bookbashuk Chapter 87. To be old and not die... is to be a thief!
Chapter 87. To be old and not die... is to be a thief!
Chapter 87. To be old and not die... is to be a thief!
"Second Offering!!"
"Second Brother!!"
Just as the golden crocodile was about to fall, several powerful auras suddenly erupted from the depths of the Elder Hall, instantly rushing down to the foot of the high platform.
Amidst the flickering light and shadow, several aged yet terrifying figures appeared.
The leader had a handsome face like a young man, but his hair was white and his left eye was covered with frost. He was none other than the Light Feather Douluo.
He caught the swaying Golden Crocodile, his intact right eye blazing with murderous intent, and the Radiant Bow in his hand appeared, its cold arrowhead pointing directly at Nan Feng on the high platform.
Behind him, several elders, including Azure Phoenix Douluo and Lion Douluo, also had grim faces and surging soul power, as if they were ready to rush onto the stage at any moment and tear this treasonous pope to pieces.
The atmosphere instantly became extremely tense!
"Stop—all of you stop!!"
Just as Guangling was about to draw his bow, Golden Crocodile Douluo grabbed his wrist.
He was panting heavily, blood still dripping from the corner of his mouth, but a deep terror shone in his cloudy old eyes.
He raised his head and stared intently at Nan Feng on the high platform.
He originally thought that such a display would at least make the other side wary and restrain themselves.
But no.
He saw no fear in those purple eyes, but instead—excitement? Anticipation?!
wrong!
The golden crocodile felt a sudden chill in its heart, as if it had fallen into an ice cave.
This crazy woman—she did it on purpose! She's trying to force us to take action!
If the elders of the Hall of Elders were to openly besiege the Pope in front of the Pope's Palace and all the heroes of the world, what would the Spirit Hall become?
It became a laughing stock of insubordination and internal strife!
Coupled with her earlier morally superior remarks, if she were to take action, the Elders' Hall would be "enraged and ashamed."
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A treacherous minister who tries to cover up his crimes but only makes them more obvious!
Once its reputation is ruined, the Spirit Hall's foundation will be completely destroyed!
"Cough cough—Nobody is allowed to move!!" Golden Crocodile roared hoarsely.
Although Guangling and the others were puzzled, seeing their second brother's reaction, they could only suppress their anger and stare intently at the stage.
however.
They wanted to settle things peacefully, but Nan Feng had no intention of letting them off the hook.
"Oh, you're out already?"
Nan Feng looked at the row of retainers below the stage, who should have been the foundation of the Spirit Hall but were now acting like a bunch of protective mother hens, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips: "What? Are you all rushing out here to get scolded?"
"You just insulted that old bastard Jin E, and you're not satisfied? You have to get everyone else together to get insulted too, right?"
"You!!" The hot-tempered Lion Douluo was about to explode.
Nan Feng's eyes suddenly turned incredibly sharp, his gaze like a slap in the face: "A bunch of old fogies, holed up in the Elder Hall, never seeing the light of day for decades, eating the best offerings from the Spirit Hall, enjoying the highest treatment."
"Tell me, what value do you have to the Spirit Hall?!"
"These individuals, bearing the titles of revered elders, disregard the safety of the Spirit Hall and the dignity of the Pope!"
Azure Phoenix Douluo's face darkened. He stepped forward, his voice cold and hard: "Bibi Dong, watch your words! We, as elders, are here to protect the foundation of the Spirit Hall and to conceal our strength in preparation for future enemies! How dare you slander us like this?!"
"To protect the Spirit Hall?"
Nan Feng smiled.
"Really?"
I don't believe it.
He abruptly flicked his sleeve, pointing at the Spirit Hall soldiers below the stage, some still wrapped in bandages, and roared, "If you're here to protect the Spirit Hall, why were you, the guardians, nowhere to be seen when the Spirit Hall went to war with the Clear Sky Sect?!"
"When I, the Pope, personally led my army and was besieged by Tang Xiao and several elders of the Haotian Sect, where were your resources?!"
"I'm fighting tooth and nail, bleeding on the front lines! And you're all drinking tea and playing chess in the Elders' Hall!"
"Once the battle is over, and I've won and returned in triumph, you all come jumping out with such high spirits?"
"They nitpick and criticize me at every turn, saying I don't know the rules and that I don't respect my elders?"
"When we're working, you're nowhere to be found; you can't even be called! Now that the work's done, you come out here to pontificate?!"
"This is what you call protection?!"
"What exactly is this Spirit Hall that you're protecting?!"
Nan Feng whirled around, facing the tens of thousands of ordinary Soul Masters in the plaza, their eyes filled with confusion yet gradually igniting with passion, and shouted fervently, "Tell them! What is the Spirit Hall?!"
"Is this the cold, impersonal papal palace?!"
"Is that the eerie Elder Hall?!"
"Is it still that insurmountable Douluo Palace atop the mountain?!"
"wrong!!"
