Get Your Ass Back Here

What kind of twisted logic was that?

Bibi Dong's face stiffened. Whenever she thought she had finally figured Naruto out, he would do something even more shameless and leave her utterly dumbfounded.

He could explain it like that?

And would Tang Hao, the victim, even accept it?

Still, after all this, it was anyone's guess whether Tang Hao would survive the Spirit Hall's assault. Bibi Dong quietly weighed the matter, then came back to herself and glanced at Naruto, who was still gossiping. She turned away and ignored him.

The so-called physician at this small-town clinic was merely a Support-type Spirit Master at the Soul Grandmaster level. He was already over fifty, and his legs could barely carry him; he walked very slowly.

He made his way through the crowded beds, first looking at the frail young man on one of them, who was still gossiping, then at the towering stack of empty bowls beside him.

"Th-this food isn't free, you know..."

The old man eyed the fair-skinned young man, who looked almost like a girl, his words full of suspicion.

Only then did Naruto come back to himself. He gave a slight nod.

His luggage, which he had been carrying earlier, was gone, along with the hundred Explosive Tags he had accumulated over the past few years. But he still had dozens of Gold Soul Coins tucked away, enough to keep him from starving.

A faint wisp of spiritual power crept from the old man's withered fingers toward Naruto's arm.

The old man raised his eyes and looked at Naruto.

"What happened to your injuries?"

"I went berserk while cultivating and something went wrong."

Naruto made up an answer offhand. The old man merely furrowed his brow, not particularly concerned whether Naruto had gone berserk or failed to blow himself up. He simply did his job and said, "The damage to your meridians is too severe. I can only treat the muscle damage. It'll cost two Gold Soul Coins per session."

Naruto nodded. He hadn't expected this Healing-type Spirit Master, who was only at the Soul Grandmaster level, to restore his ability to move anyway. As long as he could get around, that was enough.

Over the next few days,

Naruto stayed at the clinic, watching batch after batch of Spirit Hall troops through its front door. They rested briefly, then moved on. Then, one day, a golden streak and a black streak shot across the sky.

Countless people looked up, Naruto among them. At just the right moment, Bibi Dong murmured in his ear, "Yue Guan... Gui Mei..."

Seeing familiar faces brought back memories for Bibi Dong. She had only just withdrawn her spiritual power with a wistful sigh when she noticed Naruto beside her, eyes wide as he jerked his chin toward the sky.

"?"

Bibi Dong knew what he wanted to ask. She couldn't help rolling her eyes and replied irritably, "The Spirit Hall probably won. There are no signs of injury, just a slightly disordered aura. And from the way they look now, they're probably in a good mood."

With that, Bibi Dong waved him off. But then she seemed to remember something and fell into thought. Yue Guan had seemed to be holding something in his arms just now.

But Bibi Dong hadn't dared bring her spiritual power too close at the time, so she couldn't be sure.

Having missed those details, Naruto frowned and asked, "You can only tell roughly?"

Bibi Dong came back to herself and glanced at Naruto. Her irritation only grew. "What else did you expect? This is all the spiritual power I can summon right now. And the people over there are two Titled Douluo at level ninety-five. Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

Naruto nodded helplessly.

Looking back with hindsight, there was something else hidden in all this, though Bibi Dong hadn't noticed it.

If this had been her a few years ago, upon seeing Yue Guan and Gui Mei, she would have immediately tried to attract their attention instead of cautiously extending her spiritual power, afraid they might notice her.

Why she had changed like this, perhaps even Bibi Dong herself couldn't explain.

As she watched the golden and black streaks vanish beyond the horizon, the densely packed Spirit Hall troops followed close behind and began to withdraw. The whole affair was over.

Naruto was ready to leave, too.

The damaged meridians in his body were still recovering at a snail's pace. As for his injured muscles, they had healed as usual. As long as he didn't fight, Naruto now looked much like any other Spirit Master.

If he did get into a fight, he'd let the other side taste a beating from Naruto's Shadow Clones.

Naruto left the city just as the Spirit Hall troops were withdrawing. With his luggage on his back, he walked on without much of a destination.

"So, what now? Where are you planning to go?"

Bibi Dong glanced at Naruto wandering around outside. She straightened up a little in her chair, where she had been lounging, propped her chin on one hand, and muttered, "You can't go to Shrek Academy..."

"How about Spirit Hall?"

Naruto, who was on the road, frowned, his face turning grim as Bibi Dong quietly tried to persuade him. It was as if a devil were coaxing him to sign away his freedom.

"You can find not only Healing-type Spirit Masters at the Soul Emperor level, but even ones at the Soul Douluo level."

"They have no shortage of Spirit Rings, Mimicry Cultivation Grounds, or all kinds of precious medicinal baths. Besides, with me backing you up, you might even get the treatment of a direct disciple of the Pope."

