Beloved as a Bargaining Chip, a Carefully Calculated Sacrifice

Longevity Sect, Cloudsea Hall.

Cool mist drifted quietly, and the yellowed, ancient Soul-Sense Concealment Formation Blueprint lay spread across the void. Its dense, intricate patterns contained a mysterious power capable of blocking all scrutiny from the Divine Realm.

Li Xuan stood with one hand behind his back, his indifferent gaze piercing through the clouds toward that hidden, shadowy forest.

The system data in his mind remained clearly fixed, its numbers cold and orderly.

[Current Shock Points Balance: 103,600,000.]

[High-Level Access Unlocked: Soul-Sense Concealment Formation Blueprint.]

[Character Status: Tang San (uneasy and terrified, his psychological defenses on the verge of collapse).]

The truth behind the plundering of the Icefire Yin Yang Well had completely torn apart Tang San's heaven-sent halo.

At last, the world understood that so-called destiny's favor was nothing more than ruthless plunder.

Docile Soul Beasts had been slaughtered, harmless ferocious beasts had their origins stolen, and Tang San's path had been paved with the bones of living beings.

And the most moving, most widely celebrated tale of devotion in his life—Xiao Wu's sacrifice—also concealed an ugly scheme.

People praised the undying love between them and mourned the tragic beauty of the sacrifice.

But no one knew that from beginning to end, this sacrifice had hidden deliberate arrangements and selfish calculations.

Li Xuan's fingertips moved slightly, his voice devoid of warmth.

"System, begin the thirteenth Sky Screen Review."

"Theme: <Soft-Boned Sacrifice, a Deliberately Planned Bargaining Chip of Love>."

[Command confirmed! Sky Screen loaded!]

[This review: The most hypocritical and ironic sham of devotion in Tang San's life!]

Bzzzz—!

A bleak, gorgeous pink Sky Screen slowly enveloped the entire continent.

Pink had once symbolized gentleness, love, and beauty.

Yet at that moment, the pink radiance filling the sky carried a bone-deep desolation, a false tenderness cold enough to chill the heart.

Above the Sky Screen, large blood-red corroded words were ruthlessly branded into the void.

[Douluo Regrets Reckoning, Issue Thirteen: False Devotion, Sacrifice for Bone.]

[This Issue Reveals: Xiao Wu's sacrifice, a deliberately engineered ending planned long in advance!]

Pink light spilled over the continent, and countless hearts suddenly tightened.

On the outskirts of Heaven Dou City, within a secluded forest.

Xiao Wu's petite body trembled violently. Her clear eyes reddened as she instinctively clutched Tang San's sleeve tightly.

Sacrifice.

It was the most painful and indistinct memory she had, yet it had been carved into her divine soul as an incomparably brutal scene.

She only remembered that, to save the severely wounded and dying Tang San, she had willingly burned herself away and sacrificed her soul ring and soul bone.

She had always believed it was an accident, an unavoidable necessity, something she had no choice but to do.

But the Sky Screen's four words—planned long in advance—were like an icy blade plunging viciously into her heart.

Tang San's breathing abruptly stopped, and the blood in his body nearly froze. The False Sea God Divine Armor felt ice-cold against his skin, while his back had long been soaked through with cold sweat.

Xiao Wu's sacrifice was the greatest pain of his life, his deepest obsession, and the perfect trump card for his carefully crafted image.

He would never allow anyone to tarnish that tragic, beautiful devotion.

"Lies... they're all lies!"

Tang San clenched his teeth and let out a low roar, his eyes filled with scarlet veins.

The Sky Screen ignored his struggle as a cold scene suddenly began to play.

Star Dou Great Forest, beneath the setting sun.

Blood-red light blanketed the forest as two powerful figures stepped forth.

Spirit Hall's two Titled Douluo, Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo, radiated domineering, chilling auras as they sealed every escape route.

At the time, Tang San had lost all his Soul Power. His bones were fractured, blood poured from his body, and he was grievously wounded.

With tears in her eyes, Xiao Wu stubbornly stood guard before him.

In everyone's memories, it had been a sudden pursuit, a desperate situation without hope.

[The world knows: Spirit Hall launched a surprise attack, leaving no path through the desperate predicament, and the girl sacrificed herself for love.]

[Yet no one knows: there had long been signs of the pursuit, and the crisis had been foreseen in advance.]

[Tang San had long known of Spirit Hall's pursuit plan and understood that he faced a deadly predicament.]

The cold narration resounded between heaven and earth, every word piercing the heart.

The scene rapidly shifted, rewinding to half a month before the sacrifice.

Tang San had investigated Spirit Hall's movements beforehand and understood that the two Titled Douluo were targeting Xiao Wu, a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

He knew the gap in their strength was immense, and he understood that he had no ability whatsoever to protect Xiao Wu.

[Knowing death was certain, knowing the pursuit was approaching.]

[He did not send Xiao Wu away, did not endure the pain of separating from her, and did not take her to a safe place.]

[Instead, he deliberately kept her in Star Dou and actively moved closer to Spirit Hall's ambush zone.]

