Chapter 86: Return to Spirit City
Qian Xunji never expected that Yu Xiaogang, the worthless man who had infatuated his disciple Bibi Dong, would spend years in the Supreme Pontiff Palace's library only to produce such a pathetic piece of work. Not only was the knowledge cobbled together, but it was also full of superfluous nonsense.
"Your Holiness, these are the petitions submitted by the various branch halls, all denouncing Yu Xiaogang," the guardian Douluo standing to Qian Xunji's left said with a fawning smile, holding a stack of letters. "It seems that good-for-nothing will finally be exposed in front of Her Highness the Holy Maiden."
"Hmm. You did very well," Qian Xunji said, pleased.
"Your Holiness, when he returns from Sea God Island, should we punish him to eliminate future troubles?" another guardian Douluo suggested.
"Killing him would be like stepping on an ant. He still has some use for now. Besides, I have a better idea," Qian Xunji said. "Go and summon Elder Gui Mei and Elder Yue Guan. The Sect Competition is next month. I plan to send them to invite the Upper Three Sects, and they can take these letters to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to exert some pressure. This time, I want that clan to lose all face."
"Yes, Your Holiness." The two guardians exchanged sinister smiles.
The Sect Competition was held every thirty years, a tradition established long ago to balance the powers of the continent. As the host, Spirit Hall would select the seven strongest sects, bestowing upon them the titles of Upper Three Sects and Lower Four Sects.
The last competition was when Tang Chen, with his Limit Douluo strength, had led the Clear Sky Sect to victory, securing the Clear Sky Hammer's position as the 'World's Number One Tool Spirit.' But since Tang Chen's disappearance, the sect had declined.
The other Upper Three Sects were the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School. The Lower Four Sects had nearly destroyed themselves vying for a higher position. In contrast, Spirit Hall, as the host, had remained aloof, reaping the benefits. The competition was both an honor and a subtle means for Spirit Hall to weaken the major sects.
This year, Qian Xunji intended to use the event to issue three pontiff decrees, cementing his dominant position in the Spirit Master world. He wanted to become the so-called martial arts alliance leader from the novels of Qin Xuan's past life.
Spirit City.
After nearly a month, Qin Xuan's family returned to the Elder Hall. After settling Nong Yu and A Yan, Qin Xuan went directly to Qian Daoliu's residence.
"Ling Yuan, Xuan'er, Jing Ni... your cultivation?"
In the spacious room, Qian Daoliu stared at the three of them, his face filled with shock. Ling Yuan at level 93 and Qin Xuan at level 75 were understandable, if impressive. But Jing Ni's spirit power was terrifying. It had already reached the frightening height of a level 97 Peak Douluo. Before they left, she was only a Spirit Saint. And she was only twenty-four. This broke every record on the Douluo Continent.
"High Priest, please allow me to explain," Qin Xuan said with a slight smile, activating his deception mode. "Actually, Jing Ni does not have one Spirit, but twin spirits."
As he spoke, Jing Ni activated her disguise skill. She raised her right hand and summoned her 'first Spirit,' the Jing Ni Sword. Its configuration was yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black, black, and a final black ring with a reddish tinge, indicating it was over 90,000 years old.
She then put it away and summoned her 'second Spirit,' a blood-colored salamander phantom that circled behind her. Its ring configuration: black, black, black, black, black, black, red, red, red.
"Her first Spirit is the Jing Ni Sword," Qin Xuan continued smoothly. "Her second is the ancient mythical beast Jingni, from which she takes her name. After we left, we took her master's remains back to her hometown. After the cremation, Jing Ni inherited a set of Spirit Bones from her master, and her spirit power broke through to level 80. The Spirit Bones were of extremely high quality, and after hunting her next rings, her spirit power shot directly past level 90."
He then concocted a plausible story of their hunts, never blushing once. He even had a ready explanation for the three 100,000-year rings: they had hunted three 90,000-year-old beasts of the same type simultaneously, causing the rings to mutate, just as Tang San had done in the original story.
"It truly is twin spirits," Qian Daoliu gasped. Amidst his shock, he couldn't help but say excitedly, "Xuan'er, you've researched a method to resolve the backlash of twin spirits?" He knew Qin Xuan had been studying theory, but he never expected this.