A Battle of Wits with Ning Fengzhi

A Battle of Wits with Ning Fengzhi

Bone Douluo snapped, "You old bastard, quit dawdling. Go protect the Sect Master and Dong'er."

It was not that Bone Douluo was unwilling to handle protection. Rather, his Bone Dragon possessed spatial abilities. If anyone truly attacked Ning Fengzhi and Bibi Dong while Sword Douluo was fighting them, Bone Douluo could swiftly open a spatial passage to provide aid. He could also use his spatial abilities to launch a surprise attack and catch the enemy off guard.

"Do I need you, you old bag of bones, to tell me that?"

With that, Sword Douluo vanished from the carriage and concealed himself beside Ning Fengzhi and Bibi Dong, guarding them at all times.

Pope Palace.

When Qian Xunji received news that Ning Fengzhi was pursuing an exceptionally beautiful young girl, he could not help but laugh. From Ning Zhiping taking Bibi Dong as his adopted daughter to that cane-wielding fellow Ning Fengzhi chasing after Bibi Dong, he had already guessed it. Ning Fengzhi wanted to pursue Bibi Dong. After all, Bibi Dong was a stunning beauty with extraordinary talent. If he won her over, he would not have to worry about her leaving the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Although Douluo Continent had rules stating that anyone who joined a sect had to serve it for life, rules were fundamentally incapable of restraining the strong. Bibi Dong had even wanted to leave Spirit Hall for love.

Still, this was ultimately wasted effort. The reason was simple: Ning Fengzhi had already married several wives, and his eldest son was likely not much younger than Bibi Dong. As a genius revered and adored by all the disciples of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, how could Bibi Dong possibly fall for Ning Fengzhi?

"This is getting more and more interesting."

To be honest, Qian Xunji could hardly wait to see Ning Fengzhi's expression once Bibi Dong grew up, fell for some noble disciple with good looks and mastery of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and became lovestruck.

The Heaven Dou Imperial Family and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect were partners, but once their strengths became unequal, the Heaven Dou Imperial Family would sooner or later want to tear off a piece of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. He believed that as long as the Heaven Dou Imperial Family was not foolish, it would never let a prize like Bibi Dong slip away.

As for expecting her to be attracted by talent, there was no need to count on that. After all, how could Spirit Hall's geniuses be fewer than those of the declining Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect? Yet Bibi Dong had not taken a liking to any of them.

Two days later, the Seven Great Sects Reselection Tournament officially began.

Spirit City had specially cleared out an area to serve as the tournament grounds for the Seven Great Sects Reselection Tournament. The plaza before Pope Palace was still somewhat too small. The aftershocks from a battle between Titled Douluo could easily shatter some of Pope Palace's glass structures.

The Clear Sky Sect, Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Wind Sword Sect, Elephant Armor Sect, Black Tiger Sect, Fire Leopard Sect, and Dragon Snake Family.

More than ninety percent of the continent's powers had gathered here. Soul Douluo and Titled Douluo experts, who were rarely seen in the past, now appeared like bamboo shoots after rain. The gazes of every family and sect present, intentional or otherwise, converged upon three sects.

Those three sects were naturally the Clear Sky Sect, Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Only these three sects possessed Titled Douluo at the pinnacle of the continent. Their members sat in chairs, along with Ning Fengzhi, while everyone else stood.

From the entrance to the enormous arena, more than two hundred meters in radius, twelve middle-aged men dressed in red slowly emerged. They were Red Cardinals, their status second only to that of Platinum Bishops. The twelve walked all the way to the gates of Pope Palace and stood in two lines, six on each side. They maintained order for the tournament while also building momentum for Qian Xunji.

"His Holiness the Pope has arrived." As the leader shouted, the other eleven Red Cardinals followed suit. The sect masters attending the Seven Great Sects Reselection Tournament all clasped their hands in salute, including the sect masters and elders who were Titled Douluo from the Upper Three Sects. No matter how proud they were, they did not dare openly oppose Spirit Hall so lightly.

"Dong'er, do not be disrespectful. Bow."

Ning Fengzhi pressed against Bibi Dong's back and, with a deft application of force, bent the waist of the still-dazed Bibi Dong. At the same time, he sighed inwardly, So soft.

On the platform in the plaza, Qian Xunji emerged holding the Papal Scepter and dressed in a platinum-white robe, with two Guardian Douluo protecting him at either side.

"Rise."

"Thank you, Your Holiness the Pope."

Among the Soul Masters, Tang Zhen, Chen Xin, Gu Rong, and Yu Yuanzhen were all secretly studying Qian Xunji. Their brows furrowed ever so slightly. They could not see through him; they could not discern Qian Xunji's cultivation.

