Chapter 6: Pick Up the Bowl to Eat, Put Down the Bowl to Curse
[Inorin's Note: The title is a direct translation of a Chinese idiom (放下碗骂娘) that describes someone ungrateful, who "bites the hand that feeds them." It refers to Yu Xiaogang using Spirit Hall's resources while internally holding contempt for it.]
[System notification: Bibi Dong's Favorability -20 (Fear, Unfamiliarity)]
Minus twenty? That's it? Qin Xuan mentally shrugged. A drop of 20 points from someone who was already infatuated with another man was negligible. It simply confirmed he was now on her radar as an unknown variable, a potential threat.
"Not good at all," Qin Xuan said, his voice level. He didn't care about Bibi Dong's fleeting favorability. His gaze was fixed, meaningfully, on the leather-bound book in Yu Xiaogang's hand.
Bibi Dong, still bristling from his sudden appearance, followed his gaze. Her pupils instantly constricted, and a flash of genuine panic—brief but undeniable—flickered in her eyes. She knew exactly what that book was.
"Yu Xiaogang," Qin Xuan began, his tone deceptively calm, "are you aware that those so-called 'theories' you just mentioned are not for public knowledge?"
He took a slow step forward, his eyes never leaving the book. "Especially this book in your hand. That is a top-secret archival document of Spirit Hall. It is a text that, by all rights, even I am not qualified to read."
A cold light flickered in Qin Xuan's eyes, though his lips curved into a smile as he addressed Yu Xiaogang.
The smile did not reach his eyes. It was a predator's smile.
Yu Xiaogang instantly felt a chill crawl down his spine. His hands fumbled, quickly stuffing the book into his spirit tool storage as if it were on fire. He feigned composure, puffing out his chest slightly. "So what? I am also a part of Spirit Hall."
As the son of the contemporary Sect Master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Yu Xiaogang was not a complete idiot. He knew the importance of a great power's foundational research. If it were leaked, it wouldn't be called a foundation anymore.
It was just that... having been a freeloader for so long, coddled and protected by the Holy Maiden Bibi Dong, he had subconsciously ignored the rules. He had begun to believe they didn't apply to him.
"Is that so?" Qin Xuan sneered, the sound cutting through the quiet grove. He decided to hit Yu Xiaogang exactly where it hurt.
"I remember you used to be a disciple of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, correct? And you were even the legitimate son of the contemporary Sect Master, Yu Yuanzhen."
Qin Xuan tapped his own temple. "But because your Spirit mutated, awakening... well, a pig... you couldn't stay in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. So you ran away, all the way to Spirit Hall."
The words struck Yu Xiaogang's pride like a hammer blow. Bibi Dong immediately stepped in front of him, shielding him from Qin Xuan's gaze as she argued, "Those are all in the past! Xiao Gang is now a part of Spirit Hall, just like us!"
She glared, trying to muster her authority as the Holy Maiden. "And his Spirit is Luo San Pao! The adorable Luo San Pao! It is not a pig."
"I know, I know. It's just a farting pig, isn't it?" Qin Xuan said dismissively, waving his hand. "But my point stands. He is a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon disciple, is he not? Or was, until they discarded him."
He fixed his gaze on Bibi Dong, his voice turning sharp and logical. "Holy Maiden, I hope you can understand the situation. On one side is the family that gave birth to him, raised him, and brought him up—a family he is desperate to prove himself to."
"On the other side," Qin Xuan gestured to their surroundings, "is Spirit Hall, where he has no status, no rank, and no accomplishments whatsoever. He is here only by your grace."
"Are you absolutely certain he won't leak Spirit Hall's secrets to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan? Or even to others, in exchange for high positions and generous salaries? In exchange for the very recognition his own clan denied him?"
"Xiao Gang would never!" Bibi Dong answered first, her voice ringing with resolute and decisive loyalty.
