The moment Grandmaster took out the Pope's Decree, Wu Qi and Changkong's expressions turned extremely grim.
The Pope's Decree represented the Pope herself. Anyone who possessed one was regarded as a Spirit Hall Elder.
The token in Grandmaster's hand had originally come from Tang Hao. By using it to intimidate others, he was tarnishing Spirit Hall's reputation.
As expected, the audience immediately broke into heated discussion.
Many people remarked that Spirit Hall had created these rules, yet one of its own Elders was now the first to violate them.
Bibi Dong was unlikely to come forward to clarify the matter. If anything, she would be pleased to see Spirit Hall's reputation suffer.
As a result, the damage to Spirit Hall's image would be impossible to undo.
Salas, who had been watching the spectacle from the sidelines, frowned.
He did not know where Grandmaster's Pope's Decree had come from, but considering Grandmaster's past relationship with Pope Bibi Dong, he assumed it was genuine.
As a member of Spirit Hall, he could not simply ignore the words of someone carrying a Pope's Decree.
Smiling, Salas stood and raised a hand.
"For my sake, arrest only Tang San and Ma Hongjun for now. They are the direct and indirect parties responsible for Wang Teng's death. Release everyone else."
As he spoke, he smiled toward Xue Qinghe.
Xue Qinghe was deeply displeased with Grandmaster's actions, but he could hardly expose his true identity over someone like him.
With that thought, he waved his hand and temporarily agreed with Salas's proposal.
At the same time, he intended to ask Wu Qi later how this matter should truly be handled.
The more privileges Grandmaster enjoyed through the Pope's Decree, the greater the damage to Spirit Hall's reputation. He could not be allowed to abuse it indefinitely.
This time, Grandmaster offered no objection.
He knew the Pope's Decree only held authority over Salas. The Heaven Dou Empire was under no obligation to respect it.
If he offended Salas now, Shrek Academy would certainly lose its qualification to compete.
In the end, Tang San and Ma Hongjun were taken away under arrest.
Hidden among the spectators, Flender finally let out a sigh of relief.
As long as Tang San was implicated as well, both Grandmaster and Tang Hao would be forced to intervene behind the scenes. When that happened, Ma Hongjun would also be saved.
The incident drew everyone's attention.
Hardly anyone paid attention to the matches that followed. Instead, crowds gathered outside the capital's judicial office, waiting for the final verdict.
Most of the distinguished guests on the VIP platform had already left to discuss the appropriate punishment.
Wu Qi looked at his teammates.
"I'll go see what's happening. You all stay here?"
Everyone wanted to watch the excitement, but the organizing committee's discussions were confidential.
Moreover, since the matter involved the royal family's reputation, learning too many details could easily bring unnecessary trouble.
Sun Buyu smiled.
"Wu Qi, go take a look. Just let us know if anything happens. We'll stay here and watch the matches."
Meanwhile, Flender and Liu Erlong hurried over to Grandmaster.
Liu Erlong was no longer young. She had never cared much for the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and her relationship with Yu Luomian had long since reached rock bottom.
Yu Luomian had not forced her to leave. He had merely warned her a few times.
"Xiaogang, we have to find a way to save Xiao San and the others," Liu Erlong said anxiously.
Tang San was Xiao Wu's lover, and Xiao Wu was her adopted daughter. No matter what, she had to save them.
Flender, however, remained silent.
After all, Ma Hongjun had been the one who delivered the fatal blow. Tang San's involvement had only been indirect.
Grandmaster's expression remained grim.
"This can't be resolved anytime soon. Shrek Academy definitely won't be allowed to compete for the time being."
Without Tang San and Ma Hongjun, only six team members remained, making it impossible to field a complete team.
With too few members, they would naturally be barred from competing.
If all their hard-earned progress ended here, it would be a devastating loss.
Grandmaster quickly made arrangements.
"Flender, go calm the students and coordinate with the organizers. Erlong and I will head to the Spirit Hall."
