The Silver Dragon King Seeks Peace
Seeing that Bibi Dong remained silent, the official's face flashed with a "I knew it" expression. His original impatience faded, replaced by a sense of pity.
He imagined the whole story and concluded that this was probably another pitiful person who had refused the Spirit Hall's invitation years ago, and now, seeing the Spirit Hall Empire's power and the fierce competition among Soul Master, his mentality had become unbalanced, and he had even developed unrealistic fantasies.
He had seen this kind of thing many times. In the past, the Spirit Hall was eager to recruit talent. As long as you were a Soul Master with a clean background and not an undercover agent, you could basically join the Spirit Hall and enjoy resources and status.
But now, the selection mechanism of the Spirit Hall Empire is more than ten times stricter!
It's not just about talent and ability; loyalty, competence, and understanding of the new imperial policies will also be assessed...
In addition, with the explosive development of elixirs and Soul Guidance Technology in recent years, Soul Master account for 80% of the total population and are no longer a rarity. Even ordinary people who cannot awaken their Martial Soul can contend with low-level Soul Master with their excellent Soul Tool. The status of ordinary Soul Master is no longer as revered as it once was.
Those Soul Master who once thought too highly of themselves and rejected the Spirit Hall are now finding it incredibly difficult to squeeze into the Imperial system. In the officials' eyes, the woman before them, with her striking appearance but gloomy expression, is probably one of them.
Facing the official's all-seeing yet pitying gaze, Bibi Dong's aura grew increasingly dangerous. The purplish-black Rakshasa Divine Power surged silently within her body, and the killing intent in her eyes almost materialized.
Having been completely corrupted and resurrected by the Rakshasa Divine Power, her mind was already twisted. How could she possibly tolerate being viewed this way by an insignificant official?
Just as her fingertips twitched, about to strike and punish the man—
A series of crisp, rhythmic footsteps came from the entrance of the hall.
Everyone instinctively looked over and saw a blonde girl slowly stepping in.
She was tall and straight, with an exquisitely beautiful face and snow-white skin. Her well-tailored imperial high-ranking official uniform further accentuated her noble and awe-inspiring demeanor, making her seem unapproachable.
She simply stood there, and it was as if she were the focus of the entire hall, dazzlingly brilliant.
It is Qian Renxue!
The moment Qian Renxue, the surging, about-to-explode Rakshasa Divine Power within Bibi Dong body silently dissipated.
Even Bibi Dong herself was unaware that when facing this child, she always harbored a deep-seated obsession with maintaining her perfect image and was unwilling to let her see her out-of-control and violent side.
Upon seeing Qian Renxue, the official immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Greetings, Your Saintess Hall!"
Qian Renxue nodded slightly, her gaze sweeping across the arena before finally settling on Bibi Dong, whose aura was somewhat unusual and whose appearance felt strangely familiar.
Just then, Bibi Dong took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly, and softly called out, "... Xue... Your Saintess Hall..."
Qian Renxue paused, her golden pupils staring intently at Bibi Dong's face with a look of confusion.
"... It's me." Bibi Dong nodded.
In the bustling Imperial Hall, amidst such an eerie atmosphere, the two recognized each other...
··········································
With Qian Renxue, the Holy Maiden of the Empire, vouching for him, the official confirmed Bibi Dong's identity as a "former deacon of the Spirit Hall."
However, while the identity was confirmed, new problems arose.
The administrative system of the Spirit Hall Empire has long been reformed, and the position of "deacon" is now a thing of the past.
What should be done with Bibi Dong, this "remnant of the previous dynasty"? What kind of treatment, authority, and status should she be given?
She also wanted to mobilize personnel from the Spirit Hall Empire, utilize Spirit Hall Empire intelligence network, and so on...
Officials stated that they needed to inform His Holiness the Pope, and that the decision would be made by Pope Qian Xunji.
·····················
Qian Renxue looked at the gaunt woman before her, whose eyes held a certain madness and obsession. In those light purple eyes that shared the same origin as hers, the emotions were complex and difficult to discern.
For a long time before, Qian Renxue didn't have much of an impression of Bibi Dong, the butler. She only knew that she was a beautiful butler sister, and she couldn't even remember her name very clearly.
What truly made the name "Bibi Dong" clear and heavy in her heart was the past she pieced together as she grew up, through clues and scattered recollections from some elderly people.
She learned that Bibi Dong was once a radiant saintess whom the Spirit Hall had devoted its full efforts to cultivating. She possessed unparalleled talent, a prestigious status, and a limitless future.
