Equivalent Exchange

The next day, Pope Palace, Administrative Hall.

Although the private chambers had not yet been renovated, the Administrative Hall did not require such trouble.

War against the Four Great Clans was no child's play; it required mobilizing spirit masters from Martial Soul Hall branches across the land, managing their distribution, strategic deployment, and logistics.

War was not as simple as just saying the word; pre-war preparation was a massive undertaking in itself.

Moreover, even though those Titled Douluo had spoken of wanting to fight during the Elder Hall meeting, Bibi Dong knew clearly that most of them would likely just go through the motions without putting in any real effort.

For a nation to initiate a war, the biggest problem is never whether they can win, but whether they can make others willing to fight and risk their lives.

Martial Soul Hall was no different.

The rank-and-file spirit masters were simple; throw high official positions and generous salaries at them, and plenty would be willing to fight. But for the group in the Elder Hall, such things were hollow.

They were already Titled Douluo, holding high status and power, with prosperous families.

To them, their current status was the pinnacle; risking their lives now offered minimal gain and extreme risk.

If they encountered a desperate counterattack from the Clear Sky Sect, they would undoubtedly prioritize their own survival first. Even if they watched their subordinates die to the last man, they wouldn't even furrow a brow.

As long as they lived, their families remained.

If they were severely wounded or killed, the Elder Hall would not keep the useless; without a Titled Douluo to anchor them, their families would inevitably decline.

Therefore, those elders would absolutely never risk their lives.

Even their current willingness to go through the motions was only because Nan Feng had taken control of her body and berated them so thoroughly that they couldn't afford to lose face.

Otherwise, that group in the Elder Hall wouldn't have bothered with this matter at all.

Bibi Dong projected the progress of this war, but regardless, as long as those Titled Douluo in the Elder Hall didn't take it seriously, her so-called blitzkrieg and tactics of surrounding points to strike reinforcements were nothing but a joke!

"Nan Feng, I will ask you again: how exactly do we solve the problem of the Elder Hall just going through the motions?" Bibi Dong asked in her heart.

"My original plan was to proceed slowly. Beyond letting the outside world lower their guard, it was more importantly about using benefits to gradually win over the true core power of Martial Soul Hall. I wanted them to see that following me brings rewards, thereby slowly eroding the influence of Golden Crocodile and Qian Daoliu."

"But look at what you did!"

"Not only did you refuse to win them over or show goodwill, you pointed fingers in the Elder Hall and called everyone cowards and trash!"

"Now it's a mess. Even if Golden Crocodile keeps quiet out of regard for the big picture, those elders must hate me to the core! They will never give me a pleasant look, let alone support me sincerely!"

"If we reach the battlefield and they just go through the motions, or even intentionally let the Clear Sky Sect elders escape to preserve their own strength, then this so-called blitzkrieg will turn into a messy, drawn-out war of attrition!"

"If this battle fails to achieve the expected results, or if we suffer heavy losses, my prestige as the new Pope—which is already thin—will only hit rock bottom."

"If we keep going like this, forget about controlling the Elder Hall; I might not even be able to hold onto the power of the Pope Palace!"

Facing Bibi Dong's anxiety, Nan Feng in the Sea of Consciousness merely yawned lazily.

"What's the rush? I told you, the problem with the Elder Hall will be solved soon."

"As for berating them... heh, that's a small matter, perhaps even a necessary one."

"Little Dongdong, when it comes down to it, you spent too many years being overly cautious in front of Qian Xunji. Your thinking has been imprisoned by that identity as a disciple."

"You want to win over those elders and show goodwill? That mindset itself puts you in a passive position, even a subordinate one."

"You are the Pope! A monarch! Does a monarch need to curry favor with their subjects?"

"I don't like being passive, and I like being looked down upon even less."

"What I want isn't to win them over; it's to make them have no choice but to come and pledge their loyalty!"

"Easier said than done," Bibi Dong frowned deeply.

"The elders of Martial Soul Hall are only inferior to the Pope in administrative power; in terms of status, the elders are equal to the Pope! This is the ancestral law of Martial Soul Hall!"

"If the Pope incurs public wrath and violates the fundamental interests of Martial Soul Hall, the Elder Hall has the right to impeach or even seize power!"

"But the Pope has no right to strip an elder of their title or status! Why would they pledge loyalty to a yellow-haired girl who has no foundation and has already offended them all?"

"They take orders from Golden Crocodile and look to Qian Daoliu for cues! As long as Qian Daoliu doesn't nod, they can keep stalling me indefinitely!"

"Exactly."

