What Should I Call You, Bibi Xu?

She thought of Qian Renxue.

When Qian Renxue had just been born, had she been this small, this soft? Yet she had barely held that child properly even a few times.

The moment her daughter was born, Qian Daoliu had personally taken her to the Worship Hall to be raised as the rightful heir to the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul.

Each time, she could only watch that tiny infant from afar, watch the face that grew ever more like Qian Xunji's, while love and hatred repeatedly tore at her soul.

It was not that she did not love Qian Renxue. She simply did not dare to love her, could not love her. That child was the mark of her humiliation, the shackles she could never escape.

But the child in her arms was different.

He had nothing to do with Qian Xunji, no connection whatsoever to that filthy past. He was pure, a blank sheet of paper, completely and entirely Bibi Dong's alone.

"Fate?" Bibi Dong murmured softly, her voice carrying a tenderness she herself had never noticed, light as the wind.

She raised a hand and gently touched the baby's soft little cheek with her cool fingertips. The delicate warmth beneath them stood in stark contrast to her perpetually cold fingers.

As though sensing her touch, the baby's lips curved upward slightly, as if he were smiling in his sleep.

Bibi Dong's heart melted completely.

"Since I found you, you'll be my child from now on." Holding the baby, she slowly rose to her feet. Her gaze crossed the wilderness of overgrown grass and settled in the direction of Spirit Hall, her eyes resolute beyond question.

"The sun rises in the east, and the morning sun climbs high. My name is Bibi Dong, so I'll call you Bibi Xu. All right?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, she found herself almost laughing. He was so tiny, his eyes had not even opened. How could he possibly understand her, let alone answer?

But just then, the baby in her arms suddenly moved. His tiny hand slipped free from the swaddling cloth and grabbed the finger hanging at Bibi Dong's side.

He held on tightly, his warm little palm wrapping around her fingertip. Then he truly grinned, revealing a toothless smile.

His eyes opened to narrow slits as well. Like black grapes, his hazy pupils looked at her, clear as spring water in the mountains.

Bibi Dong froze completely.

The wind rustled through the wild grass, and the black mist over distant Killing City still churned. Yet in her world, it seemed that only the tiny smiling baby in her arms remained.

"You like that name, don't you?" Bibi Dong lowered her voice even further, afraid that the slightest sound might shatter this fleeting tenderness.

"Bibi Xu... From now on, I'm your mother. As long as I'm here, no one will bully you."

Holding Bibi Xu, she turned and headed toward Spirit Hall. Her once hurried steps home now became slow and steady, for fear that she might jostle the child in her arms.

She circulated the gentlest soul power, forming a warm shield around the swaddling cloth that shut out the cold wind, miasma, and every possible danger outside.

At Bibi Dong's usual speed, the journey from Killing City back to Spirit Hall would have taken half a month at most. But with little Bibi Xu in her arms, the trip dragged on for a full month.

She did not dare fly at full speed, afraid the fierce winds high in the sky would hurt him. She did not dare camp in the wilderness either, always finding the nearest village or town to stay in at dusk. She even set aside the dignity of a Holy Maiden and personally sought out women who had recently given birth, begging them to nurse the child.

She paid generously, offering several gold soul coins at a time. She would also casually help villagers deal with low-level soul beasts terrorizing the area, or use her soul power to tend to the frail bodies of elderly people.

Over time, the villages and towns along the way all came to know that a breathtakingly beautiful, cold-tempered noblewoman was traveling with a small infant in her arms. She seemed difficult to approach, but her heart was exceptionally kind.

Along the way, Bibi Xu was unbelievably well-behaved. He rarely cried, only whimpering when he was hungry or had wet himself. Most of the time, he simply stared at Bibi Dong with his round black eyes, clinging to her.

As long as Bibi Dong held him and spoke to him, he would giggle happily, his tiny hand gripping her finger without letting go.

At night, when they stayed in inns, Bibi Dong would sit beside the bed after finishing her cultivation for the day and watch Bibi Xu sleeping soundly in his cradle.

Candlelight flickered over the child's peaceful little face, and the murderous aura and hostility around her would unconsciously fade by quite a bit.

The Rakshasa God's divine consciousness would occasionally awaken deep within her mind, sending a voice tinged with amusement and meaning. "I never thought that after leaving Killing City, revenge would not be the first thing on your mind. Instead, you brought back a little brat you found. This child is pure. He has the makings of someone great."

Bibi Dong never responded. She merely tucked Bibi Xu's blanket around him more carefully. She did not care what fate had brought the child to her, nor whether he had the makings of someone great. She only knew that he was her son, Bibi Dong's child.

She would protect him as he grew up. She would not let him suffer the pain she had suffered, nor allow anyone to use him or hurt him.

A month later, Spirit Hall's majestic outline finally appeared on the horizon.

Golden halls stretched one after another, gleaming beneath the sunlight and symbolizing Spirit Hall's supreme authority and status.

From afar, the knights guarding the hall saw that familiar black figure and immediately dropped to one knee, calling out loudly, "Welcome back, Your Highness the Holy Maiden!"

Bibi Dong gave a slight nod and carried Bibi Xu into Spirit Hall at an unhurried pace.

All along the way, every attendant and soul master lowered their heads respectfully, not daring to look up even once. Yet from the corners of their eyes, they still caught sight of the swaddled infant in the Holy Maiden's arms. They were filled with uncertainty, but none dared utter a single unnecessary word.

