\The next day, Flender awoke looking utterly drained, trembling as he sat up, his face worn and haggard. He looked around at the chaotic mess left behind in the bridal chamber—it was the aftermath of last night's intense battle.
Liu Erlong lay in bed, still flushed with a rosy hue and breathing steadily. She hadn't yet woken up.
Looking at Liu Erlong and thinking of Yu Xiaogang, Flender felt a pang of guilt in his heart. What had he done yesterday…? He'd ended up like this with Erlong...
"Sigh, I've really let Brother Xiaogang down."
Ashamed to face either Liu Erlong or Yu Xiaogang, Flender got shakily out of bed, left a note for Liu Erlong, and limped away in shame.
Not long after, Liu Erlong also woke up. She sat on the bed in a daze. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow on her lazy posture.
A strange sensation coursed through her body, and memories of last night came flooding back—what had she done?
Running a hand through her tousled hair, Liu Erlong's expression turned incredulous. Had she really... cheated on Xiaogang last night?
She got up and noticed a note left on the table. She picked it up and read Flender's message:
Erlong, what happened yesterday was because I lost control. I've wronged you—and even more so, Xiaogang. I don't know how to face either of you. I'm leaving. We both need some time to cool off. I hope that one day, the Golden Iron Triangle can be reunited again...
Reading this, Liu Erlong's face grew more complicated.
In truth, she didn't blame Flender for what happened last night. She had sobered up shortly after it began, realizing the man in bed wasn't Xiaogang.
But still, somehow, instead of consummating her wedding with Xiaogang, she had ended up with Flender, in Xiaogang's bridal chamber, all the way until the dead of night.
If anyone was at fault, it was her. She had shamelessly treated Flender as a stand-in for Xiaogang.
Thinking of this, Liu Erlong asked herself, "What's wrong with me?"
Guilt and a deep sense of betrayal surged in her heart. "I'm sorry, Xiaogang…"
Unable to face either Yu Xiaogang or Flender, Liu Erlong left too.
Thus, the Golden Iron Triangle parted ways. The next time they would meet, they'd be middle-aged and jaded—a greasy old man and a menopausal auntie.
God Realm, Eternal Divine Palace
"What a pathetic loser," Huo Yuhao commented with disdain as he watched the morning's events unfold. "Not surprising for a simp who pushed his woman into his brother's arms and even eagerly officiated their wedding!"
There were two main reasons why Liu Erlong had ever fallen for Yu Xiaogang: one was their Martial Soul Fusion Technique, the other was the mental influence of Qian Xuanji.
Qian Xuanji had mentally influenced Liu Erlong just to show Bibi Dong that Yu Xiaogang had quickly moved on after leaving her. Once that purpose was served, Qian Xuanji had lost interest in Liu Erlong, and his influence on her slowly faded over time.
So the real glue holding Liu Erlong to Yu Xiaogang was the Golden Iron Triangle's Martial Soul Fusion.
But everything changed last night.
Because Flender's bloodline had been altered by Huo Yuhao, the Golden Iron Triangle lost one of its corners. The trio's unique fusion technique was now history. Without it, Yu Xiaogang's hold over Liu Erlong and Flender would only continue to weaken.
Thus, a chain of events was set in motion.
Even Huo Yuhao hadn't expected what would happen between Flender and Liu Erlong. He hadn't modified their fusion technique just to benefit Flender, the simp. In Yuhao's design, Liu Erlong was the dominant one in the fusion, meaning Flender didn't go from being a simp for Xiaogang and Erlong—he became Erlong's simp directly.
But this didn't mean Liu Erlong would immediately fall in love with him.
What truly crowned Yu Xiaogang with that "green hat" (a metaphor for being cheated on) was his own series of suffocating actions afterward.
On their last night together, Yu Xiaogang lashed out harshly at both Flender and Liu Erlong, pushing them even further away from him.
Liu Erlong, distraught and drunk, made a terrible decision. She mistook Flender for Xiaogang and vented all her pain onto him. That was the moment when Yu Xiaogang was officially "cucked."
