In a dark corner not far from Martial Soul Sacred Mountain...
To be honest, Lu Chen rather admired Ghost Douluo for managing to find a place like this in Spirit City, with its grand, sacred atmosphere.
It seemed a Martial Soul really could, in turn, influence a Soul Master's habits.
"Your Eminence, why don't we go straight up Martial Soul Sacred Mountain?"
Lu Chen was genuinely a little puzzled by Ghost Douluo's baffling decision to find somewhere to rest after entering the city instead of heading straight up the mountain. Doesn't maintaining your Martial Soul Avatar consume Soul Power?
"The mid- and high-ranking Soul Masters guarding the walls are only the first checkpoint." In his Martial Soul Avatar state, Ghost Douluo's voice was even colder and more elusive than usual:
"To approach Martial Soul Sacred Mountain, which is guarded by large numbers of high-ranking Soul Masters, pass the Pope's Hall and Elder Hall halfway up, and sneak onto the summit, the concealment provided by my Martial Soul Avatar is nowhere near enough."
"Next, I'll use a special method. It lasts a very short time and places an enormous burden on me, but its advantage is its extreme concealment!"
At this point, the two faint red glimmers in the mist that barely passed for eyes fixed on Lu Chen. Ghost Douluo paused briefly, seemingly expecting him to say something.
I get you!
Lu Chen immediately picked up the cue and said with concern, "Huh? Won't that hurt you too much?"
The ghostly mist stirred slightly. "Alas, only this will let us slip past His Holiness the Pope and those elders."
The expression on Lu Chen's face clearly turned grateful.
Yet the Chat Group panel beside him displayed the text and image Xiao Wu had sent a short while earlier.
[Xiao Wu: Ghost mist armor, combine!.jpg]
[Xiao Wu: Sisters, someone's going to sneak over the wall!]
Yes, just as the two set off to sneak over Spirit City's walls, Xiao Wu had already posted evidence of Lu Chen and Ghost Douluo's crime in the group.
Normally, when Bibi Dong wasn't taking special precautions, Ghost Douluo would indeed have an extremely high chance of success if he used some unexpected methods.
But now...
Outside the Pope's Hall, the hall knights on guard duty were already kneeling all over the ground, heads lowered, not daring to profane the beautiful woman before them, who wore papal robes and represented the highest authority on the Douluo Continent.
For some unknown reason, Her Holiness the Pope had suddenly appeared outside the hall just now and was staring blankly toward the foot of the mountain without saying a word.
What does this mean?
What are we brothers supposed to do?
Kneeling on one knee at the very front, the Soul Douluo-ranked captain of the hall knights ventured a bold guess. Could the Saintess have angered her?
Over the past two days, they had heard the little girl's miserable sobbing coming from the Pope's Hall more than a few times. Clearly, she had done something wrong and been severely punished by Her Holiness the Pope!
Who would have thought Her Holiness the Pope had such a strong sense of responsibility? With someone like her leading us, how could Spirit Hall possibly fail to flourish?!
Reshpect!
Bibi Dong paid no attention to the thoughts of this captain or the other knights. She merely waved a hand slightly, signaling them to rise and return to their duties.
Her gaze locked onto a certain spot below the mountain, and an almost imperceptible smile appeared at the corner of her lips.
Found you!
Let's see what tricks you can pull off, Gui Mei!
"First Soul Skill: Shadows upon Shadows!"
"Second Soul Skill: Shadow Traversal!"
"Third Soul Skill: Shadow Clone!"
"Fourth Soul Skill: Lost Tracks!"
"Fifth Soul Skill: Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts!"
"Sixth Soul Skill: Intangibility!"
Amid these low shouts, Ghost Douluo actually used every one of his Soul Skills except the eighth and ninth simultaneously, including his Martial Soul Avatar! This maneuver alone consumed a staggering amount of Soul Power and placed an immense burden on his body.
Wait, old man Ghost really wasn't lying to me?
Watching Ghost Douluo act as though he were about to fight for his life, Lu Chen was deeply shaken.
Tang Hao and Er Ming's battle back then had been even more spectacular, flattening several mountaintops, but he had only heard the noise, after all. Lu Chen had been busy fleeing with Xiao Wu and Ah Yin at the time~
This was his first time actually witnessing a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse go all out.
