Salas strode back to the desk, spread out a sheet of gold-edged stationery, and began writing swiftly.
After writing the final word, Salas slipped the letter into a specially made beeswax envelope, sealed it with sealing wax, stamped it with his bishop's seal, and summoned a trusted subordinate.
"Deliver this letter to Spirit City!" Salas ordered sharply.
The subordinate took the letter. "Yes, Bishop!"
Moments later, a black shadow swiftly vanished, racing toward Spirit City.
Two days later, Spirit City, the Pope's Hall.
Pope Bibi Dong sat upright on a papal throne cast from pure gold and mithril.
Her exquisite face, alluring body, and long purple hair looked utterly captivating.
To her left stood someone whose handsome features scarcely seemed those of a man, with red lips, white teeth, and a trace of uncanny charm at the corners of his eyes and the tips of his brows. A faint chrysanthemum fragrance drifted from his every movement, yet deadly killing intent lurked within that fragrance.
He was Spirit Hall's Second Elder, Ju Yue Guan, the Chrysanthemum Douluo.
The person to her right, however, was shrouded in a voluminous black cloak. Beneath it was no solid body, only a mass of dark mist churning, occasionally revealing an illusory face as pale as paper.
His presence was so faint that he seemed liable to melt into the shadows at any moment, yet the cold, deathly stillness emanating from him sent chills down one's spine.
He was Spirit Hall's First Elder, Gui Mei, the Ghost Douluo.
At that moment, the most powerful woman on the continent leaned against her throne's armrest in an almost elegant pose, an opened letter held between her fingertips.
The paper slowly unfolded between Bibi Dong's fingers, and her beautiful eyes swept over it.
"Good. Very good." Bibi Dong's voice was soft, yet the temperature throughout the Pope's Hall plummeted. "The Clear Sky Sect truly has some nerve."
As her words fell, the letter crumbled into powder between Bibi Dong's fingertips.
"Please quell your anger, Your Holiness," Gui Mei spoke first, his black mist rippling slightly. "What Salas wrote may not be entirely true. Would those turtles hiding in their shells at the Clear Sky Sect dare tear up the agreement at a time like this? I believe there may be something amiss."
"Something amiss?" Bibi Dong sneered. "Salas may be useless, but he doesn't have the nerve to lie about something like this.
"The letter mentioned that the Clear Sky Sect sent a Titled Douluo to receive them, causing the operation to fail. If they hadn't torn up the agreement, why would they deploy strength of that caliber?"
Yue Guan gently waved his folding fan, his voice soft and seductive. "Your Holiness is entirely correct. However... what Gui Mei means is that, after all, we captured no one alive and have no ironclad evidence.
"If the Clear Sky Sect stubbornly denies everything and turns around to accuse us of unprovoked aggression, the other sects... especially the neutral powers, may grow wary, believing that if our Spirit Hall wishes to condemn someone, we can always find a pretext."
Yue Guan paused, then continued, "Our grand plan has yet to come to fruition. We should continue building our strength. Why not... swallow this anger for now?"
Bibi Dong sighed softly, a flash of viciousness passing through her purple eyes. "You're right. For now, we should continue building our strength. Without evidence, acting rashly would only make the other sects mourn the rabbit's death like the fox, leaving us afraid to strike the rat for fear of breaking the vessel."
Then a trace of contempt crossed Bibi Dong's eyes. "Nothing but a pack of rats in a gutter. I doubt they would truly dare oppose our Spirit Hall head-on. Since they dared come down from their mountain, their resources must already be stretched to the limit. We needn't act. We need only wait ten years, and they'll collapse on their own."
The Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluos exchanged a glance, then bowed together, their voices respectful. "Your Holiness is wise!"
Bibi Dong waved a hand, dismissing them both.
Silence returned to the empty Pope's Hall, leaving her alone, seated high upon the divine throne.
Three days later, the Clear Sky Sect's ancestral grounds.
The Fifth Elder and the others arrived after traveling day and night. Without stopping to rest, they immediately went to see the Seventh Elder and Sect Master Tang Xiao.
The council hall was deathly silent.
Tang Rui dropped to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down his aged face. "Seventh Brother... I was useless... Feng'er... he's missing..."
Tang Lie staggered as though struck by lightning. "Missing? What do you mean, missing! Alive, I want to see him; dead, I want to see his body! Explain yourself!"
"Spirit Hall surrounded us in Sunset Forest and tried to kill us," Tang Lan said through gritted teeth, supporting his injured arm.
"Several Soul Douluos led the force, with more than ten Soul Emperors and Soul Kings. Tang Feng and Tang Yun broke out in separate directions. We... we were tied down and couldn't make it in time..."
"Spirit Hall! I cannot share the heavens with you!" Before Tang Lan could finish, the Seventh Elder let out a harrowing roar of fury and moved to charge out of the hall.
