"No, wait! I am a faraway relative of Bibi Dong. My martial soul is also the Death Spider Emperor!"
Lin Yuan's voice cracked through the hall with desperation , but also just enough calculation.
In Douluo Dalu plotline, Qian Renxue had always harbored a deep, repressed yearning for her mother's affection , a need never fulfilled. If he played that card right, it could open the gate to completing his first mission.
And just as he expected…
"Guards, stop for a moment," Qian Renxue said, her tone calm but curious.
A smirk formed in Lin Yuan's mind.
'Yes! It worked! Just as I thought ,this is the weakness of the so-called genius Qian Renxue. Emotions!'
She looked at him without blinking. "You say you're Bibi Dong's relative?"
Lin Yuan placed a hand over his chest as if declaring his identity with pride. "Yes, I am. I have the same martial soul. I can show it. Could you please have your guard unhand me?"
Qian Renxue didn't speak immediately, but with a motion of her fingers, She Long released his grip.
Lin Yuan winced, rubbing his wrist, then stood up slowly, regaining his composure.
'That was humiliating… But once I complete the contract, this will be just a joke I tell while lying on a bed of beauties.'
He took one step forward.
Qian Renxue's voice rang out sharply.
"Don't approach me, spy. Show your martial soul from there."
Lin Yuan's foot froze mid-air.
'Still so cold… she's cautious.' Thought Lin Yuan
He looked at the distance , easily five meters. Far enough to prevent a sudden ambush, close enough for her to observe any tricks.
He gritted his teeth and clicked his tongue.
'Tch… this girl's smarter than the novels made her out to be.'
All his thoughts, fantasies, and calculations were shoved to the back of his mind the moment he saw the tip of a shimmering lance blocking his path.
A chilling pressure coiled in the air like a serpent -Snake Lance Martial Soul.
She Long had silently released his martial soul, his expression calm but his intent unmistakable — one more step, and you will be skewered.
Lin Yuan's throat tightened.
But he refused to back down just yet.
"Death Spider Emperor, possessed!"
A pulse of dark energy surged as a giant phantom spider loomed behind him. Thick legs protruded from his spine as his lower half transformed — half-human, half-spider, an almost mirror image of Bibi Dong's soul possession form.
But—
"Enough. Undo the martial soul possession," She Long said coldly, Snake Lance humming ominously in his grip. The tip hovered inches from Lin Yuan's chest.
The energy of a Titled Douluo was crushing.
Lin Yuan's lips twitched. He sighed as though wronged, but obediently canceled the possession. The spider phantom behind him scattered like smoke.
He rubbed his wrist. "Now do you believe it?"
Qian Renxue's eyes narrowed slightly. She tilted her head and said softly—
"Wu Meng."
The maid stepped forward immediately, bowing slightly.
"Go and inform Bibi Dong that someone claiming to be her long-lost relative is wandering around the Elder's Hall."
"Yes, Miss." Wu Meng turned with graceful precision and left the corridor.
The color drained from Lin Yuan's face.
His pride, his posturing, his system-powered smirk—everything evaporated in an instant.
Qian Renxue noticed.
She turned to him, her voice pure innocence.
"Do you have any problem with that?"
Lin Yuan broke into a cold sweat. His mind was screaming.
'That's the worst-case scenario! Bibi Dong will know I'm lying! No, worse — what if she really IS my relative? What if…'
He forced a smile. "N-No, I don't have any problem. I… just thought Bibi Dong is busy… as the Saint of Spirit Hall… it might be bad to disturb her with small matters."
Qian Renxue smiled back, her eyes curling like crescent moons.
"Don't worry. There won't be any problem."
But inwardly, her mind was as sharp as a blade.
'Keep the pressure on and make him keep guessing. As long as he's afraid, his thoughts will stay erratic and readable.'
She had seen his emotional spikes during the earlier exchange, and it was clear and she would weaponize that.
Because she knew the system would do nothing until Lin Yuan completed his mission.
And she would make sure , that mission will never be fulfilled.
She could already feel his anxiety.
The emotional turbulence rolling off his spirit was enough to make her lips curl with satisfaction.
'Wu Meng will ask Bibi Dong whether she has any long-lost relatives.'
She had seen enough from reading Lin Yuan's surface thoughts. He was not stupid, but he was arrogant. Arrogant enough to believe he could win her over with a plotline stolen from cheap novels. Arrogant enough to think he was the protagonist of this world.
Meanwhile, Qian Renxue was thinking just as fast.
'If Bibi Dong denies having any relative, then Lin Yuan's claim crumbles. I'll say he was just confused after seeing someone with the same martial soul. It will only humiliate him a little.'
'But… if she accepts it, if she says she does have a distant relative, then I'll have to change tactics. However it will be more intersting'.
She smiled faintly to herself in her mind 'Either way, I win'