Visitors from the Divine Realm

Qin Li suddenly called out in one direction.

A dozen or so Soul Beasts with little wings popped out of the snow.

They fluttered back and forth before Qin Li.

They were the Snow Elves she had mentioned.

The Snow Empress and Ice Empress had sent them to make contact.

"Thank you! I'll come again someday."

After petting the Snow Elves, Qin Li left the Far North.

Not long after she left, two figures appeared there.

The Snow Elves flew up to one of them and began telling her something.

"Mm, I see."

The Snow Empress nodded slightly. She knew what had happened.

"I never expected so many Evil Soul Beasts in the Far North. Where did they come from?"

Beside her, the Ice Empress frowned at the Darknight Snow Wolf on the ground.

"They probably escaped through another exit," the Snow Empress said calmly, though her gaze drifted into the distance.

"Sister, are you still thinking about that man?" The Ice Empress saw through her at once.

The Snow Empress denied it outright. "I'm not thinking about Qin Feng."

"Sister, I hadn't even said who you were thinking about. You said his name yourself." The Ice Empress gave her an exasperated look.

That man was awful, making her sister so hopelessly smitten with him. And he was already married!

She'd be better off with me~

"What makes you say that?" The Snow Empress's expression grew awkward, and she avoided the Ice Empress's eyes.

"You're still denying it? Sister, aren't you looking straight toward where that man lives?"

"Am I? Perhaps the scenery is especially lovely over there. Come, Ice Empress. Let's go back. I need to enter seclusion. He gave me something, and once I absorb it, I'll reach the final step."

The Ice Empress looked at the Snow Empress in delight. She hadn't expected her to be so close to taking that final step.

The Soul Beasts close to Qin Feng had set out on the path to godhood one after another. Only her sister remained.

At last, it was her sister's turn.

"Really, Sister?"

"Why would I lie to you~"

The Snow Empress gently tapped the Ice Empress's forehead with a finger.

"Hehe, Sister, when riches come, don't forget me! Once you take that final step, remember to bring your little sister along." The Ice Empress beamed at her.

"He gave me an extra portion. He said it was for you."

"There's one for me too?"

"Yes!"

"Sister, you're amazing. Even your little sister gets to come along."

Over the next few years, Qin Li traveled across both the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire, searching through countless Divine Ruins.

Little by little, she began to understand what she lacked.

Then one day, something stirred within her. She sat cross-legged atop a mountain peak.

She summoned the Eastern Emperor Bell into her hand.

Though it was only a phantom, it had grown far more solid.

Beneath her feet, the Eastern Emperor Bell's Soul Rings slowly appeared: nine golden rings.

"I really am an idiot. Dad told me before that everything was inside the Eastern Emperor Bell, and I completely forgot."

Qin Li gave a rueful laugh. I had a treasure right under my nose and didn't even know it.

With that in mind, she closed her eyes and rested. Once her energy had recovered, she took out a Heaven-Given Spirit Ring.

Her strength had long since reached its limit.

Ordinarily, taking the final step required a god's Divine Trial. Only then could she become a god and break through Level 100.

But there was another way: forge her own Self-Created Godhood. The road was difficult, yet it suited her best.

Qin Li absorbed the Heaven-Given Spirit Ring while sensing the Dao resonance of the Eastern Emperor Bell.

This time, she did not absorb it nearly as quickly as before. It took her an entire month.

She sat motionless, like a statue.

Only the pressure around her kept growing, until the surrounding Soul Beasts dared not approach the mountain.

The people at its foot dared not climb it either. They feared something up there might kill them.

Hummm~

Crack~

Hummm~

Crack~

At the summit, space around Qin Li split open, healed, then split and healed again.

It went on like that for a long time.

Boom!

Suddenly, an incomparable aura erupted from Qin Li.

The Eastern Emperor Bell shot skyward, growing larger and larger.

It grew until it blotted out the sky and sun.

Nearby residents and Soul Beasts stared up in astonishment.

What was that enormous thing overhead? Why had the sky suddenly gone dark?

It even looked as if it might punch straight through the heavens.

"Look at the sky! It's about to be pierced!"

"Oh no, it really is! The sky's about to break!"

"This is bad!"

In an instant, panic seized humans and Soul Beasts alike.

They all wanted to flee.

Some Soul Masters, however, wanted to climb Qin Li's mountain and see what had happened.

Led by a Soul Sage, several Soul Emperors and Soul Kings rushed toward the summit.

But halfway up, a powerful, invisible force blocked their path.

Each step felt as though a mountain pressed down on their backs. Taking even one demanded all their strength.

Boom!

After only a few steps, every Soul Master dropped to their knees. They sensed a power so exalted that resistance never even crossed their minds.

Just then, a passage opened in the sky, and a voice rang out from within, shaking with fury.

"You dare show contempt for the Divine Court. For that crime, you shall die."

A figure emerged from the passage.

Darkness poured from him as he stared down at Qin Li.

When he saw her Martial Soul, the Eastern Emperor Bell, surprise flashed in his eyes—but greed shone even brighter.

The Eastern Emperor Bell held an immense allure for him. If he could absorb its power, he might rise even higher in the Divine Realm.

"So it's just a petty little god. I was wondering who it could be. Looks like he doesn't know about me, daring to set his sights on my daughter.

"Still, he'll do as practice for Li'er."

Qin Feng looked from the upstart god to Qin Li as he spoke.

The newcomer was only an insignificant Second-Level God. Qin Li could defeat someone like him even though she had only just become a god, so Qin Feng paid him no mind.

"Who are you? Are you from the Divine Realm?"

Qin Li slowly opened her eyes and looked straight up at the god.

"So you have some strength after all. Since you know I'm a god from the Divine Realm, why don't you kneel?"

The man demanded an answer in fury.

"Gods have their strong and weak. I don't believe I'm any weaker than you," Qin Li replied.

"Arrogant! You haven't even ascended to the Divine Realm, yet you dare mock me? You truly have a death wish. Today, I'll destroy you for disrespecting the Divine Realm and scorning the gods."

"You're quick to heap charges on me!"

"Your life is mine!"

With a roar, the god thrust out a colossal palm toward her.