"Ah?"
"Ah???"
"This…"
Surprised voices rang out one after another. The girls all reacted with appropriate shock at the story's conclusion.
"Setting aside the ending for now, can I just say… that Saintess must be insane, right?"
"I don't get it, sis…"
"Yeah, me neither…"
"Is that what love is supposed to be?"
Yu Keke hugged Fire Meow Meow with a blank look and murmured in confusion.
Smack—
"Ow~!"
Aether lightly flicked her on the forehead, lips twitching.
"You're too young to understand love…"
"Okaaay~"
Yu Keke rubbed her forehead and fell silent.
Everyone was still reeling from the story's ending, eagerly discussing their thoughts in an animated buzz.
But at that moment, Bibi Dong stood frozen, her gaze vacant as she stared at Aether. Her lips trembled slightly, her mind filled with confusion she couldn't put into words.
Gone was her usual dignified and regal bearing. Her face was blank, even forlorn, tinged with madness.
Aether looked at her calmly. He could tell—she had completely immersed herself in the story and realized exactly which character she had been.
"Alright, the story's over. I've got some things to discuss with her alone."
He waved his hand, gesturing for the girls to give them some space.
After all, she was the Supreme Pontiff of the Spirit Hall. He owed her at least that much dignity.
A secret buried for years had just been laid bare—it was surely too much for her to take in all at once.
"Your Excellency, I have one more question…" Shui Yue'er raised her hand.
"What is it?"
"You said the story took place here, but from beginning to end, you never mentioned the protagonist's name. Could you tell us?"
Shui Bing'er and Zhu Zhuqing pricked up their ears in interest.
That's right. They'd been so absorbed in the tale, they hadn't noticed that he never once mentioned the main character's name.
"Well…"
Aether paused and met Bibi Dong's eyes—only to find a trace of desperate hope still lingering within them.
Even though every detail in the story had fit her perfectly, she couldn't bring herself to accept the truth. She was still clinging to the possibility that she was wrong.
Yes, I must've misunderstood. It's not him. It can't be him! The protagonist… the protagonist can't be him!
Bibi Dong screamed inwardly, staring intently at Aether, as if his next words could free her from this nightmare.
"The protagonist's name was Yu Xiaogang."
Aether shook his head, then uttered the three words she least wanted to hear.
Boom—
Bibi Dong's mind exploded. Every thought, every ounce of reason, every last shred of hope… was obliterated by those three words.
"Yu Xiaogang? That name sounds really ordinary, but… why does it feel oddly familiar?"
Shui Yue'er glanced at Shui Bing'er, who was already standing.
"Big sis, does that name sound familiar to you too?"
"Now that you mention it… I have heard it somewhere before…"
The Shui sisters fell into thought, not noticing the stunned look on Zhu Zhuqing's face.
Her eyes were filled with disbelief. Her mind spun with the words Yu Xiaogang.
Could this really be just some uncanny coincidence?
Could the Yu Xiaogang mentioned by His Excellency… be the same as Tang San's teacher?
Yu Xiaogang… Yu Xiaogang… Teacher… Grandmaster…!!
Suddenly, Zhu Zhuqing cried out in realization.
"It's him! It was him all along!"
"Huh? Zhuqing, what do you mean it was him?"
"You know Yu Xiaogang?"
The Shui sisters turned to her, curious.
"Your Excellency… Tang San's teacher… he's also named Yu Xiaogang."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't directly answer their questions. Instead, she said something that sounded completely baffling to the uninformed.
Then, seeing Aether lightly nod, all her doubts vanished.
So the protagonist of His Excellency's story… was Tang San's teacher, Yu Xiaogang!
It all made sense now. There couldn't possibly be such a ridiculous coincidence in the world.
Zhu Zhuqing mentally substituted Yu Xiaogang into the role of the protagonist.
Second-stage dou qi… that's soul power at Rank 29.
Also stuck at a bottleneck. Also from a noble clan. Also known for his theories…
It all lined up—every detail matched!
She had actually met the main character of His Excellency's tale…
And everyone in Shrek Academy had always regarded Yu Xiaogang as a worthy master and scholar.
But the story Aether had told described a man who was the very picture of a hypocrite—manipulative and morally rotten to the core.
Zhu Zhuqing had interacted with him. Her first impression was that he seemed a bit arrogant, but otherwise… nothing seemed too off.
But… could it be as Aether claimed? Had this man hidden his true self so deeply that all they'd ever seen was a carefully crafted mask?
Would someone like His Excellency fabricate a story just to smear some random weak, unrelated soul master?
Of course not.
Zhu Zhuqing stole a glance at Aether, calm and composed as always, and came to her own conclusion.
Then a thought struck her—if Yu Xiaogang was the protagonist, then the "cousin" in the story must also have a real-world counterpart.
"Your Excellency… Headmistress Liu Erlong… was she the cousin mentioned in the story?"
"She was."
Zhu Zhuqing's expression turned into one of utter clarity.
Not long ago, she, Xiao Wu, and Rongrong had been discussing Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong's romance. They had all sighed over how two people so in love were forced apart by outdated social conventions. It had seemed such a tragic love story…
But in Aether's version of events, it was the tale of a despicable man who stopped at nothing to get what he wanted!
Thinking of this, another important detail surfaced in Zhu Zhuqing's mind.
Yu Xiaogang had joined Shrek when they were in Soto City. That's where she had first met him.
But there had been no mention of any Saintess or holy maiden figure around him back then…
Zhu Zhuqing pieced it together. By the time Liu Erlong entered the picture, Yu Xiaogang was already known as a famous "Grandmaster."
Which meant this mysterious Saintess must have already been long out of his life.
Aether had said that after getting what he wanted from the Saintess, Yu Xiaogang had vanished for a long time.
None of the Shrek crowd had ever mentioned any woman like that.
"Your Excellency… who was the Saintess?"
Zhu Zhuqing had no leads at all, so she decided to ask directly.
She was just too curious. Who was this mysterious holy maiden from such a powerful clan?
In response, Aether turned and looked at Bibi Dong, still frozen in her seat, expression blank.
He blinked at her.
_
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