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Bibi Dong looked deeply at Xuan Ming, then glanced at Gu Yuena, who was easily holding the Sea God Trident, finally suppressing her turbulent emotions and turning to walk towards the Supreme Pontiff Palace.
"Come in and talk."
Xuan Ming and Gu Yuena exchanged glances and followed her. Gu Yuena casually handed the Sea God Trident, which had returned to its normal weight, to Xuan Ming. Xuan Ming took it, and the heavy divine tool still seemed effortless in his hands.
Yue Guan, Gui Mei, and the other Elders looked at each other in dismay, then quickly followed. Their hearts were filled with doubt and unease, but judging by the Supreme Pontiff's attitude, it didn't seem to be the hostile situation they had anticipated?
Entering the solemn Supreme Pontiff Palace, everyone else was dismissed, leaving only a few core Elders.
Bibi Dong sat on the Supreme Pontiff's throne, rubbing her temples, her voice tinged with a hint of weariness: "What do you plan to do, returning this time?"
Xuan Ming didn't answer, instead asking: "How is the Spirit Empire doing now?"
Bibi Dong sighed, "The expansion is going smoothly enough. Although Heaven Dou and Star Luo are resisting together, against absolute power, their gradual defeat is only a matter of time."
She generally explained the current territory of the Spirit Empire, its troop deployments, and the fierce resistance from the Two Great Empires.
Xuan Ming looked at the Elders present, "On my way back, I saw a lot. The Spirit Empire's expansion is fast, but internal chaos and corruption are also brewing."
He briefly recounted what he had seen along the way: the Spirit Masters of the Spirit Empire who bullied others and extorted taxes, the burned villages, and the displaced refugees.
Bibi Dong listened, then fell silent for a moment: "I… I know about these things."
She rubbed her temples and explained: "The Empire was newly established, forcefully integrating various factions with military power, so it's inevitable that there's a mix of good and bad. When those below gain power, their mentality swells, they oppress the good, and line their own pockets—these things are unavoidable. I have issued orders multiple times to restrain them, but… the effect is limited."
Her voice carried a hint of powerlessness: "The foundation of the Spirit Empire's establishment is powerful military might, believing that the strong are respected. This ideology is almost the morale of the Empire's army. The current chaos is an unavoidable byproduct of this ideology.
If I were to forcefully suppress it with high-pressure tactics now, the army's fighting spirit would inevitably decline. If the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Two Great Empires were to seize this point and condemn us from a moral high ground, accusing us of being rebellious traitors and shaking morale… the consequences would be unimaginable."
She glanced at the Elders below, whose expressions varied: "Don't forget, a significant portion of the Spirit Masters under our Spirit Empire came from the Two Great Empires; they were invited.
If our original Spirit Hall Spirit Master legion wasn't strong enough to stabilize the situation, things would have already fallen into chaos below.
In the propaganda of the Two Great Empires, we are already rebels. Morally, we are on shaky ground. For now, we can only maintain order through strong power; internal corruption can only be rectified slowly."
Xuan Ming listened quietly. He understood Bibi Dong's difficulties. In troubled times, harsh measures are used, but under harsh measures, more brutality and chaos are also easily bred. This is almost an insoluble problem, especially in the early stages of an Empire rapidly expanded and established through military force.
"I just mentioned it casually." Xuan Ming said indifferently, "I can't concern myself with these things right now."
His tone was very calm, but Bibi Dong and Gu Yuena, who knew him well, heard a hint of coldness deep within his words.
If things didn't go smoothly next, if he had to resort to extreme measures… he himself didn't know how many people would die then.
After understanding the Spirit Empire's public affairs, Xuan Ming followed Bibi Dong to the depths of the Supreme Pontiff Palace.
"You only went to Sea God Island half a year ago, why did you suddenly come back? Where is Nana?" Bibi Dong asked with some concern.
"She's fine. I came back because of your matter." Xuan Ming brushed aside the hair on his forehead, revealing the golden trident mark.
Bibi Dong's eyes subtly changed, "You… you obtained a God Position trial? The Sea God's?"
Xuan Ming nodded, "It's the Sea God's, but not just the Sea God's. It's very complicated, and I'm not entirely clear either."
"You…" Bibi Dong felt Xuan Ming's unfathomable aura, as if he was even stronger than her.
Such a big change in just half a year?
"Which trial are you on?" Bibi Dong couldn't help but ask.
"I just completed the second trial," Xuan Ming said.
Bibi Dong was stunned, "That fast?"
Only half a year had passed since Xuan Ming left for Sea God Island, and he had already completed two assessments?
"No, you said it was because of my matter?" Bibi Dong frowned slightly.
"The Rakshasa God Position trial?"
"Mm." Xuan Ming nodded, looking directly at Bibi Dong, "My third trial is called 'Slaying Evil and Calming Souls.' Its content is to deal with the hidden dangers of the Rakshasa God Position inheritance and stabilize the inheritor's state."
He paused, carefully observing Bibi Dong's reaction: "Have you felt any strange changes recently? Besides the stagnation of the God Position trial, for example, in your emotions, thoughts, or any physical abnormalities?"
Bibi Dong's pupils contracted slightly, almost subconsciously avoiding Xuan Ming's gaze, her tone a little stiff: "No, everything is fine."
