Fifth on the Golden Rankings: Ye Xishui Revealed!

The Lake of Life.

Its clear waters reflected the Golden Rankings in the Firmament.

Great swathes of silver plants grew along the shore.

A faint aura of life rose from the depths of the lake and spread in every direction.

Gu Yuena stood by the water.

A white dress followed the lines of her tall figure.

Her long silver hair fell almost to her ankles.

Her violet eyes gazed up at the Firmament.

Qian Daoliu's name still held sixth place on the Strength Rankings.

Di Tian stood behind Gu Yuena.

Bi Ji, Zi JI, and the Myriad Demon King stood on either side.

All the Ferocious Beasts were watching the Golden Rankings.

Di Tian spoke first.

"After receiving his reward, Qian Daoliu has reached the power of a Third-Level God."

"Bo Saixi and the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King have reached the same level."

"Yet they can only rank sixth, seventh, and eighth."

The Myriad Demon King looked toward the top five places, still hidden behind golden light.

"Perhaps the top five possessed god-level strength even before receiving their rewards."

Zi JI shook her head gently.

"The Divine Realm places strict limits on Douluo Continent."

"True gods cannot descend upon the continent at will."

"If all five possess god-level strength, where did they come from?"

Di Tian did not answer at once.

He could not think of an answer either.

Nearly every Limit Douluo on the continent had already appeared on the rankings.

Whoever remained lay entirely beyond their knowledge.

Gu Yuena raised a slender hand.

A thread of silver light flowed past her fingertips.

"Being able to evade the Divine Realm's rules does not mean they came from the Divine Realm."

"Douluo Continent holds more hidden powers than you know."

Di Tian lowered his head.

"My lady, do you believe all five are on the continent?"

"At least they are now."

Gu Yuena looked back up at the rankings in the sky.

"If these rankings chose them, then they must be capable of influencing the continent as it stands today."

A mass of dark-red flame suddenly swept in from the distance.

The Scarlet King burst from the trees and hurried to the lakeshore.

He shed his true form, took human shape, and knelt on one knee before Gu Yuena.

"My lady."

Gu Yuena turned.

"What happened?"

The Scarlet King answered at once. "A human has arrived outside."

"He says he wants to see you."

Di Tian's gaze snapped to the Scarlet King.

"A human?"

"He entered the core region?"

The Scarlet King nodded.

"He has already passed through the barrier you placed there."

Shock crossed Bi Ji's face.

"That barrier blocks spiritual detection and makes outsiders overlook this area of their own accord."

"Even a Limit Douluo nearby would be unable to find the true entrance."

"How did he get in?"

"I don't know."

The Scarlet King shook his head.

"He didn't damage the barrier."

"By the time I noticed him, he was already inside."

The Myriad Demon King looked toward the trees.

"Perhaps he wandered in by accident."

The Scarlet King shook his head again.

"It wasn't an accident."

"As soon as he entered the core region, he said he wanted to go to the Lake of Life."

"And he knows your name."

A brief silence fell over the lakeshore.

Di Tian stepped forward.

Mighty Soul Power surged from his body.

"He spoke her name aloud?"

"Yes."

The Scarlet King answered firmly.

Zi JI looked at Gu Yuena.

"No human on this continent could know you exist."

"Even Spirit Hall only knows that several Ferocious Beasts are hidden in the Star Dou Great Forest."

"They have never known that the Silver Dragon King is at the Lake of Life."

Bi Ji frowned slightly.

"Could the Divine Realm have sent him?"

Di Tian shook his head.

"If the Divine Realm had discovered her location, it would not have sent just one person."

"Nor would he have asked to see her so directly."

Interest flickered in Gu Yuena's violet eyes.

"What is his name?"

The Scarlet King hesitated.

"I haven't had the chance to ask."

Di Tian glanced at him.

"Why didn't you stop him first?"

The Scarlet King fell silent for a moment.

"Xiong Jun attacked him."

The Myriad Demon King asked at once, "What happened?"

The Scarlet King glanced back the way he had come.

"That man merely looked at Xiong Jun."

"And Xiong Jun could no longer move."

Di Tian's expression changed.

"One look?"

"He didn't use a Soul Skill?"

"No."

The Scarlet King continued, "I saw no Soul Rings."

"Nor did I sense any fluctuation of Soul Power."

"Xiong Jun's attack simply vanished."

"His body and Sea of Consciousness were suppressed at the same time."

Bi Ji looked at Di Tian.

Xiong Jun had cultivated for more than four hundred thousand years.

Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears were among the Soul Beast races most skilled at head-on combat.

Defeating Xiong Jun was no easy feat.

Yet a single glance had left him unable to resist.

Such strength had already surpassed that of an ordinary Limit Douluo.

Di Tian turned to Gu Yuena.

