Refusing the Worship Hall's Recruitment

No one spoke on the high platform.

Qian Daoliu continued walking toward Su Chen.

He raised his right hand.

A layer of soft golden light shimmered in his palm.

He intended to take this child, who possessed the Ultimate Light attribute, away directly.

The supreme power of Martial Soul Hall had always remained in the hands of the Worship Hall.

In his eyes, the Pope's protests were entirely meaningless.

Just as Qian Daoliu's hand was about to touch Su Chen's shoulder.

The mechanical prompt of the system rang in Su Chen's mind right on cue.

"Ding! Detected that the host is facing a choice regarding faction allegiance. God-Level Choice System triggered."

"Option One: Submit to Qian Daoliu. Join the Worship Hall. Abandon the God-Slaying Magic Spear martial soul. Reward: One 100,000-year torso spirit bone. Status: Young Master of the Worship Hall."

"Option Two: Agree to Qian Daoliu on the surface. Secretly request protection from Bibi Dong. Retain the Twin Martial Souls. Reward: One 80,000-year left arm spirit bone. One high-tier Profound-grade breath-concealment technique."

"Option Three: Publicly refuse the Worship Hall's recruitment. Protect the second martial soul. Choose to join the Pope Palace faction. Reward: One 1,000,000-year head spirit bone. Unlock the ability of spiritual power materialization. God-level martial soul compatibility increased to 100%."

Su Chen scanned the three options quickly.

He did not hesitate at all.

Option One was equivalent to crippling his own cultivation.

The God-Slaying Magic Spear was a supreme god-level martial soul.

To abandon it was to abandon half the foundation for becoming a god.

Option Two was two-faced.

Playing tricks under the nose of a Peerless Douluo was simply unrealistic.

Qian Daoliu could forcibly "purify" his dark martial soul at any moment.

Only Option Three aligned with his current interests.

A 1,000,000-year head spirit bone was a divine object that absolutely did not exist on the Douluo Continent.

Spiritual power materialization would allow him to possess self-preservation abilities far beyond ordinary people right from the start.

Most importantly, Bibi Dong was the only person currently capable of guiding him in cultivating Twin Martial Souls.

"System, I choose three."

Su Chen issued the command in his heart.

"Option confirmed. Rewards have been issued to the system space. They can be extracted and absorbed at any time."

Only an instant had passed in the outside world.

Qian Daoliu's hand was only half a foot away from Su Chen.

Su Chen exerted force through his feet.

He stepped back a large stride without the slightest hesitation.

This step perfectly avoided Qian Daoliu's palm.

Qian Daoliu's hand froze in mid-air.

He stopped in his tracks.

A trace of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"Great Grandmaster, thank you for your kindness, but I cannot go with you."

Su Chen looked at Qian Daoliu.

His tone was extremely steady.

There was not a hint of cowardice.

The surrounding Titled Douluo were all stunned.

Bishop Sino even gasped in shock.

A six-year-old commoner orphan who had just awakened his martial soul.

He actually dared to publicly refuse the recruitment of a rank 99 Peerless Douluo.

Golden Crocodile Douluo was furious.

He stepped forward.

A formidable wave of spirit power erupted from his body.

"Insolent! The Great Grandmaster personally offering to teach you is a blessing you've cultivated over several lifetimes. How dare you, a mere junior, be so ungrateful!"

Su Chen did not look at Golden Crocodile Douluo.

His gaze remained fixed on Qian Daoliu.

"My left hand is the God-Slaying Magic Spear. It possesses the ultimate power of darkness and destruction. It is not the impurity you speak of; it is a Martial Soul just as noble as the Judgment Holy Sword. I will never let anyone purify it or destroy it."

Su Chen stated his reasoning.

Qian Daoliu's brows furrowed slightly.

"Child, you are too young. You do not understand the dangers of dark power at all. Sooner or later, it will corrode your mind and cause you to fall into becoming an Evil Soul Master. Only the pure power of the Angel God can guide you onto the correct path."

"Power has never been divided into good or evil. Only the people who use that power have a distinction between good and evil."

Su Chen refuted him directly.

He met Qian Daoliu's gaze without flinching in the slightest.

"Since I have awakened Twin Martial Souls, I must cultivate both of them to their peak. You have only practiced the Angel Martial Soul your entire life; you fundamentally do not understand the cultivation method for Twin Martial Souls. Following you would only be a waste of my talent."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere on the high platform plummeted to freezing point.

Demon Bear Douluo and Snake Lance Douluo took several steps back.

They were shocked by Su Chen's audacity.

To actually dare to accuse the Great Elder of not understanding cultivation to his face—this was unprecedented in the history of Martial Soul Hall.

Qian Daoliu's expression finally darkened completely.

The sacred aura on his body instantly became extremely oppressive.

The majesty of a Peerless Douluo would not allow anyone to provoke it, even if the other party was a genius.

