Dual God Trials: First Trial, Killing and Saving!

But as Dai Tu listened, the frozen corner of his heart seemed to crack open.

A trace of warmth quietly seeped in through that crack.

"Senior Brother, Senior Sister..." Dai Tu took a deep breath, raised his head, looked at the two of them, and said seriously, one word at a time, "Thank you."

This time, there was finally a hint of warmth in his voice.

It was still faint, and it vanished in an instant, but at least it was no longer that deathly coldness.

Long Aotian burst into laughter and heavily slapped Dai Tu on the shoulder. The force was so great that Dai Tu nearly spilled his tea.

"That's more like it! We're family, so why are you thanking us?"

He paused, his smile fading as he said seriously, "Dai Tu, you're level twenty-seven now, right? When you reach the level-thirty bottleneck and need to hunt for a soul ring, remember to call me. I'll go with you and make sure you find the most suitable thousand-year soul ring. If we're lucky, we might even come across a ten-thousand-year one."

Dai Tu nodded. "All right. I'll trouble you then, Senior Brother."

"It's no trouble." Long Aotian waved his hand, then seemed to remember something and added,

"By the way, if you have any questions about cultivation, you can come ask me anytime. Although our martial souls are different, many aspects of cultivating a Body Martial Soul are interconnected. Especially improving physical fitness, circulating Soul Power, tempering spiritual power... I can give you some advice on those fundamentals."

Vina spoke as well, her voice gentle. "Little Junior Brother, you've only just arrived. Are you lacking anything? Soul Tools, pills, medicinal herbs, money... whatever you need, just tell me. I'm a princess, after all. I have some reserves of such things."

Dai Tu looked at the two of them and at the utterly sincere concern in their eyes. The warmth in his heart grew stronger and stronger.

He fell silent for a few seconds, then called softly,

"Thank you!"

His voice was quiet, but clear.

Both Long Aotian and Vina smiled.

It was the smile of finally being accepted, the smile of a family finally becoming whole.

"All right, we won't disturb your cultivation anymore." Long Aotian stood up and patted the water stains from his clothes. "Vina and I still need to report our mission to Teacher. Keep at it. If anything comes up, come find us anytime."

Vina also rose and pushed the remaining pastries toward Dai Tu. "Keep these pastries and eat them slowly. Remember, if you need anything, you must say so."

Dai Tu nodded and watched as the two turned to leave.

When Long Aotian reached the edge of the woods, he suddenly turned back and grinned at Dai Tu.

"Little Junior Brother, work hard. Get stronger soon, and take your revenge soon. When the time comes, I'll go with you. Together, we'll tear down that White Tiger Duke Mansion."

With that, he turned around and vanished into the forest with Vina.

Dai Tu stood where he was, staring in the direction they had disappeared for a long time without moving.

Sunlight filtered through the mist, casting mottled patches of light across him. The waterfall roared in his ears, and moisture lingered at the tip of his nose. The pastries in his hand were still warm, and the fragrance of tea remained on his lips and tongue.

Everything felt real.

Yet Dai Tu felt that it was somehow unreal.

It was too wonderful.

So wonderful that it felt like a dream.

He was afraid—afraid that when he woke up, he would find himself still in the ruins of Konoha, with Arin's cold corpse beside him and the unclosed eyes of the villagers staring at him.

"It's not a dream..." Dai Tu murmured, clenching his fists until his nails dug into his palms. The pain cleared his mind.

He sat down again, crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and began cultivating.

This time, he was no longer merely circulating his Soul Power.

His consciousness sank into the space between his brows.

It sank into

the two side-by-side marks.

The Mark of Life was like a warm ocean. Emerald light flowed within it, containing vast life force, as though it could nurture all things and heal every wound.

When Dai Tu's consciousness drew near, he could feel a gentle, accepting power, like a mother's embrace, like spring sunlight.

The Mark of Destruction was like a cold, bottomless well. Deep violet light surged within it, containing the ultimate will of destruction, as though it could tear apart everything and erase existence itself. When Dai Tu's consciousness drew near, he could feel a violent, domineering power, like a sword drawn from its sheath, like the howling wind of winter.

The two marks had originally been clearly distinct. Each occupied half of his forehead, without interfering with the other.

But now, Dai Tu could "see" them merging.

It was not a physical fusion, but a deeper intertwining at the level of laws.

The emerald light of life and the deep violet light of destruction seeped into one another and intertwined at the edges of the marks, like two differently colored vines twisted together while retaining their individual traits.

And at the center of that intertwining, Dai Tu "saw" two lines of text.

They were words written in divine script. He could not understand the characters, yet he directly understood their meaning.

First Trial of Life · Shepherd Healing: Heal ten soul masters with Soul Power above level twenty-five. Time limit: six months.

First Trial of Destruction · Slaughtering Sin: Kill ten "Fallen Ones" with Soul Power above level twenty-five. Time limit: six months.

Dai Tu's consciousness froze in that instant.

Heal ten people?

Kill ten people?

Kill people and save people at the same time?

What kind of trial was this?

And "Fallen Ones"... according to the information conveyed to him by the Mark of Destruction, they referred to soul masters who had committed unforgivable crimes, such as Evil Soul Masters, villains who slaughtered innocents, or... certain utterly depraved nobles.

Dai Tu remained silent for a long time.

Then, he suddenly understood.

Life and destruction were inherently two sides of the same whole. Healing and killing, creation and destruction, were two sides of the same coin.

The God Trials demanded that he complete both tasks at once. Perhaps they were telling him that true balance was not favoring only one side, but finding that subtle boundary between the two.

"Six months..." Dai Tu opened his eyes and looked toward the distant sky.

The time was not tight, but neither was it generous.

Healing ten soul masters above level twenty-five would not be difficult. The Tree of Life martial soul possessed innate healing effects, and its healing power was extremely strong. As long as he found suitable targets, it would be easy to complete.

The difficult part was killing ten Fallen Ones.

Where was he supposed to find ten soul masters above level twenty-five who had committed heinous crimes? And he had to kill them personally?

Dai Tu frowned and began to think.

Heaven Dou City was the imperial capital, and public security was relatively good. There were not many villains who openly showed themselves. But in the underworld... a place like the Death Arena might hold clues.

There was also the Mercenary Guild. It was a mixed bag there, so perhaps he could gather some information.

"I'll complete the healing trial first." Dai Tu made his decision. "The killing trial... will require an opportunity."

He stood up, patted the water stains from his body, and turned toward the sect.

His steps were firm and powerful.

At the same time, in the Star Luo Empire, at the White Tiger Duke Mansion.

Zhu Yue sat in the study, holding a cup of tea in her hands. But the tea had already gone cold, and she had not taken a single sip.

She wore a luxurious dark-red court gown, her hair filled with golden hairpins and jade ornaments, her face adorned with exquisite makeup. Yet no amount of powder could conceal the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, and no vivid lip color could hide her pallid complexion.