After a long while, Baili Du exhaled and retracted his two great martial souls.
Still lacking in strength... If only he possessed the power the Dragon God had back then, he wouldn't be in this state.
As a God King who had once been only a single step away from that realm, Baili Du naturally understood how arduous that final step was for a God King.
He scratched his head in annoyance. Could it be that I also need to cultivate all over again to reach the level of a Supreme God King?
To give up all this formidable power and start from scratch—that wasn't something to be said lightly; it required immense courage and perseverance.
He stood up and stretched his body.
It was a pity that the six-word battle armor Tang Wulin had helped him forge was shattered while resisting the Reincarnation Hurricane... Fortunately, the God Realm was full of resources; forging another set wouldn't be an issue.
I must prepare. That brat Tang San will not sit still; he will never be at peace unless he has everything completely under his control. Every bit of preparation is another bit of chance for victory.
With that thought, Baili Du flew toward a certain mineral-rich area of the God Realm with practiced ease.
...
After watching the Auspicious Beast and that human boy head home, Miss Gu Yuena continued her investigation of humanity within the Star Net Empire.
If nothing else, in Miss Gu Yuena's view, the implementation of human systems and policies was truly countless times stronger than that of the soul beasts.
Among soul beasts, the "law of the jungle" prevailed—whoever had the bigger fist could literally eat the other. But humans were different.
Although there were many outlaws, at the very least, the act of murdering ordinary people didn't happen right on the streets. Consequently, the human population base was far larger than that of soul beasts.
This is a point to note...
Thinking this, Miss Gu Yuena scribbled in her little notebook.
As the co-lord of soul beasts, she also needed to learn and progress.
And then there were the so-called armies, battle formations, soul tools... every single thing manifested a creativity and survival capability far exceeding that of soul beasts.
Especially soul tools. In the Mingdou Mountain Range, Miss Gu Yuena had thoroughly observed the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool fortifications, and she felt a deep chill in her heart.
She had watched with her own eyes as an elite Soul King scouting squad from the Star Net Empire was wiped out under the attack of seven or eight two-ring soul engineers...
Clearly, those humans controlling the "iron shells" were so weak, yet the attacks they unleashed were so powerful.
Miss Gu Yuena only felt a sense of sorrow. If they were to use a beast tide to attack the human world now, exactly how many corpses of soul beast subjects would it take to breach those defenses?
Even if the soul beasts of the Star Constellation Great Forest had been sublimated and blessed due to the evolution of the Auspicious Beast, could they really stand against these humans equipped with soul tools?
And even if she completely recovered her peak strength, could she wipe out humanity? There was still an unknown deity above her head, watching her like a tiger watching its prey.
As the personification of the Dragon God's wisdom and calm, Gu Yuena, who had been a bit proud due to the overall rise in Star Constellation's strength, immediately calmed down.
Study! She had to study!
Isn't there a human saying? "Learn from the barbarians' superior skills to control the barbarians." Since soul masters can use soul tools because they have soul power, why can't soul beasts?
This would be her research direction! Making soul beasts use soul tools!
But where could she learn?
According to her investigation, soul tools seemed to have been brought over from the Sun Moon Continent; therefore, logically, the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology was stronger than that of the Douluo Continent.
No... at least, she couldn't go there yet.
She knew nothing about the customs and culture of the Sun Moon Empire. Even if she transformed into a human, it was very likely she wouldn't be able to blend in due to various issues.
Kidnap a Class 9 soul engineer and search his soul?
That wouldn't work either. That's just seeing his memories; seeing it doesn't mean you've mastered it.
So... Gu Yuena instinctively thought of that boy, Huo Yuhao.
He seemed to have a lot of connections among humans. Should she go to his place too? She could also monitor those so-called soul spirits while she was at it.
But Gu Yuena quickly dismissed the thought herself.
It wasn't appropriate—at least not now. Besides, he was wearing her reverse scale; she could monitor his movements at any time.
She would continue to observe the human world first. If that boy really managed to make some waves regarding soul spirits, she would approach him then.
She remembered this was called... "waiting for the right price to sell."
I'm actually quite clever.
...
Three days later.
"So, this world is a fictional world, but the battles and cultivation experienced here will be reflected back to the person in real-time. Even dying doesn't matter; at most, you just lose some mental power."
Huo Yuhao shrugged. "I think that's what I mean."
Long Qiu'er's expression instantly dimmed. "...Has your human technology already progressed to this extent?"
If this world—which was so real it felt fake—was created by the so-called soul tool technology of the human world, then Long Qiu'er felt the future of soul beasts could truly only be dark.
Huo Yuhao sensed Long Qiu'er's worry and gave a slight twitch of his lips. "I don't think Miss Qiu'er needs to worry about that. I believe even if all the soul engineers of the Sun Moon Empire combined, they couldn't truly decipher the principles of the [Douluo World.] I'm currently the only one who can control it—though I only have a general understanding of how to use it."
Then, he thought for a moment and added, "As for my stance, Miss Qiu'er naturally knows it."
Long Qiu'er gave an "oh," then looked at Huo Yuhao in confusion. "Then why did you bring me here?"
"Uh... my uncle said I could bring trusted partners here to cultivate, fight, and so on. I can also bring them to participate in trials."
Trusted partners...
Glancing at the somewhat nervous Huo Yuhao, Long Qiu'er's expression didn't change, but an indescribable sweetness welled up in her heart.
"...So, let's have a match."
Long Qiu'er didn't hold back. Her Golden Dragon martial soul possessed her. Five pitch-black soul rings appeared accompanied by a sharp dragon roar, and the elements of "light" and "heat" rapidly intensified in the surroundings.
Huo Yuhao's pupils constricted. Is this a five-ring Soul King? So strong... The aura she gave off didn't even fall short of a Soul Saint or even a Soul Douluo!
Seeing Long Qiu'er raise her hand to attack, Huo Yuhao shrank his neck a bit. "Ah, ah... no, no. I didn't invite Miss Qiu'er into the 'Douluo World' to fight with her."
Long Qiu'er was stunned. "Then what for?"
In the general understanding of soul beasts, when two people are alone, it naturally means a one-on-one fight.
"No, no, no... how should I put it? If we were outside, it would likely cause unnecessary trouble. This is the only place I could think of."