The standard Pope's Token of the present day bore six emblems: Chrysanthemum, Ghost, Hammer, Sword, Dragon, and Crown.
Each symbol represented a peak lineage or Martial Soul. The Chrysanthemum stood for Chrysanthemum Douluo's Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum Martial Soul, while the Ghost represented Ghost Douluo's Ghost Demon—both belonging to Spirit Hall's own inheritance.
The Hammer symbolized the Clear Sky Sect's Clear Sky Hammer, the Sword represented the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Chen Xin and his Seven Kill Sword, the Dragon denoted the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's signature Martial Soul, and the Crown stood for the reclusive Star Crown Sect within the Star Luo Empire.
Notably, the Angel Martial Soul left no mark upon the token at all—an enduring trait of Spirit Hall.
But the token that Golden Crocodile Douluo handed over was different.
Upon it were engraved six entirely distinct symbols: a Golden Crocodile, a Phoenix, a Sword, a Dragon, a Crown… and a Tiger.
Judging by Golden Crocodile Douluo's age, this appeared to be a version of the Pope's Token from his younger days, back when he still held an active position within Spirit Hall.
"This was my token when I was young. Few people recognize it now, but it still represents my identity and legacy—so I'll pass it on to you."
With a trace of reluctance, he placed the well-worn token—something he had handled for over a century—into Chen Ming's hands. To him, its value was no longer practical, but deeply sentimental.
"This Crocodile represents my Golden Crocodile. The Phoenix belonged to an elder of Spirit Hall at the time—one of my seniors, though his descendants have not lived up to expectations."
"As for the Sword, it does not represent the Seven Kill Sword. In the past, that lineage stood alone, with only a handful of members, not yet forming a sect. The symbol you see here belongs to what is now one of the Seven Great Sects—the Wind Sword Sect. Back then, they produced a genius and briefly rose into the ranks of the Upper Three Sects. But their descendants have failed to carry on that legacy, and now they don't even have a single Titled Douluo."
"The Dragon and Crown are the same as today—the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon and the Star Crown."
"And that Tiger… represents the Dark Demon Tiger, a top-tier dark-attributed Martial Soul rivaling the White Tiger."
"But the Black Tiger Sect suffers from the same old problem—no worthy successors. They've been declining, and they've also faced both overt and covert suppression from the Star Luo royal family. Otherwise, they might still have had a chance to produce a Titled Douluo."
Over the course of his explanation, Golden Crocodile Douluo repeated one phrase more than any other: the descendants are not up to par.
It was clear that in this era, producing successive generations of Titled Douluo was extraordinarily difficult. The demands on talent were simply too harsh. Without sufficiently gifted successors, even once-great sects would inevitably fall from prominence.
"Back then, there were several tokens like this. Now, only this one remains. With this token in hand, you represent my will. If anyone within Spirit Hall dares to trouble you—or if any expert on the continent dares—just show them this token."
He had intended to boast a little, but midway through, a faint sense of awkwardness crept in. After all, he hadn't left seclusion in over fifty years—there might not be many people left who even recognized him.
This old version of the token… might not carry as much weight as it once did.
"No need to worry," Qian Daoliu interjected promptly, noticing his expression and stepping in to smooth things over. "In a few days, I will personally grant you a token of Honorary Elder of Spirit Hall. When that happens, people across the continent will naturally think twice before offending you."
"Thank you, Master. Thank you, Grand Elder," Chen Ming replied, carefully storing Golden Crocodile Douluo's token close to his body before offering his gratitude to both men.
"Come with me, child," Golden Crocodile Douluo said, his tone softening. "Over the past hundred years, I've accumulated quite a number of worldly items. They are of little use to me now, but since our Martial Souls are so similar, some of them may prove useful to you."
"Everyone, come along as well."
With Golden Crocodile Douluo leading the way, Chen Ming was brought into his personal training ground.
Golden Crocodile Douluo's attribute was metal, and to support his cultivation, vast quantities of high-grade metals had been refined into bricks of extreme purity. These were stacked layer upon layer within the training ground, forming a structure that resembled a towering pyramid.
