The Truth Behind the Secret Chamber Revealed

The thud interrupted Lin Fan. Puzzled, he asked, "What was that sound? Did someone fall?"

"It's nothing." Bibi Dong gave an awkward smile. "The wooden stool wasn't sturdy. It suddenly broke."

But things in Spirit Hall did not simply break. Lin Fan's words had frightened Bibi Dong so badly that she had released a burst of Soul Power and snapped the stool beneath her.

Lin Fan had neither a Martial Soul nor Soul Power, so he could not sense it.

But Qian Xunji, Yue Guan, and the other Titled Douluo naturally felt the Soul Power Bibi Dong had released.

Bibi Dong asked nervously, "Lin Fan, are you sure you haven't remembered this wrong? Weren't they master and disciple?"

Yue Guan glanced at the silent Qian Xunji and said, "Exactly. Could you have made it up?"

"After all, the Qian Xunji you're talking about was the Pope of Spirit Hall, a man of exalted standing. Even if he was, uh..."

Yue Guan paused and looked at Qian Xunji. Qian Xunji nodded for him to continue.

"Even if he was lustful, with his status as Pope, what kind of beauty couldn't he find? Why risk becoming the subject of scandal by preying on his own disciple?"

"If the Two Great Empires, the seven great sects, and the Soul Master world learned of something so immoral, it would do Spirit Hall no good at all."

"So, little brother, what you're saying makes no sense."

In one breath, Yue Guan voiced his own doubts and those of Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong.

Without a moment's thought, Lin Fan smiled and said, "Village chief, auntie, and Miss Dong'er, you've fed me, given me a place to stay, and treated my injuries. I can't thank you enough.

"If it weren't for you, I might have died out there. I have no reason to lie to you over a novel, or to make up nonsense about its story."

The room fell silent again. Lin Fan had spoken with such sincerity that, when they thought about it, they realized he truly had no reason to lie about a novel.

Bibi Dong stole a glance at Qian Xunji. I'll turn against my teacher? Impossible. Absolutely impossible.

Teacher raised me from childhood, nurtured me, and made me Spirit Hall's Saintess and its future successor. How could we possibly turn against each other?

Qian Xunji said, "Brother Lin Fan is right. It's only a novel. We're just chatting."

"Exactly, just chatting," Lin Fan said with a smile.

"Go on, little brother," Qian Xunji said. "Why did the master and disciple turn against each other? Was Qian Xunji really just a lecher who coveted his own disciple's beauty?"

"Of course not." Lin Fan continued, "Both sides were at fault, but Qian Xunji was the more ruthless one. And Bibi Dong suffered so much that readers like us came to hate his character."

At those words, Qian Xunji's expression finally eased a little.

Bibi Dong had been watching him the whole time. Seeing his expression soften, she felt a little relieved.

Yue Guan smiled. "That's what I thought. How could someone as distinguished as the Pope be nothing more than a lecher?"

Bibi Dong asked cautiously, "Lin Fan, what did Bibi Dong do wrong to make her teacher act so ruthlessly?"

Qian Xunji pricked up his ears at her question. He wanted to hear exactly what wrongdoing could drive him to treat his own disciple so cruelly.

Lin Fan said helplessly, "Bibi Dong was indeed the first to do something wrong. She wanted to betray Spirit Hall!"

The moment Lin Fan finished speaking, Qian Xunji's gaze shot toward Bibi Dong like lightning.

"The Saintess betrayed Spirit Hall?" Yue Guan sucked in a sharp breath, his voice rising an octave. "Little brother, you can't say that lightly. Betraying Spirit Hall is..."

Bibi Dong's face changed. She sprang up in alarm and cried, "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could Bibi Dong betray Spirit Hall?"

"Huh? Miss Dong'er, why are you all so worked up? I haven't finished yet." Lin Fan turned toward the sound of Bibi Dong's voice, baffled.

"But..." Bibi Dong hurried to explain.

Before she could, a heavy hand settled on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Qian Xunji.

"Brother Lin Fan, go on. How did Bibi Dong betray Spirit Hall?"

Lin Fan nodded. "Well, it didn't really count as betrayal. Bibi Dong fell in love with someone and wanted to run away with him to live an ordinary life."

"If the person Bibi Dong loved had truly been an ordinary man, Qian Xunji wouldn't have reacted so harshly, even if he found out. But the man happened to be a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect."

"And he happened to be an utter failure. His Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul had mutated into a pig. His Innate Soul Power wasn't even level one, and he could only cultivate to level twenty-nine."

"You can imagine what happened. When Qian Xunji found out, he thought: How could the Saintess Spirit Hall had worked so hard to raise throw away her bright future for a man? Worse, he was a cripple from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan who couldn't even cultivate. If word got out, what would become of Spirit Hall's reputation?"

"In modern terms, it was like the daughter of a billionaire falling for a good-for-nothing delinquent loitering on the street."

"A delinquent?" Yue Guan's mouth twitched. He almost laughed.

But when he caught sight of Qian Xunji's grim profile, he forced the laugh back down.

Bibi Dong's face went pale. "Nonsense. I didn't..."

Qian Xunji cut her off before she could finish.

"Brother Lin Fan," Qian Xunji asked, "what did Qian Xunji do when he found out?"

"I already told you," Lin Fan said. "Qian Xunji decided that if she was willing to abandon Spirit Hall for a man, he would make her give up the idea for good. He used the cruelest means to force Bibi Dong to bear his child, destroying the last bit of kindness in her heart."

"Wait!" Yue Guan asked curiously. "Bibi Dong was still his disciple. If she had betrayed Spirit Hall, he could simply have killed her. Why choose that method?"

Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong both looked at Lin Fan again.

"Auntie village doctor asks a good question," Lin Fan said. "To explain that, I need to talk about Douluo Continent's cultivation system: Martial Souls."

"Bibi Dong had Innate Full Soul Power and Twin Martial Souls. Her talent was extraordinary. That was why Spirit Hall had raised her to be its next Pope."

"And on Douluo Continent, it's said that the greater the parents' Martial Soul talent, the greater their child's talent will be."

"Qian Xunji possessed Spirit Hall's inherited, supreme Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul, while Bibi Dong had Twin Martial Souls. Their child was Qian Renxue, the first member of the Qian family in Spirit Hall's history qualified to become the Angel God's successor."

"When Qian Renxue awakened her Martial Soul at six, her Innate Soul Power reached an unprecedented level twenty. She could obtain two soul rings the moment she awakened."

"Level twenty Innate Soul Power?" Yue Guan exclaimed. "Just how monstrous was her talent?!"

"So Qian Xunji didn't kill Bibi Dong outright. He had his own selfish motives. And because he spared her, he indirectly laid the groundwork for Spirit Hall's downfall."

"Every cause has its consequence."

Yue Guan nodded in realization. "I see. Now it makes sense."