Shrek Academy, Flanders' Office.
Yu Xiaowei, Flanders, and Yu Xiaogang sat around a triangular table, each with a cup of cheap tea in front of them.
None of the three spoke, and the silence in the room was stifling.
Flanders looked left and right. He knew Yu Xiaowei was waiting for someone here, but he hadn't expected it to be Yu Xiaogang.
From their previous conversations, he was well aware that Yu Xiaowei held a very poor attitude toward his brother.
Originally, it wasn't his place to meddle in the affairs between the Yu brothers.
But he was worried that this rebellious kid might beat someone up the moment they met, so he had to step in between them, ready to act as a peacemaker at any moment.
After a long time, the first to break the silence was Yu Xiaogang.
He looked Yu Xiaowei in the eyes and spoke calmly.
"Did your second uncle ask you to come see me?"
Hearing him speak, Flanders immediately tensed up, fearing that Yu Xiaowei would suddenly lash out.
However, to his surprise, Yu Xiaowei simply spread his hands and replied calmly,
"My father said I should break both your legs right now."
"That's right."
Yu Xiaogang sneered at himself, as if it were only natural.
The atmosphere returned to tense silence.
Yu Xiaowei was in no rush. He pulled out a spirit bone from his spirit guide and sat there calmly playing with it.
Seeing the bone glowing with a halo of multicolored light, no matter how calm Yu Xiaogang appeared, he couldn't help the twitch of his gaze.
At first, seeing his cousin so young and protected by Flanders, Yu Xiaogang thought he wouldn't be able to do anything and was just trying to play psychological games.
But the moment this spirit bone appeared, Yu Xiaogang knew — this wasn't a game.
He prided himself on self-control, but when such a precious spirit bone suddenly appeared, he couldn't suppress the surge of greed.
Yet Yu Xiaowei played with the priceless object so casually, showing not a trace of reverence on his face.
If Yu Xiaogang didn't know how valuable a spirit bone was, he'd have thought it was some ordinary trinket.
Underestimate this cousin!
Though young, his psychological fortitude was truly terrifying!
"Why did you come to find me? Was it because of Erlong?"
"I've been avoiding Erlong for so long — why are you still chasing me like this?"
Yu Xiaogang couldn't help but ask.
Yu Xiaowei smiled in triumph and replied lightly,
"I came to tell my cousin one thing — that the person you love the most isn't Liu Erlong, but Bibi Dong."
"Nonsense! Xiaogang loves my third younger sister deeply, and yet you want to use such despicable means to force her to leave him?"
The first to react was Flanders. He could no longer suppress the anger in his heart. Pointing at Yu Xiaowei, he cursed him.
Back when the three of them had worked together for a living, both he and Yu Xiaogang had fallen for the lively Liu Erlong.
But when Liu Erlong had clearly said she liked Yu Xiaogang, Flanders was filled with sorrow and regret.
Yet out of brotherly love, he had voluntarily stepped aside, treating them as family.
Even when he witnessed their marriage with a broken heart, he still wished them a long and happy life.
Although Yu Luomian came later to disrupt things, Flanders knew they were cousins.
Still, he had always believed the two shared true love.
What was Yu Xiaowei saying now?
Could Xiaogang's true love really be Bibi Dong? That woman who had abandoned him long ago?
Staring at the furious, spitting Flanders, Yu Xiaowei pouted toward Yu Xiaogang and motioned with his chin.
"What's the point of getting angry at me? Ask your good brother."
Flanders was stunned, and when he saw Yu Xiaogang's hesitation, his expression suddenly changed.
The two had known each other for years, and Flanders understood his character well.
If Yu Xiaowei was really spouting nonsense, Yu Xiaogang wouldn't have stayed silent.
"Xiaogang, tell me — you don't love that woman anymore, right? The one you love most is Erlong!"
Flanders flipped his attitude and interrogated Yu Xiaogang.
He could accept stepping aside for Erlong and Yu Xiaogang, but not this hesitation.
"I love you deeply. I truly love you."
Yu Xiaogang stammered, unable to speak. He wanted to say the one he loved most was Liu Erlong.
But every time he tried, an image of a girl from Spirit Hall surfaced in his mind.
