The Goddess of Life walked up to the God of Food and the Nine-Colored Goddess, her voice softening. "Don't be afraid. This isn't the future shown in the heavenly screen. The Divine Punishment hasn't happened yet, and people haven't reached the point where they dare to blaspheme against gods."
"Besides, we'll change your appearances a little. As long as you don't reveal yourselves, no one will know who you are!"
She paused, then added, "Remember, no matter how badly you're treated, don't say you're gods. You saw what happened to those two in the heavenly screen."
The Goddess of Life's words were also meant for the God of Destruction and the other gods.
The Asura God and the others could be banished to the mortal realm, but their identities could not be revealed.
The God of Food and the Nine-Colored Goddess exchanged a glance, then nodded, their faces deathly pale.
"Then let's begin." The God of Destruction raised a hand, dark red Destruction Power coalescing into two divine seals. "Asura God, Sea God, God of Food, Nine-Colored Goddess: your godhoods and cultivation are to be sealed, and you are to be banished to the Douluo Continent at once."
Four beams of divine light descended at once.
The Asura God did not resist. His dark red divine armor peeled away piece by piece in the light, revealing the fitted black clothes beneath.
He closed his eyes, standing straight.
The light flashed, and he vanished.
Poseidon, the Sea God, still wanted to struggle, but the Destruction Power pinned him in place. He could only watch as his godhood was sealed layer by layer and his cultivation plummeted from the divine level.
He opened his mouth, but in the end, he said nothing. A beam of blue light wrapped around him and dragged him down.
The God of Food shielded the Nine-Colored Goddess, and the two held hands as they were swept away by divine light.
Qian Yuhan, the Angel God, and Ye Si, the Rakshasa God, stood where they were, watching the four streaks of light plunge toward the lower realm.
The corners of Qian Yuhan's mouth lifted slightly, her golden eyes full of satisfaction.
"Serves them right," she said softly.
Ye Si folded her arms, a faint smile appearing on her cold, beautiful face as a chilly light flickered in her purple eyes. "Asura God, your day has finally come. God of Law Enforcement? Heh, breaking the law while enforcing it makes the crime all the worse. Those were your own words."
"Should we send word to our believers in the lower realm...?" Qian Yuhan suddenly murmured, but cut herself off halfway and shook her head. "Forget it. Let's not provoke Divine Punishment."
Ye Si nodded as well. "That's right. We can just watch and laugh at them from up here!"
The two exchanged a glance, each seeing irrepressible glee at the others' misfortune in the other's eyes.
The Rakshasa God was delighted to see the Asura God banished.
The Angel God, meanwhile, was delighted to see the Sea God banished.
The other gods watched the direction in which the four streaks of light had vanished, their expressions varied.
The God of War clenched his fists and gritted his teeth without speaking.
The God of Speed sighed and shook his head.
"Enough." The God of Destruction lowered his hand and said in a deep voice, "Let's continue watching the heavenly screen. Angel God, Rakshasa God, we'll deal with your affairs after it's finished. If it proves that you also interfered with the lower realm, you won't escape punishment either."
"My conscience is clear," Qian Yuhan replied calmly, turning her gaze back to the heavenly screen showing the lower realm.
Ye Si said nothing, merely giving a cold laugh.
The Divine Realm Core fell quiet again, and the gods continued staring at the heavenly screen.
The future.
Morning sunlight shone in through the balcony and fell on Wu Wei's face.
He slowly opened his eyes, let out a breath of turbid Qi, and glanced down at his hands. He froze for a moment.
"Level one?"
Wu Wei blinked and sensed the Soul Power within him again, confirming that he had not been mistaken.
Level one.
In one night, he had cultivated from level zero to level one.
"That's a little fast..." He rubbed his chin, stood up, and stretched his limbs, analyzing it quickly in his head.
First, his current Soul Power cultivation method had undergone many iterations and was far more efficient than the basic meditation methods circulating on the continent.
Second, the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth had surged threefold, so his cultivation speed had naturally risen with the tide.
But even those two things together were not enough to explain gaining a level in one night.
Wu Wei paced two steps across the balcony, then suddenly stopped.
"That's right, Martial Souls!"
Wu Wei realized it.
It was his Martial Soul.
Every living being's cultivation level had been reset to zero. Their Soul Power, Soul Rings, Soul Bones, and Soul Skills were gone.
But their Martial Souls remained!
Everyone's Martial Soul was still inside them.
His Azure Dragon Martial Soul had not regressed into the Wind Spirit Snake it had once been.
"I'm cultivating all over again with a Soul Saint's Martial Soul. No wonder my cultivation speed is so fast!"
Wu Wei laughed.
This was even better. He would be able to cultivate back to his old level more quickly.
"The Divine Punishment of Equality for All Beings only pulled everyone's cultivation back to the same starting point."
"Whether they can catch up, and how fast, depends on their own abilities."
Wu Wei could not help chuckling, but then his smile faded, and his gaze darkened slightly.
"But in that case, those guys who were already powerful won't cultivate slowly either."
"Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue both have top-tier Martial Souls, and Tang San's Twin Martial Souls go without saying. Then there's that bunch from Shrek. Every one of them was a god or a Titled Douluo before, and their Martial Souls are all strong and of good quality."
"Even if they cultivate more slowly than I do, I doubt they'll be far behind."
"But it doesn't matter. Soul Rings are where the real gap opens up!"
"I've mastered Blood Essence Soul Rings and can devour Soul Beast flesh and blood to keep upgrading my Soul Rings. They can't."
"All they have are those white Soul Rings out there!"
Wu Wei worried only briefly before he soon started smiling again.
The reason his previous Soul Ring Configuration had been seven black and one red was that he had mastered Blood Essence Soul Rings.
Through his heaven-defying comprehension, he had developed a secret technique for devouring Soul Beast flesh and blood to upgrade his Soul Rings.
Wu Wei stretched, then walked into the room.
Inside, he saw Qian Yuhan and Ye Si sitting cross-legged on the bed, still cultivating.
Clearly, they had also gotten up to cultivate while Wu Wei was cultivating outside.
Wu Wei was not surprised to see it.
After he had bullied them, Qian Yuhan and Ye Si would surely have realized even more keenly how important strength was, and would surely want to raise their cultivation as soon as possible.
If he had not kept the two women serving him last night, they would surely have been ready to cultivate long ago.
Hum-
Seemingly sensing Wu Wei's approach, Qian Yuhan and Ye Si both awakened from their cultivation.
"As expected of the former Angel God and Rakshasa God!"
"In just one night, you've actually cultivated back to level one too!"
Seeing the two women wake up, Wu Wei immediately praised them with a smile.
"Too?"
"You're level one too?"
Hearing Wu Wei's words, Qian Yuhan's expression turned to one of shock.
"How is that possible?"
Ye Si's lips parted slightly as well, and she looked at Wu Wei in disbelief.
They were gods cultivating anew, which was why they had been able to gain a level in one night.
What gave a mere mortal like Wu Wei the ability to do the same?
"Nothing's impossible. If I didn't have that kind of ability, how would I dare take you as my maids?"
"And don't think you can escape me once you've recovered a little strength. If you dare run, I guarantee I'll make your photos and identities public."