Return to Pope Hall

He couldn't tell if Qian Yun was doing it on purpose. Yabojin panted heavily, casting a glance at Hu Liena, who was leaning against the door in silence. Recalling Qian Yun's cold attitude toward him, a rough guess gradually formed in his mind.

He struggled to lift his head toward Qian Yun, who was already preparing to leave, and said with a trembling voice, "I'm sorry. Earlier, I went mad and tried to harm your friend. It was my fault. I apologize to you now. I'm sorry!"

Qian Yun turned back to look at this Yabojin, who seemed to have been reborn. He remained noncommittal to his words and continued in a cold tone, "That Evil Spirit Master is already dead. As for how you recovered... I believe you will have a very reasonable explanation."

Yabojin nodded. He certainly understood what Qian Yun meant. "I know. I swear on my Martial Soul that I will definitely keep this secret!"

Qian Yun said no more. After a faint nod, he opened the door and walked out.

"Blegh, hmph!" Before leaving, Hu Liena made a face at the blond man, then took light, brisk steps to catch up with Qian Yun.

Hu Liena looked at Qian Yun's back, feeling incredibly happy inside.

"Little Yun-Yun." Hu Liena leaned in close to him and called out in a syrupy voice.

Qian Yun immediately felt goosebumps and quickly retorted, "Go away, go away. Who is your 'Little Yun-Yun'? Have some respect for your elders."

Hu Liena remained relentless, crowding up to his face, and said with great satisfaction, "You were really right just now. You scared that Mad Lion out of his wits."

As she spoke, she threw a punch into the air. "You did the right thing. Why give a good face to someone who tried to hurt us? You should pay them back in kind!"

The corners of Qian Yun's mouth twitched. "It wasn't just about not giving him a good face. This time, I burned away several levels of his soul power. I expect his future cultivation will be affected."

Hu Liena remained indifferent. "Hmph, he brought that on himself."

Her small face suddenly pressed close to Qian Yun's, her pretty features filling his entire field of vision. "By the way, were you really teaching that guy a lesson just for me?"

Facing Hu Liena's captivating expression, with her scent lingering at the tip of his nose, Qian Yun rarely looked away, saying somewhat unnaturally, "Of course not. Didn't I say it was just for an experiment? Otherwise, who would care if he lived or died?"

Hu Liena looked at his shy appearance and was as surprised as if she had discovered a new continent. "Yo, you're blushing. Let me see."

"Stop messing around."

While talking, the two of them had returned to the carriage.

Qian Yun and Hu Liena had returned to their normal selves, each finding a seat to sit down.

In truth, Yabojin's words from earlier were only partially correct. While Qian Yun dealing him a heavy blow was indeed partly out of revenge, it was mostly to see how the Crown Martial Soul's purification effect worked on negative states, so as to help Bibi Dong overcome her difficulties in the future.

Fortunately, the Crown was practically a one-hit kill against such evil negative states. That added another layer of certainty to helping Bibi Dong later on.

Actually, counting the time, Bibi Dong must have already begun the Rakshasa God trials, though the progress remained unknown. However, it was certain that as the god trials deepened, the erosion of the Rakshasa divine power on her would become increasingly obvious, and her mindset and sanity would lean more toward the extreme, until she eventually became a true Rakshasa.

Qian Yun did not want Bibi Dong to become like that, and he wanted Tang San to become a god even less!

He wanted to take advantage of the fact that Bibi Dong was still only shallowly eroded to see if he could help her remove the Rakshasa's influence, even though, for him right now, talking about affecting divine power was no different from a pipe dream.

But it wasn't entirely without hope. He still didn't know the upper limit of the Crown Martial Soul, and as his strength increased, the Crown's utility would only become more formidable.

He believed that completely erasing the Rakshasa God's influence in the future was not impossible. As for Tang San...? Sorry, Qian Yun's plan didn't consider Tang San's influence at all.

Because he would definitely kill Tang San before he could gain any momentum. Once the person was gone, there would naturally be no need to consider the influence he brought.

When the time came and the influence of that cheater Tang San was gone, the two great empires naturally wouldn't last long. Once he helped Bibi Dong achieve her grand ambition and unify the Douluo Continent, his trip to this continent would not have been in vain.

Two days later.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Qian Yun had barely sat down after returning to his residence when another round of knocking sounded.

Qian Yun and Hu Liena exchanged a glance, both offering helpless, bitter smiles. Qian Yun went up to open the door, only to see another old acquaintance standing before him this time.

After seeing who it was, Qian Yun raised an eyebrow, feeling quite surprised. "Captain, do you have something to find us for?"

Yake Entu nodded. There was a complex emotion in his eyes as he looked at Qian Yun, and he silently took out a stack of envelopes and handed them to him. "There is a letter that needs to be delivered to you."

What caught his eye was a thin envelope; it didn't look like anything valuable inside. It was likely just a single sheet of paper.

"To be opened by Amiga and Boli..." Qian Yun didn't read any further, because he had already seen the Pope Hall wax seal on the envelope. He looked up at the captain's complex expression, and at this moment, everything was self-evident.

