Rakshasa Demonic Thought

Shang An sensed his Psychic Power touch something, and at once, a deeply rooted demonic thought appeared within Bibi Dong's mind.

"Rakshasa Demonic Thought!"

Shang An sensed a black mist within Bibi Dong's mind—evil, yet carrying a faintly lofty aura.

Could the Rakshasa God be deliberately influencing Bibi Dong's mind?

Perhaps the Rakshasa God's inheritance was a trap as well.

Come to think of it, both the Sea God and Asura God's inheritances were practically cheats. Not only did they raise Spirit Ring ages, but they also offered benefits such as God-Given Spirit Rings and Tide Body Refinement. The Asura God had even directly skipped the first eight trials.

But what about the Rakshasa God's inheritance? Not only did it require Bibi Dong to spend decades slowly completing the inheritance of the god position, but aside from a Rakshasa Demon Scythe, it offered no rewards at all. Later on, the Rakshasa inheritance even limited her strength.

What kind of Deity sabotaged its own inheritor like this?

Moreover, Bibi Dong could be said to have been the first to begin a God Trial, yet she was the last to become a god. It just so happened that she only became one after Tang San had become a god.

And in the later stages, Bibi Dong had clearly suffered a severe drop in intelligence, making a string of irrational decisions. One had to know that beneath Bibi Dong's soft and beautiful exterior was a proud heart that tolerated no one standing above her.

She was not someone who indulged her emotions. In the original story, she had been skilled at forbearance. Whether Qian Xunji, her teacher, had taken her body from her, or whether she had possessed peak Rank 99 Soul Power yet suffered setbacks at Tang Hao's hands due to the Rakshasa God Trial's restrictions, she had remained unmoved, merely waiting to settle everything together later.

To ensure that her second Martial Soul's Spirit Ring configuration could reach its limit, she had concealed the existence of that second Martial Soul all along. Only after inheriting the position of Pope, when she could obtain the greatest amount of resources, had she revealed that secret.

When dealing with subordinates who failed in their duties, Bibi Dong would directly kill them if her temper flared. Yet compared to acting on her temper, she cared more about the bigger picture and would suppress her killing intent when the plan required it.

Yet such an intelligent, patient empress with a sense of the greater good repeatedly seemed to lose her wits when facing Tang San and his group, making many wrong decisions.

If this were merely some melodramatic novel, it could be said that the author had forcibly dumbed her down. But now that he was in a real world, he did not believe there were no other influencing factors involved.

Shang An even felt that the Angel God worshipped by Spirit Hall might have suffered disaster as well. Qian Renxue's God Trial had actually been broadcast live, and she had even fallen in love with her enemy Tang San because of it, showing mercy time and again. Wasn't that horrifying when one thought about it?

And perhaps Bibi Dong had merely been made a scapegoat, someone for the Asura God to vent his anger on and to pave the way for his inheritor. Later on, the Rakshasa Demonic Thought had clearly gravely affected her resolve.

The reason she had thought of Yu Xiaogang rather than her own daughter even before her death might have been that Bibi Dong had been deeply influenced by the Rakshasa Demonic Thought, making Yu Xiaogang her only light.

Then those conspiracy theories from his previous life really might have been possible!

Tang San was very likely the inheritor the Asura God had prepared in advance. Tang San's transmigration might also have been related to the Asura God. After all, how could the appearances and names of herbs in two different worlds possibly be exactly the same?

Shang An had never heard of any Immortal Herbs in his previous life.

Looking at it this way, the entire Douluo Continent was a grand chessboard.

If one entered the game without knowing anything, the loss would probably not merely be total ruin—it would be the scattering of one's soul.

He would have to be more cautious in the future. Before he had grown strong enough, Shang An did not have the confidence to confront the Asura God head-on.

"Looks like I can only take the initiative and plant a Seed of Heart."

For the time being, Shang An had no way to remove the Rakshasa Demonic Thought. As long as Bibi Dong possessed Rakshasa Divine Power within her body, the Rakshasa Demonic Thought, which relied on that divine power, would continue to affect her.

Given his current relationship with Bibi Dong, even if he persuaded her to give up the Rakshasa God Position, she might not listen. She might even regard him as someone with ulterior motives.

But neither could he simply allow the Rakshasa Demonic Thought to influence Bibi Dong and lead her down the old path.

Still, it was not as though there was no way to suppress it. Shang An's Way of the Great Freedom Heavenly Demon was rooted in the mind, and the Seed of Heart it produced affected people in ways the Rakshasa Demonic Thought could not compare to. Naturally, it could suppress that demonic thought.

Shang An began circulating his Psychic Power at full force, continuously soothing Bibi Dong's mind. Carefully bypassing her mental defenses, he probed again and again until he finally entered a hidden place within her mind.

The Seed of Heart was actually formless and intangible. It did not belong to matter, nor even to spirit, and no method could detect it.

To be precise, from the moment it was born, it became a part of the living being's own mind. Even Shang An could only sense and condense a Seed of Heart through the Great Freedom Heavenly Demon Lord.

If it condensed passively, of course, there was no need for so much trouble. But since Shang An was actively condensing it, he had to proceed with great care, afraid that a single mistake might trigger a backlash from Bibi Dong's mind.

A long while later...

After finishing everything, Shang An let out a long breath. The gap between Bibi Dong's cultivation and his own was simply too great. This had been rather difficult for him, but fortunately, he had succeeded.

His eyelids fluttered open and shut. Once Shang An relaxed, he fell into a deep sleep.

Sunlight streamed through the curtains.

Bibi Dong slowly opened her eyes.

