Leaving aside Tian Hao, who was eagerly waiting for Sword Douluo's father to come deliver himself—and his blood—to death, Bibi Dong, on the other side, was summoned by her teacher not long after she returned.
Carrying a nervous heart, she arrived at the Pope Palace. Like a child who had done something wrong, Bibi Dong lowered her head, not daring to say a single word.
"Stand up straight. Lift your head!"
Her posture made Qian Xunji bark out in displeasure.
Bibi Dong hurriedly raised her head, her heart growing even more uneasy.
"This is how he behaved after you left. Take it back and watch it yourself with a Spirit Tool."
Qian Xunji tossed over a crystal stone. In truth, his mood was quite good—especially after watching the recording inside that crystal.
It had been sent over earlier by his second uncle. Although he didn't know why it only recorded Yu Xiaogang's behavior after Bibi Dong left, Yu Xiaogang's performance had greatly satisfied him.
"You went to find Xiao Haozi?"
Seeing his disciple's trembling legs and pale face, looking like someone who had lost too much blood, how could Qian Xunji not guess that this foolish girl had gone to find that kid—and gotten herself taken advantage of?
He didn't find it strange at all. With that brain of yours, trying to get revenge on him? Getting tricked was inevitable.
"Teacher, who exactly is he?"
Bibi Dong asked in confusion. Before coming, she had people investigate that bastard, yet she found many strange and unreasonable aspects. At the very least, he didn't seem qualified to be sent by her teacher to monitor her and Xiaogang.
"He's a very interesting little fellow, and he's also very loyal to Spirit Hall. You can trust him in the future.
"If there's nothing else, you may go."
Not wanting to say more, Qian Xunji waved his hand to dismiss her.
He had summoned his disciple only to check on her mental state after breaking up with Yu Xiaogang. From what he could see, she was doing fairly well—aside from being a bit physically weak.
As for that little fellow's loyalty to Spirit Hall, it was absolute—at least for now. As for whether he might change his mind in the future, that was hard to say. But with his pitiful level of strength, even if he did harbor disloyal thoughts, he could be crushed with a single slap.
This wasn't paranoia. It was a necessary quality of those in power. One could never invest too much trust in anyone, or it would inevitably become a fatal weakness.
"Teacher, I want to take him as my disciple."
Bibi Dong suddenly spoke. Although her teacher hadn't said much, she could hear the importance he placed on that bastard from his tone. It would probably be very difficult to act against him. But if she became his teacher, disciplining him would be perfectly justified.
"Don't play too hard."
Qian Xunji paused, then chuckled as he agreed.
Using that little fellow to temper Dong'er's mind wasn't a bad idea either.
"This disciple takes her leave."
Bibi Dong respectfully withdrew from the Pope Palace, murmuring inwardly as she walked.
"Can be trusted?"
She felt that things weren't that simple. Her teacher was definitely hiding something from her, and her curiosity toward that boy only deepened.
"No matter what secrets you're hiding, I'll dig them all out sooner or later!"
Clenching her pale pink fists, Bibi Dong refused to let this go. She would definitely make that bastard regret it one day.
Once she became Pope, she'd hang that bastard up in the underground chamber every day and beat him.
Without delay, she returned to her residence and had someone fetch a Spirit Tool. She slotted the crystal into it, and soon an image projection appeared. The familiar surroundings immediately told her it was Xiaogang's dormitory.
But as the footage continued, Bibi Dong's face turned deathly pale. By the end, her entire body was trembling.
"No… with Xiaogang's intelligence, he'll definitely figure it out afterward. I just need to wait ten years, and then I can be with Xiaogang."
It took a long while before she came back to herself. Even so, Bibi Dong still firmly believed in the feelings between herself and Yu Xiaogang. In the future, they would surely end up together.
Leaving aside Bibi Dong's stubborn persistence, on Tian Hao's side, aside from cultivating, he was also gathering all kinds of information about the Blue Silver Forest to prepare for nurturing and awakening his second Martial Soul bloodline.
Although there were three great Spirit Beast gathering grounds on the Douluo Continent, there were by no means only those three. Many mountain regions also housed numerous Spirit Beasts—it was just that they weren't as many or as powerful as those in the three great regions.
