Spirit City.
Qian Daoliu sensed the familiar, immense aura of the Six-Winged Angel within Pope Hall and let out a sigh of relief. Qian Xunji was fine.
"You should hide in Spirit Hall for now. When the time is right, I'll call you out." Qian Daoliu looked at the Death Spider Emperor, who had taken human form.
Given the Death Spider Emperor's strength, if she wished to hide, no one in all of Spirit Hall besides him could detect her unless they got extremely close. Even Golden Crocodile Douluo likely would not notice her.
Just like Qian Renxue's undercover operation in the Heaven Dou Empire in the original story, Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo, whose cultivation levels were only ninety-one and ninety-two and who ranked near the bottom among Title Douluo, had hidden themselves flawlessly. Neither Sword Douluo nor Tang Hao, who had been observing in secret, had detected them.
The Death Spider Emperor nodded, concealed her aura, and began secretly watching Spirit Hall.
Spirit Hall, Pope Hall.
Qian Daoliu had been away for nearly ten days. One week had been spent searching for the Death Spider Emperor; she had spent three days recovering from the injuries he inflicted, then another two days going to Life Lake, slaughtering the Sky Azure Bull Python, and capturing Ah Rou before returning to Spirit Hall.
During those ten days, Golden Crocodile Douluo had already led the elders of Elder Hall to pressure the Clear Sky Sect into returning to Spirit Hall. As for Bibi Dong's assassination attempt on Qian Xunji, that went without saying.
In the conference room of Pope Hall, Qian Xunji, whose injuries had mostly recovered, was once again dealing with Spirit Hall's mountain of accumulated affairs. There was not a single secretary or assistant at his side to help him. He was truly a top-tier wage slave.
The moment Qian Daoliu entered the conference room, he said, "Little Ji'er."
"Father, you're back."
Qian Xunji noticed that beside Qian Daoliu lay a severely injured, breathtakingly beautiful woman, no less stunning than Tang Hao's wife, the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor. Confusion appeared on his face. Why had Qian Daoliu brought back a woman after going out? Judging from her Soul Power, such a minor figure was not worth Qian Daoliu personally taking action against.
As for transformed soul beasts that had reached the quasi-Title Douluo level, unless a Soul Master's spiritual power had reached godhood, it was impossible to see through their true forms.
Qian Daoliu said, "This soul beast is a Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast. Raise her properly in captivity."
"Father, your luck is incredible. A Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast... I never expected two to appear in a single era."
"Ghost Elder."
After Qian Xunji had Ghost Douluo take Ah Rou away to be imprisoned, he told Qian Daoliu how Golden Crocodile Douluo had led the elders to pressure the Clear Sky Sect. Ghost Leopard Douluo had been left behind to secretly monitor the Clear Sky Sect.
Because Spirit Hall had dispatched ten Title Douluo at once, the continent's Soul Masters had reassessed Spirit Hall's strength. The prestige Spirit Hall had lost because of Tang Hao was restored.
When the continent's Soul Masters learned that Spirit Hall had publicized Tang Hao's love affair with a Hundred-Thousand-Year Transformed Soul Beast, that he had fathered an ominous creature, and that he intended to join the soul beasts in overthrowing humanity, they were all filled with righteous indignation. They supported Spirit Hall's pressure on the Clear Sky Sect and demanded that it hand over Tang Hao, the traitor to humankind.
Qian Daoliu nodded lightly. Everything had unfolded exactly as he had expected. With the average intelligence level on Douluo Continent, manipulating reputation and raising banners was effortless for him.
"What's wrong with you? Why are you making that bitter face?" Qian Daoliu asked, looking at Qian Xunji, who had lowered his head.
Qian Xunji slowly said, "Father, you were right. Dong'er had been acting. Her hatred for our Angel Clan had seeped into her bones. I'm afraid that no matter what I do, I won't be able to earn Dong'er's forgiveness."
Qian Daoliu was not surprised in the slightest. He asked again, "Oh? Then where is Bibi Dong now?"
