The angel's sacred flames were utterly incompatible with Bibi Dong's Soul Power.
When the chains of holy light pierced Bibi Dong's collarbones, she felt as though her very soul was about to burn away.
Pierced by the chains of holy light, she knelt on the ground like a criminal whose sins could never be forgiven.
Qian Xunji stood in the air in golden boots, staring down at Bibi Dong. "Bibi Dong, I will give you one last chance.
If you sincerely repent and swear that you will never again have anything to do with that Yu Xiaogang,
I will be lenient, considering that your character has yet to fully mature."
Golden flames of holy light swirled around Qian Xunji. He was so furious that even his Soul Power had run wild on its own.
"No!
Teacher, I would rather die than leave Xiaogang.
Xiaogang and I truly love each other.
Please, teacher, let us be together.
I am willing to pay any price for it!"
Bibi Dong's face was pale, but she remained stubborn, tears streaming down her face like rain on pear blossoms.
She didn't think her teacher would punish her severely. Although her teacher had burned her with sacred flames, those were only minor injuries.
Her teacher must have been trying to frighten her.
"Teacher, for the sake of how dearly you love Dong'er,
please let us be together!
I'm begging you, teacher!"
Bibi Dong made up her mind. Ignoring the pain, she assumed a kneeling posture in midair and bowed.
"Let you be together? Let you be together! Hahaha, hahahahaha! Hahahahahahaha!"
Qian Xunji laughed, his golden hair flying as his voice echoed over Spirit City, alarming the Worship Hall, the Elders Hall, and the million Soul Masters in the city.
They were all startled and bewildered. Why was the Pope so angry?
Under all the heavens, aside from the Great Enshrined, who was a generation above the Pope by birth and could suppress him through their bloodline, who else dared provoke the current Pope?
This was the Pope who had fought and defeated a Titled Douluo at Level 70!
This was the Pope who had become a Peerless Douluo at thirty, invincible under heaven!
He was not a god, but in this age, he was a god. He could become a god at any moment!
Who dared anger him?
"Let you be together! How do you expect me to do that?"
Bibi Dong trembled. She hadn't expected her teacher to become so furious.
She had only fallen in love. She only wanted to pursue her own love. What had she done wrong?
Why couldn't her teacher understand her?
"Bibi Dong, let me ask you a few questions. If you still want to be with that good-for-nothing after answering them, I will let you be together."
Qian Xunji swept his hand, and his presence, which had been like furious waves and raging billows, instantly withdrew. Yet his bearing, imposing even without anger, still made it hard to look directly at him, both within and outside the heavenly screen.
...Original timeline...
In the Pope's Hall, Bibi Dong's face was cold and grim. She sensed that something was wrong.
Qian Xunji had no such imposing presence, and his reaction was different from what it had been back then.
Back then, her teacher had been so angry that he spat blood, yet he hadn't even slapped her once.
Where had things gone wrong?
Was the Qian Xunji in the heavenly screen really Qian Xunji?
"The previous Pope was nowhere near as imposing as he is in the heavenly screen."
Yue Guan had noticed it too, but he didn't dare speak. Just raising his head now had taken all his courage; he truly couldn't hold back anymore.
High in the sky, Qian Daoliu had already calmed down. He looked at that familiar face, yet it also felt somewhat strange.
"Is this really my son?"
He could hardly believe it. Qian Xunji's talent was among the very best in the entire Douluo Continent.
But in his eyes, it wasn't enough, far from enough.
Even if Qian Xunji were still alive, he would have no hope of breaking through to Level 98.
But the Qian Xunji in the heavenly screen had a presence that no ordinary Titled Douluo could possibly possess.
"Were the two timelines not exactly the same?"
Qian Daoliu realized something and continued watching the changes in the heavenly screen.
Silly child, she's only a Holy Maiden. Why get so angry? Still less should you have done that absurd thing.
At the same time, however, Qian Daoliu had a faint premonition that the story in the heavenly screen might unfold differently.
He was not his good-for-nothing son. Perhaps he would not fall so low and commit such a despicable act.
...Heavenly screen timeline...
Qian Xunji stood above the high steps, his feet clear of the ground as he hovered in midair.
His gaze was cold as he looked toward the dome. "Bibi Dong, when you were young, the village where you were born was slaughtered by Evil Soul Masters.
Who killed all the Evil Soul Masters and rescued you?"
"It was you, teacher! Dong'er has never dared forget that you saved my life."
Bibi Dong bowed, her forehead striking the floor paved with white jade tiles with a crisp sound.
Qian Xunji turned his back, no longer looking at Bibi Dong, and asked again, "Who raised you, giving you fine clothes, the best food, and delicacies from the mountains and seas? Have I ever treated you poorly in the slightest?"
"No, you have not. Dong'er will always remember how you raised me, teacher."
Bibi Dong bowed again, her movements growing heavier.
Qian Xunji asked again, "Who taught you with painstaking care, used Soul Power to nourish your body every day, and helped you refine countless heavenly treasures, allowing you to reach your current accomplishments?"
"It was you, teacher.
The supreme-grade Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone I possess, my Level 78 Soul Power, and my thousand-year First Soul Ring that broke past the limit were all bestowed by you, teacher.
Your kindness in teaching and nurturing me is higher than the mountains and deeper than the sea. Dong'er will surely repay you someday."
Bibi Dong bowed again.
This exchange seemed like a series of pointed questions, yet it stirred up a storm beneath the heavenly screen.
It wasn't because they were shocked by Qian Xunji's kindness toward the Holy Maiden Bibi Dong.
Rather, they were puzzled by Bibi Dong's accomplishments.
A supreme-grade Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone was understandable. Spirit Hall had wealth to spare, so it was perfectly normal to bestow a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone on its Holy Maiden.
But a Level 77 Soul Saint? How old had the Holy Maiden been at the time?
She looked about twenty, didn't she?
A Soul Saint at an age when she could still participate in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament? That was ridiculous!
But what was even more baffling was what she meant by a thousand-year First Ring that broke past the limit.
Did she mean it literally?
Wasn't the limit for a First Ring a little over four hundred years?
A thousand-year First Ring? Wouldn't she explode on the spot?