Gu Yue raised her bright eyes and gazed at Tang Wulin's earnest expression, asking softly, "Why would you make me such a solemn promise and treat me so affectionately? We've only known each other for a few short months."
The sudden question gave Tang Wulin pause. Of course, he could not reveal the truth. He could not tell the girl before him that, in another destiny, she had been the beloved who accompanied him throughout his life.
He gazed steadily at Gu Yue, considered for a moment, then slowly said, "Do you believe in fate?"
"Fate?"
"That's right. I once had an incredibly strange dream. In it, my power knew no bounds, and I was invincible beneath the heavens. Everyone in the world revered and feared me. Yet as I walked that path, my family, friends, and beloved could not withstand the passage of time. They gradually grew old and finally all returned to dust. In the end, only I remained, alone with the Great Dao."
As his words fell, Tang Wulin deliberately lowered his eyes, forcing a trace of loneliness and desolation onto his face.
Inside, however, he kept repeating, Keep it together. Whatever you do, don't break character and laugh.
Watching his affected world-weary expression and thinking of that bizarre dream of lonely immortality, Gu Yue could no longer contain herself. She burst into laughter, laughing so freely that tears gathered in her eyes.
Her laughter broke Tang Wulin's composure, and he joined her, laughing aloud.
Their bright, carefree laughter echoed through the small room.
Outside the door, Tang Ziran and Lang Yue were quietly pressed against it, holding their breath as they eavesdropped on the conversation within.
Tang Ziran lowered his voice, hesitation on his face. "Lang Yue, isn't it a little inappropriate for us to listen in like this? Wulin is still young. Aren't we thinking too far ahead?"
Lang Yue raised a hand and lightly tapped Tang Ziran's forehead, her tone firm. "You really are slow on the uptake. Federation law states perfectly clearly that Soul Masters can marry at fifteen. Wulin is already nine and will soon be ten. He's only a few years away from the legal marriage age."
She glanced through the crack in the door and continued quietly, "Think about it. A typhoon has been raging for days, yet this girl braved the wind and rain to come here especially. Would an ordinary classmate do that? Clearly, she feels something special for our Wulin. We're not meddling. We're simply helping our child judge things a little in advance."
After hearing her out, Tang Ziran considered it briefly and slowly nodded. The two remained pressed against the door, quietly keeping track of the sounds within.
For an entire day, Tang Wulin and Gu Yue stayed in the little room, chatting and laughing, talking about anything and everything.
They spoke freely of their aspirations in life, shared their ideals, and sketched out a distant future. During those hours together, Gu Yue clearly sensed an extraordinary harmony and resonance between her soul and Tang Wulin's.
At first, Gu Yue had always regarded Tang Wulin's bold declarations as nothing more than youthful exuberance.
The boy before her was only nine, with level seventeen soul power, and had yet to reach the realm of a Soul Grandmaster. Yet he dared promise that he would one day reach the pinnacle of a God Craftsman and forge Four-Word Battle Armor for her. To her, such promises were ultimately the grand boasts of a reckless youth. She took them only as a child's innocent hopes and never truly took them to heart.
That lasted until Tang Wulin slowly raised his hand and drew an antique, hammer-shaped badge from inside his clothes.
The badge shone with a gentle silver radiance, its patterns ancient and exquisite. Three gleaming stars were clearly engraved on its surface-the exclusive insignia of a Level Three Blacksmith.
In that instant, Gu Yue froze completely.
She had been in human society for some time and was already familiar with the balance of power on the Douluo Continent, as well as the ranks and entry requirements for Soul Masters and secondary professions such as blacksmithing. Precisely because she understood how stringent they were, she was all the more astonished.
Nine years old, level seventeen soul power, and already a genuine Level Three Blacksmith!
Gu Yue stared blankly at the composed, gentle boy whose eyes held a smile, disbelief surging through her heart. Unconsciously, she reached out her soft, slender hands and gently cupped Tang Wulin's cheeks, studying him closely.
His features were clear and his bearing pure. He looked no different from an ordinary child, yet the talent and foundation hidden within him already far surpassed those of his peers-and even countless adults who had devoted years to forging.
Seeing the shock in her eyes, Tang Wulin's gaze rippled with a faint smile, and his voice took on a playful note. "Little Moon, surprised? Didn't see that coming, did you?"
After a whole day together, speaking openly from the heart, their relationship had grown much closer and more comfortable. Tang Wulin had privately given Gu Yue this special nickname.
The luminous moon hung high in the heavens, clear and bright, cold and aloof, radiating boundless silver light-powerful yet distant. It was exactly like Gu Yue.
