Ability Trumps Everything

"What makes you so sure that coming to me will save your lives?" Bibi Dong asked with a mocking smile.

"I am no match for the Grand Priest. If he insists on meting out some punishment to you, I won't be able to stop him."

"Besides, I have just taken office. If you run to me now and incite the hostility of the Grand Priest, how am I supposed to continue as Pope?"

The expressions of Yue Guan and his companion turned grim.

They knew that this was not the best time to choose sides, but they had no other options left. Otherwise, they wouldn't have resorted to such a groveling attitude to come here.

Previously, they had risked their lives to bring Qian Xunji back to Martial Soul City, even aiming for the Elder Hall when they arrived, all so that everyone in the Elder Hall could see their miserable state. It really wasn't that they hadn't tried their best!

It was that they had been completely shattered themselves!

Yet, even so, after the Grand Priest saw the state of Qian Xunji, he still unleashed that terrifying killing intent upon them. If it hadn't been for the presence of so many Title Douluo at the time, the Grand Priest would never have let them off!

They had served in the Martial Soul Hall for over fifty years. They had joined back when Qian Daoliu was still an Adjudicator Elder, so they knew that old man's temper better than anyone.

He was obsessed with face!

Qian Daoliu didn't care whether they had tried their best; he only cared about the results!

What did it matter if they had tried their best? Qian Xunji was severely injured, and three Title Douluo of the Martial Soul Hall, along with a group of Soul Saints, had been beaten to a pulp by a single Tang Hao. That was the most important fact!

The dignity of the Martial Soul Hall had been trampled into the dirt by that battle!

The Pope, as the face of the Martial Soul Hall, had been beaten into such a ghastly state.

That would have been bad enough, but the most fatal part was that Qian Xunji hadn't been saved!

If Qian Xunji hadn't died, he and Gui Mei would have been credited with meritorious service in protecting him. Combined with their miserable appearance, their status in the Elder Hall would have only risen, not fallen.

The problem was that Qian Xunji had died!

No one cared how hard they had fought anymore!

What did it matter if they had fought to the death? Qian Xunji was dead; it made no difference whether they had fought or not.

Now, he and Gui Mei were treated like pariahs in the Elder Hall. Everyone avoided them, terrified of being caught in the crossfire.

If they didn't choose to run to the Pope Hall, which was currently in the limelight and under everyone's scrutiny, and let everyone see them, then once the heat died down, no one would even know if they died in some corner of the Elder Hall!

Not to mention that they were still severely injured; even if they were completely unscathed, it wouldn't be difficult for the Grand Priest to make them disappear quietly!

And once targeted by the Grand Priest, there was simply nowhere to run!

Now, their only path to survival was here with Bibi Dong!

"Should I keep them or not?" Bibi Dong looked at Nan Feng, who was lying on the table reading a book.

"Hmm?" Nan Feng raised his head.

"Keep them. They're two Title Douluo, why wouldn't you keep them?"

"But what if Qian Daoliu makes a move?" Bibi Dong said.

If she didn't keep them, their lives or deaths would have nothing to do with her. But if she kept them and Qian Daoliu ended up killing them, the Elder Hall would 100% unite to oppose her as Pope.

"Let him make a move. Isn't that perfect?" Nan Feng stretched lazily.

"Two Title Douluo elders who worked themselves to the bone for his son—even if they didn't have merit, they had hard work. If he just kills them to be buried with his son, that would be too interesting. Who would dare to work for him after that?"

"If you do a good job, it's expected; if something goes wrong, it's a dead end. With rewards and punishments unclear and everything depending on his mood, it would be a miracle if Martial Soul Hall could stay in good shape."

Qian Daoliu wouldn't make a move; after all, in the original story, these two didn't die.

However, if Bibi Dong rejected the allegiance of Yue Guan and Gui Mei, that might not be the case.

In the original story, Bibi Dong was isolated and helpless at this time. Even if there were risks, she would have accepted the allegiance of two veteran Title Douluo.

But now, with him here, and after all the chaos he had caused, Bibi Dong's ambition wasn't that strong. She had the kind of mindset where it was best if she did well, but it didn't matter if she didn't. Naturally, she wasn't that concerned about whether these people stood on her side or not.

At worst, they would just have a fight.

In any case, it wouldn't be her making a fool of herself. If the Grand Priest bullied the young Pope, the only thing people would laugh at was Martial Soul Hall.

"Your Holiness?" Yue Guan and Gui Mei nervously scanned the meeting hall.

There was no one else, only Bibi Dong and the two of them.

And that cat on the table!

Was it that cat that spoke just now?

Could a cat speak human language?

"Please rise, two elders," Bibi Dong said.

"You two have been with Martial Soul Hall for a long time, over fifty years now. You can be considered to have rendered great service. The Grand Priest shouldn't be too harsh on you over this matter."

The expressions of Yue Guan and his companion stiffened.

Shouldn't be?

That was exactly what he would do!!

It was precisely because they had been in Martial Soul Hall for over fifty years that they knew exactly what kind of person the Grand Priest was!

Qian Daoliu did not care about the attitudes of those below him, nor did he care whether they gave their all; he only cared about ability!

