There was no trace of despair on Qian Renxue's face. On the contrary, her expression was calm — even serene.
She had poured every ounce of her power into that final strike, even shattering her divine seat to do so. In her heart, she silently spoke: Bibi Dong, you gave me life, and I have repaid you with my own. I owe you nothing more.
The blood-red Demon Execution Sword descended like the eternal god of slaughter himself had arrived. Forget that Qian Renxue was no longer a god — even at the height of her power as the Angel God, she could never have withstood this apocalyptic blow from the God of Execution.
Goodbye, Bibi Dong. Goodbye, Tang San. To die by the hand of the only man I have ever loved in my life — perhaps this is the best ending I could have hoped for. Qian Renxue could already taste the flavor of death. She closed her eyes, and tears slid down from the corners.
Why? She felt no pain of her body being pierced, no terror of her soul being torn away. When she suddenly opened her eyes once more, she found the crimson tip of the Demon Execution Sword still pointed at her — but it had not pierced her chest. Because, upon that sword, there was already a dark purple figure.
Blinding red lightning crawled across that dark purple body. Her dark purple divine armor was crumbling away piece by piece, dissolving into nothing.
"No —!" Qian Renxue screamed with all the strength she had. From somewhere unknown, a surge of power flooded through her. She reached out, trying to seize the person who had taken the blow in her place.
The figure turned. Bibi Dong faced Qian Renxue, and a gentle radiance emanated from her trembling hands, cradling both their bodies as they drifted slowly toward the ground before Jialing Pass.
Tang San did not pursue. At this moment, there was no need. Qian Renxue had lost her divine power — she was no longer the Angel God. And at the very instant the Demon Execution Sword had descended, it was Bibi Dong who had blocked that lethal strike for her.
Had it been the Sea God's Trident, perhaps Bibi Dong could have relied on her Undying Body skill to endure it. But what had struck her now was the Demon Execution Sword — a weapon that utterly countered the power of the Asura God. The slaughter-filled Asura divine power was something she could never hope to resist.
Watching the mother and daughter fall toward the ground, watching the despair that flickered through Qian Renxue's eyes, a faint pang of pity arose in Tang San's heart. He did not press the attack. Instead, he followed their bodies downward.
On the ramparts of Jialing Pass, when the Great Master watched Bibi Dong's body being pierced by the Demon Execution Sword Tang San had unleashed, his face drained of all color. It is said that the deeper the love, the harsher the judgment. No matter what Bibi Dong had done to him, in his heart she was the first woman he had ever loved — and perhaps the woman he had loved most in all his life.
When Bibi Dong landed on the ground with Qian Renxue, the last fragment of her Asura God armor dissolved into smoke and vanished. Even the ghastly green pallor on her face was slowly receding.
Looking at Tang San, Bibi Dong's eyes held an incredibly complex light — mostly defiance, yet strangely devoid of resentment.
"You've won, Tang San." Both hands gripping the hilt of the Demon Execution Sword, Bibi Dong spoke with difficulty.
Tang San replied evenly, "I was fortunate. You were the ones who should have won."
Bibi Dong smiled. The green had completely faded from her face now, her features no longer twisted and grotesque, restored to their original noble and devastating beauty — only deathly pale, without a drop of blood.
"Xiao Gang once said that luck itself is part of one's strength. You are a god — you can see that we have no power left to resist. Under the Demon Execution Sword, my life has reached its end. May I see Xiao Gang one last time? I have something to say to him."
Tang San looked up toward the ramparts of Jialing Pass. Just then, fiery wings unfurled atop the wall. A massive fire dragon descended from the sky bearing the Great Master's body — it was Liu Erlong, who had revealed her true Fire Dragon form to carry the Great Master down.
On the Spirit Empire's side, Hu Liena was sprinting toward them frantically. "Master, Master..."
Liu Erlong touched down and reverted to human form, supporting the unsteady Great Master. Her eyes remained filled with hostility as she stared at Bibi Dong. Even now, with this lifelong rival on the verge of death, that hostility was as eternal as the stars.
"Xiao Gang." Seeing the Great Master descend before her, a faint blush colored Bibi Dong's cheeks. She looked suddenly more alive.
The Great Master gazed at her in silence, but the light in his eyes was even more complex than Bibi Dong's had been.
"Xiao Gang, when I became the Asura God... was I very ugly?" Bibi Dong touched her own face, speaking with a wistful sigh.
"Master!" Hu Liena finally threw herself forward, collapsing at Bibi Dong's side. Both she and Qian Renxue were streaming with tears.
"Quiet — don't interrupt me and Xiao Gang." Bibi Dong cast a reproachful glance at Hu Liena, the way a teacher might scold a student in ordinary times. Her appearance was so captivating that she hardly seemed a woman about to leave this world. Hu Liena and Qian Renxue both stared in a daze.
