Rejecting the Worship Hall's Recruitment

No one on the high platform spoke.

Qian Daoliu continued toward Su Chen.

He raised his right hand.

A layer of gentle golden light shimmered in his palm.

He was prepared to take away this child with his ultimate light attribute.

The highest authority in Spirit Hall had always rested in the hands of the Worship Hall.

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

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

the system's mechanical prompt sounded in Su Chen's mind right on time.

"Ding! The host is facing a choice of faction. The God-Level Choice System has been triggered."

"Option One: Obey Qian Daoliu. Join the Worship Hall. Give up the God-Slaying Magic Spear Martial Soul. Reward: one hundred-thousand-year Torso Soul Bone. Status as the Worship Hall's young master."

"Option Two: Pretend to agree to Qian Daoliu, but secretly ask Bibi Dong for protection. Keep the Twin Martial Souls. Reward: one eighty-thousand-year Left Arm Soul Bone and one high-grade Black-tier Concealment Technique."

"Option Three: Publicly reject the Worship Hall's recruitment. Protect the Second Martial Soul. Choose to join the Pope Palace faction. Reward: one Million-Year Head Soul Bone. Unlock the ability to materialize spiritual power. Increase the compatibility of the god-level Martial Soul to one hundred percent."

Su Chen quickly scanned the three options.

He didn't hesitate at all.

Option One was the same as crippling himself.

The God-Slaying Magic Spear was a supreme god-level Martial Soul.

Giving it up would mean surrendering half the foundation of his path to godhood.

Option Two meant trying to sit on the fence.

There was no way he could pull a fast one under the eyes of a Peerless Douluo.

Qian Daoliu could forcibly "purify" his dark Martial Soul at any moment.

Only Option Three served his interests best right now.

A Million-Year Head Soul Bone was a divine treasure that simply didn't exist on Douluo Continent.

The ability to materialize spiritual power would also give him an extraordinary means of protecting himself from the very beginning.

Most importantly, Bibi Dong was currently the only person who could guide him in cultivating Twin Martial Souls.

"System, I choose Three."

Su Chen gave the command in his mind.

"Option confirmed. Rewards have been delivered to system storage. They can be retrieved and absorbed at any time."

Outside, only an instant had passed.

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

Su Chen pushed off with his foot.

Without the slightest hesitation, he took a big step backward.

The step was just enough to dodge Qian Daoliu's hand.

Qian Daoliu's hand froze in midair.

He stopped.

A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

"Great Worship, thank you for your kind offer, but I can't go with you."

Su Chen looked at Qian Daoliu.

His voice was calm.

There wasn't a trace of fear in it.

All the Titled Douluo around them were stunned.

Bishop Sino drew in a sharp breath.

A six-year-old orphan from a commoner family who had only just awakened his Martial Soul

had actually dared to publicly refuse the recruitment of a level-ninety-nine Peerless Douluo.

Golden Crocodile Douluo flew into a rage.

He stepped forward.

A powerful wave of Soul Power erupted from him.

"Impudent! The Great Worship is offering to teach you personally. That's a blessing your ancestors could only dream of! How dare you, whelp, refuse to appreciate his kindness?"

Su Chen didn't look at Golden Crocodile Douluo.

His gaze stayed fixed on Qian Daoliu.

"My left hand holds the God-Slaying Magic Spear. It has the ultimate powers of darkness and destruction. It isn't the impurity you called it. It's a Martial Soul as noble as the Judgment Holy Sword. I will never let anyone purify it or destroy it."

Su Chen explained his reasons.

Qian Daoliu's brows furrowed slightly.

"Child, you're too young. You don't understand how dangerous the power of darkness is. Sooner or later, it will corrupt your mind and turn you into an Evil Soul Master. Only pure Angel Divine Power can guide you down the right path."

"Power has never been good or evil. Only those who wield it can be good or evil."

Su Chen shot back.

He met Qian Daoliu's gaze without backing down.

"Since I've awakened Twin Martial Souls, I'll cultivate both of them to their peak. You've spent your whole life cultivating only the Angel Martial Soul. You don't understand how to cultivate Twin Martial Souls at all. If I follow you, I'll only waste my talent."

At those words,

the atmosphere on the high platform instantly dropped to freezing point.

Demon Bear Douluo and Snake Lance Douluo stumbled several steps backward.

They were shocked by Su Chen's audacity.

He actually dared to accuse the Great Worship to his face of not understanding cultivation.

It was unprecedented in Spirit Hall's history.

Qian Daoliu's expression finally darkened completely.

The sacred aura around him became intensely oppressive.

The dignity of a Peerless Douluo could not be challenged by anyone.

