Half a month later.
The Sun Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult joined forces and finally devised an assassination plan targeting Gu Tian.
To ensure the plan went smoothly,
the Sun Moon Empire even made use of a sleeper agent who had been embedded in the Star Luo Empire for years.
Star Luo Empire, Star Luo Imperial Capital.
Night fell. Moonlight spilled over the empty city, like lonely strings plucking a tune of midnight desolation.
In a luxurious residence in the heart of the city,
a middle-aged man studied the letter in his hand, his eyes flickering.
His name was Luo Yun, and he was the head of the Luo Clan. His Soul Power had reached rank 88, making him a Soul Douluo. He also held an important position in the Star Luo Empire as the Imperial Guard commander responsible for protecting the Star Luo Imperial Palace.
He also had another identity: a sleeper agent the Sun Moon Empire had planted in the Star Luo Empire many years ago.
In fact, aside from Luo Yun, the head of the family, the entire Luo Clan was part of it.
Some of the younger members of the clan simply didn't know.
The Luo Clan traced its roots back four thousand years, to the Heaven Dou Empire, where it had been one of the empire's seven great clans. Its influence in the imperial court had been extraordinary.
Unfortunately, when the Heaven Dou Empire split apart, the clan backed the wrong side and gradually fell into decline.
After several twists and turns, it eventually pledged allegiance to the Sun Moon Empire. Under the orders of its new master, it came to the Star Luo Empire.
With secret support from the Sun Moon Empire, the Luo Clan established itself in the Star Luo Empire and climbed, step by step, to its current position.
The ambitious Sun Moon Empire had done this sort of thing plenty of times.
Apart from Shrek Academy, where it was simply impossible to plant agents, it had sleeper agents in all Three Great Empires.
Some had even risen to high positions. This was one important reason the Sky Soul and Dou Spirit Empires had fallen so quickly in the original timeline.
Compared to the Sky Soul and Dou Spirit Empires, the Star Luo Empire had gotten off lightly.
At least its highest-ranking sleeper agent was only Luo Yun, the Imperial Guard commander.
"The Sun Moon Empire really is about to make its move!"
Luo Yun clenched the secret letter in his hand. Conflict, hesitation, and sorrow flickered in his eyes.
To be honest, he didn't want to get involved in something that could cost him his head.
But after a thousand years, the Luo Clan had become inextricably bound to the Sun Moon Empire's royal family.
If he didn't do as the letter demanded, Luo Yun was certain the Luo Clan would be wiped out before long.
At this point, even if he wanted to change sides and seek the Star Luo Empire's protection, it wouldn't work.
Over the generations, the Luo Clan's heads had revealed countless pieces of the Star Luo Empire's sensitive intelligence to the Sun Moon Empire.
Everything came at a price.
And that was the price the Luo Clan had paid for rising to prominence once more with the Sun Moon Empire's help.
The Luo Clan had no choice but to follow this path to the bitter end!
Even knowing it led to utter ruin!
"It looks like I'll have to find a way to send out the most outstanding children of the younger generation. At least that way, our Luo Clan's line won't be cut off."
Muttering to himself, Luo Yun burned the secret letter in his hand to ash, and it vanished into the air.
To earn Xu Jiawei's trust and become the Imperial Guard commander, Luo Yun was no fool.
The promises in the letter, the assurances that people would be sent to meet him—all of them were empty.
He knew all too well that he and the entire Luo Clan had become pawns the Sun Moon Empire was prepared to sacrifice. Whether the assassination succeeded or not, they were doomed to die.
Star Luo Imperial Palace.
"To think the Star Luo Empire really did form an alliance with Shrek Academy?"
The white-clad youth lay on the grass, gazing up at the stars scattered across the night sky. An unusual light glimmered in his eyes. "Why didn't Tang San step in to stop it?"
As a Transmigrator, Gu Tian knew Tang San's character all too well.
Before ascending to the Divine Realm, Tang San must have left contingencies in the powers with which he had deep ties: the Clear Sky Sect, the Tang Sect, Sea God Island, and Shrek Academy.
