Perfectionist

On the other side, at the Pope's Palace.

Qian Xunji sat on the lofty papal throne, his fingers tapping the armrest now and then.

The gloom in his eyes never lifted.

Tang Hao had escaped.

He had set up three cordons along the edge of the Star Dou Forest and deployed three Soul Douluo and six Soul Saints, yet Tang Hao had still gotten away.

This wasn't the first time—or the second.

That kid from the Clear Sky Sect always managed to slip through Spirit Hall's fingers at the last possible moment.

This time, he had even wounded three Soul Saints while breaking through the encirclement.

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan stood with his head bowed at the foot of the steps.

He had only just returned and hadn't even had time to change his clothes before hurrying over to report to the Pope.

Qian Xunji had always trusted him. He was a confidant whom the Pope himself had promoted.

For that very reason, he had to be even more careful than usual now.

"How did things go with Bibi Dong?" Qian Xunji asked.

His tone was casual.

But Yue Guan knew that the Pope paid close attention to the Holy Maiden's every move.

"Your Holiness," Yue Guan replied with a slight bow, "Bibi Dong tracked down the three evil Soul Masters and killed them in the wilderness north of the Star Dou Forest."

Qian Xunji raised his eyelids. "By herself?"

"Yes."

"How long did it take?"

The scene of the three being killed in an instant flashed through Yue Guan's mind.

He kept his expression calm and his tone steady. "A little longer than expected. The three were formidable when they joined forces, and Bibi Dong had to exert considerable effort to defeat them one by one.

"The whole process took about the time it takes to burn half an incense stick. After killing all three, she set off back without getting involved in anything else."

He had no choice but to make up this story.

After all, he wasn't stupid.

If Qian Xunji found out that Bibi Dong had killed three Soul Douluo in an instant, the Pope would grow deeply wary of her. And if Qian Xunji decided to do anything to Bibi Dong, Yue Guan would be the first to get dragged into it.

After all, he had witnessed Bibi Dong kill three Soul Douluo, yet hadn't reported the truth to the Pope.

What was more, Bibi Dong's deadly poison still lingered inside him. If he dared say even one word too much, he would likely meet a bad end.

Qian Xunji fell silent for a moment, then replied blandly, "I see."

He didn't ask anything further.

He knew that Bibi Dong was a Soul Douluo with Twin Martial Souls, and that she was extremely powerful.

Facing one level-eighty-nine Soul Douluo and two lower-level Soul Douluo would indeed take some effort.

Although he didn't know how much Bibi Dong had secretly trained over the past year, she was probably nearing level eighty-five.

Wiping out her opponents without getting hurt showed that she was certainly strong, but that was all.

She still wasn't worth his concern.

Qian Xunji waved his hand.

Yue Guan bowed and withdrew from the hall.

The moment he turned around, a layer of cold sweat had already seeped across his back.

Thankfully, the Pope hadn't grown suspicious.

He hurried down the long corridor, thinking of Bibi Dong's instructions.

From now on, he was both Pope Qian Xunji's confidant and Holy Maiden Bibi Dong's hidden piece.

Caught between the two, he would have to seek balance with the utmost care.

One wrong step, and he would be doomed.

Bibi Dong's room.

Luo Dong was fast asleep, wrapped snugly in his little blanket, with only his rosy face showing.

Bibi Dong watched her precious son for a long while before finally looking away.

After breaking through to Titled Douluo, her thoughts had become even clearer.

Her Second Martial Soul—the Death Spider Emperor—still had no Soul Rings.

Under the usual approach, she would have to venture into the depths of the Star Dou Forest, hunt Soul Beasts of sufficient age, and fill in the Soul Rings one by one.

The greatest advantage of Twin Martial Souls was that the Second Martial Soul could be equipped entirely with high-age Soul Rings.

Ten thousand years, fifty thousand years, eighty thousand years—even every single one could be pushed to the Hundred-Thousand-Year level.

Once all nine Soul Rings were in place, the combined power of her two Martial Souls would bring about a terrifying leap in strength.

Level ninety-one Soul Power?

By then, reaching level ninety-five or even higher would be no pipe dream.

That was what made Twin Martial Souls so terrifying.

That had been her original plan: endure and cultivate in secret, wait for the right moment, hunt Soul Beasts to fill the Second Martial Soul's rings, then break through in one fell swoop and settle the score with Qian Xunji.

But now, she had the system.

The system's rewards could grant her Soul Rings directly.

No need to hunt. No need to search. No need to risk her life against Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in the depths of the Star Dou Forest.

What was more, the Soul Rings granted by the system were perfectly compatible. They might even all be above the Hundred-Thousand-Year level, with incredibly powerful Soul Skills.

The ninth ring of her First Martial Soul was only the beginning.

If all nine Soul Rings for her Second Martial Soul were granted by the system in the future...

Bibi Dong imagined the scene.

Nine Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings, all attached to her Second Martial Soul.

All kinds of terrifying Soul Skills.

What kind of power would that be?

A Titled Douluo? By then, even a level-ninety-nine Douluo would probably have to give way before her.

What was more, she still had the God Spider Eight Kills, an incredible technique that could multiply her combat strength eightfold.

If the nine Soul Rings of her Second Martial Soul were all complete, and she added the eightfold boost from God Spider Eight Kills, who on the entire continent could stop her?

Even a god could be fought.

Bibi Dong was a perfectionist to the extreme.

When it came to cultivation, she had never been willing to settle.

Some of the earlier Soul Rings of her First Martial Soul, the Death Spider Emperor, weren't all that old. That was because her strength and circumstances had limited her back then.

But the Second Martial Soul was different.

Now that she had the strength of a Titled Douluo and the system at her side, she intended to obtain the very best for each of the Second Martial Soul's nine Soul Rings.

A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring was the minimum. A million years was the goal.

However, the conditions that triggered the system's Soul Ring rewards weren't yet entirely clear.

So far, the only quest that had rewarded her with a Soul Ring was the combat-and-protection quest, "Mother's Responsibility."

But she had no control over when system quests appeared.

If the system took too long to issue another Soul Ring quest, she couldn't just sit at home and wait.

After weighing her options, Bibi Dong made up her mind.

If word of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast emerged, she wouldn't mind going out to hunt it herself.

Though Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were rare in the depths of the Star Dou Forest, they weren't nonexistent.

With her current strength, hunting a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast wasn't impossible.

And if no suitable Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast turned up, she would keep relying on the system.

Daily Quests, special quests—the system would eventually provide another Soul Ring reward.

She had all the patience in the world.

She lowered her eyes to look at Luo Dong on the bed.

The little fellow rolled over in his sleep and smacked his lips twice.

Bibi Dong reached out to tuck the blanket around him, then closed her eyes again.

Then she began cultivating, guiding the Soul Power Liquid in her Dantian into a slow, steady flow.

The liquid Soul Power flowed through her Dantian, round and round, in an endless cycle.