From then on, if Flender hadn't run away, he might have had a real shot with Liu Erlong. The fusion technique was gone, Qian Xuanji's influence had faded, and Flender might've had the chance for a simp's comeback.
But after one taste of meat, this simp didn't dare go for a second bite.
"You really had the chance, but you just couldn't step up," Huo Yuhao scoffed.
Eleven years passed on the Douluo Continent.
It seemed peaceful on the surface, but beneath that tranquility, dark currents surged.
Under Huo Qiqiang's leadership, the Body Sect had been developing in secret. The three great Body Martial Spirits had already advanced to Titled Douluo rank.
Back in their Spirit Sage days, each of them had contracted with a 100,000-year-old soul beast as a Soul Spirit, which provided them with two consecutive red soul rings.
Zhao Quan, with the Flame Body Martial Spirit, bonded with a tangible 200,000-year explosive magma dragon—a sub-dragon of the fire element that bathed in lava. This spirit granted him a martial soul avatar and precious domain soul skill, Magma Domain, as well as a devastating ninth soul skill:
Magma Meteor Shower (far more powerful than the White Tiger or Phoenix versions, capable of annihilating armies and rivaling Dugu Bo's city-level threat).
Xiao Zhi, with the Frost Body Martial Spirit, bonded with a 150,000-year Ice Giant soul spirit. It gave him a martial soul avatar, an eighth soul skill domain: Frozen Realm, and a powerful ninth soul skill: Glacial Freeze, a top-tier control skill.
Lu Yuan, with the Flash Body Martial Spirit, bonded with a 170,000-year-old Flash Unicorn. This spirit granted him the eighth soul skill: Radiant Domain, and the ninth soul skill: Photon Laser.
Zhao Quan specialized in Power Attack, reaching Level 93 Titled Douluo with the title Flame Body.
Xiao Zhi specialized in Control, reaching Level 92 Titled Douluo, titled Ice Body.
Lu Yuan specialized in Agility Attack, also reaching Level 93 Titled Douluo, titled Flash Spirit.
On top of that, with Huo Yuhao's alter ego—Fate Douluo Huo Qiqiang, a Level 98 Super Douluo—the Body Sect's strength now rivaled that of the Clear Sky Sect, the strongest on the continent.
Meanwhile, the development of Spirit Hall continued steadily. Out of sight of the Douluo Palace, titled Douluo of the Hall trained by condensing soul cores. The Xuan Tian Technique and other Tang Sect secret arts were becoming widespread in the Worship Hall.
In the lower realm, within the Tang Sect's plane—
Tang San, who had secretly learned the Tang Sect's forbidden arts, was finally exposed. The sect began hunting him down and chased him to the edge of a cliff.
In the end, Tang San chose to leap off the cliff, "proving his resolve through death." Just before falling, he threw out his self-made Buddha's Fury Tang Lotus and detonated it before jumping. (He chose death to showcase his value—yet wouldn't it have been better to demonstrate the full brilliance of Tang Sect's techniques and prove his worth to the sect? I believe the Tang Sect wouldn't have completely rejected him. But instead, this choice was like one final slap, leaving the sect to forever live in regret, remorseful that they failed to recognize his talent.)
"Haha, good, very good. As expected of the one I chose. The Tang Sect losing you is their loss," said the God of Asura, who intercepted Tang San's soul at the moment he was falling.
Tang San's soul turned into a ball of primal origin light, floating and flickering in the palm of the Asura God's hand. Turning toward the Douluo Continent's plane, Asura murmured, "Now that the vessel is ready, it is time to let Tang San reincarnate and enjoy the blessings and destiny gathered over ten thousand years on the Douluo Continent."
"But… that guy Eternity must not find out. Conveniently, today I managed to convince the God of Kindness to let me take over the central control of the God Realm." After a moment of thought, Asura gave an order: "Where is the Sea God?"
"Lord Asura, I am here," responded the Sea God, stepping forward.
