Eight Years Later

And so, eight years passed.

During these eight years, Tai Yi and Qian Renxue made rapid progress under the tutelage of the several old men in the Elder Palace.

Tai Yi, now fifteen, had seen his soul power rise from the original level 42 to level 65. An increase of twenty-three levels in eight years would be considered rapid progress for anyone else, but for Tai Yi, it was actually quite slow—less than four levels per year.

The reason was simple: the attributes of Tai Yi's Three-Legged Golden Crow martial soul were even purer than an ultimate martial soul. Once his soul power surpassed level 30, his cultivation speed slowed down. Furthermore, as his soul power grew, the gains he once received simply from basking in the sun had become negligible.

More importantly, over these past few years, Tai Yi had successfully compressed his soul power and condensed a soul core.

In these eight years, Qian Renxue had also successfully advanced from level 53 to level 72, becoming a Soul Saint. More importantly, she had successfully accepted the Angel Nine Trials and begun her own path to godhood.

Moreover, with Tai Yi's help, Qian Renxue had also managed to condense a soul core, just like him.

During these eight years, due to Qian Renxue's return, the Elder Palace faction and the Pope Palace faction became increasingly divided. Bibi Dong realized that her control over Spirit Hall was slipping; in some branch halls, her orders as Pope were being ignored.

A large portion of the Spirit Hall members within Spirit City were the same; they would listen to Bibi Dong's words, but unless the Pope Palace gave their nod of approval, they would act as if they had heard nothing at all.

It was precisely because of this that Bibi Dong's hatred for Qian Renxue deepened with each passing day.

As someone who stayed by Bibi Dong's side every day, Hu Liena naturally saw all of this. If Bibi Dong was the person in all of Spirit City who hated Qian Renxue the most, then Hu Liena was second.

One incident occurred during these eight years: when Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan had just broken through to the Soul Ancestor rank, Bibi Dong ordered a Spirit Hall hunting squad to find suitable soul beasts for the trio and bring them back to Spirit City.

However, as luck would have it, the captain of that hunting squad was a loyal believer in the Angel God. Upon learning that Qian Renxue, the daughter of the former Pope, had returned to Spirit City, he became determined to serve only the one with the Six-Winged Angel martial soul.

After receiving the order from Bibi Dong, the captain dared not openly disobey, so he led his men to the Star Dou Forest. However, they spent an entire month dragging their feet outside, wasting the cultivation time of Hu Liena and her companions.

Bibi Dong naturally discovered this and was furious. She prepared to track down the hunting squad, but the captain was no fool; upon learning of this, he immediately took his men to find Qian Daoliu.

When Qian Daoliu heard what the man had done, he was at a loss for words. He was pleased that their Angel lineage had such loyal followers, but he was also speechless. Although he hoped to see his granddaughter become the Pope of Spirit Hall, he still viewed Bibi Dong as his daughter-in-law and his granddaughter's mother; in his eyes, the Qian family owed her.

Furthermore, in Qian Daoliu's view, Hu Liena and her companions could not affect Qian Renxue or Tai Yi, and delaying their cultivation was, in a roundabout way, a detriment to the strength of Spirit Hall.

In the end, Bibi Dong confronted Qian Daoliu, demanding that he deal with the disobedient hunting squad. Qian Daoliu refused, as these men were working for his family.

To appease Bibi Dong and bolster the strength of Spirit Hall, Qian Daoliu took it upon himself to give her three fruits from an immortal herb to pass on to Hu Liena and the others.

Because they were not complete immortal herbs, their effects were not as potent, and after consuming them, Hu Liena and her companions only rose from level 41 to level 44.

Yet, this small boost made Hu Liena feel invincible. Coupled with the knowledge that she had been delayed for a month, she laid the blame entirely on Qian Renxue. When Tai Yi left the Elder Palace alone to enter Spirit City, Hu Liena, who had been waiting for an opportunity, found out.

Hu Liena prepared to teach Tai Yi a lesson, intending to give Qian Renxue a taste of her own medicine.

She called upon Xie Yue and Yan to corner Tai Yi in Spirit City, ready to settle the score.

Xie Yue wanted to vent his sister's frustrations, while Yan, a total sycophant, followed Hu Liena to block Tai Yi's path.

They all wanted to put this Tai Yi, who was three years their junior, in his place.

But reality did not go as they wished. While the three of them were relying on their numbers and hurling threats, Tai Yi struck first. At the time, Tai Yi was already at level 55, and dealing with the three of them was effortless.

Before Hu Liena and her companions could even react, they were beaten to the ground, paralyzed and unable to move.

When they were finally discovered, an examination revealed that their limbs had all been broken by Tai Yi.

Fortunately, they were discovered in time and saved by healing soul masters, so there were no lasting consequences.

Regarding this incident, Bibi Dong, as their teacher, was naturally furious. She immediately sought out Qian Daoliu, demanding that he hand over Tai Yi to provide an explanation.

However, when Qian Daoliu heard that Hu Liena and the others had tried to bully Tai Yi but had misjudged his strength and gotten beaten instead, he was stunned that Bibi Dong dared to come to him and demand Tai Yi.

Qian Daoliu's face turned cold, and he looked at Bibi Dong, asking:

"Bibi Dong, do you think I, Qian Daoliu, am easy to talk to?"

A single sentence silenced her. Bibi Dong knew there was no way forward, as her own disciples had been the ones to initiate the conflict.

She left in a rage. In her heart, she cast aside the words of the Rakshasa God for the moment. Bibi Dong began to think that the day she attained godhood would be the day she would strike against the Qian family and Tai Yi.

From that day on, warned by Bibi Dong, Hu Liena and her companions dared not trouble Tai Yi or Qian Renxue again.

But the grudge was set. Hu Liena and the others became determined to cultivate diligently, hoping for the day they could take their revenge.

And so, several years passed.