The Scapegoat!

"Moonlight Pavilion ..."

Bibi Dong murmured the name repeatedly. As the Pope, she naturally knew this place, but she never imagined that one day she would go there in this way.

Lin Xia's suggestion was like a pebble thrown into the still lake of her heart.

"Leave the Spirit Hall... leave this place that holds too many cold, calculating, and painful memories..."

"Going in secret... means temporarily shedding the burden of the Pope, no longer needing to wear that imposing mask..."

"Moonlight Pavilion... a completely unfamiliar place, full of artistic atmosphere... perhaps... it really is a place where I can catch my breath?"

Most importantly—"Going with Xiao Xia..."

This thought, like a lone lamp lit in the darkness, illuminated her weary and confused mind, bringing an indescribable warmth and...

A hidden Covet.

The storm that had nearly torn her apart deep within her soul just now stemmed from her twisted and indescribable obsession with the boy before her.

At this moment, he actually suggested taking her with him, placing her under his protection...

A faint "moment of inspiration," which she herself was not even clearly Frisk of, flashed suddenly in the depths of her deep, weary purple eyes, like a spark thrown into ice water. It was so fast that it was almost impossible to catch, yet it was real.

She unconsciously tightened her grip on Qian Renxue's fingers for a moment.

Qian Renxue keenly sensed the Frisk emotional fluctuation in her mother at that moment.

Although Lin Xia's sudden suggestion to bring the Pope's mother to the Heaven Dou Empire shocked and bewildered her—it was an unprecedented and extremely audacious idea!

But seeing her mother's pale and weak appearance, recalling the terrifying scene just now, and then seeing the undeniable concern and determination to protect her in Lin Xia's eyes...

"Mother!"

Qian Renxue immediately realized what was happening. She suppressed her surprise and doubt, and her tone became extremely earnest.

"Xiao Xia is right! You really need to rest right now!"

"The affairs of the Spirit Hall can be temporarily handled by Grandfather and the other elders. The environment of the Moonlight Pavilion is indeed very suitable for recuperation, and your daughter can be absolutely safe in Heaven Dou City!"

"Please come with us! Just consider it... just to put Xiao Xia and me at ease, okay?"

Qian Renxue's persuasion carried a daughter's pure concern for her mother and a hint of barely Frisk plea.

Her words, like the last straw that broke the camel's back, also gave Bibi Dong a very dignified way out.

Bibi Dong's gaze slowly swept over Lin Xia's expectant and protective eyes, and over her daughter's worried face.

The secret Covet in my heart, under the high-sounding reason of "to put their minds at ease," finally broke through the dam of reason.

As if by some strange twist of fate, a few breaths after Qian Renxue finished speaking, Bibi Dong nodded almost imperceptibly.

"Um."

A barely audible syllable escaped from her pale lips, as if she had exhausted her last strength.

"Teacher! You agreed?!"

Lin Xia's eyes instantly lit up with immense joy and relief, and her whole being brightened.

Seeing that Bibi Dong finally nodded in agreement, Lin Xia finally felt relieved.

He immediately inquired about the source of the evil thoughts that had just erupted.

"Teacher, are you feeling better now? Could you tell me what just happened? What 'past event' caused such a turbulent reaction? I've never seen you before..."

He carefully considered his words.

"... What could have happened that caused you such a shock?"

This question instantly froze the atmosphere once again.

Bibi Dong's body, which had just relaxed a little, stiffened again. Mentioning "past events" and "mental turmoil," the glaring image of their embrace under the Glazed Pavilion flashed uncontrollably through her mind again, and that twisted jealousy and pain throbbed like a leech.

How could she possibly utter the words "the root cause of my loss of control," the most shameful, taboo, and unspeakable reason?

A wave of immense shame and self-loathing washed over her again. She abruptly lowered her eyelids, her thick eyelashes trembling violently, concealing the turbulent emotions churning within her eyes.

A long silence filled the pavilion, with only her slightly rapid breathing clearly audible. The hand holding Qian Renxue's had also turned icy cold.

Bibi Dong's silence and obvious resistance made Lin Xia's heart sink.

"Past events... intense emotional turmoil... past events that could cause such pain to the teacher, even incite such terrible evil thoughts..."

Connecting with the "original plot" he knew after his transmigration, a name, like a poisoned arrow, instantly pierced through all his guesses and fog!

Yu Xiaogang!

That man who betrayed his teacher's deep affection, chose to escape when his teacher was in the most pain and helpless, and even indirectly caused his teacher's tragic fate!

That hypocritical, cowardly, and incompetent so-called Grandmaster only knows how to talk empty theories!

In Bibi Dong's heart, the name Yu Xiaogang is a symbol of all the tragedies and pain of her first half of life, and the deepest scar engraved on her heart!

Besides him, who else could make her lose her composure to such an extent at this point in time, based solely on the word "past events"?!

A chilling, bone-piercing killing intent, like a Siberian cold front, suddenly swept through Lin Xia's chest!

The killing intent was so pure and so chilling that even Qian Renxue, who was standing right next to him, instinctively shivered and looked at him with suspicion and uncertainty.

Lin Xia's eyes instantly turned sharp as knives, and it seemed as if cold stars exploded deep within her dark pupils!

"Damn Yu Xiaogang! It must be him! Only he has the 'ability' to make his teacher suffer so much after all these years!"

"That scumbag! Coward! Hypocrite! Wasn't it enough that you betrayed your teacher and caused her so much pain back then? What have you done now to provoke her even more?!"

"No! We absolutely cannot let him continue to be Poison Point in the teacher's side! We cannot allow him to have any more chances to harm the teacher!"

A cold and decisive plan instantly took shape in Lin Xia's mind.

"It seems it's time to 'pay a visit' to this 'Grandmaster'..."

Lin Xia's lips curled into a cold, almost cruel smile.

"We must make him tell the 'truth' of what happened back then, tear his hypocritical mask to shreds, and crush his ridiculous dignity and reputation into the dust!"

"Make him admit his cowardice and incompetence! Only by completely shattering the shadow he left in the teacher's heart, ruining his reputation, and making him a laughingstock despised by everyone, can this Poison Point thorn be cut off, allowing the teacher to truly escape the shadow of the past!"

Lin Xia clenched her fist silently inside her sleeve, her knuckles cracking slightly from the force.

His gaze toward Bibi Dong was filled with endless heartache and protectiveness, yet the thought in his heart grew ever stronger.

Yu Xiaogang must pay the price!

For the sake of the teacher's liberation, he must be buried in the shame of the past!

At this moment, Bibi Dong, deeply mired in her own immense shame and secrets, and silently suffering, had no idea that her most cherished disciple had mistakenly Lock-On a "scapegoat" for the Inner Demon turmoil she had caused because of him.