Douluo Dalu 3: Legend of the White Fox

How could Xia Yi not be shocked?

Leng Yaozhu had completely cut off their last resort—at this rate, the Flying Bird Sect was bound to fall apart.

"I don't know!" Mu Xi shook her head. Previously, Zhen Hua had spoken quite highly of Leng Yaozhu and hadn't considered her the same as the Qiangu family of the Spirit Pagoda.

But because of this incident, Zhen Hua now viewed Leng Yaozhu as just as domineering as Qiangu Dongfeng.

Xia Yi sighed. He hadn't expected Leng Yaozhu to stake her own reputation just to protect him.

This wasn't just about shielding him from harassment due to his Dark Phoenix martial soul anymore.

There was another reason—the Heart of the Ice God.

The news that he had publicly consumed the Heart of the Ice God had already spread.

Leng Yaozhu feared that someone might resort to extreme measures—capturing Xia Yi to experiment on him.

Her actions were a blatant show of force, a warning to those who knew about the Heart of the Ice God and harbored ill intentions toward Xia Yi.

Unless they wanted their sects to be forever cut off from purchasing soul spirits, they had better abandon any thoughts of targeting him.

Let alone a mid-tier sect like the Flying Bird Sect—even organizations as powerful as Tang Sect and Shrek Academy now had to seriously consider whether they could afford to bear the consequences of being sanctioned by the Spirit Pagoda.

Mu Xi didn't know about Xia Yi consuming the Heart of the Ice God, nor did she understand its significance.

She was also unaware of Leng Yaozhu's true intentions.

However, the high-ranking figures of the Douluo Continent, including Zhen Hua, could not possibly be ignorant of the fact that Leng Yaozhu was protecting Xia Yi.

Yet, they still couldn't accept her methods.

All the major organizations on the continent were competing for both resources and talent, and conflicts were inevitable.

The Spirit Pagoda's monopoly over soul spirits had already caused them discontent. Now that Leng Yaozhu had set a precedent of using soul spirits as a tool for sanctioning other sects, they feared they might be the next targets.

This was a threat that all organizations dreaded.

Xia Yi finally understood why Zhen Hua was so upset. If he were in Zhen Hua's place, he wouldn't be happy about it either.

Taking a deep breath, Xia Yi realized he had unknowingly been dragged into the power struggles between these major factions.

After talking so much, Mu Xi suddenly looked at Xia Yi and asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Why so serious? What do you want to ask?" Xia Yi asked curiously.

Mu Xi bit her lip and said in a deep voice, "Who are you?"

Xia Yi laughed. "Of course, I'm Xia Yi! Who else could I be?"

"Fair enough." Mu Xi chuckled as well.

Everyone had their own secrets. Since Xia Yi had chosen to play dumb, there was no point in pressing the matter further.

Both Mu Chen and Zhen Hua had mentioned multiple times that Xia Yi's background was mysterious.

Even after using all sorts of methods, Zhen Hua had only uncovered as much as Leng Yaozhu—Xia Yi's true identity remained untraceable.

This only made Mu Xi more curious, so she couldn't help but ask.

Xia Yi, on the other hand, felt helpless. His identity in the Federation's database had been forged by Gu Yue. If it had already started to raise suspicions, there was nothing he could do.

"Have you eaten yet?" Seeing Mu Xi force out a smile, Xia Yi shook his head in exasperation.

This girl—she knew he wouldn't answer, so why ask in the first place?

Now that the question was out, wasn't it just awkward for both of them?

"N-no, I haven't!" Mu Xi stammered, instinctively covering her slightly rounded stomach with her hand.

Every time she visited the Blacksmith Association headquarters in Heaven Dou City, Zhen Hua's friend Mu Ye, the sect master of the Body Sect, would always prepare a feast of nutritious and delicious dishes for her.

As one of the continent's top chefs, Mu Ye's culinary skills were unparalleled.

Any dish he made was nearly impossible to resist—especially for a teenage girl like Mu Xi.

It wasn't easy for her to visit Heaven Dou City, so she had just eaten way too much before coming down to wait for Xia Yi.

Yet, for some reason, she instinctively lied to Xia Yi.

Seeing his strange expression, her face immediately flushed red.

"Forget it. On my way here, I saw a nice teahouse over there. Let's go have some tea to help with digestion." Xia Yi smirked.

He knew it—given how much Zhen Hua doted on Mu Xi, there was no way he'd let her leave on an empty stomach.

Xia Yi wasn't too familiar with Heaven Dou City and only knew a few places, so he decided to take Mu Xi to the teahouse he had just passed by.

It was an incredibly luxurious establishment. Even though Xia Yi had only taken a quick glance at it earlier, the grandeur of the place had left a deep impression on him.

Before long, Xia Yi and Mu Xi stepped inside.

"Snowy Heavenly Dragon—this really is fine tea. It's almost like a heavenly treasure. Not only is it rich in spiritual energy, but it's also incredibly refreshing. The only problem is the price… No wonder there aren't many customers."

After taking a sip, Xia Yi instantly felt his mind clear. All his fatigue vanished in an instant, and even his spiritual power showed slight improvement.

A single pot of tea cost 50,000 Federation coins. If he weren't here with Mu Xi, he wouldn't have set foot in this place even if someone paid him.

"I've heard my master mention this teahouse before. It belongs to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect." Mu Xi took a small sip.

"The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?" Xia Yi frowned.

He had heard of this sect before. Back in the Tianhai Alliance Tournament, one of Ye Xinglan's teammates had been from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"It's an ancient sect that has endured countless calamities yet never perished. Though their headquarters is now in the Star Luo Empire, their title as the continent's strongest support-type martial soul allows them to thrive even in the Federation.

Don't be fooled by the high prices—the teahouse is usually packed. It's only empty today because of special circumstances," Mu Xi explained.

"Special circumstances? What kind of special circumstances?" Xia Yi asked curiously.

Mu Xi hesitated before saying, "I guess there's no harm in telling you. Just now, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's sect master was killed by one of the sect's own protectors."

The sect's direct-line disciples all possessed the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul. While they had some offensive capabilities thanks to soul tools and battle armor, they still couldn't compare to combat specialists.

Since the days when they were still called the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, there had been multiple cases of direct-line disciples being killed by their own protectors.

But no one had expected that this time, the victim would be the sect master.

Even if it was only the sect master of the Federation branch, it was still a shocking event.

"What exactly happened?" Xia Yi asked, intrigued.

"I don't know much. I only overheard a little bit when the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect came to invite my master to their sect master's funeral.

Right then, I got your soul communicator message and came downstairs.

I did hear them mention Tang Sect… and something about the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.

But I don't know the details." Mu Xi shook her head.

She had left immediately after getting Xia Yi's message, so she had no idea what the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect told Zhen Hua after she was gone.

(End of Chapter)