Asura tossed Tang San's soul origin to him and said, "Take this soul down to the mortal realm. Guide him to possess the newborn child of Tang Hao. I will stay in the God Realm's core and use my authority to conceal this from fate." After speaking, he casually tossed the soul orb over.
"Yes, Lord Asura," the Sea God replied.
With the soul in hand, the Sea God turned and returned to his Sea God Palace, while Asura headed toward the core of the God Realm.
Tang Hao had been suspecting that something was wrong with his body.
He had been waiting for Tang San's birth for years, but Ah Yin's belly had shown no signs of pregnancy.
This pushed Tang Hao to the brink of madness—this child was crucial for achieving his ultimate goal of becoming the master of a plane and ensuring the Tang family's dominance over Douluo's future.
Fortunately, last year, Ah Yin finally became pregnant, which slightly eased Tang Hao's expression.
According to his calculations, this matched the time when Tang San was born in his previous life.
Tang San was about to be born. As he thought about the glories of his previous life, a light returned to Tang Hao's once hopeless eyes. A bright and promising future awaited him. (Of course, once Tang San becomes a god, he must be warned about Huo Yuhao—once that threat is eliminated, the Tang family will truly be secure.)
That night, with the cry of a newborn, Tang San was born.
Tang Hao picked up the child. At first, his feelings were mixed—he saw innocence and purity in the baby's face. For a moment, he wasn't sure whether this was truly the reincarnated Tang San or the original soul meant for his son.
But whether it was the former or the latter, the child would ultimately be overtaken by the reincarnated Tang San.
Still—
So what? As long as he bears my blood, he is my son.
"Hahaha! This is my son—Tang Hao's son!" he said joyfully while holding the newborn Tang San.
He gently placed Tang San in the crib and turned to the weakened Ah Yin. "Ah Yin, come look—this is our son."
"Get out—take him away. You already got what you wanted, didn't you?" Ah Yin said weakly, her voice filled with resentment.
"Ah Yin—" Tang Hao's eyes dimmed. Even sharing a child hadn't softened her hatred toward him. Damn you, Tang Xiao… what kind of poison did you put in her heart?
"No matter what, he's still your child." Tang Hao placed Tang San on the bed and walked out.
Though he left, his spiritual awareness remained in the room. He knew Ah Yin hated him, and he wanted to see if she would show maternal affection when left alone with the baby.
Ah Yin sat alone with Tang San for a long time. Eventually, the child began to cry.
She sat up, her eyes flashing with a cruel glint as she looked at the baby in the crib.
Having been with Tang Hao for so long, she might not have known he was aware of future events, but she did know this child was the reason behind all of Tang Hao's actions—betraying his brother, imprisoning her, and committing inhumane acts.
Her hatred surged as she thought of the tragedy this child had brought her. "This cursed child!"
She reached out to strangle Tang San. In the shadows, Tang Hao tensed, ready to act.
But suddenly, the baby reached out and grabbed her finger.
At that moment, all of Ah Yin's hatred seemed to vanish. The malice on her face turned to pain.
What am I doing? All of this… was Tang Hao's fault. This child had nothing to do with it. After all, he's a piece of my flesh and blood.
Ah Yin turned her head away, unwilling to look at Tang San any longer.
Tang Hao, who had been on edge, finally sat back. So, Tang San still has a place in her heart. But… she still hates me so deeply. Looks like what happened in the past life must happen again.
He recalled how, not long after Tang San's birth, they were discovered by Titled Douluos from the Spirit Hall, leading to a deadly pursuit and ultimately, Ah Yin's sacrifice.
Tang Hao clenched his fists. Two and a half years ago, he had already reached Rank 90—on the verge of becoming a Titled Douluo—but he had yet to add a spirit ring. Naturally, he had planned for it to come from Ah Yin. But as the man who loved her most, how could he bring himself to force her to sacrifice herself?
Spirit Hall, in this life… I still need you.
