Douluo Continent: Protect Our Spirit Hall

Chapter 389 Yu Xiaogang's Lament

Chapter 389 Yu Xiaogang's Lament

Yu Xiaogang was still diligently copying martial spirit theories from classical texts, fantasizing about which theories he could incorporate into and improve his "work," "The Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirit."

Completely unaware of the impending danger.

Just as Yu Xiaogang was engrossed in copying the theory of martial spirits, he was unable to extricate himself.

A powerful hand suddenly appeared and grabbed the back of his neck. At the same time, a cold, chilling voice rang in his ear:

"What are you doing?"

Yu Xiaogang's body suddenly stiffened, and he turned his head slowly and laboriously to look behind his shoulder.

A cold and stern face immediately came into view.

The owner of this face was none other than the knight leader brought by Ye Qifeng.

At this moment, the knight leader did not look at Yu Xiaogang, but focused his gaze on the books on the table in front of Yu Xiaogang and his handwritten copy.

A quick glance at the text copied in the handwritten book revealed that it contained the exact same content as the text in the open book next to it. The knight leader instantly realized what was happening:

"Just as His Highness said, this person is secretly stealing the Spirit Hall's theoretical knowledge of Spirit Power. Damn him!"

The Spirit Hall has clear regulations.

The books in the archives can be browsed by people from the Spirit Hall, but they cannot be copied. How much one can remember depends entirely on one's own ability.

If someone needs to borrow books, they must report it in advance, and their status must be above that of an elder, or they must have a token from a holy son, holy daughter, or pope as a guarantee.

Currently, there is one prerequisite: you must first be a member of the Spirit Hall.

In principle, those who are not members of the Spirit Hall are not allowed to enter the archives unless they have the Pope's permission.

However, it should be noted that outsiders are not authorized to lend or copy the classics; otherwise, they will be treated as thieves who steal the knowledge of the Spirit Hall.

Yu Xiaogang was able to enter the archives room because of the papal decree and his former status as an honorary elder.

In fact, his status as an honorary elder had already been revoked by Qian Xunji more than 20 years ago when he was expelled from Wuhun City.

The old scholar who managed the archives was unaware of this, and seeing that Yu Xiaogang had the papal decree in his hand, he did not suspect anything and let him into the archives.

Yu Xiaogang seized upon this loophole, which is why he openly copied classic texts in the archives.

…………

"Yes, yes, it's you?"

The moment Yu Xiaogang saw the face of the knight leader, his pupils contracted sharply.

He knew that face all too well; he would recognize it even if it were ashes.

Isn't that the little Soul Master who humiliated him at the gate of Wuhun City back then?

"Oh? You know me?"

The knight leader was slightly surprised. He looked Yu Xiaogang up and down carefully and found that he looked familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before.

He gripped Yu Xiaogang's neck with one hand, rendering him immobile, while stroking his chin, which was covered in stubble like steel needles, with the other hand, deep in thought.

When their gaze fell upon Yu Xiaogang's conspicuous buzz cut.

A flash of inspiration struck the knight leader, and he suddenly recalled a scene from twelve years ago.

At that time, he was still a minor Soul Master.

Because it was during a special period when the Spirit Hall and the Clear Sky Sect were at war, he was assigned to the gates of Spirit City to perform the task of guarding the city and managing the passage and inspection of the gates.

At that time, there was a clueless good-for-nothing who impersonated a friend of His Holiness the Pope, who was still a saintess at the time, and tried to force his way into Wuhun City.

As a result, he beat me up twice, broke my arm, slapped me, and then slunk away.

That useless guy who's both incompetent and pretentious, he seems to have a buzz cut too, huh? A buzz cut?

Thinking of this, the knight leader's eyes lit up.

At that moment, he finally remembered who the buzz-cut man in front of him was.

"Oh~~~~~, it's you?"

The knight leader let out a long "oh" and laughed.

But to Yu Xiaogang, that smile was nothing short of a devil's, filling him with terror and boundless fear.

