The teaching space of the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life.
The two God Kings gazed with satisfaction at Jing Shaoyu, who sat cross-legged in mid-air. Over the past year, they had witnessed his progress, and their expectations for him had grown ever higher.
Jing Shaoyu's eyes were closed, his mind immersed in his own Sea of Spirit. Pure spiritual energy filled the space, transforming into an endless, boundless ocean—this was the true Sea of Spirit! If manifested, Shaoyu's Sea of Spirit could easily replace half of Douluo Star without issue.
When his Soul Power broke through to the 91st rank, his spiritual power also advanced to the Divine Origin Realm. His spiritual awareness evolved into Divine Sense, and his Sea of Spirit solidified and expanded. His soul began its transformation into a Divine Soul, while a round, black-and-white pearl resembling the Taiji symbol quietly appeared above his Sea of Spirit.
The aura of this pearl was extraordinary—not only did it contain spiritual energy, but it also held Soul Power. More importantly, an esoteric rule-like force subtly intertwined these two energies, imbuing Shaoyu's Sea of Spirit with harmony and balance.
A rune representing origin and order emerged from within the pearl, revealing the true nature of this object that had manifested in Jing Shaoyu's Sea of Spirit.
Jing Shaoyu's third Soul Core—the Human Core, or rather, the Order Core!
The Order Core was formed from the fusion of Shaoyu's spiritual energy and Soul Power, while also incorporating the abilities of the Taiyi Treasure Jade and his spiritual domain. This allowed the Soul Core—a crucial piece in Shaoyu's plans—to successfully complete his Soul Core system, serving as the final keystone.
The Three Soul Cores of Heaven and Earth's Order!
When Jing Shaoyu condensed his first Soul Core, he had already envisioned his Soul Core system. Due to his unique experiences and identity—more precisely, the two diametrically opposed forces within him—he could not form a conventional Soul Core.
His first Soul Core was, in truth, the nexus of the Power of Creation and the laws of nature, while his second Soul Core was the core of the Power of Destruction and apocalyptic energy. In both nature and composition, these two Soul Cores were fundamentally incompatible opposites.
Thus, the third Soul Core became absolutely critical.
Jing Shaoyu's third Soul Core was formed from the fusion of spiritual energy and Soul Power. Ordinarily, such a Soul Core would never be capable of balancing the first and second Soul Cores. However, the inclusion of the Taiyi Treasure Jade immediately overturned this impossibility.
When his Divine Blood awakened, the Taiyi Treasure Jade had split in two—one half fused with his Battle Armor, while the other merged into his Sea of Spirit, granting his spiritual energy the properties of the Taiyi Treasure Jade.
As a supreme treasure bestowed upon the Planet Spirit by Douluo Star, the Taiyi Treasure Jade naturally embodied the rules of order and harmony, making it the most versatile balancing artifact on the planet.
After absorbing the Taiyi Treasure Jade, Jing Shaoyu's spiritual power immediately gained the attributes of order, simultaneously enabling the expansion of his spiritual domain.
Jing Shaoyu's spiritual domain was called the Taiyi Realm. Once the domain was activated, he could arbitrarily strip any one ability—be it Soul Power, spiritual power, vitality, Martial Soul, or bloodline—from all living beings within the domain. The stripped Soul Power, spiritual power, vitality, Martial Soul, or bloodline would then merge into the Taiyi Realm or be bestowed by Jing Shaoyu upon any other being within the same domain.
Just from the description alone, one could sense the terror and dominance of the Taiyi Realm. Unless a being's spiritual power, life level, or rank surpassed Jing Shaoyu's, any creature pulled into the Taiyi Realm would become nourishment for it, ultimately serving as stepping stones for Jing Shaoyu's advancement.
Of course, such an overbearing domain had its limitations. With Jing Shaoyu's current spiritual power at the Divine Origin Realm, he could use it only once on beings of the same spiritual level before requiring at least a month of recovery.
Perhaps, once Jing Shaoyu's cultivation reached a level where his spiritual power could envelop the entire Douluo Star, the Taiyi Realm would transform from an active domain skill into a passive one. By then, with the Domain of All Things Growth in his left hand controlling the proliferation of life, the Domain of All Things Decay in his right hand governing the harvest of death, and the Taiyi Realm overseeing everything above, he would truly be worthy of the title "Planet God."
The Domain of All Things Decay was the domain of his Doomsday Divine Spear Martial Soul, its effects diametrically opposed to the Domain of All Things Growth.
