Nan Feng: Can't Carry!

Faced with this barrage of questioning and Nan Feng's logically airtight "twisted logic," Bibi Dong offered no rebuttal, nor did she attempt to debate the morality or rightness of his words.

She simply stood there quietly, her gaze calm, and then repeated her previous question:

"What if I refuse?"

Her tone was flat, devoid of ripples, yet it carried an unshakable sense of resolve.

She knew very well that she could not out-argue this Old Spider.

This creature possessed no human emotions and no moral bottom line; in his eyes, all things were tradable, and everything was a calculation of interests.

His logic was absolutely rational and purely profit-driven; within his worldview, this was indeed a perfect equivalent exchange.

But on this matter, there was no room for negotiation.

"..."

The Sea of Consciousness fell into a deathly silence.

After a long while.

"Haa..."

Nan Feng exhaled a long breath, a feeling like a teacher looking at a blockhead student who, despite being taught for ages, remained stuck in the same place—filled with extreme speechlessness and irritation.

"Bibi Dong! Are you sick in the head?! Huh?!"

"Last night, I wasted so much breath tearing away your fig leaf, letting you see your own stupidity, letting you understand what reality is and what power is!"

"I thought you had woken up! I thought you had finally seen the light!"

"And what's the result?!"

"The moment you turn around, you pull this on me again?!"

Nan Feng paced back and forth in the Sea of Consciousness in a fit of rage, pointing at Bibi Dong's nose as he cursed:

"Why?! Why are humans always so stupid?!"

"The correct path is clearly at your feet, the shortcut is right before your eyes! Yet you insist on taking the long way around, walking into a dead end, all for the sake of that ridiculous persistence and that self-indulgent bottom line!"

"Do you have any idea how much difficulty we will face if you reject this card?"

"Those old fossils in the Elder Hall will continue to pay lip service while defying us! This war will become exceptionally difficult to fight! Your prestige will suffer a massive blow!"

"We might even lose! We could end up in total ruin!"

"All because you don't want to use the seed of that Qian Xunji? All because you don't want to drag that little girl into this?"

"Is it worth it?!"

Nan Feng stared daggers at Bibi Dong, the purple light in his eyes flickering violently, showing that his anger had reached its peak.

"People are always so foolish, repeating the same mistakes over and over!"

"Back then, for the sake of so-called love, you failed to see the situation and ruined yourself; now, for the sake of not implicating the innocent, you fail to see the big picture and are about to ruin our future!"

"Do you have to wait until you've played yourself into a corner, until there's nowhere left to go, before you admit that you've made another stupid decision?!"

Bibi Dong remained silent.

She watched the furious Nan Feng, a flash of complex emotion crossing her eyes.

She knew Nan Feng was right.

From the perspective of interests, from the perspective of political maneuvering, and even from the perspective of revenge, Nan Feng's plan was perfect and unassailable.

But she simply could not cross that hurdle in her heart.

That child... those eyes red from crying... those desperate cries of "Mommy"...

That was flesh of her flesh, her only blood connection in this world. Although she hated Qian Xunji, and although she had wanted to strangle that child countless times.

But when it actually came to using that child to trade for benefits, she found that she... could not do it.

"Say what you will."

Bibi Dong closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her voice soft yet exceptionally firm:

"I am the Pope, and this body is mine."

"On this matter, if I say no, then it is no."

"Even if this path is harder to walk, even if I have to pay a price ten or a hundred times over... I accept it."

"This is my choice."

"You--!!"

Nan Feng was so angry he nearly choked on the spot.

He looked at this stubborn woman, feeling a deep sense of powerlessness welling up in his heart.

He couldn't carry her.

He truly couldn't carry her.

It's like playing a game where the support has already spoon-fed the meal to the ADC's mouth, yet the ADC insists on smashing the bowl, declaring, "I will not accept this charity."

"Fine, fine! You're the boss! You're amazing! We'll do it your way! I'm truly defeated by you!" Nan Feng turned around and lay back down, having lost the desire to speak.

Bibi Dong was stunned. "You're compromising just like that? I thought you'd threaten me by trying to seize control of this body again?"

"Threats are only called threats when they're useful; when they're useless, they're just a load of crap!" Nan Feng retorted irritably.

"If you really piss me off, I'll just quit being Pope and take you into the Rakshasa Secret Realm for a honeymoon, then what?"

"You might not want to live, but I certainly don't want to die!"

Three days later.

Outside Martial Soul City, the great army set out.

Banners blotted out the sun, and an aura of grim slaughter permeated the space between heaven and earth.

Bibi Dong, clad in her brilliant purple-gold Pope battle armor and holding her scepter, stood atop the largest main war chariot.

Behind her stood the pale-faced Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan and Ghost Douluo Gui Mei, whose auras, while formidable, were clearly unstable.

Although these two had managed to save their lives by sheer luck during the previous ambush on Tang Hao, their injuries were severe, especially the backlash from their forcibly broken Martial Soul Fusion Skill, which had damaged their very foundations.

In such a short time, they could not possibly recover; they were merely forcing themselves to hold on, capable of exerting at most sixty or seventy percent of their peak strength.

