The Angel's Heartbeat

The night wind was chilling.

Outside the Pope Palace, along the long stone steps leading to the northeast corner of the inner city, two figures—one black, one white—walked side by side.

The Judgment Knights and Cardinals along the way felt as if an invisible mountain were pressing down upon their backs; they buried their heads deep into their chests, holding their breath to the lightest possible rhythm.

The low-pressure atmosphere between the mother and daughter, which seemed capable of sparking fire from the very air, plunged the entire inner city's defense line into a graveyard-like silence.

The journey was silent.

The two passed through layers of blockades and finally stopped before the rickety wooden door of the Library Pavilion.

Creeeak—

Bibi Dong reached out and pushed the door open, the hinges letting out a shriek that could pierce the eardrums.

The moonlight of early autumn spilled in through the door frame, casting two long, opposing shadows across the wood-shaving-covered floor tiles.

The room was unlit. Su Chen was leaning against the newly repaired bamboo recliner, his eyes slightly closed, a thin blanket draped over him. His breathing was so faint it was almost imperceptible.

He looked exactly like a sickly, pathetic servant who knew nothing of the world-ending storm about to descend.

Qian Renxue stepped over the threshold.

Her phoenix eyes, sharp as swords, instantly locked onto the young man on the bamboo chair.

The very moment the heel of her high-heeled military boot made contact with the floor of the Library Pavilion—

Deep within Su Chen's Sea of Divine Consciousness, the World Tree martial soul that supported the heavens and the earth trembled slightly.

A trace of ancient life essence, extremely concealed and perfectly disguised as the scent of vegetation, drifted along the night wind and brushed against Qian Renxue's cheek like a feather.

"Hum!"

Within Qian Renxue's body, the Six-Winged Angel bloodline, inherited from eons ago, was like a fuse thrown into a powder keg—it exploded!

It was not the trembling of meeting a worthy opponent, but that of a subject encountering their sovereign!

It was an instinct to worship, erupting from the very source of her bloodline, from the deepest depths of her soul!

Tap!

The sound of her high-heeled boot hitting the floor came to an abrupt, jarring halt.

Qian Renxue's pupils shrank to needlepoints, and her breathing stopped dead in that instant.

She bit her lower lip hard, her hands hidden beneath her wide sleeves moving so fast they left afterimages as she formed a seal!

Sacred soul power surged backward through her meridians in a violent, self-mutilating manner, forcing that monstrous, surging tremor back into her dantian!

She stared fixedly at the pale, frail back in front of her, her mind a blank slate, her composure completely fried.

Insane!

How the hell is this possible?!

A bottom-tier piece of trash without even a single soul ring, possessing not a shred of soul power fluctuation—how could he, relying only on that faint, lingering vitality, trigger the worship instinct of her god-level martial soul?!

The "divine object" the Great Worship spoke of?

No, he himself was the greatest monster of all!

Accompanied by a faint, muffled groan as Qian Renxue forcibly suppressed her surging blood, Su Chen's eyelids twitched violently, as if startled awake by the noise.

He opened his eyes in a panic, his gaze colliding exactly with the two women who stood at the very pinnacle of the continent.

The next second, he jolted as if electrocuted, springing up from the bamboo chair.

His movement was too abrupt; the thin blanket slid to the floor, and he tripped, tumbling forward in a clumsy, wretched heap.

Thud!

With a dull impact, his knees slammed solidly onto the cracked floor tiles.

Su Chen's shoulders immediately hunched up, his head practically trying to bury itself into the cracks of the floor, his voice trembling uncontrollably: "Th-this servant pays respects to the Pope! G-greetings to the Young Mistress!"

His voice was filled with a bone-deep terror and subservience, like an ant that could be crushed at any moment.

Qian Renxue looked down from her height at Su Chen, who was shivering like chaff on the ground, her eyes instantly turning cold.

Acting?

That bloodline suppression from just a moment ago was definitely not an illusion!

She deliberately took half a step forward, the moment her toe touched the ground—

Sss!

A trace of icy, bone-piercing Six-Winged Angel pressure followed the cracks in the floor tiles like an invisible poisonous needle, stabbing straight at Su Chen's heart!

She was going to tear open this man's sickly disguise with her own hands and see exactly what kind of monster was hiding inside!

The pressure entered his body.

Su Chen "cooperated" perfectly, letting out a suppressed groan of pain. His body curled up as if struck by a heavy blow, and cold sweat instantly crawled across his forehead.

Just as that sliver of pressure was about to bore into Su Chen's heart meridian!

Bibi Dong's gaze was cold enough to freeze a soul!

"Bang!"

Without a shred of hesitation, Bibi Dong slammed her military boot into the ground!

