The Second Candidate for the Second Divine Trial

In that modern-looking white villa, Meng Yiran looked like a country bumpkin who had just entered the Grand View Garden; even the way she wiped her nosebleed seemed somewhat comical.

Na'er watched Meng Yiran's dazed expression, blinked playfully, jumped to the center of the living room, and snapped her fingers crisply.

"Sister Yiran, here, imagination is the most powerful weapon!" As Na'er's voice fell, a three-tiered strawberry cream cake appeared out of thin air on the living room coffee table, emitting an alluring, sweet fragrance.

Meng Yiran tried to outline her favorite serpent cane accessory in her mind. The next second, a miniature version, entirely emerald green and as exquisite as a work of art, landed in her palm. This magic of making wishes come true caused her worldview to collapse, only to be draped in a layer of dreamlike color.

The group discussed for a long time in this private territory belonging to Gu Tian, until they felt waves of exhaustion in their mental strength.

When Gu Tian brought everyone out of the Sea of Consciousness and back to their rooms in the Dragon Palace, the moonlight outside was already deep. The water of the Lake of Life shimmered under the moonlight, exuding a quiet, chilling gloom. The continuous rushing and the impact on their mental worlds left the girls feeling fatigued, and before long, the sound of steady, rhythmic breathing filled the bedroom.

The next morning, soft green light spilled into the bedchamber.

Gu Yuena summoned Gu Tian and Bi Ji to the main hall of the Dragon Palace. Her silver dress shimmered with a cold luster in the morning light, and her purple eyes swept over the two of them, her tone carrying the severity of an elder:

"Gu Tian, although Chiyan has awakened, the tasks of the God Trials remain heavy. You need to report the progress of your relationship with Bi Ji to me frequently. The life essence of the Emerald Swan clan also has a nourishing effect on your bloodline."

Bi Ji stood to the side, her emerald-colored hair hanging to her waist, her hands nervously twisted together. Hearing these words, this beast with six hundred thousand years of cultivation felt a thin layer of crimson flush across her cheeks.

"Master... Bi Ji has been alone for six hundred thousand years; those feelings of love have long since been worn away by the passage of time." Bi Ji's voice was gentle and weak, carrying a touch of flustered shyness.

Gu Tian looked at this gentle and holy big sister and could not bear to rush her, saying softly, "Wife, such things cannot be forced. Sister Bi Ji has a detached temperament; let's take it slow and not scare her."

In truth, it was not that Gu Tian did not want to accept Bi Ji immediately, but the love he desired should be free of psychological burdens and coercion—a pure, flawless affection. Therefore, he could not satisfy his own selfish desires by letting Bi Ji be with him in a state of confusion.

Gu Yuena sighed, then changed the subject: "What about your second trial? It requires you to subdue two deputy harem members, and you only have Meng Yiran by your side right now!"

Gu Tian rubbed his chin, a profound glint flashing in his eyes: "I have already calculated the candidate for the second person. Within the royal family of the Star Luo Empire, there is a suitable candidate: Zhu Zhuqing."

After the group spent a few days frolicking at the Lake of Life, the end of the year approached, and Gu Tian decided to send Meng Yiran home first.

Although Meng Yiran was full of admiration for him, the two had not yet formally established their status. Moreover, the Dragon Duke and Snake Matriarch were surely waiting at home for their granddaughter to return for the New Year.

"Yiran, see you after the New Year."

Gu Tian had Gu Yuena set up a precise spatial array in the main hall. Accompanied by ripples of silver light, Meng Yiran waved goodbye with lingering reluctance and vanished into the teleportation glow.

After sending Meng Yiran away, Gu Tian returned to the Dragon Palace courtyard. Na'er, Xiao Wu, and Gu Yue were sitting together.

"Brother Gu Tian, what does this 'New Year' you always talk about actually mean in human society?" Na'er tilted her head, her silver eyes filled with curiosity.

Gu Tian sat beside them, his gaze gentle. "The New Year is a time when no matter how far people have traveled, they return home. The whole family gathers together to have a lively reunion dinner and pray for peace in the coming year."

Hearing this, the once-lively Xiao Wu's delicate body trembled violently. Her long rabbit ears drooped powerlessly, and a mist instantly welled up in her ruby-like eyes.

She thought of her mother, Da Wu. She thought of that figure who had completely vanished while protecting her during the siege by Martial Soul Hall.

Gu Tian saw through Xiao Wu's thoughts, reached out with a heart full of pity, pulled the lonely little rabbit into his arms, and gently stroked her hair: "Xiao Wu, don't be sad. I will be with you. And... since the God Trials can awaken the Dragon King, we may not be unable to retrieve Da Wu's remnant soul in the future."

