The Truth

Gu Yuan spoke slowly, his voice calm yet heavy as Thousand Jun, unveiling a truth that had plagued the soul beast clan for countless years:

"It is not that you are unworthy, nor is it that you have done anything wrong. It is that this path was blocked by those in the God Realm with their own hands from the very beginning."

Di Tian jerked his head up, his eyes filled with shock.

"During the Dragon God War, I was slain by the combined efforts of the Five Great God Kings," Gu Yuan's voice carried a chill that spanned eons.

"They won, but they were also afraid. They feared the dragon race would produce another existence capable of standing against them, feared that the soul beast clan would give rise to another supreme powerhouse capable of overturning the order of the God Realm."

"So, after I fell, the Five Great God Kings immediately joined forces to rewrite the laws of the universe, imposing three shackles upon the soul beasts of the Douluo Continent from which they could never recover."

"The first is the hundred-thousand-year limit. They modified the laws of heavenly tribulation, setting a death trap for all soul beasts at the hundred-thousand-year mark. Even if you are lucky enough to survive once, each subsequent tribulation will be more terrifying than the last, until your soul and spirit are utterly extinguished. They wanted to eliminate the possibility of high-level powerhouses appearing among soul beasts at the root."

"The second is the sealing of the God Realm passage. They completely blocked the path for soul beasts to ascend directly to the God Realm, modified the entry laws of the God Realm, and explicitly stipulated that those without human bloodlines may not enter the God Realm or inherit a godhood."

"The third is the definition of soul hunting rules. They established the act of humans hunting soul beasts to obtain soul rings, and even gave this hunting a 'reasonable' veneer at the level of law. They defined soul beasts as 'cultivation resources' for human soul masters, making human growth dependent on the hunting of soul beasts. In this way, humans would hunt soul beasts endlessly to become stronger, continuously weakening the foundation of the soul beast clan and ensuring you could never accumulate the strength to resist."

Di Tian stood frozen, his entire body cold as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

He understood.

It turned out it wasn't that they weren't strong enough, not that they hadn't worked hard enough, and not that they were inherently inferior.

From the moment the Dragon God fell countless years ago, the Five Great God Kings of the God Realm had already sentenced their soul beast clan to death.

They had been stripped of all hope from the very start.

Di Tian's fists clenched until they creaked, his dark golden eyes surging with monstrous hatred and despair.

He had always thought it was because he wasn't strong enough, because he hadn't been able to protect his kin. But he discovered that what they were facing was never just a few powerful human soul masters, but a death trap set by the entire God Realm against their soul beast clan.

"Do not despair."

Gu Yuan looked at him and spoke slowly, his voice carrying a resolute power.

"They can block the path for a time, but they cannot block hope for eternity. I have returned, and all of this shall come to an end."

He walked slowly down from the dragon throne, stood before Di Tian, and gazed into the endless void outside the palace, his deep eyes flashing with countless visions of the future.

"Do you think I simply revived from the Dragon Graveyard, driven only by a heart full of hatred to seek revenge on the God Realm?" Gu Yuan's voice was soft, carrying a clarity that saw through the future.

"The moment my soul and spirit fully returned and I awoke from the Dragon Graveyard, the timeline of the universe opened its doors to me. A memory belonging to this world's future, many years from now, integrated completely into my mind."

Di Tian jerked his head up, his eyes filled with shock.

"I have seen the future," Gu Yuan said slowly, each word clearly entering Di Tian's ears.

"I saw that future humans will develop even more terrifying Soul Tools. They will use Fixed Soul Guidance Shells to wantonly bombard the Star Dou Forest. Countless kin will die miserably in the artillery fire, and our final home will be completely destroyed."

"The last bloodline of the dragon race will dissipate bit by bit under human schemes. The soul beast clan will ultimately head toward total extinction, becoming a name in history books, becoming the 'resources' already extinct in the mouths of humans."

"I even saw how Tang San step by step took control of the entire God Realm, holding everything firmly in his hands."

Di Tian stood frozen, his body cold, his breathing even coming to a halt.

He dared not imagine that the future they had fought with all their might to protect would turn out to be such a complete tragedy.

