Chapter 262: Daily Life in Spirit Hall

The Council Hall of the Pope's Palace

Su Cheng opened the large, exquisite cabinet on the north side of the hall and was casually searching for something inside.

Bibi Dong, leaning back in the large chair at the end of the long table, didn't get up. She just quietly watched him skillfully take out tea leaves, teaware, and various other items from the cabinet, her facial expression extremely gentle.

"Didn't you take quite a bit from me before? Finished it already?"

"Most of it went to my teacher," Su Cheng replied casually while pouring tea, "and what do you mean by 'took from you'? Technically, these were mine to begin with."

Bibi Dong rolled her eyes at this. "Then go ask Miss Yin yourself. If it's you, I'm sure you can get more."

"That's unnecessary. Having a little occasionally is enough. Excessive indulgence isn't good for cultivation." He placed a cup of tea on the table in front of her, speaking seriously.

Just a moment ago, Su Cheng had settled the group from the various elemental academies in the back mountain's Spirit Hall Academy and completed their paperwork, leaving Zhu Zhuqing there to introduce them to the surroundings.

He himself had come straight here to give Bibi Dong a brief report on the trip and the current attitudes of the elemental academies.

At this point, his mission was essentially complete. The rest involved coordinating with the subordinate spirit masters of the Spirit Hall, which wouldn't be too troublesome.

These elemental academies were located in key cities within the Heaven Dou Empire, and each major city had a branch of the Spirit Hall. Su Cheng had already communicated with the heads of these branches.

As Spirit Temples second only to the main Spirit City and the Holy Temple, the Spirit Temple leaders were all spirit saints, and their status made them more than capable of dealing with the academy heads.

Bibi Dong picked up her tea cup, gently blowing away the steam, smiling with her eyes lowered. "You and Zhuqing must have had a great time outside these past few months."

Su Cheng glanced at her, displeased. "I was there on official business."

"With your skills, did it need three months?"

"These should have been your responsibilities as the Pope."

"Well, I appreciate your hard work, Elder Su," Bibi Dong said with a laugh, her tone more teasing than sarcastic.

Su Cheng also sat down in a chair beside her, looking at Bibi Dong and asking, "Has Xiao Xue's cultivation progressed again?"

"You know her attitude towards me. Asking me won't help. You'd better see for yourself."

For some reason, she didn't mention her specific feelings during Qian Renxue's breakthrough, only glossing over it.

Su Cheng, not suspecting anything, nodded slightly. "Alright. What about you? How is your energy fusion going?"

"I've encountered some obstacles and haven't succeeded yet."

"What kind of obstacles?"

"My soul has been changing a lot recently, almost daily. The quality has become too high. I need to further refine my spirit power and physical body to achieve balance."

"Be more specific."

"Although I can't fully control my soul power, its energy seems stronger than the combined strength of my twin spirits' spirit power and the greatly increased blood energy from practicing the innate skill."

Bibi Dong leaned back in her chair, arms crossed, looking thoughtful.

The inadvertent motion accentuated her perfect figure, her chest proudly rising and her waist slender, her appearance defying her actual age.

Her lips continued to move softly. "However, my soul power, though strong, isn't complex. It's rather pure and clear, just a bit hard to control. Perhaps it will take some sort of catalyst..."

After speaking, her vacant gaze refocused on Su Cheng's face. "Do you want to come and take a look?"

In the sunlight streaming through the window, her beautiful eyes glittered, making it hard to discern her emotions.

"...Maybe later."

Su Cheng averted his gaze, looking at the thin mist rising above his tea cup.

Seeing his reaction, Bibi Dong seemed amused, a smile tugging at her lips. She didn't press further and instead asked, "Miss Yin's aura seems different. Did you teach her the method to merge innate power?"

"Yes."

"Though you say you don't care, you seem to hold her in high regard."

"…"

Su Cheng silently sipped his tea, ignoring her remark.

Bibi Dong fell silent as well.

For a moment, the Pope's palace was very quiet, the only sounds being the faint noises of pouring and sipping tea.

When Zhu Zhuqing entered, she was momentarily stunned by the scene.

The council hall of the Spirit Hall was vast, decorated in a luxurious and dignified manner, exuding a sense of noble authority.

At the north end of the long table, Bibi Dong, the Pope, was reclining in the main seat.

The grand wooden chair was spacious enough to accommodate two or three people.