Inside the Pope's Palace, Qian Xunji was seated behind his desk handling official affairs. When he heard an attendant report that Bibi Dong had returned, the hand holding his pen paused, and delight immediately appeared on his face.

He set down his pen and rose to his feet, unable to hide the urgency in his voice. "She's finally back? Quickly, let her—"

Before he could finish, the attendant cautiously added, "Reporting to Your Holiness, the Holy Maiden... has also brought back a baby boy in swaddling clothes. The guards outside said that Your Highness values the child greatly. She carried him herself the entire way and would not allow anyone else to touch him."

The smile on Qian Xunji's face froze.

A baby boy?

He frowned, countless thoughts flashing through his mind in an instant. Bibi Dong had spent a year in Killing City. How could she return with a baby?

Could it be that she had, outside... No, impossible. Given Bibi Dong's nature, she would never do such a thing.

After a moment of silence, Qian Xunji slowly sat back down and waved a hand. "I understand. She has just returned and endured a difficult journey. Let her rest in the Holy Maiden Hall first. As for the child... let her do as she wishes."

After the attendant withdrew, Qian Xunji leaned back in his chair and wearily rubbed his brow.

Bibi Dong hated him. He had wronged her over what happened back then. Over the years, he had watched her grow increasingly cold and severe, watched her distance herself from him, even refuse to get close to her own daughter. It was not as though he felt no regret or pain.

But he was the Pope of Spirit Hall. He had his pride, and he had his obsessions.

He had always thought that as time passed, her anger would eventually fade. Once she grew a little more mature, she would eventually understand his feelings, eventually accept Xue'er and accept him.

Now that she had brought back a child she found, she was probably only seeking an emotional refuge because her heart was in too much pain. That was fine. Having a child to distract her was better than letting hatred consume her every day.

A foundling was still only a foundling. Blood was thicker than water. In a few more years, she would surely understand that her biological daughter was the one closest to her.

Thinking this, Qian Xunji felt slightly more at ease and picked up his pen again. Yet when the tip touched the paper, he did not write a single word for a long time.

At the same time, deep within the Worship Hall.

Qian Daoliu was holding the one-year-old Qian Renxue before the enormous statue of the Six-Winged Angel. The little girl wore a snow-white dress and looked as if she had been carved from jade. She was tugging at Qian Daoliu's white beard and giggling nonstop.

"Pull more gently, you little rascal." Qian Daoliu's tone was full of indulgence as he let his granddaughter play with his beard, his gaze so gentle it could have melted into water.

His Xue'er was a once-in-a-millennium genius of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul. At her birth, she had triggered an angelic phenomenon. She was Spirit Hall's future hope and the focus of his entire life.

An attendant hurried in and bowed as he reported, "Great Worshipper, the Holy Maiden has returned from Killing City."

Without turning his head, Qian Daoliu merely gave a calm hum. "It is enough that she returned alive. Did she obtain the Killing God Domain?"

"She did. But..." The man hesitated, then said in a low voice, "The Holy Maiden also brought back a baby boy. It is said that she found him outside Killing City and has named him Bibi Xu. Your Highness is extremely attentive to the child and personally brought him back to the Holy Maiden Hall."

Qian Daoliu's movements paused for a moment.

Qian Renxue failed to catch his beard and babbled as she reached for his face.

Qian Daoliu naturally took his granddaughter's little hand. Without even lifting his eyelids, he replied in an even tone, "I understand. He is merely a child she found, so let her do as she wishes. Tell the people of the Holy Maiden Hall to attend to him properly. Do not let the child be mistreated."

"Yes." The worshipper bowed and withdrew.

Only grandfather and granddaughter remained in the hall. Qian Daoliu looked down at Qian Renxue in his arms. The little girl was staring at him curiously with golden eyes, looking exactly like Qian Xunji had as a child. Qian Daoliu's gaze grew even softer.

As for Bibi Dong finding a child, he had seen at least some of the bitterness in her heart over these years.

Toward Qian Renxue, she both loved and hated her. Unable to overcome that barrier in her heart, it was perfectly normal for her to place her emotions in a child unrelated to her.

In his view, that baby boy named Bibi Xu could not stir up any trouble. No matter how dearly Bibi Dong loved or raised him, he was not of the Qian bloodline. He had no inheritance of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul and could never be mentioned in the same breath as his Xue'er.

Xue'er was destined to inherit the Angel God's divinity and lead Spirit Hall. An unknown wild child was nothing more than a plaything for Bibi Dong to ease her loneliness.

Having such a child might even settle Bibi Dong's mind somewhat, so she would not constantly think of opposing Qian Xunji. For Spirit Hall, that was instead a good thing.

Holding Qian Renxue, Qian Daoliu nodded slightly toward the angel statue. Everything was under his control.

Upon returning to the Holy Maiden Hall, Bibi Dong immediately ordered the sunniest room to be cleared out and turned into a nursery for Bibi Xu.

She selected wet nurses, maids, and nannies over and over again. Anyone who gave her even the slightest cause for concern was dismissed. She personally oversaw the arrangement of the crib and personally chose the swaddling cloths and clothes, her meticulousness leaving every attendant utterly astonished.

Who could have imagined that Bibi Dong, the cold-hearted Holy Maiden who killed without blinking, had such a careful and gentle side?