I need you to corner us, drive us to despair. Only then will Ah Yin be forced to sacrifice herself for me. I need the blood of your Pope and your Titled Douluos to forge my fame as the Clear Sky Douluo. Only through her sacrifice, and her future resurrection, will she become wholly and irrevocably mine.
But… will it go so smoothly this time? Tang Hao felt a tinge of doubt.
In his past life, Ah Yin loved him—her sacrifice was willing. But in this life, she hated him. Why would she choose to sacrifice herself?
He looked up at the ceiling, as if staring through it into the sky, toward the God Realm: The Asura God backing Little San should have arranged everything by now…
Clearly, Tang Hao had placed all his faith in the Asura God behind him.
That night, as Ah Yin and Tang San slept, thunder and rain lashed outside. Lightning illuminated the darkness from time to time.
Suddenly, in a flash of lightning, a shadow appeared outside the window.
The Sea God's divine sense entered the room, his gaze indifferent as he looked at the infant Tang San lying in the crib. Without hesitation, he extracted the soul origin of Tang San and forcefully inserted a different soul into his body.
The poor original Tang San, who had just arrived in this world, was immediately taken over.
"It's done. I've completed the task entrusted to me by Lord Asura," the Sea God said coldly. With that, he turned and left.
Had he lingered even a moment longer, he would've witnessed something that would have truly shocked him.
A spatial rift opened, and a high-quality soul fragment shot out from the crack. It flew straight toward Tang San and entered his body, starting to fight the previously implanted soul for dominance.
This soul fragment was of exceptionally high quality and quickly devoured the implanted soul, fully taking over Tang San's body.
In the span of a single night, little Tang San experienced being taken over twice.
Back in the Divine Realm, the Sea God reported to the Asura God, "Lord Asura, it's done."
The Asura God nodded in satisfaction. He then used the Divine Realm Core to observe the other five Divine Kings—Kindness, Evil, Life, Destruction, and Eternity. Seeing that none of them had noticed the abnormality, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Smuggling a soul from another world, possessing a body, and stealing the fate of a Plane's Chosen One were all serious violations of Divine Realm rules. Though in theory, the Asura God was a rule-maker, he still had to contend with five other Divine Kings. If they discovered such an underhanded act—especially that meddling Eternal God—it would spell disaster.
"They haven't noticed. Looks like using the Divine Core's authority to cover the Heavenly Secrets was the right move."
He opened his divine vision to check the lower realm. The infant Tang San lay quietly in his crib.
"Everything is progressing smoothly," the Asura God muttered. He then turned his gaze to Ah Yin, who was asleep nearby, and said coldly, "This soul beast has fulfilled her purpose. Now it's time for her to vacate the throne for our precious one."
Only one Blue Silver Emperor can exist on the continent. As long as Ah Yin lives, Tang San's second spirit can be at most a Blue Silver King. To fully maximize Tang San's potential, Ah Yin must die. It was an unavoidable step in the Asura God's plan.
He removed all cloaking on the whereabouts of Tang Hao and Ah Yin, then subtly influenced a roaming Titled Douluo Elder from the Spirit Hall to move toward their hidden location.
"Let Spirit Hall deliver this Hundred-thousand-year-old Blue Silver Emperor to her end. Without hardship, there can be no growth. With the vengeance of a mother's death as fuel, and Spirit Hall as your whetstone, my precious child, you'll grow even faster," the Asura God whispered to baby Tang San.
In the Temple of Eternity
Huo Yuhao, using his Eye of Eternity, peered into the River of Destiny. A part of it had recently been shrouded in mist.
He glanced toward the Divine Core and sneered. "Covering your ears while stealing a bell—do you really think I'm blind?"
Even without his past-life knowledge of the Douluo Continent, trying to obscure fate from the god most attuned to destiny was laughable. It was like showing off swordsmanship at Guan Yu's doorstep. Or perhaps the Divine Core gave you confidence that you could truly hide everything?