Meanwhile, behind her, Yu Xiaogang's face had turned pale. His fists were clenched so tightly his knuckles were white.
He perfectly displayed his signature style: weak and yielding externally, but striking hard internally at those who cared for him.
Faced with Qin Xuan's direct, logical, and damning questions, he hid behind Bibi Dong without making a sound, letting her fight his battles.
Qin Xuan's eyes narrowed, his gaze sliding sideways to look at the man cowering behind the Holy Maiden. "You wouldn't... need a woman to answer questions for you, would you, Yu Xiaogang?"
"Xiao Gang, hurry and answer! Say you won't leak the secrets!" Bibi Dong turned, grabbing Yu Xiaogang's arm and urging him anxiously.
Bibi Dong knew this matter could be big or small. If it were reported to her teacher, the Supreme Pontiff, or even worse, the Elder Palace, she herself would be fine. As the top genius of Spirit Hall's younger generation, she would at most receive a severe reprimand.
But Xiao Gang... Xiao Gang would be miserable. He could be imprisoned, crippled, or even executed.
No great power would ever allow its core secrets to be known by outsiders. This was an eternal, iron-clad rule, no matter which World it was.
"I... I have no relation with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan anymore!" Yu Xiaogang finally gritted out, his voice tight with suppressed rage and humiliation.
Qin Xuan sneered, unimpressed. "That's not the answer I want. Whether you are a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan disciple or not doesn't conflict with you leaking Spirit Hall's top-secret information."
He locked eyes with Yu Xiaogang. "Do you even know what you were holding? The information you possess is among the most classified research in Spirit Hall. Even some Titled Douluo Elders in the Elder Palace may not know all of it."
Qin Xuan's smile suddenly turned dangerous. "Just based on that, even if I killed you right here, right now, His Holiness the Supreme Pontiff would not blame me. He would probably reward me."
Upon hearing this, Bibi Dong's protective instinct exploded. 6 spirit rings—2 yellow, 2 purple, and 2 black—flashed into existence around her. A massive, terrifying black spider phantom, her Death Spider Emperor Spirit, appeared behind her, its many red eyes glaring at Qin Xuan.
She took a defensive stance, her face full of vigilance. "I won't allow you to harm Xiao Gang!"
"Then let him answer me," Qin Xuan said calmly, showing no fear. He made no intention of making a move. He was a Level 54 Spirit King. She was already a Spirit Emperor. Even if he did make a move, he couldn't win. His only weapon was logic.
Bibi Dong, hearing his calm reply, hesitated. The pressure from her Spirit rings subsided, though the phantom remained. She turned to look at Yu Xiaogang, her eyes pleading.
At this moment, Yu Xiaogang's fists inside his sleeves were clenched so tightly that his nails were digging into his palms, drawing blood without him even realizing it.
The physical pain was nothing. What mattered more was the mental torment.
He once again felt that same, suffocating sense of inferiority and powerlessness. It was the exact same feeling he experienced when he was mocked and ridiculed by his own clansmen.
He looked at Bibi Dong's desperate face, then at Qin Xuan's cold, smiling one. He took a deep, shuddering breath and timidly said, "I won't."
"'I won't'? Just saying 'I won't' isn't enough," Qin Xuan said playfully, enjoying this. "Even if you won't now, what about someday in the future? When your clan comes calling? When they offer you the position you've always craved?"
He shook his head, looking at Yu Xiaogang with manufactured pity. "Someone who can so easily betray their own family for personal gain... isn't trustworthy."
"Unless," Qin Xuan's voice dropped, "you swear an oath. A Spirit Master's oath."
"You will swear by your Spirit, Luo San Pao. Swear that if you ever reveal anything you have seen, heard, or learned from Spirit Hall to the outside World—to any person, any organization, especially the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan..."
Qin Xuan paused, letting the words hang. "...Your Spirit will shatter instantly. You will die a painful death. You will become a cripple, your limbs severed. You will be violated and shamed."
