Ten thousand years ago.
"The second soul core…"
Shrek Academy.
Sea God Pavilion.
Within the ancient golden tree.
Su Wen sat cross-legged on the ground, lost in thought.
The first soul core was transformed from the golden Pill produced by his "Spirit Pellet Technique," infused with the Ice Dragon King's Dragon Pill and the "Life Gold" from the depths of the Azure Luan Spirit Ball's lake. Although golden in hue, its attribute leaned towards water—gentle and mild.
As for the complementing yin-yang dual soul cores, that's the path taken by powerhouses of the Douluo Plane—such as Huo Hang and Di Tian—and their resonance ceiling isn't as high as the first method.
Anyone in their right mind knows which to pick.
But the first approach is also far more challenging: condensing a soul core ahead of time means calling on immense power—a whole dragon core plus a piece of Life Gold—which sets the bar at an unprecedented height.
Forging a second yin-yang dual soul core… is no less tough than ascending to godhood.
Of course, the rewards for success are also staggering.
Right now, Su Wen's advancement speed for his first martial spirit had gone from leveling up every few months to half a year a level. His once-rapid leveling advantage had been worn away.
But when he completes his second soul core and breaks through to Title Douluo, his cultivation speed will soar again, and his battle power will skyrocket still further.
Though, for now, that difference won't be obvious.
Only after he advances to godhood will the change be truly revealed. After all, his current opponents are all at the divine level. Once a soul beast achieves a million years of cultivation, they hit a bottleneck—a gate that feels absolutely insurmountable, even compared to gods.
Of course, calling him the number one below God would be right on the mark.
"But if I want to forge that second soul core, the key issue right now is…" Su Wen froze.
Wait, don't I need to capture another spirit ball first?!
Hiss…
Had I known earlier, I wouldn't have traveled back ten thousand years—I'd have just forcibly captured the Crimson Mother first. But that one dared to march alone onto the Douluo Star, so she must have had some tricks up her sleeve. The original story barely described her, and if I scared her off and lost out, it'd be a waste.
Su Wen sighed faintly.
Forget it, I'm here already, so…
"Di Tian, then."
Su Wen murmured.
"Alrighty!"
A voice echoed in his Sea of Spirit.
Gu Yuena closed her multicolored eyes, as if sending some signal deep into the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Got your ticket, hurry up and come!"
"OH HO HO HO!!!"
In the shocked gazes of countless Shrek Academy disciples, a gigantic black dragon soared into the sky from deep within the core of the Star Dou Great Forest, rushing toward them in a blaze of lightning and fire. Thunderclouds churned. Thunder roared.
Even the elders of Shrek Academy were all utterly baffled.
Elder Lin: "Shaozhe, what's with Di Tian?"
Yan Shaozhe, face blank: "I have no idea…"
Elder Zhuang, displeased: "Little Yan, aren't you usually always around Xiao Wen? You deliver all the crucial news—how could you not know?"
Yan Shaozhe twitched: "…."
Su Wen's secretary is Na Na!
I'm the Dean of the Martial Spirit Department! DEAN!
So why does everyone see me as Su Wen's secretary these days…
"Exactly, Shaozhe. You're the dean of the Martial Spirit Department, yet you're not even connected to the Pavilion Master's news? It's a dereliction of your duty."
Even Mu En's figure slowly appeared, stroking his beard as he joined the crowd of elders with a smile.
Yan Shaozhe: "..."
Teacher, don't you have any dignity left from being the former Sea God Pavilion Master?!
Since stepping down, it feels like you've grown decades younger, your mood lighter. In the past, you seemed gentle, but you were always under heavy pressure…
"Alas, I pressed through all the elders just to force you to continue as Martial Spirit Dean—I've already done a lot, Shaozhe. Don't let me down," Mu En's voice floated into his mind.
In an instant, Yan Shaozhe's feelings of gratitude vanished.
His emotions were a mix:
He was touched that even when his background as Ye Xishui's descendant was revealed, no one in the academy shunned him. Even his old rival, Xian Lin'er, spoke more gently now, with a bit of sympathy in her eyes.
