Bibi Dong received the champion's reward on behalf of the Spirit Hall team. After the tournament ended, she went to find Yu Xiaogang.
When she saw him, a flicker of unease flashed in her eyes.
Her Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul form was rather grotesque in her own eyes. When she used it in front of others, Bibi Dong didn't care. But after the tournament, she suddenly remembered that Yu Xiaogang had been present.
In front of the only friend she had ever truly confided in, Bibi Dong didn't want him to see her like that. She was afraid he'd be frightened off—just like those childhood friends who had fled upon seeing her Martial Soul transformation.
"Do I look ugly when I use my Martial Soul?" Bibi Dong asked with a bit of insecurity.
Looking at the nervous girl before him, Yu Xiaogang thought with superiority:
"Indeed, it's hideous. Disgustingly so. Probably only someone like me, Yu Xiaogang, could tolerate such a flaw."
With this trace of condescension, he shook his head and said, "Not at all. Ugly? That's merely how the world views your Martial Soul. No matter what form you take after invoking it, to me, you're always the most beautiful."
"Really?" Bibi Dong asked, touched.
"Of course."
Bibi Dong said, "Oh, right—Xiaogang, you don't really have a place to go, do you? Why don't you come to Spirit Hall? Weren't you always trying to solve the issue of flawed Martial Souls? Maybe there's a way to do it in Spirit Hall."
"Really? Wouldn't that be a bit inappropriate?" he asked, feigning hesitation.
Bibi Dong patted her ample chest with confidence and said, "Don't worry, I'm the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall. If you join, all I need to do is mention it to my teacher."
"How could I trouble you like that?" Yu Xiaogang averted his gaze, coyly playing hard to get.
"It's no trouble, Xiaogang—we're friends, aren't we?"
"…Alright, I'll leave it to you then, Bibi Dong," Yu Xiaogang replied.
At last, Yu Xiaogang had taken the first step toward his unspeakable goal.
God Realm
In an obscure corner of the divine realm…
The God of Asura stood with hands clasped behind his back, seemingly addressing all beings:
"In a bit over ten days, the ten-thousand-year convergence of destiny will arrive. At that time, the Douluo Continent will welcome its new Child of Destiny. My precious child must be born before that moment, so that he may naturally inherit the supreme fortune meant for the Child of Destiny, replacing him as the bearer of this era's providence."
He stroked his chin and continued:
"With my precious child as the Child of Destiny, it will be a blessing for the Douluo Continent and all its inhabitants."
He paced leisurely, already having arranged everything for his beloved child: from his past life, to his birth, to his growth, and ultimately to his godhood—Asura had planned every detail, feeding him success every step of the way.
"With my meticulous guidance, my precious one will surely grow into a talent that astonishes the world and assume leadership of the Divine Realm Committee."
But when he thought of the God of Destruction, Asura's expression darkened slightly.
"Once my precious ascends, he must inherit the core of the divine realm. After I and Kindness and Evil leave to tour the universe, only he is fit for this seat. But alas, his credentials are lacking, and Destruction may have objections…"
He added, "Thus, when he becomes a god, he must have an appropriate trial—ideally by saving the world from some great crisis. Only that kind of merit can convince everyone when he takes the Divine Committee seat."
A voice full of bitterness echoed behind him:
"So this is why you asked me to find a successor? How convenient for you—to sacrifice my divine seat just to pave the way for your golden treasure."
Behind him, a seductive woman cloaked in a purple-black aura—the Goddess of Rakshasa—gazed at him with grievance.
Hearing the resentment in her voice, Asura frowned slightly. "Rakshasa, haven't we always cooperated this way? How many times must I tell you to be reasonable and not throw tantrums?"
"Yes, we've always 'cooperated' like this. You always tell me to be the understanding one, to not make a scene. But in the end, what did I get?"
She continued, angry, "We were once two halves of a whole. I was never inferior to you. But you kept judging me for my sins, sculpting yourself into some noble god of justice, while I became a despised demon—the Rakshasa, reviled by the divine realm."
"Now you want me to give up everything again, all for your golden child. And in return, what do I get?"
Her emotions teetered on the edge of a full-blown outburst.
Only now did Asura realize he couldn't placate her like he used to.
"Rakshasa, I promise you—this will be the last time. The last time you help me," he said solemnly. "After this, I'll relinquish my divine responsibilities and explore the universe with you. How does that sound?"
"Are you serious?" she asked, her heart swayed.
"Absolutely," he said, patting his chest confidently.
Her gaze softened. With affection in her eyes, she leaned close and said:
"That's not enough. You must also publicly acknowledge our relationship, just like Life and Destruction, or Kindness and Evil."