Since he had not been paying attention to the match, he did not know that Ma Hongjun had been the one directly responsible for the killing.
As a result, he intended to save both Tang San and Ma Hongjun, considering it a favor for his old friend.
Just as Wu Qi stepped out of the arena, one of Xue Qinghe's guards led him to a secluded corner nearby.
The moment they met, Xue Qinghe spoke rapidly.
"Brother Wu Qi, I'll keep this brief. How do you think we should handle this?"
Wu Qi did not answer immediately. Instead, he asked Xue Qinghe for his opinion.
Xue Qinghe replied, "Someone must be held responsible for this incident. Grandmaster will protect Tang San at all costs. With the Pope's Decree in his possession, no one in Heaven Dou City can restrain him."
"My opinion, and Bishop Salas's as well, is to hold Ma Hongjun solely responsible for the incident and settle the matter that way."
Taking action against Tang San would only provoke Tang Hao's fury, which would benefit no one.
As for stripping Shrek Academy of its qualification to compete, if Grandmaster went to Bibi Dong and pleaded for mercy, there was a good chance she would soften her stance.
Moreover, it was entirely possible that the Pope's Decree in Grandmaster's possession had been given to him by Bibi Dong herself.
If Bibi Dong later overturned the verdict, the royal family would lose all credibility, and it might even trigger an early conflict with Spirit Hall.
Grandmaster might be a useless man, but he was undeniably someone who could stir up endless trouble.
In the end, his existence was simply a problem left behind by the previous generation.
Wu Qi said, "Recovering the Pope's Decree from Grandmaster is absolutely necessary. I suspect Grandfather Qian left some kind of mark on it so its origin could always be traced."
"Your Highness, I'll send a letter back to Spirit Hall. For now, let Shrek Academy go. They'll eventually travel to Spirit City, and there will be plenty of opportunities to deal with them there."
"As for the current situation, we should minimize the impact as much as possible. Simply state that Ma Hongjun held a personal grudge against Wang Teng. Wang Teng's actions during the match enraged him, and he took advantage of the opening created by Tang San's attack to kill him."
Xue Qinghe neither agreed nor disagreed. He simply nodded before quickly making his way back to the organizing committee.
Since the matter involved a supposed Spirit Hall Elder, the Heaven Dou Empire first needed to reach its own decision before discussing it further with Salas.
Wu Qi sneered inwardly.
According to how events should unfold, Grandmaster would eventually travel to the Pope's Palace to ask Bibi Dong for the cultivation method of Twin Martial Spirits.
When that time came, someone would make sure he received a proper welcome.
Without wasting another moment, Wu Qi immediately wrote a letter and entrusted it to the Golden Eagle Spirit Douluo for delivery to Spirit Hall.
Spirit Hall Branch
Grandmaster clasped his hands behind his back and, accompanied by his bodyguard Liu Erlong, swaggered toward Spirit Hall.
The guards at the entrance immediately lowered their spears and blocked his path.
"Stop! Who are you?"
Grandmaster took out the Pope's Decree and shouted,"Are you blind?"
The temple guards had enough experience to recognize the Pope's Decree. Their faces instantly turned pale as cold sweat broke out across their foreheads.
Grandmaster kicked one of them aside before proudly walking into the hall with his head held high.
Sensing his arrival, Salas hurried over to receive him.
"Greetings, Elder Yu."
Grandmaster merely glanced at him without replying before walking straight to the seat of honor and sitting down.
Feigning nervousness, Salas stood respectfully before him and said, "Elder Yu, Wang Teng is dead. No matter what, an explanation must be given. You can't allow this matter to damage Spirit Hall's reputation."
Grandmaster did not dare act recklessly.
First, the Pope's Decree had never belonged to him. He had only produced it because the situation had been urgent and he needed to protect himself.
Second, if the matter escalated, someone would inevitably investigate Tang San and Ma Hongjun's backgrounds. Once Tang Hao's identity was exposed, Tang Hao would certainly not let him off the hook.
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