"You're not only exceptionally gifted, you also love learning and thinking. You're the second-smartest person in the world I've ever met..."
"Huh!?"
At that, Feng Xinglie's heart gave a jolt:
Wait, what? Bro???
As he struggled inwardly, Bibi Dong continued:
"Though you'll never surpass him and take first place, I have some theories he wrote himself. Take them and study them carefully. You'll surely benefit greatly, and perhaps one day you'll display a little of his brilliance."
Feng Xinglie looked up. A thin booklet floated toward him, carried by Soul Power. The words Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul were clearly written on its cover.
"Study the knowledge in it carefully. Don't let those useless things hold you back. Understand?"
Seeing Feng Xinglie holding Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul without replying, Bibi Dong assumed he'd been awestruck by her beloved's theories. She didn't notice his hands trembling slightly from how tightly he gripped the book.
"Your subordinate... will obey!"
Bibi Dong found it strange. Why had Feng Xinglie's last words sounded as if he'd forced them through clenched teeth? But before she could think it over, Feng Xinglie said:
"I'll study the book bestowed upon me by His Holiness the Pope with all due care. I'll go to the Library now and compare it with the classics of old, diligently studying its essence."
After saying this, he bowed to Bibi Dong, turned, and headed out. The others exchanged bewildered looks. Feng Xinglie had always waited for the Pope to dismiss him before leaving. What was going on with him today? Bibi Dong, however, assumed he was so excited to receive Yu Xiaogang's Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul that he couldn't wait to get back and study it. She let it go, feeling a hint of pride that her beloved's work had finally been recognized.
"Heh... me? One day, I might display a little of Yu Xiaogang's brilliance?"
In an empty corner, Feng Xinglie's smile fell away, his expression twisting with anger. His right hand, braced against a stone pillar, suddenly clenched. His five fingers sank deep into the hard rock, leaving cracks in their wake. Then he thrust his palm forward. Without a sound, the pillar—thick enough for three people to wrap their arms around—exploded, and fragments rained down from above.
"Phew... the thing I feared most still happened. Yu Xiaogang really is a ticking time bomb."
After venting a little, he finally regained his composure. But what had happened today had sounded a clear alarm.
With Feng Xinglie's current influence, quietly killing a useless piece of trash who was only Level 29 would be a piece of cake. But Feng Xinglie understood that Yu Xiaogang was Bibi Dong's only emotional anchor during the darkest period of her life. When she couldn't see him and was confined to the secret chamber, she kept reliving their happy past to help herself endure. In her heart, she had also placed a divine halo around Yu Xiaogang.
It could be said that Bibi Dong didn't love the real Yu Xiaogang now, but the flawless Yu Xiaogang she had built up in her heart while trapped in despair. After all, the only thing more powerful than an unattainable first love was one you could never see again. It made people overlook every flaw in reality and glorify him endlessly in their memories. That was also why Feng Xinglie didn't dare kill Yu Xiaogang outright.
"Qian Xunji, Qian Xunji—you just had to kick the bucket and leave me this mess."
He irritably pressed his fingers to his temples. Bibi Dong's plan to leave Spirit Hall and elope with Yu Xiaogang had left plenty of room for maneuvering, but Qian Xunji had chosen the most extreme solution, and it had ultimately brought about this bitter outcome.
"Better to be cautious and not act rashly. I'll probe things first."
Having made up his mind, Feng Xinglie hurried off toward the Library.
Pope's Palace.
Bibi Dong was handling official business when she suddenly heard the doors crash open. Looking up, she saw Feng Xinglie approaching her with an angry expression.
"Lie, what happened?"
She rarely saw Feng Xinglie so worked up, and immediately asked what was wrong.
"Your Holiness the Pope, which scoundrel stole Spirit Hall's intelligence and came up with this set of crooked theories? And there are so many glaring errors! If this gets out, won't it make Spirit Hall look like a fool!?"
At that, Bibi Dong's expression immediately darkened.
"Lie, what do you mean by that? You need evidence before you make accusations. Do you think there's something wrong with the theory I gave you?"
Normally, Feng Xinglie would have lowered his head and admitted his mistake by now. But today, he retorted, still furious:
"Though I don't know what method that person used to deceive Your Holiness, just look at what's written here!
'The strength of one's Martial Soul is directly proportional to the amount of Innate Soul Power'? Isn't that common knowledge? Is it worth singling out? I've never seen anyone with a top-tier Martial Soul and low Innate Soul Power.
"And this one: 'A Beast Martial Soul doesn't necessarily have to absorb Soul Rings from beasts, and a weapon Martial Soul doesn't necessarily have to absorb Soul Rings from non-beasts.' Isn't that stating the obvious? Have Clear Sky Hammers been absorbing Soul Rings from hammer Soul Beasts all along?
"And these limits on the number of years a Soul Ring can be absorbed, precise down to the year. Without access to a database on the scale of Spirit Hall's, who could gather such precise information from Soul Masters across the entire continent?
"And this point here was already mentioned in Spirit Hall's records..."
As Feng Xinglie ranted indignantly over the books from the Library he'd spread across the table, proving that Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul had plagiarized their contents, Bibi Dong felt her head spinning.
"Could... Xiaogang be wrong?"
With ironclad facts laid out before her, even Bibi Dong could no longer deceive herself. The towering image of Yu Xiaogang in her heart had developed a crack. As her emotions churned, that wisp of Rakshasa Divine Sense silently rose, and countless whispers filled her mind. Already flustered, she saw Feng Xinglie still chattering on and felt anger flare up for no reason. In an instant, a vast wave of Soul Power sent the entire table and all the books on it flying.
"Enough! Get out! All of you, get out!"
Seeing Bibi Dong lose control, Feng Xinglie didn't hesitate for a second. He turned tail and fled from Pope's Palace.
"This is even more troublesome than I expected. It's not just a long-standing emotional wound—there's a deity meddling, too. Do I really have to make a trip to Shrek Academy?"
Back in his office, Feng Xinglie irritably raked his fingers through his hair. Bibi Dong's condition was even worse than he'd expected. If he didn't resolve it quickly, most of his plans for the future couldn't even get off the ground. In fact, he'd been planning a trip to Shrek Academy for a long time and had already laid a lot of groundwork. After all, in Feng Xinglie's view, he stood to gain enormously from making the trip.
He could sow discord within the Protagonist Group and even dismantle the Shrek Seven Devils from within.
He could snatch Tang San's opportunities. If he intervened, he could greatly weaken Tang San's strength in the early stages.
Though it wasn't very likely, Qian Xunji was dead now, and Tang Hao's grudge had essentially been settled in exchange for a life. There was also a way to revive Ah Yin in the future. What's more, Tang San had looked after the broken Tang Hao for years when he was a child, which showed that there was still a good side to him. His nature only changed drastically later on. With enough guidance in the early stages, perhaps this grudge could be resolved.
Most importantly, he could meet Yu Xiaogang. Once they met, what Yu Xiaogang had said and done would be up to Feng Xinglie to decide. If he could show Bibi Dong what that useless man was really like, he could gradually shatter her unrealistic, beautiful fantasy.
Before you continue