Boom!

Those few short lines left the entire continent numb with shock.

He had not sent her away, had not separated from her, had deliberately kept her there, and had actively entered the trap?

Why?

The Sky Screen continued to play, exposing the filthiest and most secret inner monologue.

[Tang San knew that once a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast reached adulthood, it could never voluntarily sacrifice itself again for the rest of its life.]

[Only when trapped in a life-and-death crisis, on the brink of death, could a Soul Beast's instinctive sacrifice mechanism be triggered.]

[His Soul Power had stagnated, his realm could not break through, and he desperately needed a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone to shatter his shackles.]

[He knew perfectly well: Xiao Wu was his only, most perfect, most suitable sacrifice material.]

It was blunt, cruel, and utterly undisguised.

Within the forest.

Xiao Wu stood frozen in place, her mind completely blank.

The soft light in her clear eyes shattered completely, leaving only bewilderment, shock, and piercing cold.

His only perfect sacrifice material?

So all those years of companionship, protection, intimacy, and tenderness...

In the eyes of the Third Brother she trusted most, she had been nothing more than a soul bone that could be used at any time?

"Th... Third Brother?"

Xiao Wu's voice trembled, her tone fractured by disbelief.

Tang San's body swayed violently. A metallic sweetness surged up his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

He wanted to explain, wanted to roar out a denial.

But every thought, every choice, every arrangement exposed by the Sky Screen was an unalterable truth.

He had indeed known the pursuit was coming.

He had indeed not sent Xiao Wu away.

And deep within his heart, he had indeed harbored a trace of desire.

A desire for that one-of-a-kind, irreplaceable Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.

[Knowing the danger, he deliberately kept her by his side.]

[Knowing death was certain, he refused to let go.]

[He used love as a disguise and protection as an excuse.]

[He led his beloved into a desperate situation and used her life to pave his own path to godhood.]

The scene froze at the final moment of the sacrifice.

Red light filled the sky as the girl's body slowly faded away.

With tears in her eyes, she smiled. Willingly, she burned away everything for the one she loved.

And in the depths of the boy she protected, beyond the grief, was a faint, nearly imperceptible cold greed.

That trace of greed was infinitely magnified by the Sky Screen and laid bare before the entire continent.

[The sacrifice ended. Tang San obtained a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone and a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.]

[His body was reforged, his foundation transformed, and he completely fulfilled the prerequisites for the Sea God Inheritance.]

[A tragic love story of beautiful sorrow was, in truth, a meticulously calculated plundering.]

The entire continent fell deathly silent.

After a long while, curses, revulsion, and rage suddenly erupted.

"He even calculated against the one he loved most?!"

"He spoke of profound love, but all he thought about was a soul bone?"

"The Man Faced Demon Spider, the Icefire beasts, the girl he loved—every single one was a victim on his path to power!"

Sea God Island, Clear Sky Sect, the Two Great Empires, and every major sect wore icy expressions as the disgust in their hearts reached its peak.

Papal Palace.

Bibi Dong sat quietly, her purple eyes gazing indifferently at the Sky Screen.

She had once been calculated against by gods and abandoned by the one she loved.

Now, watching Xiao Wu be similarly deceived, exploited, and schemed against, a trace of sorrowful resonance arose in her heart.

"Men are all selfish."

Bibi Dong murmured softly, her tone cold enough to pierce bone. "So-called devotion is nothing more than a pretty disguise."

[Ding! Detected an explosive surge of emotion among all living beings!]

[Heart-Chill Points gained: +7,200,000!]

[Disgust Points gained: +6,500,000!]

[Current Shock Points Balance: 117,300,000!]

[Special Reward: Divine Soul Origin Crystal (can see through all disguises and probe the stray thoughts in people's hearts).]

Longevity Sect, Cloudsea Hall.

A flawless, translucent crystal floated quietly in the air. Flowing light curled within it, capable of piercing every falsehood and illuminating the darkness in one's heart.

Li Xuan lightly tapped the crystal with his fingertip, his gaze indifferent and cold.

At this point, all five of Tang San's original sins had been exposed.

Slaughtering demon spiders, plundering immortal herbs, inheriting forbidden teachings, applying double standards to good and evil, and calculating against his beloved.

The sacred shell of the child of destiny had shattered completely, leaving behind not a shred of brilliance.

"A lifetime of hypocrisy, a lifetime of schemes."

Li Xuan spoke calmly, his tone detached. "The love you are proudest of is your filthiest sin."

The pink Sky Screen slowly faded away. The wind across the continent howled bleakly, and everyone felt a chill in their hearts.

Amid the endless cries of disgust, a line of blackish-scarlet text suddenly branded itself across the heavens.

[Preview of the Next Issue: The Divine Realm's Final Act.]

[Two gods fall, and the continent is merely a slaughterhouse for the gods' ascent!]

The entire continent instantly held its breath.

Gods' Chessboard, the continent's slaughterhouse, the truth of the final act.

Li Xuan raised his eyes toward the Nine Heavens God Realm, a biting chill gleaming in his gaze.

The harvesting was about to begin.