"What? Grandpa, you're so despicable!!"
Qian Renxing panicked. He had thought that, with his mother's promise secured and his grandfather unable to do anything about her, his plan to reproduce a billion copies of his sacred painting and become a god was already set in stone. Who could have imagined there would still be trials ahead?
He pointed at his sacred painting, his face full of disbelief. "Grandpa, haven't you felt even a trace of holiness from this sacred painting of mine? Even if the sacred painting Xie Yue carved can only convey a fraction of the true meaning of my miracle, it's still a sacred painting rarely seen in this world!"
"Shouldn't a sacred painting like this be seen by everyone?! If my sacred painting can't be seen by everyone, then Grandpa, you'll practically be a sinner against the whole world!!"
Qian Renxing really was anxious.
He looked at his holy sacred painting, filled with nothing but satisfaction-so satisfied that he could not have been more satisfied.
Although it still fell quite far short of the miracle he had displayed, conveying even this much had already exceeded his expectations.
He simply could not believe that his grandfather had not been won over by this holiness!
"Seriously, you believe whatever anyone tells you? That Xie Yue is nothing but a treacherous little sycophant. Xiao Xing, could you stop being so naive? He only said those things to flatter you!"
Qian Daoliu was speechless too. "This sacred painting? If you tossed it on the ground, no one would even pick it up, yet you want to reproduce a billion copies and distribute them all over the world. You're practically insisting on force-feeding shit to everyone in the world!!"
"If I can stop those billion copies of your sacred painting from circulating throughout the world, I'll practically be the hero who saved the whole world!"
"Grandpa, you're just an old fossil. You don't understand miracles at all! The moment I jumped into that pot of whale rubber, the miracle was complete, and the sight of me standing tall without falling was practically a miracle among miracles!"
Qian Renxing said angrily, "This sacred painting depicting my miracle will definitely become something everyone has to revere!"
"Grandpa, I'll prove to you that I'm the one who's right!!"
"Hmph, the facts will prove everything!"
Qian Daoliu sneered. "Xiao Xing, the elders and enshrined of our Spirit Hall will be here soon. They'll definitely criticize your sacred painting until it's worth less than a penny."
"You need to understand that you're the idiot here. Normal people like us would never feel any holiness from your sacred painting!"
Qian Daoliu was utterly certain.
Apart from an idiot like Xiao Xing, who would treasure his sacred painting, no normal person would appreciate this painting.
Their very first thought would definitely be to burn this sacred painting as firewood!
However, Qian Daoliu had celebrated too soon.
As his voice spread throughout Spirit City, all the elders and enshrined of Spirit Hall soon gathered in the Pope's Palace.
"Oooooh, what's this? This holy feeling-could what it depicts be the Holy Son's miracle-The Holy Son Stands!!"
Chrysanthemum Douluo exclaimed in wonder, his androgynous face filled with admiration.
After seeing that sacred painting, he was so excited that he could barely contain himself. "This is simply a work of art. No, it has already transcended the realm of art. This is a sacred painting!!"
Wait, Elder Ju, how did you recognize it at a glance? You can even feel the holiness in the sacred painting? Who are you trying to fool!!
Qian Daoliu was utterly astonished, staring blankly as Chrysanthemum Douluo heaped praise on the sacred painting.
Someone actually appreciated this garbage? That was impossible. No normal person would appreciate this thing!
Wait-suddenly, a flash of lightning streaked through Qian Daoliu's mind. With that neither-man-nor-woman appearance, Chrysanthemum Douluo hardly seemed like a normal person!
Once that occurred to him, Qian Daoliu hastily breathed a sigh of relief. Approval from an abnormal person like Chrysanthemum Douluo proved nothing at all. Most of the elders were still normal people.
They would absolutely, absolutely, absolutely never appreciate this sacred painting!
Much less approve of such a fantastical notion as "reproducing a billion copies to circulate throughout the world"!!
"Ohhh, Elder Chrysanthemum, you really understand it~"
Hearing Chrysanthemum Douluo's exclamation, Qian Renxing immediately brightened. "Unlike Grandpa, who doesn't appreciate it at all and even calls me an idiot. He's the idiot of the art world!!"
"Haha, thank you for your praise, Your Highness the Holy Son!"
Chrysanthemum Douluo beamed, his eyes filled with reverence as he looked at the Holy Son. "I heard that, to help the Great Enshrined wash away his disgrace, Your Highness the Holy Son stripped your way to holiness and stood tall without falling even in a boiling pot of whale rubber. Such a true man's deed is simply an example for all Soul Masters! I'll definitely cast a vote for you later!!"
"If a sacred painting imbued with such holiness can't be reproduced a billion times and circulated throughout the world, that would simply be a loss for the entire world!"
As he spoke, Chrysanthemum Douluo winked at Qian Renxing. "Besides, whatever else you might say, I'm a member of the Pope Faction. Since reproducing a billion copies of the sacred painting is His Holiness the Pope's sacred decree, we subordinates must support it!"
At those words, Qian Daoliu's heart went cold:
Wait, you've already decided to vote for Xiao Xing? This is rigged! How can our Spirit Hall be so corrupt?! Elder Ju, do you even remember that you're an elder of our Spirit Hall? You can't feed shit to everyone in the world for your own selfish interests!!
But remembering that Chrysanthemum Douluo was indeed a member of the Pope Faction, and even a trusted confidant of the Pope, Qian Daoliu knew it would be impossible to secure his vote.
Even among the elders of the Elder Hall, apart from the enshrined-level elders who were loyal to him, most of the others had already sided with the Pope.
"Hahahaha, Grandpa, did you hear that? Elder Chrysanthemum said he'll vote for me~"
Qian Renxing was delighted and immediately showed off to his grandfather. "Grandpa, just watch. You're going to lose soon!!"
"Hmph, hmph, it's only Elder Ju saying he'll vote for you. So what if all the elders vote for you?"
Qian Daoliu spoke with victory in his grasp. "I still have my old brothers! As the Great Enshrined, all six great enshrined under me honor me as their elder brother!"
"Heh, you want to see who's more powerful? Don't forget, I'm Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined. Just because I've long since stopped concerning myself with worldly affairs, do you think my influence in Spirit Hall has weakened?"
"My power as Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined doesn't fall short of the Pope's in the slightest!"
"Right now, the two elders She Long and Ci Xue are away on business, so there are only five Titled Douluo-level elders in Spirit Hall. Even with the Pope's three votes, that's only eight votes. But I have six old brothers, and with my three votes, that makes nine. Nine votes against eight-the advantage is mine!!"
"Grandpa, you're too despicable!!"
Qian Renxing paled in shock. He had never expected Qian Daoliu to be so wily and calculating that he would even bully his own idiot grandson!