Spirit Hall's Change in Policy

In the Worship Hall.

Qian Daoliu had summoned all the enshrined for an emergency meeting.

Golden Crocodile Douluo looked at Qian Daoliu tentatively. "Great Enshrined, did that senior have any instructions?"

Qian Daoliu teased him, "So cautious? Golden Crocodile, that's not like you."

"You haven't been beaten by him. I can't make you understand, big brother." Golden Crocodile Douluo wore a look of complete submission. "You can only feel it when you face him yourself. That's not power any ordinary person could possess!"

Qian Jun, Jiang Mo, and the others also pressed their lips together.

After seeing Lu Jin's strength that day, they had already grown fearful, but now that even Golden Crocodile Douluo was so thoroughly convinced, their respect for Lu Jin had grown even greater.

Guang Ling asked, "Great Enshrined, you just sent that child Ling Yuan to find the Pope. Does the Pope have an important task for her?"

"You could say that." Qian Daoliu made no secret of it. "The Pope isn't getting any younger, and that child Ling Yuan has good talent."

With that much said, the enshrined, all men of experience, naturally understood that the Great Enshrined wanted a grandchild.

Mighty Lion Douluo nodded as well. "That girl Ling Yuan really is a fine choice. She's absolutely loyal to Spirit Hall, and her Martial Soul is compatible with His Holiness the Pope's. Their child is bound to be talented."

Speaking of his grandchild, Qian Daoliu's face softened into an affectionate smile. "Of course. The senior said that my granddaughter has the potential to become a god!"

The potential to become a god?!

The six enshrined stared wide-eyed.

Demon Subduing Douluo said solemnly, "If Senior Lu said it, then we have to believe it!"

Qian Jun laughed too. "Great Enshrined, you'd better tell the Pope to work harder. While the rest of us can still move around, once the young lady is born, we can all guide her together!"

Qian Daoliu waved a hand. "That also depends on whether Ling Yuan agrees. The Pope and I can't decide it on our own."

"She dares disagree?!" Golden Crocodile snorted. "Spirit Hall raised her and gave her everything. Would marrying the Pope be such an injustice to her?"

"Golden Crocodile!" Qian Daoliu rebuked him sternly. "Listen well. From this day forward, Spirit Hall must no longer act as arrogantly as it has in the past. That is also why I summoned you here today."

The six enshrined froze for a moment. "Great Enshrined, what do you mean?"

Qian Daoliu took a deep breath. Just as the senior had said, Spirit Hall, from top to bottom, had forgotten why it was founded.

His expression grave, he said, "Do you still remember the original purpose of Spirit Hall? Our ancestor, the Angel God, did not establish it to unify the continent, nor to suppress other powers!"

"This..." The six enshrined looked at one another.

Only then did they realize that, if Qian Daoliu had not pointed it out, they would not have noticed that Spirit Hall's present ambitions had strayed from its original purpose.

Qian Daoliu continued, "From its founding to the present day, Spirit Hall has had only one purpose: to discover talented commoners and break the great families' monopoly on talented Soul Masters."

Qian Daoliu did not speak openly of the deeper reason. The Angel God had established Spirit Hall with the original intention of gathering faith from all quarters through a righteous order, paving the way for her inheritance.

But could Spirit Hall as it stood now truly be called righteous?

Qian Daoliu had not gone out in a long time and did not know clearly, but a power that had made an enemy of the whole world could never lay claim to righteousness.

Even so, although the Angel God's inheritance had been a factor in Spirit Hall's founding, its commitment to upholding justice in the Soul Master World had been genuine through and through.

Qian Daoliu swept his gaze over the six enshrined. "We watched Ling Yuan grow up. If we can act arbitrarily without even listening to the wishes of one of our own, one can imagine how Spirit Hall treats outsiders!"

Golden Crocodile and the others looked ashamed. "Great Enshrined... we forgot our original purpose. Please punish us!"

"Enough..." Qian Daoliu closed his eyes, recalling what Lu Jin had said. If he had not spent every day guarding Spirit Hall, it might never have become what it was today.

"As Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined and the Pope's father, I cannot shirk responsibility for its corrupt ways." He glanced at the others. "Starting today, the six of you need not remain in Spirit Hall. Go and see the Douluo Continent, and personally inspect Spirit Hall's branches in every region."

Qian Daoliu said sternly, "If you find anyone using their strength to bully the weak, arrest them all and sentence them according to their crimes, based on the complaints of the local people!"

"Spirit Hall's corrupt ways are my fault, but I cannot leave Spirit Hall for too long. Sorry for the trouble, fellow enshrined; I must ask you to attend to this."

"We obey the Great Enshrined's command!"

Qian Daoliu smiled from the heart. This way, he could at least say he had changed Spirit Hall, couldn't he?

With the six enshrined taking action, it would be hard for those corrupt ways to persist!

Just then, the Saintess's cries rang out from outside the Worship Hall. "Great Enshrined, Secret Chamber Douluo wants to take me into the secret chamber! I don't want to have a baby!"

Qian Daoliu's smile froze on his face.

He had almost forgotten that the worst corruption was right under his nose!

In Spirit City.

Ah Yin was happily eating spicy rabbit meat.

