Meeting Sendo-ryu"I have never revealed my identity. I don't know how Nana found out about me. So, I think there was a problem with your arrangements, which led to the information being leaked."
Dai Yao wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and slowly explained.
Upon hearing this, Bibi Dong snorted coldly and sneered:
"You think the problem lies with me, but do you know that everyone who knew your identity as the 'Asura Emperor' is already dead? Only your maids and the Serpent Spear Douluo have not been eliminated. However, I also instructed them not to utter a single word."
"Moreover, they don't know your identity as the 'Asura Emperor,' they only know that you have been practicing marksmanship for a period of time."
Do you think they would dare betray me?
Because of this clue, it was impossible to determine that Dai Yao was the 'Asura Emperor'. Therefore, Bibi Dong concluded that Dai Yao must have deliberately revealed his identity.
Upon hearing this, Dai Yao seemed to grasp something in a fog; given some more time, he would be able to understand the whole situation. However, he didn't have time to think about it now.
He never revealed his identity to Hu Liena, but as Bibi Dong said, there was indeed no possibility of it being leaked. He explained:
"You're too agitated right now, and you won't listen even if I explain. But I can assure you that I have never revealed my identity to Hu Liena. If you don't believe me, you are welcome to call Hu Liena over for a confrontation."
Bibi Dong's face was full of disappointment. She had already given Dai Yao a chance, and as long as Dai Yao admitted his mistake, she would forgive him.
But Dai Yao remained stubborn, saying that she could give him any woman he wanted, except for Hu Liena.
She looked at Dai Yao with heartache, her hand gripping the papal scepter tightly. She trusted Dai Yao so much, yet he had done something she couldn't accept. She took a deep breath, slowly closed her eyes, and said with disappointment:
"Dai Yao, even now, you still won't admit your mistake? Let Nana confront you. Knowing Nana's personality, she will definitely take all the blame for you."
Dai Yao looked deeply at Bibi Dong. He understood Bibi Dong's feelings, but he didn't understand why Bibi Dong didn't give him any trust at all.
He said calmly:
"Don't you trust me at all?"
Dai Yao's voice echoed in the empty Papal Palace. Bibi Dong opened her eyes, stared intently at Dai Yao, and after a long while, said with difficulty, "The evidence is conclusive. Tell me, how can I believe you?"
If it were that cold-blooded pope, she would never have been so emotionally certain that it was Dai Yao's fault.
But the two people involved in this matter were people she cared about, especially Dai Yao. She had placed all her trust in him, even relying on him for survival. Her heart was no longer filled with despair and coldness, but had regained a touch of warmth, a ray of sunshine, as if she had become that innocent girl again.
Therefore, she could no longer control her emotions.
In front of Dai Yao, she was no longer the aloof and cold pope, but a normal woman who did not hide her inner joys and sorrows.
Dai Yao took a deep breath, the cold air swirling in his lungs, making him feel a chill run through him. Frustrated by being wrongly accused, he wanted to turn and leave, but Bibi Dong's past experience softened his heart, and he spoke again:
"As I just said, I have never revealed my identity to Hu Liena, and I don't know how she found out."
At this point, Dai Yao looked up at Bibi Dong, feeling the distance between them growing ever wider. He sighed inwardly and finally said respectfully:
"Even if you believe it is my fault, I urge you to investigate carefully, Your Holiness the Pope."
Upon hearing the words "Your Holiness the Pope," Bibi Dong's delicate body trembled. If she hadn't been holding onto the papal scepter, she might have already fallen. Even her extraordinary soul power was of no use.
She hadn't heard the words "Your Holiness the Pope" from Dai Yao's mouth in a long time. Hearing them again now felt like a piece of her heart was missing.
She stared blankly at Dai Yao's departing figure, her resentment growing stronger. It was clearly his fault, yet he was making it seem like it was hers. If he thought she'd back down through this cold war, she shouldn't even think about it!
With a bang, the door slammed shut, and Bibi Dong's heart, which had melted from the ice of Dai Yao's appearance, was now frozen again.
······
Dai Yao walked out of the Papal Palace alone, feeling extremely troubled.
His special relationship with Bibi Dong may cease to exist from this day forward. Although he was somewhat frustrated by Bibi Dong's distrust, he could understand it, after all, Bibi Dong was not a normal person to begin with.
However, given that there was clearly no possibility of her identity being revealed, how did Hu Liena find out about her identity? This puzzled Dai Yao greatly.
