An Open Scheme

Bibi Dong looked at the two Titled Douluo who had been among the first to pledge their allegiance to her, a trace of coldness in her eyes.

To be honest, if she could, she wanted to kill everyone who might know what had once happened in that secret chamber.

But...

In truth, even with Twin Martial Souls, she had only just crossed the threshold into the Titled Douluo realm. Against Golden Crocodile Douluo, the second-ranked worshipper of the Worship Hall, her chances of victory were less than one in ten.

Still less did she stand a chance against Qian Daoliu, whose strength surpassed even Golden Crocodile Douluo's.

It wasn't time yet.

She still needed the support of the commoner elders these two represented.

She also needed their help to keep all of Spirit Hall running.

Even though she had little patience for the two of them, she could only bear with it and explain her scheme.

"Innate Full Soul Power makes him an outstanding genius."

"But before a genius has fully unleashed his potential, he's just a chicken rib."

"Besides, look at what his Martial Soul is..."

Without waiting for Chrysanthemum Douluo to say anything, Bibi Dong looked up at the magnificent dome atop Pope Hall, engraved with countless stories of the Angel God.

"His Martial Soul is the Black Hole Whale. It has never appeared in Spirit Hall's records and is the result of a beneficial mutation."

"But we don't know the extent of the mutation. There may still be unknown defects we can't detect."

"Besides, his Martial Soul is a whale. I shouldn't need to tell you what kind of Soul Beast is most suitable for a Martial Soul like that." At this, a charming yet icy smile appeared on Bibi Dong's lips.

Chrysanthemum Douluo realized it then, and his voice was a little quiet. "Whale-type Sea Soul Beasts."

"But whale-type Soul Beasts are generally the strongest among Soul Beasts of the same level. Hunting them is extremely difficult." Ghost Douluo picked up where Chrysanthemum Douluo had left off, his voice hoarse.

Bibi Dong nodded at the clearheadedness of the two Titled Douluo under her command.

"To hunt a ten-thousand-year whale-type Soul Beast, a Titled Douluo would have to personally intervene. The resources consumed would be enough for us to nurture at least two Soul Douluo with a chance of breaking through to the Titled Douluo level."

Only after Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo's eyes had cleared did Bibi Dong slowly rise from her throne.

Trailing her long papal robes behind her, she walked up to the two Titled Douluo and looked at them from almost eye level. They could be called her right and left hands as Pope. "So, handing a genius like this over to the Worship Hall will only force those worshippers to divert some of their attention to teaching the little fellow."

"And dilute the resources at their disposal in the process."

"Besides, with that little fellow's whale-type Martial Soul, there's a good chance he'll attract the attention of that old thing Golden Crocodile. When the time comes, we can seize the opportunity to gain even greater power within Spirit Hall."

"And what power brings—I shouldn't need to tell you two elders, should I?"

Her voice soft and lingering, Bibi Dong rested her hands before her lower abdomen and walked gracefully between Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo.

Wafts of delicate fragrance followed her, concealing a faint scent of blood.

The two Titled Douluo exchanged a glance and took deep breaths. Suppressing their surprise and wariness at the cunning their Pope had revealed, they showed traces of fervor on their faces.

Yes, they knew perfectly well what power would bring.

Once they had power, strength and benefits would flow steadily to their side, pushing them higher.

When that time came, perhaps there might even be a place for them in the lofty Worship Hall.

And on the road to the Worship Hall, they didn't mind being of use to Bibi Dong, the former Holy Maiden who had only recently assumed the position of Pope.

"Old Ghost..." A flicker of excitement passed through Chrysanthemum Guan's phoenix eyes, and he couldn't resist taking Ghost Douluo Gui Mei's hand.

Gui Mei's voice was somewhat hoarse. "Yue Guan, get ready. The lords of the Worship Hall will probably send their subordinates to fetch the little fellow."

"He's a genius our Pope Hall is giving them, after all. We still need to provide support."

They looked at each other.

With nothing more than that glance, each understood what the other was planning.

Ghost Douluo turned, and the next moment, he and Chrysanthemum Douluo appeared in the Elder Hall.

"Pass down the order. Give priority to supplying whatever resources the Worship Hall requests for this little fellow with Innate Full Soul Power."

"Also, grant him access to Spirit Hall's grand archive."

The taciturn chief elder, Ghost Douluo, had given his orders. The other elders silently cupped their hands, handing full control over to Ghost Douluo, whose presence was now unleashed in full.

Yet while the Elder Hall, at the two Titled Douluo's request, was preparing the appropriate supplies and materials for the genius soon to arrive, the Worship Hall was utterly quiet.

Holding the letter, the worshippers, who knew most of its contents, silently turned their eyes toward the man seated in the center of the Worship Hall, beneath the Angel God Statue.

The other Super Douluo did not dare disturb Qian Daoliu's thoughts.

But Golden Crocodile Douluo, Spirit Hall's king of longevity, had extremely high seniority. He had the nerve and the standing to do so.

Before Golden Crocodile Douluo could open his mouth, however, Qian Daoliu handed him the letter.

Before Golden Crocodile Douluo had finished reading it, a trace of resignation appeared on Qian Daoliu's face. "A clever scheme!"

Yet there was not the slightest anger in his voice.

There was only the calm of seeing a junior grow up.

The other worshippers, however, showed some displeasure and frustration at having been schemed against.

Everyone knew that most of the Worship Hall's resources went to the worshippers for their cultivation, while a large portion of what remained had to go to Spirit Hall's future, Qian Renxue.

As for what remained after that...

Even if all of it were given to this genius, it would be a little too little for a boy with Innate Full Soul Power.

