yun.
He had no regrets.
His granddaughter Dugu Yan was well settled in the Spirit Empire. With Su Yun's support, she would become a Titled Douluo in time.
"Little San, we can't fight here. If we harm the civilians, we'll be doing the Spirit Empire's job for them," Tang Xiao tried to calm his nephew.
"Little San, let him go now. We'll follow and force him to change course, then kill him elsewhere," Ning Fengzhi suggested.
Tang San understood immediately.
He looked at Dugu Bo coldly, "Dugu Bo, we'll spare you today. Get lost!"
Dugu Bo smiled and left without hesitation.
As soon as Dugu Bo was out of sight, Tang San activated his spiritual power to track him.
"Follow him!"