Nan Feng slammed his scepter heavily on the ground, his voice resounding through the heavens: "The Spirit Hall is human!!"
"It's the millions of Soul Masters standing in this square! It's those brothers and sisters who sacrificed their lives for the Spirit Hall!"
"Without these millions of Soul Masters, where would the Spirit Hall come from? Where would you high and mighty retainers come from?!"
"And the result?!"
Nan Feng pointed at Jin E and the others again, his eyes filled with disdain: "Soul Masters are risking their lives outside, shedding blood for the honor of the Spirit Hall! You cower in the Elder Hall watching the show, acting like cowards! And then you turn around and say you're protecting the Spirit Hall?"
"I'll just ask you one question."
"Have you no shame?!"
The entire room fell silent, save for Nan Feng's deafening question echoing through the air.
The lower-ranking Spirit Hall Soul Masters all had red eyes and were breathing rapidly. They had never imagined that His Holiness the Pope would actually point his finger at those legendary Elders and berate them for their sake!
An unprecedented sense of identity and fervor was growing wildly in their hearts.
"You are not the ones protecting the Spirit Hall!"
Nan Feng patted his chest, then pointed to the wounded soldiers below the stage: "It's me! It's this Pope who led from the front! It's those heroic spirits who fell on the battlefield! It's every ordinary Soul Master who shed blood for the Spirit Hall!"
"Instead of you bunch of cowards who only know how to hide in the shadows and steal the spoils of others' victories!"
"Using the name of righteousness to pursue personal gain!"
"You old fogies, how are you any different from Qian Xunji, who was killed by Tang Hao with a single hammer blow?!"
Looking down at the group of retainers, whose faces had turned ashen from the scolding but who were unable to refute the greater good, Nan Feng uttered his final judgment: "They hold their positions without doing any work, and their virtue does not match their rank."
"To be old and not die—that is to be a thief!!"
The entire place was deathly silent, as if even the wind had frozen.
Everyone was completely stunned at this moment. Whether it was the unfathomable Ning Fengzhi, the unruly Yu Yuanzhen, or the bishops who were usually as shrewd as devils, they all stared wide-eyed like idiots.
In front of the entire world, the Pope berated his predecessor and humiliated the honorees who represented the Spirit Hall's highest fighting strength and prestige.
This is beyond just "self-destruction," it's practically house-destroying!
"What exactly is she trying to do?!"
Ning Fengzhi's teacup was already cracked from being squeezed. His brain was working frantically, but he couldn't understand what was happening in front of him.
He prided himself on his ability to see through people's hearts and calculate the world, but every move this new pope made was severely challenging the limits of his understanding.
however.
What happened next shocked them even more.
On the high platform, Nan Feng slowly raised his hand and actually took off the nine-curved purple-gold crown that symbolized supreme power from his head!
Clang!
The purple-gold crown landed with a crisp sound.
Her long purple hair cascaded down like a waterfall, dancing in the wind. She lost some of her papal majesty but gained a touch of poignant beauty and resolute determination.
"Bibi Dong! You—"
As Golden Crocodile Douluo watched this scene, his pupils shrank, and an extremely ominous premonition instantly surged into his heart.
Just then, a voice, pre-arranged from the crowd, suddenly rang out, trembling with confusion: "Your Holiness! What—what are you doing?!"
Nan Feng stood on the high platform, his long hair flowing freely, facing the assembled heroes of the world, a desolate and self-mocking smile on his face: "What am I doing?"
He spread his hands, looking at his magnificent papal robes, his tone calm yet filled with endless sorrow: "The Elders' Hall sees me as an enemy, hindering me at every turn, and trying to kill me."
"Those in charge of the Papal Palace are outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant, holding positions without doing any work, and only knowing how to fight for power and profit."
"I, the Pope of the Spirit Hall, risked my life for the Spirit Hall, even personally leading the battle as a woman. And what was the result? In this Spirit City, I have almost no place to stand!"
Nan Feng shook his head, tears seemingly glistening in the corners of his eyes: "The Pope has gone to such lengths; there's no one like him before."
"Today, I have gathered you all here, hoping to restore justice to the world, to puncture those festering sores, and to let the Spirit Hall see the light of day again."
"But as everyone has seen..."
Nan Feng pointed to the group of ashen-faced elders and retainers below the stage: "What did Golden Crocodile Douluo do? And what did these so-called elders and retainers do?"
"They just want to cover their mouths! They just want to whitewash the truth! They just want to call black white!"
"Though I am determined to kill the traitors, I am powerless to reverse the situation."
Nan Feng took a deep breath, his voice choked with emotion yet firm: "I am sorry to the unjustly killed spirits of the Spirit Hall, I am sorry to the innocent lives lost because of Qian Xunji's selfish desires, and I am even more sorry to all the people of this world!"
"If that's the case—"
"How can I possibly continue to be the Pope?!"
"Am I supposed to be a puppet who only knows how to please these old fogies and clean up their messes?!"