Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's god-making plan had ultimately been a great success, but Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Sea was already very crowded.
Qin Chuan had no intention of letting that Ice Silkworm manipulate him in this life. Besides, with the "Revenge and Hatred" system, a Million-Year Soul Ring was just a cold string of numbers to him.
Since he had already chosen to take Huo Yuhao's opportunity for himself, the only value Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had was as a walking source of a million Snow Hatred Value. Being reclaimed by the system was its greatest worth.
"Devour Electrolux's remnant soul," Qin Chuan said calmly.
The next moment, a pitch-black figure with three pairs of black wings appeared behind him.
His Third Martial Soul, the Undead Angel.
The Undead Angel opened its dark maw, and a powerful suction force surged forth.
A hazy cloud of mist, invisible to ordinary people, drifted toward them at a slow pace.
"You want to devour this old man... You don't have the ability... No—"
The gray sphere that had been Electrolux was swallowed by the Undead Angel. With the system's help, it was refined in an instant.
"Bzzzz—"
As the Undead Angel Martial Soul's owner, Qin Chuan felt an astonishing power fuse with him. One moment, his body brimmed with a sacred aura; the next, it was wrapped in deathly energy. This was true necromantic power. Even Ye Xishui, perhaps the strongest Evil Soul Master in the world, would have been filled with dread at the sight of it.
The plants around him withered at an astonishing speed. The lush green leaves turned yellow, dried up, and scattered in the wind.
Electrolux had once been the Child of Light, yet he had ultimately become the Holy Necromancer who commanded necromantic magic.
At its core, Qin Chuan's Third Martial Soul lay between light and death. By chance, it resonated with Electrolux, and the two began to fuse.
Qin Chuan was undergoing trial after trial of life and death. His presence flickered in and out.
He sat cross-legged through the night. When the sun rose the next morning, Qin Chuan stood up.
His pupils had now turned completely black, and the Undead Angel behind him looked more real than ever.
It had Qin Chuan's face and wore a tattered black robe. Three pairs of Soul Wings, formed from countless wailing spirits, beat behind it, each flap producing a chorus of mournful cries that seemed to reach into the depths of one's soul. Its eyes were cold as it stared down at the world before it.
Qin Chuan's voice was cold and devoid of emotion.
"Quite a stroke of luck. After absorbing him, I gained not only all of Electrolux's necromantic magic, but also a fourth skill."
Fourth Skill: Undead Great World.
The Undead Great World was a complete world inhabited entirely by the dead. Its inhabitants' ranks would rise as Qin Chuan's Soul Power increased. It was similar to the Undead Half-Plane Huo Yuhao had once possessed.
But Qin Chuan's Undead Great World was a true plane, one belonging solely to the dead.
Combined with his Third Skill, the Gate of Reincarnation, which he could only use after becoming a god, perhaps he could create a realm of reincarnation unique to this world—or even the universe.
The blackness in Qin Chuan's eyes receded, and the Undead Angel vanished.
His trip to the Star Dou Great Forest had yielded far too much.
After leaving the Star Dou Great Forest, Qin Chuan didn't return to the Sun Moon Empire right away. Instead, he headed for Shrek City, where the Soul Hall was located.
Shrek Academy stood on the Lima Plain, an immense, seemingly endless expanse of land. More than two million people lived there. It was one of the greatest cities on the Douluo Continent and the heart and cradle of Shrek Academy.
Qin Chuan stood at a distance, silently gazing at the towering city ahead. His expression gradually turned cold.
"Shrek City is just ahead. We'll be there soon."
Bei Bei's warm, resonant voice rang out as three figures approached together from nearby.
Qin Chuan turned to look and immediately recognized them.
Bei Bei, Tang Ya, and Huo Yuhao, whom he had met once before.
Soul Power surged around Huo Yuhao. He had probably absorbed a Soul Ring not long ago. It seemed that with Bei Bei and Tang Ya's help, Huo Yuhao had absorbed a Soul Ring and officially become a Soul Master. He might even have joined the Tang Sect already.
"Good. He's become a Soul Master. Bei Bei and Tang Ya are only Soul Elders at this point, so they're not strong enough. Killing them would only give me around three thousand Snow Hatred Value. Not worth it. I'll let the pigs grow fatter first."
Since Snow Hatred Value could be exchanged for Soul Rings and Soul Bones, Qin Chuan had begun judging his enemies by their cultivation first, then calculating how much Snow Hatred Value he would get from killing them. He was practically obsessed.
"Brother, are you heading to Shrek City?" Bei Bei asked, noticing Qin Chuan gazing at the city in the distance.
"That's right." Qin Chuan nodded, his tone cool and detached.
"In that case, why don't we go in together? It'll be nice to have some company on the way," Bei Bei suggested.
"Then I'll gladly accept. My name is Qin Ming."
"I'm Bei Bei. This is Tang Ya, and this is my junior brother, Huo Yuhao."
Bei Bei introduced them one by one.
"Excuse me, have we met before?" Huo Yuhao asked suddenly. He felt there was something of "Brother Chuan" about this man.
"Have we?" Qin Chuan smiled and shook his head. "This is my first time in Shrek City. We've never met."
"Sorry. I must have been mistaken." Huo Yuhao shook his head, a little disappointed. He wasn't Brother Chuan. Brother Chuan didn't look like him.
Before coming here, Qin Chuan had changed his appearance with a face mask provided by Spirit Hall. "Brother Chuan" was a thing of the past.
Qin Chuan watched without a reaction. "Brother Chuan" had already become an important figure in Huo Yuhao's life.
