The Benefactor Bibi Dong Spoke Of?

The moment the name "Tang Hao" was spoken, the air in the council chamber seemed to freeze!

The cardinals' expressions changed sharply. Shock, hatred, and a glimmer of excitement flashed in their eyes!

Bibi Dong's hand tightened almost imperceptibly around her scepter, and a cold light flashed in her violet eyes!

Tang Hao!

In a way, the man was her benefactor.

Back then, Qian Xunji had coveted the Soul Ring of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. He had personally led a force to hunt down Tang Hao and his wife, only to return gravely wounded.

Only then had she found the chance to kill Qian Xunji.

And take the papal throne.

Everyone believed Tang Hao had killed him!

That blood debt had remained a thorn in Spirit Hall's side ever since!

For more than a decade, Spirit Hall had never stopped searching for Tang Hao. Yet there had been no trace of him, as though he had vanished from the face of the earth.

And now someone had come forward with news of Tang Hao?!

As the reigning pope, Bibi Dong could hardly ignore it.

"Bring him in."

Bibi Dong's voice echoed through the vast hall.

"Yes!"

Soon, a guard led a travel-worn man into the council chamber. He wore a fitted gray outfit and looked to be in his early thirties. His face was ordinary, but his eyes were sharp.

Entering the solemn Papal Hall and facing the pope and several powerful cardinals, the man showed just the right amount of nervousness and awe, along with a trace of excitement he could not suppress. And... grief and anger?

He dropped to one knee and bowed his head. His voice rang out, though it trembled:

"This humble man is Zhang Erhe. I pay my respects to Your Holiness and the esteemed cardinals!"

"Rise and speak."

Bibi Dong's piercing gaze swept over the man who called himself Zhang Erhe. She instantly judged him to be a level-fifty-nine Soul King.

His aura was solid and his foundation sound, but his Soul Power moved a little sluggishly. He seemed to have been stuck at a bottleneck for some time.

The dust on his clothes and his minor injuries also showed that he had traveled a long way.

"Thank you, Your Holiness!"

Zhang Erhe stood, still keeping his head lowered, not daring to look directly at her.

"You said you had news of Tang Hao?"

Bibi Dong went straight to the point, her voice betraying no emotion.

"Yes!"

Zhang Erhe jerked his head up. His eyes were instantly bloodshot, filled with bone-deep hatred. "I come from a small village on the southwestern border of the Heaven Dou Empire. Twelve years ago, a man carrying a child passed through our village. For some reason, he attacked it. My parents and many of my neighbors died under their blades!"

"I wasn't in the village at the time. I escaped by sheer luck."

"Afterward, I trained with everything I had and searched everywhere for answers. At last, I learned that the man was the demon wanted by Spirit Hall: Clear Sky Douluo, Tang Hao!"

His voice was hoarse and his emotions ran high. He played the part of an unaffiliated Soul Master who had lost his family and trained relentlessly for revenge to perfection.

Naturally, Mount Buzhou had carefully prepared his identity and story. The details held up to scrutiny.

The small village really had been destroyed twelve years ago in a "Soul Master conflict." No one had survived, and the case remained unsolved.

"I searched for twelve years. Not long ago, I finally picked up Tang Hao's trail!"

Zhang Erhe's voice grew urgent as he continued. "A dozen or so days ago, a great battle broke out in Suotuo City in the Heaven Dou Empire. When I heard about it, I wanted to go and see what had happened."

"On the way, I happened to spot a suspicious middle-aged man in a black robe. I eventually confirmed that he was Tang Hao."

"He had a boy with him who seemed to have an eye injury and had trouble moving. I suspect the boy was his son."

"They traveled in secret, heading north. I risked my life following them and finally determined that their destination was most likely Slaughter City!"

"I'm too weak to enter such a deadly place and keep following them, much less take revenge."

"I heard that Spirit Hall had long been searching for Tang Hao, and that it upheld justice and rid the continent of evildoers."

"So I risked my life to come to Spirit City and report this to Your Holiness. I beg you to seek justice for a common man like me and rid the world of him!"

"If I can see Tang Hao brought to justice with my own eyes, I'll have no regrets even if I die!"

With that, he dropped heavily to his knees again and pressed his forehead to the floor. His body trembled slightly with emotion and "hatred."

The council chamber fell silent.

The cardinals exchanged glances. They took the intelligence seriously, but they were also assessing Zhang Erhe himself.

Tang Hao had gone to Slaughter City?

It was certainly a likely place for him to hide!

Its rules were unusual, and even Spirit Hall struggled to extend its reach there.

Bibi Dong looked down at Zhang Erhe as he knelt before her. Her violet eyes were deep as an abyss, as if they could see through him.

After a moment of silence, she spoke slowly. "Your information is important. I understand your hatred as well."

Her voice remained calm. "You've had a difficult journey. Rise for now."

"Thank you, Your Holiness!" Zhang Erhe stood as instructed, his hands at his sides.

"What is your current Soul Power level?" Bibi Dong asked suddenly.

"Your Holiness, I've been stuck at level fifty-nine for three years. I still haven't been able to break through." Zhang Erhe let just the right trace of bitterness and longing show on his face.

Bibi Dong nodded slightly. A level-fifty-nine Soul King stuck at a bottleneck. For someone of humble origins to have reached this point, he must have considerable resolve and perseverance.

More importantly, he had brought news of Tang Hao and bore him a "blood feud." That naturally put him on Spirit Hall's side.

"You've brought us important information, and your loyalties lie with Spirit Hall. I'll give you an opportunity."

Bibi Dong continued, "From today onward, you will join Spirit Hall. For now, you'll be assigned to the Palace Guard Knights' reserve unit."

"Spirit Hall will provide resources to help you break through to level sixty."

"As for Tang Hao, Spirit Hall will make its own arrangements. If your information proves true, you'll have rendered a great service and will be rewarded accordingly."

Delight immediately spread across Zhang Erhe's face. He dropped to his knees once more. "Thank you for your favor, Your Holiness! I, Zhang Erhe, will give my life for Spirit Hall! I will give my life for you!"

His reaction was exactly right for an unaffiliated Soul Master desperate to break through and gain powerful backing.

"Take him away, arrange lodging, verify his identity, and prepare the resources for his breakthrough," Bibi Dong instructed a cardinal beside her.

"Yes, Your Holiness." The cardinal bowed and led the profusely grateful Ying Qi out of the council chamber.

Once they had left, only Bibi Dong and a few of her trusted cardinals remained.

"Your Holiness, can we trust what he said?" one cardinal asked cautiously.

"His account was detailed, and his emotions didn't seem feigned. Besides... he has neither the reason nor the nerve to deceive us."

Another cardinal added, "Slaughter City is indeed the kind of place someone like Tang Hao might choose as a hideout."

Bibi Dong tapped her slender fingers lightly on the throne's armrest, a cold light shifting in her eyes. "Better to act as though it's true."

"Tang Hao... has finally shown himself again."

"This time, we will not let him escape!"

She rose, her long robes trailing across the floor as an invisible pressure and killing intent spread through the chamber. "Pass down my order: assemble an elite hunting team at once, consisting of five Soul Douluo and ten Soul Saints. Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo will lead them personally!"

"They will go together..."

"And hunt Tang Hao down!!!"

"This time..."

"I will go myself!"