Like people said, the next was history. I trained Tang San all these years putting my maximum effort, planning to create a monster. Once he became 12 years old, I decided to send him with Flender. I had taught most of my useful knowledge, now what he required was combat experience.
In these years, Flender had made the first step to his dream. With other strong spirit masters, he had made his own school, one that only accepts monsters. It's not very famous due to how isolated it was and due to how little alumni studied there, but it was slowly being recognized by strong powers.
I decided to go an help a good friend, accepting Flender's offer of teaching at his school. In Shrek Academy, Flender's academy, Tang San had gained powerful companions and friends, his strength increasing.
Seeing the group of 7 students, I decided that they need more combat experiences, fighting against the strongest. I decided to make them participate at the Continental Tournament, facing against the strongest academies of the continent.
Some different things happened and we finished meeting my wife, Erlong. Erlong had become the headmistress of her own academy that she gifted it to Flender, becoming the new Shrek Academy and the children being able to participate at the Continental Tournament.
Seeing her, my fright and inferiority returned, I couldn't be with my cousin, my head negated her while my body wanted her near me. I wanted to run away again, but I was stopped and forced to meet her again. I had loved her, but I didn't know if I would be able to open my heart again to her. After some uncomfortable moments, I realized that she never forgot me. She had spent all her life with sadness, waiting for me. I truly didn't deserve her love, if only she had chosen Flender.
Finally, I accepted to be with her. We loved each other and even if now our relation was strange due to us being cousins. In the future, it might become easier, finally, opening my heart and fully accept her as she deserves.
I thought that this would be my future, trying to solve my relationship with Erlong while training Tang San to accomplish my dream. However, all changed one night.
A man clad in darkness appeared in my room. Death could be felt around him, making me flinch when I saw him. His aura was so intense that it made it difficult to recognize him inside it.
The man started talking, showing him having knowledge about me and finishing offering me a fragrant cookie, one that could change my own destiny. The man didn't seem to lie, I could risk my life to attain greater strength, I could become strong, stopping being trash.
I had long forgotten the idea of becoming strong. I tried many times before without vail, but seeing the rich energy from the cookie, my dreams of becoming strong bloomed again. Before a realized, I had already eaten the cookie, my body moving by instinct.
"HAAAAA!" An intense pain ran through my body, muscles exploded, bones snapped, ants seemed to crawl over my head. It seemed that all my body was reforging from new. The pain was so unbearable that I thought that this was the end of my life, experimenting all my life crossing over my eyes.
Flender and the adventures, Erlong and my love with her, the hard times at the clan, all the hate, and ridicule from the world. The final memory was of Bibi Dong, my first and more intense love, the happiest moment of my life simply being with her, wanting to spend all my life with her. Finishing with the memory of she rejecting me, calling me trash. I could see that memory much clearly than I had remembered and in low motion. I realized that her voice was hoarse, hidden over her cold eyes was sadness and longing, even a little tear hide in them.
At that moment I realized, how could I have been so moron? Our moments together weren't fake, she loved me too. Thinking about know it was easy to realize, how could Spirit Hall let its more talented spirit master ran away with a nobody. She might have been forced to break up with me, maybe even being blackmailed with my death. And even if not, breaking with me would have been the best way to protect me from Spirit Hall.
Tears uncontrollably fell from my eyes. I'm such an idiot. Even when the only feature that I liked about me was my intelligence it took me more than 25 years and a death experience to find the truth. All these years, trying to forget about her, even using others to accomplish my revenge against her. I'm truly trash.
Finally, the intense pain stopped. All my body was sore and I even had difficulty to breathe, but the pain was bearable. I spent one week on the bed healing my wounds while being taken care of by Erlong. My body was all in pain, but somehow it felt the best way ever, strength flowing over my veins, my body's strength far surpassing the one before.
I tried invoking San Luo Pao and found him all transformed. Now it was a little but strong golden dragon about 1 and a half meters long with little wings. It seemed the baby form of the Holy Golden Dragon. The aura and majesty around him was of a true dragon, even stronger than the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.
Looking at the worried face of Erlong while she looked after me, I felt strange. Somehow, my attraction with her seemed to lower, my body being quiet while my mind said that she was my cousin. I realized that I never had loved her as Bibi Dong. Our love wasn't real, it was an intent to forget about her. And now that my spirit mutated, I was sure that the obsession with her was in great part due to my spirit. Somehow, both of our spirits were attracted, mine wanting to take her to become strong, searching to become a true dragon. Our love was only a hoax, I loved her as a great friend or sister, but it wasn't real love.
"Erlong" Finally, I was able to move my body. I stood up and called Erlong who made a happy seeing me recuperated. I bowed towards her, lowering my head apologizing "Sorry!" Then I told her the truth, she deserved the truth and I for one time didn't try to run away, I told her all without skipping any fact, declaring my love for Bibi Dong.
"Erlong, sorry. I know that I am trash, you wasted all your life for someone that did not deserves you. I am truly sorry. I would never be able to repay you. You can do whatever you want with me, beat me, torture me, cripple me... I don't mind, I deserve this. However, I want to at least be alive, I want to give my life to Bibi Dong as apologies."
Erlong punched my face, throwing me crashing to the wall. I took the hit and waited for the following, knowing that I deserved all the pain, even death for her, but I was too greedy, I wanted to at least see Bibi Dong one last time.
However, no other hit came. Erlong's face was all red, tears filling her face, anger and sadness over her black eyes "If you love her so much, go with her!" she shouted in pain, her heart breaking "Never appear in front of me again" she said angrily before turning around and leaving the room, breaking the door.
I hit my head to the wall "I'm truly trash" Erlong was too good for me. I had been an idiot to her. I stood up and left Shrek Academy without warning anyone, determined to meet Bibi Dong again. I bought some horses and the required utensils and started my trip alone towards Spirit City.