Shrek City was bustling, its streets packed with people.
After a Soul Tool train arrived, Qin Chuan inserted a coin and pressed the button for the street where Soul Hall was located. He and the three others sat down separately.
Tang Ya had actually been watching Qin Chuan for quite some time. She had also spoken with Bei Bei using Soul Power, and the two had agreed that Qin Chuan was a man who hid his true strength.
Suddenly, Tang Ya asked, "Qin Ming, do you know about the Tang Sect?"
"The Tang Sect? The sect that the Sun Moon Empire beat into decline four thousand years ago, and that has long since fallen into obscurity?"
Tang Ya froze slightly. Bei Bei furrowed his brow, and Huo Yuhao turned to look as well.
Qin Chuan glanced at the three of them and curled his lips. "Was I wrong?"
"The Tang Sect hasn't fallen... We just don't have any people," Tang Ya said. She had been agitated at first, but her voice soon grew faint.
"But as long as you're willing to join the Tang Sect, one day we'll restore its glory from ten thousand years ago," Tang Ya said, dreaming of the future.
Qin Chuan, however, poured cold water on her hopes without a second thought.
"The Tang Sect's decline was really caused by the progress of the times. If the Sun Moon Empire hadn't collided with the Douluo Continent four thousand years ago, perhaps the Tang Sect would still be the greatest power on the continent today."
"But now, I've heard that the Iron Blood Sect replaced the Tang Sect long ago. You've even lost the Tang Sect Former Site. So what Tang Sect are you talking about?"
Bei Bei, who had been silent until then, spoke up. "The Tang Sect has always lived in our hearts."
"Then I'm curious. What kind of Tang Sect do you envision?"
"Of course, one as prosperous and thriving as the other sects," Bei Bei replied.
Tang Ya nodded repeatedly. What sect didn't want to grow stronger and more prosperous?
"What a shallow answer. Let me tell you what the Tang Sect really is."
A bad feeling came over Bei Bei, but before he could speak, Qin Chuan took the lead.
"The Tang Sect was founded ten thousand years ago. Its first sect master, Tang San, established it to fight the Spirit Hall Empire. The history books say he left this world after becoming a god. Let's say he did become a god."
"I once read in a history book that before Tang San left, he ordered the Tang Sect to destroy all its Hidden Weapons and never again take part in conflicts between nations."
"But the accounts of the battle four thousand years ago clearly state that the Three Kingdom Allied Forces, which used Tang Sect Hidden Weapons, were far inferior to the Sun Moon Empire's forces, which used Soul Tools."
"So where did the Three Kingdom Allied Forces get their Soul Tools?"
"Of course the Tang Sect provided them!" Tang Ya said proudly.
But the next moment, she realized what she had said and immediately covered her mouth.
Qin Chuan smiled. "Exactly. The Tang Sect provided them. The Tang Sect truly was glorious in the past. Before Soul Tools appeared, its Hidden Weapons were the first choice of the three great empires and even some independent Soul Masters. A powerful sect needs money and resources. So, without a war, where would the money and resources come from?"
"Of course, from selling Hidden Weapons."
"A sect that made its fortune selling weapons declined because Soul Tools appeared. That's the tide of the times."
Qin Chuan looked around at the three of them, whose faces had turned ashen, and shook his head. "The three of you are practically the last members of the Tang Sect, yet you still want to defy the tide of the times and revive it—just so you can keep being arms dealers."
"Our Tang Sect isn't as vile as you make it out to be!" Tang Ya retorted, her eyes red.
"Remember what I said earlier? Your ancestor, Tang San, said that the Tang Sect would exist as a sect, wouldn't interfere in wars on the continent, and wouldn't produce Hidden Weapons for anyone."
"You descendants have completely forgotten your ancestor's wishes. You made your fortune selling Hidden Weapons. How many people have died at the hands of those weapons over thousands of years? Hundreds of thousands? You enjoy all the resources stained with their blood, yet you must have forgotten Tang San's instructions long ago."
"That's betraying your ancestors and committing a grave offense!"
"You want to revive a sect that has betrayed its own founder? Is there something wrong with you?"
Qin Chuan's relentless attack made Bei Bei, usually a mild-mannered man, slam his hand on the table and leap to his feet. Tang Ya wept so bitterly that she buried her face beneath the table and sobbed.
Qin Chuan ignored Bei Bei's murderous glare and looked instead at Huo Yuhao, whose face was blank with confusion. "You still want to join a sect that has betrayed its ancestors? You really have no mind of your own. Is it that if someone is just a little kind to you, you'll devote your life to them? You must have been very insecure as a child."
"Shut up!" Bei Bei gritted his teeth.
"What? Did I hit a nerve? Or is this what you call the Tang Sect Spirit? A wicked sect that made its fortune selling Hidden Weapons and cultivating with resources bought with innocent blood. How is that any different from the Holy Spirit Cult today?"
"The Holy Spirit Cult kills people directly. You make Hidden Weapons and sell them to others so they can kill people. You're even more despicable than the Holy Spirit Cult."
At last, the train slowed to a stop. Qin Chuan had reached his destination.
Under Bei Bei's gloomy gaze, Qin Chuan slowly stepped off the train. "Every sect paints itself as flawless, but who knows what dirty business they're really up to? The Tang Sect is one of them, and it certainly won't be the last."
"You still want to restore the Tang Sect's former glory? Can't you stand the peace and prosperity of the present, and want to start another war so you can keep selling weapons?"
"You're so obsessed with money that you've fallen into its clutches at such a young age. You probably won't amount to much in the future."
With that, Qin Chuan strode away.
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