The Belated Slap

Bibi Dong could practically see it already: her palm piercing through his heart, his face twisting into an incredulous expression of How is this possible?... The corners of her mouth had already begun to rise...

But...

Just as her fingertips came within three inches of his back.

Chu Zisheng did not turn around.

Slap!

The crisp sound of a slap rang through the night sky.

Bibi Dong was sent flying sideways, crashing heavily to the ground and rolling four or five times.

Pain.

It hurt like hell...

It felt as though her face had been stung by a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, the Death Spider Emperor. Her entire head buzzed.

Bibi Dong struggled to prop herself up. Her vision went dark for a moment, and it took her quite a while to see clearly that Chu Zisheng had somehow already turned around.

He was looking down at her from above.

He had not even used soul power. Nine scarlet lights floated quietly around him, and that slap had relied purely on physical strength.

Of course, if he had used soul power, her head probably would not have existed anymore after that slap.

"Trying to ambush me?"

The corners of Chu Zisheng's lips curled upward as he smiled. "Your courage is commendable, but after what happened just now... you really didn't learn your lesson?"

He pointed behind him at Yue Guan, who had collapsed nearby. It had been the same kind of sneak attack, yet even a Title Douluo had failed. What chance did a mere Soul Douluo like her have?

Bibi Dong said nothing. Her breathing only grew more rapid, and her chest heaved violently with rage.

She knelt on the ground, her hair disheveled, looking utterly shattered.

Her left cheek burned, and so did her right.

Moonlight spilled down upon her. Both sides of her fair cheeks were now bright red, with clear, glaring finger marks on either side.

The Saintess robe had already been torn beyond recognition. With that fall, the tear at her shoulder had ripped even wider, revealing a large expanse of snowy-white skin.

Her chest rose and fell violently. Her originally aloof and holy face now looked miserable beyond measure.

Yet those violet eyes still glared fixedly at Chu Zisheng.

She was furious.

Humiliation.

Humiliation even worse than death!

You didn't slap someone in the face...

Ever since that secret chamber, she had never again allowed anyone to humiliate her like this.

And now, some brat who looked eight years old had slapped the Spirit Hall's Saintess to the ground with another blow.

"You want to kill me that badly?"

Chu Zisheng looked at her indifferently and teased, "With that little strength of yours, you can't kill me."

"How would I know without trying!"

Bibi Dong spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, gritting her teeth.

She stood again, mobilized her soul power, and charged at Chu Zisheng once more with death in mind.

But then came another slap.

Another slap.

This time, Bibi Dong fell even harder, rolling seven or eight times.

Her Saintess robe was completely torn apart, barely covering her body. Large stretches of fair skin kissed the bright moonlight.

Bibi Dong's eyes reddened, and two helpless streams of tears flowed down her face.

She did not want to cry.

But...

It hurt... It really hurt too much...

She simply could not hold back the tears as they poured down...

"Still want to try?"

Chu Zisheng looked at her mockingly and even took the initiative to remove the pressure weighing on her.

Bibi Dong said nothing. Her teeth ground together as she rose again and charged forward.

Slap—!!

The faster she charged, the faster she was sent flying.

"Again!"

Slap!

Creak, creak, creak—!!

"Come on!"

Slap—

Bibi Dong was dizzy and disoriented. Her cheeks were crimson, and she could no longer tell whether there were more tears or blood in her mouth.

The good news was that Chu Zisheng had not used soul power.

The bad news was that his slap... was incredibly strong... It really hurt...

"Not coming anymore?"

Chu Zisheng rubbed his wrist and looked at her in surprise. "You've finally gained some sense? You're not going to keep humiliating yourself?"

Bibi Dong: "..."

Kill him!

I'm going to kill him!!!

The rage in her heart nearly swallowed her whole.

Soul power surged forth once again. She charged at him again, carrying boundless fury and vowing to set the starry night ablaze!!!

But...

Slap—

"Keep going?"

"..."

Slap!!

"Giving up?"

"..."

Slap—!!!

"Heh, hurry up, hurry up. My hand is getting itchy again."

"..."

"Ahhhhh!!!"

Slap—!!!!

He was toying with her!

Blatant, outright toying with her!

Like a cat playing with a mouse, an old man teasing a child.

Chu Zisheng seemed to have the temperament of a child, accompanying Bibi Dong in her antics again and again.

Under the moonlight, that aloof and holy Saintess charged forward time after time with rage and humiliation filling her heart, only to be slapped away again and again...

What was he even slapping?

It was clearly Bibi Dong's pride and dignity... all of it was being slapped away completely amid one resounding slap after another.

Fortunately, the two Title Douluo and the Chrysanthemum Douluo had already passed out. The other high-ranking soul beasts were also intimidated by Chu Zisheng's powerful aura and did not dare approach.

At this moment, only Chu Zisheng and Bibi Dong remained between heaven and earth.

Thus, no one could witness this miserable yet absurd scene.

No one knew how many times she had been slapped. Her face no longer hurt, because her cheeks had swollen and gone numb.

After being slapped away once more, Bibi Dong finally did not get back up. Instead, she lay on the ground in despair and helplessness, her eyes bloodshot as tears blurred her vision.

She could no longer tell whether the sky was red, or whether blood had covered her sight.

"Not coming anymore? Tsk..."

Chu Zisheng walked over, bent down beside her, and looked down at her.

"Why put yourself through this? I didn't want to hit you in the first place."

"Kill me... Hurry up and kill me..."

Bibi Dong glared at Chu Zisheng. Though despairing, she remained stubbornly defiant and still refused to beg for mercy.

It was only because her cheeks had swollen from the slaps that her words came out somewhat slurred.

"Why would I kill you?"

Chu Zisheng said speechlessly, "You're the one who's been trying to kill me, right? And that... Chrysanthemum, was it? He attacked me for no reason. I didn't provoke your Spirit Hall, did I?"

"And you too. I asked you to tell me about your situation, so why were you being so stubborn?"

Bibi Dong: "???"

What did he mean?

Had she taken all those slaps for nothing?

"Still, I didn't want to kill you before, but now..."

Chu Zisheng abruptly changed his tone and suddenly revealed a sinister smile.

"I've changed my mind."

Soul power emerged in his palm as he swung another slap toward Bibi Dong's face.

This time, it was no longer the harmless roughhousing from before.

He had used soul power!

With this slap, even a Title Douluo's head would be smashed apart.

Just as Bibi Dong thought she was doomed, that her pitiful life was finally about to end, she closed her eyes in despair.

Slap...

Yet the pain she had imagined did not come.

That slap did not land with force. Instead, his palm rested gently against her cheek.

A cool, soothing stream of soul power flowed from his palm and covered her swollen face. The burning pain was instantly dispelled, leaving her indescribably comfortable.

Her wounds rapidly healed, the swelling faded, and her skin returned to normal.

That noble, cold, fair face emerged once more.

Bibi Dong could feel Chu Zisheng's palm gently stroking her smooth cheek.

She did not understand what he was doing.

A slap followed by a sweet date!?

Or had he... spared her?

She opened her eyes and looked at Chu Zisheng in confusion.

But at that moment.

A black shadow flashed before her eyes!

Slap!

The belated slap seemed to have deliberately waited for the instant she opened her eyes before striking her fiercely.

"Ah—"