Not even a genius.

"You think you have a choice?"

Qian Daoliu's voice turned cold.

He raised his hand again.

This time,

the vast Soul Power completely sealed off the space around them.

Su Chen felt his body lock up, unable to move even an inch.

Just then,

a purple figure stepped in front of Su Chen.

Bibi Dong struck the ground hard with the scepter in her hand.

A powerful surge of purple Soul Power shot into the sky.

It tore a gap in Qian Daoliu's spatial seal by force.

"Great Worship, why make things difficult for a child? He's already made his choice."

Bibi Dong stood against Qian Daoliu's pressure.

Fighting spirit surged in her eyes.

The pressure on Su Chen vanished in an instant.

He stood behind Bibi Dong.

Looking at her back,

he knew he'd made the right move.

Qian Daoliu looked at Bibi Dong.

"Bibi Dong, are you really going to tear things apart with my Worship Hall over him?"

"He's my personal disciple and a member of the Pope Palace. No one is taking him away."

Bibi Dong didn't back down.

The enormous phantom of the Death Spider Emperor began to appear behind her.

Nine optimally matched Soul Rings slowly rose from beneath her feet.

Seeing this,

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo

gritted their teeth.

They forced their way forward against Qian Daoliu's pressure.

They took their places on either side behind Bibi Dong.

Nine Soul Rings lit up on each of them as well.

The three Titled Douluo of the Pope Palace took up battle stances.

Golden Crocodile Douluo laughed in fury.

Golden light blazed from his body.

The enormous phantom of the Golden Crocodile King roared behind him.

Nine Soul Rings lit up.

The last was a red hundred-thousand-year 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.

Now, however, they didn't dare choose a side lightly.

They could only release their Soul Power to protect themselves.

The stone slabs on the high platform shattered across a wide area under the surging Soul Power of several Titled Douluo.

The Temple Knights around Awakening Plaza were flung away by the shock waves.

The supreme fighters of the two factions were on the verge of unleashing a world-shaking battle.

Qian Daoliu looked at Bibi Dong, whose resolve was unshaken.

Then he glanced at Su Chen behind her.

He knew

that if he tried to seize the boy by force today,

Bibi Dong would definitely fight.

If the Pope and the Great Worship fought inside Spirit City,

Spirit Hall would only fall apart

and become a laughingstock to the two great empires.

It wasn't worth taking such a huge risk over a child who had only just awakened his Martial Soul.

Besides,

Su Chen really did possess the ultimate attribute of darkness.

That was in serious conflict with the Worship Hall's doctrine.

When he'd proposed purification just now,

he hadn't been completely sure he could keep Su Chen alive.

Qian Daoliu withdrew the Soul Power he'd released.

The air that had been frozen around them began to flow again.

"Very well, Bibi Dong. You win."

Qian Daoliu looked at Bibi Dong.

His tone returned to its earlier indifference.

"You may keep him. But I'd like to see whether you can teach someone who controls Twin Martial Souls of both ultimate light and ultimate darkness. If he explodes and dies during cultivation, or becomes an Evil Soul Master, I'll kill him myself."

Bibi Dong dismissed the phantom of the Death Spider Emperor.

"Then you needn't trouble yourself, Great Worship."

Qian Daoliu turned to Golden Crocodile Douluo.

"Let's go."

Golden Crocodile Douluo glared at Bibi Dong in bitter resentment.

He dismissed his Martial Soul.

Then he followed Qian Daoliu as the two turned into streaks of golden light

and shot into the sky.

In the blink of an eye, they were heading back toward the Worship Hall.

With the two men from the Worship Hall gone,

the suffocating pressure over Awakening Plaza finally faded completely.

Demon Bear Douluo and the others hurriedly dismissed their Martial Souls.

They bowed to Bibi Dong.

Then they, too, took to the sky and left.

They didn't want to get caught up in a power struggle between the upper ranks.

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

Bishop Sino and the Temple Knights around the plaza were still kneeling on the ground.

They didn't dare get up just yet.

Bibi Dong turned around.

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

"You're not afraid of dying?"

Bibi Dong spoke.

"I am."

Su Chen answered.

"But I'm more afraid of becoming useless."

Bibi Dong looked at the determined child before her.

In Su Chen, she saw a trace of her younger self.

The same stubbornness.

The same defiance.

"You said just now that power has no good or evil. Only people's hearts can be good or evil."

Bibi Dong mulled over Su Chen's words as he'd challenged Qian Daoliu.

"That's right."

Su Chen nodded.

Bibi Dong gave a slight nod.

She held out her right hand to Su Chen.