Maybe my encounter with Bibi Dong had been part of a plan she'd hatched herself.
Yu Xiaogang thought as he returned to his room, then casually closed the door behind him.
"What could Bibi Dong's motive be...?" Yu Xiaogang murmured as he sat down on the bed.
In that instant, Yu Xiaogang realized there were a great many things that didn't add up.
Everyone knew he was a good-for-nothing. Even if he had some knowledge, it was highly suspicious that Bibi Dong, the Saintess of Spirit Hall, would be attracted to him because of it.
After all, there were plenty of people in Spirit Hall more capable than he was, not to mention those who were both knowledgeable and powerful.
The more Yu Xiaogang thought about it, the more his spine prickled with cold.
If Bibi Dong had been approaching him as part of a long-laid plan, what did she want from him?
His theories?
Impossible.
His ideas might fool an outsider, but any elder in Spirit Hall could refute them until he was left utterly speechless.
His strength?
Even more impossible.
A level twenty-nine good-for-nothing wasn't even qualified to spar with the Saintess.
Then what could it be?
The only two things of value about him were his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan bloodline and his identity.
Though he had left the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the blood of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon still ran through his veins.
He was a direct descendant of one of the Upper Three Sects, and his father was the clan leader of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Even if he'd been thrown out, that identity wouldn't change.
If Bibi Dong used him to control the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, wouldn't the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, one of the Upper Three Sects, become a prize in Spirit Hall's hands?
Though he was a good-for-nothing who couldn't become clan leader, Spirit Hall had plenty of ways to get what it wanted. As long as Bibi Dong married him, she'd have a pretext to meddle in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's affairs.
Then, with Spirit Hall entering the picture as an in-law, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan couldn't simply burn bridges, no matter how unwilling they were.
What a vicious plan.
No, this was only the tip of the iceberg.
Everyone knew Spirit Hall had always wanted to swallow up the Upper Three Sects.
The Clear Sky Sect was the strongest, with a hammer as hard as a stone in a latrine. It wouldn't be easy to crack.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was richer than a kingdom; with money, they could make ghosts turn millstones. They weren't easy to deal with either.
Only the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had seen its ranks of talent dwindle in recent years. Apart from a few promising collateral descendants, the direct line had almost no one worth mentioning among the younger generation.
The weakest link was naturally the easiest target.
At that thought, cold sweat beaded across Yu Xiaogang's forehead.
He even thought back to his Martial Soul Mutation all those years ago. It should have been a shameful matter, but who was the clan leader of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan?
His father.
Even if he'd been driven out of the sect, the blood ties between father and son couldn't be severed.
If Bibi Dong really married him, Spirit Hall would have driven a nail into the very heart of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
That nail would be him, Yu Xiaogang.
And he'd actually been foolish enough to think he'd found true love—that there was a woman who didn't care about his strength or looks, and admired only his talent and inner qualities.
"Idiot." Yu Xiaogang muttered the word under his breath.
He didn't know if he was cursing Bibi Dong or his past self, who'd been swept off his feet by a few sweet words.
He was glad he'd run decisively that day.
Deng Tianxin might be Bibi Dong's son, but he was still a child, and children were the worst at keeping secrets.
Perhaps the boy hadn't been sent by Bibi Dong at all. Maybe he'd simply let something slip by accident, allowing Yu Xiaogang to see the truth.
Whatever the case, at least he was safe for now.
But that safety was only temporary.
Yu Xiaogang slowly lay back on the bed, staring at the mottled patterns in the wooden ceiling.
Bibi Dong wouldn't just give up after one failed scheme.
She was the Saintess of Spirit Hall, shrewd and ruthless. Since she'd set her sights on the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, she would surely find another way.
Perhaps he wouldn't be her next target. Maybe she'd go after someone else in the clan?
Perhaps she'd pick another Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon descendant who was easier to control? What was he supposed to do now?
Warn the clan?
Who would believe the words of a good-for-nothing?
Even if he blurted out that he'd once been in a relationship with Bibi Dong, no one would believe him.
Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, rolled over, and pulled the quilt over his head.
The commotion downstairs had died down at some point. The merchants had eaten and drunk their fill, and one by one, they'd returned to their rooms.
"Bye-bye, I'm going to bed." Deng Tianxin wiped his mouth and said goodbye to Liu Erlong.
Deng Tianxin had just turned around and hadn't even taken his first step when someone grabbed him by the back of his collar.
A finger hooked into his collar and yanked him back. His whole body was lifted off the ground, his feet kicking uselessly in the air. He knew this feeling all too well—in the past year, Bibi Dong had grabbed him like this at least a hundred times. Every time, the force, the angle, even the spot where her finger hooked into his collar had been exactly the same. If not for Liu Erlong's scent of fresh grass and trees, so different from Bibi Dong's rose fragrance, he might have thought the old witch had fought her way back from Slaughter City.
"What are you doing?" Dangling in midair, Deng Tianxin turned his fish-eyed stare on Liu Erlong.
Liu Erlong held Deng Tianxin up with one hand and pushed open the guest room door with the other. "What do you mean, what am I doing? You're sharing a room with me."
"Wait, wait, wait..." Deng Tianxin started thrashing, his little legs kicking wildly in the air. "You're a young woman, and you're sharing a room with a grown man like me. Don't you care about your reputation?"
"A grown man?" Liu Erlong looked down at him, as if she were gazing at a kitten that fancied itself a tiger.
Liu Erlong smiled. "You're a seven-year-old brat. Have you no shame, calling yourself a grown man?"
Deng Tianxin: "..."
Liu Erlong carried Deng Tianxin into the room, shut the door behind her, and tossed the little guy onto the bed.
Deng Tianxin bounced on the soft mattress. Before he could turn over and get up, Liu Erlong had already kicked off her short boots and sprawled down beside him, casually draping one arm over him as though he were a giant stuffed toy.
"Sleep." Liu Erlong closed her eyes, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"I haven't even taken a bath!" Deng Tianxin struggled and protested.
"What does a little brat need a bath for? You won't stink if you skip one day." Liu Erlong didn't even open her eyes as she pulled him closer.
Trapped in her arms and unable to move, Deng Tianxin stared up at the dark rafters and once again fell into deep self-doubt.
He shouldn't have gone out. He shouldn't have gone off on his own. With this Dragon-kin physique, he was practically a walking human-shaped body pillow.
Bibi Dong wanted to hold him while she slept, and Liu Erlong wanted to hold him while she slept too. He even suspected this physique came with a passive skill called "Beloved by Female Soul Masters."
But then again, being held in Liu Erlong's arms was indeed a little more comfortable than being held in Bibi Dong's.
At seventeen, Liu Erlong already had quite a figure, and trapped in her embrace, his face was pointed straight at a certain place it shouldn't be pointed at. Even breathing had become a little difficult.
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