Spirit Hall, the Pope's bedchamber.
Hazy steam drifted slowly from the luxurious bath.
A graceful figure rose from the warm water. Droplets slid down her smooth back and disappeared into her damp, golden hair.
The woman had a nearly flawless face. Her skin was as fair as snow, her features as exquisite as if sculpted by an artist, and her pair of deep-red eyes seemed to ensnare the soul.
Her golden hair cascaded like a waterfall, accentuating her uniquely noble and aloof aura.
This woman was none other than Bibi Dong, the Pope of Spirit Hall.
Bibi Dong stepped out of the bath and lifted a hand. With a subtle pulse of Soul Power, a velvet robe appeared around her. Just as she was about to walk to the dressing table, a sudden "ding" sounded beside her ear.
[Group Owner "Face-Tanking Ultimate" invited you to join the Douluo Chat Group.]
"Who dares spy on me?"
An invisible pressure spread through the room, but soon she froze.
A virtual screen had appeared before her eyes.
[Welcome, Most Beautiful Pope, to the group chat.]
A group chat?
What was this?
Curious, Bibi Dong reached out and touched it. The virtual screen quickly changed, bringing up a group chat interface.
[Face-Tanking Ultimate: @everyone Hello, everyone! Welcome to the Douluo Chat Group. I'm the group owner. This group chat is a platform for communication, bringing together friends from all over the continent. Including me, there are currently eleven members. Here, you can freely exchange all kinds of news, cultivation insights, or share interesting things from your daily lives. To help you settle in quickly, here are a few tips: 1. Feel free to chat and discuss anything in the group. 2. The group announcement contains the rules and a guide to the basic functions. Take a look when you have time! 3. If you need help, you can @ me or any other group member at any time (long-press a member to @ them). Meeting is fate. I believe we can become the closest of friends here.]
Closest of friends? Inseparable, too?
Who were you?
"But... I've never heard of such a thing. Is it a Soul Tool that lets me communicate with strangers? How novel."
Bibi Dong turned her attention back to the group chat.
"Let's see what's so special about this so-called group chat."
[I Am Not Swallow: Hello~ Anyone here? Anyone?] [I Am Not Yanzi: +1] [Begonia Blossoms: Hello, everyone.] [First Cute Bunny: Wow, this group is amazing! Can we really communicate across different regions?] [Pagoda Suppresses River Demon: Yeah, yeah! I've never seen a Soul Tool like this before!] [Heavenly King Covers Earth Fox: Group owner, does this group have any other uses besides chatting?] [No Petting Cats: ...] [Fire-Breathing Dragon: How did this thing appear? Could it be some kind of conspiracy?] [6G Sky Wing: I agree. Group owner, please explain.]
Aedes Elysiae.
A young man watched the messages scrolling through the group, his face full of delight.
"They're finally here."
The reason these people had gathered in this so-called Douluo Chat Group was none other than him, Ye Qiong.
A quarter of an hour earlier, he had still been trying to make his Martial Soul—a pink seed—turn back into the familiar beautiful girl, Cyrene.
Since Cyrene herself had once used this method to shape the seed of Remembrance into herself, he had tried the same thing for five years. Yet he had failed once again.
"Baby, why won't you change? This isn't how it's supposed to work at all!"
Ye Qiong simply lay down in the wheat field, staring blankly at the sky.
"ε=(´ο｀*))) Sigh, I'm about to enter my sixth year here. When will my invincible Trailblaze journey across Douluo begin?"
If only he had a cheat like all those other transmigrators before him.
[Ding-dong. The Strongest Group Leader System of Douluo Continent has successfully bound itself.]
"Holy bananas!"
Ye Qiong jolted upright, as if rising from his deathbed.
Was he finally going to escape his unlucky life and become a lucky bastard from now on?
The next moment, a red virtual screen suddenly appeared before him.
Ye Qiong stared at the screen, his heart pounding.
It really was a system?!
Its arrival right now was a godsend!
With a system, what couldn't he accomplish?
He quickly focused his attention and began learning how it worked.
"Damn, so that's how this system works?"
As it turned out, the Strongest Group Leader System let the group owner create a chat group. Interactions with the group members generated emotions, which could then be converted into Emotion Points.
Emotion Points were exclusive to the group owner. They could be used to exchange for rewards in the shop, raise his level, or provide nourishment for Martial Soul Evolution?
"So there's hope of turning Cyrene back into a beautiful girl?"
"Create a group. Right now!"
Then, in various places across Douluo Continent, several people suddenly froze as a screen appeared before their eyes...
"Heavenly King Covers Earth Fox, Pagoda Suppresses River Demon, 6G Sky Wing..."
Ye Qiong looked at everyone's nicknames in the group and couldn't help stifling a laugh.
"Pfft, these nicknames are one cleverer than the next."
The system had generated the nicknames automatically based on their individual traits. With one glance, he knew who they really were.
"Bibi Dong, Qian Renxue, Hu Liena, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, Bai Chenxiang, Liu Erlong."
All of them were famous in the original Douluo Continent story. Now that they'd joined his group, they could just go ahead and generate Emotion Points for him.
Wait...
Ye Qiong glanced at the chat history.
"Oh, so you've only just arrived and you're already lurking?"
If he lurked, and everyone else lurked too, where would the Emotion Points come from?
That was a terrible habit. It had to change!
[Face-Tanking Ultimate: @Most Beautiful Pope, stop lurking and watching the screen. Come chat.]
Spirit Hall, the Pope's bedchamber.
Bibi Dong had been sitting at her dressing table, brushing her hair. She suddenly stopped.
Had he noticed that she was watching without saying anything?
[6G Sky Wing: !]
Heaven Dou Empire, Crown Prince Residence.
Xue Qinghe stared at the screen, utterly astonished.
Only then did she notice the name of Most Beautiful Pope, who had been lurking the whole time.
(From 6G Sky Wing: Astonishment Emotion Points +10) [6G Sky Wing: @Most Beautiful Pope, are you the Pope of Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong?] [Heavenly King Covers Earth Fox: !] [Fire-Breathing Dragon: ?] (From Heavenly King Covers Earth Fox: Surprise Emotion Points +20)
Everyone in the group stared wide-eyed at the message from "6G Sky Wing," their faces full of disbelief.
Who? Bibi Dong?
That Bibi Dong, the Pope of Spirit Hall?!
"Oh? I've been exposed already?"
But Bibi Dong quickly came to terms with it.
There was no helping it. As Pope, she was simply too famous.
And her group nickname made no attempt to hide her identity. It openly included the word "Pope."
So Bibi Dong decided to drop the act and said directly:
[Most Beautiful Pope: Yes, that's right. I am the current Pope of Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong.]
Before you continue