With just a single glance, Chen Ming was stunned.
Every single brick was made from top-tier material. Even the cheapest among them was worth several times its weight in gold soul coins, while the highest-purity metals were the kind spoken of in legends—materials said to be capable of forging divine weapons.
As for where that "legend" originated, Chen Ming himself had no idea. He had only ever seen it written in books.
Still, one thing was certain: if he ever wished to research soul tools, simply obtaining a portion of these rare metals from Golden Crocodile Douluo's training ground would be enough to support the vast majority of his crafting needs.
Golden Crocodile Douluo opened a large chest, rummaged through it briefly, and retrieved a ring-like soul tool. From within it, he then took out half of a golden skeletal frame.
Though it had been dead for who knew how long—its flesh long since removed—the bones still radiated a terrifying tiger-like aura. It was as if the remains could spring back to life at any moment, tearing out the throats of everyone present.
"This is the skeleton of the hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast I hunted back then," Golden Crocodile Douluo said calmly. "Its flesh, hide, and organs were all used for medicinal purposes long ago. Some of the bones were also consumed over time. Only this half remains, which I kept as a memento."
"To me, it no longer holds much use. But you are skilled in medicine, child—this skeleton of a hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast should prove valuable to you."
"Thank you, Master. But… what kind of Spirit Beast was this?" Chen Ming asked, examining the bones closely. Even after so much time, the golden radiance lingering upon them remained bright and domineering. "It doesn't seem to match any Spirit Beast recorded in common texts."
"This is the legendary Dark Gold Demon Tiger—a mutated variant of the White Tiger, possessing both pure golden bloodline and divine beast lineage."
"Most tiger-type Spirit Beasts favor offense over defense. But this one was different. While retaining the pure White Tiger bloodline, its mutation granted it defensive power and vitality equal to its offensive strength—without sacrificing speed or attack power. It was a perfect balance of offense and defense, extraordinarily powerful."
"Even within the records of Spirit Hall, such a creature ranks among the very top of hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beasts. Compared to beings like the Titan Giant Ape or the Azure Bull Python, it was no weaker—perhaps even stronger. Within the Star Dou Forest, it would be considered a true king among beasts."
"Had it remained within the Star Dou Forest, ruling its domain, even if humans knew of its existence, they would have found it nearly impossible to enter the forest and hunt it."
"But for reasons unknown, this hundred-thousand-year tiger Spirit Beast suddenly charged out of the forest and headed straight into human territory. Along the way, it slaughtered tens of thousands. More than one Titled Douluo fell at its hands."
"Back then, the Star Luo Empire even prepared to mobilize its army, intending to kill it at all costs. But in the end, they were too slow. Spirit Hall struck first, and it became my ninth Spirit Ring."
He paused slightly before adding, his tone tinged with lingering gravity:
"Even so, I nearly died from the backlash while absorbing it. It was only with the help of the Pope at the time that I managed to refine that Spirit Ring successfully. The only regret is that my Martial Soul wasn't perfectly compatible—I failed to inherit that ultimate golden attribute. It merely evolved from the Golden Crocodile into the Golden Crocodile King."
Chen Ming's lips twitched faintly, a realization forming in his mind.
He could more or less guess why that hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast had charged into the human world.
Among Spirit Beasts, lions and tigers were among the most powerful. Certain variants could rival—or even surpass—dragons. Creatures such as the Dark Devilgod Tiger, the Golden Fur Lion Mastiff, the Golden Lion-Tiger and Chaos White Tiger all possessed the potential to ascend to godhood.
Because tigers were naturally kings among beasts—born with dominance and an innate aura of rulership—they were seen as natural rulers among Spirit Beasts. To the dragon race, this was something intolerable.
As a result, any particularly powerful lion- or tiger-type Spirit Beast was often hunted down and killed by dragons.
In the known records of the Star Dou Forest across the ages, the only other hundred-thousand-year tiger-type Spirit Beast to appear was the Six-Winged Dark Gold Tiger, famed for its defensive power—and even it had served as one of Bi Ji's guardian beasts.
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