The first six Soul Rings lit up with faint glimmers in succession. Countless gray-black ghostly figures appeared around the two of them, like evil spirits that had broken free of their shackles in the infernal hells. Though they made not a sound, it was precisely this eerie silence that sent chills through the heart.
There was nothing more to say. Put this scene in his previous life, and it could put every horror movie prop and special effects crew out of work.
Lu Chen gave him an enthusiastic thumbs-up in his mind, but this was only the beginning of Ghost Douluo's display of skill.
The gray-black ghostly figures sank back into the ground one after another, but they did not disappear. Under Ghost Douluo's precise control, they instead became long, thin threads.
As soon as each ghost thread stretched to its limit, another thread formed from a ghostly figure immediately connected to it, extending toward shadows farther away...
Wait, is this really how you're supposed to do it?
"Xiao Chen, are you ready?"
Maintaining the consumption of his first seven Soul Skills while also expending mental effort to control countless ghostly figures, Ghost Douluo's voice was now somewhat distorted even when he spoke. "Let's go!"
W-wait! Never mind what happened on the city wall earlier, but these ghost threads are so thin! No matter how I look at them, there's no way I can fit inside, right?!
Having realized what Ghost Douluo intended, Lu Chen panicked like crazy.
Yet this was precisely the wonder of Soul Skills!
The ghostly mist spread, enveloping Lu Chen once more. The two plunged straight into the ghost threads on the ground and sped toward Martial Soul Sacred Mountain nearby!
Halfway up the mountain, Bibi Dong watched the entire process with her overwhelming power. With her spiritual power far exceeding Ghost Douluo's, he had not noticed in the slightest that all his actions had been exposed to someone else's eyes.
Hehe~ Ghost Douluo, you really have given me quite a surprise.
Having satisfied her curiosity, Bibi Dong shifted her feet slightly and disappeared from outside the Pope's Hall.
Now she needed to give some careful thought to what "easy" jobs she should assign these two top-tier beasts of burden as a reward once Yue Guan and Gui Mei returned to report.
Ghost Douluo's "Line Escape Technique" was extremely fast. Lu Chen felt the scenery around him blur, and then they arrived before a tall building that was lustrous white throughout.
"We can't linger. Let's go in!"
Ghost Douluo did not even have time to dismiss his Martial Soul Avatar. The translucent mist drifted straight into the Worship Hall.
"How dare you!"
"Anyone who trespasses into the Worship Hall without permission shall be killed without mercy!"
A slightly flippant-sounding voice rang out, and a blood-red, gilded staff patterned with dragons came tearing through the air. Lu Chen and Ghost Douluo seemed to see a blood-red dragon emerge from the staff, unleashing waves of strange, furious roars at them.
Lu Chen did not feel much from this. After all, almost all the Soul Power pressure was directed at Ghost Douluo, while the dragon's trace of Divine Attribute and powerful evil-banishing effect had no effect whatsoever on Lu Chen.
Azure Dragon: What are you yelling for?
"Lord Seventh Offering, please stay your hand!"
Ghost Douluo immediately dismissed his Martial Soul Avatar while sending out a gentle force that carried Lu Chen beyond the range of the other's Soul Power pressure.
The Seventh Offering clearly had no intention of deliberately making things difficult for a little child either. He tacitly allowed Ghost Douluo's little maneuver, even deliberately leaving a sufficiently safe passage during the process. His level-96 Soul Power fluctuations remained firmly locked onto Ghost Douluo alone.
"Stay my hand?"
The earlier voice rang out again, its tone brimming with mockery. "Gui Mei, do you think too highly of yourself, or do you take this Worship Hall for somewhere you can come and go as you please?"
With his legs spread and his hands braced on his knees, Spirit Hall's Seventh Offering, Demon Subduing Douluo, sat atop the high steps with an arrogant expression.
Whether because of their Martial Souls' compatibility or his anger at Gui Mei's failure to protect Qian Xunji-a junior he had watched grow up-resulting in injuries that proved fatal, Demon Subduing Douluo had not the slightest fondness for Gui Mei.
Unfortunately... this little ghost belongs to Bibi Dong. I can't kill him.
A cold glint flashed through Demon Subduing Douluo's eyes, and the blood-red staff smashed down toward Ghost Douluo's head.
Then I'll give you another unforgettable lesson!
Before you continue