The Pope’s office building at the Spirit Hall Academy.
After a moment of darkness and dizziness, when Wang Zhong’s vision cleared, he was back here.
Bibi Dong leaned to the side, resting her chin on one hand, her gaze soft as she looked at his return. She said gently, "You're back."
"Mm."
"Your Grace, I'm back."
Wang Zhong responded with a wide smile, happily replying.
Yue Guan and Gui Mei exchanged a glance and then quietly withdrew.
"Come."
Her slender, white hand beckoned Wang Zhong, inviting him to her side.
Bibi Dong gently stroked Wang Zhong’s beaming little face and asked softly, "How has your time been?"
"Mm, very good. Senior Dugu Bo treated me very well, and I also made a new good friend. She is Senior Dugu Bo's granddaughter, named Dugu Yan, and she is also a good friend who truly cares for me."
Wang Zhong felt the slight coolness on his face and replied with a grin.
"A new friend, that's good." Bibi Dong’s expression held a smile, her eyes full of tenderness.
"By the way, Your Grace."
"I brought you a gift!"
Wang Zhong suddenly remembered and took out the Ruyi Hundred Treasures Pouch from his embrace, then swiped his hand across it.
A fairy herb, pure white with dark red hues, resembling a peony but more vibrant and exquisite, appeared in Wang Zhong’s hand. It seemed to embody the essence of heaven and earth, emitting a warm red glow. The moment it appeared in Wang Zhong's hand, the entire room momentarily lit up.
Bibi Dong’s wine-red eyes widened in surprise. Although she didn't know the name of the flower, she could tell from its appearance and its extraordinary aura that it was something remarkable.
"Little Wang Zhong, what is this?"
Her gaze fell upon what Wang Zhong held, and Bibi Dong asked with curiosity.
"Lovesick Heartbreak Red."
"The King of Flowers, a Celestial Grade medicinal herb," Wang Zhong stated seriously, holding the Lovesick Heartbreak Red.
"Lovesick… Heartbreak Red…" murmuring the somewhat bloody and tragically beautiful name, Bibi Dong’s wine-red eyes trembled slightly.
Wang Zhong looked at Bibi Dong’s somewhat dazed expression, blinking. He didn't understand why she would react this way, but he continued,
"There is a poignant legend about Lovesick Heartbreak Red."
"A long time ago, there was a young man, naturally placid, who loved tending to flowers and plants. His garden was filled with verdant lotuses and a riot of colors. He would often compose poems for the flowers and raise his cup to the moon. Whenever he saw fallen petals, he would be overcome with sorrow, meticulously collecting them, burying them in the earth, and weeping profusely."
"It is said that emotions can move heaven and earth. His love for flowers touched a flower fairy in heaven, who secretly descended to the mortal realm to marry him. Their union was naturally blissful."
"Alas, good times do not last forever. The gods learned of this union and were greatly angered. Forbidding immortals and mortals from marrying, they decreed that the flower fairy be recalled to the divine realm. Ever since losing his beloved, the young man spent his days sighing, despondent, and neglecting his garden. The walls crumbled, the fences fell, and the garden became desolate."
"One day, a white-haired elder appeared and told him that the white peony in his garden, which he so cherished, was the incarnation of his beloved wife. If he destroyed the flower, the flower fairy would lose her immortal form and descend to the mortal realm to remarry him. However, he must never abandon his care for flowers."
"After speaking, he transformed into a gentle breeze and departed. The young man was suddenly enlightened. He deeply regretted his neglect of the flowers and resumed his meticulous care. Though he deeply loved his wife, he could not bear to destroy the peony. He cherished it even more, weeping over the flower day and night until his tears ran dry and his heart broke from lovesickness, leading to his death. As he died, he bled onto the petals."
"Your Grace, look at these blood-red petals. According to the legend, they are the transformed heart’s blood of that young man."
Wang Zhong earnestly recounted the story that appeared in his mind. However, matters of love and romance were too distant for someone of his age, so his tone was remarkably calm, as if reciting an ancient, obscure scripture, devoid of any emotion.
Love, he did not understand, nor could he discern it.
But Bibi Dong, who had experienced a profound love that was ultimately shattered, was deeply wounded by this story. Her heart bled.
To love and not be able to attain, to love and be forbidden, to love and be unable.
Was this not the truest reflection of her own life?
Her wine-red eyes slowly closed, suppressing the intense sorrow and pain that surged from the depths of her heart. When she opened them again, she was still as calm and gentle as water.
"A truly poignant and beautiful story. It is indeed worthy of the name Lovesick Heartbreak Red," her voice was as still as a deep well, yet Wang Zhong clearly sensed the intense emotions surging beneath the calm.
She reached out and took the Lovesick Heartbreak Red. Bibi Dong’s gaze was filled with sorrow. She gently caressed a petal with her jade-like hand, and the moment her slender fingertip touched it, it was cut. A drop of crimson blood fell onto the petal.
The red and white flower trembled violently, as if about to fall, but then abruptly stopped at the last moment.