Standing halfway up the mountain, overlooking the bustling Wuhun City, Dai Yao felt a chill in the evening breeze.
He glanced back at the tightly closed papal palace and sighed, "I hope Bibi Dong will investigate this thoroughly. Whether she investigates or not, I must investigate this matter. However, I absolutely cannot continue to have contact with Hu Liena, otherwise I will offend Bibi Dong again."
"This is a troublesome matter."
He shook his head and began to think about the matter from the beginning.
Neither he nor Bibi Dong had any motive to reveal the identity of the 'Asura Emperor'. He himself didn't reveal it, and according to Bibi Dong's arrangements, there was no possibility of it being revealed. Even if there were some people in the know, they only knew bits and pieces. The identity of the 'Asura Emperor' was absolutely unknown to a third person.
"That's strange. Could it be that someone has deduced the identity of the 'Asura Emperor'? But this force is too terrifying to be able to gather all the clues together. They did this right under my and Bibi Dong's noses."
Dai Yao frowned in thought.
"But why would they do this? What good would it do them if I broke with Bibi Dong?"
Thinking about this, Dai Yao became even more confused.
During this time, the spirit beast hiding the Spirit Hall had been like a dark cloud hanging over his mind. Now, with this happening again, a thick fog obscured his vision. Just as he was feeling troubled, a glimmer of light appeared ahead.
It's as if by chasing this glimmer of light, all the confusion can be resolved.
"This feeling is back again. Why is it? What secret is hidden here?"
Just as Dai Yao was at his wit's end, heavy footsteps slowly approached.
"who?"
Dai Yao's hair stood on end, and he immediately looked in the direction of the footsteps, shouting sharply.
Although the person was still far away, Dai Yao felt a terrifying, suffocating pressure. If he weren't in the Spirit Hall, he would have run away the moment he sensed this person.
"Haha, don't be nervous, I mean no harm."
A hearty laugh rang out, and a burly figure emerged from the shadows. The bright moonlight shone on him, making his dark brown, lion-like mane particularly dazzling.
Dai Yao narrowed his eyes:
"Four offerings?"
The visitor was none other than the Fourth Worshipper of the Offering Hall, the Lion Fighter.
"Lion Douluo is the fourth elder of the Spirit Hall, a peerless expert at level ninety-seven. Why would he suddenly seek him out?" Although Dai Yao was wary, he still respectfully asked.
"Your Excellency Fourth Master, what brings you here?"
Lion Douluo laughed and said, "It's not me looking for you, but the Grand Elder."
"The Grand Offering?!"
Dai Yao was quite surprised. Since arriving at the Spirit Hall, he had never seen the Grand Elder, not even when he went to the Hall of Worship to see Azure Phoenix Douluo. Now, why was the Grand Elder suddenly looking for him?
Especially at this point in time, when he had just broken ties with Bibi Dong.
He suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, and a sense of conspiracy slowly enveloped him.
"By the way, the only force capable of doing something under Bibi Dong's and my noses is the Hall of Offerings."
Dai Yao was startled, and suddenly understood something. But what was the Hall of Offerings' purpose? What benefit would it bring the Hall of Offerings to make him break with Bibi Dong? Could it be to win him over?
A thought struck Dai Yao. He made up his mind that if he wanted to understand what had happened and clear his name, he had to go to the Hall of Offerings to find out the truth. However, he couldn't agree so easily, as that would mean he would completely lose his initiative and be at the mercy of others.
He frowned and said:
"I'm sorry, Fourth High Priest. After all, I am His Holiness the Pope's man, and it is not appropriate for me to meet with the High Priest alone."
Lion Douluo laughed and said, "What is there to worry about? The highest leader of the Spirit Hall is only the Hall of Offering."
Seeing that Dai Yao still showed no intention of going, the Lion Douluo's friendly smile vanished, and he said coldly:
"You've already been abandoned by Bibi Dong. Do you think that woman, with her personality, will tolerate you? Your only way to survive now is to become the Grand Master. If you don't think about yourself, at least think about those women of yours."
Upon hearing this, Dai Yao immediately frowned. Although his relationship with Bibi Dong had developed a rift, he was certain that Bibi Dong would never harm anyone close to him. Hu Liena was Bibi Dong's Achilles' heel, and the woman beside him was his Achilles' heel.