Xiao Wu buried her head in Gu Tian's chest, nodded muffledly, and greedily inhaled the reassuring scent on him.

"There is still some time before the New Year." Gu Tian looked up toward the distance. "I plan to take you all to Star Luo City."

"Why go there?" Gu Yue asked curiously.

"First, to accompany you to browse the largest commercial street in the entire empire, buy some beautiful clothes, and incidentally pick up some New Year goods for my parents in Ancient Dragon Village to take back." A sharp glint flashed in Gu Tian's eyes. "Second, to scout the path. The struggle within the Star Luo royal family has reached a fever pitch; the farce within the Dai Family should come to an end."

"What farce? Why is there fighting among the royal family?" Xiao Wu asked curiously. In her view, they were all kin with shared bloodlines; why would one family speak in two voices?

"I can't explain it clearly either, I only know some superficial details." Gu Tian hesitated for a moment before continuing, "The Star Luo Empire is mainly divided into three major families: the Dai Family, who possess the White Tiger Martial Soul; the Zhu Family, who possess the Hell Spirit Cat Martial Soul; and the Xu Family, who possess the Star Crown Martial Soul."

"However, the current Dai Family controls the political power of the Star Luo Empire, the Zhu Family controls the military power, and the Xu Family's strength lags behind the other two, currently only managing a portion of the empire's commerce."

"Brother Gu Tian, then why is the Xu Family's influence not as great as the other two!" Na'er was like a child with a thousand questions; every time Gu Tian explained something, she would ask about this and that.

Gu Tian gently patted Na'er's head. "This is because the Xu Family's Martial Soul is not powerful; it is only of the support type. Furthermore, the two Martial Souls of the Dai and Zhu families can perform a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, the Hell White Tiger. This has led to frequent intermarriage between the Dai and Zhu families, naturally leaving the Xu Family out in the cold."

"However, as the royal family of the Star Luo Empire, the Dai Family must force their direct descendants to kill each other to select a future heir, and this heir will be the one with the most hope of awakening the Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King."

"Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King? What is that? I wonder if its meat tastes good." Na'er stuck out her tongue, making a playful expression.

Hearing this, Ao Linxi could no longer sit still. "Little Tian, say that again—Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King? What does it look like!"

Ao Linxi was somewhat uncomposed, speaking out loud within Gu Tian's Sea of Consciousness for the first time, which gave both Gu Tian and Chiyan a start.

"The Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King should be a white tiger with eyes of different colors, and it seems..." Gu Tian scratched his head, carefully recalling every detail, "...it also has six wings!"

Hearing the last sentence, Ao Linxi confirmed her suspicions. "Little Tian, the Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King you speak of is the Auspicious Beast White Tiger I sent out earlier!"

"Ah?" Gu Tian was somewhat surprised. If the Evil-Eyed White Tiger Saint King was indeed the White Tiger, one of the Four Symbols Beasts, then his previous hypothesis was entirely correct!

"Those hateful humans!" Ao Linxi was furious. Auspicious Beasts held extraordinary significance to the soul beast clan, and their lifespans were the same as ordinary soul beasts; no wonder she hadn't sensed their presence since arriving in this world.

She had previously discussed with Gu Yuena which Auspicious Beasts still existed on the Douluo Continent, but Gu Yuena only knew of a five-thousand-year-old Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

Auspicious Beasts were different from ordinary soul beasts; if utilized by those with ulterior motives, they could be forcibly converted into the Martial Souls of human soul masters.

"It seems the Dai Family of the Star Luo Empire used some dirty methods to control the White Tiger and forcibly convert it into their family's hereditary Martial Soul." Ao Linxi's words also reminded Gu Tian.

He desperately wanted to remind Ao Linxi that if his guess was correct, the Azure Dragon was likely imprisoned in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect. The sect's territory was located in the Gulei Kingdom in the southwest of the Heaven Dou Empire, and it was one of the Upper Three Sects on the Douluo Continent.

Meanwhile, the Vermilion Bird and the Black Tortoise were trapped in the Phoenix Sect in the south of the Star Luo Empire and the Xuanming Sect in the north of the Heaven Dou Empire, respectively.

However, the Phoenix Sect and the Xuanming Sect did not rank among the Seven Great Sects of the Douluo Continent; they were either low-key hidden families or had not yet developed the true power of the Vermilion Bird and the Black Tortoise.

The general locations of these Four Symbols Beasts also happened to correspond to the traditional positions: "Azure Dragon on the left, White Tiger on the right, Vermilion Bird in the front, Black Tortoise in the back."

With that, everything made sense.