Di Tian's Verdict

Hearing Tainuo's words, Zhao Wuji chuckled:

"How can this be called robbery? It's common sense that you have to pay for damaging public property. You can't just break the rules, can you?"

Tainuo thought to himself, "I'm not exactly a law-abiding citizen, but he was in the wrong after all, and his fists weren't as big as Zhao Wuji's."

Back when Zhao Wuji was being chased all over the place by Tainuo, Tai Tan's father, Zhao Wuji was already much stronger Tainuo.

Now, the gap between the two has widened even further, which can be felt even from their aura.

So Tainuo had no choice but to say:

"Compensation is necessary, but 100,000 Gold Soul Coin is outrageous. Is your playground made of gold or silver?"

Zhao Wuji shook his head, "You can't say that. This playground was carefully built by our Dean Liu. She dug all the soil there herself, shovel by shovel."

"You do the math on the labor costs. A Soul Saint personally dug and built this training ground, and now you've ruined it to pieces. Isn't it reasonable for you to pay 100,000 Gold Soul Coin in compensation? Anyway, that's the price. So, tell me, are you going to pay or not?"

Tainuo stared at Zhao Wuji, but Zhao Wuji remained unmoved until he saw Tailong walking this way, at which point Tainuo sighed helplessly.

"It's impossible for you to get 100,000 Gold Soul Coin. I don't have that many on me. If you dare, come back to the clan with me to get them."

"You think I wouldn't dare?" Zhao Wuji sneered. "You should know that the original Golden Iron Triangle has already reunited at this Academy, and you've probably heard about our Dean Flender's greedy nature. Do you think he would bring the other two members of the Iron Triangle to your house to collect a debt for 100,000 Gold Soul Coin?"

Tainuo's expression darkened slightly; he realized that what Zhao Wuji described was indeed not impossible.

He even believed that Zhao Wuji's current attempt to blackmail him was orchestrated by Flender.

He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, and said:

"Thirty thousand Gold Soul Coin, that's all I have. Take it or leave it."

"Deal." Zhao Wuji grinned, beaming with delight.

Tainuo slapped a Gold Soul Coin prepaid card into Zhao Wuji's hand, then led Tailong, who had just arrived and knew nothing about the situation, straight away.

Watching Tainuo leave, Zhao Wuji also turned and left.

A short while later, he came to a corner and handed the Gold Soul Coin storage card in his hand to the person in front of him.

"Boss, we swindled him out of 30,000 Gold Soul Coin, that should be alright, right?"

Flender took the prepaid card, nodded, and smiled, saying:

"Not bad. Erlong said that it only cost a few thousand yuan to build this playground back then, and now they've not only recouped their investment but also made a profit."

Zhao Wuji sighed, "You're quite cunning, actually letting me take this opportunity to extort money from him. You're sure he won't get angry."

Flender said calmly:

"He just got beaten up like that by a bunch of kids, how could he possibly have the nerve to fight us again? As long as we don't go too far, he'll definitely want to settle things peacefully. He thinks he can just smash up our Academy's facilities and walk away? There's no such thing as a free lunch."

"Speaking of which, if that old Tai Tan comes knocking on our door, are we really going to fight him? That old guy is not easy to deal with," Zhao Wuji said with some worry.

"Don't worry, if he comes, someone will deal with him." A cunning glint appeared in Flender's eyes.

While Chen Feng was having a spectacular beating of the Spirit King, Gu Yue Ling was also on her way home.

After several days of travel, she arrived at the edge of a vast forest, the largest forest on the Douluo Continent, the Star Dou Great Forest.

As Gu Yue Ling strolled into the Star Dou Great Forest, it was as if she were on a picnic.

What others saw as an extremely dangerous Soul Beast Gathering Place was like a backyard to Gu Yue Ling.

Along the way, whenever they encountered Gu Yue Ling's Soul Beast, they either bowed respectfully or retreated immediately, as if Gu Yue Ling were the emperor of this place.

Gu Yue Ling paid no attention to the Soul Beast. She headed straight for the center of the Star Dou Great Forest, only slowing down slightly when she passed a lake.