They might be able to bully an average Soul Douluo, but if they were to face Tang Xiao or those elders of the Clear Sky Sect, they would be lucky just to maintain their famous Martial Soul Fusion Skill, the Polar Static Domain.

But Bibi Dong had no choice.

Within the entire Elder Hall, these two were the only Title Douluos currently willing to work for her and afraid to defy her orders.

Because they had once been the right and left hands of Qian Xunji, and since Qian Xunji was dead, if they hadn't risked their lives to bring him back to the Elder Hall at the time—and if everyone hadn't seen their wretched state—they likely would have been sent to the grave as funeral sacrifices for Qian Xunji by Qian Daoliu on the grounds of failing to protect him.

As for the Elder Hall, Yue Guan and Gui Mei were already on the blacklist of Qian Daoliu and Golden Crocodile Douluo, so they could no longer rely on them. If they wanted a foothold in Martial Soul Hall, their only choice now was to warm up to Bibi Dong.

"Advance!"

As Bibi Dong waved her scepter, the army began to march.

This time, for the sake of a so-called "blitzkrieg," Martial Soul Hall split its forces into four routes.

Demon Bear Douluo was responsible for attacking the Strength Clan, Ghost Leopard Douluo for the Defense Clan, and Snake Lance Douluo and Pufferfish for the Breaking Clan.

As for Bibi Dong, she would personally lead the main force to strike directly at the Speed Clan!

On the city walls.

Golden Crocodile Douluo stood with his hands behind his back, his deep gaze fixed on the dust of the departing army.

Standing beside Golden Crocodile were the four elders who had not yet departed: Demon Bear, Ghost Leopard, Snake Lance, and Pufferfish.

Although they had prepared for battle according to the plan, there was no tension on their faces regarding the upcoming conflict; they looked more like spectators watching a show.

"Second Worship, are we just going to watch?" Snake Lance Douluo asked.

"Watch?"

Golden Crocodile Douluo turned around, his gaze sweeping over the four elders, his voice low and dignified.

"How could we just watch? Her Holiness the Pope has ordered us to surround the points and strike the reinforcements, to prune her wings; naturally, we must obey."

"However..."

Golden Crocodile Douluo changed his tone. "The Pope is young, after all, and does not know the immensity of heaven and earth. Does she think that with a few harsh words, she can play us old bones in the palm of her hand?"

"She is too naive."

Over the past three days, Qian Renxue had been crying incessantly in the Worship Hall, even going on a hunger strike, which pained Qian Daoliu as if he had aged ten years.

Qian Daoliu had sent him to find Bibi Dong multiple times, hoping she would go and coax the child, even if only for show.

But Bibi Dong?

Each time, she used "busy with military affairs" or "in seclusion preparing for war" as excuses, refusing to even see him, having the palace guards block him outside.

This was not just a lack of respect; it was an open provocation to the authority of the Worship Hall!

Since she refused a toast only to drink a forfeit, he could not be blamed for being ruthless.

Demon Bear Douluo glanced at the departing papal army. "Second Worship, just tell us plainly: what is the Grand Pontiff's intention?"

To be humiliated in public by a woman, a junior, and even to be pointed at and scolded—he could not swallow this insult.

"Listen well."

Golden Crocodile Douluo's expression turned stern, and he lowered his voice to convey the final instructions to the four.

"On this expedition, although the four of you are responsible for suppressing the Strength, Defense, and Breaking clans..."

"Remember: surround them, but do not attack."

"Make a grand show of force, let the battle cries be loud, but try not to truly engage. Do not force those three clans into a dead end."

"If the Clear Sky Sect truly sends people to support those three locations..."

"Then retreat immediately! The excuse will be to preserve strength and avoid being defeated one by one."

"Then... what if the Clear Sky Sect goes to support the Speed Clan?" Snake Lance Douluo asked.

"If Tang Xiao leads his elders to besiege Bibi Dong..." Golden Crocodile Douluo narrowed his eyes slightly.

"You are to remain still."

"No need for rescue, no need to fall back."

"Stay exactly where you are, or simply withdraw."

The hearts of the four elders skipped a beat.

Is this... using a borrowed knife to kill?

"Second Worship, this... wouldn't it be too risky?" Pufferfish Douluo hesitated. "After all, she is the Pope. If something were to truly happen, the reputation of Martial Soul Hall..."

"Rest assured, she won't die," Golden Crocodile Douluo said indifferently. "Not to mention that the Clear Sky Sect wouldn't dare attempt to kill the Pope again, with that hundred-thousand-year spirit ring of hers, her level ninety-seven cultivation, and the Martial Soul Fusion Skill of Chrysanthemum and Ghost, even if she cannot win, she can certainly escape."

"We do not want her dead."

"We want her defeated!"

"A crushing defeat!"

Golden Crocodile Douluo turned around, gazing at the towering Pope Palace:

"This woman's bones are too hard, and her heart is too wild."

"If she isn't allowed to take a hard fall out there, if she isn't made to realize that without the support of the Worship Hall she is nothing, she will never learn the meaning of the word obedience."

"This time, we shall trample her pride and her prestige into the dust!"

"When she is besieged by the Clear Sky Sect, driven into a desperate corner, and flees back to Martial Soul City in a sorry state..."

"She will naturally understand how to be this Pope!"