Warm sunlight poured down, enveloping the entire Spirit City in light.
Qian Renxue stood quietly at the center of the Elder Hall, facing the massive six-winged angel statue. Her entire body was bathed in a layer of golden radiance.
Unlike the previous times she had come to the Angel Temple, this time Qian Renxue was not here to worship the angel statue. She had come with the grand ambition of surpassing her ancestors. At this moment, she seemed to have transcended the angel statue before her and become the core of the entire hall.
"Xiao Xue, are you truly prepared?"
Qian Daoliu's calm yet surging voice sounded from behind her, and his figure appeared along with it. Today, he lacked his usual tranquility and kindness, replaced instead by a sense of grandeur and extreme majesty.
Qian Renxue slowly opened her eyes. Her golden, beautiful eyes had undergone a tremendous change. The originally pale golden pupils were now entirely golden, filled with a sacred brilliance.
"Grandfather, you don't need to ask me anymore. Since I have already come to the Angel Temple, I am confident in the final outcome. Rebuilding the glory of the angels—I will not hesitate to take on this duty..."
Qian Renxue said softly. Her tone was firm, carrying an undeniable sharpness, as if she had complete certainty.
Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Qian Daoliu's handsome face. Then, his voice carried a trace of emotion and excitement.
"My existence has been for the sake of waiting for this day. For this day, I have waited for over a century. Xiao Xue, since you have made your decision, follow me..."
Suddenly, a flash of light appeared behind Qian Daoliu. His entire body was enveloped in a ball of golden light. Nine soul rings neatly arranged around him, and along with them appeared three pairs of pure white wings, his god-level martial soul, the Six-Winged Angel, inherited from the Angel God.
Qian Renxue took a step forward. A brilliant golden light also erupted from her body. Unlike Qian Daoliu, the golden light she emitted carried a slightly different feeling, as if it were purer and possessed an even thicker sense of divinity.
In the next moment, a diamond-shaped golden gem suddenly appeared on Qian Daoliu's forehead. Without any other visible movement from him, he instantly arrived in front of the angel statue. A strange golden light shot out from the diamond-shaped gem on his forehead, shining precisely on the position between the angel statue's brows.
Instantly, a golden vortex appeared between the angel statue's brows. The entire statue seemed to tremble slightly.
Qian Renxue's gaze shifted, but she showed no excessive reaction, merely watching the scene before her quietly.
As the erupting golden light grew increasingly dense, Qian Daoliu's figure also became taller and more imposing. At a certain moment, he slightly turned his eyes and said:
"Xiao Xue, follow me..."
Qian Renxue nodded. She watched as Qian Daoliu's figure disappeared into the golden vortex, then spread the wings behind her and flew into the golden vortex without hesitation.
The vortex between the statue's brows slowly disappeared. The illusory golden light also faded away. Amidst the flickering radiance, everything returned to calm, but Qian Daoliu and Qian Renxue, grandfather and granddaughter, had vanished along with the receding golden light.
When Qian Renxue opened her eyes again, everything around her body was golden. Qian Renxue discovered that she had entered a strange world. The first thing she felt was an endless warmth enveloping her body. Everything around her felt unreal. Illusory golden ripples continuously shimmered, as if she had passed through a tunnel formed by condensed illusory light.
Qian Daoliu's figure was not far ahead. At this moment, he was bathed in golden light, his whole body exuding an indescribable, powerful aura, far stronger than ever before.
Qian Renxue even sensed a long-lost hot-blooded spirit in his grandfather. This was a kind of unique explosion in everyone's heart and nature, different from that of the years. Rooted in a person's original heart, once activated, it seemed capable of allowing them to transcend the boundaries of time in an instant and return to the past....
The two spread their wings behind them and flew one after the other in this golden world for a long time, until Qian Renxue could no longer perceive the flow of time. Only then did everything before her slowly begin to change.
The illusory feeling around them gradually disappeared, and the sense of reality slowly returned. It was only then that Qian Renxue gradually came back to her senses. She realized that at some point, she and her grandfather had arrived inside a grand hall.
The surroundings of the hall were an endless, strange night sky, dotted with stars. The hall they were in seemed to be floating within this night sky.