A cold glint briefly flashed through Asura's eyes. But he quickly masked it and said warmly, "Alright, Rakshasa. I agree to everything, okay?"
"Hmph, now you're talking," she said smugly.
Asura then asked, "So, how is your successor?"
"She's already been chosen—someone extremely compatible with my divine seat. If it weren't for the mission you gave me, I would've seriously considered grooming her myself."
Then she leaned close to Asura's ear and whispered,
"Should I train her well? The stronger she gets, the more pressure your precious one will face. That way, he'll grow even faster, right?"
"Hmph." Asura snorted coldly. "That won't be necessary. If your successor becomes too powerful, what if she hurts my precious one? The fortune of Douluo belongs solely to him—splitting it would only weaken him. That is absolutely unacceptable, understand?"
Rakshasa rolled her eyes and said nothing.
Asura continued, "After you bestow your divine trials, remember this: limit her growth, delay her godhood, leave ample space for my precious one to grow. She must ascend after him. And don't include any divine rewards—just give her the Rakshasa divine seat and a single divine weapon, that's enough."
Rakshasa sighed exaggeratedly, "Yeah, yeah, I'll hold her back. Make sure she levels up nice and slow. Best not to reward her at all, right? Can't have your golden boy getting hurt now, can we?"
The God of Asura said, "Of course. That so-called successor of yours may be just a stepping stone for my precious baby, but if she dares hurt my precious baby, I'll hold you accountable."
The Goddess of Rakshasa rolled her eyes at Asura. Your precious baby? That's someone you've chosen personally as the Asura God-King, someone you've cultivated with all your might, practically handing over all the fateful opportunities of an entire generation of the Douluo Continent. He's the one eating the meat and drinking the soup, while everyone else gets to lick the bowl. Meanwhile, my successor can only become a god after your baby does, and she doesn't even get any divine trial rewards—just a godhood and a divine weapon, that's it.
And that's the one who's supposed to hurt your precious baby? The Rakshasa Goddess couldn't even imagine under what circumstances her successor could actually harm Asura's baby.
"I know, I know," the Rakshasa said impatiently. "Before she ascends, I'll be watching her. I won't let your precious baby suffer the slightest grievance." She added grumpily, "Honestly, if people didn't know better, they'd think that so-called baby of yours was your illegitimate child."
Then, she leaned in toward Asura, took a whiff, and said, "Asura giegie, how about we make our own little baby right now?"
Asura pushed her away and snapped, "Stop it. Our current statuses are different. If this got out, what would people think of me? And stop using that disgusting tone with me."
As black energy began to rise again from the Rakshasa Goddess, Asura's face turned serious. He said, "Fine. Once this is all over, we'll make our own little baby. As many as you want, okay?"
The black aura dissipated. She replied, "You said it."
"Of course," Asura said firmly. "My word is my bond. Now, it's late. You should go. Don't let anyone catch wind of this."
Reluctantly, the Rakshasa Goddess left their secret rendezvous. Before she departed, she reminded him, "You better keep your word this time."
Asura clasped his hands behind his back, watching her leave with growing disdain. Once she was out of sight, he spat in her direction:
"Rakshasa, you've been tainted long ago. I, the Asura God—selfless, pure, and incorruptible—am the noble enforcer of judgment and sin. How could I ever truly stand beside someone as depraved as you? If it weren't for the fact that my precious baby still has use for you, do you think I'd be humbling myself to this degree?"
"Just wait. Once your successor brings chaos to the lower realm and is judged by my precious baby, I'll judge you right alongside her."
"Hmph. You want to roam the cosmos with me? As if you're worthy!"
And with that, Asura also left the scene.
In other worlds, opposing attributes are always clearly in conflict—righteousness versus evil, good versus bad, water versus fire. There's no compromise.
But in this love-struck Douluo Universe, good and evil, life and destruction—concepts that in any other world would be locked in mortal combat—here, they're not opposed. Instead, they fall in love. They even get married and become one of the divine realm's most well-known couples.
Among the five God-Kings who ruled before Huo Yuhao arrived, Asura alone was solitary.
Was Asura single? Of course not. He and Rakshasa were born from the same source—two sides of the same coin, yet fundamentally opposed. In this romance-centric universe, they were old flames.
Yet their relationship was nothing like that of Life and Destruction, or Good and Evil—those were public, openly acknowledged. Rakshasa would create chaos and slaughter through evil thoughts, and Asura would promptly appear to deliver Asura's Judgment. In the eyes of the divine realm, the two were mortal enemies. If you dared claim that Asura and Rakshasa were a couple, others would think you'd lost your mind.
