Good Grief! They're Coming for Me?

After putting away the soul bones, the young man smacked his lips regretfully.

Of course, he could only dream about something this good.

His acquisition of these few soul bones might have seemed easy, but that was only because of a combination of factors, as well as Bibi Dong's high favorability toward him, creating a situation that could never be replicated.

Otherwise, even ordinary Thousand-Year Soul Bones were priceless treasures that countless factions would fight over. As for Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones, even Titled Douluo would personally enter the fray.

If he had not been in Spirit Hall and had not reached a partnership with Bibi Dong, seeing even a single soul bone outside would have taken ages.

"Still, the more of these things, the better."

The young man murmured softly. When he thought of his research into Natural Energy, his expression could not help turning bitter.

If his research was correct, then aside from unexplored treasured lands like the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Natural Energy probably existed only within soul bones.

That meant that whether he wanted to continue his research, absorb it, or even enter Sage Mode in the future, he would have to keep hold of two soul bones.

Forget Bibi Dong—Spirit Hall itself could not bear such a burden.

His Holiness the Pope probably never imagined that the Soul Master treasures people fought bloody battles over in the outside world were merely consumables in Su Chen's hands.

"Forget it. When the cart reaches the mountain, there'll be a way through."

As one of his greatest trump cards for the future, Sage Mode had to be cultivated no matter how difficult it was.

As for how to solve the problem, he could only worry about it later.

Su Chen shook his head and suppressed those thoughts. Closing his eyes, he carefully sensed something. A moment later, a faint smile curled his lips.

"Found it."

Behind Spirit Hall, atop a mountain peak.

A young girl sat alone at the edge of a cliff.

She simply sat there in silence, motionless, gazing at the countless lights of Spirit City below.

The night wind lifted the golden hair before her forehead, revealing eyes filled with confusion and loneliness.

Tap!

Footsteps sounded from behind her. The girl's eyes immediately turned sharp, but upon sensing that familiar aura, she involuntarily relaxed.

"The view here is really nice."

A clear voice rang out. A body radiating faint warmth sat down beside her, making the girl's body tense up unconsciously.

"What are you here for?"

she asked quietly.

Perhaps because the person beside her was the first to defeat her, or perhaps because he was the person that woman valued most right now, or for some other reason, Qian Renxue did not dislike Su Chen. Nor did she speak to him in that cold, distant tone anymore.

"I just came to see whether my opponent had been so thoroughly crushed that she couldn't recover."

Su Chen supported himself with both hands behind his back, looking up at the star-filled sky as he spoke softly.

"Do you have a conflict with His Holiness the Pope?"

At those words, Qian Renxue's delicate body stiffened for a moment.

"That's none of your business."

After a brief pause, the girl replied coldly.

"Fine, you've seen my current state. If you're not here to gloat, then leave."

Conflict? If only it were that simple.

She thought bitterly to herself.

"Well, theoretically, this really has nothing to do with me. But I am Spirit Hall's number one genius. Maybe I'll inherit the Pope's position in the future. If the former Pope and the second-ranked genius are at odds behind the scenes, that would be my loss."

The young man smiled faintly, his black eyes turning toward the girl. "Don't you think?"

"You..."

Qian Renxue was so angry she nearly laughed.

How old were you, already thinking about the Pope's position?

And who said I'd willingly serve under you in the future?

"Don't get too smug. I only lost once. The future is still long, and who that position belongs to is far from certain."

She cast him a faint glance and snorted.

The moment the words left her mouth, Qian Renxue regretted them.

She had no interest in that position whatsoever, but when she saw the young man's indifferent expression, she could not help wanting to refute him.

What an infuriating guy!

"Haha, then I'll really look forward to it, my opponent."

The young man laughed brightly, stood up, and stretched. Then he looked at her seriously.

"I only came to tell you this: there is no love without reason, and no hatred without reason. When what you know cannot answer your doubts, it only proves that you don't know enough."

"No need to thank me. We became acquainted through fighting, so we're friends now, aren't we?"

As he spoke, Su Chen lightly patted her shoulder and walked away.

He had said all that needed to be said. The seed had been planted; whether it could sprout depended on Qian Renxue herself.

He still had to attend a meeting at the Pontiff Palace. If he arrived too late, Bibi Dong would inevitably become suspicious. And if she swept the area with her Spiritual Power and discovered that he had been with Qian Renxue, he would be done for.

If her doubts could not be answered, it only proved that she did not know enough?

The girl stared blankly at Su Chen's retreating figure as those words echoed repeatedly in her mind.

Could it be...

She recalled her impression of her father, her grandfather's explanation, and Bibi Dong's attitude of utter disgust toward her from beginning to end.

A flash of insight suddenly appeared, but no matter how hard she tried, the girl could not grasp it.

"Hmph, you couldn't have explained it more clearly?"

Qian Renxue angrily punched the spot where the young man had been sitting with her soft fist, but she could not help sighing again.

"Forget it. You don't know either."

Although the confusion and doubts in her heart had not eased much, the girl felt far better.

Gazing at the starry sky, Qian Renxue drifted into a daze.

Friends?

That was a rather unfamiliar word to her.

Ever since she was born, her grandfather had told her that she was the noble possessor of the Six-Winged Angel martial soul, someone with the potential to become a god, not on the same level as the common people of the continent.

And so, until this day, she had always been alone—until the young man arrived.

"So this is what having a friend feels like."

The girl recalled the neither-light-nor-heavy feeling of Su Chen's hand on her shoulder. A bright smile curved her lips.

"It's not bad."

By the time Su Chen hurried to the Pontiff Palace, the argument inside had already reached a fever pitch.

"As of now, thirty-nine sects and academies have responded regarding the Pope's enthronement ceremony, but Clear Sky Sect has yet to respond to the ultimatum notice we sent."

"What about the reactions of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon?"

"Both parties are already on the road. The branch halls along the route send updates every three hours, but they refuse to establish contact with us."

"Also, Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empire have stated that they will attend the ceremony. Heaven Dou's eldest prince, Xue Qinghe, has already arrived in Spirit City."

"Hmph. Their wolfish ambitions are plain for all to see."

While no one was paying attention, the young man quietly slipped over to stand beside the drowsy Chrysanthemum Douluo.

Up on the high seat, His Holiness the Pope, who had been resting with her eyes closed, slightly moved her beautiful brows, a faint smile appearing at the corner of her lips.

"Ah, if His Holiness the Pope hadn't suddenly mobilized so many Healing System Soul Masters, these sects wouldn't be acting so arrogantly."

Someone suddenly said indignantly, and the room fell silent as though it had received some sort of signal.

A moment later, voices rose all at once.

"Yeah, they probably think one of our consecrates has been seriously injured."

"And the nearly ten million Gold Soul Coins that were mobilized some time ago... Sigh, that money could have covered several consecrates' salaries for years."

"His Holiness the Pope is simply far too indulgent toward that brat—"

Su Chen, who had been preparing to get some proper sleep, opened his eyes with a strange expression.

Good grief!

They're coming for me?