As for Shrek Academy, Gu Tian guessed its long-inherited sacred treasure was the Golden Ancient Tree.
Tang San had transplanted the Golden Ancient Tree to Shrek Academy after becoming a god, and it had become the academy's greatest foundation.
But given Tang San's nature—never acting without a benefit—he wouldn't have done such a thing for no reason.
After all, compared to Shrek Academy, the Tang Sect was the sect Tang San had founded himself. It also carried the weight of his previous life.
There was no question which of the two had closer ties to Tang San.
If he was going to transplant it anywhere, he should have put it in the Tang Sect!
Why give a treasure like the Golden Ancient Tree to Shrek Academy of all places?
There had to be something more to it!
Looking at the two key periods of Peerless Tang Sect and Legend of the Dragon King, Gu Tian made a guess.
The Golden Ancient Tree must have played an especially important role in Tang San's plans for the Douluo Continent.
And as a sect, the Tang Sect would inevitably decline sooner or later, even with the halo of its Sea God founder.
Tang San had probably foreseen this.
Perhaps out of vanity, or perhaps to preserve his perfect image, Tang San had never revealed that his martial soul wasn't Blue Silver Grass, but Blue Silver Emperor.
Blue Silver Grass!
Blue Silver Emperor!
The difference of a single word was like the difference between heaven and earth.
Blue Silver Grass was nothing more than an ordinary, useless martial soul.
The Blue Silver Emperor was the ruler of all Blue Silver Grass. Only one appeared in each generation, and it was one of the most powerful plant-type martial souls.
With Tang San as their "shining example," the Tang Sect's masters were generally chosen from Soul Masters who had awakened Blue Silver Grass.
They hoped those masters could defy fate like their Ancestor Tang San and lead the Tang Sect to rise again.
As it turned out, that was pure nonsense.
Even before Tang San awakened his Blue Silver Emperor bloodline, Blue Silver Grass had always been his weak point.
On top of that, Tang San hadn't left the complete Mysterious Heaven Skill with the Tang Sect.
With all these factors, it would have been a miracle if the Tang Sect hadn't declined!
Shrek Academy was entirely different. It was an academy, not a sect.
It accepted any student with sufficient talent, and didn't restrict them from joining other powers after graduation.
It also had the reputation of the First Generation Shrek Seven Devils behind it. After defeating Spirit Hall, it had received the full support of both empires.
Even the long-established Four Element Academies had been incorporated into Shrek Academy.
With all that behind it, it would have been difficult for Shrek Academy to decline even if it tried.
Perhaps that was why Tang San had planted the Golden Ancient Tree at Shrek Academy!
During the era of Legend of the Dragon King, God of Destruction and Goddess of Life had turned into the Seed of Destruction and Seed of Life while holding back the spatial turbulence. The Divine Realm had been swept away by the turbulence.
That was when the Golden Ancient Tree's purpose became clear. Tang San's mother, Ah Yin, merged with it and became the Life Core of the plane, while Tang Hao became the Lord of Planes of Douluo Star.
From then on, the Douluo Continent had begun to turn into Tang San's private garden.
Before that, the Golden Ancient Tree had undoubtedly been under Tang San's control, allowing him to influence all of Shrek Academy.
That was exactly why Gu Tian found it strange that Shrek Academy had sided with him.
After all, in the Sky Curtain, he was the enemy of the gods, the man who had ruined Tang San's thousand-year plan.
He was practically the very definition of someone who deserved to die in Tang San's eyes.
In those circumstances, the fact that Shrek Academy hadn't attacked him was already the best outcome.
Even if he really was the future master of Sea God Pavilion.
"One day in the Divine Realm is a year on the ground. Maybe that's why the Divine Realm still doesn't know what's happening on the Douluo Continent."
Gu Tian's expression turned thoughtful as he considered the possibility, then shook his head.
"But the problem is, with Huo Yuhao, the Child of Destiny, being born, Tang San should have been keeping a close eye on the Douluo Continent all along."
"Could the Sky Curtain have severed contact between the Divine Realm and the Douluo Continent?"
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