The hall was hexagonal, supported by six massive golden pillars holding up the dome. There were no walls. Everything around was void. Whether on the floor, the dome, or the six huge golden pillars, countless strange patterns were engraved. These patterns were all formed based on the shape of angel feathers.
At the center of the hall stood a three-meter-tall angel statue, identical in appearance to the one in the Angel Temple outside, only much smaller. This angel statue was not golden, but a dull, lightless gray. In front of the statue, a similarly gray longsword was inserted into the ground. Six wings spread out behind it, looking lifelike.
Qian Daoliu looked at the scene before him, his expression slightly changed. Then he turned his head to look at the somewhat dazed Qian Renxue and said:
"Xiao Xue, it is time for you to know this secret..."
"The Angel Temple outside is not the real one. This place here is the true Angel Temple—the place where successive ancestors received the Angel God's inheritance..."
Qian Renxue's gaze swept around the surroundings, then fell upon the gray longsword inserted into the ground.
"This is..."
Qian Renxue's pupils shrank slightly. Everything here felt incredibly familiar to her. Even though she had never been here before, the aura of this place still gave her an incomparable sense of peace.
Qian Daoliu's expression shifted slightly as he said:
"Once you have inherited the Angel God Exam, all the secrets here will eventually be known to you. It is only a matter of time. But Xiao Xue, you only need to know that everything here is closely related to our ancestors. Every single item, if placed in the outside world, would be a world-shocking treasure..."
Qian Renxue took several deep breaths before saying:
"Since that is the case, Grandfather, how should I begin the ceremony to inherit the Angel God Exam?"
Qian Daoliu merely chuckled softly and did not answer Qian Renxue's question directly. Instead, he spoke gently:
"Xue'er, there is actually one thing you should know. Inheriting and determining the level of the God Exam does not require coming here. It is sufficient to do so in the Angel Temple outside. However... opening the Angel Secret Realm requires the power of this place. That is why Grandfather brought you here in advance..."
Qian Renxue's eyes trembled. Her gaze suddenly turned toward Qian Daoliu as she said:
"Grandfather, does that mean this place should be the final location for inheriting the God Position..."
Qian Daoliu looked at Qian Renxue with some surprise, then gently nodded.
"No matter what, you would have known about the existence of this place sooner or later. Grandfather brought you in early with no other intentions, only wanting you to experience it here. Your difference has been evident since birth. Grandfather believes in you and that you will certainly be able to accomplish your goal. As for the Angel Secret Realm... Grandfather will personally open it later. Whether you can smoothly pass the assessments within it will depend entirely on yourself..."
Qian Renxue pondered for a moment, then nodded seriously.
"Grandfather, I understand what you mean. In that case, let us begin the ceremony directly. Success or failure will be decided here..."
Qian Daoliu looked deeply at Qian Renxue, then nodded heavily.
Golden soul power continuously reflected out from the surrounding void. Qian Daoliu slowly turned around. His actions had already violated the method of obtaining the Angel God Exam, but he also knew that Qian Renxue no longer had so much time to wait. For Qian Renxue, even if it meant risking punishment from the gods, he was destined to try.
Accompanied by Qian Renxue piously kneeling on both knees before the angel statue, the originally calm and motionless angel statue suddenly seemed to gain a trace of vitality. Then, countless golden flames burst forth from all directions, finally enveloping everything around them.
Golden flames flowed and rotated. Qian Renxue's body was slowly lifted under the shroud of that light. The golden light showed no change, but in front of Qian Renxue, nine golden light screens gradually emerged...
Qian Daoliu's pupils suddenly contracted, and a strange color burst forth in his eyes.
"This... this is... the Angel Nine Exams. The person that successive Hall Masters of the Douluo Hall have been waiting for has finally appeared. Xiao Xue, you truly are that fated person..."
The golden halos continued to flow and rotate. Qian Renxue struggled to open her eyes. Her body seemed unchanged, yet it also seemed filled with indescribable changes everywhere.
"This feeling... is so wonderful..."
