Like the dead calm before a storm, the air was thick with tension. Bibi Dong sat on the main throne, holding a scepter inlaid with a massive gem, her elegant and luxurious pope's robes enhancing her authority. Yet, in her deep purple eyes, she saw the figure still standing below—one whose aura was utterly changed.
She keenly sensed that Yue Guan's spirit power now held not just greater majesty, but also a calmness and depth it never had before. A fleeting severe expression crossed her eyes, but she hid it behind a perfect smile, her red lips parting with a mix of usual dignity and ambiguous praise.
"Elder Yue Guan, your return this time has left your aura more condensed and profound. Your cultivation has made great progress. Congratulations; you add yet another top fighting force to my Spirit Hall."
Yue Guan, donned in his elder's red robes, wore a faint, indifferent smile on his almost inhumanly handsome face. He could not miss the temptation and formality behind Bibi Dong's words, but things were different now. He simply nodded, his tone neither humble nor arrogant.
"Your Holiness overpraises. I merely benefited from the Body Sect and the return of Old Ghost, allowing me to make a breakthrough. It's not worth mentioning."
He attributed his improvement to the Body Sect and Ghost Douluo, not only pointing out the root of his power-up but also subtly drawing a line.
"Hmph!" A cold snort, full of disdain and mockery, exploded like thunder—Lion Douluo's voice rang out, his words dripping with sarcasm. "Borrowing some light, are we? Heh, how affectionate. His original path ended, and he relied on outsiders to break through to the ninety-sixth level, to the Body Sect... truly 'investing for returns'!"
If it were in the past, Yue Guan would have swallowed his anger and smiled it off. But today, he merely lifted his eyelids, meeting Lion Douluo's aggressive gaze with icy calm, a hidden smirk on his lips.
"Lion Douluo is wrong. A mere coincidence is nothing compared to serving our father. As the saying goes, an old thief never dies. To stagnate in cultivation and cling to the Worship Hall is the very definition of 'old but not dead'..."
"You—!" Lion Douluo was stunned, nearly unable to believe Yue Guan would openly mock him before the pope and elders. His rage shattered all reason, and a terrifying soul power erupted from his body like a volcanic eruption, pressing on Yue Guan like a mountain, as if to teach this "ignorant upstart" a lesson!
Yet Yue Guan's eyes were cold, and instead of retreating, a bright, chrysanthemum-yellow aura instantly expanded from him, his ninety-sixth-level Super Douluo aura colliding head-on with Lion Douluo's!
Boom! The two terrifying auras clashed violently in the center of the Elder Hall, suffocating the weaker elders and leaving their faces pale.
Yue Guan sneered: "Do you still think I'm the same Yue Guan you once knew?"
"That's enough!" Just as a fight was about to break out, Bibi Dong suddenly shouted coldly, slamming her scepter onto the ground. A more majestic, icy force spread out, forcibly suppressing both their auras.
Bibi Dong, her face frosty, fixed Yue Guan with a cold stare and issued an unmistakable warning. "Elder Yue, do not forget your identity. You are an elder of Spirit Hall. Spirit Hall nurtured you, gave you your current status and power. Never forget your roots!"
Feeling the overwhelming force, Yue Guan felt awe in his heart. Yet, the mockery did not entirely fade from his face as he bowed slightly. "Your Holiness is right. Yue Guan will never forget the benefits of Spirit Hall. Whenever Spirit Hall needs me, I am ready to lay down my life."
But then his tone grew higher. "However, as a titled Douluo standing atop the continent's soul masters, I have my own dignity that cannot be trampled."
The hall fell silent. Everyone could sense that Yue Guan was no longer just an ordinary elder, no longer someone to be lectured or manipulated at will.
Qian Daoliu, who had been meditating, finally opened his vast, deep eyes, calmly fixing them on Yue Guan. "Yue Guan, I understand your resolve. But where is Ghost? After returning to the Body Sect, does he still consider himself of Spirit Hall?"
