Several days later, Spirit City.
Yu Xiaogang finally arrived at the most unique city on the continent.
It stood on the border between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire, an independent territory over which neither empire had jurisdiction.
The city was not large, less than a tenth the size of Heaven Dou City, making it medium-sized, but its walls were built to the standards of an imperial capital.
The rare hexagonal city had six walls arranged in succession, each bearing enormous Martial Soul reliefs carved with different Martial Soul designs, lifelike and magnificent.
The walls stood eighty meters high and thirty meters thick, built entirely of hard granite. Those patrolling them were not ordinary soldiers, but Soul Master warriors of Spirit Hall.
There were almost no ordinary people in Spirit City. It was also the only city on the continent where nearly every resident possessed soul power.
The core of Spirit City was divided into four great halls: the Pope's Palace, the Elder Hall, the Worship Hall, and Douluo Hall.
The Pope's Palace was the main hall where the pope worked and presided over grand ceremonies. Known as the continent's most magnificent building, its gilded exterior blazed with golden light beneath the sun, and its glittering roof could be seen from several miles away.
The Elder Hall was the center of secular power, its members consisting almost entirely of Titled Douluo.
The Worship Hall ranked above the Pope's Palace and was the sacred ground of the angel lineage. The seven Enshrined were stationed there, answering only to the Great Enshrined, Qian Daoliu, and not subject to the pope's commands.
Douluo Hall was the honored mausoleum of Titled Douluo. Only Titled Douluo who had fallen in death were qualified to rest there; the living could not enter.
Yu Xiaogang entered Spirit City and followed its broad main street, soon arriving before the Pope's Palace at its very center.
He walked slowly inside.
Naturally, an ordinary person could never have entered so easily, but Yu Xiaogang held a golden token in his hand-the Pope Token!
Seeing the token was as good as seeing the pope in person. None of the guards along the way dared to stop him after seeing it, and all dropped to one knee in respectful salute.
He stepped through the doors of the Pope's Palace. The interior was spacious and solemn, sunlight spilling through the stained-glass windows high above and casting colorful patterns of light and shadow across the floor.
On the raised dais at the far end stood the papal throne, where a blonde, red-eyed woman in sumptuous papal robes sat.
There was no one else in the hall.
Clearly, Bibi Dong had known in advance that he was coming.
Yu Xiaogang looked at the figure on the dais, a mixture of all five flavors churning in his heart.
When they had parted, she had still been Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden. Now, she was the pope who commanded the strongest power on the continent.
Yu Xiaogang spoke softly. "Dong'er, I'm here."
Bibi Dong's body trembled slightly.
She had already prepared herself, but when that familiar call reached her ears, she still nearly lost her composure.
Scenes from their youth surged up uncontrollably, blurring her vision.
"Hehe, Yu Xiaogang, come here!"
"This isn't a good idea, is it? This is the Pope's Palace..."
"What are you afraid of? I've been chosen as Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden now!"
The black-haired Yu Xiaogang froze for a moment, then gave a knowing smile. "I knew you could do it. You've always been outstanding."
"Hehe, once I become pope, I'll make you an honorary elder. Then we can be together forever."
Returning to the present, Bibi Dong steadied herself, keeping the dignity befitting the pope on her face.
She raised her chin slightly, her voice calm and even. "Well, if it isn't Elder Yu. What made you think of returning to Spirit Hall?"
Looking at her feigned composure, a trace of a smile rose to Yu Xiaogang's lips. "Dong'er, now that you're pope, you've become more and more imposing."
At his words, the coldness on Bibi Dong's face unconsciously softened a little.
She gave a soft huff. "Tell me, what did you come to see me for?"
Yu Xiaogang did not answer immediately. He merely began walking toward her, step by step.
His leather shoes struck the polished marble floor with crisp clicks, each one echoing through the empty hall.
"Stop."
As Yu Xiaogang drew closer and closer, a trace of panic involuntarily rose within Bibi Dong, and she instinctively gave the command.
Yu Xiaogang did not stop, continuing toward her one step at a time.
"I told you to stop!"
A tremendous aura surged from Bibi Dong, shrouding the entire hall in overwhelming pressure.
The heavy candlesticks and decorations inside the Pope's Palace trembled faintly, as though even the air had frozen.
Yet that pressure seemed to have eyes, flowing past Yu Xiaogang's sides without so much as a trace falling upon him.
Soon, Yu Xiaogang stood before Bibi Dong, close enough to see her faintly trembling eyelashes.
"You..."
Bibi Dong parted her lips, but before she could finish, Yu Xiaogang smiled gently. Under her shocked gaze, he reached out, gently pulled her to her feet, and drew her into his arms.
"Dong'er, I'm back."
Bibi Dong stiffened for an instant, then completely lost her composure.
Tears welled in her eyes, her voice trembling and choked with sobs. "Did you come back just to bully me? Aren't you afraid I'll attack you..."
"I know."
Yu Xiaogang's voice came from above her head.
"Dong'er would never hurt me."
"You... Yu Xiaogang..."
Bibi Dong's tears finally spilled over.
The scepter symbolizing the pope's supreme status slipped from her hand, hit the marble floor with a clang, rolled twice, and stopped at the edge of the steps.
She clutched the robes at Yu Xiaogang's back with both hands, so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
"Why did you even come to see me? It was all my fault... I'm... sullied. I'm no longer worthy of who you are now..."
Yu Xiaogang's heart ached, and he held her a little tighter.
"I was too weak back then. If I'd had the strength I have now, I wouldn't have let you bear all that alone."
He released Bibi Dong and lowered his head to look into her tear-soaked eyes, raising a hand to gently wipe the tear tracks from their corners. "Forget the past, Dong'er. Let's be together again."
Bibi Dong stared at him in a daze, her lips trembling slightly. "Yu Xiaogang, you..."
"Don't refuse."
As Yu Xiaogang spoke, he took the golden Pope Token from inside his robes and held it before her eyes. "Do you remember? The promise we made back then."
Looking at the token, Bibi Dong felt memories buried for years surge up in an instant.
"Yu Xiaogang, this is for you."
"A Pope Token?"
"I told you I'd make you an honorary elder."
"Don't act like a child. You're the Holy Maiden now."
"Don't say that. I am a child! I also promise that you can use it to ask me for one wish in the future."
As she spoke, Bibi Dong gave Yu Xiaogang a playful smile.
Inside the Pope's Palace, Yu Xiaogang's hand gently brushed Bibi Dong's cheek, his voice tender. "Dong'er isn't that little child anymore."