After a week of traveling at full speed, I finally reached Spirit City. Thanks to the elder token that gave me Tang San's father, I was easy able to pass the frontier, reaching the Supreme Pontiff Palace and requesting an audience with Bibi Dong.
Entering the Supreme Pontiff Palace's main hall, she was there sat on a golden throne. She was really beautiful like if all these years didn't pass for her while I received the full brunt of age, my wealth lowering and even my hair turning white.
Seeing me enter, she squinted her eyes glancing coldly at me and ordered all the people at the hall to retire, leaving only us alone.
"So the grand Grandmaster deign to appear in front of me?" Bibi Dong said sarcastically "Did you came to ask for your disciple to be sparred? If it is for this, you can already forget about it. I will not change my mind"
I kneeled on the ground, lowering my head even slamming into the ground "Sorry!" I apologized, her eyes showing a trace of surprise "I'm an idiot. All these years you must have suffered all alone, carrying a great weight over you. I love you, Bibi Dong. I love you everything about you, with all my whole. I don't know if you stopped loving me after all this time, I'm even unsure if you loved me before, but I want to apologize. I was so blind by my inferiority that I couldn't see the truth, letting you suffer."
I sensed Bibi Dong's force surrounding me, it forced me to stand up and approach her. She stood up from her throne, directly looking at my eyes "You don't have any idea of what I had experimented all these years!" she said in fury.
"I don't. However, I want to pay you" I said while all my body was in pain due to the force pushing over me "I realized what the most important is. I want to be with you, I want you to be happy. If it's for you, I don't mind giving up my body. If you desire, you can kill me now, I won't resist and I would gladly accept it"
"Hahaha" Bibi Dong laughed forcefully, the force around me disappearing, causing me to fall to the ground "Do you think this is so easy? That I can't forget all this time, that your death would be enough to paid for all of this? You're too naive!" Her force exploded again, suppressing me kneeling over the ground. "Leave now! Never return or I might truly kill you!"
"No!" I focused all my strength, my bones cracking as I forced them to stand up "I won't run away again. I want to always be with you, I love you! The only way you will be able to force me to leave would be killing me." I said resolutely.
Seeing my resolve, her eyes opened widely, becoming tearful "You don't know what I did all these years. , I'm a devil that made countless sins, killing, torturing, slaughtering. You don't have any idea what I needed to do to reach my position. I'm dirty, I must be all alone. I can't be with you."
I forced my body to move, a lot pain with every move, encircling my arms over her, hugging her "I don't mind them. I would accept your sins as mine as it's my fault that you were forced to them. The only thing that matters is you being with me."
Tears started falling from Bibi Dong's eyes "I loved you, Xiaogang. I always loved you!" her suppression disappeared and she hugged me, leaning her head over me. After 10 seconds, she broke the hug "But, we can't be together. You won't be able to bear my sins, only death awaits you if you are with" she smiled "But, I'm happy to know about your love. You can forget about me now. Go live your own life"
"Never!" I shouted "You are my life, without you, all the meaning is lost!" Four spirit rings appeared behind me, Luo San Pao appeared, this time as a 5 meters long golden dragon, showing his might "I would be forever with you! I will do anything necessary!"
Bibi Dong was moved by my resolution and surprised at the same time seeing my new strength "Are you really serious? You will accept me with my dirt?" she asked shyly and hopefully.
I leaned over her, lifting her chin and kissing her lips, our tongues joining inside. It was a longed, warm, and a little painful kiss, like describing our relationship. However, I knew that I loved her. "For you, I don't mind becoming a devil. Being together with you is the most important."
"Xiaogang!" Tears fell from her face, this time of joy, as she jumped hugged me "Thanks. I love you, Xiaogang. Accept my whole" While we were hugged, 6 deep green spiders legs appeared at her back, 6 spirit rings under her.
"Hg!" I tried to keep from shouting as the spider legs encircled me, piercing my back, some strange substance coming from them, flowing around my body and destroying it. My conciousness fading away.
I could feel Bibi Dong's memories and pain. I was right, she was forced to leave me to protect me, even being raped by her teacher and forcing her to have his daughter to keep her in Spirit Hall. All the painful memories and the indescribable sins that she committed. Starting to killing that bastard of her teacher taking advantage of the wounds in his fight against Tang Hao and followed by countless innocent and not so innocent falling from her own hands.
She was no longer a normal spirit master. She had sold herself to the devil for strength for his vengeance to her teacher and family, for the destruction of Spirit Hall. She had even changed her cultivation, now cultivating pain and resentment. I new form to cultivate, an evil one.
That evil energy flowed all over my body, but suddenly stopped "Won't you run away?" The sweet voice of Bibi Dong's sounded over my head, fear of rejection in it.
I shook my head "I will be always with you, our destiny would be the same. I don't mind becoming the devil himself for you."
"Thanks" I sensed some tears fell over my head. Then, the pain returned, the evil energy revolving all over my body changing it, reconstructing. I was no longer a normal spirit master, I was now reborn as an evil spirit master that I gladly accepted for being together with Bibi Dong.
I opened my eyes, seeing the tearful eyes of Bibi Dong, her face showing her pain and happiness as she patted my hair, me being at the ground, my head over her lap.
I could sense my body stronger, younger, even my hair recovering its long lost black luster, an evil aura leaking over me. Luo San Pao who stood near us had also experimented a transformation. No longer could be sensed a holy aura around him replaced by a dark and evil aura, his scales pure black, becoming a dragon of pure darkness.
However, all these changes weren't important for me. The most important was able to be with the woman that I love. I leaned over her, kissing her.
"I love you."