Because his mastery of the Law of Destruction had grown increasingly proficient, his Doomsday Divine Spear Martial Soul had awakened its domain prematurely, even before absorbing its seventh Soul Ring.
Jing Shaoyu's third Soul Core, the Order Core, possessed the power of order, hence its name. At the same time, it served as the foundation of his Soul Core system, so he also referred to it as the Root Core or the Human Core.
Now, with all three Soul Cores complete—the Heaven Core in his heart, the Earth Core in his dantian, and the Human Core in his sea of consciousness—the triad of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity stood united. Life, death, and order coexisted in harmony, independent yet interconnected, forming a stable and efficient energy circuit within Jing Shaoyu's body. This allowed him to wield all his abilities freely and without restraint.
Whether it was the Power of Creation, the Power of Destruction, natural laws, or calamitous forces, Jing Shaoyu could now use them all at will.
After consolidating his third Soul Core, Jing Shaoyu's breakthrough neared its end. His aura began to condense, his Soul Power fluctuations gradually stabilized, and his body, which had been suspended in midair, slowly descended until he finally landed on the ground. Seeing this, the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction immediately took a few steps forward.
Jing Shaoyu opened his eyes, two beams of sharp light flashing within them, bright and piercing. Joy welled up from the depths of his heart, spreading across his face. Titled Douluo—he had become a Titled Douluo! From awakening his Martial Soul at six years old to now, at the mere age of nineteen, he had completed the leap from Soul Master to Titled Douluo in just thirteen years. Such an achievement was likely unprecedented!
"Shaoyu, how do you feel?" The smiling face of the Goddess of Life came into view as she spoke. "I sense a trace of the time law's fluctuations on you. It seems the authority of the Planet Spirit has fully awakened within you!"
"Yes, I have indeed awakened the time law," Jing Shaoyu nodded, pondering. "Though it's only the basic time stasis for now. To control the cycle of day and night, I'll need to develop it further."
Time Stasis, a temporal law skill mastered by Jing Shaoyu, is, as the name suggests, the ability to halt time. It shares similarities with his Space Freeze skill—one freezes space, the other halts time. When combined, they become Spacetime Stasis.
This skill alone is a highly valuable ability to develop, given its temporal nature.
A perfected Time Stasis can freeze the time of one or more living beings at a specific moment. Their bodies will remain eternally still, but their souls will continue to age with the outside world until they perish, leaving behind a body still brimming with vitality.
Of course, the reverse is also possible—freezing the soul while allowing the body to wither and decay. This is arguably the cruelest fate, as the soul is forced to witness the entire process of its body's decay.
"Now, you are qualified to pursue the divine realm," the God of Destruction said with his usual sternness, gazing at Jing Shaoyu. "We have nothing left to teach you. What you must do next is independently comprehend the Law of Creation and the Law of Destruction. We are also preparing to leave."
"So soon?" Shaoyu was taken aback, looking between the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction. Though he had long known the two God Kings would depart, the reality of their imminent leave still surprised him.
"You learned too quickly!" the Goddess of Life sighed helplessly. "We have nothing left to impart. Staying any longer would only waste your time. A-Yu, your time now is precious!"
"Alright then," Shaoyu shrugged at her words. Being too talented was its own kind of trouble.
"Before we leave, there is one final matter you must decide for yourself," the God of Destruction said solemnly. "It concerns your future."
"My future?" Shaoyu looked puzzled.
"Indeed," the Goddess of Life added, her expression equally grave. "A-Yu, ascension to godhood is inevitable for you. What we are considering is your divine path. Though we have taught you both the Law of Creation and the Law of Destruction, it was to maintain a balance between the two and prevent their energies from spiraling out of control within you.
However, to advance further in the divine realm, you must choose your own path. Whether it is the Law of Creation or the Law of Destruction, either is sufficient to elevate you to the rank of God King.
So, we want to hear your thoughts."
"This…" Shaoyu fell silent. It was indeed a dilemma.
For cultivators, ascension is merely the first step into the God System. To truly establish oneself, it is necessary to forge one's own Divine Throne—otherwise, one would forever be overshadowed.
Shaoyu's current situation was such that, regardless of which law he chose to forge his Divine Throne—Creation or Destruction—the lowest outcome would be a high-tier Divinity, equivalent to a first-rank deity. If the energy coefficient of Douluo Star exceeded its current state during the forging, achieving the God King's throne was entirely possible.
After all, tens of thousands of years ago, Douluo Star had already been capable of supporting the birth of first-rank deities.