Their status in the divine realm was also unequal. Because of constant judgment, Rakshasa's power was only at the peak of First-Class Godhood. Meanwhile, Asura had already ascended to become a high God-King. The Rakshasa Goddess, who thrived on chaos and corruption, had almost no friends in the divine realm and was always alone. Asura, by contrast, was widely admired for his integrity and spotless reputation.
Back in her temple, the Rakshasa Goddess was steeped in gloom.
From the moment she came into being, she'd loved her Asura giegie deeply. But even she couldn't lie to herself anymore—Asura had changed.
In the past, to consolidate his power, Asura had come up with a plan: he made her his "black glove," assigning her all the dirty and bloody tasks, so he could clean up afterward as a glorious and righteous figure.
If you love someone, you give them everything, right? So the Rakshasa Goddess truly became his black glove—sowing chaos as he instructed, only to be judged by him again and again. And she accepted it all without regret.
But the higher Asura climbed, the more virtuous and brilliant his image became—the more he distanced himself from her, as if she were filth he wanted to cut out of his life. If it weren't for this recent plan to bring his precious baby into the world, Asura giegie wouldn't have visited her in decades—which, in mortal terms, was thousands of years.
Thinking about the successor whom Asura giegie had poured so much effort into, the Rakshasa Goddess felt a pang of jealousy.
Should I mess with that precious baby a little?
But the thought immediately sent a chill down her spine. She'd schemed against Asura's past successors before as a form of protest, and those weaklings hadn't really mattered to him. But from how he treated this new precious baby, it was clear: if she dared mess with this "phoenix egg" of his, not only would reconciliation be impossible—he might just kill her.
Sigh... I've been his black glove for so many years, what's one more job?
With a sigh, she activated her divine vision to check on her own successor. "Oh well. Poor girl. It's your bad luck to have been chosen by me. But hey, this is what Asura giegie promised me."
The moment her divine vision activated, her expression changed drastically, and divine armor manifested around her in an instant.
Without it, she had a sultry, alluring beauty. With it, her appearance turned ferocious and ghastly.
She summoned her Rakshasa Scythe and roared, "Who did this?! My successor has been set up?! Damn it!"
The thought that her successor had been schemed against—and might fail the mission Asura giegie had entrusted her with—meant she'd never get to be with him. Her dark aura thickened with rage.
"Hahahaha, even the gods wouldn't have guessed that you two, gods who are opposite like water and fire who are inherently incompatible, are actually old lovers." A mocking voice echoed inside the Rakshasa Shrine.
"Who is it? Come out!" The Rakshasa God gripped her Rakshasa Scythe and shouted.
Ripples began to spread through the surrounding space.
Then, chains emerged from the ripples, shooting in from all directions.
Caught off guard, the Rakshasa God was tightly bound by the chains.
The moment they wrapped around her, she felt her divine power sealed—she couldn't even struggle.
Only then did Huo Yuhao drop all disguises and step out from the shadows of the Rakshasa Shrine, coming to stand in front of the Rakshasa God.
"It's you—the Eternal God!" The Rakshasa God looked at Huo Yuhao in fear. Then, as if realizing something, she said, "My successor… you plotted against her too!"
"Yes, it was me," Huo Yuhao admitted bluntly. "But that's not quite accurate. You were the ones who plotted against her first. I merely broke your scheme. Now then—why don't you tell me what your relationship is with the Asura God?"
Her eyes darted nervously. "The Asura God and I are not what you think."
"Hmph. Still trying to defend your old flame at this point?" Huo Yuhao sneered, then his tone changed sharply. "But have you ever wondered… while you treated him as your lover—did he ever truly care about you?"
The Rakshasa God snapped angrily, "Enough! Even if you are the Eternal God King, I won't let you slander the relationship between us!"
Huo Yuhao activated his Divine Sight, revealing several scenes—projections of private meetings between the Asura God and Rakshasa God.
These images showed them secretly conspiring—she playing the villain, he playing the hero. One wreaking havoc, the other delivering "divine judgment"—a two-faced plan to manipulate all beings.
Her expression darkened. Then she suddenly asked, "Wait… you only became a god 40,000 years ago. How do you know about all this from before?"
"I am the Eternal God. I wield the authority of Fate. As long as something once happened in the past, it will leave traces for me to uncover," Huo Yuhao said meaningfully. "Tell me—if I show this to the gods, will your dear Asura giegie still be able to sit safely on his throne?"
She tried to act defiant. "Hmph. Then we'll just say you fabricated the evidence. Everyone knows that you and the Asura God don't get along."
Huo Yuhao replied, "Sure, deny it all you want. But, Rakshasa… don't you want to know what your Asura giegie really thinks about you—when you're not around?"
