"Teacher!"
Arriving at the Pope's Palace, Bibi Dong bowed respectfully to her teacher, Qian Xunji.
Seated upon the papal throne, Qian Xunji said nothing, quietly gazing at the disciple below.
He had once thought this disciple was perfect, but only now did he realize she was not as flawless as he had believed—at the very least, there was something wrong with her judgment.
"Your plan to elope with Yu Xiaogang is already known to me. I do not agree."
After a long silence, just as Bibi Dong's heart grew heavier and more uneasy, Qian Xunji finally spoke. His words instantly drained the color from her face, leaving it deathly pale.
"Why?"
The question escaped her instinctively. Bibi Dong could not understand—why wouldn't her teacher fulfill her love?
You're my teacher!
"You may love whoever you wish—that is your business. But you cannot leave Spirit Hall. You know how important you are to Spirit Hall. None of us will allow you to leave, and eloping to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect is even more impossible."
Disappointment flickered across Qian Xunji's face. By now, he had fully calmed down.
Had this been the past, if Bibi Dong had dared to think and act this way, he would have flown into a rage.
Even if it required extreme measures, he would have forced her to stay. A peerless twin-spirit genius like Bibi Dong was the future of Spirit Hall—she could not be lost, let alone defect.
"I must be with Xiao Gang, no matter what price I have to pay!"
Bibi Dong was stubborn. Having made her choice, she was determined to see it through. No one could stop her.
That stubbornness only deepened Qian Xunji's disappointment, and even the anger he had suppressed began to stir again.
Without saying another word, he suddenly appeared before her and struck her forehead with his palm.
Bibi Dong never expected her beloved teacher to act so abruptly. Completely unprepared, she didn't even have time to circulate her Spirit Power to defend herself. Her head jolted, and she fell unconscious.
Catching her limp body, Qian Xunji handed her over to the angel-clan maid waiting nearby.
"Don't leave any obvious traces."
After giving the order, Qian Xunji returned to the papal throne, pondering the plan attached to that boy's report letter.
He had little experience with matters of the heart and didn't know how to handle such situations, but he felt that plan was reliable.
That was precisely why he had accepted the suggestion and refrained from showing himself on the spot.
After all, punishing that unruly disciple was secondary. What truly mattered was making her see reason and keeping both her body and heart within Spirit Hall.
"If it really succeeds, I should give that boy a reward."
Recalling the plan, a faint smile appeared on Qian Xunji's face.
This was already the second time that boy had rendered great merit. Especially the first time—when he had offered that instinct-stimulation cultivation method—it had proven extremely useful, even benefiting Qian Xunji's own cultivation.
After several years of practice, the Spirit Power within his body had formed instinctive circulation, equivalent to cultivating nonstop, twenty-four hours a day.
With such accumulation, he could feel even the bottleneck at Rank 96 loosen slightly.
Though it was only a tiny loosening, one had to understand that after Rank 95, every single level was like a natural chasm—extremely difficult to cross, sometimes requiring a century of accumulation.
Yet thanks to that method, his cultivation speed had doubled. In just a few more years, he would definitely be able to attempt breaking through that barrier.
It was precisely because of this cultivation method that he had bestowed a 10,000-year head Spirit Bone preserved within Spirit Hall, along with a relatively decent angel-clan meditation technique oriented toward cultivating spiritual power.
For someone in power, clear rewards and punishments were an essential quality. Even if that boy's aptitude was abysmally poor and he had no great future ahead, as long as he made sufficient contributions, Qian Xunji would still reward him.
This time was no exception.
With that thought, Qian Xunji rose and personally headed to Spirit Hall's treasury to select a reward.
The reason for going himself was secrecy—so no one would know he had mobilized Spirit Bones. If someone with ulterior motives investigated, it might very well lead back to that boy.
If it were discovered that the boy possessed Spirit Bones, it would be extremely dangerous. He was far too weak.
That boy had a sharp mind—he might come up with even better ideas in the future. Letting him die would be a terrible waste.
After selecting an item suitable for the boy, Qian Xunji did not return to the Pope's Palace. Instead, he headed for the angel clan's territory.
At the moment, he didn't want to see that troublesome, unfilial disciple. Looking at the children of his clan would help improve his mood.
"Clan Leader!"
Upon arriving at the angel clan's territory, all angel clansmen bowed respectfully to Qian Xunji.
