Tang San? Not Even a Dog Would Have Him

Bibi Dong stared in shock. "She split her own daughter into two parts? Did I hear that right?!"

"What kind of person would even think of that?"

Blue Silver looked and sounded just as stunned as Bibi Dong. "Did he change that much after becoming a god? That's his own daughter. Is fortune really so important that he'd even scheme against soul beasts?"

Lin Fan smiled. "I knew you'd say that."

"Tang San was already a hypocrite in the first story, but after becoming a god, he took it to the extreme."

"Let me give you an example."

"First, after he became a god, he put Huo Yuhao through what he called 'tests.' All kinds of ordeals and trials, supposedly 'for his own good.'"

"Second, deities aren't allowed to interfere with the lower world. But what did Tang San do? No one else could break that rule, yet he repeatedly stepped in to stop the Empire from unifying the continent."

"He claimed it was for his daughter, but really, he just didn't want Douluo Continent to slip out of his control."

"Anyway, Tang San did far too many outrageous things after becoming a god."

"Maybe it was for selfish gain, maybe it was for power. He made such a mess of the Divine Realm that, in the end, the whole realm couldn't take it anymore and fled."

"So there's no end to the things you could criticize. No end at all!"

By the time Lin Fan finished his indignant rant, Bibi Dong and Blue Silver were speechless.

They had never imagined anyone could be such a spectacular hypocrite.

When Blue Silver finally recovered, she sighed. "I never thought Tang San was like this. He schemed against humans and exploited the Soul Beast Race to the fullest."

"Did he forget he has soul beast blood himself? He really doesn't care about soul beasts at all. With his power and influence in the Divine Realm, he could have made it possible for humans and soul beasts to coexist."

Bibi Dong gave a cold laugh. "Then isn't what he did even worse than the Spirit Hall he destroyed?"

"Spirit Hall may have been a little overbearing, but it really did maintain stability across the continent. At most... well, that Pope, Bibi Dong, was hurt so badly in the later part that she fell into despair and led Spirit Hall astray."

"But after Tang San destroyed Spirit Hall, all he did was establish a Tang Sect. He didn't carry on Spirit Hall's mission."

"No wonder readers curse him!"

"Exactly." Lin Fan spread his hands. "In the first story, Tang San condemned Spirit Hall for being overbearing. In the second, he was even worse. The boy who slays the dragon becomes the dragon himself. That saying exists for a reason."

"And as for what Blue Silver said about whether Tang San forgot his soul beast blood—even though his mother and wife were both soul beasts, I think he always saw himself as a human, and more than that, a member of the Tang Sect."

Blue Silver took a deep breath. "I understand. He was a member of the Tang Sect from beginning to end, and everything he did was to make the Tang Sect flourish."

"You could put it that way." Lin Fan could feel the mood in the room growing heavy.

He coughed. "All right, there's no point dwelling on it. That's all from the second and third stories. We're still a long way from those."

"Besides, they're only stories in a novel. Just listen for entertainment. Don't take them too seriously."

"Why don't I tell you about Tang San's experiences in the first story instead? It's quite exciting."

But Blue Silver withdrew her hand and stood. "Lin Fan, let's stop here for today. We'll continue tomorrow."

"I have things to do, so I'll head back."

"All right." Lin Fan nodded. "See you tomorrow."

Blue Silver left the room, and Bibi Dong picked up the empty bowl and followed her out.

Blue Silver stood at the courtyard gate, gazing at the sky. "Dong'er, if the Blue Silver Emperor knew the future, would she still sacrifice herself to save Tang San and Tang Hao?"

"I don't know," Bibi Dong answered honestly. "But I do know one thing."

"What?"

Bibi Dong said, "If Tang Hao truly loved the Blue Silver Emperor, he could have used the Clear Sky Sect's secret technique when they were being hunted, or even sacrificed himself to hold off Spirit Hall."

"Instead of letting a woman sacrifice herself so he could live."

Blue Silver looked surprised. "The Clear Sky Sect has a secret technique?"

"That's right." Bibi Dong nodded. "It's called Ring Detonation. It lets the user detonate all their soul rings and absorb their power to force a boost in strength."

"Tang Hao was already a level ninety Soul Douluo with eight soul rings. The Clear Sky Hammer also had one of the strongest attacks among tool Martial Souls. If he'd truly been prepared to die, he could have fought to the death and bought the Blue Silver Emperor time to escape."

"Of course, I'm only speculating based on Spirit Hall's intelligence. I wasn't there for the pursuit."

Blue Silver fell silent. Bibi Dong patted her shoulder. "Come on, don't dwell on it. That's all in the future. Isn't the reason we listen to Lin Fan's stories to find a chance to change our own fates?"

Blue Silver nodded, still looking lost. "Sigh. Knowing your fate ahead of time doesn't seem like such a good thing after all."

"I know how you feel," Bibi Dong said. "When I first learned my fate from Lin Fan, I was just as lost. But he gave me some advice."

"What did he say?" Blue Silver asked.

Bibi Dong said proudly, "Just as the heavens move tirelessly, we must never stop striving. We can master our own fate!"

Blue Silver paused.

"Master our own fate..."

"Exactly. Someone else wrote that fate, but you choose the path you walk." Bibi Dong looked at her. "If you obediently wait to sacrifice yourself just because the story says the Blue Silver Emperor will, then you really will be nothing more than a character in that story."

"So wait until I find the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. That'll give you your chance to change your fate."

"And don't give birth to Tang San. Not even a dog would have him."

Blue Silver had been touched by the first part, but the last line made her face darken.

What... what does she mean, not even a dog would have Tang San?!

"Dong'er, thank you so much." Blue Silver smiled through gritted teeth.

Bibi Dong smiled. "You're welcome. Take good care of Lin Fan while I'm gone."

"I'll be sure to take very good care of him," Blue Silver said.

"Good," Bibi Dong said. "Then I need to go pack a few things."

Blue Silver nodded. "I'll wait for good news."

Blue Silver returned to her room and shut the door.

She was a soul beast, and soul beasts spent their entire lives fleeing heaven's judgment.

Every hundred thousand years of cultivation brought a tribulation. Survive it, and they could keep cultivating. Fail, and they would be reduced to ashes.

She had chosen to take human form to escape that cycle.

But what came after that? She hadn't known. She had simply come to the human world in search of an answer.

Nor had she ever imagined someone would encourage her with words like those.

But now someone had told her that her path was hers to walk.

Then it's time I walked my own path. Tang Hao? Tang San? Never heard of them!

Early the next morning, Bibi Dong was absent, just as expected. Blue Silver came instead.

Lin Fan asked, "Did Dong'er head into the mountains?"

"Mm. She left first thing this morning," Blue Silver said.

"Dong'er, don't get sidetracked along the way. Remember, the Immortal Herbs come first," Qian Xunji instructed.

"Yue Guan, Gui Mei, make sure you avoid their watchers."

"Understood!"

Bibi Dong, Yue Guan, and Gui Mei left Spirit City with six Soul Douluo, heading for the Sunset Forest in the Heaven Dou Empire.