Inside the Side Hall, golden light blazed.
However, what shocked Qian Daoliu was that as Angel Divine Power delved deeper, he found no trace of Evil God aura in the depths of this clone's soul, nor any sign that it had been possessed by an outside force.
The source of its soul was perfectly in tune with Bibi Dong's, like two branches growing from the same tree—sharing the same roots, inseparable.
"Could it really... just be a split personality?"
Qian Daoliu furrowed his brows. The doubts in his heart hadn't faded; if anything, they'd only grown.
If it was a split personality, why was its consciousness so complete? Why was its personality so distinct?
He could even sense, deep within this clone's soul, a life force purer and... more ancient.
"What is this...?"
Just as Qian Daoliu was about to probe further,
Nan Feng had had enough.
"You old geezer! Had your fill of staring?!"
"Get lost!!!"
Boom—!!!
A purple-black aura of destruction erupted from Nan Feng's body!
Without hesitation, Nan Feng detonated this body, which possessed the strength of a Rank 97 Titled Douluo!
"Not good!"
Qian Daoliu's expression changed drastically. He hadn't expected this clone to be so rash, blowing itself up at the slightest disagreement!
This was the self-destruction of a Rank 97 energy body! In such a cramped space, a full explosion could level the Side Hall and even reach Qian Renxue outside!
"Angel Domain—Suppress!"
Qian Daoliu didn't dare delay. The six-winged angel phantom behind him blazed with light, and rings of sacred golden light, as solid as shackles, clamped down on the purple-black energy just before it could explode!
Under the absolute suppression of Angel Divine Power, the terrifying blast caused no catastrophic damage. It only let out a muffled boom before turning into countless purple-black sparks that vanished in the golden domain.
The explosion had been contained, but the terrifying shockwave still burst out and carried beyond the hall.
"Mom!!!"
Outside the hall, Qian Renxue had been eavesdropping at the crack in the door. Feeling the commotion inside, she panicked.
The doors were flung open.
Qian Renxue rushed in without a second thought, with Golden Crocodile and Guang Ling close behind.
But when they saw what was inside, they all froze.
The vast, empty hall held only Qian Daoliu, floating in midair, sacred golden light swirling around him.
The Bibi Dong who had been baring her teeth and refusing to let go of Qian Renxue just moments ago was gone.
Not even a single strand of hair remained.
"G-Grandpa?"
Qian Renxue stared at the empty seat. Her face turned deathly pale, and she asked in a trembling voice, "M-Mom... where's Mom?"
Qian Daoliu slowly landed and withdrew his Angel Domain. Looking at his granddaughter's terrified, despairing expression, he opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
Was he supposed to tell her that her mother had lost heart and blown herself up in front of him?
"Well..."
As Qian Daoliu hesitated, tears spilled from Qian Renxue's eyes.
"Grandpa! What did you do to Mom?!"
Qian Renxue rushed up to him, grabbed his robe, and sobbed her heart out. "You promised you wouldn't hurt her! You said you wouldn't!!"
"Waaah... I want Mom... Give Mom back to me..."
Seeing his granddaughter reduced to tears, Qian Daoliu, a Peerless Douluo who had weathered a lifetime of storms, felt utterly helpless for the first time.
"Xue'er, listen to Grandpa..."
"I won't listen! I won't!"
Qian Renxue shook her head frantically. "You made Mom disappear! I want Mom!!"
Meanwhile, Nan Feng dove headfirst back into Bibi Dong's Sea of Consciousness and fell silent.
Bibi Dong wanted to ask what had happened and why he had suddenly blown up the clone.
But Nan Feng didn't respond at all.
That worried Bibi Dong.
It was the first time the old spider had acted like this. Had Qian Daoliu discovered something?
No.
Even if Qian Daoliu had found something out, what could he do?
Would he dare tell anyone?
Tell Qian Renxue that the mother who loved her was a fake?
Or that this fake mother had teamed up with her real mother to kill her father?
