You, Second Under Heaven

"You are not only exceptionally talented, but you also love to study and think the most. You are the second smartest person I have ever met in this world..."

"Huh!?"

Hearing this, Feng Xinglie's heart skipped a beat:

"It's not me???"

While struggling internally, Bibi Dong continued, "Although you can't surpass him and become number one, I have some theories he personally wrote here. If you study them well, you will definitely benefit greatly, and perhaps you will have a bit of his demeanor in the future."

Feng Xinglie looked up and saw a thin booklet, supported by soul power, floating before his eyes. The cover read: Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul.

"You must study the knowledge within well and not be held back by useless things, understand?"

Seeing Feng Xinglie holding the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul without responding, Bibi Dong thought he was completely awestruck by her lover's theories, not noticing his hands trembling slightly from exertion.

"Your subordinate... obeys!"

Bibi Dong found it strange. Why did Feng Xinglie's words just now sound like they were squeezed from between his teeth? Before she could ponder further, Feng Xinglie said, "I will definitely study this book bestowed by Your Excellency the Pope diligently. Your subordinate will now go to the library to compare it with ancient classics and earnestly learn its essence."

After speaking, he bowed to Bibi Dong and turned to leave. This action made the others exchange bewildered glances. The Feng Xinglie of the past always waited obediently for the Pope's command before leaving. What was wrong with him today? Bibi Dong, however, mistook his eagerness to study the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul, gifted by Yu Xiaogang, as excitement, and didn't pursue it further. A sense of pride arose in her heart that "her beloved's achievements were finally recognized."

"Heh heh... me? Have a bit of Yu Xiaogang's demeanor in the future?"

In a secluded corner, Feng Xinglie dropped the smile from his face, his expression contorted with annoyance. He clenched his right hand, which was resting on a stone pillar, his five fingers digging deeply into the hard rock, causing it to crack. Then, he exerted force from his palm and pushed forward. Silently, the stone pillar, as thick as three people embracing, exploded, sending shattered stones raining down.

"Hoo... the thing I feared most has happened. Yu Xiaogang, that time bomb, is truly troublesome."

After a small outburst, he finally regained his composure. But the events of today had truly sounded an alarm bell for him.

With Feng Xinglie's current power, it would be effortless to kill a mere level 29 "iron waste" without a sound. But Feng Xinglie understood that Yu Xiaogang was the only spiritual sustenance in Bibi Dong's heart during her darkest moments. During the days she couldn't see Yu Xiaogang and was confined to a secret room, she constantly reminisced about the good old days to get through it, imbuing the Yu Xiaogang in her heart with a divine halo.

It could be said that what Bibi Dong loved now was not the real Yu Xiaogang, but the perfect, flawless Yu Xiaogang shaped in her heart during her desperate times. After all, what was more potent than a white moonlight was a white moonlight that couldn't be seen. This allowed one to overlook all the flaws in reality and beautify him in memories, which was also why Feng Xinglie dared not kill Yu Xiaogang.

"Qian Xunji, oh Qian Xunji, you kicked the bucket and left me with such a mess."

Annoyed, he rubbed his temples. Originally, Bibi Dong was going to leave the Martial Soul Hall and elope with Yu Xiaogang, and there was a lot of room for maneuver in this situation. But Qian Xunji chose the most extreme course of action, ultimately leading to dire consequences.

"I should be cautious and not act rashly. Let's test the waters first."

Having made up his mind, Feng Xinglie strode away, heading towards the library.

Pope's Palace.

Bibi Dong was handling official business when the door was suddenly violently pushed open. She looked up and saw Feng Xinglie walking towards her with an angry expression.

"Lie, what happened?"

Rarely seeing such strong emotional fluctuations from Feng Xinglie, Bibi Dong became curious and asked, "Your Excellency the Pope, which scoundrel stole the Martial Soul Hall's intelligence and concocted this heresy? More importantly, there are so many flaws. Won't this be a disgrace to our Martial Soul Hall if it gets out!?"

Hearing this, Bibi Dong's expression immediately turned grim:

"Lie, what do you mean by this? Speak with evidence. Do you think there's a problem with the theory I bestowed upon you?"

Normally, Feng Xinglie would have apologized immediately. But today, he retorted with a face full of anger:

"Although I don't know how that person deceived Your Excellency the Pope, look at what's written here?

Is the magnitude of Innate Soul Power directly proportional to the strength of the Martial Soul? Isn't this common knowledge? Is it worth mentioning separately? I've never seen a top-tier Martial Soul with low Innate Soul Power.

And this, beast-type Martial Souls don't necessarily have to absorb beast-type soul rings, and tool-type Martial Souls don't necessarily have to absorb non-beast-type soul rings? Isn't that stating the obvious? Did the Clear Sky Hammer always absorb soul rings from hammer-type soul beasts?

And these precise, down to the single digit, maximum absorption years for soul rings. If one didn't have the backing of a database like the Martial Soul Hall, how could they have compiled such specific data from soul masters across the continent?

And this point, it was already mentioned in the Martial Soul Hall's records..."

Looking at Feng Xinglie, who was indignantly presenting the books spread across the table, proving that the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul was plagiarized, Bibi Dong felt her head buzzing.

"Could it be... Xiaogang is wrong?"

With irrefutable evidence laid bare, no matter how much Bibi Dong tried to delude herself, the towering image of Yu Xiaogang in her heart finally fractured. As her emotions roiled, a sliver of the Rakshasa God's will quietly surfaced, and countless hushed whispers flooded her mind. Agitated and vexed, seeing Feng Xinglie still prattling on, she felt an unbidden surge of rage. In an instant, a vast fluctuation of soul power swept away the entire table and the books upon it.

"Enough! Get out, all of you get out!"

Seeing Bibi Dong lose control, Feng Xinglie didn't hesitate. In an instant, he slipped out of the Pope's Palace as if his feet were greased.

"This is more troublesome than I imagined. It's not just a long-standing heart ailment, but also divine intervention. Do I really have to go to Shrek Academy?"

Returning to his office, Feng Xinglie rubbed his hair in frustration. Bibi Dong's condition was worse than he had anticipated. If it wasn't resolved quickly, most of his future plans would be stalled. In fact, the trip to Shrek Academy had been planned for a long time, with considerable groundwork laid. After all, in Feng Xinglie's view, this trip alone would yield significant gains.

He could sow discord among the protagonist group and even dismantle the Shrek Seven Devils from within.

He could intercept Tang San's opportunities. If he intervened, he could significantly weaken Tang San's early-stage strength.

Although the possibility was slim, now that Qian Xunji was dead, Tang Hao's revenge was essentially repaid with his life. In the future, there would be ways to revive Ah Yin. Moreover, Tang San took care of the decadent Tang Hao for many years when he was young, indicating a good side to his heart. His personality changed later. If he were guided more in the early stages, perhaps this hatred could be resolved.

And most importantly, he would meet Yu Xiaogang. Once they met, whatever he said and did would be up to Feng Xinglie. As long as he presented the true appearance of that "waste" to Bibi Dong, he could shatter her unrealistic beautiful fantasies bit by bit.