Bibi Dong clearly had no intention of going out.
Yet Yu Xiaogang came right to her door.
[Dongzi, I told you already, you can't escape Yu Xiaogang. Look, you were just thinking about him, and here he comes.]
[Too bad I'm not in today's scene, so I can't play opposite you. You'll have to handle it yourself.]
Lu Mingchuan quietly slowed his pace. His own script hadn't started yet, so Yu Xiaogang's business had nothing to do with him.
All he had to do was sit off to the side and watch them perform.
Although Bibi Dong seemed strange now, deep down, she was still a hopeless romantic.
If that sort of thing happened to you, it might feel wonderful.
But when it happened to someone else, it seemed absurd and brainless, like something no normal person would do.
Bibi Dong glanced at him.
Couldn't escape?
She had never once thought of running away.
Bibi Dong didn't believe for a second that a normal person like her could be led astray by the Luck Halo around Yu Xiaogang.
Even if she died, there was no way she'd ever take a liking to that sleazy man.
With Lu Mingchuan by her side, someone who could constantly remind her to stay alert, Bibi Dong felt that her future was bright.
"Mingchuan, would you be interested in joining me for another one of Yuehua's lessons?" Bibi Dong looked serenely at the person behind her, who was deliberately lagging behind.
She spoke with a smile in her eyes. She knew Lu Mingchuan didn't like taking these lessons in etiquette and meditation.
Let's see how you'll respond to this.
Since you said this was a scene between me and Yu Xiaogang,
if you join in, then it really won't be, will it?
"Me? I can't. I just came from—"
(Here it comes. It's finally here.)
(Saintess Bibi Dong, accept the tutelage of your future Grandmaster, Yu Xiaogang!)
(Only by growing under my guidance will you become the true overlord of Spirit Hall.)
(And while you're at it, take me along to broaden my knowledge.)
They hadn't even seen him yet, but Yu Xiaogang's inner thoughts echoed through everyone's minds again and again.
Lu Mingchuan was speechless when he heard them.
What was he mumbling about from that corner? Couldn't he just come out already?
The group strolled past the flower beds.
Yu Xiaogang sat just around the corner, striking the pose of a lofty sage.
The three of them were startled when they first saw him.
Bamboo splints were strapped to his arms, while bandages covered his head and nearly half his body. Only one eye showed above the wrappings, peering out at the path.
Most absurd of all, he was wearing a pair of custom-made Iron Underpants.
An ancient book was propped against the wooden crutch in front of him.
Gangzi, were you cosplaying as the Bandage Freak?
Yesterday, you seemed like you only had a bit of pain, with nothing else wrong. How'd you end up like this today?
(You're all stunned, right? You feel sorry for me, right?)
(This is what a scarred man looks like.)
Tang Yuehua turned her head away. When Yu Xiaogang had made his entrance, she'd nearly kicked him.
Who would look at that wrapped-up rice dumpling and feel sorry for him?
Bibi Dong was stunned for a second too.
But a playful expression soon appeared on her face.
She'd been prepared for Yu Xiaogang.
Lu Mingchuan couldn't bear to look, but the voice behind him made his whole body jolt.
"Grandmaster, I admire you so much! Could you tell me about the secrets of Martial Souls?"
That shout was like a thunderclap. It made Lu Mingchuan's eardrums ache, and the voice behind him had a rough, almost masculine quality to it.
He didn't need to turn around to know this person was enormous.
The ground seemed to quake around them; every step made the earth tremble.
A gust of wind swept past Lu Mingchuan, making his clothes flap wildly.
A Big Black Rat charged straight between the three of them and Yu Xiaogang.
Lu Mingchuan took a closer look. It was a super-fat person who looked neither quite male nor female.
The first thing this person did after rushing over was grab Yu Xiaogang's leg and weep bitterly.
"Grandmaster, that line in your book—'There are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Masters'—really speaks to my heart!"
Yu Xiaogang had been so startled that he almost stepped back. But it was rare for someone to praise him, so he forced himself to stand still despite his disgust.
"D-does it?"
A strained smile tugged at his face as he replied.
"Of course! I, Cuihua, swear to the heavens, the theoretical work you left behind yesterday in the Sunflower Sea has been read so many times by all of us, it's practically worn out!"
At her words, Yu Xiaogang suddenly snapped to attention. The bamboo splint on his other arm bent out of shape as he frantically searched for something in all the places he could store things.
That's right!
His first draft—the work that would one day spread across the entire continent—had gone missing yesterday.
Yu Xiaogang anxiously asked Cuihua, "W-where is that book? You still have it, right?"
He'd lent that book to a Spirit Hall Academy student yesterday so he could show off.
But the events that followed had kept him from getting it back, and he'd more or less forgotten about it too.
As Yu Xiaogang's eyes pleaded with her not to, Cuihua wiped her nose on his trouser leg.
"Of course we still have it. It's just that so many people read it yesterday that it's a bit old now, and kind of torn."
"It's fine. As long as it wasn't lost."
The damage to the book pained Yu Xiaogang, but what mattered more was that it hadn't gone missing.
He'd spent several years carefully copying everything in it from the Blue Sky Tyrant Sect before arriving at those final conclusions.
(I haven't even started writing that book yet.)
(At least the book is still there.)
Lu Mingchuan stared at Yu Xiaogang, utterly baffled.
Seriously, man?
Did you hear what you just said?
So you were planning to translate it back into Chinese yourself.
Cuihua gazed at Yu Xiaogang with a bashful expression and gave him a gentle pat. But to Yu Xiaogang, it landed like a heavy slap.
"What are you saying, Grandmaster? I've treasured your things. How could I possibly lose them?"
"Ahem... I wasn't talking about you."
Yu Xiaogang hurriedly tried to placate her. If he didn't, he was liable to get slapped to death.
He hadn't expected this broad, mountain-sized creature, whose gender was impossible to tell, to have such a tender heart and carefully look after his belongings.
"Speaking of which, I should thank you for saving a peerless work that will be remembered for generations."
Wrapped up in bandages, no one could see the aristocratic haughtiness on his face. But now he was practically bursting with excitement.
She might have been a little ugly, but her heart was beautiful. He was willing to spend more time talking with her.
Tang Yuehua looked at the creature who hardly seemed like a woman.
It only took a moment's thought for her to realize this had been arranged at Bibi Dong's behest.
After all, the Worship Hall and the Pope Palace were in cahoots. And as a disciple of the Pope, there wasn't a single person from Spirit Hall who wouldn't bow when they saw her.
So the person who had spotted only Yu Xiaogang from a long way off could only have been sent by the Spirit Hall Saintess, Bibi Dong.
Before you continue