She only felt utterly relaxed, as if a great stone pressing upon her body had silently been removed.

Looking at the sleeping Shang An, Bibi Dong stroked his face. Her expression was gentle, and there was even a trace of doting affection in her eyes.

"This boy really sleeps deeply."

Suddenly, she leaned her head closer.

A long while later,

Shang An woke up. Looking at the blazing sun outside the window, it was clearly already noon.

"Looks like it worked, though the expenditure really was quite large."

At the very least, Shang An still felt as though his head were splitting apart. His Psychic Power had been overdrawn.

He arrived at the rear hall of Pope Palace.

Bibi Dong was inside handling official business.

When she saw Shang An arrive, Bibi Dong smiled and waved him over.

"Xiao An, come sit here."

Shang An did not stand on ceremony and sat directly beside Bibi Dong.

Bibi Dong seemed somewhat dissatisfied and directly pulled Shang An onto her lap.

"Xiao An, while cultivation requires diligent practice, you must also pay attention to balancing work and rest."

It seemed Bibi Dong believed he had overexerted himself through meditation cultivation. That was fine too—it saved him from having to find an excuse.

"Mm, Teacher, I understand."

Seeing Shang An's obedient appearance, Bibi Dong could not help pinching his cheek again.

"You really are too self-disciplined."

"You don't need to go to the academy today. Teacher has already asked for leave for you. Stay and have a meal with Teacher."

"Okay. I wanted to have a meal with Teacher too."

Shang An did not object. His current condition was not suitable for attending class anyway.

The two of them enjoyed a lovely lunch in Pope Palace.

During the meal, Bibi Dong continuously fed Shang An until he was a little stuffed.

Afterward, Bibi Dong held Shang An like that while handling official business. Looking at the complicated affairs, Shang An offered timely suggestions based on the knowledge from his previous life.

This surprised and delighted Bibi Dong. She also pinched Shang An's face hard, expressing her affection.

Shang An checked on the Seed of Heart and was surprised to find that Bibi Dong's Seed of Heart was rapidly growing stronger.

Shang An had once tried to quantify favorability with numerical values. Through the Seed of Heart, he could determine the specific value of someone's favorability or loyalty.

0–20: Friends / belief

21–40: Good friends / trust

41–50: Close friends / conviction

51–60: Intimates / respect

61–70: True love / loyalty

71–80: Unwavering devotion / fanatical loyalty

81–90: Love or loyalty surpassing everything

91–99: Love and loyalty undying through Reincarnation. Even after reincarnation, they would remain difficult to erase. (The higher the value, the harder it was to erase.)

100: Love and loyalty etched into the true spirit, impossible to erase. At this point, no matter how many reincarnations one underwent, how much time passed, or what one experienced, it could not be changed.

Once another person's favorability toward Shang An exceeded forty, they would gradually condense a Seed of Heart on their own.

In truth, the favorability between most couples was probably only around forty or fifty.

Even for Tang San and Xiao Wu's inseparable love, given Xiao Wu's temperament of giving up everything for love, it would at most be in the eighties.

Throughout history, the loyalty of countless righteous men and loyal ministers had also struggled to reach ninety.

In those ancient and modern love stories of unwavering devotion unto death, the feelings between the male and female leads were mostly only in the seventies or eighties.

As for those who reached ninety, there might have been some, but only a handful. The farther one went, the harder it became to increase favorability.

Shang An's Seed of Heart was equivalent to both a favorability amplifier and a limiter remover. It could steadily raise others' favorability toward Shang An until it eventually reached one hundred.

At that moment, Shang An discovered that Bibi Dong's favorability toward him had actually reached the sixties. It could be called true love.

Even Hu Liena, that innocent girl who had condensed a Seed of Heart on her own, was currently only a little above sixty. Yet Bibi Dong had surpassed her in an instant.

After carefully sensing the changes in Bibi Dong's mind, Shang An gave a bitter laugh inwardly.

He had not expected Bibi Dong to regard him as a substitute for Qian Renxue and Yu Xiaogang. She was expressing both maternal love and romantic affection toward him.

But this was fine as well. It could rapidly increase Bibi Dong's favorability.

At dinnertime, Hu Liena came over as well, claiming that she had come to visit her teacher.

But from those large eyes of hers that kept glancing at Shang An, it was obvious what her real purpose was.

She leaned close to Shang An's ear and whispered,

"Junior Brother, did Teacher punish you?"

"Why have you stayed in Pope Palace all day instead of coming to class?"

"Teacher is just too strict."

"No, I just felt a little unwell. I probably cultivated for too long."

Shang An dealt with her while glaring at her, telling her to be careful—Bibi Dong was listening.

Hu Liena might have spoken softly, but to a Title Douluo like Bibi Dong, it was no different from shouting through a loudspeaker.

Bibi Dong pretended not to hear what the two little ones were saying. She was their teacher, so she should be magnanimous.

Hm, Nana clings to Xiao An all day. Not only does she affect Xiao An, but she is also delaying her own cultivation. It seems I should send her to Devil Training Camp for some training.

Bibi Dong had long made plans for Devil Training Camp. The idea had come from the Capital of Slaughter. Hu Liena and several geniuses from Spirit Hall Academy would all participate, and Spirit Hall's Golden Generation would be selected from among them.

Since Hu Liena was so idle, she might as well start the plan a little earlier. Her cultivation was sufficient now; she merely lacked experience.

Of course, Xiao An did not need to go. His talent was already excellent, and he cultivated seriously enough. It was better for him to stay in Spirit Hall and keep her, his teacher, company.

Hu Liena was still happily chatting with Shang An, completely unaware that her petty teacher had already arranged everything for her.