Others would have to address him as His Holiness the Pope, but they did not—they were family.
Qian Xunji smiled and nodded in response. These were his true kin; there was no need to put on airs of authority.
Soon, he arrived at a forbidden area deep within the angel clan's territory—a dark, chilling cavern that had once been used for wrongdoers to reflect on their mistakes.
However, after obtaining the instinct-stimulation cultivation method offered by that boy, Qian Xunji ordered this place remodeled. It became even darker and colder, imbued with a sinister, fallen aura. To achieve this, quite a few Fallen Spirit Masters had been used as materials in the transformation.
Walking deeper into the forbidden ground, he nodded to the clan elders guarding the place, then looked at the group of miserable-looking children.
These were children who had been sent here after awakening their spirits at age six. They were not cultivating Spirit Power, but rather meditation techniques—using this environment, which opposed the angel spirit, to stimulate constant circulation of Spirit Power until it became instinctive.
The results were indeed excellent. This environment, opposed to the angel spirit and Spirit Power attributes, provided powerful stimulation. Though it did not increase Spirit Power, it forced the body, mind, spirit, and instincts to adapt to circulating Spirit Power on their own. Over time, autonomous circulation naturally formed.
Put simply, it was a kind of mimetic environment—but reversed.
The mimetic environments in the current Spirit Master world all matched the attributes of a Spirit Master's spirit. The higher the compatibility, the more active the spirit and Spirit Power became, greatly increasing cultivation efficiency until the spirit's natural limit was reached.
This cultivation method, however, was the opposite. It placed the Spirit Master in an environment completely antagonistic to their spirit and Spirit Power attributes. Though it couldn't increase Spirit Power, it maximized stimulation, ultimately forcing the spirit and Spirit Power to circulate autonomously to resist the external opposition.
It was like animals growing thicker fur in winter to keep warm—humans, too, possessed such adaptive instincts.
The principle was simple, yet no one had ever thought to approach it this way.
However, the lower the Spirit Power rank, the easier it was to cultivate this method. At that stage, spirits and Spirit Power were weakest, requiring less intense stimulation. Once Spirit Power became too strong, it was much harder to manage.
Qian Xunji himself had spent considerable time and effort mastering this method.
"Three people have left."
Sweeping his gaze across the children, Qian Xunji smiled.
Compared to last month, there were three fewer trainees here this month—proof that three of them had succeeded. Their Spirit Power could now circulate autonomously under bodily instinct, equivalent to cultivating twenty-four hours a day.
Even if instinctive circulation was only half as efficient as deliberate meditation, the total cultivation time was far longer, making the overall effect superior.
It was like sprinting at top speed—you might manage a thousand meters at most, then spend the entire day recovering.
But if you jogged or walked, you could keep going all day, covering far more distance overall.
After all, humans were not spirit tools. Both mind and body grew fatigued; neither could sustain full or overloaded operation indefinitely.
Lower intensity was actually more conducive to cultivation. All told, this method doubled the efficiency of a full day of standard cultivation.
A twofold increase in cultivation efficiency was astonishing—equivalent to doubling one's innate Spirit Power. Its value was self-evident.
Spirit Masters couldn't possibly meditate on schedule every day. When traveling or hunting Spirit Rings in Spirit Beast forests, no one could devote themselves entirely to meditation—that was a recipe for death.
But this method was unaffected. As long as one wasn't using Spirit Abilities, Spirit Power would circulate on its own, pushing efficiency even higher.
At present, this method circulated only within the angel clan, kept as a secret inheritance.
To offer such a priceless cultivation method without reservation—this was proof of loyalty.
Of course, there was always the risk that boy might leak it. In a few years, they could select a girl from the clan and have him marry into the angel clan. Once he died a hundred years later, that head Spirit Bone could be reclaimed—perfect.
"It's actually five. Two more children awakened their spirits at age six this month and were brought here."
Qian Daoliu walked over slowly, his face also full of smiles.
In the past, he had stayed in the Douluo Hall, guarding and venerating the Angel God statue. After obtaining this cultivation method, he preferred to stay here instead—and he had personally overseen the renovation.
With this method as an inheritance, the angel clan would surely reach an unprecedented pinnacle of glory.
Author's Note: "Meditation techniques involve Spirit Power circulation—this was stated in the original work. The circulation path is simply basic; this is not an original second-setting invention of this book.
As for the instinct-stimulation method, I'm sure all my brothers know where it comes from."