Yet if they gave him too little, the child they had personally nurtured might someday side with Pope Hall.

For worshippers like them, that would be a disgrace.

And not nurture him?

That option had never even crossed the worshippers' minds.

Even if he ultimately sided with Pope Hall, he would still be a child of their Spirit Hall.

If failing to nurture the child made him hate their Spirit Hall, then no matter how much old things like them cherished talent, they could only take action themselves and erase all information about his existence.

What were they to do now?

While the other worshippers were still pondering a way out, Golden Crocodile Douluo, who had long since seen through the open scheme, closed his eyes.

A moment later, he opened them again.

The hesitation in them had vanished completely.

"I'll personally take him under my wing." Golden Crocodile Douluo glanced at the other silent worshippers and took a deep breath.

"Since we can't give the child the best resources, then I'll be his resource. I'll be his backer."

Golden Crocodile Douluo looked around, his expression extremely solemn.

"This child isn't compatible with any of you, but he has a few things in common with me. So he'll become my final disciple, and I'll do everything I can to nurture him."

"From now on, he'll represent my Golden Crocodile King lineage in the Worship Hall. Seeing him will be the same as seeing me."

The other worshippers exchanged glances, then bowed to Golden Crocodile Douluo, who had resolutely chosen to make himself the resource.

Golden Crocodile Douluo accepted their bow without the slightest show of modesty.

Afterward, the worshippers held a brief discussion about Golden Crocodile Douluo's sacrifice and how to nurture the child. Once they saw there was nothing more to discuss, each found an excuse to leave the Worship Hall's main hall and return to his room.

When the main hall had finally fallen completely quiet, Qian Daoliu looked at the sunlight filtering down from the Angel God Statue and lowered his eyes.

"Golden Crocodile, have you really made up your mind?"

"If you don't want to do this, I can make the decision to cancel it." A trace of sympathy flashed through Qian Daoliu's eyes.

Golden Crocodile's decision was almost the same as giving up his own cultivation entirely.

For Golden Crocodile Douluo, that was more painful than dying on the spot.

Beneath Qian Daoliu's golden eyes, guilt flashed at the decision his brother had made.

But...

He had to admit that this was already the best choice.

Of the Worship Hall's resources, the worshippers took eighty percent.

Seventy percent was divided among the seven worshippers, while the remaining ten percent belonged to Qian Daoliu, who was stronger than all the worshippers combined.

Qian Daoliu could not touch his twenty percent of the resources.

After confirming that Qian Renxue had the aptitude to become a god, he needed to use that twenty percent to ensure that his physical body, Soul Power, and even his realm remained at their flawless peak.

As for the final twenty percent, the worshippers had agreed that half of it would go to Qian Renxue.

The final ten percent would be allocated to the Worship Hall bishops under them who had yet to break through to Super Douluo but had already entered the Titled Douluo realm.

As for how each of the other worshippers allocated the resources under his control, Qian Daoliu was not entirely sure.

But he knew exactly how Golden Crocodile Douluo allocated his own resources.

To keep his Qi and blood from declining, Golden Crocodile Douluo exchanged half of his ten-percent allocation for medicinal ingredients and flesh to replenish them.

Of the remaining half, Golden Crocodile Douluo gave sixty percent to the geniuses in his family and the youngsters who had already made something of themselves.

He locked the final forty percent in storage, against unexpected needs.

Now...

With those words, Golden Crocodile Douluo had completely extinguished his hope of advancing to become a level ninety-nine Titled Douluo in the future.

In the past, Qian Daoliu would have spoken up and rejected Golden Crocodile Douluo's decision long ago.

But ever since Qian Renxue had awakened the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul with level twenty Innate Soul Power, and Qian Xunji had left this world before him, Qian Daoliu, her grandfather, no longer belonged to himself.

He could only...

He could only sacrifice Golden Crocodile.

A trace of relief passed through Qian Daoliu's heart.

But the next moment, Qian Daoliu felt ashamed of the relief that had arisen within him.

"Second brother, I promise that from now on, you'll have unrestricted access to the Angel lineage's water- and earth-attribute resources."

Almost instantly, Qian Daoliu decided that he would find some resources to make up for the shortfall his second brother would suffer from nurturing the child.

And...

"Xiao Xue will soon be going to hunt her third Soul Ring. When the time comes, bring that disciple of yours and the younger members of your family along too."

A trace of joy flashed through Golden Crocodile Douluo's eyes.

He knew about Qian Renxue's situation; he had even helped the little girl obtain her first two Soul Rings.

The Martial Soul the little girl had awakened was none other than the Six-Winged Angel, passed down through generations of the Qian Family.

Her Innate Soul Power was level twenty, something the Qian Family had hoped for over countless centuries.

As long as the little girl grew up without mishap, taking over the position of Pope and even stepping into a higher realm would be only natural.

But his elder brother had kept all of this hidden.

In recent days, people in his own family had been saying that the Qian Family had no successor.

For his elder brother to let him and even his disciple take part in hunting Xiao Xue's third Soul Ring at this time was undoubtedly paving the way for his Golden Crocodile Family's future.

When the time came, he, Golden Crocodile Douluo's disciple, and even his family members would all be supporters and right-hand men of the next Pope.

The family's future was secured!

Then his sacrifice was worth it!

For a moment, tears streamed down the aged face of the old man who had devoted his life to Spirit Hall.

"Big brother..."

"You've suffered, second brother."

For a moment, sunlight shone on the enormous sacred statue of the Angel God behind Qian Daoliu.

Darkness and light, each making up half.