The Rakshasa God froze.
Huo Yuhao's Divine Sight played another scene: after she left, the Asura God spat in disgust, cursing her, and said that once his precious baby ascended to godhood, the very first thing he would do is judge and eliminate her—his supposed beloved.
"No…" The Rakshasa God's cyan lips trembled. "That's impossible. My Asura giegie wouldn't treat me like this!"
"You know better than I do what kind of person your Asura giegie is," Huo Yuhao said. "You just refuse to believe it. Think about it—you're already infamous for countless sins, your evil name known from one end of the universe to the other. The just Asura God has repeatedly stopped you and judged your deeds… and yet, in the end, when you abandon your godhood, you show up at his side—publicly becoming his woman. What will the gods think? What will the mortal realm think?"
He added with biting sarcasm, "To put it harshly—you're dirty now. Someone like the Asura God, who treasures his reputation, how could he let you taint the perfect image he's worked so hard to build?"
"Stop it… that's enough… stop!" Though her divine power was sealed, black mist began to billow from her body, nearly taking physical form. "My Asura giegie isn't like that!" Her voice was barely audible.
"In his grand plan, you were just a pawn. He's simply squeezing out the last bit of value from you, using everything you have to fuel the rise of his precious baby," Huo Yuhao's words pierced like blades through her divine heart.
"Enough! I said enough!" The Rakshasa God's voice now trembled with a trace of pleading.
The truth was a sharp blade. She wasn't unaware—just unwilling to believe. She had sacrificed so much for the Asura God… how could she easily let go of such feelings?
"You two come from the same origin," Huo Yuhao whispered near her ear. "But he stands high above, pristine and noble, while you ruined your own name for his sake. You became the notorious Rakshasa of evil, all to help him—but why?" (p.s ; mc is giving eren vibes)
"…Why indeed…" Her eyes turned red, and her grotesque face now twisted with hatred.
"You and Asura have been together since ancient times," Huo Yuhao continued. "But the care and love he shows you aren't even a billionth of what he gives to his precious baby. He gave that one everything. And you? You could only grovel, offering everything you had, just for a sliver of his attention. Why? What made that phoenix egg so special?"
At the mention of the "precious baby," overwhelming jealousy and resentment erupted in her heart like wildfire. She had been with the Asura God from the beginning—she was the one who truly walked alongside him. Yet he gave all his best to someone else. And she… she could only serve him humbly, trying to please him.
Why? What made that phoenix egg so special?!
"Flattery never wins love," Huo Yuhao said coldly. "Your final fate will be your Asura giegie draining your last drop of value, then executing you—and your chosen successor—as two generations of Rakshasa Gods. But do you know what's worse than that?"
"…What?" she asked instinctively.
"Being forgotten."
"What's more terrifying than love, hate, fear, or resentment—is when he forgets you entirely. In the far future, after your blood stains his Asura Demon Sword, he will leave the God Realm and wander the cosmos. There, he might meet a goddess who truly stirs his heart. They'll marry. They'll have a child. They'll travel the stars together. But you… you'll be completely erased from his memory."
Being forgotten—something the Rakshasa God had never considered.
As the image of herself dying at the tip of his sword, only to be forgotten forever, took hold in her mind, her entire body began to tremble violently.
"No—I don't want to be forgotten!"
If that was the ending, she would rather he hated her than forgot her.
"I can make you remembered forever by the God of Asura, never to be forgotten," Huo Yuhao said.
"You can help me? You can make him fall in love with me?" The Rakshasa God looked at Huo Yuhao with hope, like a drowning person clutching at a lifeline.
"Of course not," Huo Yuhao replied. "Asura is a god who cherishes his reputation. How could he allow you to tarnish his name? But I can help you, in another way—one that will ensure he never forgets you."
"What way?" asked the Rakshasa.
"Hatred," Huo Yuhao said. "It's a feeling just as profound as love. If Asura cherishes his reputation, then destroy it. Make him fall like you did. If he treasures his most beloved possession, then destroy that too. Make him hate you."
"Rather than being forgotten by him, it's better to have him hate you for life, to make him never forget the pain you brought. I can help you destroy everything he holds dear, and in the end, your souls will be forever entangled. No one will ever escape the other—even if all that remains is hatred."
"Yes! Hahahaha!" The Rakshasa God's eyes turned crimson, her divine form descending into madness. "If I can't have his love, then let him hate me. Let him suffer unforgettable pain. That's still better than being used, discarded, and forgotten."
Huo Yuhao smiled slyly, then took out an Eternal Divine Contract. The Rakshasa God signed it without hesitation.