That girl was dignified and beautiful, naturally cheerful, and beloved in Spirit Hall.
More importantly, in her eyes, Yu Xiaogang had never seen the contempt he saw from others.
At first, after getting together with Erlong, he had thought he could forget that girl.
But with Yu Xiaowei's words, memories long buried were stirred again.
Twenty-seven years ago, Yu Xiaogang entered Spirit Hall for the first time.
Because his martial soul was useless, even with spirit power over level 20, he was only eligible for a civilian post.
But that suited him. The Spirit Hall library was a quiet place where no one laughed at him for being trash.
He read countless books, seeking a way to overcome the shackles of his trash martial soul.
Until one rainy afternoon, while he was still in the library, the door was suddenly kicked open.
A beautiful girl rushed in, holding her head. Upon seeing Yu Xiaogang, she asked confusedly,
"Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Her name was Bibi Dong.
That was how their story began.
In the days that followed, Bibi Dong often came to him, sharing her troubles.
Though Yu Xiaogang couldn't solve her master's abuse, he could explain cultivation clearly.
Gradually, Bibi Dong began to trust him deeply.
She even encouraged him to walk the path of a pure researcher — if he couldn't become a martial master, he could still be a respected theorist.
Inspired by her, Yu Xiaogang used her influence to gain access to higher authority books.
Bibi Dong devoted herself to his research and didn't hide the fact that she had twin martial spirits.
But every time Yu Xiaogang asked to see them, she would smile and decline.
"Don't look. It's ugly," she had said.
They spent three years together like this.
Eventually, combining the Blue Lightning Tyrant Clan's knowledge with Spirit Hall's, Yu Xiaogang created his "Ten Core Competencies of Spirit Hall."
When he published it under the title "Grandmaster," he thought he'd gain respect from spirit masters.
But nothing changed.
To them, he was still trash.
The label was welded onto his soul.
When he broke down, Bibi Dong hugged him gently and promised,
"When I inherit the title of Pope, I'll use all of Spirit Hall's power to find a way to strengthen your spirit."
But that hope shattered three days later.
Bibi Dong, with reddened eyes, came to him again — and said words he could never forget.
"You're trash. You're not worthy of me. Leave Spirit Hall. Go as far as you can and never return."
Yu Xiaogang felt his world collapse. He fled Spirit Hall like a madman.
He wandered in a daze for two years — until he met Liu Erlong, and finally believed he'd moved on.
…
Seeing Yu Xiaogang hesitate, Flanders felt heartbroken — and pity for himself.
"What are you really trying to say?"
Yu Xiaogang's voice was bitter. "Bibi Dong clearly told me to leave."
"So my sister has to be your substitute?"
"You—!"
"Bastard!!!"
Yu Xiaowei's voice was icy, biting into the word "bastard."
"Bastard!?"
"I've always been sincere to Erlong. Our love is real!"
Yu Xiaogang, having his old wounds reopened, stood up, pounding his chest and yelling.
"Is that so?"
"Then tell me — who do you love most? Liu Erlong? Or Bibi Dong?"
"Hmm? Can you say it?"
"Look inside yourself and ask your heart."
"You don't even dare admit who you love most — how dare you shamelessly claim to love my sister?"
Yu Xiaowei's rapid, piercing questions left Yu Xiaogang speechless.
He continued:
"I can tolerate you plagiarizing the family's legacy and flaunting it."
"I can also tolerate you using fake knowledge to deceive people."
"But I cannot tolerate you using my sister as a replacement."
"Especially since my sister is your cousin!"
Seeing Yu Xiaogang's gloomy face, Yu Xiaowei paused and snorted coldly.
"Cousin — this will be the last time I call you that."
"Tomorrow, return with me to Tiandou City and tell my sister the truth — that the one you love most is Bibi Dong."
"Then leave. Never show your face to my sister again."
"If you do… I'll kill you!"
With that, Yu Xiaowei flicked his sleeve and left calmly.
Yu Xiaogang slumped into his seat, Yu Xiaowei's words echoing in his mind. He murmured blankly:
"I didn't steal the family legacy."
"All my knowledge is real."
"I'm not a fraud."