The Beast God Sheds Tears

Across the entire Star Dou Forest, ten thousand beasts bowed their heads in a silence shared by heaven and earth, all paying homage to this aura emanating from the Progenitor.

Di Tian's entire body shuddered violently, freezing in place as his dark golden eyes instantly welled up with tears.

He could not be mistaken!

This aura, this dragon might, this primordial essence—it was identical to the Dragon God aura from his inherited memories!

It was even more vivid, even more vast, stirring an urge from the depths of his soul to kneel and worship!

This was no disguise! It was real! It was Lord Dragon God! Their Progenitor had truly returned!

At that very same moment, deep beneath the Life Lake, within that crystal palace which had remained silent for countless epochs.

The woman who had been lying quietly on the Ice Crystal Jade Bed, trapped in an endless slumber, suddenly opened a pair of violet-gold dragon pupils that had been closed for countless years!

The woman possessed a peerless countenance, her long silver hair spread out, and her body was surrounded by the ultimate aura of life and creation; she was none other than the Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena.

For countless years, her consciousness had remained dormant, with only the occasional fluctuation of her divine soul allowing her to maintain a sliver of contact with Di Tian in the outside world.

But the moment this Dragon God aura swept over, her consciousness, silent for eons, awakened completely!

The Dragon God origin within her body surged and resonated wildly; it was a call from another soul, her kin for whom she had waited for countless epochs!

Gu Yuena's body trembled slightly, her violet-gold eyes flashing with extreme shock and complexity. She raised a hand, her fingertips brushing against her chest as she felt her wildly beating dragon heart, her gaze piercing through the lake water to look above, toward the direction from which the aura originated.

Di Tian could no longer spare a thought for anything else, nor could he care for any etiquette; he didn't even have time to notify his Lord at the bottom of the lake.

He transformed into a streak of ultimate black light, followed by Bi Ji, the Ten Thousand Demon King, Bear Lord, and all the other top-tier fierce beasts who had rushed over upon hearing the news, galloping at the fastest speed of his life toward the direction from which the dragon might emanated.

Passing through layers of ancient trees and crossing the swirling mists of life, the full view of the Life Lake finally appeared before them.

Three figures stood by the emerald lake.

A man in black brocade robes stood at the forefront, his ink-black hair hanging down, golden dragon patterns flowing slowly around his body. Behind him, a nine-colored giant dragon phantom that spanned heaven and earth faintly emerged—it was a suppressed phantom of the Dragon God.

Even a mere remnant image was enough to change the color of the world. Around him, the vast dragon might slowly diffused, yet it precisely avoided the person and the beast beside him, not harming them in the slightest.

Qian Renxue stood quietly by Gu Yuena's side, watching the scene of ten thousand beasts bowing, a hint of realization in her eyes.

And at Gu Yuena's feet, that little golden fur-ball was affectionately rubbing against his pant leg.

Di Tian and the group of fierce beasts stopped abruptly a hundred meters from the lake.

When his gaze landed on Gu Yuena, when he felt that even more vivid and vast Dragon God origin, and when he saw that nine-colored dragon phantom clearly, this 830,000-year-old Beast God—the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King who had never bowed his head to anyone in his life of blood and iron—trembled violently, unable to control his emotions any longer.

Thump.

Di Tian knelt on both knees, performing the most pious and supreme kowtow of the dragon race, his forehead pressed tightly against the ground. His voice trembled, filled with endless reverence and excitement, echoing throughout the entire Life Lake:

"Dragon race descendant Di Tian, respectfully welcomes the return of Lord Dragon God!"

Behind him, Bi Ji, the Ten Thousand Demon King, Bear Lord, the Scarlet King, all the hundred-thousand-year fierce beasts that had arrived, and even the countless soul beasts prostrating on the ground nearby, all bowed their heads in unison and shouted, their voices shaking the heavens and echoing for a long time throughout the entire Star Dou Forest:

"We respectfully welcome the return of the Progenitor!!"

Ten thousand beasts bowed, and heaven and earth resonated together. The entire Life Lake rippled with every wave of this call.

Gu Yuena looked at Di Tian prostrate on the ground, at his slightly trembling back, and at the countless soul beasts bowing piously behind him, a flicker of imperceptible guilt flashing in his deep eyes.

He slowly raised his hand, and a gentle, majestic golden dragon power, like a spring breeze, brushed past, gently lifting Di Tian's body and allowing all the soul beasts bowing behind him to stand up as well.

"Rise, all of you."

Gu Yuena's voice sounded slowly; it was not loud, yet it clearly reached the ears of every soul beast, carrying a power that soothed the heart.

"Di Tian, look up and let me see you."

Di Tian's body trembled again, and he slowly raised his head.

His dark golden eyes were already filled with tears. This Beast God, who had lived a life of blood and iron, had no trace of majesty on his face at this moment, only endless grievances, like a child who had finally found his home.

