The Worship Hall's Darling

On the first day after Yuan Yu's awakening, none of Spirit City's leaders slept well.

It wasn't that they weren't tired.

None of them dared to sleep.

A six-year-old child.

A Sun Wheel Blade Martial Soul.

Nine patterns on its blade.

Innate spirit power at level twenty.

Divine Trials bestowed by the Nine Elemental Gods.

On the very first day, he had passed the Water God's first trial and received a God-given Spirit Ring.

Any one of those things would have been enough to enter Spirit Hall's secret records.

Now they had all happened to Yuan Yu.

The trouble was, the boy wasn't exactly easy to manage.

In the Worship Hall's council chamber.

Qian Daoliu sat in the seat of honor.

Azure Luan, Ling Yuan, and the other worshippers were present.

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo attended as observers on behalf of the Papal Hall.

Yuan Yu sat on a little chair in the farthest corner, holding a bowl of hangover soup in both hands and looking more innocent than anyone else.

Ling Yuan glanced at him.

"You've got the nerve to sit there?"

Yuan Yu held up his bowl.

"I can drink standing up."

"That's not what I asked."

"Then sitting takes up less room."

Azure Luan raised his eyes.

Yuan Yu immediately lowered his head and drank his soup.

Chrysanthemum Douluo's shoulders shook with laughter.

"If little Yuan Yu really becomes a god someday, I doubt even the Divine Realm will know peace."

Ghost Douluo said, "First, let's make sure he lives that long."

At those words, the laughter in the chamber faded.

Yuan Yu looked up at him too.

Ghost Douluo's words were harsh.

But they were true.

The Ten Thousand Manifestations Nine Trials sounded glorious.

Every step, though, was dangerous.

The first trial had been the Water God's Illusion.

The next was the Flame Pattern.

After that came Lightning, wind, Rock, Mist, light, darkness, and space.

Who knew which step might go wrong?

Qian Daoliu spoke.

"From today onward, Yuan Yu will receive the Worship Hall's highest level of protection."

"Word of the Nine-Pattern Sun Wheel Blade, the Ten Thousand Manifestations Nine Trials, and the God-given Spirit Ring must not spread."

"All records from today's events in the Awakening Hall are to be sealed in the secret archives."

Everyone nodded.

Yuan Yu nodded along.

Ling Yuan looked at him.

"What are you nodding for?"

"To look like I'm taking part in the meeting."

"You're the one we're discussing."

"That still counts as taking part."

Ling Yuan wanted to rap him on the head again.

Qian Daoliu turned to Yuan Yu.

"Yuan Yu."

Yuan Yu sat up straight at once.

"Yes."

"From today onward, you can't fool around like you used to."

For once, Yuan Yu didn't crack a joke.

He lowered his gaze to the hangover soup in his bowl.

"I know."

The chamber fell quiet for a moment.

Ling Yuan was so unused to seeing him behave that it unsettled her.

A heartbeat later, Yuan Yu looked up again.

"But can I fool around once in a while?"

Ling Yuan closed her eyes.

Azure Luan fell silent too.

Chrysanthemum Douluo laughed outright.

Qian Daoliu studied Yuan Yu.

"Why?"

Yuan Yu put down his bowl.

"Chief Worshipper, I can train, and I can follow your arrangements. I'll pass the Divine Trials I need to pass, and if I deserve a beating, I'll take it."

He paused.

"But don't keep me locked up."

The chamber went still.

Yuan Yu said earnestly, "I don't want to become someone who only knows how to obey."

Ling Yuan frowned.

"What's wrong with obeying?"

"Nothing, when the orders are right."

Yuan Yu looked at her.

"But what if, one day, someone tells me to do something wrong?"

No one answered at once.

Qian Daoliu watched him, his gaze deepening.

The boy was usually a smartmouth.

But those words had not sounded offhand.

Yuan Yu went on, "I'm not saying I want to run wild. I just want a chance to go out and see the world someday."

"There's Shrek, Heaven Dou, forests, the sea, and so many people I've never met."

"I can't lock myself inside Spirit City before I've even begun, can I?"

Azure Luan said, "It's dangerous out there."

Yuan Yu nodded.

"I know."

"And you still want to go?"

"Danger isn't a reason to stay home."

Yuan Yu smiled.

"I'm not made of porcelain."

Ling Yuan said, "You're even easier to break."

