Bibi Dong (Part 2) (5,000 Today)

It was precisely Yu Xiaogang's current downfall that allowed Bibi Dong to fantasize about another timeline—one where Yu Xiaogang displayed wisdom surpassing his predecessors and You Chen, achieved extraordinary accomplishments, and then shared a perfect, harmonious life with her.

But how Bibi Dong maintained that perfect Brother Xiaogang in her mind was beside the point.

What mattered was that the abilities You Chen displayed were powerful enough to shake Bibi Dong's imagined version of things.

In a sense, You Chen was the perfect upgraded version of Yu Xiaogang, someone who perfectly fit Bibi Dong's ideal image of her white moonlight.

If You Chen had not been so young back then, there was a high chance Bibi Dong would have fallen for him before she ever fell for Yu Xiaogang.

If not for the incident where You Chen had humiliated Yu Xiaogang so thoroughly in the soul master world, Bibi Dong's feelings toward You Chen would probably have been simple admiration.

But then again, without that incident, You Chen would never have risen to prominence at that age, much less used Qian Xunji's influence to obtain resources for himself.

Then his story would likely not have become the inspirational tale it was now, of decades of perseverance, breaking through his own bottleneck, and proving his talent.

All of those were meaningless hypotheticals anyway.

Having become Pope, Bibi Dong no longer expected love. All that remained was an obsession twisted out of love.

To put it simply: So what if he perfectly matched her tastes? She no longer had any such nonsensical thing as sexual desire! All she wanted was to destroy this nonsensical Spirit Hall and rape this shitty, fucked-up world!

It was not entirely equivalent, but that was roughly the meaning.

More than seventy percent of Bibi Dong's desire to recruit You Chen likely came from how highly she valued his abilities.

Back when Qian Xunji was still alive, she had looked at You Chen and felt that he was merely someone Qian Xunji had forcibly propped up, not worth even a fraction of her Brother Xiaogang.

Then she took power herself, especially after reading You Chen's masterwork...

Heh, well damn. So this guy was actually that incredible!?

He had not been some fraud Qian Xunji had forcibly flattered into prominence—he was a true great scholar!?

Different positions naturally gave one different perspectives.

It was like playing Douluo Hegemony RTS and seeing a hero unit at the Hero Altar that one normally had to pick without thinking.

Even with his past disrespect toward her "Brother Xiaogang," Bibi Dong still decided to humble herself and recruit worthy talent.

As for how she had targeted You Chen at every turn because she thought his reputation exceeded his abilities and that he was inferior to Xiaogang?

She was the Pope and did not care anymore. Was You Chen, a mere employee of Spirit Hall, really going to hold a grudge against his superior?

Did he still want to keep working or not?

It had to be said beforehand that Bibi Dong truly harbored no malicious intentions in recruiting You Chen—at least, none directed at You Chen himself.

At most, because You Chen had once been the enlightenment teacher of the daughter she hated, Bibi Dong hid a twisted desire to snatch You Chen away from Qian Renxue. By making You Chen serve her, she wanted Qian Renxue to have a taste of being cuckolded too.

Other than that, once she fulfilled her wish of revenge by "destroying Spirit Hall" or "destroying the world," she would destroy You Chen alongside everyone else, without distinction.

Before then, You Chen was unlikely to face any danger to his life.

Yet the information gap between them made it impossible for You Chen to join Bibi Dong's side without knowing whether she had let go of what happened back then.

This only made Bibi Dong hate him more, transferring part of her hatred for the Qian Clan onto You Chen as well. Her hostility toward him escalated completely.

She could no longer spare any appreciation for You Chen's wisdom and ability, and wanted nothing more than to kill him as soon as possible.

But because of Qian Daoliu and Qian Renxue, she could not openly move to kill You Chen.

That was why she later listed You Chen's works as forbidden books and repeatedly began suppressing him in public.

On one hand, Bibi Dong deeply admired You Chen. On the other, she wanted to tear him into eight pieces. Yet she could neither bring him under her command nor truly exterminate him...

In short, it was all incredibly tiresome.

In fact, Hu Liena had gone to harass You Chen entirely because Bibi Dong had secretly prompted her to do so.

Of course, Bibi Dong would not give direct orders to her favorite disciple, who was still only a child. With her methods, a few verbal influences were enough to naturally make Hu Liena act that way.