Huo Yuhao chose not to expose them immediately. He'd been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Cracking through the obscured fate, he saw clearly the location of Tang Hao, Ah Yin, and Tang San—everything was laid bare before his eyes.
Opening his divine vision, he watched the situation. Seeing the baby Tang San near the crib, Huo Yuhao smirked. "Little brat, I've waited hundreds of years for you (in Divine Realm time)."
He cloaked the Heavenly Secrets anew and activated a hidden divine thought embedded in the Douluo Continent.
That divine thought descended upon the secluded valley where Tang Hao and Ah Yin were hiding. Looking at the peacefully sleeping child, he muttered, "Bullying a freshly transmigrated brat isn't fun. Let big brother Hao spice things up."
He began reading the baby Tang San's memories—then paused.
Huo Yuhao was stunned.
Tang San had truly reincarnated?
Had Huo Yuhao had more time to examine the River of Destiny, he would've discovered this sooner. But everything had happened so suddenly that it caught even him off guard.
Back when Tang San was betrayed by Huo Yuhao—his divine artifacts and divinity shattered—somehow, a fragment of his soul managed to escape through time and space to this era of the Douluo Continent.
Similar to Electrolux's soul fragment, except Tang San's fragment didn't choose to hide and guide from the spiritual sea. Instead, it devoured the otherworldly Tang San outright and took over his body.
"Truly worthy of being you, Tang San… But honestly, that was to be expected," Huo Yuhao said with a sigh. Then his expression turned twisted. "I was planning to toy with a fake reincarnator, but that's not nearly as fun. And you—coming to this world right under my nose—ha ha haAHAHAHAHAHA…"
"This is just perfect!"
Huo Yuhao trembled with excitement, laughing maniacally. Once his emotions were vented, his gaze turned chilling as he looked at Tang San's soul.
"Your memories lack drama. Let me fix that. What's a love story without heartbreak?"
In their previous life, after Huo Yuhao's betrayal and destruction of Tang San's godhood, Xiao Wu's soul was destroyed along with the Asura divinity. Tang San's soul fragment escaped unnoticed, a fluke that even Huo Yuhao had missed.
But that wasn't dramatic enough.
Huo Yuhao raised a soul-surgical scalpel and extracted Tang San's soul, placing it on the operating table.
"The story goes like this," Huo Yuhao narrated as he worked. "You were betrayed, your godhood shattered. Xiao Wu's soul fled with yours. In the chaotic flow of time, her soul was gradually worn away to protect you. In the end, she disappeared forever after a tearful farewell. You, adrift in the temporal storm with only vengeance and love to sustain you, wandered for countless years until you arrived at the era where you first met Xiao Wu…"
Once the edits were complete, he shoved the "mosaic" soul back into Tang San's body and left.
Back in the Divine Realm, Huo Yuhao used the Eye of Eternity to observe Douluo Continent. He quickly noticed the Titled Douluo elder manipulated by the Asura God.
In an instant, Huo Yuhao grasped the entirety of Asura's plan.
It was nothing more than using Spirit Hall to eliminate the previous Blue Silver Emperor. Only by killing Ah Yin could Tang San become the sole candidate for the Blue Silver Emperor and gain the recognition of all Blue Silver Grass.
Ah Yin's death was inevitable. But Huo Yuhao, as the true director of the show, was not pleased with the assistant director Asura's script. So, he made some adjustments.
He also influenced the same Spirit Hall elder. Meanwhile, elsewhere on the continent, the pressure on the Clear Sky Sect to find Tang Hao had long diminished. Huo Yuhao subtly influenced a Titled Douluo from Clear Sky Sect as well.
"Tian Meng…" Huo Yuhao called.
"I'm here, Hao," Tian Meng stood at attention.
"I need you to make a trip to the lower realm." He pointed to a valley on the Douluo Continent map. "Lie in wait here until I give the signal."
"Understood, Hao-ge." Tian Meng departed via a dimensional gate.
Huo Yuhao then contacted Snow Empress and other allies, setting everything in motion.
"The curtain is rising," he said. "Let the show begin."