The mainstream faith on the Douluo Continent was mostly devoted to Sea God Tang San. During the years he had been swept away to the Divine Realm, far too much of the faith belonging to Tang San had been unable to reach the Divine Realm, instead remaining behind on Douluo Planet.
To Su Jiu, this leftover faith was undoubtedly a huge variable.
As far as they knew, Tang San had several safeguards: Old Tang, who guarded Tang Wulin and possessed peak First-Level God strength; the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud, whose power was still unknown and which was located in Shrek's Sea God Pavilion—there might be something else there, too; and a divine soul hiding in Universe Inquiry Valley, living next door to the remnant soul of the God of Love.
As for Wu Zhangkong standing before him, he was both a member of the Tang Sect and part of Shrek, and he was also an exceedingly devout believer in Sea God Tang San. His biggest selling point was that he was a pure-love warrior just like Tang San!
In terms of Tang San content, few in the entire Legend of the Dragon King could compare to him for purity.
You could even say that Universe Inquiry Valley, which had practically become half of the Tang family's territory, was Wu Zhangkong's very own exclusive instance.
Wu Zhangkong was twenty-eight this year, and Long Bing had died only a few years ago. Her soul probably hadn't completely dispersed yet. If they took her in, there might still be hope for her.
In the original story, Tang Hao hadn't been able to save her precisely because Long Bing's condition had gone on for too long. Her soul had completely dissipated, leaving not even a trace of a remnant soul to find.
Of course, Su Jiu wasn't doing this out of kindness or sympathy for a tragic character from the original story.
All he wanted was to trick more Tang loyalists, Shrek loyalists, and Tang San fanatics into Universe Inquiry Valley, constantly draining Tang San's faith. That had always been his ultimate goal.
Resurrecting a person would undoubtedly consume an enormous amount of faith.
"Brother Su, do you know how?"
Su Jiu smiled faintly, a teasing glint flashing in his eyes.
Oh? Kong Zi, now you're getting shy?
Calling me brother when you need something, but ready to kill me when you don't, huh?
You've got some nerve.
"Legend has it that ten thousand years ago, on the former Sun Moon Continent, nestled among the mountains of the West Mountain Range twenty or thirty li from Mingdu, there was a fairyland called Universe Inquiry Valley, one of the Three Great Treasure Troves!"
"It was also known as the place where the God of Love fell. If a couple deeply in love passed its trials, they could make a wish to the God of Love!"
Su Jiu rattled off everything he knew about Universe Inquiry Valley. As for why he didn't use the opportunity to extort an Immortal Herb from Wu Zhangkong, well, look at how broke the man was. The only thing he owned worth anything was that Two-Word Battle Armor. The balance in his bank account was probably less than the pocket money he gave Na'er and Gu Yue every month.
So this time, Su Jiu decided to take a small loss and earn some good karma.
"Brother Kong, resurrecting a mortal is a simple matter for a god. If you pass the trials, take what remains of your beloved wife in this world—her ashes—with you. There's a good chance the God of Love will bring her back to life."
Su Jiu didn't know whether the God of Love could resurrect a mortal, but he was a hundred percent certain that Tang San could!
Dai Yuhao had been ruthlessly cut down by him, only to be resurrected over and over. Surely the pure and noble Great God King Tang, who put the common good above all else, wouldn't begrudge a little divine power to resurrect an insignificant Soul Master.
"I know you have your doubts. After all, some of the stories we've heard since childhood were true and some were false. Why not look into it, Brother Wu?"
"After all, I'm only offering advice. You're the one who has to act on it!"
Wu Zhangkong fell silent, brow furrowed as he turned the matter over in his mind. He couldn't think of any way this could harm him. On the contrary, Su Jiu had given him a glimmer of hope—the hope of bringing Long Bing back to life.
But could there really be anyone in this world who would do something so good without expecting anything in return?
