Elf

After analyzing his two martial souls.

Jiang Dongjun turned his gaze toward the "golden disc," this unexpected stroke of fortune.

Delivering something that looks like a divine artifact fragment right to me—has the plane's consciousness noticed me already and started throwing its weight behind making me the Child of Fortune?

Jiang Dongjun joked inwardly.

In truth, Jiang Dongjun found the plane's consciousness and its methods rather exasperating.

Why did the Child of Fortune have to be decided at birth? Couldn't it spread the fortune around and hedge its bets?

People like Xu Tianran, Ju Zi, He Caitou, Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen, Ye Guyi, Dai Huabin, Long Aotian, and Snow Empress could all receive a share.

Let the heroes contend for the crown.

Only when one side subdued another could they devour the other's destiny.

No one could say who was merely clearing the way for the eventual king. The true Child of Fortune would only emerge at the very end.

Even if that third Tang fellow carried the Asura Demon Sword on his back and held the Sea God Trident in one hand, invincible throughout the Divine Realm and the mortal world, this situation would still give him more than he could handle, leaving him scorched and scrambling.

Perhaps he might even get to see Tang Wutong divided into nine portions.

Crude!

Far too crude!

The plane's consciousness had gone all in, only to raise an unfilial son for someone else.

Reining in his wandering thoughts.

Jiang Dongjun summoned the "Light of Time and Space" once more.

A hazy, pure radiance spilled down, seeking to see through the origins of the "golden disc."

Boom!

This time, the information that flooded back gave Jiang Dongjun the sensation of heaven collapsing and earth splitting apart. His consciousness was shaken blank in an instant, then dragged into an ancient battlefield.

The picture quality was simply too poor.

Countless blurry, terrifying figures fought in a chaotic melee, each radiating pressure like a hellish prison. Some were humanoid, others beastlike, but all were mythical beings. Most numerous were enormous dragons whose wings blotted out the sky and sun.

Dragon roars and battle cries rang endlessly in his ears, setting Jiang Dongjun's blood racing.

For some reason, he was fired up.

Really, it was all the fault of the fellow occupying most of his field of vision.

Jiang Dongjun suspected that fellow had gone mad. He was utterly frenzied, no longer distinguishing friend from foe.

He was a brilliant golden giant, powerfully built and magnificent, as though he were the most masculine being in the universe. His true appearance remained hidden, leaving only the blurred outline of his form: three eyes, six wings, and an enormous golden bow nearly as tall as he was.

His three eyes blazed like three stars in their prime.

Three pairs of insectlike membranous wings spread open, their markings forming a continuous, mysterious panorama of the sun, moon, and stars, splendid mountains and rivers, and the netherworld of the Nine Hells.

He drew the bow.

He gathered the sun's radiance into blazing golden arrows.

Amid terrifying bowstring cracks that sounded almost like planets exploding, he shot down gods and dragons, one after another.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Jiang Dongjun came back to his senses.

Pressing a hand to his chest, he steadied his emotions, gradually shaking free of that fervent, tragic mood.

"Heavens, it actually came from an elf? A fragment of the elves' supreme divine artifact?!"

"The god of the elves submitted to the Dragon God and joined the Dragon God Realm, only to meet his end at the God Star Ceremony-his bow broken, his life extinguished!"

The "golden disc" was a section of the Golden War Bow's limb that Jiang Dongjun had seen in those memories.

Now, beneath the penetrating illumination of the "Light of Time and Space," three blazing miniature stellar phantoms slowly rose from it.

Jiang Dongjun touched one with his finger, and an understanding welled up within him.

Touching them one by one, he learned what the three miniature stars were for.

"They need ten, a hundred, and a thousand drops of soul liquid to unlock what's inside... Could the God of Elves' legacy be in there?"

Jiang Dongjun's eyes burned with eagerness.

It was only ten drops of soul liquid. He could afford that.

Even a hundred drops might be worth gritting his teeth and taking a shot.

At worst, he could throw fair play aside and team up with his father to hunt down a Soul King-level Evil Soul Master, leaving the final blow to him. With the destiny and merit he gained, he would definitely have enough.

But if he went all in and the returns proved disappointing, things would get awkward.

Granted, whatever he ultimately obtained from the miniature star might genuinely be worth a hundred drops of soul liquid, but if it was completely incompatible with his path, wouldn't he be left staring helplessly at it?

For example, if the God of Elves' legacy really was inside, and his archery had reigned supreme throughout the Divine Realm, was Jiang Dongjun supposed to abandon his two martial souls, make a soul-guided longbow, and learn archery?

"I'll try ten drops first and test the waters. Even if it all goes down the drain, I can accept that."

Jiang Dongjun licked his slightly dry lips. Unable to contain himself, he took the small metal bottle of soul liquid out of his storage ring.

He had only just pulled out the stopper when his brows knitted, and he pushed it back in.

"No, I can't be this reckless."

"This is Shrek City, and the elf god wielded authority over the sun-light and fire. If I cause even the slightest disturbance, Mu En will definitely set his sights on me. He's quite skilled at moral blackmail, and I have impeccable roots, a bona fide 'Shrek man'..."

In his previous life, many fellow readers had said that among all the named characters in the Douluo series, Mu En and Wu Changkong were the only two whose characterization had never fallen apart.

