Bibi Dong's Dilemma

"Alright, before we adjourn, there's one final—and most important—item on the agenda."

Xuan Hao stopped wasting words and dragged out a huge Ironwood chest from behind him, slamming it down in front of the platform with a bang.

"Come on, everyone, line up and come pay... ahem, pay your membership fees."

"This is to cover the operating costs of our Peace and Mutual Aid Society. Once a month, fair to young and old alike. One Gold Soul Coin per person from the Junior Department, ten Gold Soul Coins per person from the Intermediate Department."

"I, Xuan Hao, am a principled man. I'll never take a single coin too much, and I'll never take a single coin too little."

Xuan Hao patted the chest and smiled at the crowd.

"Once you pay, we're friends. Friends should naturally get along peacefully. If you run into any trouble at the academy in the future, just give them my name."

"But if you don't pay..." Xuan Hao's tone turned eerie. "Then you're looking down on me. You don't want to be my friend. And since we're not friends, I can't guarantee whether you might trip while walking down the road, or choke while eating."

The entire venue fell into Dead Silence for two seconds.

Then, amid a strange and humiliating atmosphere, the line slowly began to move.

Most of those who could enter Spirit Academy came from wealthy families. One Gold Soul Coin, or even ten, was merely the cost of a meal or a bit of pocket money to them. It was not as though they could not afford it.

But it was humiliating!

Being charged Protection Fees by a six-year-old first-year student in front of the entire academy—if word got out, where would they put their faces?

Yet as they looked at the silver-haired youth standing beside the chest, idly playing with a gold coin in his hand, everyone silently swallowed their resentment.

Money was precious, dignity more so, but for the sake of their lives, both could be cast aside.

Behind the raised platform—

Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan stood in a triangular formation, acting as his left and right guardians.

Watching the long, dragon-like line below handing over money, Yan's mouth twitched continuously. He lowered his voice and said to Xie Yue beside him, "Hey, are we really just going to watch? This is too... too arrogant, isn't it? Won't something happen?"

Xie Yue crossed his arms, expressionless, though the twitching at the corner of his eye exposed his inner turmoil. "Something happen? Other than the teachers, who in the entire academy would dare touch him now? Even we were dragged here to support him. What else can we say?"

Hu Liena held her forehead, looking as though Life is Meaningless. She had originally thought her Junior Martial Brother was merely a little mischievous. Who would have thought he was a Devil King?

"Junior Martial Brother..."

Hu Liena could not help stepping forward and quietly reminding him, "Making such a huge spectacle of this... if the teachers find out..."

"Senior Martial Sister, don't worry."

Xuan Hao turned back and flashed Hu Liena a brilliant smile. He casually tossed a handful of recently collected Gold Soul Coins into the huge chest, producing a pleasant clatter.

"Look how enthusiastic everyone is. Every face is filled with longing for peace."

As he spoke, he turned toward an Intermediate Department student who had just paid, his face looking as though his parents had died, and asked with a smile, "This classmate, you did this willingly, right? I didn't force you, did I?"

The student shuddered all over. Feeling the faint pressure radiating from Xuan Hao, he hurriedly squeezed out a smile uglier than crying and nodded frantically.

"W-Willingly! Absolutely willingly! It's my honor to contribute to peace on campus! I'm so happy!"

After saying that, he dove into the crowd as though fleeing for his life.

Xuan Hao spread his hands and looked at Hu Liena innocently.

"See? Everyone did it willingly."

"Right?"

Just then, a cold voice containing suppressed fury drifted down from high above, instantly freezing the lively atmosphere of the entire square.

"Is that so?"

"Since everyone is so happy, could I pay a share as well? And perhaps... report this?"

The "kind" smile on Xuan Hao's little face froze solid the moment he heard that familiar voice, as though it had been submerged in liquid nitrogen.

He stiffly raised his head and met Bibi Dong's pale violet eyes, which seemed to be smiling yet carried a trace of chill.

The nearly thousand students who had been oppressed into silent fury suddenly erupted with light in their eyes. They looked more delighted than if they had seen their own parents.

It was the eager anticipation of seeing a savior descend, of seeing dawn break through the darkness!

His Holiness the Pope!

She had come to punish this Silver-Haired Great Demon King!

Bibi Dong slowly floated down and elegantly came to stand before the huge chest filled with Gold Soul Coins. Looking down at Xuan Hao, who only reached her waist, she parted her red lips.

"Why aren't you talking, President Xuan Hao? I would also like to join your Peace and Mutual Aid Society. According to the rules, how much Protection Fee must a Titled Douluo like me pay each month?"

Xuan Hao's mouth twitched wildly, and cold sweat instantly streamed down his forehead.

He gave a dry laugh, attempting one final struggle. "Elder Sister... what are you saying? What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours. We're family. Talking about money hurts our feelings, doesn't it? Forget it! I'll pay your share for you!"

"That won't do."

Bibi Dong's tone was teasing. "Even brothers must settle accounts clearly. Didn't you just say this was the rule? Without rules, there can be no order. How could I take the lead in breaking your rules?"