His instincts warned him that the waters here ran deep, and he shouldn't get involved too easily!
At the same time, he couldn't help thinking, in ways both obvious and subtle, that Su Jiu didn't look like a good person at all.
But his bone-deep longing for his dead wife kept pushing and pulling him toward believing Su Jiu. He was torn, hesitating from side to side, unsure which path to take.
Master, you once said that when in doubt, I could ask the Sea God; if the Sea God didn't answer, I should follow my heart. But if my heart were certain, why would I be in doubt?
Wu Zhangkong's heart had been in turmoil ever since the moment Long Bing died...
Just then, Wu Zhangkong felt someone pat him lightly on the shoulder a few times. He looked back. It was Su Jiu.
"Teacher Wu, take your time to think it over."
"Oh, right. Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, Zhou Changxi, and Yun Xiao were the ones who carried you here. Remember to treat them to lunch. I'm sure you can afford to treat all four of them, Teacher Wu~"
Wu Zhangkong pushed his thoughts aside and called after Su Jiu's retreating figure, offering a quiet thanks.
"Thank you, Brother Su..."
"Haha! No need to thank me. Just remember to invite me for a celebratory drink at your wedding!"
At that, Wu Zhangkong's old face flushed red. He was at a loss, clearly embarrassed.
On the contrary, Su Jiu's words only made Wu Zhangkong more determined.
What was he hesitating over?
Long Bing meant more to him than either Shrek or the Tang Sect. So what was he hesitating over?
What was there to hesitate about?
Wasn't this a multiple-choice question with only one answer?
Wu Zhangkong exhaled a breath of stale air and looked up at the clear blue sky. Like the ocean ruled by Sea God Tang San, it made him smile—a smile of utter relief.
His thoughts finally clear...
On the field, most of Class Five had finished their run. The students rested in the shade in groups of three or five, chatting.
"Here, Na'er. You must be thirsty."
Su Jiu considerately handed Na'er a cup of chilled boiled water with electrolytes, pressing it against her flushed cheek.
"Hehe~ Teacher Su is so nice~"
"Hey! Teacher Su, what about me? You're playing favorites!"
"Heh~ Na'er is going to be my wife someday. What's wrong with me taking extra care of my wife?"
Su Jiu's shameless declaration instantly darkened Gu Yue's expression. Was the Su Jiu in Gu Yuena's memories really this shameless?
Seems about right...
"T-Teacher Su, we're at school, and class is still in session. Let's save those terms of endearment for when we're alone..."
Na'er grew bashful too, burying her little face in Su Jiu's arms and not daring to look at him.
It's embarrassing, but... I'm really happy...
"Hey, Little Gu Yue, did you hear that? We both want this. You should stop hanging around and playing third wheel. I can practically smell your jealousy..."
Su Jiu waved Gu Yue away, telling her to go sit somewhere cooler.
But Gu Yue imitated Na'er and leaned against Su Jiu too. That move of hers was clearly meant as revenge, wasn't it? Was she pinching him in the kidneys?
At the same time, he could feel Na'er's body visibly tremble. She was afraid!
Looked like Gu Yuena had taken over.
"Hey, Little Gu Yue, here."
'Gu Yue' took the bottle and smiled knowingly at Su Jiu. Looking closely, Gu Yue's eyes had clearly grown more profound.
"Hmph! That's more like it."
After that, Class Five held introductions, and the entire morning passed in a blur.
At noon, Tang Wulin lived up to expectations and successfully ate through most of Wu Zhangkong's savings. With Wu Zhangkong glaring darkly at him, he made off with a million.
In the afternoon, Su Jiu had the students of Class Five study on their own, while Wu Zhangkong took a three-month leave and parted ways with Class Five without saying goodbye.
And as for the extra training for Xie Xie and Tang Wulin after class for the Class Promotion Tournament?
A-Qi, you're up!
A-Qi: "..."
I may not be human, but you're a real dog!
Before you continue