He'd thought for a long time about asking Su Wen to let him resign as dean, but Su Wen had just scoffed in surprise: "You're not an evil spirit master, so what's it to you?"
The problem was, his teacher used this as an excuse to dump all the hard work on him and loaf off to enjoy life.
Touching, yes.
But this… honestly, teacher, do you even care?
"Hehe, it's fine. Everyone disperse." Mu En's gaze was deep as he watched Di Tian approach in the distance and shook his head. "He's here for Xiao Wen."
"Besides, with Xiao Wen's current strength, he could easily suppress Di Tian. Don't forget—even the Silver Dragon King was recently captured into his spirit ball."
"That's true…" Elder Zhuang nodded slightly.
The academy was flourishing.
And ever since the Spirit Ball Master Hall was founded and piloted in Shrek City, it had spread like wildfire across the continent. It wouldn't be long before the entire continent was swept up in the trend.
Even the Sun Moon Empire's "Artificial Soul Ring" project would probably find it hard to gain the upper hand.
The only thing that worried him was Su Wen's overwhelming dominance.
Putting Shrek Academy on top, overlooking all other forces, was the dream of generations of Shrek's powerhouses.
But bound by the academy's identity, they'd always hesitated, refused to unify the continent as Spirit Hall had done ten thousand years ago, never daring to claim absolute power.
Now, Su Wen had shattered those old restrictions.
He displayed his ambition—and the terrifying strength to match it.
Now, even Elder Mu might be a tier or two below him.
Shrek Academy, double limits awakened.
Only recently, the peak forces of the Holy Spirit Church were wiped out.
Truly—a future worth looking forward to.
Now, even Di Tian is being drawn in. The Star Dou Great Forest's forces are sure to be subsumed too.
Our Shrek—why should we ever fear not achieving greatness?!
Elder Lin nodded slightly, a broad, barely suppressed smile on his face.
"I could tell since he was a kid he was destined for greatness…"
Inside the golden treehouse.
Di Tian, clad in a black robe and radiating nobility, once ruler of the Star Dou Great Forest, now looked utterly excited, rubbing his hands together as he gazed at the cross-legged Su Wen with longing.
He'd waited so long.
Ever since so many soul beasts had ascended, becoming million-year behemoths, each surpassing him, his anxiety had only grown.
Finally! Finally, it was his turn!
Di Tian half-knelt, his gaze sincere and worshipful. Glancing over at Gu Yuena sitting on the golden bed, he shot her a grateful look—what a benevolent master, always looking out for his subordinates…
"Not much else to say—I promised you all long ago." Su Wen offered a faint smile.
As for the other Star Dou Great Forest fierce beasts, they'd have to wait. Most had already found alternatives (Jin, Azure Luan, Ah Yin…), unless they'd signed a contract right at the very beginning—otherwise...
Only after all the greater soul beasts were caught would it be worth considering them.
That said, he wasn't actually hard up for space yet—just that some monsters had priority, like the Golden Lion Mastiff, Crimson Mother, etc. But there'd still be room later.
"Di Tian!"
Su Wen tossed out a gleaming golden spirit ball.
This spirit ball could capture any soul beast of any age—no limitations. Even the Dragon God in their prime could be stored within.
And another identical golden spirit ball was slated for the Crimson Mother…
"ROAR!!!"
Di Tian let out an excited dragon cry.
His enormous black dragon body expanded, enveloped in a pillar of gold light shooting straight to the heavens.
Not far away.
A great ship drifted across the Sea God Lake.
A number of elders watched the drama unfold without much surprise. In recent years, scenes like this had become oddly common.
Big commotion every few days.
"Such a display… Might as well punch a hole in the God Realm." Elder Zhuang seemed slightly worried.
"Are you sure this won't attract disaster?"
"What is there to fear?" Mu En put his hands behind his back, face calm. "Of Shrek's seven Founders, all reside in the God Realm. Ancestor Tang San even inherited the Asura God's position and is a law enforcer there. If he saw this, I'm sure he'd be delighted."