But having to choose between the two… it was too bitter a pill to swallow.
"...Mom, I want both," he said, voicing his true thoughts as he looked at the Goddess of Life.
The Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction exchanged a glance, their eyes revealing a hint of understanding. The God of Destruction spoke first, "You are greedy. Such greed is poison for those lacking talent, but for those with sufficient talent, it is nourishment. Jing Shaoyu, do you think you are the former or the latter?"
"Of course the latter!" Shaoyu answered without hesitation, confident in his own abilities.
"Hmm." The God of Destruction nodded slightly but offered no further comment. Instead, he said, "You should know that the four supreme laws—the Law of Creation, the Law of Life, the Law of Ruin, and the Law of Death—are both complementary and contradictory in pairs.
If you attempt to incorporate all four laws when condensing your Divine Throne, it may enhance its potential and upper limits, but how will you ensure its stability? The conflict between the Law of Life and the Law of Death alone could shatter your Divine Throne."
"But isn't the Law of Genesis and the Law of Destruction within me quite stable?" Shaoyu countered. "If I maintain this balance until I'm ready to condense my Divine Throne, then transfer them into it, wouldn't that work?"
"Hahaha!" The God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life couldn't help but laugh. Their reaction made it clear that Shaoyu's idea was far from realistic.
"Shaoyu, you're oversimplifying things," the Goddess of Life explained gently. "The reason the Law of Genesis and the Law of Destruction within you are stable is that they lack divinity, and your body possesses unique qualities. Once you condense a Divine Throne, they will immediately gain divinity and begin repelling each other, leading to conflict.
Unless you make your very body the Divine Throne, fully integrating the laws into yourself, the divine laws will lack equilibrium and be unable to overcome their mutual repulsion."
"Then what should I do?" Shaoyu asked, his expression troubled. "Given my circumstances, if I can't balance the Law of Genesis and the Law of Destruction, I'll be deeply unsatisfied!"
The God of Destruction glanced at the Goddess of Life, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips. "In that case, I have three proposals for you to consider."
"Please, tell me!" Shaoyu's eyes lit up with anticipation.
"First proposal: Use your own Law of Destruction as the foundation and fuse it with my Divine Throne of Destruction. Your Divinity will secure the highest seat of power. Then, condense the Law of Genesis into a high-tier Divine Throne. This way, you'll simultaneously possess a God King's Divine Throne and a first-tier Divine Throne," the God of Destruction explained.
"If you dislike violence, you could also fuse with Mother's Divine Throne of Life," the Goddess of Life quickly added. "A God King's Divine Throne of Genesis paired with a first-tier Divine Throne of Destruction might suit you better, Shaoyu."
To be honest, this first proposal took Shaoyu by surprise. He couldn't help but wonder if they had drawn inspiration from Tang San.
"Don't worry, this plan is entirely feasible," the Goddess of Life reassured him with a smile, noticing his silence. "Take Tang San from your Douluo Continent, for example. He simultaneously holds the God King's Divine Throne as the Asura God and the first-tier Divine Throne as Poseidon. The clear hierarchy between the two thrones minimizes conflict, though switching between them can be cumbersome."
"However, compared to him, your advantages are even more apparent, as you possess an exceptionally high compatibility with both the Law of Creation and the Law of Destruction."
"I'd like to hear the next two options," Jing Shaoyu said.
"Option two," the God of Destruction replied, unsurprised by Jing Shaoyu's choice, "is to use your mastery of the Law of Creation and the Law of Destruction as a foundation to simultaneously inherit both our Divine Thrones—the Goddess of Life's and mine."
Jing Shaoyu's eyes lit up, but he didn't rush to speak, as it was clear the God of Destruction hadn't finished.
"Simultaneously inheriting the Divine Thrones of two God Kings has no precedent in the universe as far as I know," the God of Destruction continued. "Whether the two thrones should be inherited at the same time or in sequence remains unknown."
"Our Divine Thrones both originate from the Creator God, sharing the same root and source," the Goddess of Life added. "There is a theoretical basis for inheriting both simultaneously, but we cannot be certain whether this might incur punishment from the Creator God."
"More importantly, we cannot determine whether your body and soul can withstand the burden of two thrones at once. Tang San, who inherited the Asura God and Poseidon thrones, still requires his wife to share part of the burden. The pressure from two thrones would be far more terrifying."
"I..." Jing Shaoyu sobered at these words and asked, "Then what is the third option?"
(End of Chapter)