She also learned that this former Holy Maiden had given up her position as Holy Maiden and abandoned the Spirit Hall's years of cultivation and expectations for a man named Yu Xiaogang, a useless person whose strength in another force was only that of Soul Grandmaster.
It was precisely because of Bibi Dong's "betrayal" that her father, Qian Xunji, began to act abnormally.
The father likely transformed his disappointment and anger at Bibi Dong's loss of control into stricter discipline and expectations for her, fearing that she would repeat her mistakes and that the Spirit Hall would cultivate another "love-obsessed" successor.
Qian Renxue even felt that Bibi Dong was the culprit who caused her father to go mad and prevented her from receiving the warmth of a normal family.
However, after learning of Bibi Dong's fate, Qian Renxue felt not only resentment stemming from her own experience, but also a strange, inexplicable pity?
Was it worth giving up supreme status and power for a man, only to end up like this?
··················
Deep within a remote, dark, and damp cave on Douluo Star, a strong stench of blood and an aura of decay permeated the air.
Gu Yuena huddled in the corner, her once dazzling silver hair now dull and lifeless, her body trembling uncontrollably.
Her beautiful face was completely bloodless, and blood seeped from her tightly bitten lower lip. The incomparably fierce killing god's sword energy of the Asura God and the destructive divine power of the God of Destruction were like a bone-deep affliction, rampaging and destroying her meridians and dragon core.
Every breath was accompanied by excruciating, tearing pain. The injuries caused by the divine power of a god-king were far beyond those of ordinary injuries, and recovery was extremely slow, even worsening over time.
She tried to mobilize the power of the elements to repair herself, but the two domineering divine forces immediately and violently repelled her, causing her to groan and a trickle of red blood to spill from the corner of her mouth.
Tang San, on the other hand, was in an even more miserable situation.
He lay sprawled on the ground like a lump of mud, his body twisted in an unnatural posture. His once robust physique now seemed to have lost all its support, limply pressed against the cold ground.
This was not only due to his severe injuries, but also because of the shockingly large wound on his spine— the Eight Spider Lances External Soul Bone, had been completely removed by the Rakshasa God, almost destroying the central nervous system and skeletal structure of his entire back.
But that wasn't the most fatal thing. The various poisons that he had been forcibly suppressing in his body for many years by devouring the life force of Soul Beast and the Rakshasa Divine Power completely erupted out of control the moment he lost the Rakshasa Divine Power!
Dark, poisonous blood seeped continuously from the wounds in his seven orifices and back, and hideous purplish-black patterns emerged beneath his skin, like writhing venomous insects.
He tried to prop himself up with his fingers, but it only triggered a weak spasm, making it incredibly difficult to even lift a single finger.
At this moment, he was like a broken doll that had been played with and then discarded; his life force was like a candle flickering in the wind, quickly fading away.
Gu Yuena endured the excruciating pain and noticed that Tang San's breath was growing weaker and weaker, as if it would be extinguished completely at any moment. She gritted her teeth, gave up on recovering herself, and decided to heal him first.
"Hold on!" she shouted, disregarding the risk of worsening her injuries, she forcefully urged her remaining power to gather a gentle elemental healing light and envelop Tang San.
However, the green light, imbued with the breath of life, fell upon Tang San as if it had sunk into the sea.
The residual Rakshasa Divine Power on the wound was extremely insidious, stubbornly hindering healing, and the toxins in his body and the extent of his physical collapse were simply too severe.
The elemental light could only barely slow down the rate at which his life was fading; it couldn't reverse the situation at all. Tang San's aura continued to weaken irreversibly.
A hint of helplessness flashed in Gu Yuena's amethyst eyes. She withdrew her dragon power, her voice slightly hoarse. "No... my power can't save you. Your body... is already broken."
In fact, if Tang San hadn't cultivated the Mysterious Heaven Skill and possessed extraordinary physical abilities, he would have died long ago from such injuries.
"Cough... cough cough..." Tang San coughed up several mouthfuls of black blood, some even containing fragments of internal organs. His eyes were unfocused, and with his last ounce of strength, he uttered a few words in broken sentences. "Sunset... forest... herb... garden..."
"Use the Immortal Herb... to save me..."
At this point, he no longer cared whether the Spirit Hall Empire had any terrifying "geniuses" or "divine examiners" stationed in the Herb Garden.
Survival was his only instinct at that moment, and he could only gamble on whether Gu Yuena's strength was enough to seize the Immortal Herb in the Herb Garden.
Upon hearing this, Gu Yuena frowned, immediately understanding Tang San's intention. However, having fought and lost against the Spirit Hall Empire, she was also aware of the enormous risks involved.