This change left Bibi Dong quite puzzled. It was then that she noticed a stone at the very root of the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, with its roots deeply embedded within it.
Meeting Bibi Dong’s gaze, Wang Zhong then said.
"Uh, to pluck the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, one must think of their beloved with sincere devotion and shed a drop of blood onto a petal to succeed."
"If there is any wavering in one’s heart, even if they bleed to death, they cannot pluck it. Once the flower is taken, it will never wither as long as it is near its owner. The stone beneath the flower is called Wu Jue. If it is forcibly destroyed, the Lovesick Heartbreak Red will lose all its medicinal properties."
"Your Grace, you were almost successful just now. I don't know why it suddenly stopped."
Wang Zhong was also bewildered by the phenomenon. Among all the Celestial Grade medicinal herbs, the only one unfazed by him was this Lovesick Heartbreak Red.
Other Celestial Grade herbs, Wang Zhong could pick them as he pleased, as easily as playing. This one, however, completely ignored him, stubbornly resisting and completely immovable. He could only take the entire Wu Jue stone, just as the legend described.
"What is its use?" Bibi Dong set aside the Lovesick Heartbreak Red and asked softly.
Wang Zhong frowned and thought for a moment, "If one can pluck it and eat it, it can apparently revive the dead, regenerate flesh and bone, and greatly boost one's spirit power."
"Is that so."
"It is indeed a wonderful gift. I accept it," Bibi Dong smiled and gently stroked Wang Zhong’s head, very happy with his present.
"Little Wang Zhong, what is your spirit power level now?" Bibi Dong steered the conversation away from the Lovesick Heartbreak Red and inquired about Wang Zhong’s cultivation progress.
"Level forty!"
Wang Zhong puffed out his chest, his small face beaming with pride, like a victorious rooster flaunting its magnificent feathers.
Praise me!
The expression on his little face evoked a smile from deep within Bibi Dong. Are all children like this? All their feelings and thoughts written on their faces.
"That's wonderful!"
She gently pinched his small face, praising him sincerely.
A Soul Ancestor at the age of eight. Such a feat was truly frightening.
"You go back and rest. After some time, I will take you to hunt spirit beasts."
Bibi Dong’s voice was gentle, carrying a hint of quiet pride. The disciple she had chosen was exceptionally talented and peerless.
"Alright, Your Grace. I’ll be going back now."
"Goodbye!"
Waving goodbye to her, Wang Zhong ran off, heading back towards the apartment.
He hadn't been back for a long time and greatly missed his little friends. Moreover, he had brought gifts.
Watching Wang Zhong’s figure disappear, the smile on Bibi Dong’s face slowly faded, replaced by an immeasurable pain and sorrow.
"Lovesick, heartbreak. Why would such a flower appear in this world!"
She slowly walked to the flower, brought her index finger to her mouth, bit down hard, and a drop of blood appeared on her fingertip.
The blood dripped, dyeing the flower red.
"Xiao Gang…"
Bibi Dong’s expression became incredibly gentle and sweet at that moment. That past was her most beautiful memory, and her most innocent love.
However, such memories were of no use. The Lovesick Heartbreak Red, symbolizing everlasting love, showed not the slightest change.
Bibi Dong noticed this. She knew Wang Zhong wouldn't lie to her. Only the purest emotion could pluck the flower.
But the flower remained unchanged!
Her wine-red eyes trembled violently at this moment, and even Bibi Dong’s body involuntarily shivered.
Did she truly still love that man named Yu Xiaogang?
As countless years passed, more than a decade had gone by. Was the feeling lingering in her heart truly love?
Moments spent with Yu Xiaogang replayed in her mind like the clearest film, every detail vivid.
But why were these memories seen from that man's perspective? In the past, she was so pure, so kind, so beautiful, more angelic than an angel!
Having gone through those experiences and met those people, what remained in her heart had long ceased to be about love. It was a recollection and longing for her past, most beautiful self.
Liu Erlong! Hahaha!
Qian Xun Ji had separated her from the one she loved.
The appearance of Liu Erlong had completely destroyed that love!
Proud as she was, how could she still be infatuated with a man who had long since changed his heart.
What Bibi Dong now harbored in her heart was only hatred, madness, unwillingness, and lingering affection!
Hatred for the angels, a mad desire to destroy everything associated with them, unwillingness that her love was stolen by another woman, and a longing for the most beautiful self she once was.
With these four emotions intertwined, she had long ago lost the ability to distinguish what was love. Coupled with the erosion of her reason by the Rakshasa God position, she had confused love with other feelings.
If it were truly love, why were the memories in her mind only of herself? Seen from the lover’s perspective, those memories should have only contained him. Because love had faded, the memories in her mind had no Yu Xiaogang!
"Impossible, impossible, it can't be like this."
Bibi Dong shook her head fiercely, her eyes trembling uncontrollably. Such a conjecture made her steps falter, and finally, with nowhere else to retreat, she slumped onto the chair.
Wang Zhong had given her a most malicious gift!
He had made her realize that she was now merely a madwoman, cloaked in the tattered remnants of love, her sanity gradually slipping away!