"My lady, let me go and see for myself."

"He found this place and knows who you are."

"This man is anything but simple."

Gu Yuena raised her eyes toward the depths of the forest.

She sensed no lingering shockwaves from a battle.

Nor could she detect any damage to the barrier.

The visitor possessed great strength, yet he had not forced his way into the Lake of Life.

That meant he truly was waiting for his arrival to be reported.

Gu Yuena withdrew her gaze.

"Bring him here."

Di Tian said at once, "My lady, we still haven't established who he is."

"It matters not."

Gu Yuena turned toward the lakeshore.

"I would like to see for myself."

"Who is it that wishes to meet me?"

The Scarlet King rose.

"Yes."

He transformed back into a three-headed Scarlet Demon Mastiff.

Dark-red flames rose around him.

He soon vanished into the trees.

A short while later, footsteps sounded among the trees.

Long Yuan walked slowly along the path beside the lake.

The Scarlet King followed behind him, all three heads alert.

Di Tian, Bi Ji, and Zi JI looked at the newcomer together.

Long Yuan paid no attention to the Ferocious Beasts watching him.

He looked at the woman in white by the lake.

Silver hair fell down her back.

Her violet eyes were calm.

Not a single flaw marred her exquisite, fair-skinned face.

Light from the Lake of Life fell across her.

The Silver Dragon King's aura lay hidden within her body.

Though her injuries had yet to heal, she still bore an authority that towered above every Ferocious Beast.

Long Yuan stopped.

The Gu Yuena before him had the same face as the wife he remembered.

But she had not yet lived through the events of ten thousand years hence.

She did not know him.

Nor had she spent those years at his side.

As Long Yuan looked at the wife who had been with him for ten thousand years, his gaze softened.

"Gu Yuena."

Gu Yuena studied him in turn.

She could not see through Long Yuan's Soul Power.

Nor could she identify his Martial Soul.

He stood by the lake, yet the Heaven and Earth Energy around him showed not the slightest resistance.

Even the power of the Dragon Clan she had left within the core region did not attack him.

"So you are the one who wishes to see me?"

Long Yuan nodded.

"Mm."

Gu Yuena looked at him.

"You know me?"

Long Yuan was about to answer.

Suddenly, the Golden Rankings high in the heavens burst into dazzling light.

Qian Daoliu's name gradually faded.

The golden light shrouding fifth place parted to either side.

The entire Lake of Life was bathed in golden radiance.

Gu Yuena raised her head.

Di Tian and the others looked up at the Firmament as well.

Lines of golden text slowly took shape.

[Douluo Strength Rankings, fifth place: Ye Xishui!]

[Deputy Cult Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult!]

[Level 99 Limit Douluo, Demigod cultivation!]

[Twin Martial Souls: Death God Demon Puppet, also known as Blood Soul Demon Puppet, and Bright Phoenix!]

[Has formed Dual Soul Cores, with vast Soul Power and unmatched combat strength!]

[Controls a Level 10 Soul Tool: the Death God Tower!]

[Can call upon the power of the Angel God and wield the divine artifact Angel Holy Sword; hailed as invincible in the skies!]

[Reward: cultivation and strength advance to Second-Level God!]

[Reward: all Soul Rings upgraded to hundred-thousand-year Soul Rings!]

[Reward: three Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones!]

The golden text stretched across the Firmament.

Ye Xishui's figure appeared on the rankings.

Purple-red hair fell to her waist.

Her red dress billowed in the wind.

The Blood Soul Demon Puppet stood to her left.

The Bright Phoenix spread its wings and hovered to her right.

Two Soul Cores slowly revolved before her.

The Level 10 Soul Tool, the Death God Tower, rose behind her.

A terrifying pressure spread from the image on the Golden Rankings.

Fifth place on the Douluo Strength Rankings.

Ye Xishui!

This unfamiliar name spread across the entire continent along with its fifth-place ranking.

Everyone who looked up and saw the rankings was stunned.

A Level 99 Limit Douluo.

Demigod cultivation.

Twin Martial Souls.

Dual Soul Cores.

A Level 10 Soul Tool.

Any one of those would have been enough to place a Soul Master at the continent's pinnacle.

Yet Ye Xishui was only the Deputy Cult Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult.

Shrek Academy.

By the lake.

Ning Rongrong, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Liu Erlong all watched the sky.

Ye Xishui's figure hung high on the Golden Rankings.

The Blood Soul Demon Puppet and Bright Phoenix stood on either side of her.

The Level 10 Soul Tool called the Death God Tower occupied a vast swath of the sky.

Only after staring for a long time did Ning Rongrong slowly look away.

"Ye Xishui?"

"When did someone this powerful appear on the continent?"

Xiao Wu shook her head slightly.

"I've never heard that name."