Bibi Dong knew how important Zhu Zhuqing and Feng Wutong were to him, so he would never lay a hand on them.
However, Lion Douluo's statement clearly indicates a lack of understanding of his relationship with Bibi Dong. He merely believes that Bibi Dong appreciates his potential, and that once he crosses her line, he will surely be eliminated by her.
Moreover, Dai Yao also gleaned another meaning from Lion Douluo's words.
They knew perfectly well that he had left the Papal Palace and that they had immediately seized the opportunity after his relationship with Bibi Dong had soured, clearly indicating that they had been planning this for a long time. Dai Yao felt a chill run down his spine, but at the same time, he had obtained the information he wanted.
He pretended to grit his teeth before finally agreeing:
"Alright, I'll go with you to see the High Priest."
Upon hearing this, Lion Douluo nodded in satisfaction, grabbed Dai Yao's arm, and raced towards the Hall of Worship at the back of the mountain. The powerful pressure carved a deep trench into the forest. Only after a long while did it return to calm.
Inside the offering hall.
The sacred temple of angels slowly opened, and the four priests led Dai Yao inside.
The four priests gazed respectfully at the golden figure beneath the angel statue and said:
"Brother, the person has been brought here."
Qian Daoliu turned around, his warm, sun-like gaze fixed firmly on Dai Yao. Although Qian Daoliu did not release any pressure, Dai Yao felt as if a mountain was pressing down on him, making it hard for him to breathe.
"Is this the strength of a level 99 Peerless Douluo? One look from him is enough to render me powerless!"
Dai Yao thought with some horror.
"Fourth brother, you may step down now."
"Qian Daoliu gave the order," the Lion Douluo replied and then respectfully withdrew.
After the palace doors closed, Qian Daoliu silently looked at Dai Yao, and a golden halo rippled out, like waves, hitting Dai Yao's body.
Upon contact with the golden halo, Dai Yao immediately let out a muffled groan, his muscles and bones groaning in pain. Without hesitation, he released his Sacred White Tiger Martial Soul.
Just as the pressure eased slightly, Qian Daoliu increased it again. Cold sweat broke out on Dai Yao's forehead; at this moment, he didn't even have the strength to speak. He unleashed both external soul bones and an unimaginable configuration of soul rings, except for the Chaos Azure Lotus Martial Soul and the Killing God Domain.
The crimson light finally diluted the gold in the Angel Temple somewhat.
Taking advantage of the sudden relief from the pressure, Dai Yao gritted his teeth and said painfully:
"Senior, what do you want to do?"
Qian Daoliu stared blankly at the blood-red spirit rings surrounding Dai Yao. He hadn't expected Dai Yao to have such an encounter. He had obtained a 100,000-year spirit ring when he was only at the sixth spirit ring stage.
Even he only received the blessing of the gods and evolved his ten-thousand-year soul ring into a hundred-thousand-year soul ring after becoming a guardian of the gods.
Moreover, according to the Fourth Elder, Dai Yao possesses twin martial souls. If Dai Yao were to become a Title Douluo and equip both martial souls with spirit rings, his terrifying strength would make even the Fourth Elder tremble.
However, we cannot stop now.
He slowly extended his hand, and the golden aura rippled out once more. The pressure had now reached thirty percent of his own. An ordinary Title Douluo would have collapsed to the ground by now, but Dai Yao, though swaying, remained standing. His physical strength was truly terrifying.
He said calmly, "Dai Yao, besides these, release everything you've been hiding, things that only Bibi Dong knows."
As the pressure continued to increase, Dai Yao felt as if his body was about to tear apart. He couldn't use the Chaotic Azure Lotus Martial Soul Technique, and he couldn't be sure if releasing the God-Slaying Spear in front of Qian Daoliu would give Qian Daoliu away. Therefore, he could only use the domain that he hadn't used since leaving the City of Slaughter.
Buzz—
A chilling, bone-chilling killing intent suddenly erupted, freezing the warm angel temple into a layer of solid ice. The snow-white killing intent collided with the golden aura, producing a hissing sound.
"It really is the Asura Domain."
Qian Daoliu exclaimed in shock. His hands stopped moving, and Dai Yao felt a sudden relaxation wash over him. He collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat.
Although he was mentally and physically exhausted, in a flash, he understood something. Qian Daoliu's attack on him was clearly intended to force him to unleash his Asura Domain. But how did Qian Daoliu know he possessed the Asura Domain? (End of Chapter)