Xuan Hao despaired.

He instinctively cast a pleading glance at Hu Liena, who was standing behind him.

However, his usually protective Senior Martial Sister was currently staring up at the clouds as though some unparalleled scenery was hidden there. She did not even dare glance in this direction from the corner of her eye.

What a joke! Their teacher had already put on such a cold expression. Who would dare step forward and provoke her now? That would be asking for death!

"Since you can't settle the accounts, go back and calculate them slowly."

Before Xuan Hao could squeeze out another excuse, Bibi Dong reached out and pinched the back of his neck, lifting him up like a kitten that had done something wrong.

"Let's go."

Before her words faded, Bibi Dong flashed away, turning into a streak of light that shot into the sky. In the blink of an eye, she vanished above Spirit Academy.

"OH—!!!"

"LONG LIVE THE POPE!!"

"HEAVEN HAS EYES! THE GREAT DEMON KING HAS FINALLY BEEN TAKEN AWAY!"

"Wuwuwu... my Gold Soul Coins... Even though I didn't get my money back, as long as he's gone, there's hope for our lives!"

The little square behind them instantly erupted with cheers like crashing mountains and roaring seas. The scene was even livelier than New Year's.

Papal Palace, bedchamber.

The luxurious room was covered in thick carpets, and a faint fragrance permeated the air.

Yet the atmosphere at that moment was so oppressive it was suffocating.

Bibi Dong sat on a cushioned couch with her long legs crossed, holding a cup of tea that had long gone cold. Her gaze rested quietly on the space ahead.

Two meters in front of her—

Xuan Hao knelt obediently on the carpet, hands resting on his knees and head lowered. He looked like someone saying, I know I was wrong, but I'd still dare to do it again next time.

Bibi Dong said nothing.

It was not because she was putting on airs. She was simply genuinely... troubled.

As the supreme ruler of Spirit Hall, what storms had she not weathered? What schemes had she not dealt with?

But when it came to the mess Xuan Hao had created, she truly did not know how hard to come down on him.

How should she punish him?

Punish him for collecting Protection Fees?

It sounded bad, like he was some little bandit.

But in the end, it was only children fighting and competing for resources.

If any other student had caused such a commotion, the academy teachers would have suppressed it long ago.

The problem was that this brat was too clever and too skilled at borrowing authority.

He actually knew how to use the banner of the Pope's personal disciple to shut the teachers up. He had even invoked her own words like an imperial decree, leaving the entire academy furious but unable to speak.

Moreover, what troubled Bibi Dong most was that Xuan Hao had not bullied others through borrowed power.

He had not ordered Hall Guardian Knights to beat people, nor had he summoned a Titled Douluo to back him up.

He had relied entirely on his own fists, beating the entire academy into submission with one punch and one kick after another!

Within the unspoken rules of Spirit Academy, this was actually tolerated.

The world of Soul Masters had always been one where the strong preyed upon the weak. The strong possessed everything and ruled the weak. That was an iron law.

The academy did not forbid private fights precisely so that students could adapt to such cruelty in advance.

Every year, countless Soul Masters died in private conflicts out in the wild. If they could not even withstand this much turmoil within the academy, they would only be walking into death once they left.

But the problem was...

Someone like Xuan Hao, who single-handedly challenged the entire academy, knocked nearly a thousand people flat, then recruited them, established rules, and even planned to levy fees on upperclassmen...

Since Spirit Hall had been founded, he was the first freak like this!

This was no longer simple bullying. It was an extremely domineering form of "rule."

This matter could be made big or kept small.

If viewed seriously, it was a challenge to the academy's authority. He was even building an "independent kingdom" within Spirit Hall. At such a young age, he already showed the bearing of a tyrannical overlord, even hints of harboring improper ambitions.

If viewed lightly, it was simply children playing house and getting a little carried away.

Bibi Dong rubbed her brow, her emotions deeply complicated.

Deep down, she was actually... happy.

It proved she had not misjudged him. Xuan Hao not only possessed extraordinary talent, but he was not some blockhead who only knew cultivation, nor was he a brute who only knew how to rely on raw strength.

He understood how to use rules, how to borrow power, and even more, how to manage and establish order.

But the problem was...

This brat was too arrogant!

Of all things, he should not have used her name to shut the academy teachers up. He had even frightened those Spirit Douluo-level Education Committee members senseless.

That was equivalent to falsely issuing an imperial decree. It was overstepping his authority!

At Spirit Academy, the power to make rules belonged to the teachers, the Education Committee, and ultimately to her, the Pope.

Yet Xuan Hao, a little brat, already dared to establish "Xuan Hao's Law" on his own and turn the academy into his private territory.

If she did not restrain him now, then once he became stronger, would he want to revise even the rules of the Papal Palace? Would he treat even her words as nothing but wind in his ears?

She had to temper his nature.

But if she scolded him too harshly, would she damage the child's confidence and enthusiasm? After all, he had not truly done anything wrong in essence. He had simply done it too well.

Should she discipline him, or not?

And if she did, how?