I started by submitting to the Douluo Continent, and the nation helped me become a god.

Chapter 75 Bibi Dong

Upon hearing the word "Pope," Xiao Wu, who had only been slightly nervous, suddenly stiffened. It was a tremor that came from the depths of her soul, like a young beast being targeted by its natural enemy.

Her fingers gripped Li Fulan's palm tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force, her breathing becoming rapid and erratic, and the pupils in her once bright eyes contracting violently.

She smelled it. That scent, etched into her very bones, an indelible, lingering fragrance belonging to that woman. The nightmare that took her mother's life in the blood-red twilight of the Starry Sky Forest.

Even across such a vast distance, even with only a faint, almost imperceptible fluctuation of soul power sensed through telepathy, the dormant soul beast instincts within Xiao Wu were still frantically issuing alarms. It was the aura of death, the aura of despair, the nightmare she could never forget.

Li Fulan didn't turn around, but he took Xiao Wu's cold little hand in his own, gently stroking her trembling hand with his thumb. The warmth of his palm passed through her skin, like a silent barrier, shutting out the oppressive feeling from the outside world.

"Don't be afraid." His deep voice rang in Xiao Wu's ear, without any further explanation, but with an undeniable sense of security. "Wait for me here, I'll be back soon."

Xiao Wu instinctively wanted to follow, but Li Fulan gently pressed her shoulder down.

"Be good, listen to me."

His gaze was gentle yet authoritative, then he turned to Hu Liena beside him: "I trouble Miss Hu Liena to look after my apprentice."

Hu Liena raised an eyebrow, looking at Xiao Wu's terrified expression with a half-smile, and nodded: "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on her."

Li Fulan glanced at Xiao Wu one last time, then turned and followed Elder Yuan towards the Papal Palace. Xiao Wu watched her master's receding figure, biting her lip and forcibly suppressing the fear deep within her heart.

Her master said he would come back. She believed him.

Pope's Palace.

The massive palace doors slowly opened, releasing a whiff of sandalwood mixed with an aura of suffocating majesty. The interior was dimly lit, the walls inlaid with countless crystals that refracted the candlelight into fragmented hues. The floor was paved with single slabs of black marble, each tile engraved with intricate soul patterns.

At the far end of the main hall, a three-zhang-high platform rose abruptly from the ground, with ninety-nine dark red steps leading up to it. On the platform, the pure gold papal chair gleamed in the candlelight, its back inlaid with countless purple gemstones, and lifelike golden dragons coiled on the armrests on both sides.

The woman sitting there was none other than Bibi Dong.

She wore a perfectly tailored, flowing purple-gold robe, the fabric clinging to her body like a second skin, perfectly outlining the voluptuous curves unique to a mature woman. Her posture was casual yet commanding, her long legs crossed, a glimpse of snow-white skin peeking out from the slit in her skirt. One hand propped her chin up, while the other casually toyed with a jewel-encrusted scepter.

Time seemed to have been exceptionally kind to this woman, leaving no trace of her beauty, but instead imbuing her with a unique charm called "power." Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, yet so cold that one dared not look directly at it, like a datura flower blooming on the edge of a cliff, poisonous yet alluring.

As Li Fulan entered the main hall, Bibi Dong slowly raised her pale purple eyes and looked down at him.

"I joined the Spirit Hall a year ago, and then went to the remote Notting City branch to search for so-called 'geniuses'."

Bibi Dong's voice echoed in the hall, clear and melodious, yet carrying a languid air of all-knowing insight.

"During this time, you not only gained a foothold in Notting City, but also refined a batch of pills of excellent quality, and even... through some means, you enabled a girl who was only fifteen years old to advance five levels in a single day."

She straightened up slightly, and the oppressive feeling instantly intensified, her gaze sweeping over Li Fulan as if it were a physical object.

"Li Fulan, you've given me many surprises."

Li Fulan stood in the center of the hall, neither kneeling nor showing the slightest fear or trepidation. He merely bowed slightly, his expression calm: "Your Majesty's intelligence network is indeed all-pervasive. Yes, I was the one who orchestrated it all."

"Very good, honesty is a virtue." Bibi Dong tapped the armrest lightly with her fingertip. "That piece of 'Flame Lord's Exploding Right Palm Bone,' although the price was marked wrong by the subordinates, since the rules are there and you have enough contribution points, it's fine to give it to you."

At this point, she changed the subject: "But this soul bone was originally intended for an alchemist who made significant contributions to the Spirit Hall. This palm bone originated from a 30,000-year-old Flame Lord, and after fusion, it can produce an extremely special 'explosive fire,' which may only be considered good for combat, but it is a divine skill for refining herbs and controlling the heat."

"You want to take it? Fine. But I have one condition." Bibi Dong leaned forward. "You have to help me train the alchemists of the Spirit Hall. We don't lack battle spirit masters who can charge into battle, but we desperately need talents like you who can refine those 'special' pills."

Li Fulan smiled. He knew this was the real topic.

"Deal." Li Fulan agreed readily, then took out a thick stack of parchment contracts from his waist and placed them on the tray below the steps.

"Besides agreeing to Your Majesty's conditions, I have another small gift to offer you."

Bibi Dong raised an eyebrow slightly, and with a flick of her finger, the stack of contracts flew into her hand. She casually flipped through a few pages, and a hint of amusement gradually appeared on her previously expressionless face, which then transformed into undisguised appreciation.

Those were contracts he had made in Notting City during that year, lending money to poor Soul Masters in the form of "student loans" to buy elixirs. Each contract bore a bright red handprint, specifying the repayment terms including principal and interest, as well as an additional clause stating that "if one is unable to repay, he will be enslaved for life."

"Alchemy is just a means; control is the goal." Li Fulan looked at the woman on the high platform, her eyes flashing with the same ambition as hers. "These students may have average talent, but they have the advantage of sheer numbers, and for the next few decades they will have to work for their creditors. And right now, their creditor is the Spirit Hall."

"Hahaha..." Bibi Dong suddenly laughed, her laughter no longer filled with coldness, but rather with a hint of joy at encountering a kindred spirit. She gave Li Fulan a deep look, then slammed her scepter heavily on the ground.

"You really make me happy, Lefranco."

She put the stack of contracts into her soul tool, a domineering smile curving her red lips.

"Not only do you have the talent for alchemy, but you've also developed a business that directly addresses human nature. I accept this gift. I will send people from the Punishment Hall to Nottingham and the surrounding areas to collect debts."

She stood up, her purple and gold robe spreading out behind her like a phoenix about to take flight.

"On this continent, no one owes the Spirit Hall a debt. Similarly, the Spirit Hall will not mistreat anyone who has rendered meritorious service."