"That place... must be heavily guarded by the Martial Spirit Hall Empire." She analyzed calmly, her voice low and weak. "In my current state, forcibly breaking in would be tantamount to walking into a trap." She recalled the terrifying combat power displayed by Qian Xunji, Cai Wenji, A Ke, and others that she had encountered before, and felt somewhat hesitant.
She hesitated for a moment, then proposed another plan. "Go to the Lake of Life. It's the core of the Star Dou Great Forest, containing the most primordial life force. I... I am, after all, the Silver Dragon King. Perhaps... perhaps I can talk to that Cai Wenji?"
Even when she said those words, Gu Yuena herself wasn't sure what to expect.
Her previous actions in helping Tang San hunt Soul Beast had already placed her in opposition to all Soul Beast, rendering her status as the ruler of Soul Beast meaningless.
Whether Cai Wenji will lend a helping hand is entirely unknown.
But compared to the other two, the Lake of Life might still offer a slim chance of negotiation based on her past identity.
Tang San no longer had the strength to refute or agree; his consciousness was hazy.
Without further hesitation, Gu Yuena took a deep breath and carefully enveloped Tang San's rag doll-like body with her elemental power, transforming into a dim silver light as she struggled to escape towards the core of the Star Dou Great Forest.
············································
At the heart of the Star Dou Great Forest, on the shores of the Lake of Life, a misty aura of life permeates the air like a thin veil.
Cai Wenji, who was sitting quietly at the bottom of the lake, surrounded by soft green light and melodious zither music, suddenly noticed an extremely unstable fluctuation coming from the space not far away. Her long eyelashes trembled, and she opened her clear blue eyes, looking over with a hint of displeasure at being disturbed.
A staggering silver light stumbled out of the torn spatial rift, and as the light faded, Gu Yuena's disheveled figure was revealed.
Cai Wenji tilted her head, her little face full of question marks.
This guy... actually dares to come back?
Almost simultaneously, the waters of the Lake of Life surged, and terrifying auras soared into the sky!
The Ferocious Beast, including Xiong Jun, Myriad Demon King, and Scarlet King, sensed Gu Yuena's presence and instantly appeared from the bottom of the lake or their habitat.
Their massive bodies surrounded the lakeside, their gazes fixed on Gu Yuena, their expressions extremely complex.
There was once reverence for the Lord, and a bond that has lasted for millennia, but more than anything, there is now an insurmountable estrangement, disappointment, and anger.
Admittedly, the seemingly young but incredibly powerful Cai Wenji initially resisted their attempts to establish "Soul Spirit Contract" with humans. However, it's undeniable that this method did prevent a large number of Soul Beast from being needlessly hunted, and even allowed some Soul Beast to continue their "life" and improve in another form, making it a win-win situation.
But what did Gu Yuena, the Silver Dragon King they once swore to serve to the death, the ruler of Soul Beast, do?
She actually took matters into her own hands, helping a human Soul Master hunt and devour Soul Beast for cultivation! In the eyes of all Soul Beast, this was tantamount to bestiality! It was a complete betrayal of the entire Soul Beast race!
Gu Yuena, forcing herself to stay upright, ignored the burning and complex gazes directed at Cai Wenji and Xiong Jun, her voice trembling slightly with weakness. "I... need to use the Lake of Life to heal. I promise that after I recover, I will never be your enemy, and may even... help you."
She tried to win them over with promises of the future and their past affection.
Upon hearing this, the Ferocious Beast, including Xiong Jun, were indeed stirred by the terrifying injuries on her body, clearly inflicted by a god-level expert.
A bond of master and servant that has lasted for millennia is not so easily erased.
Seeing her in such a miserable state, a sense of pity and emotion quietly arose within me.
However, this moment of emotion vanished completely in the next instant, turning into a raging inferno!
As Gu Yuena turned to the side, she revealed the man covered in blood and barely breathing, whom she was supporting behind her with her meager elemental power— Tang San!
Although Tang San's face was contorted with pain and his body was covered in blood, his figure and lingering aura were all too familiar to these Ferocious Beast with their keen sense of smell!
This is the human that the Silver Dragon King betrayed all the other Soul Beast to help! That executioner stained with the blood of his own kind!
She actually... she actually dared to bring him to the Lake of Life, the most sacred core place of the Soul Beast Clan?!
"Roar--!!!"
Xiong Jun was the first to let out a deafening roar, his dark golden claws suddenly extending, and a terrifying aura of destruction instantly locked onto Gu Yuena and Tang San!