This question brightened everyone's hearts—Ghost Douluo's allegiance was even more crucial than Yue Guan's attitude.
Yue Guan, his expression solemn, took a deep breath and spoke loudly. "Before coming here, the Sect Leader asked me to pass on a message: he still remembers his years of cultivation in Spirit Hall. Once the sect's affairs are settled, he will personally lead the Body Sect's titled Douluo to Douluo Hall and leave his name there!"
"What?!"
"The Body Sect wants to leave their name in Douluo Hall?"
The hall erupted with exclamations. Even Bibi Dong's pupils shrank in shock. Leaving a name in Douluo Hall did not mean submitting to Spirit Hall, but it was a public recognition of Douluo Hall's status as the soul master holy land.
Qian Daoliu, after a brief pause, nodded slowly, his voice solemn. "Very well. If Sect Master Chu truly has this intention, when the Body Sect's titled Douluo come, I will personally preside over their naming ceremony!"
He then looked around. "Moreover, the Body Sect's proposal to 'Soul Skill Transformation' and standardize soul skills is a major event that will benefit the inheritance and development of the soul master world. As recognized leaders, Spirit Hall should support such beneficial actions for the world's progress."
Yue Guan could not help but admire Qian Daoliu's far-sightedness. This was a true leader, leveraging the situation to both solidify Spirit Hall's status and gain favor from the Body Sect.
Bibi Dong, seeing Qian Daoliu commit to such a major matter, felt her face darken, but could only snort coldly in frustration.
Suppressing her anger, she refocused on Yue Guan, her purple eyes calculating. "Elder Yue Guan, you benefited greatly from the Body Sect this time. Surely you also gained some understanding of their famous second awakening method. Can it be applied to non-Body spirits?"
This was Bibi Dong's true purpose.
Not just her, but all the elders and even the Worship Hall's members fixed Yue Guan with heated gazes!
The second awakening! This was a secret method famed on the continent, targeted by all who sought power.
Yue Guan felt the greedy stares and sneered inwardly. Of course—this group was after such a method.
He put on a suitably embarrassed and helpless look, spreading his hands. "Your Holiness, elders, I am not hiding anything. The second awakening method is truly mysterious. According to the Body Sect's limited knowledge, it only applies to those with main body spirits. As for other spirits... unfortunately... it is useless. If you're truly interested, perhaps you could ask the Sect Master Body Douluo or Wisdom Brain Douluo directly. They may know more."
"Yue Guan! You—"
"How insolent!"
"How could that be true?!"
Angry reprimands echoed through the hall, everyone glaring at Yue Guan, convinced he was evading the question.
Bibi Dong's face turned ashen, her nails almost cutting into her palm as she stared at Yue Guan. The absolute obedience and vague reverence of the past were now gone. At this moment, she realized she had completely lost control of the game—her strongest arms, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, were now out of her grasp.
As the tension in the hall grew stifling, Qian Daoliu's peaceful but commanding voice rang out once more.
"Then let this matter rest here."
Qian Daoliu was interested in the second awakening too, but it was not essential to him. In his heart, no secret technique compared to the divine path of the Qian Clan.
With his pronouncement, the disturbance was forcibly suppressed. Everyone left with different expressions, leaving Yue Guan standing alone in the vast, empty Elder Hall.
The bright chrysanthemum glow had faded, and he quietly looked around at the familiar yet unfamiliar surroundings, remembering the hardships of his youth in Spirit Hall, struggling for title and honor—trials outsiders could never understand.
A sense of relief and desolation crossed Yue Guan's face. He was now a peak-level ninety-sixth Douluo, and by rights should have been promoted to the Worship Hall. Yet, neither Bibi Dong nor the elders nor even the Worship Hall had ever mentioned it. He remained hung out to dry, a unique, solitary figure not belonging to either the Pope's Hall or the Worship Hall.
…
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