Bibi Dong read the Tao Te Ching

Tang Fan's words left a bitter taste in the mouths of the soldiers of the Douluo Continent's two great empires.

Soldiers' lives in modern society were precious, so they had drones and robot dogs. But what about them? Were their lives so cheap?

Though they did not want to admit it, that seemed to be the case. Neither the nobles nor the emperors thought their lives mattered much. That was the saddest part.

Even so, they could not summon the will to resist. Though the sky screen had planted seeds of rebellion, it was still far too early for them to sprout.

Tang Fan and Bibi Dong had returned home while chatting.

Back in this little home, which was hardly spacious, Bibi Dong actually felt a sense of warmth.

Tang Fan just felt exhausted. Being someone's tour guide was no easy job, either.

He opened the fridge and handed Bibi Dong the half watermelon inside.

"This is watermelon. Give it a try. I'm going to take a shower. If you're bored, you can watch TV."

Tang Fan handed Bibi Dong the remote and briefly taught her how to use it. The TV was an old model with no ads, and it opened straight to the movie channel. She only needed to learn how to change channels and adjust the volume.

The TV clearly caught Bibi Dong's attention. She even put down the watermelon she was eating.

Naturally, Bibi Dong watching TV was also broadcast to the Douluo Continent through the sky screen, and she was watching the news.

Though the people of the Douluo Continent understood only bits and pieces of the news, they could grasp what made this thing so impressive.

"To gather all the major and minor events that happened across an entire country in a day, sort through them, and broadcast them through this thing called a television-that efficiency is terrifying."

Hearing Qian Daoliu say this, Qian Xunji nodded as well. "Even when our Spirit Hall uses Soul Masters to relay urgent messages, it still takes several days if the distance is great.

"The two great empires go without saying. Getting news from the border back to the imperial capital within a month already counts as highly efficient.

"Father, if we had this thing called a television, we could surely make the entire Douluo Continent know the greatness of the Angel God."

Qian Daoliu shook his head. "Impossible. With the means currently available on the Douluo Continent, we simply couldn't make a television.

"Besides, what matters isn't the television, but the entire system behind it."

Qian Daoliu had a clear understanding of things, but seeing something desirable yet unattainable always left a stifling feeling in one's heart.

Bibi Dong watched the TV, but her mind was elsewhere. Her face had turned rosy, and she kept turning to look toward the bathroom, where she could hear water splashing.

Ten minutes later, Tang Fan emerged from the bathroom and stretched.

"Ah! A hot shower feels so good!"

Tang Fan looked at Bibi Dong again, feeling helpless. There was only one bedroom in the house. It looked like he would have to make do with the sofa for the next few days.

"Bibi Dong, you should take a shower and go to bed too."

"But I'm not sleepy at all yet. You go to bed first."

"If I sleep in the bedroom, you'll have to make do with the sofa."

"That's fine. I've slept out in the wild while Soul Hunting. I'm not that delicate."

Tang Fan nodded. He had forgotten about that.

"All right. Good night."

"Mm, good night!"

Tang Fan went into the bedroom, and Bibi Dong covered her face. The blush on it still had not faded.

"Phew... Luckily, he didn't notice..."

Click. The bedroom door opened again.

"Ah!"

Tang Fan jumped in fright.

"Hm? What are you screaming for?"

"You... Why did you come back out?"

"To give you this, the Tao Te Ching. See if you can understand it."

"Oh, thank you."

"You're welcome... Ah... If you're going to watch TV, don't turn it up too loud. The room isn't that soundproof."

Tang Fan really was terribly sleepy. After saying that, he returned to his room, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep.

Bibi Dong calmed herself. Looking at the three traditional Chinese characters spelling out "Tao Te Ching," she could sense an inexplicable magic.

Naturally, this scene was also broadcast on the Douluo Continent's sky screen.

Almost every Soul Master was waiting for Bibi Dong to open the Tao Te Ching so they could see its contents clearly.

Bibi Dong did as they wished and opened the book...

"The Way that can be spoken is not the constant Way; the name that can be named is not the constant name... Mystery upon mystery, the gateway to all wonders."

Even the first chapter of the Tao Te Ching was beyond Bibi Dong's understanding, despite reading the annotations beside it.

She read the annotations while silently reciting the first chapter...

The Way that can be spoken is not the constant Way...

But before she had recited even half of it, she felt blood surging upward against its flow. Frightened, she hurriedly stopped.

Bibi Dong could stop, but things were disastrous over on the Douluo Continent.

In Spirit Hall, every Soul Master, including Qian Xunji and Qian Daoliu, spat blood in unison.

On Sea God Island, Bo Saixi and the Seven Sacred Pillars of Sea God Island were no exception.

Every Soul Master on the Douluo Continent who had tried to mobilize their Soul Power while studying the Tao Te Ching spat out a mouthful of blood.

Bibi Dong was the same, except she had no Soul Power on Blue Star. That was why she had only felt blood surging upward rather than actually spitting out a mouthful.

"Ji'er, issue an order. No one is allowed to attempt cultivation using the Tao Te Ching on the sky screen. Hurry..."

"Yes, Father!"

Qian Xunji wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and had the order passed down as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, some reckless fool really might get himself killed.

The Tao Te Ching was not fundamentally a cultivation technique, but Laozi's understanding of the Dao. What it contained were the ultimate truths of heaven and earth.

In a world without supernatural powers like Blue Star, the Tao Te Ching was merely a book of philosophy.

But in a supernatural world, the Tao Te Ching was a vessel for the very origin of the Dao. For people who did not even know what the Dao was to try to understand the Tao Te Ching through supernatural power, backlash was inevitable.

It was only because the Douluo Continent was the floor tile of fantasy worlds. In any other supernatural world, the backlash would not have been as simple as spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Bibi Dong closed the book at this point as well.

"This book really is extraordinary. Once Tang Fan wakes up, I'll have him explain it to me. If I still can't understand it, I'll just leave it at that."

Setting the Tao Te Ching aside, Bibi Dong went back to watching TV with the watermelon in her arms.

For some reason, she was not sleepy at all. Perhaps it was a transmigration perk, and she would be full of energy for all seven days she spent on Blue Star.

Otherwise, sleeping would waste far too much of her time in this world.

Bibi Dong could stay up watching TV, but the people over on the Douluo Continent could not.

The major factions assigned people to keep watch on the sky screen, while everyone else went to bed. Though spitting out a mouthful of blood did not count as a serious injury, they still needed proper rest.

The next morning, Tang Fan got up feeling refreshed and stretched.

"Ah... That was such a good night's sleep."

After getting up and opening the bedroom door, Tang Fan saw that Bibi Dong was still watching TV.

"Bibi Dong?"

"Tang Fan, you're awake."

"You didn't sleep all night?"

"Mm. I'm not sleepy at all."

"So you watched TV all night?"

"That's right. Tang Fan, why aren't immortals allowed to fall in love? Why must immortals be punished for falling in love with mortals?"

Only then did Tang Fan notice that Bibi Dong was actually watching The Lotus Lantern Prequel.