Inside the room—
"Prince Xue Qinghe, please sit. This room is already protected by a soundproofing formation, so there's no need to worry about anyone overhearing."
After exchanging a polite greeting, Xiao Lin went straight to the point."Now, can we finally talk about the benefits?"
"Hahaha, Brother Xiao Lin, you really are straightforward."
Xue Qinghe laughed heartily, then slowly took out a Spirit Hall command token.
The moment Xiao Lin and the others saw that token, the expressions of all four people changed at once.
For Xiao Lin, it was disbelief—he hadn't expected that Qian Renxue would reveal her identity so openly.Tang San, on the other hand, stared at the token with eyes that held deep-seated hatred, though at this point he didn't yet direct it at Xue Qinghe herself.
Xiao Wu was the same—she only knew that her enemies were people from Spirit Hall.
Tang Ni's thoughts were simpler. She had already seen Xue Qinghe's fate and, connecting that with the token, had more or less guessed that Xue Qinghe's true identity was someone from Spirit Hall.
"Actually, I am not Xue Qinghe. I am Qian Renxue, daughter of the former Pope of Spirit Hall, the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall, and its future master."
Qian Renxue spoke without the slightest hesitation or concealment.
Her reason for not hiding her identity from Xiao Lin was simple — Xiao Lin and his teacher, Master Xiao Yan, clearly did not belong to any other power.So, with her identity and the vast resources of Spirit Hall, she was confident she could recruit Xiao Lin and his companions.
They had no enmity with her — so why couldn't they join her side?As for the other prodigies of their generation, they too could be invited into Spirit Hall.
Spirit Hall's benefits were immense.And Qian Renxue had every confidence in that.
"You're the daughter of Qian Xunji?"
Suddenly, just as Qian Renxue was about to extend her invitation, Tang San spoke in a low, trembling voice, his eyes turning blood-red.
The killing intent in his gaze was chilling.
If not for the fact that he wanted to uncover the truth about what happened back then, he would have already attacked.He didn't believe that Qian Renxue could possibly escape the hidden weapons in this sealed space—especially not his Yama's Invitation (阎王帖).
"Yes, I am. Brother Tang San, do you… have a grudge against my father?"
Qian Renxue looked puzzled. But hearing his tone, she quickly pieced things together—it must have been something her father did.So she immediately bowed slightly and spoke apologetically:
"If my father has done anything to wrong you, Brother Tang San, then I apologize on his behalf. I will make it up to you."
"Would you even pay with your life as compensation?"
Tang San growled, his voice low and cold, a cruel smile tugging at his lips.
"Of course I wouldn't," Qian Renxue replied frankly. "My father is already dead. I don't know what kind of harm he caused you, but I am truly sorry, and I will try to make amends."
Then, frowning in confusion, she asked,"But as far as I know, my father inherited the Angelic Martial Soul and served as the Pope of Spirit Hall. He didn't commit any great evil, did he?"
In Qian Renxue's memory, Qian Xunji—apart from his wrongdoing toward Bibi Dong—was a man of near-perfect conduct.And back then, Bibi Dong had practically betrayed Spirit Hall. From her point of view, Qian Xunji's punishment was justified.He had merely carried out personal justice.
Because of her hatred for Bibi Dong, Qian Renxue viewed her father through a very forgiving lens.
"Xiao San's father is Haotian Douluo, and his mother was the Blue Silver Emperor, who took human form. The two of them lived peacefully together until Qian Xunji led a hunt against them. In the end, Xiao San's mother sacrificed herself — you should know what happened afterward."
Xiao Lin explained the situation on Tang San's behalf.
His words shocked everyone.
So Tang San was… born of a spirit beast?
Xiao Wu's inner thoughts: "Huh? Auntie was also a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast who took human form?"Tang Ni's inner thoughts: "Spirit Hall really is despicable."
"Brother Lin, my mother… she…" Tang San's voice trembled.
"At that time," Xiao Lin said seriously, "Uncle Hao was already level 90. Auntie was pregnant with you, and when they went hunting a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, they ran into Qian Xunji. He tried to harm her.
Your parents fled, and by the time you were born, they were gravely wounded.
When Spirit Hall sent several Titled Douluo to hunt them down, your mother sacrificed herself to your father.Uncle Hao broke through to Titled Douluo and defeated Qian Xunji and the other Titled Douluo.
That's what I've deduced from various accounts — and it's likely very close to the truth."
Xiao Lin's expression was solemn, making it impossible to tell whether he was bluffing.
"If that's true," Qian Renxue said slowly, "then my father wasn't wrong. Humans and spirit beasts are natural enemies. Moreover, Brother Tang San, your mother was a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, and my father, as the Pope of Spirit Hall, had to set an example."
Qian Renxue genuinely saw nothing wrong with that logic. In fact, she even hoped to ease relations with Tang San — perhaps even win back Haotian Sect's favor.
After all, Spirit Hall's enmity with Haotian Sect was Bibi Dong's doing, not hers.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
And most importantly, she knew her father had been killed by Bibi Dong.
"What do you mean, 'not wrong'?" Tang San's voice roared like thunder. "My parents were living peacefully! What right did your father have to hunt them down? What right did he have to kill my mother?"
Tang San's eyes burned crimson, his killing intent flooding the room.
It was because of Spirit Hall that he had grown up without a mother's love.Because of Spirit Hall, his father had drowned himself in alcohol and despair.Because of Spirit Hall, he had nearly starved and frozen to death as a child.
"Xiao San is right," Xiao Lin said firmly. "Even if Auntie was a spirit beast in human form, she never harmed anyone. On the contrary, it was Spirit Hall's pursuit that endangered countless innocent people when the Titled Douluo fought."
He continued, "That's one.
And two — Auntie was already a spirit master at the Soul Saint level or higher. She had long since shed her beast form and was no different from a real human being.
And three — to put it bluntly, even if Auntie were Uncle Hao's pet, Spirit Hall had no right to kill her and steal her spirit ring or bones. Isn't that no different from robbery?"
"This…"
Qian Renxue was speechless.
The most striking point wasn't the "pet" argument — it was that Ah Yin had never harmed anyone.
As the Blue Silver Emperor, a plant-type spirit beast, she barely harmed even other spirit beasts.
So if Qian Xunji's actions were justified under the pretext of "protecting humanity," that justification fell completely flat.Ah Yin was likely kinder than 99% of humans.
And yet she died.
Even Qian Renxue herself had killed many in the name of her grand ambitions — such as those who died while she impersonated Xue Qinghe.
"Even if Auntie truly had harmed humans," Xiao Lin added, "Uncle Hao could have taken responsibility. But the truth is — nothing like that ever happened. The odds of it having happened are next to zero."
He spread his hands.He wasn't taking sides out of bias; he was stating the moral truth.
If he had raised a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast as his companion, and someone suddenly claimed it should be killed in the name of 'justice' just to harvest its ring and bones — he would never accept that.
And Tang Hao's case was far more extreme — that was his wife, not a pet.
"This was my father's fault," Qian Renxue said finally, sighing deeply. "Tell me, then — what compensation do you want? I can investigate the Titled Douluo who participated in the hunt against your parents."
She was sincere.
Or rather, she didn't want this past tragedy to destroy her chance of recruiting Xiao Lin and the others.
After all, she had already exposed her true identity.
(End of Chapter)