Bibi Dong's real body still lay motionless on the bed, seemingly unconscious, though her consciousness had long since sunk completely into the Sea of Consciousness.
At the very center of this realm stood a "bedchamber" built entirely from mental power.
Her Sea of Consciousness had expanded to its current size only after Nan Feng's sacrifice. And here, Nan Feng could change his appearance however he pleased.
At first, she'd thought he would turn the place into his lair in Death Canyon, but instead, he had modeled himself a room after the bedchamber in her Saintess Hall.
Bibi Dong's consciousness took shape and pushed open the door.
On the large bed, a purple, humanoid silhouette had its back to her, curled up in the corner. An aura that seemed to be equal parts "withdrawn" and "frantic" radiated from its whole body.
It was Nan Feng.
Ever since the Soul Blood Pact, his soul form had no longer been limited to the grotesque Death Spider Emperor. He could also take on this vague, humanoid shape.
"Hey."
Bibi Dong walked to the bedside, frowning slightly. "What's wrong with you? Why did you suddenly blow up the clone? Did Qian Daoliu find something?"
"..."
Nan Feng kept his back to her, motionless and silent.
"Nan Feng! I'm talking to you!" Bibi Dong was getting impatient. She reached out to pat his shoulder.
"Don't touch me!!"
Nan Feng suddenly sprang up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. On his indistinct face, Bibi Dong could somehow read emotions of "extreme disgust" and "frenzy."
"This Emperor's filthy now!"
Bibi Dong: "...?"
She looked utterly baffled. "What's gotten into you? It was only a clone. So it blew up. It didn't hurt your source. How are you filthy?"
"You don't know a damn thing!!"
"That old geezer! That old pervert!!"
Nan Feng roared, "He used Angel Divine Power to force his way into my clone! Do you have any idea how disgusting that felt?!"
"It was like you were taking a bath and some old man blazing with light suddenly barged in. He pinned you to the floor and scrubbed you from head to toe with a steel-wool scourer!!"
"That sacred, radiant, scorching power forced its way into my mind, into the depths of my soul! He wanted to strip me naked and inspect every inch of me!!"
Nan Feng hugged his knees, trembling all over, his voice full of grief and outrage:
"I'm the Death Spider Emperor! A Soul Beast of utter darkness and evil! Angel Divine Power is shit to me! Scalding hot shit! And he actually shoved that stuff into my brain?!"
"That hypocritical, blinding, scorching light rampaged through my soul, prying into every corner... I'm the Death Spider Emperor! The ruler of darkness! How dare he... how dare he humiliate me like that?!"
"It was so disgusting! So damn disgusting! I feel like that old pervert defiled my very soul!!"
Bibi Dong stared at Nan Feng, who was almost beside himself, and paused.
She could feel what he was feeling.
It was the fury and helplessness of having his dignity trampled underfoot by a force that had forced its way into him, a force that held itself above all others.
That feeling... she knew it all too well.
So well that, for one brief moment, she actually felt a glimmer of understanding for the old spider.
"So..."
Bibi Dong's voice softened without her meaning it to. "You blew yourself up over that?"
"What else was I supposed to do?!"
Nan Feng roared. "Lie there and let him finish examining me? Let him turn over every inch of my soul? I'd rather blow up that body than put up with that crap!"
"Damn... urgh..."
Bibi Dong took a deep breath, and some of the coldness faded from her eyes. She looked at Nan Feng and said calmly:
"Enough. What's done is done. Stop whining."
"Qian Daoliu went too far, but what he did has helped us sell the act."
"Qian Renxue is sobbing her heart out outside, and that old fool Qian Daoliu is at the height of his guilt and embarrassment. This is our best chance to turn things around."
"I'm not going."
Nan Feng flopped back onto the bed, pulled the blanket over his head, and grumbled, "Just seeing that old geezer makes me want to puke. And that golden light is disgusting. Deal with it yourself. I'm taking a bath... I'm cleansing my soul!"
Bibi Dong looked at the bundle curled up like a silkworm cocoon, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
"Fine. Get some rest."