Partnering with Spirit Hall! Soul Tools Astonish Bibi Dong!

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Yue Guan, the Titled Douluo known as Chrysanthemum Douluo."

"He's Gui Mei, Ghost Douluo."

Chrysanthemum Douluo spoke in a sultry voice.

Beside him, Ghost Douluo merely nodded without saying a word.

Ye Yulin and Zheng Zhan were stunned when they heard his voice. Holy shit, that's a man?

Spirit Hall sure has unusual tastes. Is cross-dressing in fashion there?

"I'm Ye Yulin of the Sun Moon Sect, and this is Zheng Zhan. We're elders of the Sun Moon Sect, here to do business with Spirit Hall."

Chrysanthemum Douluo narrowed his eyes and sized them up.

Well, would you look at that. Two Titled Douluo.

Their levels seemed lower than his and old Ghost's,

but both elderly men radiated a faint sense of danger.

Yue Guan studied them closely, yet couldn't tell where that feeling came from.

"Of course, of course. Please, take a seat."

Yue Guan invited them to sit and beckoned for a maid to serve tea.

Ye Yulin and Zheng Zhan took a sip and praised it. "Excellent tea."

"You're too kind. His Holiness the Pope is busy. What sort of business did you have in mind?"

Neither man was surprised. Naturally, the pope of Spirit Hall wouldn't appear in person right away.

But Ye Yulin was confident Bibi Dong was watching from somewhere out of sight.

He took the items they had prepared from his Storage Soul Tool.

A Soul Guidance Milk Bottle, a Soul Guidance Lamp, and a Soul Guidance Water Heater.

This was the plan they had agreed on. Since they were opening business talks, they couldn't start by showing off devastating Soul Tools.

Otherwise,

Spirit Hall might panic and try to seize them outright. That would hardly be friendly.

"What's this...?"

Yue Guan picked up the bottle and eyed it strangely.

"Chrysanthemum Douluo, it contains stored Soul Power. Try absorbing some."

Yue Guan tried it skeptically, then quickly discovered a rich stream of Soul Power pouring out.

"This thing can store Soul Power?"

Yue Guan was astonished.

"That's right. This is a level-four Soul Guidance Milk Bottle. It holds enough Soul Power to replenish a Soul Ancestor twice."

Ghost Douluo jolted beneath his mask and grabbed the bottle in shock.

After absorbing some themselves, they confirmed it: the bottle really did hold twice a Soul Ancestor's Soul Power.

"What a treasure!"

Yue Guan marveled.

"This would be immensely useful for restoring a soul master's spent energy!"

He could already imagine it. With these bottles, soul masters could fight far longer, enough to turn the tide of battle!

The two Douluo soon tested the Soul Guidance Lamp and Soul Guidance Water Heater as well.

"With wiring laid in advance, Soul Guidance Lamps can provide light. Pair them with Soul Guidance Milk Bottles, and a city would only need to prepare an enormous bottle to power every lamp within it."

"The water heater works much the same way. It can supply residents with hot water, making cooking and bathing far more convenient!"

Ye Yulin smiled as he explained.

In a secret chamber behind the hall,

Bibi Dong watched, surprise in her eyes.

Where did this Sun Moon Sect come from? How can they have such remarkable things?

She cared little for the Soul Guidance Water Heater or the lamp. The Soul Guidance Milk Bottle was what mattered.

With those,

her army of soul masters could gain a tremendous boost in combat strength. It was a tool capable of changing the entire continent.

Yue Guan set the items down. "These are indeed fine things! But first, I'd like to learn more about your sect."

Ye Yulin delivered the explanation they had prepared.

"The Sun Moon Sect has lived in seclusion deep in the mountains for years. We seldom venture out, so it's no surprise you haven't heard of us."

"Our sect was founded many years ago by a group of blacksmiths. They were fascinated by all sorts of devices, and as the sect developed, we made some progress with Soul Tools."

"The sect sent us out this time in hopes of partnering with Spirit Hall, the foremost power on your continent."

"You provide us with raw materials, and we provide you with finished Soul Tools. What we mainly want are rare metals."

"If our technical progress hadn't hit a bottleneck for lack of materials, we wouldn't have come out at all."

Yue Guan nodded.

By that account, they seemed to be a secluded sect obsessed with developing technology.

"Are you two the leaders of the Sun Moon Sect?"

Yue Guan sounded them out.

Zheng Zhan laughed. "Not a chance. Our sect leader is a Limit Douluo. How could either of us hold that position?"

Yue Guan frowned. "Limit Douluo? What sort of Douluo is that?"

Zheng Zhan faltered.

Damn. I'm so used to saying Limit Douluo that I forgot people on the Douluo Continent call level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo.

Ye Yulin quickly stepped in. "What you call a level-ninety-nine Peerless Douluo. Our sect has been secluded for so long that we use a different term."

"I see."

Yue Guan fell into thought.

Good grief.

Their sect has a Peerless Douluo?

Wouldn't that put their leader on the same level as the Grand Worship, Qian Daoliu?

The threat they posed rivaled the Clear Sky Sect.

Yue Guan could hardly believe it.

Blacksmiths have always produced talent. First the hammer kings of the Clear Sky Sect, and now a Sun Moon Sect obsessed with crafting Soul Tools. Incredible.

"Well, since you've come all this way, why not stay for lunch? That will give me time to report to His Holiness. Rest assured, you'll have an answer before the afternoon is over."

Ye Yulin and Zheng Zhan nodded and settled in comfortably. They even started asking what food was available, acting completely at ease.

That, too, was part of Li Chen's instructions.

The calmer they looked, the more Spirit Hall would believe them.

Zheng Zhan leafed through the menu and sent a cautious voice transmission. "Isn't this too risky? We don't have a Limit Douluo."

Ye Yulin kept his expression steady. "Don't worry. Li Chen said we had to claim we did. Otherwise, that pope of Spirit Hall might just have us seized."

Li Chen had told them all about Bibi Dong's character and methods.

She was ruthless and domineering.

Titled Douluo either obeyed her or died.

She had even chased Poison Douluo all the way to Heaven Dou City.

Moving against the Top Three Sects was only a matter of time.

To deal with someone like her, they needed a powerful name to hide behind. Otherwise, they might never get her to sit down and talk.

Inside the secret chamber behind the hall,

Yue Guan carefully sought Bibi Dong's instructions.

Bibi Dong leaned on her staff, tapping its tip lightly against the floor as she thought.

"Your Holiness, the Sun Moon Sect's two elders claim they have a Peerless Douluo. What should we do?"

Bibi Dong replied, "Better to treat the claim as true until we know otherwise. Don't make an enemy of them yet. Try cooperating with them."

"Start introducing Soul Guidance Lamps and Soul Guidance Water Heaters throughout Spirit City. Remember, do it in Spirit Hall's name, not the Sun Moon Sect's."

Yue Guan nodded. "Yes."

After a moment's thought, Bibi Dong added, "Send people to investigate the Sun Moon Sect at once. Find out whether a Peerless Douluo truly stands behind them."

"Don't tell the Grand Worship about this yet."

"And find someone to dismantle and study the Soul Guidance Milk Bottle immediately. Keep asking whether their sect has other Soul Tools, particularly ones capable of mass destruction. If they do... we cannot let that sect remain."

Yue Guan nodded.

His Holiness was as ruthless as ever.

She meant to bolster Spirit Hall's reputation, take apart the Sun Moon Sect's technology, and investigate its strength, all at once.

If no Peerless Douluo protected the Sun Moon Sect, Yue Guan suspected Bibi Dong would simply seize everything by force.