After Brock left, Bi Bidong stared at the empty room, momentarily lost in a daze.
She couldn't understand why she always encountered such situations.
The Brock she knew now seemed to have changed, becoming someone she didn't recognize. The once tender and kind Brock had just shown himself as a person who couldn't distinguish right from wrong.
Had the previous Brock been nothing but an act?
No, that was impossible.
Bi Bidong felt a deep sense of dread; she couldn't fathom it all and was too afraid to entertain the thought. Those years she and Brock were torn apart by Qian Xun Ji, her only belief in living was for Brock.
She had wanted to end it all, but if she had died at that time, Brock would have been viciously tortured by Qian Xun Ji.
It was for these reasons that she endured so much pain to survive and eventually ascend to the position of Spirit Hall Pope. She even aspired to surpass Qian Dao Liu and consolidate all of the Martial Soul Hall's power for herself.
And the only thing that sustained her through it all was hatred, the hatred born from her love with Brock being torn asunder.
She wanted to avenge many people; she wanted Brock to live a safe life under her protection; she wanted to control her own destiny.
In a sense, Brock was the reason the former Bi Bidong had the will to live on.
But that Brock was an image of a gentleman, presented through despicable means to the naive Bi Bidong. That image was what she cherished the most.
If she ever found out that everything she once cared for was nothing but garbage, and the man she struggled and even rebelled against Martial Soul Hall for was a villain, she would have crumbled instantly. All the weakness and sorrow hidden in her heart would surge up, and Bi Bidong might even do something foolish.
For someone as stubborn as Bi Bidong, knowing that everything she had done before was merely wishful thinking, she might simply give up on the will to live.
In fact, when she learned that Brock and Liu Erlong were together, she had already started to doubt Brock. She was just too scared to think or investigate further. Even after Brock left the Martial Soul Hall, and she took control with the ability to know everything about him, she had refrained from doing so.
Because she was afraid of the truth, she preferred to avoid it all.
As long as she remained ignorant of the truth, everything she stood for before was right.
This balance had already been achieved, and Bi Bidong didn't want to dig too deep. Now with Qian Renxue, she would no longer think about being with Brock and would grant him a life of glory and wealth, regarding him as her once simple and beautiful youth.
But now, as Brock suddenly revealed his true nature and even began to doubt her, her heart started to waver. She was almost eager to know about Brock's past actions, wanting to know if he had approached her with ulterior motives back then.
Bi Bidong stood there blankly, her gaze lowered, filled with disappointment.
She was dressed in a thin silk gown, lost in her own world, oblivious even to Xu Ran's existence. Her heart was in turmoil; she felt regret, disappointment, and a touch of fear.
"Alright, don't be sad. Brock isn't worth your sorrow," Xu Ran said gently. He embraced Bi Bidong's delicate body tightly from behind, greedily feeling everything about her.
He wanted to possess Bi Bidong; he wanted to make her his woman.
How could someone like Brock, with his meager strength, be worthy of being with Bi Bidong?
"Xu Ran... thank you."
"We... should keep our distance from now on. Brock has misunderstood us, and I don't want to..." Bi Bidong struggled free from Xu Ran's embrace and spoke up. For Brock, and for Xue'er, she had to maintain distance from Xu Ran.
"Even if Brock is not great, he was my first love, a feeling you wouldn't understand," Bi Bidong shook her head, still choosing to believe in Yu Xiaogang. Admitting defeat was a difficult thing for her, especially for the proud and haughty Bi Bidong.
But this wasn't Bi Bidong's fault; it was only that Yu Xiaogang had played his role too well in front of her.
Yu Xiaogang was the original story's big boss.
Despite his weak strength, Yu Xiaogang managed to juggle between Tang San, Liu Erlong, and Bi Bidong. He used Liu Erlong's Blue Tyrant Academy to train the Seven Monsters and used Bi Bidong and the resources of Martial Soul Hall to cultivate Tang San.
He was able to mobilize resources from both opposing factions.
With the relationships Yu Xiaogang had at the time, whether Bi Bidong or Tang San won, he would remain invincible because he was the most important person to both Tang San and Bi Bidong.
He had chosen to support Tang San, using him to overthrow the Continent's foremost power. Overcoming the strong with the weak, toppling the all-time greatest power—the public opinion could easily make him revered as a deity of the era.
A man of insignificant strength had become the greatest boss of Soul Land, directing the fate of the Continent. Such a person, with unfathomable schemes, was hard to imagine.
If he weren't familiar with the plot, even he, Xu Ran, could have been outmaneuvered by Yu Xiaogang. But because he knew the storyline, he could turn the tables and trap Yu Xiaogang thoroughly.
With profound cunning, Yu Xiaogang had no trouble enchanting a young girl's heart, like Bi Bidong's.
"Xu Ran, please, can you stop liking me?" Bi Bidong pleaded as she looked at Xu Ran. As she gazed at Xu Ran's handsome face and spoke these words, she felt an emptiness inside.
"Alright."
"I promise you."
"I used to think you were single, which is why I treated you that way. Since you already have someone in your heart, I naturally won't make things difficult for you anymore. All that matters is your happiness. I only wish to see a smile on your face every day, and it's not important whether I'm the one by your side or not."
"But I hope you'll remember. No matter what happens, I will always stand behind you. Whatever the time, I will always stand behind you to support and protect you," Xu Ran said earnestly, his eyes glancing at Bi Bidong's shapely bottom and his breathing becoming a bit heavier.
"Xu Ran, thank you so much," Bi Bidong, not quite sure how to feel upon such a quick agreement from Xu Ran, still felt a great sense of relief.
She was moved,
Was Xu Ran only trying to make her happy?
As long as she was happy, he was ready to step aside at any time.
Moreover, Xu Ran had promised her that whenever she needed, he would unconditionally support and protect her from behind.
Bi Bidong was profoundly touched by the sentiment.
Xu Ran was indeed a remarkable person; if she were still young, she might truly have fallen for Xu Ran. But now she was of considerable age, and with Xu Ran still so young, she couldn't possibly do such a thing.
"If you're going to see Yu Xiaogang, take these to him. These green elixirs are for strengthening his body. If he absorbs them, his body will become robust. Only when he's strong can I give him back his Martial Soul," Xu Ran said, handing a handful of green elixirs to Bi Bidong.
These elixirs, while not particularly extraordinary, were all green—that was his way of mocking and humiliating Yu Xiaogang.