"So, from the moment I awoke, I began to lay my plans," Gu Yuan's voice carried unquestionable firmness.

"Gathering the remnants of the Martial Soul Hall is to accumulate enough power to confront worldly forces; coming to Star Dou is to integrate all the power of the soul beast clan to break the death trap set by the God Realm; and what we must do next is rewrite this destined tragic future."

He paused, his gaze falling on Di Tian, and said indifferently: "Now, go and bring that million-year Sky Dream Ice Silkworm you have sealed in the ice spring to me."

Di Tian was stunned for a moment, then reacted, his eyes full of surprise: "Lord Dragon God, you mean..."

This ice silkworm had relied on luck to absorb the ice marrow of the Far North, lying his way to a million years of cultivation, yet he possessed no combat ability whatsoever; his only reliance was that vast, boundless spiritual power.

When they discovered this ice silkworm back then, they sealed him in the ice spring of the Star Dou Core, using his spiritual power and fortune to nourish the soul beast clans of Star Dou.

He just never expected that even such a small matter would be known to Lord Dragon God.

"That is correct, it is him," Gu Yuan nodded slightly.

"He is the first person in that future timeline to change the landscape, and he is the foundation of Huo Yuhao's rise. Now, I want to hold him in my hands in advance. Bring him here."

"Yes! This subordinate will go at once!" Di Tian dared not delay for even a moment, immediately bowing to accept the order, turning into a streak of black light that rushed out of the Crystal Palace.

In less than half a stick of incense, Di Tian returned to the palace, carrying a massive block of ice in his hand.

Sealed within the ice was a snow-white, chubby giant worm—none other than the million-year cultivation Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.

The moment the ice block was placed on the ground, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm slowly stirred awake.

He had just wanted to complain a few times, but when he felt that vast, boundless aura emanating from Gu Yuan, he was instantly terrified into stiffness. His chubby body curled into a ball, his eight little short legs trembling, and he didn't even dare to breathe.

In his million years of life, he had never felt such terrifying pressure.

Even when facing the Beast God Di Tian, he could still wag his tongue, but in front of this man, he felt like an ant; a single thought from the other party could extinguish his soul and spirit.

Gu Yuan looked at the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm curled into a ball and spoke indifferently, his voice carrying a power that calmed the heart: "Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, I know the experiences of your life, and I know your future destiny. I give you two choices: either continue to be sealed here as nourishment for Star Dou."

"Or, I will complete your spiritual origin, assist me in my plan to create a god, and give the future you a chance to become a god."

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm jerked his head up, his eight little eyes instantly widening into circles, filled with incredulous ecstasy.

He had originally intended to do just that. And now, this legendary lord was actually giving him such an opportunity!

"I choose the second! I choose the second!" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm shouted hurriedly, fearing that if he were a second late, this opportunity would fly away.

"My lord, I shall follow you! From this day forth, this Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's life is yours! If you tell me to go east, I shall never head west!"

Gu Yuan gave a slight nod, a gentle stream of spiritual power flying from his fingertip to instantly melt the ice and merge into the body of the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.

That vast spiritual law instantly mended every defect within him, turning his previously hollow million-year cultivation base incomparably solid in an instant. His spiritual power surged several times over, and even his physical form became far more agile.

"Di Tian." Gu Yuan turned to look at Di Tian beside him, his gaze regaining its majesty.

"Integrate the Star Dou soul beast forces, and gather the tribes from all soul beast habitats, including the Far North, Sunset Forest, and Evil Demon Forest. Bring every mobilizable force under your control. At the same time, cease all meaningless conflicts with humans. Conserve your strength; you are not to initiate war with humans without my command."

Di Tian dropped to one knee abruptly, his voice ringing out with conviction: "Your subordinate obeys! I shall not fail the Dragon God's commission!"

He saw the true hope for the soul beast race.

Gu Yuan watched the churning lake water outside the hall, his gaze piercing through endless space-time to look toward the future two hundred years from now, and toward the distant God Realm.

Golden dragon patterns flowed slowly across his fingertips.

The chess game of the God Realm, the schemes of the Five Great God Kings, and the inescapable net laid by Tang San—from the moment of his return, all of it would be rewritten.