Douluo Dalu: The Eyes That Defy Fate

Chapter 259 Dilemmas in the Church
Since the establishment of the New Holy Spirit Church and its acquisition of the luxurious stronghold in Mingdu, almost all the remaining members of the Holy Spirit Church have gone to Mingdu.

While working to build a new headquarters for the Holy Church, they also explored their way forward, opening up a brand new life.

Even the five maids in that secluded courtyard, as well as the Zhang brothers, Zhang Long and Zhang Hu, all went to Mingdu under Lin Po's orders to start a new life.

Only a very few people, either nostalgic or fond of tranquility, chose to stay at the original headquarters located in the Demon Forest for an extended period of time.

Zhongli Wu, the leader of the cult, was one of them.

On ordinary days, except when he needs to attend court or when the new Holy Church has important matters that require his decision, he will go to Mingdu.

For the rest of the time, he was not sitting in his old seat where he used to handle church affairs, looking through reports he had previously processed.

Just like today, I'm alone in Lin Po's courtyard, lost in thought.

However, the arrival of the 'uninvited guest' instantly rewrote everything that seemed to indicate that the old man was clinging to power.

"I never expected that you, teacher, would still be such a nostalgic person."

The familiar yet irritating voice not only disrupted the tranquility of the courtyard but also interrupted Zhongliwu's melancholy reminiscing about the past.

However, he was happy with it.

"You unfilial disciple assigned your master a bunch of work to do before you left, while you ran off to enjoy yourself for half a year."

"I've finally finished all the work and have a rare moment to rest. What? You won't even give the elderly this little bit of time?"

Seeing his beloved disciple appear out of nowhere, Zhongli Wu couldn't help but laugh and scold repeatedly.

He took out the tea set that the master and apprentice had always used, poured it to about seven-tenths full, and pushed it in front of Lin Po.

Having already had his fill of water at Kong Deming's place, Lin Po raised an eyebrow, suppressed his rumbling stomach, and took a small sip.

"There's no other way. Of all the people, you're the most suitable for those tasks. It just doesn't feel right to assign them to others. I'm not comfortable with that."

"Go away, don't flatter me. It's nothing more than a thankless and exhausting job of confiscating property and exterminating families. It doesn't matter who does it."

Zhongli Wu rolled his eyes at Lin Po, which surprised Lin Po.

"Hmm? That shouldn't be the case. The families and powers I chose for you were all incredibly wealthy and powerful. Didn't you manage to get a single penny out of them?"

"No! I did all the work, but I didn't get any reward!"

Noticing the genuine expression on his teacher's face, Lin Po was momentarily confused.

If I remember correctly, he should have instructed Kong Deming before leaving that they should turn a blind eye to the New Holy Spirit Church in the early stages.

After all, the new Holy Sect was in dire need of rebuilding, not only by repairing the new headquarters but also by providing training for hundreds of Soul Masters.

Moreover, in order to obey the orders of the leader and the Holy Son and abide by the laws of the empire, they could no longer rely on robbery and plunder to subsidize the church's expenses as before.

If things had gone this way, they would have starved to death long ago without using connections.

Seemingly sensing his disciple's confusion, Zhongli Wu quickly offered an explanation.

"Don't blame that girl, Empress. It was I who refused her!"

"I am aware of the treasury deficit, and although you have left behind a lot of wealth, it is absolutely insufficient to support the Empress's ambitious plans to reform the empire at that time."

"That's why I handed over the proceeds from the confiscation of her property to her, at least to hold out until you return."

"I could tell that the girl didn't really want the money at the time, but I had to bring you up before she reluctantly accepted it."

Upon hearing this, Lin Po nodded knowingly. In an instant, he felt an overwhelming sense of emotion and pride, and a gentle smile appeared on his lips.

"I knew it, Sister Lexuan isn't that kind of person."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhongli Wu feigned disgust and complained about Lin Po, this irresponsible holy son.

In the end, it even took on a slightly sarcastic tone.

