Night Talk by the Lake

Night fell like ink, quietly dyeing the Lake of Life. Its surface no longer reflected the daylight, clouds, and sky. Instead, it had settled into a bottomless piece of black jade. Only the occasional mote of light carrying pure life essence flashed across the lakebed before vanishing, adding to its mystery and stillness.

Bi Ji had led Gu Yuena to rest in an exquisite treehouse formed naturally from ancient trees by the lake. The richest life essence gathered there, helping her calm her mind and process the past she had just heard—events enough to overturn everything she knew. The other ferocious beasts had also dispersed, disappearing into the darkness of the forest, leaving only the necessary guards behind.

By the lake, only two figures remained. One was Di Tian, clad in black with golden eyes, still standing like an immovable boulder. The other was Tang Wulin, black-haired and black-eyed, nearly blending into the night.

The campfire crackled between them. Leaping flames cast shifting shadows over Di Tian's unreadable face and kindled two tiny flames in Tang Wulin's calm eyes. The atmosphere carried a subtle heaviness.

In the end, Di Tian broke the silence first. His voice was not loud, yet it seemed to carry the cool dampness of the lake, cutting straight through the fire's warmth.

"Tang Wulin." He called him directly by name, no longer showing the restraint he had before Gu Yuena. "I know you remember nothing now. But there are things you must understand."

Tang Wulin raised his head and calmly met those golden eyes. "Please, go on."

Di Tian's gaze seemed to pierce through Tang Wulin's body and see the dormant, trembling power deep within his bloodline. "I fear you," he said, so bluntly that it was surprising. "Or rather, I fear the blood flowing within you—the Golden Dragon King's power. It is ultimate destruction, the concentrated negative emotions of Lord Dragon God. Ten thousand years ago, merely sensing the aura you unconsciously leaked was enough to make the soul of this so-called Beast God tremble."

The hand behind his back tightened slightly, his knuckles turning pale. "Countless times, I wondered how such supreme dragon power could be borne by a human vessel. It confused me, and it made me... unwilling to accept it."

The firelight flickered, sharply outlining Tang Wulin's face. He said nothing, only listened quietly, feeling the weight and sincerity in Di Tian's words.

"But now," Di Tian continued, his tone turning with almost cruel honesty, "I understand one thing more clearly—I can no longer do anything to you." His golden eyes fixed tightly on Tang Wulin, as if confirming something. "Over ten thousand years, I believed my cultivation had advanced greatly. Yet from what I sensed earlier, your power and my lord's are as deep as an abyss, as vast as the sea, unfathomable. Even if you have lost all your memories, with this bloodline and the instinctive Dragon Aura alone, even if I gave everything I had, I likely could not harm you in the slightest. Much less... strip away your bloodline and offer it to my lord. And my lord would never accept it."

A bitter smile tugged at his lips, an acknowledgment of the helplessness brought by an absolute gap in power. "Perhaps your father Tang San's arrangements back then were right." At the mention of that name, Di Tian's expression became even more complicated. There was wariness, a trace of barely perceptible admiration, and an enduring estrangement. "With the power of a God King, he laid plans spanning ten thousand years and brought about the current surface-level peace between humans and soul beasts. And you, bearing the Golden Dragon King's power yet raised in the human world, deeply bound to my lord... have become a special, irreplaceable link between soul beasts and humans. Without you and my lord ten thousand years ago, this fragile peace might have shattered long ago."

Di Tian looked up at the brilliant Starry Sky, his gaze seeming to pierce through the atmosphere and reach into the endless depths of the universe. "After ten thousand years of recovery and the explosive development of soul technology, Douluo Star has become a powerful region among the known nearby star systems. But we all know that beneath the Starry Sky, there is never true peace. In the more distant depths of space, there are threats we cannot even comprehend, along with greedy eyes watching us. Douluo Star... needs truly supreme experts to stand guard over it."

His voice lowered, carrying an unquestionable gravity. "You and my lord possess unmatched power. You must recover your past, reclaim your strength and wisdom. Not to repeat the grievances of ten thousand years ago, but to protect this land beneath our feet and every living being upon it—whether human or soul beast."

At this point, Di Tian paused slightly. His brow furrowed, as though he had recalled something unpleasant. "Even now, peace is not unbreakable. The differences between the human council and our soul beast experts over the exploration of other planets are becoming increasingly apparent." He looked at Tang Wulin. "Humans desire greater speed and more aggressive colonization, seizing the resources of the stars as if mining mineral deposits. We, on the other hand, are more inclined to revere the unknown, advocating coexistence with new environments rather than conquest. Our beliefs differ. One day, this will inevitably erupt."

The campfire gave a soft pop, scattering sparks.

Tang Wulin listened in silence throughout. Di Tian's words were like heavy stones cast into the blank lake of his heart, stirring wave after wave of ripples. Fear, power, responsibility, father, peace, threats, conflict... these words carried an immense weight of information, crashing against him. He unconsciously touched his chest. Beneath his palm, his heart beat powerfully, containing a strength that even the Beast God openly feared.

"Tang Wulin... Gu Yuena..." he murmured, repeating the two names. Once hollow symbols, they now seemed infused with a profound weight. He was the Golden Dragon King. She was the Silver Dragon King. They were mortal enemies, and lovers. They bore the past of their races and were tied to the future of the world.

"I... understand." After a long while, Tang Wulin finally spoke. His voice was slightly hoarse, yet carried the firm resolve of initial acceptance. "Although I still haven't remembered everything, I understand this name, and what you've all told me."

He made no impassioned vow, only a calm statement, yet it eased the tightly drawn string in Di Tian's heart somewhat. That was enough. For beings like them, promises carried far more power than slogans.

Di Tian looked deeply at him. Countless emotions filled his golden eyes before finally turning into an almost inaudible sigh. "The road ahead is long. Recovering your memories is only the first step. Take care of yourself."

With that, he did not linger. He turned, and his black figure slowly merged into the dense night beside the Lake of Life, disappearing from sight.

Only Tang Wulin and the still-burning campfire remained by the lake. He looked up at the Starry Sky. Those cold stars now seemed to have become unknown challenges and responsibilities in his eyes. He clenched his fist, feeling the dormant power within him. What kind of person was he, Tang Wulin?

The road ahead stretched far into the distance, but its direction no longer seemed like complete chaos. His name was Tang Wulin. The person by his side was Gu Yuena. And upon them rested a world far broader than any personal grievance.