But Xuan Ming clearly caught the fleeting panic and evasion in her eyes. She was lying. The erosion of Rakshasa's malevolence could never be without a trace.
Looking at Bibi Dong's forced composure, Xuan Ming sighed silently in his heart.
He took a step forward and, to Bibi Dong's slightly startled gaze, gently pulled her into his embrace.
"Don't rush, and don't be afraid." Xuan Ming's voice sounded in her ear, deep and steady, "I'm here."
Enveloped by this sudden embrace, feeling the reassuring aura on Xuan Ming, Bibi Dong's tightly strung nerves relaxed slightly, but what followed was an even more complex and inexpressible surge of emotions.
She leaned against Xuan Ming's chest, silent for a moment, then suddenly, in a tone tinged with self-mockery and bitterness, she whispered: "I saw it… that night, you and Gu Yuena…"
Xuan Ming's body stiffened almost imperceptibly.
Bibi Dong seemed not to notice, continuing to speak, her voice carrying a sourness and confusion that even she didn't fully comprehend: "I don't know what's wrong with me… I clearly told myself long ago that there would be no outcome between us, and no future. To maintain things as they are now is already a luxury."
"I originally… hoped that you and Nana would be together. I know that child's thoughts better than anyone. I hoped she could be happy, get what she wanted, and not walk the same path as me…"
Her voice gradually lowered, tinged with a hint of powerlessness, "But, you chose Gu Yuena first… You and Nana were in Slaughter City for nearly three years, always keeping your distance, why her of all people…"
These words, like a long-suppressed volcano, found an outlet for release at this moment.
She knew she shouldn't say them, shouldn't have such emotions. It didn't fit her identity as Supreme Pontiff, and even less so the invisible boundary she had always set for herself and Xuan Ming.
But at this moment, under Xuan Ming's sudden embrace and the immense pressure of the God Position trial, she lost control.
Xuan Ming listened quietly, not interrupting.
He could feel the deep-seated obsession, unwillingness, and the complex, 'motherly' affection, hoping for Hu Liena's happiness, within Bibi Dong's words—feelings that even she might not be able to clearly define.
All of this was intertwined with the restless Rakshasa malevolence within her, making her emotions even more chaotic.
"You should be glad you took all those young girls away, otherwise… I might have already been unable to resist acting against them." Bibi Dong's tone carried a hint of coldness.
Gu Yuena was the first to notice her abnormality, so she took the people to Sunset Forest early, to hide them in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
If it weren't for that, during the years Xuan Ming was in Slaughter City, she would have already been unable to resist killing those young girls.
Especially Gu Yuena!
"Why don't you act against me? This is my problem." Xuan Ming said.
"It's because I can't bear to, and I'm greedy. The root of these problems lies with me. Even if you want to hate, to resent, you should hate me, resent me."
"They are innocent."
Bibi Dong suddenly looked up, her purple eyes intertwined with pain, anger, and a hint of twisted love: "Hate you? Resent you? Of course I hate! I hate why you had to appear in my life! I hate that you're so much younger than me, yet you make me unlike myself! I hate that you make me have these weak, inappropriate emotions!"
Her voice trembled, and the Rakshasa divine force seemed to be agitated by her intense emotions. Streaks of purplish-black aura uncontrollably emanated from around her, causing the room temperature to drop a few degrees.
"But…" Her voice suddenly dropped again, filled with endless weariness and confusion, "What can I do about you? Kill you? I can't… Hurt you? I can't do that either…"
She looked into Xuan Ming's eyes, "Xuan Ming, tell me, what should I do? This Rakshasa path, I'm walking it with increasing pain, becoming less and less like myself. But if I give up, what would my years of persistence, my revenge, my Empire… count for?"
This was the first time she had so directly revealed her vulnerability and struggle in front of Xuan Ming.
The Rakshasa malevolence was amplifying her stubbornness and possessiveness, while also making her more clearly feel the pain and distortion brought by this power.
She knew she had gone mad long ago! Qian Xunji had destroyed everything she had!
That night, she lost not only her innocence but also herself!
She had planned to live on in such a crazed manner, but then Xuan Ming unexpectedly appeared. He just kept appearing before her eyes, forcibly pulling her back, even if he had never thought of such a thing.
She wanted to escape, wanted to be as mad as before, but that damned Nine-tailed Sky Fox kept stirring up trouble in her mind every day! It kept putting Xuan Ming in front of her again and again, not giving her any chance at all!
She couldn't be as mad as before, but she also couldn't stay sober!
Because once she stayed sober, stayed calm, she would feel immense pain!
Her life was already a mess! She couldn't turn back!
Xuan Ming quietly listened to Bibi Dong's almost collapsing whispers, watching the pain, anger, unwillingness, and that twisted yet incredibly real attachment intertwined in her eyes. An indescribably complex emotion surged in his heart.
He understood that Bibi Dong's current state was not just the erosion of Rakshasa's malevolence, but also the culmination of her long-suppressed emotions, twisted by a cruel fate, which had completely erupted under the pressure of the stagnated God Position trial and the stimulation of seeing him close to other women.
She hated him, resented him, yet couldn't truly harm him; this contradiction was tearing her apart.