He looked at Gu Yuena, at that gentle yet supremely majestic face, feeling that same-sourced bloodline deep in his marrow, and bowed again, his voice choked with sobs: "Lord Dragon God... it really is you... you have finally returned... we... I have waited for you for countless years..."

Gu Yuena walked slowly to his front, his gaze falling upon him, looking at the indelible exhaustion deep in his eyes, his voice softening a fraction, carrying a heavy weight.

"Di Tian, you have worked hard all these years."

"You have done well in guarding the entire soul beast clan."

This single sentence instantly shattered all of Di Tian's fortitude.

The string he had kept taut for countless years snapped completely at this moment.

An 830,000-year-old Beast God, who had slaughtered countless enemies, had never shed a single tear even when facing humanity's Limit Douluos or the brink of life and death.

But hearing this "you have worked hard" from Gu Yuena, he could no longer hold back. Tears gushed out like a bursting flood, sliding down his cheeks and crashing onto the ground.

He fell to his knees once more with a thud, his shoulders shaking violently, his voice choked with sobs as he began to pour out his heart with endless grievance and guilt:

"When you fell and the dragon race was destroyed, I failed to protect the glory of the dragon race. Countless years have passed, and the once-glorious dragon race is now reduced to only me and a few descendants with thin dragon bloodlines; even our heritage is on the verge of being lost..."

His voice was filled with heart-wrenching guilt.

The dragon race was once the most supreme race on this continent, a glory created by the Dragon God's own hands, but now it had reached the brink of extinction. As a direct descendant of the dragon race, the guilt and self-reproach in his heart had weighed him down for countless years.

"I failed to protect the soul beast clan." Di Tian raised his head, his face covered in tears, his dark golden eyes filled with helplessness.

"In recent years, humanity's hunting of us has become increasingly insane. For the sake of soul rings and soul bones, they have broken into our home without restraint and slaughtered our kin."

"The number of humans is simply too great, and their Soul Tool technology grows ever more formidable. Even a human at the Spirit King level can hunt down ten-thousand-year soul beasts by relying on them. I have exhausted every ounce of my strength just to barely hold the Star Dou Core, and watching my kin die one by one outside while I can do nothing... it is unbearable."

His voice grew increasingly choked with emotion, his utter helplessness pouring out in this moment.

"What terrifies me most is the Master." Di Tian's voice carried a deep sense of unease.

"The Master was gravely wounded long ago and has slumbered at the bottom of the Life Lake for countless years. I have tried every method, scouring the entire continent for rare treasures, yet I can only barely stabilize her injuries. I fear... I fear that I cannot protect the Master, that I cannot protect the final hope of the soul beast race, and I fear that when I die, I will have no face to meet you..."

By the end, he was sobbing uncontrollably, bowing his head deeply until his forehead pressed against the ground, like a child who had done wrong, waiting for the punishment of his ancestor.

Behind him, Bi Ji, the Emerald Swan ranked fourth among the Ten Great Beast Kings and the healer of the soul beast race, felt her eyes redden, tears streaming down her cheeks.

She understood Di Tian's suffering all too well. On the surface, Di Tian appeared iron-willed and majestic, but in private, he spent sleepless nights tormented by the deaths of his kin and the future of the soul beasts.

Bear Lord, Ten Thousand Demon King, and Scarlet King—these great beasts all lowered their heads, their eyes filled with bitterness and powerlessness.

Di Tian's suffering was the suffering of all soul beasts. For these years, they had lived in such stifling, desperate conditions.

Gu Yuan listened quietly, a chill rising in his deep eyes, which then softened into endless warmth as he looked at Di Tian.

He raised his hand once more, and a stream of golden Dragon God power slowly flowed into Di Tian's body.

That power was extremely gentle, instantly soothing all the hidden injuries left by years of exhaustion from constant warfare, repairing his depleted origin, and making his 830,000 years of cultivation even more solid.

"Rise."

Gu Yuan's voice, carrying an unwavering affirmation, rang in the ears of every soul beast:

"This is not your fault. You have done well, better than I ever imagined."

"The fall of the Dragon Clan and the decline of the soul beasts are not your doing; they are the fault of those high-and-mighty God Kings in the God Realm, the insatiable greed of humans, and these long-unbalanced laws of heaven and earth. You have guarded this place for countless years; you have failed no one."

His gaze swept across all the soul beasts present, his voice carrying an unquestionable power: "I have returned."

"Those who owe us, those who slaughtered our kin, and those who destroyed our home—I will lead you to reclaim every debt, with interest, down to the very last cent."

The moment his words fell, the entire Life Lake erupted in cheers and sobs that shook the heavens and the earth.

Countless soul beasts wept with joy, prostrating themselves on the ground to kowtow to Gu Yuan once more.

They had waited countless years for these words.

Deep at the bottom of the lake, Gu Yuena listened quietly to the sounds coming from the surface, and tears slid silently from her purple-gold dragon eyes.

She slowly raised her hand, a wisp of silver dragon power gathering at her fingertips, and gently pushed open the palace gates.

The opportunity she had waited for through countless eras had finally arrived.