"How could it bring disaster?"
"That's true." Elder Zhuang grinned again.
Inner courtyard of Shrek.
A number of disciples wiped sweat from their brows after training in the Evil Spirit Master Simulator, looking toward the heart of Sea God Island.
"How many times this year is it now?" Xiao Xiao stuck out her tongue. "At this rate, I bet the Pavilion Master will ascend to godhood any day."
"If Big Boss becomes a god, I'm latching on for dear life," Xie Huanyue joked, chomping on a chicken leg with a silly grin.
"Sister Nannan, can you tell me about the Pavilion Master's past?" Bai Bai's eyes sparkled as she snuggled close to Jiang Nannan, acting sweet.
"As for him…" Jiang Nannan's beautiful eyes twinkled, lost in memory.
"Young Miss, let's go see that guy tomorrow!" Wu Feng declared. "He promised equal benefits to everyone, but he's been cooped up inside the golden treehouse for months now, not coming out at all!"
"Won't we be bothering him?" Ning Tian hesitated.
"Big Sister, you're his marriage partner!" Wu Feng lost her mind. "You could just drag him off to the wedding chamber and it'd be fine!"
"Really, for real?" Ning Tian swallowed nervously.
"Just take me with you, hehe." Wu Feng giggled.
"You just want to see him," Ning Tian smacked the girl's head, then sat on the grass. Wu Feng flopped down beside her, now totally poised and eye-catching with her high ponytail and fiery red hair—a total tomboy beauty.
Though still a little short compared to Ma Xiaotao, the best figure in the inner courtyard.
"Miss~"
Wu Feng clung to Ning Tian's arm, playing cute.
"Fine, fine…" Ning Tian couldn't resist, sighing lightly, but a hint of anticipation flashed in her eyes.
Right—as Shrek's number one investor, she had to leverage her position! (smug)
Meanwhile, in the outer courtyard, plenty of disciples were glued to the windows, pointing at the projection screen—but after six months of these dramas, they were nearly immune.
Such spectacle—really, only Senior Su Wen could pull this off.
[Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King] → [Dark Prison Dragon Guard] → [Dragon God Guard Captain] → [Doomsday Black Dragon]
The golden pillar in the sky slowly faded.
Di Tian's new form appeared.
His once-dark body was now cloaked in flowing dark-gold flames, with a glimmering gold Dragon God banner upon his back.
His gaze was filled with excitement and passion.
This pure bloodline evolution was something no treasure could match—he could see the hope of regaining his former peak.
The hope of the dragon clan.
"Looks like evolution… is tied to one's heart and mind?" Su Wen was intrigued.
Rather than evolving to suit his own traits, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King had instead evolved in line with his "duty."
Old Di Tian really was the most loyal to the Dragon God—bar none.
Skipping the detailed stats for now.
Su Wen eyed the skills on the panel:
[Skill: Oath of Doom (Heaven-level Blue)]
Burns his own blood essence to activate the Dragon God Domain. All soul beasts within the domain gain "Dragon God's Blessing" (immune to all attacks below god-level for 30 seconds);
Di Tian loses 1% health per second, and if his HP drops below 20% when the domain ends, his level permanently drops.
Dragon Remains Bulwark (Heaven-level Blue):
Sacrifice 30% of his current health to grant all allies a "Dragon Remains Shield" (value = 50% of Di Tian's max HP).
Echoing Blessing (Heaven-level):
While the shield lasts, enemies attacking it suffer Black Dragon blood backlash (damage = 200% of Di Tian's defense).
Select an ally to revert them (health/soul power) to their state 5 seconds ago and purge all debuffs.
Cost: Di Tian takes double all damage that ally took during the 5 seconds reverted.
In short: burn everything.
The ultimate tank-support—no question.
Of course, Di Tian would probably only cast these on the two Dragon Gods and himself...
It's said to offer team support, but the selection is extremely narrow.
...