Douluo God Realm, God Realm Committee.
Watching the figure of Baili Du leave without hesitation, the gentle smile on Sea God Tang San's face vanished like a quick-change clown, his expression darkening so much it looked as if it could drip water.
"Hehe..."
A laugh tinged with heavy mockery echoed faintly in his ears. Tang San froze for a moment, his fists instinctively clenching.
The sudden appearance of a deity with Half-step God King strength in the God Realm was naturally a great boon. Currently, the factions of the God Realm were locked in a frustrating balance; a powerhouse of that caliber would be a decisive force whether they joined the Conservative Faction led by Tang San or the Reformist Faction led by the God of Destruction.
Thus, Tang San had not hesitated to condescend and personally intervene, intending to bring the newcomer under his wing. However, this new "Holy Necromancer" gave him no face at all. Using the excuse that "my abilities lean toward the darkness attribute," he had joined the God of Destruction's camp instead.
Tang San was well aware of the nearly irreconcilable conflict between himself and the God of Destruction. To counter the Destruction God King—who sat backed by eight First-Class Gods—Tang San had spent years consolidating power. He had continuously courted the Seven Element Gods and other Main Gods like Rong Nianbing. Aside from the God of Time, who remained neutral, most of them held a favorable view of him.
Under his masterful acting, the other three God Kings—including the God of Destruction's own wife, the Goddess of Life—were also leaning toward his side.
If he could have truly recruited this Half-step God King, Tang San would have possessed enough legitimate strength and justification to launch a God War against the God of Destruction and seize total control of the God Realm.
But instead, the Holy Necromancer had not only rejected his recruitment but had mocked him to his face:
"I have indeed heard of the Sea God's great reputation. They say he is famously pure and noble, indifferent to fame and fortune."
"However, looking at the Sea God's actions, it seems they don't quite match the rumors..."
Tang San's voice grew low, his originally cerulean eyes turning a blood-red: "Holy Necromancer... I will remember this..."
He hated it most when people questioned his "purity and nobility"!
Did they not know the weight of "Pure and Noble Tang San"?!
...
"Holy Necromancer."
Hearing the voice, Baili Du turned around and bowed his head slightly in respect. "Your Excellency."
It was the tall, cloaked figure of the God of Destruction. Uncharacteristically, he pulled back his hood, revealing a young and handsome face.
This was a habit of the God of Destruction—he only showed his true face to those he considered his own. In his eyes, this was a form of mutual sincerity. His voice wasn't as cold or harsh as usual; in fact, it was quite warm. A powerhouse at the Half-step God King level deserved his respect.
"How is it? Are you getting used to life here in the God Realm these past few days? Is there anything you need my help with?"
Baili Du smiled slightly. "Of course. Thank you for your guidance, Your Excellency. These few days have truly shown me a different side of the world."
There wasn't much to say about "getting used to it"—he had actually lived in the God Realm longer than he had on the Douluo Continent in his past life.
Baili Du's respect was genuine. Only after becoming a subordinate of the God of Destruction did he truly understand why the Seven Deadly Sin Gods were so fiercely loyal to him.
Forget the basics like personally guiding subordinates through the environment and social circles; the God of Destruction literally took 30% of the faith power he gathered from the lower realms and distributed it to his followers for their cultivation. The resources and Immortal Qi he provided were double the standard quota for Main Gods!
He didn't feed you empty promises or "draw cakes" in the air; he gave real, tangible benefits. This was the primary reason why the combat power of the Seven Deadly Sin Gods generally eclipsed that of the Seven Element Gods.
For instance, upon their first meeting, the God of Destruction had gifted him a cup of Water of Life and a Destruction Stone (which could be crafted into a Divine Artifact) as a welcoming present. These came out of the God of Destruction's own pocket, not the God Realm Committee's public funds.
By contrast, Tang San... setting aside how much faith power he embezzled for himself, he had been stingy even with his own son-in-law. He'd withhold resources under the guise that "the Tang family must lead by example and set a standard."
If Baili Du hadn't maintained his own prestige and gathered faith on the Douluo Continent, he might not have even been able to face a single Sin God head-on during the Great God Realm War.
Compared to a stingy boss like Tang San, who wouldn't work themselves to death for a boss like Destruction?
Thinking of this, he still couldn't fathom why the God of Strength, Zhou Weiqing, would choose to betray the God of Destruction. As the God of Destruction had once asked: Was I not good to my subordinates?
Hearing Baili Du's praise, a trace of a smile appeared on the God of Destruction's face, his expression carrying a hint of pride. "Is that so? I won't brag about much else, but the beauty of our God Realm is certainly top-tier in the universe."
Baili Du kept the smile on his face. Compared to the hypocritical Tang San, he felt much more comfortable talking to the blunt, straightforward, and genuinely God-Realm-loving God of Destruction.
As they chatted idly, Baili Du's mind raced. He hadn't forgotten his objectives for coming to the Douluo God Realm:
Healing: Use the massive reserves of Immortal Qi to soothe the injuries caused by the Space-Time Turbulence and the Reincarnation Hurricane.
Resurrection: See if he could extract some Golden Dragon King bloodline from the imprisoned beast to use as material for reviving Qiu'er.
The Master Plan: Most importantly, provoke a conflict between Destruction and Tang San before Little Huo ascended.
While it was unrealistic to directly topple Tang San right now, he needed to at least wrest back control of the God Realm Hub.
He felt deep down that if the God of Destruction had completed the expansion of the God Realm earlier, neither the Space-Time Turbulence nor the Dragon King's Rebellion would have been such dire threats. Moreover, an expanded realm would provide a path to godhood for the geniuses across myriad worlds who currently died of old age due to a lack of available Divine Positions.
But before any of that, he needed a subtle way to make the God of Destruction realize that the God of Strength was suspicious.
Tang San was simply too cunning. Zhou Weiqing was a hidden time bomb; Tang San could trigger him to blow the God of Destruction to pieces whenever he wished.
In the original God Realm War, the Seven Deadly Sin Gods under Destruction should have had an overwhelming advantage over Tang San's original Shrek Seven Devils. The gap between First-Class and Second-Class Gods was massive—even the 8-ring Half-step God King fusion of himself and Tang Wutong shouldn't have been enough to bridge it.
Back then, if just two Sin Gods had pinned him down, victory would have belonged to Destruction.
Of course, that was hindsight—but it highlighted just how fatal the God of Strength's betrayal truly was.