Turning her gaze back to the Great Master, Bibi Dong's eyes held a thread of sorrow. "Xiao Gang, do you hate me? Even without you saying it, I know you do. Back then, I hurt you so deeply — how could you ever forgive me? But do you know this? You are the man I have loved most in my entire life. You were before, you are now, and you always will be."
"You're lying! If you truly loved him, why did you destroy our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family? Why did you kill all of our relatives?" Liu Erlong shouted, her voice trembling with fury.
Bibi Dong gave her a contemptuous glance. "Do you think I was as cowardly as you? Xiao Gang was rejected by his family, humiliated by his family — didn't you know? What did you ever do for him? What you couldn't do, I did for Xiao Gang. Anyone who dared make him suffer, anyone who insulted him — I would not let any of them go. With the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family gone, Xiao Gang's troubles were gone too. Wasn't that right?" As she spoke, she suddenly laughed with a strange, almost joyful lilt, and from the corner of her mouth, dark purple blood trickled slowly outward.
"You're insane." The Great Master's voice trembled. He had finally spoken.
Bibi Dong's expression shifted. She looked at the Great Master, and her gaze suddenly turned almost hysterical. "Yes, I'm insane. But Xiao Gang — do you know why I went mad? Do you remember — when we were together, was I like this?"
Tears finally spilled from the Great Master's eyes. "The Bibi Dong of old is dead."
Bibi Dong laughed — a radiant, brilliant laugh. "Yes, you're right. The Bibi Dong of old is dead. She died the moment she left you. She lost all the gentleness and kindness she once had. All that remained was a dark heart — a heart filled with vengeance. Xiao Gang, I am about to leave this world, and I want you to know why I left you back then. I think this is something you've always wanted to understand. Cough — cough —"
She broke into a violent cough, more dark purple blood frothing from her mouth.
"Please don't speak anymore," Qian Renxue pleaded urgently.
Bibi Dong shook her head. "No — if I don't say it now, I will never have the chance again. I must tell him, and I must tell you as well."
She paused, and the blush on her face deepened. "Back then, Xiao Gang and I truly loved each other. Although he was not a powerful Soul Master, he possessed a wisdom that no one else had. Look at his face now, so rigid — I know why. It's because after I left him, he could never smile again. That day — I remember it clearly. It was nighttime, the starlight dim. My teacher came suddenly. He asked me what my relationship with you was. Xiao Gang, you know — my teacher was the person I respected most. He was not only the Pope of Spirit Hall, but the one who had taught me everything."
Qian Renxue's pupils contracted sharply — the person Bibi Dong was describing was her own father!
"So I did not hide anything from my teacher. I told him about our relationship. His expression turned very dark. He said I was Spirit Hall's unprecedented genius, that I possessed a Twin Martial Soul, and that I was absolutely forbidden from developing feelings for any outside man — especially not anyone from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family. He would never let me leave Spirit Hall. My heart held only you, so I argued with him, reasoning fiercely. I told him I loved Xiao Gang — that even if it meant leaving Spirit Hall, I wanted to be with you. My teacher suddenly went mad. He struck out and knocked me unconscious. When I woke, I found my entire body in agony, lying completely bare in a secret chamber within Spirit Hall. He — that beast — sat beside me. Do you know what he said to me? He said that even by the most despicable means, he would keep me in Spirit Hall. He also said, 'You are no longer clean. Your body belongs to me now. What face do you have left to be with that man?' He told me that if I did not leave you, he would kill you immediately."
Listening to Bibi Dong's words, everyone was stunned. They could feel the profound sorrow buried within her voice.
"Back then, the first thing I thought of was death. But I couldn't die. I knew him too well — if I died, he would unleash his fury upon you. He would kill you. So I forced myself to become heartless. I went to you and told you that being with you was only for your intellect — that I was using you. Because only by pushing you away could I protect you, the man I loved most."
With a thud, the Great Master collapsed to the ground. "No — this isn't true. You're lying to me — you're lying, aren't you?" He had loved for a lifetime and hated for a lifetime, and now, just as everything was about to end, he discovered he had been wrong. How could the Great Master bear such a truth?
Bibi Dong spoke softly. "She is my daughter — the daughter born of him and me. Not long after that night, I discovered I was pregnant. I hated him, I hated all of Spirit Hall, and I hated this child. I tried countless times to end the pregnancy. But he kept me imprisoned within Spirit Hall, watching me every day, until the child was born."
Lifting her head, Bibi Dong looked at Qian Renxue. "I know you hate me too. Yes — I can tell you with certainty that although Tang Hao once gravely wounded your father, he ultimately died at my hands. I killed that beast with my own hands — that beast who had violated his own disciple. You are right to hate me. I am your father's murderer, and I never fulfilled a single day of a mother's duty. I always believed I was right — until just now. When Tang San attacked me with the Bodhisattva's Tear and you knocked me aside, that was when I realized I was wrong. A child is innocent. I should never have poured that hatred onto you. The only thing I can do for you now is this one strike."
