"Not bad—your self-created soul skill. Its sealing power is formidable. But the strongest aspects of our Seraphim lineage are the dissolving force of holy power and the burning might of True Solar Fire. Burying yourself in sealing techniques right now is putting the cart before the horse. You're doing this because of Jun Tianlin, aren't you?" Qian Daoliu asked. "Ever since the day you and he unleashed your Martial Soul Fusion in the Star Dou Great Forest, your resolve has wavered badly."
Qian Renxue nodded. "When we performed the Martial Soul Fusion, Xiao Tian and I could share thoughts, no separation between us. It was from then on that this flower began to bloom little by little."
Qian Renxue took out the Yearning Heartbroken Red from her chest. The crimson radiance of the blossom was no longer as feeble as before—just a bit more, and it could be picked.
"I can no longer bring myself to kill Tianlin. But I won't forget my Qian family's mission. So I will still stand against him. That's why I've been grinding away at sealing arts. If I lose and die by his hand, I'll have no regrets. But if I win, I'll seal him—him and his family and friends all together. When everything has settled, I'll release them. Based on my understanding of Xiao Tian, while the world's fate is undecided, he'll fight to secure benefits for his family. But if the continent is already unified, he won't stir up chaos again for their sake, because at that point, that would be evil." Qian Renxue affirmed. It was precisely her understanding of Tianlin that led her to this idea.
She wasn't wrong. The continent was in turmoil; anyone with strength could vie for hegemony. But once peace returned, Tianlin would never again become a destroyer.
As it happened, Tianlin's thoughts matched hers without prior accord. Lately, he had been tempering his soul bones with the power of spirit pearls, planning to push both legs and his left arm to five hundred thousand years—but for his right arm, he wanted to strengthen it as much as possible.
Not for the Dark-Gold Titan Shattering Hand, but for Dark-Gold Seal. He planned to seal Qian Renxue too, then release her afterward, to avoid them fighting to the death.
…
Elsewhere, within the Rakshasa Secret Realm, Bibi Dong was still attempting to open the ninth trial of the Rakshasa God—but kept failing. She had long since completed the first eight trials and had reached level 99, the threshold for godhood, yet her affinity with the Rakshasa was insufficient to open the ninth trial.
Unlike the Sea God or Angel God, the Rakshasa's affinity wasn't fixed; it fluctuated with the inheritor's state of mind, decreasing or increasing as a result. Back when she completed the eighth trial, Bibi Dong's affinity had reached 90%, enough to immediately open the ninth trial and complete the inheritance. Even if the ninth trial only granted 10%, she could have succeeded. But now she was only at 70%—far too low.
"Damn it—failed again. Xue'er, you've worked so hard to dissolve the hatred in my heart. I don't know whether you love me or are harming me." Bibi Dong sighed. Although because of Qian Renxue her difficulty in inheriting the Rakshasa God had increased drastically, she didn't blame her at all. Compared to those years when she was wholly consumed by hatred—hating the Spirit Hall, the world, even herself—being surrounded by familial love now brought her far more happiness.
It made her realize: she, Bibi Dong, was not unloved.
At that moment, she sensed someone entering her room. When she went into the Rakshasa Secret Realm to cultivate, she would place a wisp of domain power at the doorway—to prevent disturbance.
At such a time, only two people would dare to come.
Bibi Dong changed clothes, left the secret realm, and returned to her room, where Hu Liena stood obediently at the door waiting.
"Nana, you know this is my cultivation time. Why have you come?"
"Teacher, I didn't want to disturb you, but someone delivered a letter, for you to open personally. He said it was extremely urgent. He had an Elder Token, so the guards didn't dare to stop him," Hu Liena said.
"An Elder Token?" Bibi Dong was taken aback. In the world, there were only five Elder Tokens of the Spirit Hall outside in circulation. Yu Yuanzhen and Sword Douluo each had one—honors granted back when the Spirit Hall and the three upper sects hadn't torn their relationship apart.
There were three others. Two were in Tianlin's hands—taken after he killed Titled Douluo and looted them. The last originally belonged to the Clear Sky Sect but ended up with the Grandmaster, making him an honorary elder of the Spirit Hall.
"Xiao Gang!" Bibi Dong immediately thought. At this time, someone who would write to her and attach an Elder Token could only be Yu Xiaogang. In her heart, the Grandmaster was still very important. Even in the darkest period, when she wanted to destroy the whole continent, he was the one person she had never thought to harm. Without hesitating, she left the room and went to the Pope's Hall.
A man was kneeling there timidly. He couldn't help it—this place was too terrifying to him. Luckily the Titled Douluo elders weren't present, or he might have fainted from fear.
Bibi Dong took her seat, regal and stern. "Raise your head."
The man lifted his head, caught a glimpse of Bibi Dong's beautiful face, and immediately dropped it again. "P–paying respects to Your Majesty, Empress of the Spirit Empire. I am an inner disciple of the Heaven Dou Empire's National Preceptor's residence, sent by the Grandmaster to deliver a letter."
"So it is Xiao Gang. The letter—present it," Bibi Dong ordered.
The man handed the letter over. Hu Liena took it and passed it to Bibi Dong. As Bibi Dong opened and read it, she was stunned—the contents were a farewell letter, even a testament.
"Has Xiao Gang gone mad? Going alone to the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect for revenge? He's just a Soul Grandmaster-level soul master; anyone from the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect could make him die without a burial place." Bibi Dong grew anxious. Her love-struck mind kicked in; she no longer had the clarity to analyze the letter's purpose—she only wanted to stop the Grandmaster from marching to his death.
"Wait, Teacher. From my observation, the Grandmaster cherishes his life very much. He endured so many humiliations back then and still bore with them. I don't believe he would really throw his life away like this. You should verify the letter's authenticity first," Hu Liena urged.
"You're right. In my memory, Xiao Gang isn't like that." Forcing herself to stay calm, Bibi Dong picked up the letter again and examined it. After reading a few lines, her brows relaxed. "Heh. So the letter is fake. The handwriting is identical to Xiao Gang's, but it's just a deliberate imitation. They didn't copy his writing habits. Those habits are ones I cultivated with him."
Clearly, Bibi Dong had seen through the flaw Ning Fengzhi had left intentionally. But the next moment, another doubt seized her heart.
Who impersonated the Grandmaster to write this letter, and for what purpose?
Moreover, whoever wrote it clearly knew the past between her and the Grandmaster. Not many knew of that—besides those in the Worship Hall, the only outside force with such intelligence-gathering prowess would be the Speed Clan, number one in espionage.
When she served as Saintess, she had no shortage of spies around her, but only the Speed Clan could tail her without being discovered.
Then there were the two sects the Speed Clan had served in succession: the Clear Sky Sect and the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.
By process of elimination, the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect had no reason to entrap themselves. That left only the Clear Sky Sect.
"Not good. Xiao Gang truly is in danger."
Bibi Dong had deduced that the Clear Sky Sect wanted to leverage her love for Xiao Gang and Xiao Gang's hatred of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, to engineer a war between the two sides.
As long as Yu Xiaogang died at the hands of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, she would surely fight to avenge him. As for the motive, it was written in the letter: to avenge Tang San and Tang Hao.