"W-what do you want to do?"

Yu Xiaogang's lips trembled. The face that suddenly appeared in front of him reminded him of the humiliation and pain he had suffered back then, and the shadow in his heart began to spread.

"What do I want to do?"

The knight leader grinned, revealing two rows of pearly white teeth:

What do you think?

Seeing the knight leader grin, Yu Xiaogang felt as if he were looking at a gaping maw about to devour him.

He became even more terrified.

"You, you mustn't do anything reckless. This is the Spirit Hall's archives room, not a place where you can act recklessly."

Yu Xiaogang suppressed his fear and said in a fierce but weak voice.

"Oh? You also know this is the Spirit Hall's archives?"

The knight leader, with a half-smile, pointed to the handwritten copy on the table in front of Yu Xiaogang, and retorted with an unfriendly expression:

"What are these? Did you copy them? How dare you steal the Spirit Hall's knowledge! You have some nerve!"

"this"

Yu Xiaogang's expression changed, and he pursed his lips several times but couldn't utter a word. Caught red-handed, he really didn't know how to defend himself.

"What should I do? What should I do? My copying of the classics has been exposed. My fate is definitely not good; I might even lose my life."

Yu Xiaogang was anxious and scared. His mind raced, and suddenly, he remembered something.

"Yes, yes, I have the Pope's decree, so there's nothing to be afraid of. He can't do anything to me."

Yu Xiaogang secretly touched the papal decree in his pocket, and like a drowning man grasping at a straw, his expression gradually softened:

"However, we'll have to come up with a pretext to justify the matter of copying the classics; perhaps we can get away with it."

"With the papal decree in hand, we can try to fool this guy in front of us by using our status as an honorary elder of the Spirit Hall, just like we fooled that old man who manages the archives."

However, Yu Xiaogang seems to have forgotten one thing.

That is, the knight leader already knew him and knew that he was not a member of the Spirit Hall, so how could he be fooled?

Moreover, the Knights' leader already knew Yu Xiaogang's true identity from Ye Qifeng.

They knew that Yu Xiaogang wasn't a member of the Spirit Hall and therefore wasn't qualified to copy texts in the archives.

I also know that he is a useless master who has gained some fame by plagiarizing the Spirit Hall's Spirit Theory, a shameless scoundrel who seeks fame and fortune.

The Knights leader had no liking for Yu Xiaogang and gave him no chance to argue.

The knight leader smiled, but spoke words laced with danger:

"I remember you're not from the Spirit Hall, are you?"

"Do you know that anyone who is not a member of the Spirit Hall is not allowed to copy the knowledge in the Archives? Anyone who does so will be considered a thief who steals the knowledge of the Spirit Hall and shall be executed!"

"So, you."

"Are you ready to die?"

Yu Xiao was about to speak in defense, but swallowed back her words because of the knight leader's alarmist remarks.

"To die?"

Upon hearing the knight leader's words, Yu Xiaogang's face instantly changed color, and he became fearful again. He hurriedly said:

"No, no, no, I can't die."

"I have a papal decree; you have no right to punish me."

He finally invoked the papal decree.

"The papal decree? Where is it?"

The knight leader frowned and immediately asked.

He hadn't forgotten the task His Highness had given him: to retrieve the papal decree from this guy's hands.

"Let me go first."

Yu Xiaogang did not answer immediately. He tried to struggle, but he could not break free from the hold. The knight leader's hand was still firmly gripping the back of his neck.

"Enough with the nonsense, tell me, where is the papal decree?"

The knight leader ignored Yu Xiaogang's words and instead increased the pressure on his hand.

"In, in, on my chest. In the lining of my clothes. In the pocket."

A sharp pain shot through the back of his neck, accompanied by a tremendous force. Yu Xiaogang suddenly found it difficult to breathe and managed to reply in broken, labored breaths.

"You should have said so earlier."