Nan Feng snapped his fingers. "You've finally hit the nail on the head. The Elder Hall looks to Qian Daoliu for cues."

"Then may I ask..."

Nan Feng's voice turned playful:

"Who does Qian Daoliu look to for cues?"

"Or rather, in this world, who can influence the joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness of Qian Daoliu? Who can make this semi-god peerless Douluo swallow his pride even when he's been wronged?"

Bibi Dong froze.

A golden figure flashed through her mind—the little girl who always chased after her calling her "Mama," the little girl who had run away crying last night.

"You mean... Qian Renxue?"

Bibi Dong was suddenly shocked, a chill crawling up her spine. She asked with a hint of terror:

"So... you old spider, from the very beginning, you were showing goodwill to Qian Renxue, acting out that play of maternal love and filial piety, and even going so far as to detonate your avatar just to deepen her hatred for Qian Daoliu..."

"You... have been calculating this step since long ago?!"

Seeing Bibi Dong finally react, Nan Feng no longer denied it.

"Planning before acting is your strength. But being overly hesitant and indecisive has become your fatal weakness."

"Moreover, Little Dongdong, your heart... is still not ruthless enough."

"Clearly, Qian Renxue is the most useful and unsolvable trump card in your hand. As long as you hold this card well, let alone those elders, even Qian Daoliu would have to be led by the nose by you."

"But what about you?"

"You just refuse to use her. You hold a winning hand, yet you insist on pushing her far away!"

"You keep saying you hate the Qian family, hate Qian Xunji, and want revenge. Yet, toward Qian Xunji's daughter, you have an inexplicable... protective instinct?"

"Don't rush to deny it."

Nan Feng interrupted Bibi Dong, who was about to defend herself, "If you truly hated her, you would ignore her. But your current avoidance is precisely because you are afraid of dragging her into this, afraid of using her."

"But this is ridiculous."

"Back then, in order to survive, you could play along with Qian Xunji, who violated you, and pretend to be an obedient disciple."

"Now, for the sake of power and revenge, why can't you put on an act for Qian Renxue? Why can't you coax her?"

"As long as you coax her well and get her on your side,"

"Even if Qian Daoliu and Golden Crocodile know you are acting, even if they know it's fake, would they refuse Qian Renxue's request? Would they be willing to let Qian Renxue be heartbroken?"

Bibi Dong fell silent, her face pale.

She had not expected that the most hidden corner of her heart—that tiny, lingering trace of complex guilt and reluctance toward that child—would be seen through so thoroughly by Nan Feng, and furthermore... viewed as a weakness.

"For this, you didn't hesitate to abandon your greatest advantage and chose the hardest path to walk."

Nan Feng sighed, his tone full of disappointment, "This is too stupid."

"Since you are unwilling to use this trump card..."

"Then I will use it."

"Do you think I went on strike last night for no reason? Why did I let Qian Daoliu face Qian Renxue's tears?"

"It was to make that old man feel guilty! To make his heart ache! To let him know that it was he who personally destroyed his granddaughter's maternal love!"

"Now, the timing is just about right."

"Qian Daoliu must be as anxious as an ant on a hot pan right now. As long as we add a little more fuel to the fire..."

"In order to coax his granddaughter and make up for this debt, he will have to... obediently hand over the command of the Elder Hall to you."

"..."

Bibi Dong remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking: "What if... I oppose this plan?"

"Oppose?"

Within the Sea of Consciousness, Nan Feng's voice carried a sense of incomprehensible absurdity, "Bibi Dong, has your brain been flooded? Why would you oppose it?"

"What is our current situation? We are climbing upward, walking a tightrope! One wrong step and we are shattered to pieces!"

"Utilizing every resource available to climb, surviving by any means necessary—that is the only thing you need to consider right now! It is the only truth!"

"I know what you are worried about."

Nan Feng's tone softened slightly, attempting to reason, "You think using a child is despicable and cruel, right?"

"Fine, that's okay, I will solve this problem."

"That little girl is crying like a fountain right now, feeling like the whole world has abandoned her. At this moment, if I step in to be the good mother, if I coax her, tell her stories, and give her the maternal love and warmth she has never had—even if it's an act, even if it's fake—for her, isn't the happiness and satisfaction of that moment real?"

"Isn't this a win-win?"

"This is an equivalent exchange!"

"I give her what she wants most, filling the void of her childhood; and she, in exchange, exerts her value as the Angel Young Master, helping you gain a firm foothold and seize absolute power."

"What is wrong with this? What is cruel about this?"

"This is even a hundred times happier than letting her follow that grandfather who only knows how to cultivate and keep a straight face all day long!"