Emperor Xue Ye now stood up, angrily declaring.
Xue Qinghe immediately followed suit, while Xue Xing also hurriedly rose to his feet. As a member of the royal family, he had to present a united front.
Xue Qinghe's eyes were icy. She desperately wanted to kill Xiong Cheng.
Though she knew that Xiong Cheng's actions had further intensified the conflict with the Heaven Dou Empire—aligning perfectly with the Spirit Hall's strategy—
she should have been pleased. Yet, seeing Shen An bleeding ignited a fury within her, making her wish to tear Xiong Cheng to pieces.
It was a pitiful sight. When Emperor Xue Ye stood up to intervene, only two Soul Sage-level members of the royal family appeared.
The Heaven Dou Imperial Family had completely declined. Their strongest member was merely an elder at the Soul Douluo level, who spent all his time secluded in cultivation.
Xiong Cheng also knew he wouldn't get a second chance to strike. Otherwise, it would escalate into open conflict.
"Your Majesty, forgive me. Luo Fuji is the most talented genius of our Balak Kingdom, destined to reach the Soul Douluo level without fail. I merely acted out of urgency," Xiong Cheng said indifferently.
"Take Luo Fuji away for treatment immediately," he then ordered.
Emperor Xue Ye's expression was extremely grim. He wanted to punish Xiong Cheng, but what could he say? His side's strongest fighters were only two Soul Sages.
If he pushed Xiong Cheng too hard, the man could simply flee back to the Balak Kingdom. Not only would it be futile, but it would also bring their underlying tensions into the open.
The empire still needs stability. With Qinghe's methods, we can surely achieve greater development, Emperor Xue Ye thought to himself.
"Xiong Cheng, I won't tolerate this happening again. Next time, there will be no leniency."
Hearing this, Shen An inwardly remarked that the imperial family's decline was no accident. The leadership set the tone, and if those in power were like this, their subordinates would inevitably follow suit.
Xue Qinghe also sighed inwardly. Emperor Xue Ye's mediocrity was nothing new, and while this should have pleased her, she now felt nothing but displeasure.
Xue Qinghe gave Xiong Cheng a deep, meaningful look.
Now is not the time. But when he leaves Heaven Dou, I will cripple him. Her killing intent surged.
"Kid, if you keep acting so ruthlessly, you'll eventually provoke a stronger opponent. You'd better be careful," Xiong Cheng said coldly.
"No need for your concern. You should watch your own back—I'll come for you someday," Shen An replied flatly.
"You really don't know your place!"
Xiong Cheng nearly laughed in anger. A mere Soul Master daring to threaten him, a Soul Sage?
Just then, a loud explosion erupted from outside the window, followed by the sound of collapsing debris and the shouts of guards.
A small brown mouse suddenly scurried in, its face panicked as it glanced back—Tom, that sneaky bastard, had no sense of honor.
All it had done was gnaw a few notches into Tom's claws, snap its tail, stuff a few firecrackers into its mouth, and blast it with a cannon a couple of times. Oh, and maybe tricked the furious Tom into a lake where a school of fish slapped it silly.
And now, Tom was chasing it with an axe.
So, the clever Jerry ran back. Tom always listened to Shen An, so it wouldn't dare cause trouble in front of him.
Jerry scurried forward, only to find a tall figure blocking its path. Without hesitation, it climbed up the man's pants leg.
Despite the vertical surface, Jerry ran up as if it were flat ground. Behind it, an enraged cat brandishing an axe charged into the hall.
Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to the two. Weren't these the musical maestros from earlier? Why were they trying to kill each other now?
Xiong Cheng stared blankly at Jerry, now perched on his shoulder. Wait, how did it climb onto me without me noticing?
Then, a cat rushed up to him and swung its axe.
Tom's height was naturally insufficient, but it could stretch its legs.
In an instant, the tiny Tom grew long legs, and its axe came whistling down with tremendous force.
Jerry reacted swiftly, crouching and covering its head with its hands.
Xiong Cheng gaped at the descending axe. Despite being a Soul Sage, he inexplicably felt like there was no way to dodge.
And indeed, he couldn't.
THUD!
Fortunately, Tom struck with the flat side of the axe rather than the blade. Even so, Xiong Cheng's vision swam from the impact.
Struggling against his dizziness, Xiong Cheng bellowed, "Wai—"
THUD! Another axe strike landed.
"Wait a—"
THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!
Xiong Cheng couldn't even finish a sentence before Tom hammered him seven or eight times with the axe.
His face was bruised, bleeding, and disfigured. The entire hall burst into laughter.
BOOM!
The relentless beating finally jolted Xiong Cheng awake, and he erupted with Soul Power, sending both Tom and Jerry flying.
The two soared through the air before an invisible force seemed to push them outward in a straight line.
Xiong Cheng was baffled. Shouldn't they have just been knocked back? Why did they fly up first before being hurled away?
Shen An swiftly moved, catching both troublemakers in his arms.
Xiong Cheng's left cheek was now a bloody, bruised mess. He glared at Shen An. "Hand over that cat and mouse."
Emperor Xue Ye, thoroughly amused by Tom and Jerry's antics, declared:
"Tom and Jerry are honored guests of Heaven Dou. Xiong Cheng, as a Soul Sage, you should show some magnanimity. Let this matter rest."
Xiong Cheng's face darkened, but he could say nothing more. Emperor Xue Ye was clearly determined to protect Tom and Jerry.
Tom, however, looked a little guilty. It had beaten the man up pretty badly.
Kind-hearted Tom pulled out a tiny roll of bandages and, ignoring Xiong Cheng's earlier retaliation, began wrapping his head.
Strangely, the small bandage managed to envelop Xiong Cheng's head in layer after layer.
Even weirder, Xiong Cheng's eyes were blank. What just happened? Why is my head wrapped up like this?
Damn it, a healing-type Soul Master could treat me! I don't need these stupid bandages!
Just then, Xue Qinghe spoke up. "Tom, this man just attacked Shen An."
Tom's eyes blazed with fury upon hearing this. This bastard dared to hurt my master?!
Its bandaging hands abruptly stopped, and with a sharp tug—
FWIP!
The bandage unraveled, and Xiong Cheng found himself spinning uncontrollably, turning into a human whirlwind.
After who-knows-how-many rotations, the dizzy Xiong Cheng collapsed onto the ground, humiliated in front of everyone.
"BAHAHAHAHAHA!" Emperor Xue Ye laughed uproariously, making no effort to hide his amusement.
A guard rushed in, kneeling to report, but upon seeing Tom and Jerry, he pointed excitedly:
"Your Majesty, these two were causing chaos outside, destroying countless buildings. We couldn't stop them!"
Emperor Xue Ye frowned at the guard. In his eyes, Tom and Jerry were heroes who had made Xiong Cheng suffer.
How much damage could a cat and a mouse possibly do? They're so small—they might've broken a few things at most.
This guard must be exaggerating.
With that conclusion, Emperor Xue Ye declared:
"Hmph! Tom and Jerry are the stars of tonight's banquet. Even if they destroyed every building in my garden, I wouldn't bat an eye!"
Only Shen An felt a cold sweat drip down his back. He didn't think the guard was exaggerating.
Given Tom and Jerry's capabilities, "countless buildings" was probably an understatement.