I remember a reader commenting just as I started writing the Spirit Hall plot: "Whatever you do, don't let Bibi Dong fall for Yu Xiaogang again. That would ruin the whole story."
That was when I realized I had a problem. I'd written myself into a plot point readers would hate, but I had little room to change it. My habit was to stockpile dozens of chapters rather than post them as soon as I finished them. By the time I saw the issue, it was too late to revise what I had written. The plot I'd planned also gave me room only to skim over that part, not tear it all down and start again. That was how that chapter came about.
That doesn't mean Bibi Dong and Yu Xiaogang would fall in love in my story.
In my plot, Qian Xunji and Qian Renxue would each weave an illusion for the other. I originally planned to use those illusions to show why Bibi Dong had suddenly fallen for Yu Xiaogang, then turn everything on its head at the end.
Since that part of the plot hasn't gone over well, I won't keep you guessing.
In my outline—
The Rakshasa God chose Bibi Dong long ago, so he had Qian Xunji cultivate her. In other words, you could think of Qian Xunji as the Rakshasa God's Great Enshrined!
Qian Xunji was obsessed with God Creation. He was even more fanatical than Qian Daoliu: Qian Daoliu cared only about the Angel God, while Qian Xunji wasn't choosy about which god he served.
Qian Xunji's plan was to raise Bibi Dong into a sweet, naive girl, then quietly allow Yu Xiaogang to get close to her. After that, he would destroy everything good she believed in, driving her darkest impulses to