Qian Renxue's body trembled, her lips trembling. "No, no, no..." Just as the Great Master had hated Bibi Dong his entire life, in Qian Renxue's heart her father had been a towering figure of nobility. But Bibi Dong was about to die — why would she fabricate such a lie? She had been wrong. The Great Master had been wrong.
Bibi Dong continued to smile, even as tears streamed down her face. "I killed so many people, and I ruined so many more. My death is well deserved. I hated this world, so I wanted to take my revenge on it. I wanted to destroy Spirit Hall, destroy this world, and destroy myself."
"Bibi Dong!" The Great Master lunged forward several steps, arriving at her side, and seized her already ice-cold hand. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Why? You killed him long ago — why didn't you tell me all of this?"
Bibi Dong shook her head gently. Her gaze suddenly became impossibly tender. "There is one thing he said that was true — my body had been defiled. I could not allow my filthy self to contaminate you. Xiao Gang, don't grieve for me. To have been able to tell you all of this, to see you shed tears for me once more, to feel your hand holding mine before I die — I am satisfied. We both lived far too bitter a life. Promise me — live well with Erlong from now on. She is only your cousin by blood, and with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family gone, what is there left to hold you back? Liu Erlong, come here."
Liu Erlong stepped forward in a daze, looking at the woman she had hated for decades, momentarily at a loss for words.
"Liu Erlong, once I die, your vengeance will be fulfilled. Xiao Gang loves you. Throw off every worldly chain — even if you must ravish him, be truly together with him. I was never as fortunate as you. At least you can be by his side. Take care of him for me, will you?"
Looking at Bibi Dong, Liu Erlong took a deep breath and nodded firmly. "You are a pitiable woman too."
Bibi Dong smiled faintly. "I don't need your pity. Tang San."
The red and blue figures shimmered in tandem. Watching everything unfold before him, Tang San furrowed his brow and slowly walked forward to stand before Bibi Dong.
"Senior, what would you say?" Though Tang San would never forgive Bibi Dong for all she had done, his heart was filled with sympathy for her tragic past. He was willing to call her "Senior."
Bibi Dong coughed violently once more. Great mouthfuls of purple blood poured from her lips. The flush on her cheeks was fading rapidly. By now, even if Tang San had wanted to spare her, it was impossible — the power of the God of Execution had already completely corroded her body.
Red light flared. Tang San withdrew from the Twin Martial Soul Fusion Technique. With a flash of light, Xiao Wu appeared at his side, her entire body enveloped in a faint crimson glow, and the Demon Execution Sword plunged into Bibi Dong's chest vanished.
Bibi Dong summoned what little strength she had left. "Tang San, in my entire life I have never begged anyone — not even your teacher did I ever beg. Now I am begging you: grant me one final wish."
Tang San looked at the Great Master, then at Bibi Dong. "Speak."
Bibi Dong said, "Xuě'ér is no longer the Angel God. Her Martial Soul is shattered — she can never again pose any threat to the Tian Dou Empire, much less to you. Everything wicked was done by me alone. It has nothing to do with her. The same goes for Nana. I am begging you — let them go. The Spirit Empire no longer exists. I only want them to live."
Tang San's brow furrowed. "You should know — this is not a decision I can make alone."
Bibi Dong raised her upper body slightly, her voice sharp and commanding. "Tang San, are you not aware that both of them love you? Can you really be so heartless? Xiao Gang — no matter what, she is my daughter..."
"Master, the decision is yours." Xue Beng's voice came from beside them. He walked slowly to Tang San's side. "Everything in the Tian Dou Empire exists because of you, Master. Any decision you make, I will support."
The Great Master also lifted his head to look at Tang San.
Tang San took a deep breath. Finally, he nodded.
As though all her strength had drained away in that instant, Bibi Dong's body went limp, collapsing into Qian Renxue's embrace. Her words came broken and halting: "Xuě... ér... may I... call you... that? I am... leaving... now... Promise me... you and... Nana... both must... live... well... My death... is... what I deserve... Don't... think about... avenging... me... As long as... you... can live... in peace... I will be... content..."
"Mom —!" The word finally burst from Qian Renxue's lips. She threw herself onto Bibi Dong's chest and wept uncontrollably.
"Good... good..." Bibi Dong smiled. Hearing Qian Renxue's cry, her eyes filled with nothing but fulfillment and maternal warmth. She slowly raised her hand, as though trying to touch Qian Renxue's head — but her hand rose only halfway.
Time seemed to freeze in that moment. When Qian Renxue suddenly felt the body in her arms go rigid, she looked up — just in time to see Bibi Dong's pale hand fall limply downward. She seized Bibi Dong's hand and pressed it against her own cheek. "Mom —!"
"Er — Dong —!" The Great Master gripped Bibi Dong's arm with all his might, and his anguished cries filled the air.