The knight leader smiled slightly, loosened his grip a little, and rummaged through Yu Xiaogang's clothes, pulling out a token as expected.

"Yes, it is indeed a papal decree."

Looking at the six martial spirit patterns shimmering with precious light on the token, the knight leader confirmed that this token was indeed the Pope's Decree.

Its material, pattern, and design are exactly the same as the papal decrees he remembered, so there is no mistake.

The pressure on the back of his neck lessened considerably, and Yu Xiaogang was able to breathe more easily.

The moment he saw the knight leader pull out the papal decree from his person.

He seemed to have regained his courage, thinking he had something to rely on. He raised his head, a smile playing on his lips, and said calmly to the knight leader:

"Now that you've seen the papal decree, why don't you kneel down immediately? I don't need to explain the meaning of the papal decree, do I?"

His tone was calm, but somewhat arrogant.

However, the knight leader standing behind him did not kneel down to receive the papal decree as he had expected.

Instead, she slapped him hard across the right side of his face:

"I'll kneel before you my ass! Who do you think you are?"

Yu Xiaogang was stunned for a moment, and his right cheek visibly swelled up.

It took him a moment to realize what was happening, and he felt a burning pain on the right side of his face.

"How dare you hit me?"

"So what if I hit you? I did hit you, so what?"

The knight leader spoke coldly, then slapped Yu Xiaogang across the left side of his face with a backhand.

"You scoundrel! I have the Pope's decree, what right do you have to hit me?"

After being slapped twice in a row, blood seeped from the corner of Yu Xiaogang's mouth. The intense pain made him furious, and he roared out, emphasizing that he was the holder of the Papal Decree.

"Heh, you think a piece of trash like you can possess a papal decree? We, the Spirit Hall, are taking back this papal decree."

The knight leader chuckled coldly, ignoring Yu Xiaogang's impotent rage, and put away the papal decree.

"You have no right to do this! Give me back the papal decree!"

Yu Xiaogang got anxious.

This papal decree was personally given to him by Tang Hao. If he lost it, and Tang Hao investigated, who knows if he would be held responsible?

Although he had a way to persuade Tang Hao not to cause him trouble.

But there is another problem.

Without the Pope's decree, he would no longer be able to move freely within the Spirit Hall, and the books and knowledge of spirits in the Spirit Hall's archives would be out of his reach.

He couldn't accept it and had to get the papal decree back.

Who would have thought that at this critical moment, Yu Xiaogang's first concern wasn't his own life, but rather the martial spirit knowledge in the Spirit Hall's archives?

The Cavaliers' team leader wasn't going to give him the runaround and didn't want to waste any more time with him.

His Highness is still waiting.

"Take him out of here, lest he make a mess of the archives room later."

The knight leader waved to the two knights who had been waiting behind him.

Two knights immediately obeyed the order and stepped forward, each pressing down on one of Yu Xiaogang's arms to capture him.

"Attack? Attack what? You want to kill me?"

Yu Xiaogang thought they were going to kill him, so he immediately started struggling desperately.

However, both knights possessed Soul Master level cultivation, and no matter how much he struggled, it was to no avail.

"No, no, no, you can't kill me! Let me go! I have the Pope's decree, I can be spared! You can't do this to me! Please, spare me! I'll never do it again! You bastards, I curse you!"

Accompanied by a series of harsh rebukes, pleas for forgiveness, and curses, Yu Xiaogang was quickly dragged outside the collection room by the two knights.

"Your Highness, I have not failed in my mission!"

The knight leader approached Ye Qifeng and handed him the papal decree, the books on the table, and Yu Xiaogang's handwritten copy.

"Well done!"

Looking at the knight leader in front of him, who appeared to be in his thirties, Ye Qifeng praised him.

I originally thought the knight leader would take action immediately.

I didn't expect him to be so good at having fun.

What a talent!

"What's your name?"

Ye Qifeng toyed with the papal decree in his hand and asked with a smile.

"Lin Hai!"

The Cavaliers' team leader responded respectfully.