"She ranks above Qian Daoliu, Bo Saixi, and the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King."

"Yet before the Golden Rankings appeared, no one on the entire continent knew of her."

Zhu Zhuqing studied the description on the rankings.

"Level 99 Limit Douluo, with Demigod cultivation."

"Someone with that kind of strength couldn't have left no trace of her name."

"And she has Twin Martial Souls."

Ning Rongrong immediately turned to Liu Erlong.

"Teacher Erlong, do you know Ye Xishui?"

"Is she from some hidden clan?"

Liu Erlong did not answer at once.

Her brow furrowed as she searched her memory of the continent's strongest Soul Masters.

After a moment, she shook her head.

"No."

"I've never heard the name Ye Xishui."

Ning Rongrong looked even more astonished.

"Not even you, Teacher Erlong?"

Liu Erlong looked up at the Blood Soul Demon Puppet behind Ye Xishui.

"There aren't many Titled Douluo on the continent to begin with."

"Limit Douluo who reach level 99 can be counted on one hand."

"If someone this powerful truly existed on the continent, there's no reason I wouldn't have heard her name."

Xiao Wu pointed to another line on the rankings.

"And the Holy Spirit Cult."

"Deputy Cult Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult."

"What kind of organization is this Holy Spirit Cult?"

Ning Rongrong thought for a moment.

"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect keeps records of the continent's major sects and Soul Master factions."

"Spirit Hall, the Clear Sky Sect, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and other hidden sects—we have intelligence on them all."

"But I've never seen the Holy Spirit Cult mentioned in our sect's records."

Liu Erlong nodded slightly.

"Neither have I."

"An organization with a Limit Douluo as its Deputy Cult Leader is no ordinary faction."

Xiao Wu raised her face.

"If the Deputy Cult Leader ranks fifth on the Strength Rankings..."

"How strong must the Holy Spirit Cult Leader be?"

Silence fell over the lakeside again.

Ning Rongrong stared at the words "Deputy Cult Leader," her heart churning with waves of unease.

Qian Daoliu was the Great Enshrined of Spirit Hall.

Bo Saixi was the High Priest of Sea God Island.

Both held the highest positions in their respective factions.

Ye Xishui ranked above them, yet she was only the Deputy Cult Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult.

That meant the Holy Spirit Cult very likely had a Cult Leader even stronger than Ye Xishui.

Ning Rongrong said quietly:

"Could the Holy Spirit Cult Leader be among the top four on the Strength Rankings?"

Xiao Wu considered it carefully.

"Very possibly."

"Ye Xishui is already fifth."

"Someone she's willing to serve under as Deputy Cult Leader can't be weaker than she is."

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze rose to the top of the Heaven Rankings.

Four places there had yet to be revealed.

"A Level 99 Limit Douluo."

"Dual Soul Cores."

"A Level 10 Soul Tool."

"Even with all those powers combined, Ye Xishui only ranks fifth."

"If the Holy Spirit Cult Leader ranks above her, they must at least possess god-level combat strength."

Liu Erlong looked at Zhu Zhuqing.

"Perhaps even more than that."

"Once Ye Xishui receives her reward, she'll advance directly to Second-Level God."

"The rewards for the top four can only be more astonishing."

Ning Rongrong looked again at the description of the Soul Cores.

"Two Soul Cores give her far more Soul Power than other Soul Masters at her level."

"What exactly is a Soul Core?"

"Why have we never heard of one?"

Liu Erlong shook her head.

"I don't know either."

"The continent's current cultivation system says nothing about forming Soul Cores."

"Perhaps it's a special cultivation method known to the Holy Spirit Cult."

Xiao Wu asked next:

"What about the Level 10 Soul Tool?"

"What is the Death God Tower?"

Ning Rongrong pursed her red lips.

"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has several Soul Tools in its collection."

"But most of them can only store items or perform simple functions."

"I've never heard of Soul Tools being divided into levels."

Zhu Zhuqing looked at the towering Death God Tower.

"If the Golden Rankings singled out the Death God Tower, it must possess tremendous power."

"Ye Xishui is already a Limit Douluo."

"A weapon under her control could never be an ordinary Soul Tool."

Ning Rongrong drew a soft breath.

"Ye Xishui."

"The Holy Spirit Cult."

"Dual Soul Cores."

"A Level 10 Soul Tool."

"The Golden Rankings revealed just one person, yet brought up four things we knew nothing about."

Liu Erlong gazed at the figure in the red dress.

"She may not belong to the Soul Master World we know."

"At the very least, the intelligence available on this continent can't explain everything about her."

Zhu Zhuqing looked back toward the top four places.

Her hands slowly clenched.

"Fifth place is already this powerful."

"Now I want to know more than ever who the Holy Spirit Cult Leader is."