Before long, Qian Renxue brought Qian Daoliu over.
Seeing his father arrive, Qian Xunji immediately went up to him and hurriedly explained, "Father, that guy was putting on an act! He deliberately..."
Qian Daoliu shot him a cold glance and cut him off. "I'll talk to you later."
Qian Xunji fell silent at once.
Ignoring him, Qian Daoliu led Qian Renxue straight toward the Saintess Hall.
But just as they drew near, An Yi came out with Bibi Dong.
An Yi had changed out of his bloodstained, moon-white robe and into a black one. Its deep color made his already somewhat pale face look even colder.
Seeing how weak he looked, Qian Renxue felt a pang of worry and called softly, "Teacher..."
Qian Daoliu's gaze fell on An Yi. After sensing him for a moment, he found that An Yi's presence had indeed grown considerably weaker.
"Xue'er said you were injured," Qian Daoliu said slowly.
An Yi's expression was calm. "Thank you for your concern, Great Enshrined. I'm not dying just yet."
Watching from the side, Qian Xunji finally lost his patience. He strode forward, pointed at An Yi, and said angrily, "An Yi, you clearly did that on purpose!"
An Yi looked at him, feigning confusion. "Did what on purpose?"
Qian Xunji's brows knitted tightly, and he gritted his teeth. "You were the one who provoked me first! You were also the one who hit me first! If you hadn't kept pushing me at every turn, how could I have attacked you?"
Hearing that, An Yi raised a brow, somewhat amused.
"So you're saying that I, a mere Soul Saint, recklessly attacked you, a Titled Douluo, and you had no choice but to fight back?"
He spread his hands, his voice dripping with mockery. "All right, it's my fault. I brought it on myself, and I deserve to die. So now that the Great Enshrined is here, are you planning to seek justice for your son, or finish me off with another blow?"
Qian Daoliu frowned slightly and turned to Qian Xunji. "What exactly happened?"
Qian Xunji said urgently, "Father, he really did provoke me first, and he was the one who hit me first!"
Qian Daoliu calmly asked in return, "Where were you hurt?"
Qian Xunji froze.
Though that slap had been heavy, he was a dignified Titled Douluo. The red mark on his face had long since faded, so where could he find the slightest trace of an injury now?
Qian Daoliu couldn't be bothered to listen to his nonsense. He turned to Qian Renxue. "Xue'er, what happened?"
Qian Renxue bit her lip and said quietly, "I was outside the Saintess Hall just now, and suddenly I saw what looked like a fight inside, so I ran in."
"Then... Daddy activated his Angel True Body and struck down with his sword. Teacher was wounded by Daddy while saving me."
Qian Xunji grew frantic when he heard that. "Xue'er, he was the one who attacked Daddy first!"
Qian Renxue lowered her head, her voice growing even quieter. "I... I don't know."
Seeing that his daughter wouldn't speak up for him, Qian Xunji's expression darkened further. He suddenly turned to Bibi Dong.
"Dong'er, you saw him attack me with your own eyes!"
Bibi Dong stood beside An Yi, her expression calm. "If Teacher says so, then it must be so."
Qian Xunji's expression stiffened, his chest tight with anger. "You!"
"Enough!" Qian Daoliu shouted in a deep voice.
Qian Xunji clenched his teeth, his face full of resentment. "Father, even you don't believe me?"
Qian Daoliu ignored him and turned his gaze back to An Yi, studying him for a moment.
"Are your injuries serious?"
An Yi chuckled and said casually, "I should still be able to run away. Of course, maybe I won't be able to. Would you like to try, Great Enshrined?"
The air around them froze in an instant.
Qian Daoliu took a deep breath, suppressed the emotions in his heart, and said gravely, "I will give you an explanation for this matter."
With that, Qian Daoliu turned and left, taking a thoroughly aggrieved Qian Xunji and a Qian Renxue who kept looking back with him.
After watching the three of them disappear completely into the night, Bibi Dong turned and looked at An Yi with a complicated expression.
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
An Yi shrugged and said confidently, "Whatever I want."
Bibi Dong was speechless. "Do you really think Qian Daoliu would take your side? That's his son. Even if Qian Xunji had actually killed you today, Qian Daoliu would only have pretended not to see."
"I know." An Yi smiled. "But I'm not dead yet, am I?"
Bibi Dong frowned slightly. "Are you really confident you can escape from Qian Daoliu?"
An Yi said calmly, "If I couldn't escape, I wouldn't be standing here."
Bibi Dong truly couldn't understand why this guy had such a favorable position yet insisted on deliberately provoking Qian Xunji.
"What exactly are you trying to stir up?"
An Yi looked at her and answered as if it were obvious, "Get revenge, of course."
Bibi Dong froze. "Revenge?"
An Yi nodded. "I grew up on Sea God Island, and everyone there treated me well. I can be considered one of them, after all."
"Back then, Qian Xunji ordered Spirit Hall to attack Sea God Island. How many people on the island were killed?"
"Taking revenge on Qian Xunji now counts as repaying everyone on Sea God Island, doesn't it?"
An Yi rubbed his chin, seemingly giving it serious thought. "Tell me, if I cut off Qian Xunji's head and took it back to Sea God Island, would everyone be happy? Or I could kidnap Qian Renxue and take her to Sea God Island too... Tsk, tsk, just thinking about it is exciting."
Bibi Dong couldn't help letting out a cold laugh. "Do you think Qian Daoliu only eats vegetables?"
An Yi corrected her with a perfectly serious expression. "Humans are omnivores. They eat both meat and vegetables."
Bibi Dong was utterly speechless. She glared at him and warned, "You'd better not do anything reckless."
An Yi leaned a little closer and looked at her with a teasing smile. "What, are you worried about me?"
Bibi Dong gritted her teeth and said bitterly, "I'm telling you not to drag me down with you!"
"Then I'll leave?" An Yi said, seizing the opening.
Bibi Dong turned her head away, unwilling to look at his eminently punchable face. "Get lost!"
An Yi sighed and feigned regret. "Those are your words. Once I'm gone, I won't be able to come back."
With that, he stepped forward without hesitation, making as if to leave.
Bibi Dong panicked at once. Almost without thinking, she reached out and grabbed his sleeve.
An Yi stopped and turned back, unable to hide the smile on his face.
"Looks like you can't bear to see me go after all."
Bibi Dong gritted her teeth, forcefully flung his sleeve away, and turned toward her bedchamber.
An Yi wasn't upset. He followed her inside at an unhurried pace.
Bibi Dong had just taken off her outer robe and lain down when the bed sank slightly. An Yi had followed her straight in and lain down beside her.
Bibi Dong's body stiffened instantly. She turned and glared at him. "What are you doing?"
An Yi pulled the quilt over himself and replied confidently, "Resting."
"I'm so badly hurt. Shouldn't I get some proper rest? Or are you really heartless enough to drive me away?"
Bibi Dong rolled her eyes at him. Too fed up to argue with him any further, she simply turned her back on him.
The hall fell quiet.
After a while, An Yi suddenly edged forward and reached around her from behind, drawing her into his arms.
Bibi Dong's expression stiffened, and her body tensed at once. "An Yi, don't push your luck!"
An Yi held her around the waist without speaking, merely resting his chin lightly against the crook of her neck.
Before long, his breathing gradually grew even. He seemed to have been so exhausted that he really had fallen asleep.
Feeling his steady breathing against her back and that familiar cool presence, Bibi Dong sighed helplessly.
In the end, she didn't push him away. She merely closed her eyes slowly and fell asleep as well.