Shang An Takes a Beating

Ni Huang, hiding in the shadows, watched as Qian Renxue transformed into the likeness of Bibi Dong, feeling slightly dazed. This disguise soul skill was truly formidable; even she hadn't been able to spot a single flaw.

In that moment of hesitation, Qian Renxue stepped onto the large bed. After a brief moment of indecision, Ni Huang chose not to reveal herself; Xiao An must have had his own plans for sleeping there.

Shang An, who had kept his Taiyi Dharma Domain active even in his sleep, remained undiscovered by her. As she usually did, she lifted the quilt and lay down on the bed.

Soon, Qian Renxue, exhausted from a long day, drifted into sleep. In his slumber, Shang An felt the presence of his "Pope-brand" pillow in a hazy state, pulling her into his Taiyi Dharma Domain and instinctively wrapping his arms around her.

Qian Renxue slept soundly. Because Shang An had spent years hugging his Pope-brand pillow, his body carried the scent of Bibi Dong. Qian Renxue felt as if she had been embraced by her mother, sleeping with great peace of mind without being startled awake.

Ni Huang, meanwhile, remained loyally hidden in the shadows, keeping watch. For a Title Douluo, sleep was of little consequence.

The first ray of morning light pierced through the clouds, passed through the curtains, and struck the head of the bed.

Shang An woke from his daze. This sleep had been quite comfortable, and he was still with his teacher—wait!

Wasn't I waiting for her to return in Qian Renxue's bedchamber?

The confusion in Shang An's eyes vanished in an instant. He opened his eyes, and before him was indeed the appearance of that mature Pope teacher.

"Teacher?"

Shang An murmured softly. No, this wasn't his teacher. How could his teacher appear in Qian Renxue's bedchamber? Shang An probed with his spiritual power, only to discover that her soul signature was different from his teacher's.

She is Qian Renxue!

Perhaps the scent of a body could be simulated, but the signature of a soul was extremely difficult to mimic. Although Qian Renxue's soul bone skill had changed her outward appearance, the core remained different.

This only worked because the Douluo system was backward and could not detect the existence of a soul. Shang An simply hadn't noticed these details in his sleep last night, having mistaken her for his exclusive Pope-brand pillow.

However, why would she transform into his teacher's likeness? Could it be that this young girl, having lacked maternal love for so long, had developed some kind of complex?

While Qian Renxue was still asleep, Shang An prepared to leave, but the moment he moved, he sensed something was wrong.

He was trying to withdraw the hand that had been misbehaving when Qian Renxue's eyelids fluttered—she was about to wake up.

Shang An cursed inwardly, closed his eyes, and decided to continue feigning sleep.

Qian Renxue slowly woke from her dream.

She hadn't slept this comfortably since arriving at the Heaven Dou Empire. She had even had a dream last night, dreaming that her mother had held her gently, stroking her hair and calling her Xue'er.

Thinking of this, a smile appeared on the corner of her lips. She subconsciously wanted to stretch, and then—

Qian Renxue suddenly realized something was wrong; it felt like something was pressing down on her!

She woke up instantly. How could this be? How could there be someone in her bedchamber?

In that instant, many thoughts raced through her mind.

Accustomed to the filth of politics, her first thought was that someone was trying to frame her. But then she felt that wasn't right; even if they wanted to frame her, it shouldn't be like this. She was the dignified Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire; even if she were to share a bed with a woman—wait!

Qian Renxue felt a firm chest beside her. This felt like a man!

She had actually shared a bed with a man.

What was She Mao doing? He didn't even know someone had entered her bedchamber, or perhaps he knew but hadn't told her.

Feeling defiled, Qian Renxue was consumed by rage. She threw off the quilt, condensed her soul power in her palm, and prepared to strike this man who dared to defile her to death.

However, when she saw that face, which made the very heavens lose their luster, her hand faltered.

How could there be such a beautiful man in this world? Even though Qian Renxue was extremely confident in her own appearance and didn't believe anyone could compare to her, seeing this person, she couldn't help but think that if he were a woman, there would be no other beauty in this world.

But soon, Qian Renxue snapped out of her trance and swung her palm, though for some reason, she reduced the force by seventy or eighty percent.