She gazed at the tranquil lake for a moment, then continued on her way to her destination.

Shortly after she left, a splashing sound came from the lake, and a huge head emerged from the water.

It looked in the direction Gu Yue Ling had left and said in confusion:

"How did this person get out here?"

When Gu Yue Ling returned to the alternate dimension in the Core Area of Star Dou Great Forest, a deep voice rang out.

"Auspicious Beast, you're back?"

"Well, my Soul Power has reached Level 40. I came back to take a look and condense Soul Ring while I'm at it," Gu Yue Ling said. "Also, Di Tian, I have a name now. Don't call me Auspicious Beast anymore, or I'll call you Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King."

"Oh, I got used to calling you that before, I'll be more careful next time. But, it seems like you haven't been away from here for very long, have you? How did you reach Level 40 so quickly? Did something happen?" A hint of doubt appeared in Di Tian's voice.

"Some things have indeed happened." Gu Yue Ling then briefly recounted her experiences over the past few days.

"Oh? There are such people among humans? They can actually help humans obtain Soul Ring and Soul Bone without killing Soul Beast. Could it be that they have comprehended the essence of Soul Ring and Soul Bone?" Di Tian said in astonishment.

Gu Yue Ling shook her head and said, "I don't know about that. I came back this time not only to condense my Soul Ring, but also to tell you about this and see how to handle it."

Di Tian pondered for a moment, then sighed:

"This person is undoubtedly a genius, but he may not necessarily have a good ending."

"Why?" Gu Yue Ling asked, puzzled.

Di Tian sneered and said:

"Generally speaking, we Soul Beast are considered a barbaric race, while humans consider themselves a civilized race. But in reality, the core of both is quite similar. It seems that civilized humans are even more barbaric than Soul Beast in many things."

"That person is undoubtedly a genius among humans, but what he researches infringes on the interests of many people, which is why I think he may not have a good ending."

Gu Yue Ling frowned. "I don't quite understand."

Di Tian explained, "Let's take the Soul Beast clan as an example. You should be very clear about what happens when the old leader and the new leader of the Soul Beast clan change."

"It will bleed."

"That's right. Many times, such generational changes involve bloodshed, and this bloodshed isn't just a struggle between two generations of leaders, but also a struggle between the Rules Rules a group. The same applies to humans."

Gu Yue Ling wore a thoughtful expression.

Di Tian continued:

"That genius actually appeared at the wrong time; it would have been better if his research had come a few hundred years later."

"What would happen if it were hundreds of years later?" Gu Yue Ling asked.

Di Tian said in a low voice, "If we want his research results to replace the Rules that have prevailed in the human world for Ten-Thousand-Year, then in the end we will have to resort to violence. If we had waited a few hundred years longer, we would have already ended our seclusion, and then it would have been much easier for us to do whatever we wanted."

"Can't you end your seclusion early?" Gu Yue Ling asked doubtfully. "I was startled awake from my slumber earlier, but I didn't feel any impact."

"This is different," Di Tian sighed.

There's a saying that a large ship is hard to turn around. You were just sleeping at that time, and your strength wasn't that great, so ending your slumber early wouldn't have much of an impact. Besides, the Master helped you reshape your human form, so the impact was even more negligible.

"However, if we want to end our seclusion, we need a long period of time to adjust our condition. Otherwise, even if we end the seclusion early, we will still have a period of weakness, which is very dangerous. Of course, if things are very urgent, we can also pay some price to come out early."

"Now then?" Gu Yue Ling said hesitantly.

Di Tian paused for a moment, then said:

"Now is not the most urgent time."

Gu Yue Ling understood. Di Tian meant that he would only choose to end his seclusion early, at the cost of paying a price, when the Soul Beast clan was in the most critical situation.

Otherwise, Di Tian would simply wait in silence.

Gu Yue Ling had nothing to criticize about his actions, as they were all choices made for the sake of the Soul Beast community.

"Then what should I do?" Gu Yue Ling asked.

"Do your best to save that person's life, without endangering your own safety. You are of paramount importance to the Star Dou Great Forest," Di Tian instructed.

