Infiltration Plan

"I know Nana means well, but do you think I don't know that you were the one behind all this? You've studied my preferences inside and out. What exactly are your intentions?"

Bibi Dong seemed to have been provoked by something today. Normally, even if she knew such things in her heart, she would not say them aloud. On the contrary, she rather enjoyed them, since her relationship with Hu Liena was genuinely close.

As for Yan, after spending so many days together, they had developed some degree of affection as well. Though she had quite a few complaints about his "clever little tricks," it should not have warranted such harsh words.

Yan did not reveal any unease. He answered naturally, "My intentions are simply to make things better for you, Pope. Everything Nana and I have now came from you. Naturally, we hope you will be better off."

"You, honestly. There are barely a few truthful words out of your mouth. You have too many thoughts, and they run too deep. I can see that now. Only cultivation can make you devote yourself to something wholeheartedly..."

Bibi Dong shook her head. Over these past few months, she had come to understand Yan better. He was a "simple" person.

How simple was Yan? After becoming her disciple, he spent most of his time cultivating and reading, filling every moment of every day. Even Bibi Dong felt ashamed of his self-discipline.

Everything he did was for the sake of improving faster and becoming stronger. This included arranging trade to amass wealth and helping her keep Spirit Hall under control.

"Let's not talk about that."

Yan shook his head. He had come to see Bibi Dong, not to turn the subject onto himself. Casually flipping through the few sheets of paper in his hand, he spoke again. "What could possibly have happened to make you lose your composure like this? This isn't like the Pope I know."

Bibi Dong did not answer Yan's question immediately. This naturally made him look at her a few more times, and he noticed that she was unusually agitated today. This matter truly was not simple.

Over the past few months, Yan had helped Bibi Dong analyze and handle quite a few matters concerning Spirit Hall. He had even been involved in confidential affairs related to Slaughter City. By all rights, Bibi Dong would not deliberately hide things from him unless they involved certain secrets.

"What? Is this matter difficult?"

Yan did not leave it at that and asked again. He realized this was an opportunity—an opportunity to "understand" Bibi Dong more deeply.

Yan possessed memories from his previous life and knew quite a bit about some of Bibi Dong's secrets. Yet after coming into contact with her, he had to weigh every word carefully, afraid of revealing the fact that he knew too much.

Though Bibi Dong appeared to rely heavily on him now, that was only on the surface. If the Pope learned that someone knew about a certain secret chamber and a certain daughter, Yan worried that he might die without a sound.

Therefore, during these months with Bibi Dong, Yan had been extremely cautious with every response, afraid that a casual remark might reveal something.

But guarding against a thief every day was not a solution. The best way was to earn more of Bibi Dong's trust. Once their relationship had become closer, he could learn more information through a "fortunate coincidence"—and that coincidence had best be something the Pope could accept.

Bibi Dong remained silent for a long time. At last, as though she had made some decision, she spoke with a complicated expression. "It is news from the Worship Hall. They are preparing to begin the crucial step of the Infiltration Plan: replacing Xue Qinghe, the eldest prince of the Heaven Dou Empire's royal family, and seizing the Heaven Dou throne."

"The Infiltration Plan? Wasn't it called off before?"

Yan frowned slightly upon hearing this. He knew something about the plan. It had been a strategic plan devised during the reign of the previous Pope, Qian Xunji. Its original purpose was to seize the Heaven Dou throne, then coordinate with Spirit Hall to divide and suppress the Upper Three Sects.

When this plan had first been formulated, Tang Chen, the previous sect master of the Clear Sky Sect, had been missing for many years. The Clear Sky Sect was showing signs of decline, yet Tang Hao had risen to prominence, and the Seven Great Sects were united as one. This greatly hindered Spirit Hall's plans to control the soul master world.

Under those circumstances, it was very difficult to break the deadlock from the outside. Thus, Qian Xunji had thought of using the Angel Set Soul Bones' disguise soul skill to send a suitable person to replace a prince of the Tian Dou Royal Family. After supporting that prince's ascension to the throne, they could trigger a conflict between the royal family and the Upper Three Sects.

Qian Xunji's plan was a good one, and he had even chosen the candidate: his secretly born daughter, Qian Renxue. A year before he was severely injured by Tang Hao, he had sent the only nine-year-old Qian Renxue to infiltrate Xue Qinghe's side and observe his routines and habits.

However, no one had expected what happened afterward. Less than a year after Qian Renxue went undercover, news of Qian Xunji's death spread within Spirit Hall. The Infiltration Plan was temporarily put on hold, while Qian Renxue remained in the Heaven Dou Empire, observing Xue Qinghe without ever replacing him.

This situation had continued until now. Some time ago, Yan had discovered this plan in a document and tried to persuade Bibi Dong from another angle to abandon it. Yet he had never expected the Worship Hall to send word today that they intended to activate the plan.

After listening to Bibi Dong's explanation, Yan understood why the Pope had lost her composure. The matter involved Qian Renxue. She was, after all, her daughter. Even if she was unwilling to acknowledge her, Bibi Dong did not feel absolutely nothing for Qian Renxue.

"That old man Qian Daoliu has gone too far."

Rarely losing control, Bibi Dong slammed her palm onto the desk. "Does he think he is still Spirit Hall's Judgment Elder? He retired long ago. What right does he have to interfere with Spirit Hall's plans again? To hell with the Infiltration Plan. He is simply opposing me."

"There is no use getting anxious about this here."

Yan waited silently until Bibi Dong's anger had subsided somewhat before speaking again. "If the Infiltration Plan is activated, resources will inevitably have to be invested into it. That does not align with the plan we have laid out.

"And even if they succeed, all we gain will be the Heaven Dou throne in name only. Setting aside whether the replacement will be obedient, once this matter is exposed, it may not mean all our prior efforts were wasted, but the losses will definitely be enormous. It will also damage Spirit Hall's prestige."

Yan did not think highly of this Infiltration Plan. The two great empires of the Douluo Continent followed a feudal system of noble enfeoffment, where the emperor and the nobles jointly ruled the realm. The emperor's authority was limited, and those nobles were not fools. If the emperor cooperated with Spirit Hall, it would easily provoke their backlash.

Moreover, the Infiltration Plan had one enormous flaw: once the disguised person's identity was exposed, everything would come to nothing.

Wasn't Qian Renxue in the original story exactly like this? She launched her move in haste and Tang San saw through her identity. Not only did twenty years of painstaking effort go down the drain, but Spirit Hall also lost some of the people's support, and its positive image suffered greatly. These indirect consequences were no small matter.

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