The Gu Yue others saw was always cold and indifferent, keeping everyone at a distance.
She never showed others the slightest warmth and remained detached toward her classmates. Even Xie Xie, who was close to Tang Wulin, received only her bland indifference.
Only before Tang Wulin did she shed every layer of her icy disguise, revealing her unique tenderness, vivacity, and ease. Every bit of her softness and affection was reserved for the boy before her alone.
Gu Yue stared at the sweet, radiant smile in his eyes, momentarily dazed, and unconsciously asked, "Wulin, this blacksmith badge of yours... you didn't buy it, did you?"
At that, Tang Wulin immediately puffed out his cheeks and pursed his lips, showing a boy's wounded pride. "What are you talking about? Gu Yue, is it really that hard to admit someone else is extremely talented?"
Even with the badge right before her eyes, Gu Yue still could not quell her astonishment.
Nine years old. A Level Three Blacksmith.
At that age, it was an unheard-of miracle in the entire forging world of the Douluo Continent.
Gu Yue silently projected his future. With talent as astounding as Tang Wulin's, as long as he cultivated steadily and diligently honed his craft, his lowest possible achievement would be the level of a Saint Craftsman.
She knew Tang Wulin's background far better than others did.
His teacher was Mu Chen, a level eight Saint Craftsman and a leading figure presiding over the East Sea Blacksmith Association. Zhen Hua, the only God Craftsman alive, was also Mu Chen's fellow disciple.
With that connection, once Tang Wulin reached the level of a level eight Saint Craftsman, he would surely receive personal guidance from God Craftsman Zhen Hua. His path ahead was wide open, giving him every chance to strive for the supreme realm of a God Craftsman.
In an instant, Gu Yue had reached a conclusion.
This seemingly ordinary, pure-hearted boy with gentle eyes might very well become the only new God Craftsman the Douluo Continent would produce in the next three hundred years.
All that remained in Gu Yue's heart was a profound sense of unreality. Everything was too sudden, too unexpected.
She had lived for tens of thousands of years, witnessing the transformations of heaven and earth and the rise of countless prodigies. Yet never had she experienced such an extreme contrast, such a bewildering feeling of not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
It was as though two people had traveled together, eating and living side by side. She had always assumed they were both starting as ordinary people, feeling their way forward together. Only halfway along did she suddenly discover that the person beside her had secretly activated cheats long ago, while she alone had been kept in the dark.
The feeling was both immensely familiar and immensely jarring.
It was just like the most fitting analogy from a previous life: you spent every day with your best friend, studying together and working hard together, happily looking forward to interning together, striving together, and heading toward the future. Only at the very end did you suddenly learn that the company you had fought so desperately to join as an intern-the starting point of your struggle-had belonged to his family all along.
The finish line you had chased with every ounce of strength was merely the starting line he had been born with.
That was exactly how Gu Yue felt at this moment.
She had thought Tang Wulin was merely an ordinary young prodigy with slightly better talent, growing steadily through diligence and hard work.
Yet his talent as a nine-year-old Level Three Blacksmith, his level eight Saint Craftsman teacher, and his connection to God Craftsman Zhen Hua had laid beneath his feet a smooth road to godhood that was already destined.
Gu Yue lowered her gaze slightly, thoughts quietly racing through her mind.
If a promising future God Craftsman always stood on her side, he would provide immeasurable support for all her future plans and schemes.
Her ultimate goal was to take command of the Spirit Pagoda, gradually control the continent's balance of power, and pave the way for her grand plans to oppose the Divine Realm and revive the Dragon Clan. A God Craftsman was an exceedingly rare figure at the very pinnacle of the Douluo Continent, courted by every faction.
If Tang Wulin someday reached the rank of God Craftsman and became the only one in the world, then as the person closest to him, the one he trusted most, her status and influence would be utterly transformed. By then, every leading power on the continent-whether the Federation's sects, ancient families, or the various factions within the Spirit Pagoda-would all take the initiative to curry favor with her and offer their goodwill.
The once agonizing climb to the summit, thorny at every step, and her ambition to secure the position of Pagoda Master and control that vast organization would all become effortless, falling naturally into place with a God Craftsman standing behind her.
For her grand vengeance spanning ten thousand years and her people's long-cherished wish, this was an immense opportunity, an irreplaceable trump card.
At that thought, a helpless yet gentle sigh quietly rose in Gu Yue's heart.
Na'er, oh, Na'er.
Back then, in your innocent dependence and wholehearted trust, you unwittingly found yourself-and me, burdened with a destiny spanning ten thousand years-such an astonishing, uniquely blessed older brother.