Her purpose was extremely simple, with none of the other schemes You Chen had imagined. She merely wanted to disgust him.

Damn it, she had finally become Pope, yet the Worship Hall was behind her and she still had to put up with those old geezers. Now she could not even deal with a mere Research Institute Professor?

How could that possibly satisfy Bibi Dong?

So even if it brought no benefit and served no purpose, even if it only disgusted You Chen, she still wanted to do it!

She suddenly remembered You Chen's application for reassignment, and the corners of her lips unconsciously curled upward.

You couldn't endure it anymore, could you!? You actually chose to exile yourself to such a remote place. How utterly ridiculous, how hilarious! Hehehehe! You Chen, I really do love your clown performance!

But soon, her expression darkened again.

Damn it! If you run that far away, doesn't that mean I can't keep having fun with you? If I can't see you every day, clearly suffering and yet unable to resist, how am I supposed to have an appetite!? Damn it! Damn it all!

With a gloomy face, she looked at her aide. "Have you finished investigating? Is there anything suspicious about the people You Chen invited, or that banquet?"

Feeling the malice and oppressive aura naturally emanating from Bibi Dong, the aide trembled as he knelt. "Your Holiness, nothing unusual has been found. Those people were You Chen's classmates and teachers from when he studied at Spirit Hall Academy more than twenty years ago. We found no records of them having close contact with You Chen before this. It appears that You Chen merely intended to reconnect with his former classmates one last time before leaving Spirit City."

Bibi Dong narrowed her eyes. "Do not let your guard down just because nothing suspicious has appeared yet! Continue tracking and investigating. Do not miss any intelligence. If you discover that they are contacting one another in secret, report to me immediately."

Reconnecting with old friends?

Bibi Dong sneered inwardly.

That man was not a completely rational monster, but he was certainly not someone who cared deeply about emotions.

From Bibi Dong's perspective, even Yan, the disciple he valued greatly now, would most likely be abandoned without hesitation if You Chen's own safety were truly endangered!

After all, there had already been a precedent...

However, Yan had grown up alongside Hu Liena and Xie Yue, and You Chen had never instilled any improper ideas about her into Yan from beginning to end. Thus, Bibi Dong had not given much thought to targeting Yan.

In Bibi Dong's eyes, You Chen's behavior was less coldheartedness than... caution!

You Chen, do you really not want me to catch you with any leverage?

A cold glint flashed in Bibi Dong's eyes.

This man was unexpectedly... law-abiding!

He had never mentioned to anyone that he had once been Qian Renxue's teacher. Even Yan, his current disciple, did not know that he actually had a senior sister, much less that You Chen had ever used this connection to claim special privileges.

To truly strike at You Chen's weak point, she would likely have to find proof that he harbored ill intent toward Spirit Hall. Then even Qian Daoliu would have nothing to say. At that point, Bibi Dong could use entirely legitimate means to imprison You Chen, or even execute him!

Of course, Qian Daoliu might have nothing to say, but Qian Renxue was another matter...

But Bibi Dong at this time did not know that she still harbored maternal love for Qian Renxue in her heart. In her eyes, as long as she dealt with Qian Daoliu, nothing else would be a problem.

For now, let this be some amusement before I establish the Spirit Hall Empire.

That was what Bibi Dong thought.

This matter held no great necessity in her mind. After You Chen rejected her recruitment, his future fate had already been decided by her.

Even if this game of cat and mouse failed, it would only mean killing him a little later.

In the blink of an eye, the banquet held at You Chen's residence came to an end.

The entire banquet lasted more than half a month. Whether it was the banquet itself or the expenses of taking his former classmates around Spirit City, it was no small cost for a Soul Ancestor.

But no matter how one looked at it, it had been an entirely ordinary reception.

The Pope's Hall spies found nothing suspicious.

Bibi Dong's instincts kept telling her that You Chen's purpose could not be so simple, but the Pope had countless affairs to manage. For the sake of her great revenge, all other matters had to step aside, so she had no time to keep watching You Chen.

In truth, however, You Chen had already accomplished his goal.

It was worth mentioning that while the Pope had temporarily stopped focusing on You Chen, one little tail remained stubbornly unwilling to give up on finding You Chen's "evil evidence"...