Qian Renxue raised her hand and somewhat blankly examined the changes in her own body. Everything had happened so swiftly, as if it had all been rehearsed thousands of times. Everything felt natural and inevitable...
Qian Daoliu's gentle voice came from the side. Upon careful listening, his voice actually carried a slight tremor.
"Xiao Xue, you truly have not disappointed anyone..."
Qian Renxue suddenly returned to her senses. She stared in a daze at the nine golden light screens still floating in front of her. The corners of her mouth unconsciously curved into a slight arc.
Then, the golden light screens seemed to be pulled by some force. One by one, they turned into flowing light and entered the space between Qian Renxue's brows. Finally, they left an even more brilliant golden mark on her forehead.
"Grandfather, I succeeded..."
Qian Renxue clenched her fist. It should have been a scene of cheering and jumping for joy, yet at this moment she was extraordinarily calm. The first thing that came to her mind at this time was actually the figure of Shen Hanyu. This was not love or romance, but more like a process of pursuit and redemption. Qian Renxue suppressed the strange feeling in her heart. The brilliance in her eyes erupted once more, and a smile appeared at the corners of her mouth.
Qian Daoliu looked at the surrounding scene, his heart filled with myriad emotions for a moment. After a period of silence, Qian Daoliu finally spoke softly:
"Tang Chen... Bo Saixi... what a pity, what a pity..."
"The thing the three of us have pursued all our lives is so illusory and vague. We have all paid an unimaginable price for it. Whether all of this is right or wrong, I can no longer judge..."
"Spirit Hall... Clear Sky Sect... Sea God Island... all of this may soon come to an end. I hope that when the time comes, the three of us can all find peace because of it..."
Qian Renxue quietly watched Qian Daoliu. Her eyes were also filled with countless thoughts. She had a feeling that from today onward, her entire life would be completely changed. Even if she could not break fate, she was destined to walk out...
...
In the secret chamber.
Sensing the eruption of a strange aura, Bibi Dong, who had been sitting cross-legged in cultivation, slowly opened her eyes. If anyone were in front of her at this moment, they would be shocked to discover that Bibi Dong's eyes were completely blood-red. The vivid blood color seemed as if it could drip at any moment. On the fingers of both her hands were long, five-inch-long, pitch-black nails that formed a stark contrast with her fair skin.
Her originally noble and peerless face now appeared filled with terrifying distortion, and there were even streaks of bloodstains. Behind her, an indistinct black shadow emerged.
This extremely bright and warm aura was coming from the direction of the Angel Temple. The blood-red in Bibi Dong's eyes diminished slightly. Then, her entire being seemed to be madly switching between states of frenzy and clarity, once again falling into a struggling state.
"Angel God Exam..."
"Xiao Xue... have you ultimately chosen to stand completely on the opposite side from me..."
"Angels and Rakshasa are incompatible, just like the relationship between you and me that cannot be repaired. How tragic..."
Bibi Dong's laughter carried thick sorrow. The terrifying and gloomy laughter echoed in the enclosed space, causing an involuntary chill to run through one's body.
Only when the sound stopped did Bibi Dong's face emerge from the darkness.
Her complexion had become extremely pale. The aura on her entire body had also undergone a great change, dejected, carrying an extreme gloominess. She truly looked as terrifying as a demon from hell.
Sensing the change in Bibi Dong's state of mind, the black shadow behind her emitted strands of black-purple mist, which then transformed into streams of pure energy that entered Bibi Dong's body.
Bibi Dong, as if numb, no longer offered any resistance. She simply allowed these energies to enter her body. A moment later, a flash of red light appeared in her eyes once more. Her overall state improved somewhat, and she no longer looked as decrepit as before.
The black shadow behind her seemed very satisfied with Bibi Dong's performance. The black figure trembled a few times before slowly merging with the surrounding darkness. Along with it, Bibi Dong was also swallowed by the darkness, and the surroundings returned to complete silence.
In the extreme quietude, the black light and shadow appeared once again. Everything around became even more illusory, and along with it, Bibi Dong's consciousness gradually sank into drowsiness. Moments later, accompanied by Bibi Dong, suddenly spitting out a mouthful of blood, the sound of a body collapsing to the ground also rang out...