"Yes~ You, Sister Lexuan, are the best~ A dignified Holy Son, you don't even care if the followers of the New Holy Church under your command are starving."

Lin Po: "." Why does everyone seem so strange after I came back from being away for five months?
It's one thing for Kong Deming to behave like this, but even his own teacher is acting like this.

Just as Lin Po was about to use the same trick again to comfort Zhong Liwu, a flash of inspiration suddenly appeared in his mind.

Kong Deming was indeed in the wrong, but Zhongliwu's situation was different. If I remember correctly, the New Holy Church had a stable income!
Having figured this out, Lin Po immediately retorted.

"Don't try to fool me, old man! If I remember correctly, Wu San sends a lot of funds to the New Holy Sect every quarter, averaging at least ten or twenty million a month. Isn't that enough for you?"

"Besides, isn't the Xishui Alliance, this underground force in Mingdu, also ours? Even if our income has decreased significantly due to the current martial law, we should still have a few million in revenue each month."

Unexpectedly, before Lin Po could finish speaking, Zhongli Wu's old face turned completely black, and the corners of his mouth twitched incessantly.

This startled Lin Po, who immediately stopped talking and turned to calm his teacher, who was about to explode.

"The teacher's first mistake was exposing your shortcomings, so we don't have to go this far, do we?"

"Get lost! Do you think I'm such a petty person?! This has nothing to do with you!"

Lin Po was puzzled by Zhong Liwu's reaction, but in order to find out what was going on, he hurriedly asked again.

"What's going on? How can the dignified leader of the Holy Church be stumped by money?"

Hearing his disciple's question, Zhongli Wu felt somewhat helpless and had no way to express his feelings. After sitting opposite him for a long time, he finally slowly revealed the truth.

"You know about the Xishui Alliance. As the largest underground force in Mingdu, their monthly income is quite considerable."

But as you saw, the Holy Church's life before was not very wealthy; it only improved after Wu San rose to power.

Lin Po nodded in agreement after hearing this, and then asked the crucial question.

"What about the money?"

"Sigh, it's all because of Mother. She's researching an unprecedented level 10 soul tool, I think it's called 'Death Tower,' and the resources she consumes every moment are astronomical."

"The gold soul coins used in the past few years are almost equal to the total tax revenue of the Sun Moon Empire over fifteen, no, twenty years."

"Where does the money come from? No matter how much money the Xishui Alliance can make, its sphere of influence is only one Mingdu. It's not enough for Mother's research."

So the shortfall just has to come from the Holy Church's accounts.

Zhongli Wu's tone was very bitter, giving people the impression that he had met the wrong person.

Lin Po suddenly realized why Zhong Liwu always looked so worried whenever he saw him before.

So, they don't have the money to pay their followers' salaries.

It's no wonder he was so eager to get on Xu Tianran's good side; probably, a major reason was to make money from him.

"There's another question. How's the Supreme Master's research on that level ten soul tool going? Has it been successful? How powerful is it?"

It would have been better if this hadn't been brought up, because Zhongli Wu became even angrier when it was, and he started cursing loudly.

"Strong? Forget about its power, I've never even seen that thing before! I only recently learned its name! My mother didn't either."

At the same time, two somewhat familiar dark figures suddenly appeared in the courtyard, one of them staring intently at Zhongli Wu, who was about to continue complaining.

Sensing something was wrong, Lin Po quickly used his soul power to stop his teacher, whose death star was flashing, from uttering the words that were about to come out.

"Hmm? Why are you stopping your master, disciple? Let me continue."

Ye Xishui: "Continue with what?"

Zhongliwu: "."

Holy crap? That voice? When did Mother arrive? Why didn't this rebellious disciple inform his master beforehand?
Then, quite readily, he stood up, turned around at a thirty-degree angle, and said respectfully:

May Mother be blessed with good health and happiness!

Lin Po: “.”

This teacher is unbearable to look at!
(End of this chapter)