The Phantom Began to Take Shape

He picked the last Earth-Spring Golden Lotus.

At this point, all the Immortal Herbs they needed had been gathered.

Yue Guan walked over to Bibi Dong.

Seven jade boxes were neatly arranged before them, each radiating a different glow.

"Your Holiness, all the Immortal Herbs have been collected."

There was a trace of exhaustion in Yue Guan's voice, but even more satisfaction.

"I suggest we find a place on the outskirts to absorb the herbs. Energy conflicts could arise here."

Bibi Dong nodded slightly.

"Elder Chrysanthemum, you have worked hard."

Chrysanthemum Douluo smiled faintly and stepped aside. Bibi Dong swept her gaze over everyone present.

"The Immortal Herbs will be distributed as follows..."

It had to be said that Yue Guan was quite good at handling matters. He had handed the gathered Immortal Herbs over to Bibi Dong for distribution.

During the distribution process,

Fang Mo, Bibi Dong, and Yue Guan had discussed preparing Immortal Herbs for Golden Crocodile Douluo and the others.

But Golden Crocodile Douluo and the rest flatly refused, saying that they were too old and did not want to waste such herbs.

In the end, only because of the Martial Soul Fusion Skill did they pick another Immortal Herb for Ghost Douluo.

After everyone received their Immortal Herbs,

Yan was the first to lose patience. He rushed up to Chrysanthemum Douluo, practically wanting to open the jade box right then and there.

"Elder Chrysanthemum! When can I eat this?"

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan jumped in fright and slapped his hand away irritably.

"What are you in such a hurry for? I already said you can absorb it only after we leave this place. If you get burned to ashes, don't blame me for not warning you."

Yan sheepishly pulled back his hand, but his eyes remained glued to the jade box.

The group did not linger any longer.

She ordered the entire team to retrace their route and find an open area on the outskirts of Sunset Forest to rest.

"Fang Mo."

Bibi Dong's voice came from behind him.

Fang Mo turned around.

"Come with me."

The two arrived beneath a large tree.

"That Immortal Herb of yours." Bibi Dong got straight to the point. "It was prepared for the soul within your Martial Soul."

It was not a question.

It was a statement.

Fang Mo did not deny it.

"Yes."

Bibi Dong looked at him in silence for three seconds.

"Who exactly is she?"

She had held back this question for a long time.

From the day Fang Mo awakened his Martial Soul, she had sensed that familiar aura.

Later, during the test in the main hall, the Rakshasa Divinity radiating from that phantom had shaken her to the core.

Yet she had never pressed the matter, because she feared the answer she imagined.

Fang Mo slowly raised his head and met those violet eyes.

"Teacher."

"Yes."

"That person is you."

Bibi Dong's pupils abruptly contracted.

Fang Mo's voice was very soft.

"More precisely... she is the future you, the you who was defeated and died in the future.

Several decades from now, you will be defeated and die, carrying a heart full of resentment and unwillingness. Then you will be reborn as my Martial Soul."

The air froze.

Bibi Dong could not help leaning against the tree trunk, her body stiffening slightly.

"The future me..."

She repeated it softly.

"Defeated and dead..."

Fang Mo said nothing.

Because he could not say too much.

He could not tell her about Jialing Pass, could not tell her about Tang San, and could not tell her the final outcome.

Fang Mo lowered his voice.

"She regrets not treating the people around her well. She regrets letting hatred and obsession blind her eyes. She regrets not being willing to face her own daughter until just before her death."

Bibi Dong's body trembled faintly.

"So that is why you are so good to Qian Renxue." Bibi Dong's voice grew very soft. "Because the me within your Martial Soul wants to make amends?"

Fang Mo nodded slightly.

Bibi Dong slowly closed her eyes.

The silence lasted a long time.

So long that Fang Mo thought she would not speak again.

Then Bibi Dong opened her eyes.

There was no fear, anger, or shock in her pupils. There seemed to be only a sense of release.

"No wonder."

Bibi Dong's voice regained its calm. "The first time I met you, I felt that your Martial Soul carried a trace of me."

Her tone paused again.

"No wonder you have always treated me with a kind of... indescribable feeling. It is not reverence, not dependence, but something..."

Bibi Dong thought for a long time, yet could not find the right word.

"Pity."

Fang Mo supplied it for her.

Bibi Dong froze at his words.

Then the corner of her lips curved upward.

It was not a smile, but a bitter curve tinged with a hint of self-mockery.

"You pity me? You are a six-year-old brat, yet you have started pitying me, the Pope?"

"Age does not represent everything. Some things do not need to be personally experienced to be understood."

After saying that, Bibi Dong quietly watched Fang Mo. She remained silent for a very, very long time.

Then she suddenly raised a hand and lightly flicked his forehead.

Neither too lightly nor too hard.

"Go."

Bibi Dong withdrew her hand and turned her back to Fang Mo. "Go help her absorb the Immortal Herb."

Fang Mo was slightly stunned.

"Teacher, you will not stop me?"

Bibi Dong did not turn around.

"I will not. Why would I stop you? I also want to meet her."

The corner of Fang Mo's mouth lifted slightly.

"Your disciple is leaving."

"Mm."

Fang Mo turned and walked toward the camp.

Behind him, he heard an extremely soft murmur, as though Bibi Dong were speaking to herself.

"The future me... defeated and dead..."

After everyone had rested briefly, they prepared to officially begin absorbing the Immortal Herbs.

With Golden Crocodile Douluo and Snake Lance Douluo standing guard, they naturally would encounter no other danger.

Fang Mo returned to his tent.

He took the jade box from his robes, then slowly closed his eyes and sank his spiritual power into his Spirit Sea.

Darkness.

Boundless darkness.

But today's darkness was different from before.

In its deepest depths, because of the Biluo Soul-Condensing Orchid, Dong'er's phantom was brighter than ever.

Dong'er's face was still blurred, wrapped in a mist-like darkness, but it was somewhat clearer than before.

Her dark red eyes were tightly shut, the curve of her eyelashes flickering faintly in the darkness.

"Bibi Dong."

Fang Mo called softly, but she did not respond.

"I brought you something."

Fang Mo withdrew from his Spirit Sea, placed the jade box on the ground before him, and gently opened its lid.

Then he directly summoned his Martial Soul, and Dong'er's phantom slowly emerged inside the tent.

A wisp of pale-blue soul essence slowly crossed the endless darkness and landed precisely upon Dong'er's phantom.

The phantom suddenly trembled.

It was not a tremor of pain.

It was an instinctive response to being touched by warmth.

The pale-blue soul essence began spreading across Dong'er's phantom, like a thin layer of ice crystals slowly wrapping around her entire body.

Dong'er's phantom began to change.

Those blurry, flickering outlines and graceful curves gradually became distinct.

Her dark red eyes were no longer tightly closed, but opened slightly into narrow slits.

A high, straight nose bridge, thin lips, and a sharp jawline.

Those familiar facial features became clear beneath the nourishment of the pale-blue essence.

Her long hair was no longer a blurry mass of darkness, but distinct strands falling over her shoulders and down to her waist.

Watching it all happen, Fang Mo unconsciously held his breath.