Gu Yue Ling nodded. "I understand. He's actually quite cautious and hasn't rashly published his research results, probably because he considered the issue you raised."

"Very likely. That would make that person much safer. By the way, how is his cultivation talent?" Di Tian asked.

"His talent for cultivation is outstanding; he can be considered one of the best among humans."

"In that case, perhaps there is another way to handle this," Di Tian said after thinking for a moment.

What method?

"Give him the greatest possible martial prowess, ideally reaching the limits of human capability. At that point, even if he publishes his research findings, it will be difficult for anyone to do anything to him," Di Tian said.

"The limit of humanity, level ninety-nine?"

"That's right."

Gu Yue Ling pondered for a moment and asked:

"I think we can still offer him some help."

"Oh? What do you mean? We Ferocious Beast are all in seclusion right now, and none of us are able to come out and roam freely," Di Tian said.

"But there are others outside, Di Tian. You said before that there are Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that have transformed into humans. Do you know what kind of Soul Beast have transformed into humans?" Gu Yue Ling asked.

"It looks like a rabbit."

"A rabbit?" Gu Yue Ling's eyes lit up. "Then I might have seen her before."

"What's the meaning?"

Gu Yue Ling then recounted her discoveries when she first met Xiao Wu, and then said:

"Her Martial Soul is the Soft Bone Rabbit, and she has a compassion for Soul Beast that humans shouldn't have. Besides that, she seems to have had contact with the Titan Giant Ape and the Sky Azure Bull Python, so she's most likely that 100,000-year-old rabbit that has transformed into a human."

"What a coincidence that you two could meet in the human world," Di Tian remarked.

"If she is indeed that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that has transformed into a human, Di Tian, do you think the Titan Giant Ape and the Sky Azure Bull Python can be of any help?" Gu Yue Ling asked.

"I can't help," Di Tian said without hesitation.

"Why?" Gu Yue Ling, somewhat puzzled.

"Who do you think is the main enemy in this matter of changing the Rules between humans and Soul Beast?" Di Tian asked in return.

Gu Yue Ling shook her head, somewhat confused.

"It's the Spirit Hall." Di Tian sneered. "The Spirit Hall's predecessor was the Church. Guess what the Church did back then?"

Seemingly knowing that Gu Yue Ling couldn't answer, Di Tian directly gave the answer:

"It's about eradicating the evil Soul Beast."

Gu Yue Ling vaguely understood the problem.

And Di Tian's narration continued:

"Indeed, there are some corrupt beings among the Soul Beast. They are like the Fallen Ones, the black sheep of the Soul Beast race. There is nothing wrong with eliminating such Soul Beast, as they are also a threat to the Soul Beast."

"In the process of eradicating the corrupted Soul Beast, the profession of Soul Master came into being. They were able to absorb the power of the dead Soul Beast and gradually become stronger. It was at this time that things started to go wrong."

"They've broadened their target range?" Gu Yue Ling quickly came to a guess.

"That's obvious. Who could resist gaining immense power?" Di Tian sneered. "Initially, they targeted fallen Soul Beast Soul Beast. But once those beasts became scarce, the Soul Master, in order to become even stronger, turned their attention to ordinary Soul Beast."

Gu Yue Ling's expression darkened; she hadn't expected there to be such a past event.

"At first, they were quite secretive, and after killing the Soul Beast, they would find an excuse, such as saying that these were all evil Soul Beast. As for what made them evil? Perhaps it was because they dared to live and not become Soul Ring for Soul Master. How evil is that?" Di Tian sneered repeatedly.

"And then?" Gu Yue Ling asked.

"After that, as more and more people did this, there was no need to hide it anymore. Hunting Soul Beast to obtain Soul Ring became a customary rule, and the church that started with this gradually evolved into the Spirit Hall, spreading this rule to the entire human population."

"Now, do you understand what I mean? Compared to the behemoth that is the Spirit Hall, that little snake and monkey are of no use at all. Even at our peak, we must act with caution, because they have a god behind them, and a god will not stand on our side," Di Tian said in a low voice.

"None of the gods can do that?" Gu Yue Ling asked, frowning.

Di Tian hesitated for a moment, "Perhaps... elemental gods would be better."