Her reclining posture was lazy and casual, almost as if she were lying down, with her long, slender legs crossed and her delicate chin resting on her slender, pale arm propped on the armrest.

Sunlight from the large east-facing windows cast a golden glow on her gracefully curved form.

Next to her, Su Cheng sat in the northernmost seat on the west side of the long table, playing with a tea cup.

The two were sitting close together, and Bibi Dong's beautiful eyes would occasionally glance at Su Cheng.

This man and woman, sitting together, didn't look like the Pope and an elder in a superior-subordinate relationship, nor did they seem like powerful figures of the Spirit Hall with divided authority. They looked more like close friends, getting along harmoniously.

This serene and picturesque scene made Zhu Zhuqing's heart sink, and those vague suspicions resurfaced.

But before she could dwell on it, the scraping sound of a chair being moved drew her attention, and she saw Su Cheng approaching her.

As he got closer, he gently patted her shoulder and said, "You two chat. I'm heading to the elders' hall."

Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly, lips pressed together, without speaking.

"Come sit."

After Su Cheng left, Bibi Dong, who hadn't moved, casually invited Zhu Zhuqing over, adjusting her posture to a more upright one.

Though her expression didn't change much, Zhu Zhuqing keenly sensed a noticeable chill in her demeanor.

"Teacher."

Zhu Zhuqing approached and respectfully saluted before sitting down somewhat awkwardly.

Despite having spent some time together, she had always stood aside and had never sat down for a conversation.

On the other side, Bibi Dong looked Zhu Zhuqing up and down, clearly noticing the changes in her.

The differences were quite evident, though Qian Renxue, always dismissive of Zhu Zhuqing, hadn't noticed these details.

Especially after months apart, anyone familiar with her would sense the contrast.

Her cold demeanor now carried a hint of seductive charm, highly alluring.

She was no longer the girl she used to be.

A complex expression flitted across Bibi Dong's eyes, quickly hidden as she smiled and said, "You finally had a chance to go out alone with Su Cheng. Why return so soon? If you sweet-talked him, I'm sure he wouldn't mind spending more time with you."

As she spoke, she took out a new porcelain cup, poured tea, and handed it to Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing felt a bit overwhelmed and quickly reached out with both hands to accept it, lowering her eyes with a respectful expression, "The mission from the Spirit Hall is of utmost importance."

"Alright, I won't meddle in your affairs too much. Besides, it looks like you've got what you wanted," Bibi Dong said nonchalantly.

She then glanced at the blushing girl, "But have you thought about how Qian Renxue will react when she finds out about you two?"

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing fell silent.

Seeing this, Bibi Dong sighed softly.

"Zhuqing, I've always supported you two being together.

"I've said before that Qian Renxue and Su Cheng aren't suitable for each other. She's too strong-willed, and she has the support of the Grand Priest in the background, while Su Cheng is too calculating.

"With their personalities, if they continue like this, it's bound to cause problems. These two are both extraordinarily talented, and any conflict between them would be detrimental to the future of the Spirit Hall.

"As the Pope, I don't want this to happen. You're a smart child; you understand what I mean, don't you?"

"..." Zhu Zhuqing stared at her in a daze.

Bibi Dong continued, "Dragging things out like this isn't a good idea. Rather than passively waiting, it's better to take the initiative.

"Zhuqing, if Su Cheng hasn't mentioned your relationship to Qian Renxue yet, you might as well expose it yourself.

"Don't worry, as long as you stay with Su Cheng, Qian Renxue won't be able to do anything to you. Besides, I'll be standing behind you.

"I've told you before, if you truly love Su Cheng, I'll definitely help you."

She leaned forward slightly, then raised her arm and placed her hand over Zhu Zhuqing's.

Their equally slender and fair hands overlapped.

Bibi Dong spoke sincerely, "No matter what thoughts you have, you can always tell me directly."

Zhu Zhuqing stared blankly at the stunningly beautiful and incomparably graceful Pope before her.

Despite the other's gentle and soft voice and warm gaze, she couldn't help but feel a chill deep in her heart.

Meanwhile, Su Cheng, who had left the Pope's hall, had no idea about the conversation happening in the council chamber.

In fact, he was currently shocked by another matter.

"You said you completely absorbed and integrated this hundred-thousand-year torso bone on your own?!"