The Blue Silver Forest was one such Spirit Beast forest. It was famous for its abundance of Blue Silver Grass and thus earned its name.
Beyond that, all that remained was to wait for Sword Douluo's father to come deliver death—and blood.
Although he didn't know exactly when Sword Douluo's father challenged Qian Daoliu in the original story, it had to be soon. Chen Xin had already become a Titled Douluo, so that man should be able to put his mind at ease and come seek death in pursuit of the Dao.
While Tian Hao waited patiently, on the other side, Spirit Hall's Second Worship—Golden Crocodile Douluo—personally set out, leading people to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to demand an explanation.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan was no ordinary sect. Even if it couldn't compare to the Clear Sky Clan, it wasn't far behind. The old Clan Head was from the same era as Golden Crocodile Douluo. Sending someone of insufficient standing would yield no results.
"Where is your father, that old dragon?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo said displeasedly. He wanted to speak with Yu Yuanzhen's father. There was nothing to say to a junior like this.
"Senior Golden Crocodile, could there be some misunderstanding here?"
Holding that letter, Yu Yuanzhen was utterly baffled. How had his son ended up seducing Spirit Hall's Saintess, even planning to bring her back and elope with her?
Was this trying to hand Spirit Hall an excuse to attack the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan?
"Conclusive evidence is right here. What misunderstanding could there be?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo's face was icy as he spoke coldly. "Since your father, that old dragon, won't come out, then you'll make the decision. Everything has a price. This old man didn't come here personally to play house with you. What you've done has already touched our bottom line."
He didn't bother with further nonsense. He had come this time to demand compensation.
Several elders of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan exchanged looks, then all turned their gaze toward the letter in Yu Yuanzhen's hand. Seeing Yu Yuanzhen's expression, how could they not know it was real?
How dared that trash do something like this?
"Old Crocodile, you don't know—Yu Xiaogang was expelled from our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan long ago. His actions were his own choice and have nothing to do with our clan."
The First Elder suddenly spoke with a genial smile. He was from the same era as Golden Crocodile Douluo and had even competed with him when they were young. They could be considered old acquaintances.
"Trying to weasel out of it?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo narrowed his old eyes slightly. A terrifying surge of Spirit Power erupted as he directly activated his Martial Soul True Body.
A colossal golden crocodile appeared inside the hall. With a swing of its ferocious tail, several pillars were smashed apart, causing over half the grand hall to collapse and forcing Yu Yuanzhen and the others to retreat.
Another sweep of the tail turned the vast hall into rubble.
This was a landmark building of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, with a long history. Being smashed like this had an extremely severe impact, leaving Yu Yuanzhen and the others with grim expressions.
Before coming, Golden Crocodile Douluo had discussed things with Qian Xunji. They would not let the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan—or Yu Yuanzhen—have an easy time. Especially, they had to strike at Yu Yuanzhen's prestige within the clan.
"Stop, stop! What do you want?"
Seeing that Golden Crocodile Douluo was serious, the First Elder hurriedly shouted.
Facing a single Golden Crocodile Douluo, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan wasn't afraid. But behind him stood Qian Daoliu, a peak Titled Douluo, along with the entirety of Spirit Hall. That was something they truly couldn't endure.
"One 100,000-year Spirit Bone!"
Golden Crocodile Douluo roared as he continued his destruction.
"Impossible."
The First Elder rejected it outright. A 100,000-year Spirit Bone was unimaginably precious. Even within the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, there was only one—and it was on the old Clan Head.
Golden Crocodile Douluo said nothing and continued wreaking havoc. His Martial Soul True Body lasted half an hour—might as well enjoy it while it lasted.
"One 50,000-year earth-attribute torso Spirit Bone. That's all. Otherwise, we'll accompany you to the bitter end."
Facing Golden Crocodile Douluo's methods, the First Elder's head ached terribly. In the end, he could only soften and agree to hand over a torso Spirit Bone.
Yu Yuanzhen: It seems my later years are destined to be ill-fated… I'm about to grow red hair!