"And," Qin Xuan added as a final, brutal flourish, "your clan will be exterminated, and your entire family will perish."
Perhaps there was no all-powerful Heavenly Dao in the Douluo Continent, but the people of this World still held great reverence for oaths sworn on one's own Spirit. It was a binding contract of the soul.
However, Qin Xuan knew Yu Xiaogang was destined not to keep this so-called oath.
This man was extremely cowardly, insecure, arrogant, timid, and, above all, selfish.
The reason Qin Xuan said this was simple: he disliked the man intensely and wanted to disgust him. He wanted to plant a seed of terror in his soul.
"Qin Xuan, you've gone too far!" Bibi Dong shouted, her face pale with anger. "All of this was told to Xiao Gang by me! It has nothing to do with him! If there's anything, I'll bear it all!"
"What? So you also think he will leak Spirit Hall's secrets in the future?" Qin Xuan countered instantly, his logic trapping her.
"Moreover, Holy Maiden, you should clarify your identity." His voice became cold and hard. "It was Spirit Hall that awakened your Spirit. It was Spirit Hall that nurtured you, raised you, and gave you your lofty status."
"Everything you have today—your power, your knowledge, your position—was given to you by Spirit Hall. Not by Yu Xiaogang."
"Since you enjoy this privilege, then accordingly, you have the obligation to uphold Spirit Hall's interests and reputation."
"If you only know how to enjoy those privileges, and then turn your back on us... disregarding Spirit Hall's rights for your own selfish reasons, just to protect Yu Xiaogang's pathetic self-esteem... then what's the difference between you and an ungrateful wretch?"
"The Holy Maiden I envision," Qin Xuan said, his voice laced with contempt, "is not someone who eats from the bowl and then curses the hand that fed her."
"If it weren't for you, if it weren't for your status as the Holy Maiden, I would have split him in two with a sword the moment I saw him holding that top-secret Spirit Hall book."
Qin Xuan's simple, ruthless words directly shut Bibi Dong up. Her face went white, her argument crumbling. He had simultaneously cornered Yu Xiaogang and reminded her of her own duty.
"I…" Bibi Dong was speechless. She had no reply.
Ultimately, Yu Xiaogang, under Bibi Dong's difficult, pained gaze and Qin Xuan's unrelenting pressure, was forced to swear the oath.
He recited the words, his voice trembling with barely concealed hatred. He swore that if he leaked anything he saw, heard, or learned from Spirit Hall, his entire family would die, his Spirit would shatter, he would die, become a cripple, and be violated.
"Alright. The oath has been sworn." Bibi Dong's voice was ice. "I'll return the book later. Don't bother us again in the future."
She gave Qin Xuan a look of pure, undisguised disgust, then pulled Yu Xiaogang and turned to leave.
Today was truly unlucky, she thought, her heart aching for him. Xiao Gang had to suffer such a great injustice for no reason. With Xiao Gang's insecure and kind nature, he must be feeling terribly upset. I have to comfort him well and help him regain his confidence.
Unfortunately, what she didn't know was that this was just the beginning of Yu Xiaogang's nightmare. And it would be a nightmare that would never fade.
"Are you just going to leave like that?" Qin Xuan called out to their backs.
"What else do you want? Xiao Gang has already sworn the oath!" Bibi Dong turned around, glaring at Qin Xuan, her eyes blazing.
Yu Xiaogang, on the other hand, was as cowardly as ever. He didn't even dare to turn his head to face Qin Xuan again.
[Bibi Dong's Favorability -20, Favorability returns to zero (Extreme disgust, even hatred)]
Back to zero. Perfect.
"Nothing," Qin Xuan smiled, his expression bright and cheerful. "Just wanted to wish you both a pleasant day."
As they stormed off, Qin Xuan silently recited in his heart, "System. Bind character: Yu Xiaogang and Bibi Dong."
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