Xie Yue's Respect

Noble conduct?

The corner of You Chen's mouth twitched subtly. Thinking of Bibi Dong's disgust toward the Angel Martial Soul, he could not help wanting to laugh.

But even if he told Hu Liena, Bibi Dong's little fangirl, the truth, she would probably only look at him disdainfully and say he was slandering Bibi Dong.

Shaking his head inwardly, he continued, "I don't care whether your actions are righteous or anything else. Kid, you came here to cause trouble without authorization from the enforcement department. Even if you're the Pope's disciple, I can throw you out of my house whenever I want."

Instead of getting angry upon hearing this, Hu Liena's eyes flashed with mischief.

You Chen curled his lips slightly. "Oh, right. If you're thinking that because of your age, and because you're the Pope's disciple, I wouldn't dare do anything to you, and that even if I throw you out, you'll keep coming back to make trouble..."

Smack!

Hu Liena suddenly straightened with a shudder, her face turning as red as an apple.

"You, you!"

You actually dared to spank me!?

But Hu Liena did not say those words aloud.

After all, it was far too embarrassing.

Yan was utterly confused, but the sharper Xie Yue had already noticed something strange from Hu Liena's body language. He silently lowered his head and pretended not to have seen anything.

Yet inwardly, he was shocked.

Is this Teacher You Chen's strength!?

Xie Yue's Moon Blades attacked with incredible speed. To better control them, he had deliberately and instinctively trained his dynamic vision to an exceptional level.

Though he did not receive the enhancements of a beast martial soul, his dynamic vision was still the best among the three members of the Golden Generation.

As a genius who had also undergone training in the Soul Arena, Xie Yue was naturally extremely confident in his own strength. He believed that even if an Agility Attack System Soul Ancestor burst forth at maximum speed, they could not escape his eyes.

Yet when You Chen had smacked Hu Liena on the rear just now, Xie Yue had only reacted after Hu Liena had already been struck.

Xie Yue silently broke into a cold sweat, withdrawing some of the contempt he had held toward You Chen.

To be honest, although he had always looked apologetic toward You Chen on the surface, inwardly he had somewhat disagreed, feeling that Hu Liena's aggressive behavior was not particularly excessive.

Whether it was him, Yan, or Hu Liena, all three had become Soul Elders at a young age. Meanwhile, the thirty-five-year-old You Chen was merely a Soul Ancestor.

They were only one major realm apart. In just a few years, their cultivation would reach the same level.

Not to mention that all three of them possessed top-tier martial souls, while You Chen? He had heard that You Chen only had an intermediate-grade martial soul.

And wasn't it You Chen himself, their teacher, who had taught them about the disparity between martial soul qualities?

Xie Yue understood very clearly that on the Douluo Continent, strength was ultimately what mattered. So what if someone possessed vast knowledge?

Wouldn't they still have to serve battle soul masters like them?

Perhaps there was nothing wrong with thinking that way.

But at the very least, for now, he had no right to look down on You Chen.

That terrifying speed and exquisite technique proved that You Chen was no ordinary Soul Ancestor with only an intermediate-grade martial soul.

As a renowned theory master, perhaps even if his original talent had been average, he might have found a different path by studying his own martial soul?

Xie Yue could not see through You Chen.

At least for now, You Chen was still the stronger one, while he was the weaker one.

You Chen would probably become a Soul King very soon. As for him, it would take at least another five or six years for him to become a Soul King.

Before his strength truly surpassed You Chen's, he naturally had to show a strong person the respect they deserved.

Thus, without the other three present realizing it, Xie Yue quietly reined in the pride he carried as a genius.

At that moment, You Chen's attention was entirely on Hu Liena. He smiled kindly and said, "Even the Pope must have proper grounds for action. If I discipline someone who barged into my home for no reason and caused trouble, even the Pope will have nothing to say."

One was strong when one had no desires.

He had already acquired all the wealth he wanted most from Spirit Hall: knowledge.

Just like someone in his previous life who worked a government job—if they did not care about promotion or a raise, then as long as they followed the rules and did not violate any principles, they had an iron rice bowl.

The Pope did not have absolute authority in Spirit Hall. With Qian Daoliu around, Bibi Dong would not dare make a move against You Chen so recklessly.

As for anything else—salary cuts, reassignment, or being pushed away from core research projects—You Chen did not care in the slightest.

Since that was the case, what did he have to fear?

This was not yet that dark era in the future. Once You Chen chose to simply slack off, he would be invincible.

Seeing how fearless You Chen was, especially his utterly indifferent attitude toward the teacher Hu Liena regarded as a female idol, Hu Liena forgot her embarrassment and anger for a moment. Her face shifted from pale to green with rage.

"I don't know where a little girl like you got such a grudge against me, but since we were teacher and student after all, I still hope that in this final stretch, we can part on good terms."

You Chen's tone was sincere, but Hu Liena did not appreciate it. She left in a huff.

After hurriedly bowing to You Chen and apologizing, Xie Yue chased after her, leaving Yan behind alone.

"Teacher, I'll apologize to you on Nana's behalf as well."

Yan wore a complicated expression as he said, "I don't know what's wrong with her lately. She used to act willfully from time to time, but she was never so unreasonable as this."

You Chen shook his head and thought silently, Should I tell you this little girl was brainwashed by our great Pope? That the righteous and glorious Pope has been smearing me, an honest man, behind my back all day?

There was no need. Truly, no need. Bibi Dong could bring her private grievances into teaching and influence the next generation's values, but You Chen disdained doing such a thing.

When the kid had grown up and his values had taken shape, it would not be too late to tell him about the darkness of the adult world.

So You Chen merely said, "You may have grown up together, but even the closest family members should not be treated as one and the same. If Hu Liena has done something wrong, it isn't your place, Yan, to apologize for her."

Yan nodded at those words, his eyes lighting up slightly. What he liked most was his teacher's fair and open-minded manner.

In Yan's eyes, You Chen was not only the greatest scholar, learned beyond measure and possessed of the wisdom to solve any problem, but also an elder who cared for his disciples and was willing to devote himself wholeheartedly to helping them with problems in both their studies and their lives.

So even after Hu Liena became the Pope's disciple, Yan had never been jealous of her because of it.

But when Yan thought of the rumors he had heard not long ago, along with You Chen's words to Hu Liena about parting on good terms, his gaze dimmed again.

"Teacher, I heard that you're about to leave Spirit City. Is that... true?"