Once the wind and rain outside had completely subsided and the world grew clear again, Gu Yuena gently said farewell to Tang Wulin and his parents, then left his home alone.
The door gently closed, leaving only Tang Ziran, Lang Yue, and Tang Wulin inside.
The couple, who had secretly eavesdropped for an entire day, instantly wore irrepressibly nosy smiles. Lang Yue looked at her son and teased him with smiling eyes. "Wulin, what do you think of that girl? She's sincere and pure-hearted. You mustn't bully her in the future."
Tang Wulin was utterly dumbfounded, unsure whether to laugh or cry. "Dad, Mom, what on earth are you talking about? She and I really are just classmates. It's nothing like what you're imagining!"
His expression grew a little more solemn, his eyes unusually earnest, and his voice rang with conviction. "I'm telling you both in all seriousness: neither now nor for some time to come will I consider romance. Right now, the most important things to me are cultivating diligently, studying hard, steadily building my foundation, and enriching myself."
It was not that he was too young to understand how to relax. He simply did not dare slacken for even a moment.
Carrying memories of two lives, he knew all too well that the Abyss Plane would one day launch a massive invasion of the Douluo Continent.
He vaguely remembered the original story's timeline. When the great war against the Abyss broke out, he had only been in his twenties and had not long since become a Titled Douluo.
Now, he was only nine, with his tenth birthday close at hand. Even by the most generous reckoning, he had fewer than twenty years to grow, become stronger, and build his reserves.
In fewer than twenty years, he had to grow from a mere level seventeen Soul Master into someone strong enough to withstand the Abyss's catastrophe and protect the people of the Douluo Continent.
With such mountain-like pressure weighing on his heart, how could he dare relax?
How could he dare live in comfort?
And how could he possibly sleep soundly?
The boy's every word rang firm, his gaze unwavering. His maturity and urgency, far beyond those of his peers, instantly stunned both Tang Ziran and Lang Yue.
The couple exchanged a glance, both unsure whether to laugh or cry. Lang Yue said helplessly, "Honestly, you child... if you don't find a girlfriend in the future, when will your father and I ever get to hold a grandson?"
The days quietly slipped by amid ordinary cultivation and study, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Several days passed in a flash, and the eagerly anticipated Class Promotion Tournament arrived on schedule.
Today was the day Class One and Class Five would face off.
Voices clamored inside and outside the arena, and the students talked incessantly.
"Hey, man, have you heard? Today's Class Promotion Tournament match is unbelievable! First-year Class Five was supposed to be the bottom-ranked class, but they beat Classes Four, Three, and Two in succession, winning three straight matches. They might actually beat Class One!"
"Stop dreaming! You have no idea how strong this year's Freshman Class One is. They're called the strongest freshman class in Eastsea Academy's history! They have three Two-Ring Soul Grandmasters, all with top-tier martial souls. Meanwhile, Class Five's three main fighters are all just One-Ring Soul Masters. The gap between them is enormous."
As the students argued, a group of teachers gathered beside the arena to watch.
Kong Hanwen, the homeroom teacher of first-year Class Four, kept scanning the crowd, clearly searching for Wu Changkong.
Beside him, Ye Yingrong, the homeroom teacher of Class Three, asked with a puzzled expression, "Teacher Kong, are you looking for someone?"
A mocking smile touched Kong Hanwen's lips. "I'm looking for that block of ice, Wu Changkong. He's always so full of himself. I'd like to see what gives the bottom-ranked class he trained the right to challenge Class One."
Ye Yingrong sighed softly. "Yes, this year's Class One is far too strong. Even the second-year teams struggle against them, let alone Class Five."
No sooner had they finished speaking than the noisy arena suddenly fell silent.
Kong Hanwen followed everyone's gaze. The crowd parted of its own accord, opening a path. Wu Changkong, his expression icy, walked steadily toward the competition platform at the head of his team. Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, and Xie Xie followed closely behind him.
With Class Five making its entrance, Class One naturally refused to be outdone.
Class One's homeroom teacher was none other than Ye Yingrong's sister, Ye Yingluo. She was twenty-seven or twenty-eight, her beauty even more radiant and striking than Ye Yingrong's. Behind her came Class One's group of gifted students.
The three boys at the front of the team radiated an imposing presence.
The boy on the left was tall and burly, his expression arrogant and overbearing;
The one in the middle had a powerful build and a composed expression, with a maturity far beyond his years;
The boy on the far right was gaunt, his frail frame little more than a skeleton. His eyes were dark and chilling, and the aura around him made others shudder. The students nearby instinctively kept their distance.
The two teams faced each other from opposite ends of the platform. The promotion final, watched by countless eager eyes, was about to begin.
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