Perhaps the Gods Have Children Too

"Not bad. As long as you put all the information together, you can figure it out."

That wasn't really the case. He'd read the script, after all.

"With Tang Chen's pride, he'd never choose to inherit a godhood. The two of you went to a place called Sea God Island. If my guess is right, you met the woman you loved there. Your rivalry over ruling the continent became a bitter, fight-to-the-death feud. In the end, that woman probably didn't want to come right out and say how she felt, in case it affected the relationship between the three of you, so she proposed that whoever became a god could marry her. But you, the Angel Clan's Grand Protector, couldn't become a god, which was basically her turning you down indirectly. Tang Chen, meanwhile, failed to see what she meant and took her at her word. Like most men, he made a grand vow that he wouldn't return until he became a god, and set off to find a way to ascend. Since a thousand years was too long to wait, he chose a faster route and thought of Slaughter City. He never expected to fail the God Trial and become the King of Slaughter—a being neither human nor ghost. Or, to put it another way, he became a divine servant, just like you."

By the time he finished, Qian Daoliu was laughing heartily.

Tang Chen had become a divine servant just like him, which meant he wasn't qualified to become a god and couldn't marry the woman they loved either. What wasn't there to celebrate?

"You brat! If you belonged to another faction, how terrifying would that be for Spirit Hall!"

"You're right. Tang Chen becoming a divine servant is worth celebrating. But what you don't know is that Tang Chen didn't fail the God Trial. He was only temporarily possessed by a Soul Beast."

As he continued, Qian Daoliu's expression grew serious.

"You could say Tang Chen still has a chance of survival. And don't underestimate him. He's someone who reached level 99 through his own cultivation!"

Li Pu smiled. "Not necessarily! Maybe the God of Slaughter secretly helped him improve. Gods aren't necessarily selfless. Perhaps he was paving the way for his child."

For a moment, Qian Daoliu fell silent.

Whether Li Pu was right or not, his argument made sense.

Perhaps gods had children, too?

There was no way to rule that out.

"Wouldn't a child born to a god be a god, too?"

Qian Daoliu figured that a god's child would be a god from birth.

"Would they have a godhood, though? If they didn't, they might have to start from the mortal world and work their way up before passing on the godhood."

This time, Qian Daoliu was thoroughly silenced. Damn, Li Pu made a good point. It was hard to argue with.

He could even explain that there were gods with godhoods and gods without them, just as some people held official positions in the mortal world while others didn't.

To obtain a godhood, one had to undergo a trial.

The children of gods couldn't take part directly; they could only start from scratch in the mortal world.

It was absurd that a child had guessed such a secret.

"That can't be right. The Angel God and Sea God both relied on themselves."

"I'll say something that might offend you, but who's to say they weren't the same? Maybe they needed to create new gods."

After a moment of silence, Qian Daoliu spoke slowly.

"Whether that's true or not, what matters now is that Xue'er can become a god. And you, too."

"Me?" Li Pu pointed at himself.

"Yes."

Qian Daoliu said seriously, "Perhaps you're also a god's successor. With your talent, you certainly have the potential to become a god."

Li Pu laughed. "Maybe. Either I become a god or the new King of Slaughter. Even the worst outcome wouldn't be bad."

Qian Daoliu laughed, too. "You've already prepared for the worst. I think that even if Xue'er can't become the Angel God, at worst she'll become the next Angel Clan Grand Protector."

The Angel Clan had seen Spirit Masters with Innate Level 20 Soul Power before. They all had the potential to become successors to the Angel God, yet without exception, they had all failed. The closest anyone had come was God of Slaughter Supros, who had become a god a thousand years ago while fighting Slaughter City. He had failed, too.

Now Qian Renxue also had Innate Level 20 Soul Power. Whether she could succeed, even Qian Daoliu couldn't say for sure. Compared to the Angel Clan's predecessors, though, she had more advantages. For instance, she had been able to make her first four Soul Rings Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings from the very start.

He had calculated that the core of the Ten Headed Fierce Yang Serpent was enough to give Xue'er Soul Rings with a lifespan of ten to twenty thousand years for her first four. From her fifth Soul Ring onward, she could also have rings with lifespans ten to twenty thousand years beyond the usual limit.

With advantages like that, how could she not have better potential to become a god?

There was no need for Li Pu to say more. Qian Renxue was destined to become a god. Whether she could defeat Tang San this time was another matter.

And compared to how things had unfolded in the original story, it would probably be even more difficult.

Of course, that was assuming the other factions continued to act like fools and had no choice but to choose him.

"Come to think of it, the Clear Sky Sect managed to unite everyone from top to bottom. Why can't Spirit Hall do the same? Why are there people who smear Spirit Hall and leeches who betray it?" Li Pu changed the subject.

"I know what you mean. As long as they don't go too far, we generally don't deal with them. Besides, these are matters we should leave for Xue'er to handle." Qian Daoliu spoke indifferently.

"No wonder."

Spirit Hall wasn't the only organization with leeches. Every organization had them. Take the slave trade at the Heaven Dou Empire's Royal Auction House, for example.

Not to mention those who served Spirit Hall, there were leeches like Miles, the bishop of Gengxin City. By dealing directly with the people and using Spirit Hall's authority to line their own pockets, bully women, withhold monthly pay, and charge fees for Martial Souls, they damaged Spirit Hall's reputation among the people.

Worse still, they secretly sold information and handed over promising recruits to the enemy.

That was the very definition of tearing down your own fortress.

That was how things went in the original story. Then Bibi Dong launched the Soul Hunting Operation for no good reason, turning the entire Soul Master World against Spirit Hall.

On top of that, Qian Renxue impersonated Xue Qinghe to seize the Heaven Dou Empire, and even killed three princes. That drove both empires into opposition against Spirit Hall.

That was how the continent came to form an alliance against Spirit Hall.

Although Li Pu wasn't fond of theocracy, at this stage Spirit Hall was undoubtedly the best option—a far better one than the nobles and kings of the two empires, who treated commoners as less than human.

As for Bibi Dong, she didn't represent theocracy. She was just as committed to destroying it and creating a new world that judged people by their abilities rather than the strength of their Martial Souls.

That kind of society was undoubtedly progress.

"Even if you've thought it through and want to leave those leeches alone until Xue'er grows up, so she can build up more faith power before dealing with them, why not let her get involved now? If you're raising a new Angel God, you should let her see some of society's darkness while she's young. Otherwise, aren't you worried you'll raise another Bibi Dong, like back then, who'll get tricked at the drop of a hat?" Li Pu said.

"Hmph! Forget how many enemies Spirit Hall has. Aren't Tang Hao and the Blue Silver Emperor a major threat right now? Even if we do that, we should deal with the two of them first!"

On the one hand, Qian Daoliu still felt Xue'er was too young. On the other, Tang Hao and Ah Yin were indeed a threat.