Behind the pile of rocks, Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan finally recovered from his extreme shock.
Almost instinctively, he took a step back. The tip of his boot nudged a loose stone, making a faint sound.
There was only one thought in his mind now.
Get out of here, hurry back to Spirit City, and report everything to the Pope.
Bibi Dong had concealed her strength, and not just a little.
She had gone from Soul Douluo straight to Titled Douluo, and had even gained a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring out of nowhere.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he never would have believed Bibi Dong was capable of such a thing.
He had to tell the Pope. If he didn't, Spirit Hall could be thrown into serious turmoil.
He turned, ready to flee.
Suddenly, a small energy hand appeared and grabbed the back of his neck.
The grip wasn't strong; the touch could even be called gentle.
But Chrysanthemum Douluo felt a terrifying Soul Power surge from that hand, one that left him gasping for breath. It completely suppressed his own Soul Power, leaving him no room to resist.
His Soul Power as a level 94 Titled Douluo was utterly helpless before that hand.
The hand lifted him lightly, and his body lost its balance, his feet leaving the ground.
Bibi Dong held Luo Dong in one arm and raised her other hand. Soul Power connected her to the small energy hand, which gripped the back of his neck and lifted him off the ground.
Chrysanthemum Douluo's feet dangled in the air, his face flushed red as his throat gave a faint creak.
With difficulty, he turned his eyes and caught sight of Bibi Dong's face.
There wasn't a trace of emotion on it. Her calm was terrifying.
"You followed me all this way and watched for so long. You think you can leave without saying hello?" Bibi Dong's voice was soft, without the slightest change in tone. "Yue Guan, do you think that's appropriate?"
Chrysanthemum Douluo's body stiffened.
Had she known he was there all along? Had she known from the start that he was following her?
And all this time, she had treated him like a joke.
Bibi Dong turned him to face her. Her energy hand still held his neck, while her left arm kept Luo Dong secure.
"I'll give you two choices."
"Submit—or die."
Chrysanthemum Douluo shuddered.
He wanted to say the Pope's name, to tell her Spirit Hall wouldn't let her get away with this, to accuse her of betrayal.
But the moment the words reached his lips, the force of that hand choked them back.
He looked into Bibi Dong's eyes.
There was no hesitation in them, no wavering, not even anger.
They were the eyes of someone who truly could kill him.
A level 94 Titled Douluo, yet before Bibi Dong he had no room to fight back. He couldn't even withstand a single move.
He wanted to live. He didn't want to die.
"I submit... I submit..."
The words scraped out of his throat, hoarse and desperate.
Bibi Dong released him.
Chrysanthemum Douluo hit the ground and clutched his neck, coughing violently.
He dropped to one knee and bowed his head, not daring to meet Bibi Dong's eyes.
The dignity of a Titled Douluo and the loyalty of the Pope's trusted subordinate mattered less in that moment than drawing one more breath.
Bibi Dong said nothing.
A wisp of deep blue light gathered at the tip of her right index finger.
It was the Death Spider Emperor's poisonous essence, refined and condensed using the Soul Power Liquefaction Method.
Over the past year, she had obtained a remarkably rare poison-control technique through Daily Quests and exchanges in the system shop. It was called Ten Thousand Poisons Return to Origin.
It allowed her to control all kinds of deadly poisons at will.
She could also condense or disperse them, and plant them in another person's meridians.
Once planted, the poison would lie dormant deep within the target's meridians. They wouldn't feel a thing—until she activated the technique, at which point the poison would erupt instantly and take their life in a heartbeat.
Most importantly, she alone knew the poison's composition. No one else could possibly cure it.
She flicked her finger.
The deep blue poison became a fine thread, shot into the Tanzhong acupoint on Chrysanthemum Douluo's chest, and vanished in a flash.
The poison swiftly spread along his meridians, seeping into every corner of his body before lying dormant.
Chrysanthemum Douluo felt a chill in his chest and looked down. There wasn't a wound on his skin, not even the slightest mark.
He tried probing with his Soul Power, but couldn't detect anything.
The chill had already merged with his own Soul Power, becoming indistinguishable from it.
"This is the poison of my Martial Soul," Bibi Dong said, her voice still calm. "A single drop is enough to kill you ten times over. From this day on, if you do anything against me, whether acting against me yourself or revealing my secrets to someone else, the poison will erupt at once. I don't recommend finding out how painful that will be."
She paused and looked down at Yue Guan.
"You can also try to find someone to cure you. But I'll be honest: I'm the only one who knows the poison's composition, and it involves more than a hundred kinds of variations. If anyone else tries to treat you recklessly, they'll only speed up your death."
Kneeling on the ground, Chrysanthemum Douluo had already soaked the back of his robe with cold sweat.
He didn't dare say a word. He only pressed his forehead heavily to the ground.
He had no way back now.
He would have to return to the Pope as usual, report as usual, and keep playing the loyal subordinate.
But from now on, every report he made would pass through Bibi Dong's ears first.
Bibi Dong looked away from him.
She turned and walked over to Blood Butcher, who was wrapped in a cocoon of spiderwebs, and looked down at him.
Blood Butcher was still struggling inside the cocoon, cursing incoherently.
Bibi Dong snapped her fingers.
The web tightened sharply, and Death Spider Poison flooded Blood Butcher's body. His curses cut off at once.
She dealt with the other two just as swiftly.
She wasn't the merciful sort. These scum, who took pleasure in torturing Soul Masters to death, were an insult to every innocent person they had killed.
With a flick of her fingers, two strands of spider silk pierced Zhan Li and Lian Hun through the heart, ending it all.
When everything was done, she lowered her head and looked at Luo Dong in her arms.
The little fellow had stayed quietly nestled against her the whole time, without crying once.
Now he looked at his mother with eyes full of admiration and pride.
"Mom, you're amazing!" Luo Dong waved his little fists, the rabbit fur on his Tiger-Head Hat bouncing up and down. "You beat those bad guys in no time!"
Bibi Dong smiled faintly and pinched his little nose. "I did it to protect you."
She turned and headed out of the hollow.
As she passed Chrysanthemum Douluo, she paused slightly. Without looking at him, she said softly, "When you get back, you know what to do. I don't need to teach you."
Yue Guan bowed his forehead to the ground. His voice was low and deferential. "This subordinate... understands."
Bibi Dong carried Luo Dong out of the hollow.
Luo Dong lay across her shoulder, his little face pressed against her neck, mumbling childish things like "Mommy's the best" under his breath.
Bibi Dong gently patted his back, a faint smile rising at the corners of her mouth.
In the distance, the maid waited with the carriage on the hillside.
Bibi Dong carried Luo Dong into the carriage and lowered the curtain, shutting out the autumn wind.
Inside the carriage, Luo Dong was still chattering and gesturing about how impressive his mother's Spider Web Devour had been.
Bibi Dong leaned against the soft cushion, listening with a smile. Every so often, she reached over to straighten his crooked Tiger-Head Hat.
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