Bibi Dong coaxed him patiently. In her telling, Spirit Hall was practically paradise.

After thinking it over briefly, Naruto asked, "Are you sure I can leave Spirit Hall after I graduate from Spirit Hall Academy?"

"Besides, our dear Pope has plenty of dirty work to do down the line. Do you want to become a god and rule the continent, or drag the whole continent down with you...?"

Naruto was genuinely curious about that last question. Judging by this Dong Trumpet's inner wounds, her final, heedless rampage really did seem like she might drag the whole continent down with her.

"Fine, fine! The filthy Spirit Hall isn't good enough for our paragon of virtue!"

Bibi Dong replied in great displeasure. As soon as she finished speaking, she looked away and stopped paying attention to Naruto.

As for Naruto's last question, she brushed it aside. It was true that she had once wanted to completely destroy the vile place that was Spirit Hall, but she hadn't managed it, had she?

And if she hadn't done it, why should she be blamed?

She had picked up seven or eight tenths of someone's shamelessness. Still, when she thought about how Naruto had rejected Spirit Hall's offer yet again, Bibi Dong's teeth itched with irritation.

Shrek Academy was no good?

Spirit Hall was no good either?

This annoying brat was so much trouble. When had she ever spent so much effort on anyone? She cursed Naruto over and over in her mind, and the anger in her chest gradually subsided.

And speaking of spending all that effort...

Bibi Dong froze for a moment, then rubbed her forehead and shook her head gently. As her slender palm opened, a golden figure appeared in it.

If Xiao Xue had been this age, she would definitely have been less trouble than this brat.

Bibi Dong was certain of it. She lowered her eyes, the corners of her mouth curving slightly as she studied the Qian Renxue before her. Then she furrowed her brow and began adjusting the Soul Power in her palm.

This part... didn't quite look right...

It was almost laughable. The first time Bibi Dong tried to recreate Qian Renxue with Soul Power, she suddenly realized she had hardly ever taken a good look at Qian Renxue's face.

She had long since forgotten—or perhaps never even remembered—the various details. She could only rely on instinct and gloss over the finer points.

As a result, every so often, Bibi Dong had to make slight adjustments to the figure she had shaped.

That showed just how little effort she had spent on this daughter of hers.

This was also one of the few things Bibi Dong could do in her spare time to pass the time and revisit the past. As for Yu Xiaogang...

It wasn't that Bibi Dong hadn't thought of Yu Xiaogang in a long time. The main thing was that at Notting Academy, Yu Xiaogang was a teacher. He would suddenly appear in front of Naruto, put on a display of impotent rage, then leave in a huff.

The unattainable one was the moonlight of your heart.

But what if that moonlight, who was actually a good-for-nothing, kept wandering around right in front of you?

To be fair, in private, Bibi Dong would have preferred Yu Xiaogang to keep his distance. But if Naruto ever asked her about it, she would stubbornly deny it to her last breath.

"Is this Qian Renxue?"

Bibi Dong's thoughts were interrupted. She abruptly came back to herself and instinctively turned sideways, protecting the "Qian Renxue" in her hands against her chest.

She turned her head and glared fiercely at Naruto.

"What are you doing here?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I'm just taking a look. Is that really necessary?"

Only then did Bibi Dong realize that she had overreacted. After thinking for a moment, she decided to treat it as showing a friend her daughter's portrait and slowly revealed the little figure of Soul Power in her arms.

Clad from head to toe in the Angel God Suit, with the wings of a Six-Winged Angel unfurled behind her, and a face close to perfect, the golden figure truly looked like an angel descending.

This was the moment of Qian Renxue's life that Bibi Dong remembered most clearly.

"She really is beautiful!"

Naruto opened his mouth wide in admiration. Bibi Dong shared in the pride, the corners of her mouth lifting almost imperceptibly as she puffed out her chest.

"Just look whose daughter she is."

"Mm..."

He lowered his head and thought for a moment.

Naruto's expression turned serious. Suddenly, he said solemnly, "Mom, I've made up my mind."

"Oh? What have you decided?" Bibi Dong asked without even looking up, her eyes filled with pride in her daughter. She had only replied offhandedly, but then she immediately realized what he had said. Her eyes widened, and she whipped her head around. "Wait, what did you just call me?"

Naruto paid no attention to her. He withdrew his consciousness, and in the outside world, he now had a destination. His steps grew much lighter.

Watching Naruto's direction, Bibi Dong's eyes shook with shock. She sprang to her feet.

"No! What are you planning!?"

Naruto only slowly looked back, wearing a meaningful smile.

"Heh heh!"

"Heh heh, my ass! Get back here, you little brat! You're not allowed to go!"