This hesitation was what allowed Qian Xunji to commit such a despicable act against Bibi Dong, causing her to turn dark.
Ultimately, not only did the son reap what he sowed, but Spirit Hall, under Bibi Dong’s leadership, made enemies everywhere and gradually marched toward its own destruction.
Although Bibi Dong’s own choices played a part, what young girl could tolerate being defiled and forced to bear the child of her enemy?
And Bibi Dong was only one part of the picture.
What truly fully exposed Qian Daoliu’s character flaw was his soft-heartedness toward the Clear Sky School.
Nostalgic for his old friendship with Tang Chen, he gave the Clear Sky School and the Tang Hao father-son duo a chance to catch their breath even after a blood feud had been forged.
He had shown mercy, but the Clear Sky School and Tang Hao’s family felt absolutely zero gratitude for his kindness.
Not only did they lack reverence for Spirit Hall, but their hatred only deepened.
This mercy even became capital for them to mock Qian Daoliu and the perceived weakness of Spirit Hall.
They believed Qian Daoliu spared them because he feared the Clear Sky School and was terrified of their ancestor, Tang Chen, to the point he didn’t even dare set foot in their mountain range.
As a result, the Clear Sky School, led by the ‘King of Cheats’ Tang San, later bit back, gradually encroaching upon and eventually annihilating the entirety of Spirit Hall, wiping them out entirely.
Similarly, Qian Daoliu was fully aware of Qin Xuan’s feelings for Holy Maiden Bibi Dong.
Given the fame of Bibi Dong and Qin Xuan as the “Number One” and “Number Two” geniuses of Spirit Hall’s younger generation, this was hardly a secret.
Qian Daoliu kept one eye open and one eye closed on this matter too.
They both belonged to Spirit Hall.
Keep the fertile water in your own fields.
Whether Bibi Dong married his son Qian Xunji or married Qin Xuan, Qian Daoliu was happy to see it happen.
But now, things seemed to be heading in an unpredictable direction.
Perhaps even Qian Xunji himself didn’t realize the extent to which Qian Daoliu valued Qin Xuan.
If Bibi Dong was the publicly cultivated successor to the Pope and secretly viewed by Qian Xunji as forbidden property and a breeding tool to bear powerful offspring for the Angel Clan…
Then Qian Daoliu treated Qin Xuan entirely as the future consecrate of Spirit Hall.
It wasn’t just because of Qin Xuan’s talent, but more so the uniqueness of his martial soul.
Because Qin Xuan’s Changming Sword was the only martial soul capable of mutually attracting and resonating simultaneously with the Coiling Dragon Staffs of both Qianjun and Xiangmo.
What did mutual attraction and resonance between martial souls imply?
Any Spirit Master with a bit of knowledge knew this meant a high probability of generating a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
In the original story, Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluos weren’t considered top-tier powerhouses within the same level, yet they held an extremely exalted status within Spirit Hall, far surpassing ordinary Titled Douluo elders, second only to the Pope and the Seven Great Consecrates.
Why was that?
After Ghost Douluo was sneak-attacked and killed by Tang San, Chrysanthemum Douluo’s status in Spirit Hall plummeted rapidly.
Aside from offending Pope Bibi Dong, what was the other reason?
It was still the loss of the Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
When Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluos joined forces to unleash their Fusion Skill, the Two-Pole Static Domain, they could even immobilize the Titan Giant Ape and the Sky Blue Bull Python—the two undisputed overlords of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Even now, before the two had advanced to Titled Douluos, they already possessed a status in Spirit Hall on par with ordinary Titled Douluo elders just by relying on their Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
What did all this prove?
It proved the absolute, overwhelming importance of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
And the Coiling Dragon Staffs of Qianjun and Xiangmo could simultaneously attract and resonate with Qin Xuan’s Changming Sword.
This meant the possibility of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
And not just an ordinary two-person fusion skill, but an unprecedented three-person trinity fusion skill.
Qian Daoliu had already made plans to exceptionally promote Qin Xuan to a consecrate the moment he advanced to Titled Douluo.
The reason he hadn’t announced this, or even told anyone else besides the consecrates—merely instructing Qianjun and Xiangmo to take Qin Xuan as their disciple while strictly ordering them not to leak the resonance of their martial souls—was to protect Qin Xuan.
He hadn’t even revealed it to his own son, Qian Xunji.
It wasn’t that he distrusted the other members of Spirit Hall outside the six great consecrates.
It was truly because a Martial Soul Fusion Skill involving three Titled Douluos was far too world-shaking.
Especially considering two of them were level 96 Super Douluos.
As the pivotal link between the two, Qin Xuan absolutely could not afford any mishaps.
One must know that a trinity fusion skill wasn’t as simple as 1+1+1=3.
The power increased geometrically.
It was unimaginable what kind of scene would unfold when Qin Xuan advanced to Titled Douluo and unleashed a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with Qianjun and Xiangmo.
Most likely, even an entity at his demigod level wouldn’t be able to defeat them.
This would undoubtedly massively bolster Spirit Hall’s foundation.
One could easily imagine how spectacular it would be when Spirit Hall possessed two demigod-level combat forces.
As for whether Qin Xuan might betray them, Qian Daoliu wasn’t worried.
First, Qianjun and Xiangmo were absolutely loyal to Spirit Hall and the Angel Clan.
They were the type who would never betray.
Second, he had secretly observed Qin Xuan many times.
Although the boy acted a bit lowly and simp-like in front of Bibi Dong—somewhat reminiscent of his own behavior toward Bo Saixi—his loyalty to Spirit Hall was unwavering.
But look at the situation now.
It had turned into a ridiculous farce where the Pope of Spirit Hall and the number one genius of the younger generation were fighting over the same woman.
And crucially, Qin Xuan was ‘unaware’ he had offended the Pope, standing under a collapsing wall without knowing it.
To top it all off, Bibi Dong wasn’t particularly interested in either of them, but was entirely devoted to a discarded member of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
What kind of mess was this?
It was utterly absurd.
When news arrived from the Supreme Pontiff Palace that Qin Xuan had proposed to venture into the Slaughter Capital, accompanied by reports of Titled Douluo-level soul power fluctuations emanating from the Palace…
Qian Daoliu had guessed eighty or ninety percent of the truth.
He knew Qin Xuan’s strength very well.
Although he could be considered peerless among his generation and rarely found an opponent at the Soul King level, he wasn’t strong enough to survive the Slaughter Capital.
Going in rashly was nine deaths and one life…
no, it was ten deaths and no life.
The reason he wanted to go was, barring any surprises, because of coercion from his own disappointing son.
And even if it wasn’t outright coercion, there were definitely elements of manipulation involved.
Qian Daoliu truly didn’t want to see a promising seedling, who had the potential to become his ‘Eighth Brother’, perish.
At the same time, he didn’t want to shatter his son’s dignity and face as the Pope.
Even if Qian Xunji was a piece of trash, he was still his son and the Pope of Spirit Hall.
Although he was the worst Pope in history, he had still contributed somewhat to Spirit Hall’s development since taking power, hadn’t he?
Thinking of this, Qian Daoliu finally made his decision:
“Qin Xuan, your current strength is insufficient to pass through the Slaughter Capital.
How about waiting until you advance to Soul Sage before going?
With me here, I doubt anyone in the entirety of Spirit Hall would say otherwise…”
Yep, looking forward and backward, hesitating as always.
He didn’t explicitly forbid Qin Xuan from going to the Slaughter Capital, nor did he explicitly allow him to.
Instead, he chose a middle-ground compromise.