As long as they could complete the tasks he assigned, they were heroes!

But if they failed, no matter how hard they worked, even if they broke their backs or died in the line of duty, the Grand Priest wouldn't bother to spare them a second glance!

Martial Soul Hall had no use for trash!

This was a principle they had understood from the very first day they joined Martial Soul Hall!

The reason Martial Soul Hall attracted more spirit masters than the Two Great Empires and the Seven Great Sects was precisely because of this simple and brutal method of promotion: as long as you had power, Martial Soul Hall was willing to accept you, no matter who you were.

Even for those spirit masters with tarnished reputations, Martial Soul Hall had specialized black-glove operatives!

Gui Mei had even been in charge of that sector before!

In Martial Soul Hall, ability trumped everything! Attitude was irrelevant!

Effort? Loyalty? What was the point of that?

Trash was trash!

"Your Holiness the Pope, as long as you are willing to save us this time, we are willing to pledge our lives to your service!" Yue Guan and Gui Mei said in deep voices.

They truly dared not gamble on whether the Grand Priest might have a momentary lapse of soft-heartedness!

Qian Xunji was dead, and he was Qian Daoliu's son!

A centenarian old man had lost his son; the fact that Qian Daoliu hadn't just slapped them to death on the spot in the Elder Hall was already a sign of great restraint!

"Pledge your lives to my service?" A subtle expression appeared on Bibi Dong's face.

"Very well, the two of you may stay. As for the Grand Priest, I hope I still have a shred of influence with him."

The way Qian Daoliu looked at her was problematic. Although he hid it well, she was all too familiar with that suppressed anger, hatred, and killing intent!

That was what she used to be like!

In other words, there was a high probability that Qian Daoliu knew she was the one who had finished off Qian Xunji. He was simply wary of the Rakshasa God Inheritance she possessed and dared not take the risk. Furthermore, since the matter was shameful, the old thing wasn't even willing to expose it.

Caution was one of Qian Daoliu's strengths, but when caution was taken too far, it appeared somewhat cowardly.

However, she didn't dare to provoke that old man any further.

Even a rabbit would bite when cornered, let alone Qian Daoliu, who was certainly no rabbit.

If she really pushed that old man to the breaking point, she wouldn't have an easy time of it either.

"Thank you, Your Holiness the Pope!!"

Yue Guan and Gui Mei breathed a sigh of relief.

They had been living in fear for so long! They could finally relax a little!

Ever since they woke up from their severe injuries, the two of them hadn't dared to even close their eyes.

They were terrified that the old man Qian Daoliu would sneak up and finish them off!

"However, it seems your injuries are still quite severe," Bibi Dong said.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei had brought Qian Xunji back, but when they were at the Elder Hall, all the healing-type Soul Masters in Martial Soul City had been assigned by Qian Daoliu to save Qian Xunji. Yue Guan and Gui Mei had been completely left out in the cold.

If it hadn't been for the fact that the Title Douluos present had worked together for so many years and had stepped in to help stabilize their injuries, the two brothers likely would have died in the Elder Hall the very day they returned to Martial Soul City due to the severity of their wounds.

Now, after nearly half a month of recovery, their injuries were still very grave, which was why they hadn't even considered running away and had come straight to the Pope Hall to seek refuge with her.

"Xiao Feng." Bibi Dong tapped the little kitten's head on the table.

"Yes, yes, yes, you only know how to boss people around." Nan Feng leaped up, transformed back into his human form in mid-air, and landed on the ground.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei were completely bewildered.

What kind of Martial Soul was this?

"Don't you dare forget the great favor I've done for you today!" Nan Feng looked at Yue Guan and Gui Mei sternly.

"If I ever need anything in the future, you two better step up!"

As he spoke, Nan Feng placed his hands on their shoulders.

The Horse Talisman activated. A terrifyingly powerful healing force surged into their bodies. In just a few breaths, it completely repaired their broken bodies, and even the hidden injuries accumulated over many years vanished without a trace!

A miracle doctor!!

Yue Guan and Gui Mei were shocked.

If this person had been present when Qian Xunji was injured, it would have been impossible for him to die from his wounds, right?

"Hey, you two better not go around talking about this," Nan Feng reminded them.

The healing consumption of his Horse Talisman was very strange; he still hadn't figured out exactly how it worked.

However, to him, concepts like "too severely injured" or "vital organs" didn't exist.

A hole in the hand cost the same amount of energy to heal as a hole in the heart.

Internal and external injuries were the same to him. For a healing-type Soul Master, surface damage was easy to repair, but internal meridians and vital organs were much harder to fix. After all, a healing-type Soul Master had to control their own soul power to "rebuild" the damaged areas, and the more delicate the area, the harder it was to repair.

But for him, a wound was just a wound. There was no such thing as "heavy" or "light," only "more" or "less." He only looked at the "quantity," not the "quality."

The more areas that were injured, the greater the healing consumption.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei were indeed severely injured, but their wounds were primarily internal. Healing these internal injuries didn't consume as much energy as the times he had healed those bloody Fallen Ones in Slaughter City, whose knife wounds were deep enough to expose bone.