A Titled Douluo's Spiritual Power could lay bare the cultivation of a Soul Douluo at a glance. Yet they could not see through Qian Xunji. Did that not mean Qian Xunji had already broken through to Titled Douluo?

The Titled Douluo of the Upper Three Sects were all secretly alarmed at this possibility. How old was Qian Xunji? He should only be in his early forties, yet he had already broken through to Titled Douluo. This meant Spirit Hall had gained another Pope of extraordinary talent.

Qian Xunji said in a deep voice, "The Seven Great Sects Reselection Tournament has begun. We will reselect the Upper Three Sects, the Lower Four Sects, and the new Seven Great Sects. They must shoulder the responsibilities of being among the Seven Great Sects and govern the continent's Soul Masters alongside Spirit Hall!"

"Your Holiness the Pope, I have a question."

The moment Qian Xunji finished speaking, a Soul Douluo below spoke up. There were no Soul Masters dressed like him beside him, so he was likely an independent cultivator.

"What is it?"

"Your Holiness the Pope, I heard that five years ago, you traded a heavenly daughter with Innate Full Soul Power to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect for three luxurious commercial streets. Is that true?"

The moment this Soul Douluo spoke, the expressions of the Clear Sky Sect and Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan became rather interesting. Some people turned their gazes toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

The expressions of the two Titled Douluo beside Qian Xunji darkened, and they fixed the Soul Douluo with icy stares.

The Soul Douluo lowered his head. Under the attention of Titled Douluo and their formidable Spiritual Power, if he had not possessed Soul Douluo cultivation and developed a steady mindset through years of cultivation, he would likely have already dropped to his knees.

This little performance was naturally part of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's plan. Ning Fengzhi's aim was to make Bibi Dong feel disgust toward Spirit Hall. After all, Bibi Dong's mentality had changed drastically from five years ago. Back then, she had been an ignorant little girl from the countryside. Now, she was a heavenly daughter doted upon by countless people. Any genius, upon learning that they had been traded as merchandise, would be angered no matter how good their mindset was.

Sure enough, fury had already appeared on Bibi Dong's face upon hearing this.

Beyond that, Ning Fengzhi naturally also wanted Spirit Hall to lose face. To that end, he had specifically paid that Soul Douluo five million Gold Soul Coins and a thousand-year soul bone.

"My purpose in doing so was naturally for Bibi Dong's future."

Everyone, including Bibi Dong: "?"

Qian Xunji said calmly, "You all know that Spirit Hall has always been doing its utmost to eradicate Evil Soul Masters. These Evil Soul Masters share one common trait: their martial souls are extremely evil. Martial souls are part of our bodies and can influence our personalities and appearances. Therefore, Soul Masters who awaken evil martial souls all have the potential to fall into becoming Evil Soul Masters."

"Since Spirit Hall has always been devoted to exterminating Evil Soul Masters, we naturally harbor an extra degree of distaste toward Soul Masters who awaken evil martial souls. Bibi Dong happened to awaken Innate Full Soul Power and a top-tier evil-type martial soul. To prevent this child from falling into corruption and to give her a healthy future and environment in which to grow, I had no choice but to painfully give her up to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

Was that reasonable? On closer thought, it was certainly riddled with holes. In terms of evil, Ghost, who was himself a ghost, was even more evil than Bibi Dong, yet he still remained in Spirit Hall.

However, Qian Xunji could not come up with any reasonable explanation either. Brushing it off was enough. Of course, brushing it off alone was not enough; he also had to shift everyone's attention.

"But now, it seems my decision was correct. Bibi Dong has been living very happily in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Am I right, Sect Master Ning, who chased after a little girl?"

"Ha ha ha!"

The moment those words fell, laughter rang out continuously below. Some laughed loudly, some chuckled softly, and some smiled without any real amusement. The one laughing loudly was naturally Hu YanZhen. He had always disliked the Upper Three Sects, but he lacked the strength to compete with them, so he could only take pleasure in Qian Xunji's words.

Ning Fengzhi's face shifted between green and white. After all, many people in Spirit City had seen him chasing after Bibi Dong. The Seven Treasure White Jade Crown atop his head had already revealed his identity, and he was still holding a cane.

Bibi Dong quietly asked, "Uncle Sword, was what His Holiness the Pope said true?"

Sword Douluo sent a voice transmission, "Dong'er, you are too innocent. You cannot believe a single word Qian Xunji says. If he truly cared about you, why would he trade you to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect under the name of selling you? This old man does not know what Qian Xunji's true purpose is, but I will never allow you to suffer even the slightest harm!"

"Uncle Sword, you're right. His Holiness the Pope is too awful!"

Bibi Dong's tiny pink fists clenched repeatedly beneath her sleeves. If she could, she truly wanted to plant those little fists right on Qian Xunji's face.