Qian Xunji replied, "If Father had not given me Angel Divine Power, Dong'er would probably have killed me in my cultivation chamber. I've currently sealed her Soul Power and locked her in my cultivation chamber. As for Xiao Xue, I temporarily brushed her off by saying Dong'er was cultivating for a breakthrough."
Qian Daoliu looked at Qian Xunji, feeling slightly speechless. In the original story, if not for Qian Daoliu's deterrence—and if he had not given Qian Xunji Angel Divine Power to save his life—Qian Xunji would likely have been chopped into eight pieces by Bibi Dong long ago, tortured to death just as the Death Spider Emperor had tortured Xiao Wu. Then his soul would have been devoured by the Soul-Eater Spider Emperor, leaving him no chance at reincarnation and condemning him to eternal damnation.
She wanted to kill you, and you simply locked her up? Even if you spared her for Qian Renxue's sake, you could at least pin her down and grind her into the dirt once. Yet you did nothing?
Qian Daoliu felt that Qian Xunji's given name should not be Xunji. It should be changed to Lander. Qian Lander sounded much more fitting.
Among the many love triangles in Douluo, such as Tang Hao, Tang Xiao, and Ah Yin; Yu Xiaogang, Liu Erlong, and Flender; Tang Chen, Bo Saixi, and the original Qian Daoliu... they all shared one trait: lovers who wished to be together had to endure hardships along the way.
Tang Hao and Ah Yin had only reunited after Ah Yin's sacrifice and twenty-five years before her resurrection. Yu Xiaogang fled on his wedding night, avoided Liu Erlong for over a decade, then spent another decade as spiritual spouses with her.
As for Tang Chen and Bo Saixi, Tang Chen was parasitized by the Blood-Red Nine-Headed Bat King and wandered lost for decades. Only when he met Bo Saixi again did they confess their feelings to one another.
And the third person in every love triangle was no exception. Even as a loser, he had to devote himself wholeheartedly to the goddess, protect her silently, remain unmarried for life, and forget about carrying on the family line or fulfilling his duty as sect master to produce outstanding descendants and strengthen the sect.
Those were the third parties in healthy love triangles. But in unhealthy love triangles, people like the original Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, and Bibi Dong... if you dared not place love above everything else, if you did not silently protect them from behind the scenes, obediently act as a simp, and continuously sacrifice yourself, then your end would basically never be good.
"Little Ji'er, if you cannot hold the sand, it is better to scatter her. Since Bibi Dong hates Spirit Hall and the Angel Clan so deeply, and thinks our Spirit Hall is filthy, then let her leave."
Now that the Death Spider Emperor had arrived at Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong could get lost already.
Qian Daoliu did not regard Bibi Dong as a threat at all. Without obtaining the Rakshasa inheritance and having her Martial Soul soaked and strengthened by Rakshasa God Power, Bibi Dong would be crippled by more than half the moment the Angel Martial Soul shone upon her. Even if she reached level ninety-nine as a Limit Douluo, he could still beat her with ease.
As the Grand Pontiff of the Angel God, he naturally had to remain in the sunlight at all times. How could he personally do filthy things such as exterminating sects and slaughtering families? It was perfect to let Bibi Dong handle them instead.
If Bibi Dong left Spirit Hall, she would undoubtedly go looking for Yu Xiaogang. If Xiao Wu transformed, then Tang San and Xiao Wu's romantic storyline would undoubtedly be ruined. At Life Lake, the Death Spider Emperor had appeared wearing Bibi Dong's face. Xiao Wu might even have been traumatized by the Death Spider Emperor's abuse.
"Father, what are you thinking? How can we let Dong'er go? If Dong'er leaves Spirit Hall, she'll definitely go find Yu Xiaogang. Do you want Yu Xiaogang to...?"
Qian Xunji's face had darkened somewhat. He had done that sort of thing to Bibi Dong, and they even had a daughter together. No matter what, Bibi Dong was his wife. If Bibi Dong ran off to find Yu Xiaogang and something happened between them, would he not end up wearing something extra on his head?
Would he, Qian Xunji, still have any face left if a level twenty-nine, utterly useless Soul Grandmaster put a soul skill on his head?
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