Qian Daoliu: Wait, Dad, I Was Wrong Again??

Qian Daoliu lowered his head and looked at the piece of meat on his plate that he still had not touched, falling silent for a moment.

He shook his head, a hint of helplessness and acceptance in his voice.

Fine, I'll put up with it.

To regain his father's trust and stand tall before him again, he, Qian Daoliu, would put up with it.

"All right. I'll go inventory the scripture repository tomorrow."

Qian Chenming nodded, his gaze lingering on Qian Daoliu's face for a moment.

The string that had been stretched taut in Qian Daoliu's heart finally relaxed.

At least he had taken the first step.

But just then, unexpectedly, Qian Chenming turned his gaze toward him.

Qian Daoliu immediately sensed danger.

This was...

He was about to pull out the Septwolves belt.

Sure enough.

The next moment, Qian Chenming said coldly, "My great-granddaughter Xue'er will be coming back for this Soul Master Grand Finals too, correct?"

Qian Daoliu nearly lost his grip on his chopsticks.

Xue'er? Of course he knew Xue'er was coming back.

As Heaven Dou's current crown prince, Qian Renxue naturally had to lead a team to the Soul Master Grand Finals and could not be absent.

But the problem was that he had played no small part in sending her to infiltrate Heaven Dou back then.

Thinking back on it now...

Qian Daoliu could only wonder what sort of blockhead he had been.

He had actually thought of sending the extraordinarily gifted Xue'er to infiltrate Heaven Dou.

With Xue'er's talent, wouldn't it have been much better for her to stay in the Worship Hall, cultivate her Soul Power, and inherit the God Position?

There was no need to think about it.

His father was definitely about to criticize him again.

But how could he let that happen? He had only just managed to regain a little face before his father.

"Dad, about that... your son needs to explain something."

His mind spinning rapidly, Qian Daoliu put down his chopsticks and immediately assumed a solemn expression.

"Sending Xue'er to Heaven Dou was entirely that woman Bibi Dong's idea. She said infiltrating the Heaven Dou Imperial Family would be of great use to Spirit Hall in the future.

"We all know that Xue'er has been stubborn since she was little and likes to defy that woman Bibi Dong. After hearing that, she agreed to go of her own accord."

After speaking, he secretly raised his eyes to check Qian Chenming's expression.

Qian Chenming said nothing.

His fingers tapped lightly against the table, once, twice, neither hurried nor slow.

Qian Daoliu's heart tightened, and he hastily added, "I thought it was inappropriate at the time too, but Xue'er wanted to go. I couldn't stop her."

"Couldn't stop her?"

Qian Chenming finally spoke. His voice was not loud, but it ground slowly toward him like a blunt knife.

"You, the Great Enshrined, couldn't stop a little girl?"

Qian Daoliu's throat constricted.

"You listen to whatever that woman says."

Qian Chenming's voice was neither high nor low, yet it silenced the entire table. "She told you to send your granddaughter off as a spy, and you simply sent her?"

Qian Daoliu's expression stiffened.

He was, after all, Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined, a figure standing at the continent's pinnacle with unfathomable Soul Power.

Where was he supposed to put his face when his own father scolded him in front of every enshrined in the hall?

Yet he truly did not dare talk back.

"Dad, then what you mean is..."

"What do I mean?" Qian Chenming leisurely picked up some food with his chopsticks. "When Xue'er comes back, have her come see me."

Qian Daoliu's heart lurched.

"Dad, Xue'er has been undercover in Heaven Dou for years. Her identity cannot be exposed lightly. If she suddenly comes to the Worship Hall, I'm afraid it will attract attention..."

"Attract attention?" Qian Chenming looked up at him. "She is my great-granddaughter. Coming back to visit her ancestor is perfectly right and proper. Who would dare wag their tongue?"

Qian Daoliu was struck dumb.

He realized that this was always how things went before his father.

For every sentence he spoke, his father shut him down, until he could no longer say anything at all.

Besides...

The real problem was...

No one currently knew that Heaven Dou Crown Prince Xue Qinghe belonged to their Qian Family.

If they rashly summoned her back, their grand plan of over a decade might fail at the final hurdle.

Qian Daoliu knew that if he could think of this, his father certainly could too, so he did not dare say a word.

"Since the first Supreme Pontiff founded Spirit Hall, our Qian Family has stood firm on the Douluo Continent for at least several thousand years."

At that moment...

Qian Chenming finally looked up at him, his gaze as still as an ancient well. "Let me ask you, my son. Over these thousands of years, has our Spirit Hall ever relied on anyone's infiltration, undercover work, or secret schemes to reach where it stands today?"

Hearing this, Qian Daoliu's lips moved, but he dared speak even less.

"When I, your father, was in charge of Spirit Hall, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan held sway over its own territory, and the Seven Great Sects were branches of the same tree, united in purpose. Did your grandfather ever send anyone into their homes as a spy?"

"When your great-grandfather was expanding our territory, heroes rose throughout the land and powerful enemies surrounded him. Did he ever make any of his descendants conceal their names and live skulking in the shadows?"

The table was so quiet that a falling pin could have been heard.

Golden Crocodile stopped shoveling down his food, his chopsticks suspended in midair, even his breathing growing a little lighter.

The other enshrined were as silent as cicadas in the cold, wishing they could shrink themselves into specks of dust.

Qian Chenming's voice was not loud, but his words unfolded slowly, one by one.

"Spirit Hall reached where it stands today through strength wielded openly and honorably, through the prestige built step by step by generations of predecessors. Upright and aboveboard-those words are carved into Spirit Hall's very bones."

He paused.

"Since when did a daughter of our Qian Family have to become someone else's son and pretend to be a member of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family before she could be considered useful to Spirit Hall?"

A fine sheen of sweat seeped across Qian Daoliu's forehead, and he had no choice but to lower his head in shame. "Dad, I know I was wrong."

Indeed.

Since Bibi Dong had taken power, their Spirit Hall had grown stronger.

But its methods had also become increasingly sinister.

No wonder its sacred image in the eyes of the world had steadily faded, replaced by a reputation for stopping at nothing.

Perhaps, with Spirit Hall's formidable strength, they did not need to employ these underhanded methods.

"What were you wrong about?"

Qian Chenming questioned him again.

"I was wrong to listen to that woman Bibi Dong and send Xue'er to Heaven Dou."

Hearing this, Qian Chenming shook his head.

"You were wrong because you, too, believed that sending Xue'er to infiltrate Heaven Dou was 'useful' to Spirit Hall. You, too, believed that Spirit Hall had to rely on methods that could not bear the light of day to accomplish its goals."

Qian Chenming's voice finally sank, like a mountain pressing down over everyone's heads.

At those words, Qian Daoliu trembled, and a patch of his back was soaked through with cold sweat.

He slowly raised his head, his eyes slightly red.

"Dad, I have learned my lesson."

Qian Chenming said nothing, merely watching him.

Qian Daoliu's voice sounded somewhat strained.

"Xue'er is a daughter of the Qian Family, my granddaughter, and your great-granddaughter. With her talent and her bloodline, she should stand openly and proudly in the sunlight, receiving the admiration of thousands. Not be trapped deep within Heaven Dou's palace, living behind someone else's mask."

After speaking, he bowed his head deeply.

"I was a fool."

As those words fell, the entire hall grew so quiet that not even a breath could be heard.