A career crisis: Snake Lance and Pufferfish lost their composure

Qian Renxue stood in the little courtyard for quite a while before her emotions gradually settled.

Behind her, two figures quietly appeared.

"Young master, what that brat said was far too outlandish." Porcupinefish Douluo frowned.

"He even dared fabricate the old Pope's cause of death and slander the current Pope. His crime deserves death!"

"I find it rather suspicious," Snake Lance Douluo said gravely.

"It's hard to tell whether any of it is true, but many of those details certainly aren't things an ordinary person could know."

Neither of them mentioned their young master's family affairs, keeping the conversation centered on the novel Xu Fan had described.

"Young master, should we investigate his background further?" Porcupinefish Douluo asked.

Qian Renxue looked toward the room, calm gradually returning to her eyes.

"Rather than guessing where he learned all this, we might as well ask him directly," Snake Lance Douluo suggested.

Porcupinefish Douluo froze.

"What else is there to ask?"

Snake Lance Douluo did not answer. Instead, Qian Renxue made her decision.

"The plan to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire was an arrangement I devised.

"Even you two elders haven't been told my entire plan.

"If he knows even those details, a mere coincidence won't explain it."

The two Titled Douluos nodded.

"A wise decision, young master."

Qian Renxue said nothing more and turned back toward the room.

Inside, Xu Fan leaned against the headboard. Having eaten and drunk his fill, he was resting with his eyes closed.

Had a system been present, it would surely have detected that Xu Fan's mind was rebuilding itself, bit by bit.

Even he himself had not noticed.

Hearing the door open, he raised his head.

"Bro, you're back."

Qian Renxue nodded and sat beside the bed again.

Xu Fan glanced at her and could not help asking,

"Bro, are you all right?"

Qian Renxue shook her head gently and said evenly,

"I'm fine. I just remembered a few things."

"Good, as long as you're fine."

Only then did Xu Fan relax, asking no further questions.

Silence lingered in the room for a moment.

Qian Renxue looked at Xu Fan and spoke as though nothing had happened.

"By the way, you said Qian Renxue infiltrated the Heaven Dou Empire as a spy?"

Xu Fan nodded. "That's right."

"How did things go for her in the Heaven Dou Empire? Did her undercover operation go smoothly?"

At that question, Xu Fan seemed to regain his enthusiasm for recounting the novel. He cleared his throat and said,

"Oh, that part was pretty exciting!

"First, Qian Renxue had two elder-ranked Titled Douluos at her side,

"who stayed hidden for years to protect her.

"One was called Snake Lance Douluo, and the other was called Porcupinefish Douluo."

The two men in the shadows both went still.

The atmosphere in the room, which had only just settled, instantly froze.

Porcupinefish Douluo's eyes widened, and he instinctively looked at Snake Lance Douluo.

The latter also turned his head. They exchanged a look, neither saying a word.

This brat actually knows the two of us have been at Qian Renxue's side all along.

Xu Fan continued.

"These two helped her from the shadows the whole time, assisting her in completing her undercover mission.

"Porcupinefish Douluo in particular had a lethally poisonous Martial Soul and was especially skilled in that area.

"To put it plainly, the plan to seize the Heaven Dou Empire started with striking from within the imperial family."

Growing animated, Xu Fan gestured a couple of times with his chopsticks.

"They poisoned several princes to death in succession, then administered a slow-acting poison to Xue Ye.

"As Xue Ye's health deteriorated, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe would gradually take control.

"Once the time was ripe, wouldn't the entire Heaven Dou Empire fall into Spirit Hall's hands?"

Porcupinefish Douluo nearly lost control of his Soul Power.

Snake Lance Douluo clamped a hand on his shoulder, but his own gaze was equally grave.

Poisoning the princes.

Administering slow-acting poison to Xue Ye over a prolonged period.

These were not things anyone could hit upon through wild guesses. They were operations the two of them had planned together with Qian Renxue.

Even the sequence was exactly right.

Qian Renxue sat beside the bed, her face still composed.

But she could no longer dismiss Xu Fan's words as idle nonsense.

Xu Fan continued,

"Still, Qian Renxue had a pretty stifling time as a spy.

"She spent years undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire, and just when her plan was about to succeed,

"something still went wrong when she launched the Heaven Dou Palace Coup."

Qian Renxue finally could not help asking,

"What went wrong?"

"Tang San. He brought Dugu Bo and Yang Wudi along and ruined Qian Renxue's shot at the throne when it was practically in her grasp."

Qian Renxue's gaze abruptly sharpened.

"You mean she failed in the end?"

"Yes."

Xu Fan shrugged.

Qian Renxue fell silent.

If these words were true, then what she would face next was probably more than a few unexpected obstacles.

Xu Fan smacked his lips and complained,

"Come to think of it, the one I find most baffling in all this is Snake Lance Douluo."

In the shadows, Snake Lance Douluo raised an eyebrow.

How did this turn to me?

"A full-fledged Titled Douluo, and not a weak one either, yet he actually lost to Yang Wudi."

Xu Fan shook his head, looking utterly baffled.

"Yang Wudi was only a Soul Douluo, yet he still managed to lose and even ended up badly wounded by him.

"All I can say is, not every Titled Douluo is reliable."

In the room, Snake Lance Douluo's expression froze completely.

He stared at Xu Fan as though wondering whether he had misheard.

"Utter nonsense!"

He kept his voice low, gritting his teeth.

"I'm a full-fledged Titled Douluo! How could I lose to a Soul Douluo? And be badly wounded by him? Absolutely absurd!"

Porcupinefish Douluo hurriedly held him back.

"Calm down! Don't disrupt the young master's plan!"

"I am calm!"

Snake Lance Douluo's voice was practically forced through his teeth.

"This brat is clearly making things up!"

Porcupinefish Douluo nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, yes, exactly. It's a novel. Fiction. You can't take it seriously."

Only then did Snake Lance Douluo barely restrain himself, though his chest was still heaving.

Xu Fan spoke again.

"And then there's Porcupinefish Douluo."

Porcupinefish Douluo's ears instantly pricked up, and he suddenly had an ominous feeling.

Xu Fan clicked his tongue twice, his tone full of disdain.

"His Martial Soul was clearly good at using poison. It was even a perfect counter to Dugu Bo's Jade Phosphor Serpent Venom.

"And what happened?

"He still couldn't take the man down. He completely squandered the advantage of his Spiny Blood Pufferfish Martial Soul."

The expression instantly vanished from Porcupinefish Douluo's face, and he whipped his head toward Snake Lance Douluo.

"What did he say?"

Snake Lance Douluo paused, then looked as though he had found a chance to even the score.

"He said you squandered your Martial Soul's advantage!"

"I heard him!"

Porcupinefish Douluo kept his voice low, his cheeks taut with anger.

Dugu Bo might be skilled with poison, but if it came down to the quality of their Martial Souls, how could he possibly lose?

Just as Porcupinefish Douluo was about to charge over and haul Xu Fan up,

Snake Lance Douluo grabbed him.

"Calm down! Don't disrupt the young master's plan!"

"I am calm!"

Porcupinefish Douluo's voice, too, came through gritted teeth.

Inside the room, Xu Fan knew nothing of this.

He turned to Qian Renxue.

"Bro, don't you think these people are pretty unreliable?"

Qian Renxue looked at him, only speaking after a long while.

"...They really are pretty unreliable."

The two Titled Douluos in the shadows stiffened in unison and closed their eyes at the same time.

Can't listen.

If we keep listening, sooner or later this brat will make us so angry we'll suffer internal injuries.