Wu Changkong certainly had personal charisma. Aside from being blinded by love, he measured up in every respect.

As for Mu En, he simply received too little attention and exited too early. Later, during the soul beast tide's siege, his sacrifice to pave the way for Huo Yuhao's three soul cores had sent his reputation soaring again.

In reality, Mu En's characterization had already begun to crumble before his death, painting him as a womanizing, suspicious, ruthless leader adept at moral blackmail.

Jiang Dongjun considered that a very fair assessment of Mu En.

If he wanted to take a share of Shrek Academy's destiny in the future and steal that third Tang fellow's offerings to condense into soul liquid, dealing with Mu En would be unavoidable.

But Jiang Dongjun did not want to enter Mu En's sights too early.

Mu En was approaching the end of his lifespan, and Xuan Zi was less than fifty years younger than him.

Once Mu En died, if Xuan Zi failed to become a Limit Douluo, his own lifespan would soon run out. He would not last much longer.

The true next-generation successor, Yan Shaozhe, was narrow-minded, going against the true meaning of light. After reaching rank ninety-five, his cultivation could barely advance an inch;

The other three deans had martial souls with insufficient potential;

Zhang Lexuan was too young;

Ma Xiaotao was plagued by evil fire...

Shrek Academy had truly reached a point where the old crop was gone and the new had yet to ripen.

If a moment's carelessness now exposed this divine relic and caught Mu En's attention, he would either seize the opportunity and pass it to Yan Shaozhe or Ma Xiaotao, or keep Jiang Dongjun under constant watch and groom him as a successor.

Neither possibility was acceptable to Jiang Dongjun.

The former needed no explanation.

As for the latter-

Jiang Dongjun had discovered that, now restored, the "Light of Time and Space" seemed capable of taking him on another journey through the unknown.

He planned to try it once he had obtained his first soul ring, unlocked the first miniature star, and made sufficient preparations.

If he attracted Mu En's attention now and was watched too closely, he would have no room to maneuver.

Jiang Dongjun took a long look at the pure light hovering in midair, radiating its hazy glow.

He withdrew it into the depths of his mind, where it presided over his Sea of Consciousness.

Without the penetrating illumination of the "Light of Time and Space," the vision of three suns hanging above the "golden disc" dissipated, and it became utterly unremarkable once again.

Had he not witnessed that twilight of the gods with his own eyes, Jiang Dongjun would never have imagined it had come from the hand of a God of Elves.

After switching off the workshop's defensive arrays, which had been operating at full power, Jiang Dongjun walked outside.

The sky above the courtyard was already filled with stars.

Beside the stone table beneath the towering walnut tree, his father, Jiang Ming, held an Engraving Knife and worked on several cast blanks.

He was not engraving soul guidance arrays, merely shaping them.

Hearing the noise, he turned toward the workshop doorway and looked Jiang Dongjun up and down. He found no change in his son compared with before.

"You were in there for over two hours. Did you gain anything?"

Jiang Dongjun nodded. "A little."

Jiang Ming raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat unconvinced.

After all, none of Shrek Academy's Titled Douluos had uncovered its secrets or been able to use it. His son was not even a Soul Master yet-could he really have figured it out in just over two hours?

"Can you tell me about it?"

"I only found a clear direction. I didn't dare try it. This isn't a convenient place," Jiang Dongjun said vaguely.

Jiang Ming's expression shifted slightly as he caught the unspoken meaning.

"I'll take you to the Star Dou Great Forest tomorrow to hunt for a soul ring. Should we try your idea on the way first, or hunt for the soul ring first?"

"Let's experiment first. Maybe I'll gain something tremendous and get a shot at a thousand-year first ring?"

At those words, Jiang Ming frowned slightly and said with considerable displeasure:

"Dongjun, I must remind you again: unless it's a soul skill with a special mechanism, there isn't much difference between soul rings below ten thousand years.

"For eight-ring and nine-ring experts, thousand-year and hundred-year soul rings are all used to clear out small fry in the later stages. The boosts from enhancement-type soul skills will also be reduced to very low levels. Differences in early soul ring configurations won't create a significant gap in strength.

"Besides, a thousand-year first ring will put your life at risk. Even if you succeed, revealing it will attract unnecessary attention.

"A thousand-year first ring only requires consideration of your physique. In fact, many forces with deep foundations could achieve it if they gritted their teeth.

"For example, the imperial families of the Heavenly Soul Empire, Dou Ling Empire, and Star Luo Empire, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the Heavenly Dragon Sect, the Body Sect, Shrek Academy, and all the academies bearing the imperial name.

"But very few people do it, because the return simply isn't worth the cost.

"In short, pursuing a thousand-year first ring does more harm than good.

"Dongjun, I advise you to abandon the idea. Later, I can do everything in my power to help you aim for a thousand-year second ring, or even a ten-thousand-year fourth ring."

His father's long lecture left Jiang Dongjun reeling. He could only nod repeatedly and brush it off.

"Don't worry, Dad. I understand. I know what I'm doing."

Jiang Ming said no more and changed the subject.

"Have you decided what type of soul beast you want to hunt?"

"Uh, Dad, could you help me hunt a sun-type soul beast?"

Jiang Ming: "..."

You little brat, are you still half asleep? You're dreaming in broad daylight.