Her entire body transformed into a purple-black afterimage, ferociously thrusting herself between the two and shielding the curled-up Su Chen firmly behind her.

Purple-black Rakshasa soul power erupted from beneath her feet like a raging tide, striking like a ten-thousand-ton hammer swung with full force, crushing everything in its path with a thunderous "boom" that shattered Qian Renxue's probing pressure into dust!

The shockwave from the collision of soul power rippled through the air, visible to the naked eye.

In that split second, faster than a spark.

Qian Renxue raised her head and saw clearly in the depths of Bibi Dong's eyes a flash of extreme heartache, triggered by Su Chen's pain.

And, a madness akin to a lioness protecting her kill!

Qian Renxue's heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible giant hand.

The intelligence from the Dark Web hadn't even captured one ten-thousandth of this woman's insanity.

A dignified Pope, for the sake of a man, couldn't even be bothered to keep up appearances anymore?!

Within the shadow cast by Bibi Dong's tall figure.

Su Chen, who was being shielded so tightly, kept his head bowed. But from an angle Qian Renxue couldn't see, the corners of his mouth curled into a playful arc.

With a flicker of thought.

The "Eye of Omniscience" god-view perspective activated instantly.

In the darkness, two massive, translucent light screens popped up in his mind simultaneously, with golden-red data streams frantically refreshing.

Left panel.

[Target: Binder No. 001 · Bibi Dong]

[Current Emotions: Vigilance 75% / Possessiveness 60% / Heartache 10%]

[Inner Monologue: That lunatic Qian Renxue! Laying a hand on my man? Have you lost your mind?! If you dare hurt him even a fraction more, This Seat will cripple your Angel God Trial today!]

Right panel.

[Target: Binder 002 · Qian Renxue]

[Current Emotions: Shock 80% / Deep Curiosity 65% / Intense Confusion 20%]

[Inner Monologue: Martial Soul Worship... Bibi Dong protecting her kill... What kind of earth-shattering secret is this man named Su Chen hiding, for fuck's sake?!]

The two panels intertwined with red light and golden radiance.

Bibi Dong's phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, purple-black soul power flickering at her fingertips.

She stared coldly at Qian Renxue, her voice carrying an undisguised death threat: "The Young Mistress is here to check the archives; feel free to rummage through the trash in these ruins."

"But if you dare use even a shred of soul power on him again..."

Bibi Dong spoke slowly, every word sounding as if it had been fished out of an ice cellar, "Do not blame This Seat for disregarding the bonds of mother and daughter."

Boom!

Two air pressures capable of tearing space apart collided frantically within the small Library Pavilion, neither side giving an inch.

Outside the door.

Angela and the sixteen Temple Knights on guard duty, separated by the stone wall, clearly felt the terrifying pressure inside that could freeze a person's soul to the point of cracking.

"Thump! Thump!"

The sound of heavy armor hitting the ground echoed in succession.

Everyone was forced to one knee by the pressure, cold sweat instantly soaking their backs.

Angela didn't even dare to raise her head, her heart roaring wildly: The world is about to change! Is the Pope really going to execute the Young Mistress here for the sake of that servant?!

The suffocating standoff lasted for a full ten seconds.

"Heh."

Qian Renxue suddenly let out a cold laugh.

She retracted all her external soul power with fluid grace, the golden light of the angel vanishing instantly.

She swept a casual glance over the ruined bookshelves, her gaze like she was looking at a pile of genuine, rotting garbage.

She knew very well that with this mad lioness protecting her cub here tonight, she wouldn't have any chance.

Going head-to-head would only result in her own loss.

Even the novice task from the system, "Ten Combing Sessions," seemed like a joke at this moment.

"Since Your Holiness values this 'trash' so much, I shall not disturb your refined interests."

Qian Renxue's tone was laced with thorns as she turned to leave.

Her high-heeled military boots crunched on wood shavings without a hint of hesitation.

Just as she reached the doorway, the moment her right foot stepped over the threshold of the Library Pavilion.

A sudden anomaly erupted!

Within Qian Renxue's Sea of Divine Consciousness, that blinding blood-colored light screen ignored her will and forcibly popped up!

The cold, mechanical voice struck her brain like a heavy hammer.

[Ding! Exclusive advancement mission issued!]

[Mission Content: Carry Bibi Dong on your back and spend ten minutes alone under the moonlight with the Lord of Creation, Su Chen.]

[Mission Restriction: During the time spent alone, the distance between the two must not exceed one meter.]

[Completion Reward: Six-Winged Angel bloodline purity increased by 5%, unlock Angel Light: Initial Stage.]

[Failure Penalty: Permanent forfeiture of one component of the Angel Divine Armor, and Soul-Devouring Heart-Burning for twelve hours!]