"Lin Hai, right? You're not bad, keep up the good work!"

Ye Qifeng reached out and patted him on the shoulder, then took out a large bag of gold soul coins from his storage ring and tossed it to him:

"Since you're working for me, you can take these gold soul coins and distribute them among the brothers."

Lin Hai was somewhat stunned to suddenly find a bag of gold soul coins in his hand.

Judging by the amount, there must be at least tens of thousands of gold soul coins inside.

Even if it's split among more than ten brothers in your own team, it's still a considerable sum of money.

"Oh, and this is for you."

At this moment, Ye Qifeng suddenly took out something else and tossed it into his hand.

"This is... a top-grade medicinal herb?!"

Lin Hai stared in surprise at the new item in his hand.

Now, knowledge of medicinal herbs has become somewhat widespread in the Spirit Hall, and Lin Hai has also gained some understanding of them.

Therefore, he immediately recognized the item in his hand as a top-grade medicinal herb.

He had heard that the Spirit Hall possessed a hidden treasure land that could continuously produce all kinds of rare and precious herbs, including not only high-grade and top-grade herbs, but also legendary immortal herbs.

Many of these herbs are beneficial for cultivation, and the higher their grade, the better their effects.

However, the number of medicinal herbs is limited, and the Spirit Hall has many talented people, making the competition fierce. Even for someone like him, who is a Soul Emperor, it is extremely difficult to obtain a high-grade medicinal herb, let alone a top-grade one.

As for the legendary divine herbs, they wouldn't even dare to dream of them.

Unless you achieve extraordinary feats or accumulate enough merit points to redeem it.

That's right. All the cultivation resources of the Spirit Hall, including herbs, need to be exchanged for merit points.

There is a rumor that the hidden treasure land that produces rare medicinal herbs was discovered by His Highness the Holy Son and presented to the Spirit Hall.

Now, His Highness the Holy Son casually took out a top-grade medicinal herb and gave it to him. Moreover, judging from His Highness the Holy Son's appearance, a top-grade medicinal herb did not seem to be anything precious to him.

Perhaps the rumors are true; that hidden treasure trove was indeed discovered by His Highness the Holy Son.

"Indeed, this is a top-grade medicinal herb. Taking it will greatly benefit your cultivation."

Ye Qifeng nodded and smiled.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Your Highness!"

Lin Hai immediately knelt down to express his gratitude, his heart filled with immense emotion.

With this top-grade medicinal herb, his cultivation level will surely increase significantly.

Becoming a Soul Saint with a true Martial Soul body is just around the corner, and it's not impossible that he could even reach the Soul Douluo realm, which he only dares to imagine, in his lifetime.

"You're welcome, you deserve it."

Ye Qifeng waved his hand, "Go on, and do a good job!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Lin Hai accepted the order and assured them:

"I will handle this personally, and I will definitely do it perfectly."

Night Wind nodded:

"Remember to keep your distance and don't fight on the mountain, so as not to disturb others."

"clear!"

…………

Knights leader Lin Hai accepted the order and left.

Recalling the conversation, Ye Qifeng chuckled to himself, feeling like a villain.

Well, according to the original arrangement of fate, everyone in the Spirit Hall is a villain. He now belongs to the Spirit Hall, so calling him a villain is not wrong.

Treating a useless master like this is a bit cruel, but it feels really good!

I wonder if the teacher will be angry. I hope she won't blame me.

Ye Qifeng thought to himself silently, then shook his head and stopped thinking about it.

He glanced at the ancient books and handwritten copies in his hands and murmured softly:

"Forget about this handwritten copy. I'd better leave it to the old scholar and let him report it to the teacher."

…………

Not long after.

A series of long, mournful wails suddenly echoed from the foot of the mountain in the center of Wuhun City:

"ah--"

"Oh ho ho———"

Thank you so much to [Sun Yifeng from Luwan] for the 10000 Qidian coins! I'm so grateful, brother!

(End of this chapter)