Chapter 349 Punishment
Yu Tianheng still bowed his head, pleading, "But Prince Xue Xing, the fact that we lost the match is undeniable. Please, go ahead and issue our punishment!"
"Otherwise, we'll have no face to continue staying at Heaven Dou Royal Academy!"
Only by accepting punishment could he truly engrave this failure into his memory!!
Dugu Yan didn't hesitate to agree, "Tian Heng is right, we lost, and if we don't accept punishment, it wouldn't be fair to the other academies of Heaven Dou Royal Academy!"
Yu Feng clenched his teeth even harder, "Prince Xue Xing, please, punish us!"
Prince Xue Xing, looking somewhat helpless, turned his gaze back to Du Gu Bo...
At such a time, he also didn't know whether he should punish them or not!
What if he overdid the punishment and angered the latter, what then?
Du Gu Bo, seeing Dugu Yan and the others' uncompromising eyes, held back the words he wanted to say, keeping them buried in his heart...
Afterward, he silently nodded...
Taking the cue, Prince Xue Xing braced himself and said, "Since you insist on this, I will strip the three of you of your positions on the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's main team!"
Upon hearing this, the bodies of Dugu Yan and the others couldn't help but shudder...
They had not expected the punishment to be so severe!
But out of guilt, they still chose to accept it!
"Yes, Prince Xue Xing!"
The corners of Du Gu Bo's mouth twitched a few times, as he forcibly repressed his emotions...
Having done all this, Prince Xue Xing then waved his hand, "Alright, you all may leave now!"
After signaling them, everyone departed in a daze...
As expected, no sooner had they left than Du Gu Bo rebuked angrily with a full face of wrath, "Prince Xue Xing, what do you mean by this? To kick them all out from the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's main team!"
"Could it be that you look down upon my granddaughter?"
Seeing this, Prince Xue Xing hastened to gesture with his hands, "Poison Douluo, wasn't it you who wanted me to punish them?"
Du Gu Bo fixed his gaze tightly on the other, word by word stating, "Yes, I wanted you to punish them, but isn't your punishment a bit too harsh?"
At this moment, Prince Xue Xing also knew that if he couldn't give a reasonable explanation, things would become troublesome...
"Poison Douluo, please remain calm. I kicked them out of the team for two reasons. The first is to consider the feelings of other Heaven Dou Royal Academy students, as the outcome of their match was indeed dissatisfying!"
"The second reason is to spur them to pick themselves up!"
Du Gu Bo looked puzzled, "Pick themselves up? What do you mean?"
Prince Xue Xing gave an awkward smile, then continued, "After being removed from the team, they will surely redouble their efforts to earn their way back!"
"In that sense, this punishment isn't really that severe, right?"
No matter how you look at it, Yu Tianheng and the others are the top talents of Heaven Dou Royal Academy!
Du Gu Bo was clearly swayed, musing, "Hmm... now that you mention it, having them temporarily step down from the main team is indeed a good strategy."
"Prince Xue Xing, I misunderstood you before, please don't take it to heart!"
Prince Xue Xing indicated he didn't mind, "No worries, such matters won't affect our life-and-death relationship."
"By the way... Poison Douluo, is your late return due to Martial Soul Hall?"
Du Gu Bo nodded slightly, "Hmm... On our way back to the imperial palace, we sensed the presence of many Soul Masters, but we were not attacked, presumably a warning from Martial Soul Hall!"
Hearing this, Prince Xue Xing's face filled with indignation, "Hmph, Martial Soul Hall is getting more and more arrogant, even daring to warn the royal household."
"Without us, Martial Soul Hall would have disappeared from the world a long time ago due to various reasons, and it certainly wouldn't be as prominent as it is today!"
Du Gu Bo emphasized, "That was only in the past. Now, even the royal household finds Martial Soul Hall to be a headache!"
Not to mention the numerous Soul Master powerhouses, the mere fact that they are dispersed throughout the Tiandou Empire is enough to be fatal!
Prince Xue Xing curled his lips, "Ultimately, I still don't know what the Imperial Brother is thinking. Even now he hasn't taken any measures against the Martial Soul Hall."
Du Gu Bo took a deep breath, "I think, His Majesty Xue Ye probably doesn't want to cause too much conflict with the Martial Soul Hall, which is why he has always chosen to make concessions!"
"After all, with the Xingluo Empire eyeing us like a tiger watching its prey, once a war breaks out, the Tiandou Empire will be attacked from both front and back!"
Prince Xue Xing shook his head, "I am naturally aware of this as well. It's just that I feel like Imperial Brother seems to have lost the sharp edge he once had."
If it had been the previous Xue Ye, he would have already gone to war with the Martial Soul Hall!
As if thinking of something, Du Gu Bo took the opportunity to ask, "Prince Xue Xing, there's something I've been wondering about, why do you harbor animosity towards Crown Prince Xue Qinghe?"
The expression on Xue Xing's face became solemn in an instant, "Haven't I mentioned this before? I am very familiar with Qing He, that child—well, the one from before."
"As for the current Xue Qinghe, my impression is that someone is impersonating him and trying to mimic everything about that child."
Before Du Gu Bo could speak again, Xue Xing continued, "I know what you're going to say; I've discussed this matter with the Imperial Brother at least ten times, but each time, he has denied it!"
"The most severe time, he even considered stripping me of my prince title."
After all, almost all of the major authority in the Tiandou Empire is managed by Xue Ye!
The only place completely under his own jurisdiction was the Heaven Dou Royal Academy!
Hearing something unexpected, Du Gu Bo, resting his chin on his hand, said, "I never thought there would be such hidden secrets, but Prince Xue Xing, I choose to believe in your judgment!"
Prince Xue Xing was somewhat surprised, "Why? Clearly, I don't have any evidence to prove the child is an impostor!"
Du Gu Bo, rarely smiling, replied, "Quite simple, your intuition has never been wrong!"
"Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to save my own life."
Prince Xue Xing couldn't help but smile wryly, "This... is that blind trust? But it's a good thing for me."
After all, he himself absolutely trusted the former!
Subsequently, the conversation came to an end...
"Alright, Poison Douluo, after traveling continuously for so long, you must be tired as well. You should go back and rest first."
Du Gu Bo did not refuse, "Alright, then I'll take my leave!"
After all, during this period, he has been staying in Heaven Dou Royal Academy, with his spiritual power always locked onto the other party...
No need to worry about a sudden attack...
Having said this, he left without looking back...
Watching the direction of the other's departure, Prince Xue Xing couldn't help but tease, "Saying it's to sleep, but he surely wants to go see his granddaughter, really spoiling Dugu Yan a bit too much!"
But these matters had nothing to do with himself...
What he needed to do now was to sort out his thoughts and wait for tomorrow to go to the imperial palace and tell Xue Ye everything that had happened!!
At the very least, the defensive measures of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy must be strengthened again!!
To prevent such things from happening again!!!
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