"Do you know what the Dragon God's Nine Trials are?" Gu Yue asked.
"Aren't they nine trials you pass to finally inherit the Dragon God's divine seat?" Su Chen asked in confusion.
"Strictly speaking, no. This concerns a very ancient legend."
Gu Yue fell silent for a while, seemingly recalling the past, before finally saying, "The ancestor of the Dragon Tribe, the Dragon God, was born in the age of chaos, even before the Divine Realm's five supreme gods. With his uniquely blessed talent, the Dragon God raised his cultivation step by step. Through cultivation, he formed something between his brows. Later, five conscious beings were born from divine objects in the Divine Realm, such as the Tree of Life. Between their brows, too, was something similar to what the Dragon God possessed. The six of them eventually named this thing a divine seat. They called themselves the Dragon God, the Asura God, the God of Life, the God of Destruction, the God of Kindness, and the God of Evil."
"After those six gods were born, no other gods came into existence. Thus, the Dragon God, who possessed the powers of creation and destruction, took the lead in creating the Nine Great Dragon Kings, whose forms resembled his own. They were the Golden Dragon, the Mountain Dragon King, the Fire Elemental Sacred Dragon, the Ice (Water) Elemental Sacred Dragon, the Earth Elemental Sacred Dragon, the Wind Elemental Sacred Dragon, the Light and Darkness Elemental Sacred Dragons, and the Space Elemental Sacred Dragon. He then used the Nine Great Dragon Kings as models to create the vast Dragon Tribe. The nine dragon lineages interbred, and mutations appeared in their descendants. Thus, all manner of divine beasts bearing dragon bloodlines came into being."
"Seeing the Dragon God create all these living things, the God of Life also began creating plants, including plant-type soul beasts. As the Dragon God grew stronger by the day, the Asura God, the God of Life, the God of Destruction, the God of Kindness, and the God of Evil all demanded that humans from the lower realms be allowed to ascend to the Divine Realm and continue cultivating. The Dragon God agreed. He left an opening in the net, allowing humans whose cultivation had reached a certain level in the lower realms to enter the Divine Realm and continue cultivating.
"Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Asura God, the God of Life, the God of Evil, the God of Destruction, and the God of Kindness began expanding their own forces. Even so, the Dragon Tribe remained the most powerful race in the Divine Realm."
"However, humans cultivated very quickly, and some even reached the level of a First-Level God. After some years, the five supreme gods began to establish a firm foothold in the Divine Realm. At the time, many loyal subordinates advised the Dragon God that he could not allow the human gods to continue growing. Otherwise, they might well threaten his rule."
"The concept of war was quite hazy in the minds of the six supreme gods. One could even say it did not exist. The Dragon God did heed that advice at the time and reduced the number of humans from the lower realms who could ascend to godhood. The Divine Realm remained peaceful, and those humans continued to revere the Dragon God as their sovereign."
"Eventually, however, the Human Deities grew increasingly powerful. The six gods had underestimated one thing. The minds of these Human Deities who had ascended to the Divine Realm were tainted by desire. Within them lay the seeds of a belief that they could wage war for selfish ends and use violence to satisfy the many desires in their hearts."
"At first, the Divine Realm remained relatively peaceful. But with the Human Deities constantly sowing discord, even supreme gods such as the Asura God, the God of Evil, and the God of Destruction fell under the influence of these emotions. Thus, gods led by the Asura God, the God of Evil, and the God of Destruction began seeking to restrain the mightiest of them all, the Dragon God, along with the entire Dragon Tribe and all divine beasts. At that time, the God of Life and the God of Kindness had not yet been corrupted by these emotions, and they rejected the proposal made by the Asura God, the God of Evil, and the God of Destruction. In their eyes, divine beasts possessed intelligence and were complete living beings with kindness in their hearts. Fundamentally, they were no different from humans."
"But as time passed, these negative emotions, overlooked by the six supreme gods, accumulated in the Divine Realm. Among the Human Deities, more and more began following the God of Evil and the God of Destruction. Seeing that they could not achieve their goal, some gods began stirring up friction between humans and divine beasts. Even then, the Dragon God, the God of Life, and the God of Kindness remained careless, paying little attention to these minor clashes."
"As time passed, the Divine Realm continually expanded into the void. The Dragon God, who was responsible for keeping the Divine Realm stable, finally discovered a strange mass of energy affecting the entire realm. Whenever a human god ascended, this strange energy in the Divine Realm increased a little. It made the Asura God, the God of Destruction, and the God of Evil stronger while subtly influencing their thoughts. In their hearts, the seeds of a belief in satisfying their desires through violence had already been planted. Once those seeds sprouted, disaster would befall the Divine Realm. Thus, for the sake of the Divine Realm, the Dragon God used his divine powers to swallow all this negative emotional energy into his divine consciousness."
"After swallowing this negative emotional energy, the Dragon God himself began developing negative emotions. His power of origin came from the chaotic energy present at creation. As long as he continued to regulate himself and recuperate, he would be able to purify this energy."
"But at this very critical moment, the friction between the divine beasts and the gods represented by the God of Destruction grew increasingly intense. The divine beasts who had helped the Dragon God keep the Divine Realm stable also began developing problems within their divine consciousness. Thus, war between humans and divine beasts was ready to ignite at the slightest spark."
"The Human Deities were no match whatsoever for the divine beasts or the Dragon Tribe. Yet at that moment, the Nine Great Dragon Kings, and especially the Dragon God, were all at a critical juncture. Moreover, serious internal problems had begun emerging among the divine beasts who had once worked to stabilize the Divine Realm. Without waiting for the Dragon God's approval, they began striking back at the Human Deities. Thus, an unprecedented war erupted in the Divine Realm! Unaware of the truth, the God of Life and the God of Kindness helped the Asura God, the God of Evil, and the God of Destruction join forces against the Dragon God. Seizing an opening, the Asura God cleaved the Dragon God's body apart with a single sword strike. The divine beasts suffered a crushing defeat, the Dragon Tribe fell into decline, and the Divine Realm itself was grievously wounded."
"The Divine Realm's aura leaked out. With vast numbers of divine beasts dead, the escaping aura of their bloodlines drifted to a planet called Douluo Star. This caused the ordinary animals on that planet to evolve, and the humans evolved as well. Soul beasts and soul masters, rare throughout the universe, came into existence!"
When Gu Yue finished speaking, she chose to remain silent. Su Chen needed some time to absorb such a vast amount of knowledge.
Su Chen inwardly clicked his tongue in wonder. He had never imagined that there was yet another version of the Divine Realm's history. The version Gu Yue had recounted differed greatly from the two he knew, with only a few similarities. The ending was the same in all of them: the Dragon God fell, and the Divine Realm entered an age ruled by the Human Deities. The difference was that Gu Yue's version cast the Dragon God and the divine beasts as decidedly righteous.
"Do you mean that there were originally no gods in the Divine Realm, and that every god attained godhood through cultivation?" Su Chen asked.
Before you continue