"Then I'll train until I'm tougher."

Qian Daoliu was silent for a long time.

"We'll discuss leaving once you can protect yourself."

Yuan Yu's eyes lit up.

"How strong do I have to be?"

Azure Luan said evenly, "Strong enough that Ling Yuan can't drag you back with one hand."

Yuan Yu glanced at Ling Yuan.

She smiled at him.

"We can try it now."

Yuan Yu quietly settled back into his chair.

"I think training should be taken one step at a time."

After the meeting, Yuan Yu was taken to the Papal Hall.

The Papal Hall felt colder than the Worship Hall.

Tall doors, long flights of steps, a purple-and-gold carpet, and knights standing on either side.

Yuan Yu had been there many times.

But today was different.

Before, he had come to cadge pastries or deliver tea.

Today, he had been summoned.

Bibi Dong sat high above him, her Scepter standing beside her.

She looked at Yuan Yu, and her first words sent a chill down his spine.

"I hear you asked for permission to fool around occasionally during the Worship Hall meeting?"

Yuan Yu looked back at Chrysanthemum Douluo.

Chrysanthemum Douluo looked up at the ceiling.

Yuan Yu muttered, "News travels way too fast."

Bibi Dong said coldly, "Answer me."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I don't want to be locked up."

The air inside the Papal Hall seemed to turn cold at once.

Neither Chrysanthemum Douluo nor Ghost Douluo spoke.

Yuan Yu stood in the middle of the hall, small in his white clothes, still every bit a child.

But he did not lower his head.

Bibi Dong looked at him.

"Divine Trials are no game."

"I know."

"If you fail, you could destroy yourself."

"I know that too."

"Then you still dared to accept all nine?"

Yuan Yu thought for a moment.

"Teacher, I'm scared."

Something shifted in Bibi Dong's eyes.

Yuan Yu continued, "But being scared doesn't mean I should only take the easiest path."

"The Sun Wheel Blade has nine patterns. If I choose only one, will the other eight stay dark for the rest of my life?"

"I don't want to regret it later."

Bibi Dong did not answer immediately.

She had seen many geniuses.

Some were arrogant.

Some were obedient.

Others were swallowed by ambition early on.

Yuan Yu was unlike any of them.

He was afraid.

Yet he still meant to move forward.

After a long while, Bibi Dong said, "Then prove yourself to me."

Yuan Yu smiled.

"I will."

Bibi Dong raised her eyes.

"And one more thing. No alcohol for three months."

Yuan Yu's smile froze.

"Teacher?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"No."

Yuan Yu lowered his head.

"I just feel like life has suddenly lost a lot of its color."

Bibi Dong said, "One more word, and it's six months."

Yuan Yu shut his mouth at once.

As he left the Papal Hall, he saw a blond girl standing at the end of the corridor.

Qian Renxue.

She was much older than Yuan Yu, with the noble bearing of the Six-Winged Angel bloodline.

But when she saw Yuan Yu, the first thing she did was not ask about his Divine Trial.

She reached out and mussed his hair instead.

"Made Teacher angry again?"

Yuan Yu looked up.

"Sister Snow, why do you always think I'm the one causing trouble?"

Qian Renxue said evenly, "Because you usually are."

Yuan Yu thought about it.

"Fair point."

Qian Renxue looked at him, her voice dropping.

"Does it hurt?"

Yuan Yu froze.

She meant the Divine Trial.

Not his forehead.

Not the ban on drinking.

Yuan Yu smiled.

"A little."

Qian Renxue took a small Wine Gourd from her sleeve.

It was made entirely of Black Jade, with a Red Cord wrapped around it.

She tucked it into Yuan Yu's arms.

"No drinking from it. You can only wear it."

Yuan Yu's eyes lit up.

"Long live Sister Snow."

Qian Renxue raised her hand and tapped him on the head.

"Enough joking around. Yuan Yu, don't let the Divine Trial turn you into someone else."

Holding the Wine Gourd, Yuan Yu nodded solemnly.

"Don't worry."

"At most, I'll become a stronger version of myself."

Qian Renxue watched him leave.

She did not tell him.

When the nine rays of Divine Light descended, the Angel God Power within her had stirred too.

The child who always trailed after her calling her Sister Snow might one day reach extraordinary heights.

But no matter how high he rose, she hoped he could still smile like that.