"Do you think you have a choice?"

Qian Daoliu's voice turned icy.

He raised his hand once again.

This time, the surrounding space was completely locked down by immense soul power.

Su Chen felt that his body could not move even a fraction.

Just at this moment, a purple figure stood in front of Su Chen.

The scepter in Bibi Dong's hand struck the ground heavily.

A formidable purple soul power surged into the sky, forcibly tearing a gap in Qian Daoliu's spatial lockdown.

"Great Elder, why must you make things difficult for a child? He has already made his choice."

Bibi Dong blocked Qian Daoliu's pressure, her eyes rising with fighting spirit.

The pressure on Su Chen's body vanished instantly.

He stood behind Bibi Dong, looking at the back in front of him.

He knew that this move of his had been the right one.

Qian Daoliu looked at Bibi Dong.

"Bibi Dong, are you truly willing to completely break ties with my Worship Hall for his sake?"

"He is my personal disciple and also a member of the Pope Palace. No one can take him away."

Bibi Dong did not yield in the slightest.

The massive phantom of the Death Spider Emperor began to emerge behind her.

Nine soul rings with the best configuration rose slowly from beneath her feet.

Seeing this, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo gritted their teeth.

Bearing the pressure of Qian Daoliu, they stepped forward.

The two of them stood to the left and right behind Bibi Dong.

Nine soul rings lit up on both of their bodies as well.

The three Title Douluo of the Pope Palace assumed a combat stance.

Golden Crocodile Douluo laughed in extreme anger.

Dazzling golden light erupted from his body.

A massive phantom of the Golden Crocodile King roared behind him.

Nine spirit rings lit up.

The final one was unmistakably a hundred-thousand-year red ring.

Demon Bear Douluo, Snake Lance Douluo, and the others exchanged glances.

Although they belonged to the Elder Hall, they were nominally under the Pope's command.

At this moment, they dared not easily take sides.

They could only release their spirit power to protect themselves.

The stone slabs on the high platform shattered over a large area under the surging spirit power of multiple Titled Douluo.

The Temple Knights surrounding the Awakening Plaza were sent flying by the shockwaves.

The peak combatants of the two major factions were on the verge of an earth-shattering battle.

Qian Daoliu looked at the resolute Bibi Dong before him.

Then, he glanced at Su Chen behind her.

He knew that if he forcibly snatched the boy today, Bibi Dong would definitely strike.

If the Pope and the Grand Pontiff were to fight within Martial Soul City, it would only cause Martial Soul Hall to fall apart and make the two great empires laugh at them.

It was not worth taking such a huge risk for a child who had just awakened.

Furthermore, Su Chen truly possessed an extreme darkness attribute.

This conflicted severely with the doctrines of the Worship Hall.

Even the purification he had proposed earlier did not have a ten-percent guarantee of preserving Su Chen's life.

Qian Daoliu withdrew his released spirit power.

The solidified air around them began to flow once more.

"Very well, Bibi Dong. You win."

Qian Daoliu looked at Bibi Dong, his tone returning to its previous indifference.

"You may keep him. But I shall see if you can truly train a Twin Martial Soul that controls both extreme light and extreme darkness. If he explodes and dies during cultivation, or falls into becoming an evil spirit master, I will kill him with my own hands."

Bibi Dong retracted the phantom of the Death Spider Emperor.

"That shall not require the Grand Pontiff's concern."

Qian Daoliu turned to look at Golden Crocodile Douluo.

"Let us go."

Golden Crocodile Douluo glared at Bibi Dong with resentment.

He retracted his martial soul and followed Qian Daoliu, the two transforming into streaks of golden light that shot into the sky.

In the blink of an eye, they returned in the direction of the Worship Hall.

With the departure of the two from the Worship Hall, the suffocating pressure over the Awakening Plaza finally dissipated completely.

Demon Bear Douluo and the others hurriedly retracted their martial souls.

They bowed to Bibi Dong before taking to the air and departing one after another.

They did not want to be dragged into this power struggle between the higher-ups.

Only Bibi Dong, Chrysanthemum Douluo, Ghost Douluo, and Su Chen remained on the high platform.

Bishop Sino and the Temple Knights on the perimeter remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to rise easily.

Bibi Dong turned around.

She looked down at Su Chen, who remained standing where he was.

"You do not fear death."

Bibi Dong spoke.

"I do."

Su Chen replied.

"But I fear becoming a cripple even more."

Bibi Dong looked at the child before her, whose eyes were filled with determination.

She saw a trace of her former self in Su Chen.

The same stubbornness.

The same unyielding spirit.

"You said earlier that power has no right or wrong; only the human heart possesses good and evil."

Bibi Dong ruminated on the words Su Chen had used to refute Qian Daoliu.

"Yes."

Su Chen nodded.

Bibi Dong gave a slight nod.

She extended her right hand toward Su Chen.