However, Cao Mengde's weakness also lay in his Spirit, which had little combat power on its own; once separated from an army, he was not much different from a Titled Douluo who had cultivated a support system Spirit to the Titled Douluo rank.
This was Cao Mengde's shortcoming, but for Qian Xunji, it was no longer a shortcoming.
"Mengde, for our first meeting, I shall bestow upon you a sword for self-defense," Qian Xunji said, taking out the Spirit Card. A golden light shone, and he crushed the card. It transformed into specks of light and merged into Cao Mengde's body.
Cao Mengde was slightly stunned, then an expression of disbelief appeared on his face. Immediately after, he reached out and grabbed, and a golden sword landed in his hand.
This...
Cao Mengde had originally thought Qian Xunji would bestow a ceremonial sword upon him, but he never expected that what was bestowed was actually a Spirit.
"Thank you, Your Holiness the Pope. I, Cao, will surely dedicate myself to repay Your Holiness for the grace of bestowing this sword!" Cao Mengde said.
Qian Xunji looked at Cao Mengde. He was unsure if this Cao Mengde in front of him was different from the Cao Mengde in his memory. If he truly was that Cao Mengde, he would undoubtedly be a master of strategy. Such a good card naturally couldn't be left to retire in Spirit Hall; he had to be put to use.
How exactly to put him to use? That would have to wait until Cao Mengde became a Titled Douluo. However, the current Cao Cao was still just an 89th-level blank slate, with not a single Spirit Bone on his entire body.
"During this time, you will stay in Spirit Hall to cultivate. When your strength reaches level 90, I will find a ninth spirit ring for you," Qian Xunji said.
"Yes, Your Holiness the Pope."
On the other side, after settling Cao Cao, Qian Xunji took out another mission reward.
[Future Recruitment Card: Host, you can use this card to travel to the future and recruit the corresponding Titled Douluo. Of course, each recruitment card has a corresponding recruitment mission. The higher the recruitment difficulty of the card, the stronger the person recruited.]
Hearing the system's introduction, Qian Xunji flipped open this Future Recruitment Card. The golden light on the card's cover was wiped away, revealing the image of a woman in a rose-colored dress with rose-colored long hair.
And an introduction written above it:
[Hua Qiang]
[Age: 51]
[Level: 96]
[Spirit: Hell Rose]
[Title: Rose]
[spirit ring Configuration: Yellow, Yellow, Purple, Purple, Black, Black, Black, Black, Red]
[Spirit Bone Configuration:]
[Introduction: After the main storyline of Douluo 1 ended and the Shrek Seven Devils ascended, for several millennia, an Evil Soul Master caused chaos across the land, leading to the emergence of this Titled Douluo. She harbored extreme hatred for Evil Soul Masters, vowing to eradicate them from the world, and thus joined Shrek Academy. She was once one of the Shrek Seven Devils, but due to her dissatisfaction with Shrek's passive approach to Evil Soul Masters, believing they should be brutally suppressed, she was expelled by Shrek Academy. Furthermore, due to investigating truths suppressed by rulers, her stance changed. She advocated for the era ruled by Spirit Hall in the past, leading to her being hunted throughout the continent, and ultimately, she fell with regret.]
[Recruitment Mission: Please rescue her from the encirclement of several Shrek Titled Douluo.]
[Accompanying Personnel: 0]
[Mission Difficulty: A+]
[Mission Rewards: Rose Douluo's Loyalty +100%, immortal herb golden dragon fruit, immortal herb Luminous Heavenly Lotus, two 100,000-year universal Spirit Bones]
"So it's not a direct summon; I need to go to the future to bring her back!" Qian Xunji said, "But, System, you're underestimating me a bit. Even if Shrek Academy develops well a thousand years from now, at most, there will only be a few Titled Douluo. An A+ difficulty rating? Are you looking down on me?"
[Respected Host, the reason for this rating is that the ascended Shrek Seven Devils are taken into account. Although the God Realm restricts gods from easily descending, if Tang Hao and the others recognize you, there is still a possibility of Tang San descending. Considering this risk, the difficulty is rated A+.]
After hearing the system's reminder, Qian Xunji immediately became vigilant. His abilities were generally unchallenged on the Douluo Continent, but on the future Douluo Continent, above the heads of all beings, there was a pure and flawless God King Tang.
Qian Xunji focused his gaze on Hua Qiang, the Titled Douluo who could be recruited this time.
A configuration of two yellow, two purple, four black, and one red was quite good, the standard for a top-tier Titled Douluo.
Her talent was also excellent. By the current standards of the Douluo Continent, Tang Hao is currently the youngest Titled Douluo, becoming one at 45. But can he become a level 96 Super Douluo in six years? The answer is naturally no.
And Qian Xunji was even more embarrassing; he became a Titled Douluo at around fifty years old. While that's still decent, look at her: at 51, she was already a level 96 Super Douluo. Others might have exhausted their talent and been stuck at level 96, but Hua Qiang should still have the potential to improve further.
If he could recruit her, his Supreme Pontiff Palace would gain a Spirit Hall Consecrator-level combat power.
[Respected Host, would you like to activate future travel and go to the future time node to recruit Rose Douluo?]
"Not yet, let's wait until I've finished my current affairs," Qian Xunji said.
Qian Renxue still hasn't absorbed her third spirit ring. After Qian Renxue finishes absorbing her third spirit ring, then he will go recruit her.
The next morning.
Bibi Dong got up expressionlessly, dressed, and was about to leave when she heard a sobbing sound from nearby.
Bibi Dong turned around and saw Yu Erlong lying on the bed, weeping. She suddenly remembered her past self, the helpless self trapped in the secret room by Qian Xunji. A wave of disgust surged within her, and she couldn't help but say sarcastically,
"Even if you cry from night till morning, and morning till night, can you cry this dog thief Qian Xunji to death?"
Yu Erlong wiped away her tears and said unhappily, "What do you mean?"
Bibi Dong sneered and said, "Crying is a sign of weakness. To escape this situation, to ensure Xiaogang's safety is not threatened, only by killing Qian Xunji and destroying the Angel Clan can it be resolved. To kill him, you must endure and wait for the opportunity. If you stay here, and Qian Xunji doesn't die, even if you cry your eyes dry, what good will it do?"
Yu Erlong listened to Bibi Dong's reminder, wiped away her tears, and said, "Thank you for your reminder, Bibi Dong."
"What has happened cannot be changed. Although we are rivals in love, we face a common problem. You want to escape Qian Xunji, and I also want to escape the current situation of being threatened by Qian Xunji, and ensure Xiaogang's safety. Now there is only one way: kill this dog thief Qian Xunji. Only then will no one in this world be able to threaten Xiaogang," Bibi Dong said, looking at Yu Erlong.
"Let's cooperate."