She Long's Teachings

She Long paused, pondered for a moment, and then put on an indifferent expression.

"It's just a minor injury."

Although he spoke casually, Zhou You could still sense that he was not quite at peace.

"Why don't we let the students see it?"

"Oh? You also know medicine?"

"I know a little." Zhou You gestured with his Fingertip Universe. He couldn't say for sure what the illness was, but he did have some experience with internal and external injuries.

This time, She Long didn't ask Zhou You where he learned it; he just shook his head.

"Never mind, I've already had a healer from the Spirit Hall examine me; it's just a minor injury."

So Zhou You gave up on the idea; he had originally wanted to try his newly developed prescription on She Long...

"What instructions does the teacher have for me today?"

"Can't I just come and take a look?"

Do you even believe that yourself?

"Hehe." She Long stopped beating around the bush and put down the water glass in his hand.

"I recently took on a mission and will be going on a long trip in a while. There are some things I'd like to tell you."

Zhou You sensed the seriousness in She Long's words, and his expression became more solemn, his voice lowering.

"Teacher, please tell me the truth, have you done something wrong?"

"You little brat, have some good wishes for me." She Long had a bit of a headache.

He used to seem like such a steady kid, how come he looks even more unreliable than Yang Tianxiong now?

That brat must have corrupted the child!

She Long secretly decided that he would go and train that kid in a little while to see if he had made any progress recently.

"My teacher came to my house specifically to give me some pointers, so this matter must be significant." Zhou You shook his head, he had his own judgment, "This mission will probably take quite a while, won't it?"

She Long opened his mouth, but said nothing, because Zhou You had guessed correctly.

He asked, puzzled, "Have you heard something, kid?"

"The teacher overestimated my connections."

"Ha!" She Long didn't believe a single punctuation mark.

So what is the teacher trying to explain?

She Long tapped the table with his finger, and after a moment, decided to be direct. This kid wasn't easy to fool, so it was better to speak frankly.

"Although you've been staying at the Central Academy these past few days, you should have some idea of the situation inside the Spirit Hall, right?"

"The students don't understand what the teacher is saying."

"Do you think I'm as easily fooled as Yang Tianxiong? Tell the truth!"

After a moment's hesitation, Zhou You finally spoke the truth, "Teacher, please tell me which faction you belong to?"

"Hey, you little rascal," She Long sighed, "Even a kid like you has figured it out. It seems the internal conflicts within the Spirit Hall are about to be exposed."

Zhou You remained silent; anything he said at this moment could be wrong.

"It's just the two of us here today, so let's skip the formalities. Remember what I'm about to say."

Zhou You remained silent, listening attentively.

"There have long been two factions within our Spirit Hall. One is the Enshrined Lineage, led by the Qian Family, which controls the core power of the Elder Hall."

"Secondly, the Spirit Hall Line faction, headed by the Pope, controls a large number of lower and middle-level Soul Masters and wields secular power."

Zhou You was somewhat surprised. He noticed the difference in She Long's wording. "The Elder Hall and the Spirit Hall... are they separate?"

She Long nodded silently. "To be precise, the Worship Hall and the Spirit Hall should be considered separately. Liu Suxin should have taught you about the structure of the Elder Hall."

Zhou You nodded. "According to what Teacher Liu taught, the Worship Hall selects its members from among the elders, and most of the elders are Titled Douluo. All elders belong to the Elder Hall and are under the command of the Pope."

"If it were the previous Pope, this statement would be correct," She Long said meaningfully.

Zhou You's eyes flashed. The previous Pope? Wasn't that rapist Qian Xunji? He gradually realized.

"It seems you understand. When the Pope is a member of the Qian Family, the Elder Hall naturally falls under the Pope's jurisdiction. After all, both the Great Enshrined of the Worship Hall and the Pope are from the Qian Family, so the entire Spirit Hall is naturally a place where the Qian Family has absolute power."

"But the current Pope does not have the surname Qian!"

Zhou You narrowed his eyes slightly, and said calmly, "I have had the honor of His Holiness the Pope once."

"You met her in the Star Dou Great Forest, right?" She Long asked, intrigued. "What do you think of her?"

Zhou You, with righteous indignation, said, "Teacher, isn't discussing our lord in private an act of treason?"

"I think you're up to no good!" She Long flicked his forehead with a finger and said irritably, "Speak!"

"The current Pope is very strong!" Zhou You spoke a blunt truth, which was also a pointless statement.

Although She Long wasn't entirely satisfied with his assessment, he didn't press further, simply nodding. "Yes, His Holiness the Pope is indeed powerful. To have cultivated to the level of Super Douluo at such a young age is probably unprecedented and unlikely to be repeated..."

He paused, glanced at Zhou You, and realized he had said the second half of his sentence too soon.

"In short, because the current Pope does not bear the surname Qian, she cannot completely control the Elder Hall; only a small number of elders are willing to unconditionally obey the Pope's orders."

Zhou You tentatively asked, "Does this include teachers?"

Unexpectedly, She Long shook his head decisively and said something that greatly surprised Zhou You: "Your teacher is Balance Faction!"

"Uh." Zhou You was surprised, almost unable to believe what he had just heard.

"What's with that expression, kid?" She Long said righteously, "I've struggled for decades, enduring life-and-death hardships to become the Titled Douluo I am today. How could I willingly be coerced by others?"

Zhou You didn't know what to say, so he could only give a thumbs up and awkwardly praise, "No wonder you're a teacher, you've got a clear understanding of life!"

She Long accepted it readily, but then sighed, "Being Balance Faction isn't easy either. You have to take care of both the Worship Hall and the Pope Hall, and you have to keep both sides in check. It's a real art."

Hey, you're awesome...

Zhou You was speechless. She Long, to put it nicely, was Balance Faction; to put it bluntly, he was a two-faced, indecisive person.

"You little brat, you're not cursing me in your heart, are you?"

"The students dare not."

"You don't dare? That means you're pregnant?"

"... Teacher, please be reasonable."

"My fists are law!"

"Then you are right." That was all Zhou You could say.

At this moment She Long smiled and said, "This is what I'm going to teach you today. Whether it's the Worship Hall or the Pope Hall, whether it's the Angel Faction or the Pope Faction, it doesn't really matter."

Zhou You looked up and met She Long's gaze.

She Long does not look old; in fact, he looks like he is in his prime. However, his eyes are filled with the vicissitudes of life.

"The greatest truth in this world lies in fists. As long as your fists are big and hard enough, no matter which force you belong to, they will have to do their best to win you over, and you will have enough room to maneuver when you want to advance or retreat."

"Use everything you can to grow as quickly as possible, but don't be influenced by the ideas of others, and don't devote all your energy to other people's causes."

"What the teacher means is..." Zhou You understood She Long's point of view.

She Long then changed the subject. "I will be heading to the Heaven Dou Empire soon, and for the sake of secrecy, I will sever all contact with Spirit City."

"Kid, you need to find a new backer!"