Su Cheng looked at the empty large lead box in Qian Renxue's room, then up at the proud white-robed woman standing in front of him, still finding it hard to believe, "How did you do it?"

Qian Renxue had already successfully mastered innate power, that was certain. But ordinary innate power at the initial stage was only on the same level as divine power, and even slightly inferior to the unique divine power of a first-level god like the Angel God.

Su Cheng was very familiar with the situation of that torso bone; it contained the essence of divine power from the Angel God's set of divine equipment, a precious legacy left by the first-generation Angel God.

As for the other four limb bones and even the spirit head bone, they were just auxiliary and connective pieces, and their absorption difficulty wasn't on the same level.

With her weak innate power, it should have been nearly impossible for her to achieve this.

"Hmph, I told you not to get too complacent."

Accompanied by a cold voice, another figure of Qian Renxue appeared out of thin air.

Su Cheng turned his head to look.

This figure wore a black crown outfit, with long, smooth hair reaching her waist and hips, shining with a dark silver luster, and eyes as deep as the night sky.

Her appearance was already extremely beautiful, and now it carried an added mysterious charm.

But these were just external changes.

What astonished Su Cheng was that now, when she appeared, she was no longer in a purely spiritual state.

Although her physical vitality was still somewhat weak, she was almost indistinguishable from a real person.

"You've refined your technique to such an extent already..."

He looked at Qian Renxue, pondering, "Have you completed your fusion? How did it feel?"

"Initially, it was just a preliminary fusion, feeling much stronger than innate power. With that power, we managed to successfully melt and absorb that bone."

Su Cheng nodded secretly.

Her talent was indeed extraordinary, progressing much faster than he had expected. A preliminary fusion, although still remarkable, was at least within the realm of understanding.

"After digesting that bone, our powers fused perfectly in that moment. It's a higher-level energy, far stronger than before, far surpassing innate power." Qian Renxue didn't hide anything from him and told him her feelings directly.

Su Cheng understood immediately.

No wonder that day had brought him such a vast amount of primordial energy.

If she could clearly feel that it was on a higher level than innate power, then without a doubt, it was already comparable to the second stage of his longevity true form energy.

"As expected, when your powers truly fuse perfectly, it results in a qualitative change. The reason you achieved this is because of that torso bone? Can you show me, so I can see exactly what has changed in you?"

Su Cheng was indeed curious.

In his original estimation, no matter how talented Qian Renxue was, she shouldn't have been able to complete a true transformation so quickly; a preliminary fusion was supposed to be her limit.

Now it was clear that the torso bone played a significant role in accelerating this process.

So he needed to understand her condition in more detail to make a clearer judgment about the changes in Qian Renxue.

"..."

Hearing this, the two of them exchanged a glance, and a hint of embarrassment flashed in their eyes simultaneously.

"What's the matter?"

"It's because of you," the black-clad figure said with displeasure, "We were already close to fully mastering the subsequent changes in the technique after two months of seclusion, only a step away, but you interrupted us."

"Uh..." Su Cheng felt a bit helpless, "That really is unfortunate. If I'd known, I would have come back later."

"Don't listen to her nonsense, teacher. We were all very happy to know you were coming back. Besides, even if it was just a little step left, who knows how long it would have actually taken to complete."

Su Cheng smiled and nodded. He wouldn't take those words to heart. Instead, he asked, "Is this what you wanted to talk to me about earlier?"

"Well... there's something else." After hesitating for a moment, Qian Renxue raised her head and looked directly into his eyes with her bright golden pupils.

"You mentioned before that in the future, when fighting against the God Realm, we would need some teammates as support, right? But I don't think that's necessary. Low-level combat strength is just cannon fodder, no matter how many there are, it's not very useful.

"Once I fully master that power, even innate power will seem insignificant in comparison. At that point, whatever we need to do, you and I alone will be enough. There's no need for those extra people to get in the way."

Su Cheng's heart sank, and he hesitated, "You care a lot about this?"

"Yes, although I know there's nothing between you and those people, it still makes me feel uncomfortable." Qian Renxue pouted, her voice taking on a coquettish tone.

What she didn't say was that during Su Cheng's absence, she had worked so hard, even taking huge risks to try and melt and absorb that divine bone on her own, to prove herself, so she could confidently tell Su Cheng this reasoning now.

"By the way, teacher, you said you had something to tell me, what is it?"