"Seventh Elder!" "Seventh Brother!"
Tang Xiao and Second Elder Tang Zhen shouted, hurriedly blocking the Seventh Elder.
"Let go of me!" Tang Lie's eyes were bloodshot, his beard and hair bristling like an enraged lion. "I'm going down the mountain! I'm going to find my grandson! He's only ten! Only ten!"
Tang Zhen held Tang Lie's shoulders firmly and snapped, "Seventh Brother, calm down! How is going down the mountain now any different from throwing your life away?"
"I can't worry about all that!" Tang Lie roared, tears rolling down his face. "I have only this one grandson! He's my only blood descendant! If he dies, what meaning is there in my staying alive?"
"Nonsense!" Tang Xiao's furious shout made the hall reverberate. "You are the Clear Sky Sect's Seventh Elder, not some common street brawler! Your death is one thing, but must the sect's thousand-year foundation be destroyed in a single day because of your impulsiveness?"
Tang Lie shuddered and froze, tears sliding down silently.
Tang Xiao walked up to Tang Lie, his voice softening. "Seventh Elder, I watched Feng'er grow up. He is not only your grandson, but also an outstanding disciple of our Clear Sky Sect. What happened to him pains me more than anyone."
Tang Xiao paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present. "But Spirit Hall must have tightened its guard by now. Their eyes are everywhere around Heaven Dou City. The moment you descend the mountain, you'll be watched.
"When that happens, not only will you fail to save Feng'er, you'll give Spirit Hall an excuse to make trouble, rendering Feng'er's sacrifice meaningless."
"But..." Tang Lie's voice was hoarse. "We don't even know whether that child is alive or dead. How can I rest easy...?"
"That won't happen," Tang Xiao said decisively. "Feng'er is blessed with fortune and a strong fate, born with great luck. If he could survive a six-hundred-year soul ring, he can surely escape pursuit in Sunset Forest."
Tang Xiao said gravely, "I'll send word to Yuehua immediately. She has operated in Heaven Dou City for years and has eyes everywhere. I'll have her mobilize everyone she can to search for Feng'er in secret. Any news will be reported immediately."
"Yuehua..." Tang Lie's eyes stirred slightly, but his heart remained uneasy.
Second Elder Tang Zhen also placed a hand on the Seventh Elder's shoulder, his voice steady. "Seventh Brother, what you need to do now is cultivate hard and strive to break through to Titled Douluo as soon as possible. If Feng'er really has fallen into Spirit Hall's hands, you'll need sufficient strength to rescue him."
Tang Zhen paused. "If he truly has met with disaster, you'll need strength all the more to avenge him."
"Second Brother..." Tears streamed down Tang Lie's aged face. His knees buckled, and he sank to the floor.
The elders could only offer words of comfort one after another.
Deep within Sunset Forest, poisonous miasma that never dispersed all year churned like clouds of ink.
Within the poisonous miasma, however, the toxic mist presented a different scene. Plants grew unusually lush here, and roughly twenty zhang from the toxic mist stood a small peak about five hundred meters tall.
The mountain dipped inward from its summit, forming an enormous natural funnel-shaped hollow. Its depths were unfathomable, and what lay below was unknown.
Spiritual Qi as thick and white as milk mingled with crisp water vapor and gushed from the summit, slowly spilling down the slopes. Wherever it passed, vegetation grew wildly and medicinal fragrances drifted, as though this were an immortal paradise in the mortal world.
Various precious medicinal herbs grew along the slopes. Though they could not be called heavenly treasures, they were excellent choices for treating injuries and curing poison. They were not particularly rare on the market, but were still worth as much as a thousand soul coins.
At that moment, inside a cave halfway up the slope, an old man in dark green fitted martial attire sat cross-legged in cultivation. His hair and eyes were jade green, and faint traces of poisonous mist wreathed his body.
A dozen or so zhang from this cave was another small cave. At its entrance lay a boy covered in wounds, his lips and skin so purple they were nearly black. He was Tang Feng.
At that moment, Tang Feng's breathing was as faint as a thread, and he was already on the brink of death. Perhaps nourished by the spiritual Qi here, with the deadly poison suppressed, he had somehow not died.
One morning, sensation finally returned to his fingertips, and Tang Feng slowly awakened, not knowing how long he had been unconscious.
His chest felt as though a boulder of immense weight lay upon it. Opening his eyes, he saw spiritual dew dripping from the cave ceiling onto his lips, bringing a brief moment of clarity.
Tang Feng tried to raise his arm, only to discover that the scabs over his wounds had stuck fast to his bloodstained clothes. The slightest exertion brought a tearing pain.
More terrifying still was the snake venom coursing through his body, spreading along his blood vessels. Wherever it passed grew numb and cold, and every beat of his heart lagged half a beat.
Tang Feng lamented inwardly, Without good medicine, I'm afraid I won't last more than a few days.