At this moment, Shang An feigned the appearance of someone just waking up in a daze. Seeing Qian Renxue's light palm strike, he didn't even dodge. His Taiyi Immortal Origin Body was no pushover; the damage from this strike was comparable to a mosquito bite.

However, he still pretended to be injured. Circulating his soul power, he spat a mouthful of blood onto the bed, his face turning pale.

He transformed from a handsome youth into a sickly beauty, still a peerless sight, but now with an added air of fragility that invited pity.

"Teacher, why do you hurt me?" Shang An wore an expression of disbelief, his eyes filled with sorrow.

"I..."

Seeing Shang An look at her like that, Qian Renxue suddenly felt as if she had become some great villain. Then, she reacted.

Teacher?

Right, she was still in that person's form. That meant this person was her disciple, that Holy Son of Spirit Hall? His appearance was indeed very similar to the one in the portraits, only much more handsome and mature.

No wonder he had the ability to sneak into her bedchamber; he likely had a guardian behind him.

Her thoughts shifted, and for reasons unknown, she did not explain her true identity.

"Why are you here?" Qian Renxue wasn't sure how close Shang An's relationship with Bibi Dong was, so she didn't answer directly but asked instead.

"Didn't you, Teacher, ask me to come?" Shang An said, looking a bit aggrieved. "You said you were worried about this Saintess lurking in Heaven Dou and asked me to come over quietly to take a look."

She... she also cares about me in secret?

A ripple stirred in her heart, but Qian Renxue remained composed on the surface. "I asked you to come take a look, and you just came to look at the bed?"

"That Saintess hadn't returned yet, so I accidentally fell asleep on this bed," Shang An said, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve. He continued, "Besides, didn't you betroth her to me? There shouldn't be any problem with me sleeping on my future wife's bed, right?"

Betrothed to him? Although Shang An did indeed meet her standards for a partner, that woman had never cared about her, so what right did she have to interfere in her marriage?

Even if Shang An might be the only genius on the Douluo Continent not inferior to herself, and even if he truly fit the image of a husband in her heart, she would not acknowledge this marriage arrangement until he had earned her approval.

"Teacher, you aren't lying to me, are you? I only reluctantly agreed because I heard that the Saintess is very beautiful. If she turns out to be some burly, big-eared brute, then I definitely don't want her."

Watching Shang An's look of utter disdain, though she had no idea what he was imagining, a few black lines appeared on Qian Renxue's forehead, and her delicate fists clenched tightly beneath her wide sleeves.

You're the one who's burly and big-eared! I don't even want to marry you!

Hold it in, I am Bibi Dong right now, I am Bibi Dong.

After hypnotizing herself, Qian Renxue's expression returned to calm: "Do you still remember what I told you?"

Shang An sneered inwardly; this attempt to fish for information was far too obvious, but he decided to play along with Qian Renxue's act.

"Teacher, you said that you have always felt sorry for her, but there are some things you still cannot let go of, which is why you have been unwilling to see her. You asked me to come and check on her situation for you."

Hearing Shang An's words, Qian Renxue's heart wavered. Could it be that she really does care about me? Does she actually love me?

"Teacher, what's wrong?"

Seeing Qian Renxue stunned, Shang An stepped forward, grabbed her hand, and began kneading it between his own, asking with a look of concern.

Qian Renxue's focus was immediately pulled back. She felt a warm, large hand gripping her small one, and her nose caught the scent of the masculine aura so close to her.

Startled, she wanted to pull her hand away. From childhood until now, she had never been this close to any man, but Shang An held her hand tightly, as if protecting some precious treasure.

Thinking that she still needed to extract information from Shang An and could not expose her identity, she forced herself to suppress the urge to shake him off and revealed a gentle smile:

"Teacher is fine. Let me ask you, do you think what I'm doing is really right? Isn't it too unfair to the Saintess of my Spirit Hall? She knows nothing, yet she has always been loathed by me."

Shang An shook his head: "I know that Teacher is actually a very gentle person. There must be a reason why you are doing this."

A reason? Qian Renxue felt a bitter taste in her heart. Is there really any reason that could justify her ignoring her own daughter, or even treating her like an enemy?