Yu Xiaogang trembled as the whip struck him. He hadn't expected Li Xun to be so vicious, using the Crown Prince's influence to throw them into prison.
Flender and Liu Erlong were furious when they saw Yu Xiaogang being whipped. They wanted to break through the restraints and teach the jailer a lesson.
"Get to work! Move that stone over there," the jailer sneered, pointing with his whip at a millstone-sized rock. He showed no fear. "The higher-ups have said that the three of you owe the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School over twenty million Gold Soul Coins. You won't be released until the debt is paid, but this doesn't apply to you."
"What?!" Yu Xiaogang and the other two were shocked.
Liu Erlong, her face filled with anger, pointed at the jailer and demanded, "Why can't he be released?"
"According to imperial law, nobles and Soul Masters who have reached a certain level of cultivation can use Redemption Gold to atone for their crimes within certain limits," the jailer explained politely to Liu Erlong. "But this doesn't apply to low-level Soul Masters. His Soul Power has just reached level 21, so this law doesn't cover him."
"Besides, you've committed murder. Someone has to answer to the victim's family."
Yu Xiaogang's face turned pale, and his legs gave way. He stumbled while holding the stone, shocked that even in prison, differences in cultivation level could lead to such unequal treatment.
Liu Erlong and Flender exchanged a glance, seeing Yu Xiaogang's distress.
"I know both of you have high cultivation levels, but I'd advise you to stay put," the jailer chuckled. "Even if you can't pay the Redemption Gold, nothing too bad will happen to you. At most, you'll be sent to the military."
"But if you try to escape, things will get serious. You'll be hunted down by the empire."
After saying this, the jailer ignored them and walked over to other low-level Soul Master prisoners. In their line of work, there was an unspoken rule: don't mess with high-level Soul Masters.
"What should we do, Xiaogang? Should we fight our way out?" Liu Erlong asked, her eyes slightly red as she looked at Yu Xiaogang's haggard appearance.
Although their Soul Power had been sealed when they entered the prison, such seals only worked on low-level Soul Masters. For powerful Soul Saints like them, it would take less than a day to break free if they focused.
"Erlong, don't act rashly. It's better to stay here peacefully," Yu Xiaogang said, taking a deep breath and sitting down on the stone. "I believe Xiao San will find a way to save us."
"Do you really believe in Xiao San? It seems to me you're putting your faith in Bibidong," Liu Erlong retorted, her heart heavy at the thought of the Papal Token. Her earlier sympathy for Yu Xiaogang vanished.
"Ahem, Erlong, you have to believe me. Bibidong and I have long since severed all ties. That Papal Token was given to me by Xiao San's father," Yu Xiaogang said awkwardly, covering his mouth as he coughed lightly. "If I had any other choice, I wouldn't have contacted her."
"Hmph! Who knows what's really in your heart?" Liu Erlong snorted coldly and walked away.
Flender sighed, shaking his head at the awkward tension between the two.
Having just emerged from the illusion, Tang San had no interest in the emotional entanglements between these two individuals, unless it was a matter of life and death.
In a luxurious reception hall within the Spirit Hall of Heaven Dou City, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo sat opposite Qian Renxue. On the side seats, Serpent Spear Douluo and Thorn Blood Douluo were casually sipping tea.
"A Papal Token? A honorary elder with only twenty-one levels of Soul Power is truly laughable," Qian Renxue sneered, leaning back on the sofa. "What does our Pope Crown have to say about this?"
"Her Excellency the Pope suggests that it would be best to resolve this matter quietly."
Chrysanthemum Douluo sat upright, carefully choosing his words. "I heard that the Young Master wants to publicly execute Yu Xiaogang? Could we persuade the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School to be a bit more lenient?"
"What? Is that honorary elder so important that you would have me, using Xue Qinghe's identity, offend the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School?"
Qian Renxue let out a cold laugh, her eyes fixed on Chrysanthemum Douluo. "Is there something else going on that I'm not aware of? After all, I've never heard of such an honorary elder in our Elders Hall since I was a child."
Chrysanthemum Douluo slightly averted his gaze. "Young Master, I too know very little about this matter."
He had only just learned about Yu Xiaogang becoming an honorary elder, but as a veteran of the Spirit Hall, he quickly pieced together the details of the situation.
However, he certainly wouldn't share this with Qian Renxue.
Seeing Chrysanthemum Douluo's evasive look, Qian Renxue narrowed her eyes and leisurely sipped her tea. "In that case, let's increase the ransom. Add another ten million Gold Soul Coins. Consider it as their compensation to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School."
Chrysanthemum Douluo hesitated. "Uh, Young Master, could you be a bit more lenient? That kid Tang San can only come up with twenty million Gold Soul Coins. If the ransom isn't enough, our Spirit Sacred Hall might have to cover part of it."
Thud—
Qian Renxue's face turned cold as she slammed her teacup onto the table. "He's just a Soul Grand Master without even a Title Douluo, yet he's an honorary elder of the Spirit Hall? And now, when he makes a mistake, the Spirit Hall has to bear the consequences?"
"Elder Yueguan, although you are the Pope's confidant, you should still give me an explanation, right? After all, it's me who's in charge within the Heaven Dou Empire now."
Seeing the situation escalate to this point, Chrysanthemum Douluo didn't want to be caught in the middle of this mother-daughter conflict. "Young Master, I only know a little about this matter, which is that Yu Xiaogang had a past connection with Her Excellency the Pope."
"A past connection? I bet it's an old flame!" Qian Renxue sneered, seeing Chrysanthemum Douluo pretending not to know much.
In recent days, to understand what the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School was up to with that factory, she had investigated Yu Xiaogang and others using Xue Qinghe's identity. To her surprise, she found numerous records of Bibidong and Yu Xiaogang in many documents.
Moreover, these records from over twenty years ago were precise and well-preserved. No matter how Qian Renxue investigated, she always received a definitive response.
Qian Renxue knew this was the work of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, but she couldn't blame them. At that time, she was the Crown Prince Xue Qinghe. The other party was merely using this information to inform her of Yu Xiaogang's background, so she could be mentally prepared.
This was the unspoken understanding between the two sides.
But it was precisely this point that drove Qian Renxue to the brink of collapse multiple times.
She had long realized that Bibidong neither loved her father nor herself. She never expected that she couldn't even surpass this waste of a Soul Grand Master who could only dabble in theories.
Earlier, she had pretended not to know, clinging to a sliver of hope, wanting to see if an elder like Chrysanthemum Douluo was aware of this matter.
"Young Master, we truly had no knowledge of this!" Chrysanthemum Douluo sighed mournfully. "We were merely following the orders of Her Holiness the Pope."
On one side were Qiandao Liu and Qian Renxue, and on the other was the current Pope, Bibidong. He truly didn't want to get involved in such family matters.
"In Spirit City, she is the Pope, but here in the Heaven Dou Empire, I am the supreme commander." Qian Renxue's face was as cold as ice, her aura gradually chilling. "Yu Xiaogang must die!"
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