Qian Yun silently lowered his head and took the somewhat heavy letter. "Thank you."

Yake Entu pursed his lips. Usually talkative, he didn't know what to say either. "Don't mention it."

The once-familiar friends were now having such a distant conversation, making him feel an indescribable discomfort in his heart.

"That..." He watched as they prepared to close the door and finally said, "Take care of yourselves from now on."

Qian Yun's movements paused, and he nodded. "Mm."

After closing the door, Yake Entu sighed, his nose stinging.

He understood that this was likely the last time he would ever see Qian Yun.

Partings were always so sudden. From the mutual wariness when Qian Yun and the other arrived in his squad, to finally being able to rely on each other in battle, he had a genuine fondness for these two young people. It was just a pity that there was no banquet in the world that didn't come to an end.

Qian Yun silently opened the letter, which contained words written with a quill:

Urgent summons for my Pope Hall members: Qian Yun, Hu Liena.

Upon receiving this notification letter, the aforementioned personnel are to return to the Pope Hall in Martial Soul City immediately to report!

Make haste!

Looking at the neat yet elegant handwriting, it was clearly written by Bibi Dong herself. What truly surprised Qian Yun was the final paragraph: the Pope wanted to summon them, and in such a hurry?!

However, even though his heart was filled with doubts, he had to follow the Pope's orders.

Therefore, that same afternoon, Qian Yun packed his things and boarded the carriage back to the Pope Hall with Hu Liena.

Traveling day and night, two days later, Qian Yun and Hu Liena finally stood before the Pope Hall once again after more than half a year.

"Phew, Pope Hall, I, Hu Liena, have returned!" Hu Liena spread her arms wide, venting the emotions in her heart.

Having not seen it for over half a year, everything about the Pope Hall remained unchanged, still as towering and magnificent as ever, inspiring a sense of reverence in all who saw it.

"Let's go. The Pope must be waiting for us already." Qian Yun and Hu Liena walked toward the attendant who had been waiting for a long time.

Ascending Pope Mountain once more and passing through the massive stone gate large enough for a dragon to fly through, Qian Yun finally saw that beautiful and majestic Pope, Bibi Dong, again.

She sat upright on her throne, her beautiful and moving face as calm as ever, but... perhaps because they hadn't met in a long time, Qian Yun felt that Bibi Dong's gaze was frequently lingering on him.

"Subordinates Qian Yun and Hu Liena pay respects to Your Holiness the Pope." Qian Yun and Hu Liena bowed to Bibi Dong in a formal manner.

Although they were the Pope's students, they were currently on duty, so they had to use her official title.

Bibi Dong's clear and graceful voice echoed through the vast hall, "Rise."

"Yes."

After Qian Yun and the others stood up, a long silence awaited them.

Finally, Bibi Dong spoke again, her tone carrying a hint of intimacy, "Mm, very good, Xiao Yun, Xiao Na. You performed well during your training over the past six months. How do you feel?"

Hu Liena stepped forward and replied with a smile, "Although the experience over these six months wasn't long, we gained a lot. We went on many missions together and witnessed the hardships of the common people; we did our best to help them. We also killed Evil Spirit Masters, which can be considered ridding the people of a scourge!"

Bibi Dong's red lips moved slightly as she said with satisfaction, "Not bad. Although our Martial Soul Hall stands proudly above the continent, we must also sympathize with the people and never forget our duty as righteous spirit masters."

Her phoenix eyes shifted to look at Qian Yun, who was standing beside Hu Liena, "Xiao Yun, what are your thoughts?"

Qian Yun's expression was slightly awkward, thinking to himself: I spent every day and night with Hu Liena, what other insights could I possibly have?

However, since his superior asked him to say a few words, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and offer some platitudes.

"What left the deepest impression on me during this trip was the support the people have for our Martial Soul Hall. Over these six months, we visited many different places, and the people in these areas were very welcoming to us. I believe all of this is inseparable from Your Holiness's painstaking efforts and the hard work of many predecessors, which is why we have been able to establish the glorious image of the Martial Soul Hall in the hearts of the people."

Even Qian Yun felt like curling his toes after hearing his own slightly sycophantic words.

Bibi Dong, however, seemed quite pleased by them.

She stood up and began to walk down the steps, her eyebrows curving into a smile, "That is only natural. The status our Martial Soul Hall enjoys on the continent today is inseparable from the diligent efforts of the spirit masters who belong to it."

She moved with lotus steps until she reached Qian Yun, her soft, fair hand gently resting on his face. Under his surprised gaze, she said softly, "Of course, that includes yours as well."

A gentle breeze lifted her hair, causing ripples in the young man's heart. The sunset glow adorned her face, making her look incredibly moving.

Qian Yun lowered his head, feeling his heart thumping wildly, "It... it is my duty, Your Holiness."

Bibi Dong rubbed his face with her soft fingertips, smiling without a word.

Hu Liena's mouth was slightly agape as she looked at Qian Yun and then at Bibi Dong, truly not knowing who to envy at that moment.