"Haah... haah..." Ah Yin picked up a small piece of rabbit meat and held it to Lu Jin's mouth. "Brother Lu, this Soft Bone Rabbit meat is delicious... so spicy..."

"Slow down. No one's going to snatch it from you." Lu Jin looked at her and said playfully, "Did you know that your child Tang San's wife was originally a Soft Bone Rabbit?"

"No, she wasn't! My child could never have the surname Tang!" Ah Yin gave a coquettish huff, her eyes reflecting nothing but Lu Jin. "Even if I sacrificed myself as a Soul Ring, it would only be for Brother Lu... haah... haah... so spicy..."

Lu Jin brought her a cup of warm milk. "That won't do. If I hadn't come, you would have sacrificed yourself, and if I did come, you'd still sacrifice yourself. Wouldn't my coming have been for nothing?"

Ah Yin drank the water and took off her gloves. "Is Tang Hao very powerful? In the future you showed me, he seemed to be the number one genius."

"What, do you want to rekindle your bond with him?"

"How could I? If Brother Lu didn't want me, I'd rather be struck dead by lightning tribulation than get together with someone like that."

Ah Yin hooked her arms around Lu Jin's neck as she spoke, practically hanging off him. "You and I are the best match under heaven!"

"Don't worry. With me here, lightning tribulation can't hurt you." Lu Jin gathered his thoughts. "Since you want to know, I'll tell you about Tang Hao."

"According to the established course of fate, Tang Hao and his elder brother Tang Xiao would have met you while traveling to gain experience after becoming Soul Douluo. Both brothers fell for you at the same time."

"They fell for me after meeting me once?"

"Of course. It's perfectly normal to be struck by lust at first sight." Lu Jin tapped her nose. "Who told Ah Yin to be so beautiful, gentle, and kind?"

Ah Yin gave a huff and snuggled against Lu Jin's chest. "If nothing unexpected happened, I'd still have been in my juvenile stage when fate brought me to them. Soul Douluo can sense the presence of a juvenile Soul Beast. Those two brothers were up to no good from the start!"

Lu Jin did not contradict her. "Ordinarily, a Soul Douluo can indeed detect the presence of a transformed Soul Beast. But fate can only predict the course of events, not what the people caught up in them were thinking at the time, so that's only conjecture."

"Perhaps Tang Hao was waiting from the start for an opportunity to make you, the Blue Silver Emperor, sacrifice yourself willingly. That way, he would gain more and face no risk when absorbing the Soul Ring."

Ah Yin's face filled with disgust. "Pah! What a disgusting man. That must have been what he was thinking."

Far away, in the Clear Sky Sect.

Tang Hao, who had been sparring with Tang Xiao, suddenly felt his mind jolt. A solid punch struck him, and the taste of blood rose in his throat as he spat out a mouthful of it.

"Second brother!" Tang Xiao hurriedly stopped and stepped forward to check on him. "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

He had barely put any force into that blow, and Tang Hao had always been stronger than him, so Tang Xiao had not expected the punch to hurt him.

Tang Hao struggled into a sitting position, panting heavily. "No... it's nothing. I just suddenly felt as though something had drifted away from me, and my heart felt empty."

Tang Hao's injury naturally drew the attention of the other Clear Sky Sect elders watching the match. Only after coming forward to check his injuries were they reassured.

Tang Yuehua, who had been secretly watching her two elder brothers spar from outside, also ran in, worried. "Second brother! Are you all right?"

Tang Hao and Tang Xiao were about to comfort their younger sister, but one of the Clear Sky Sect elders beat them to it with a rebuke. "Third Miss, who told you to come in? With your reverse-mutated Martial Soul, this is no place for you. Leave at once!"

"I..." Tang Yuehua felt a sting at the tip of her nose and looked expectantly at her two brothers.

But then she heard Tang Hao say, "Yuehua, go on ahead. I'm fine. This isn't a place for you to stay."

His tone was icy. He was simply sending her away, as though ordering a servant.

"Not a place for me...?" Tang Yuehua lowered her head and left the training grounds in a daze.

Not a single person spoke up to ask her to stay or offer her comfort.

She returned to her room and sat on the bed, feeling wronged as tears fell from her eyes unbidden.

She did not understand. She had only been worried about her brother, so why had those people driven her away?

"Is it just because of my Martial Soul? Just because... I can't become a true Soul Master?" she murmured, unable to stop herself from recalling the Whisper from a few days ago.

Just then, Tang Xiao pushed the door open and came in. "Yuehua, are you all right?"

"E-elder brother, I'm fine." Tang Yuehua pulled herself together and quickly asked, "How is second brother?"

"He's fine. His tone was a little harsh just now because he was afraid you'd get hurt at the training grounds."

"I... I see..." Tang Yuehua forced a faint smile. "I understand. You and second brother... and everyone else are only thinking of my good."

"Mm, I'm glad you understand." Tang Xiao nodded. "Some promising young talents from other sects will be visiting the Clear Sky Sect shortly. Father told you to get ready and come out to meet them. I still have to cultivate, so I can't keep you company. If you need anything, tell me!"

"Mm, I'll be there right away."

As Tang Xiao left, the smile vanished completely from Tang Yuehua's face. "But elder brother... you all think you're doing what's best for me, yet none of you has ever asked what I want."