"Impossible!!"
A panicked female voice sounded in Yun Ming's mind.
The Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud was one of their rarest trump cards—after being cut off from the divine realm, it was their last hope for communicating with Tang San…
Are there traitors in Shrek, leaking secrets?! Su Wen had come straight for the squad's most hidden relic.
If they lost this too… They would have only the golden tree and Ah Hao left.
"But if we don't trade, today will see another bloodbath at Shrek…," Yun Ming thought gloomily.
"That's the foundation of our rise!" Ah Yin's voice echoed, her spirit power agitated. It had been left as a final backup by Xiao San, after the Divine Realm was thrown into chaos.
"…"
Yun Ming's lips twitched.
Always talking of a Shrek resurgence, but Shrek and Tang Sect were battered siblings—there was no chance for a comeback.
And this man clearly already knew about the "Child of Destiny" Tang Wulin—he'd exposed their tightest plans as mere illusions.
"Wulin is the son of a god. He carries the blessings of divinity, and will lead mankind through darkness to victory," Ah Yin pronounced.
Yun Ming clenched his teeth.
"Mr. Su, could you… pick another price? The Sea God Pavilion has myriad treasures—pick anything you want except the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud."
Facing the white-clothed youth before him—clearly younger than himself and bearing a cultured air—he dared not slight him at all.
When the disparity in power is so great, fairness vanishes.
After all, if someone can kill you, what does it matter to you?
"Hoo…"
Su Wen sipped his tea, smiling slightly. "I'm no villain extorting beauty by force."
"In that case, send your Tang Wulin to me. That boy stands out—I see the makings of a once-in-an-age spirit master. I have a teacher's passion…"
"How about it?"
"…"
Silence gripped the Sea God Pavilion.
Yun Ming's Adam's apple bobbed. Clearly, Su Wen saw straight through their ancient "plan of ten thousand years"—he dismantled every trap.
He—still the strongest man on the continent—was completely lost, swept into the gods' squabbles, forced into alliances. He had no control.
"Absolutely not!!!"
Before Yun Ming could protest, a furious voice burst out from the golden tree.
At this point, there was no more hiding.
They'd already clashed in secret on the Spirit Ice Square, and the depth of power was clear.
Even if they lost, they were determined to drag Su Wen down with them; after all, an abyssal plane was nearby—at worst, mutual destruction.
Forget Douluo Star—let it burn.
Maybe, thousands of years from now, when the divine realm returned, their souls could be restored…
"You've gone too far!" Ah Yin, pressing down her rage, materialized in the golden tree's hall, regarded Su Wen coldly.
"So?"
Su Wen's smile faded as he remained seated across from Ah Yin.
A subtle contest of divine powers broke out.
Yun Ming's eyes flickered. He shot a glance at Yuanen Yehui, who was hiding behind Su Wen, and threw up a shield—gods fighting was dangerous collateral for mortals.
Yuanen Yehui watched it all, eyes sparkling. The last two days were surreal—latching onto a supreme power overnight. Even the Sea God Pavilion was being forced to beg for forgiveness.
So cool!
Really… so cool!
Ripples spread from the golden tree, making the whole academy tremble.
"That way… is someone robbing us?!!"
"Go check it out!"
"Where's the Pavilion Master?"
Su Wen didn't care about the chaos—he rose, power swelling.
Above the golden tree, the skies split into two glaring colors—blue and rainbow—no weaker than each other.
"The Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud I'll allow—but not Tang Wulin!"
No telling how long had passed.
Ah Yin's power suddenly diminished; she looked at Su Wen with a hint of surprise and complicated emotion. At last, she spoke.
"Heh. Of course."
Su Wen smiled.
He withdrew his aura.
"To be honest, I'm not interested in your so-called god-child. With just the Silver Dragon King, all you have is a single S-rank… no SSS possible."
Slowly boiling a frog alive.
Bit by bit, eroding their strength.
Now, he didn't have to be anxious. At his cultivation pace, two years at most and he'd be at Limit Douluo—then he could inherit the God of Time and Space position.
At that point, he'd rise, taking all his beasts to godhood.
His cultivation wasn't urgent, but his pet beasts were furious—eager to help him train.
He'd heard merging with Gu Yuena would accelerate his cultivation, so even Snow Empress had to wait outside and watch while the two "improved" together.
"This is the last time I compromise," Ah Yin snapped. "If you keep pushing, we'll fight! Fish die, net breaks!"
"Heh. The fish may die—but the net doesn't always break." Su Wen chuckled.
Then, turned away.
"Tang Hao—you and I are old acquaintances. Won't you come out and say hello?"
"…"
Ah Yin's lips parted.
She looked to her side—where a robust, bearded man in leather slowly appeared, sizing Su Wen up.
"So you really are from my era—not just any man, but a god." Tang Hao's eyes narrowed, dangerous intent flickering.
Yun Ming kept silence.
So it was true… Another fossil of an era revived?
Was resurrection trending lately? Should he check his own ancestry for such genes?
Wait—these were gods. Things just got wilder.
"Which deity are you? Give a name—my son Tang San is a Shura god now; he must know you." Tang Hao narrowed his eyes.
He was now certain.
This troublemaker wasn't just a god, but a leftover of the destruction faction, working with the Golden Dragon King, hiding on Douluo Star, waiting to ruin Tang San's grand plan for humanity.
The so-called Dragon God was just a remnant soul of the Golden Dragon King, who had left a wisp inside Douluo Star. That bit of consciousness had snagged the Dragon God's Heart and faked being a real god to scare them.
Tang Hao exhaled, finally rationalizing it all.
My son is Wisdom God, and I'm "Father of Wisdom." Seeing through these tricks is only right…
But he wouldn't say it aloud.
He stared down Su Wen, hands clasped behind his back.
You guys nearly got wiped out by my son—dream on if you think you'll threaten us again!
"Heh. I'm not a god—just a wanderer," Su Wen smiled.
"Hmph, and I agree with Ah Yin—that's my position as well!" Tang Hao glared.
"This is the last time."
He waved his hand, summoning a blue triangular metal that floated in his palm.
He shot a look at Su Wen, then tossed it over unwillingly.
"Heh…"
Su Wen caught it, inspecting the patterns and infusing it with spirit power. The dense Sea God energy satisfied him; he nodded.
"Genuine article."
"Tch!" Tang Hao scoffed.
"I still have credibility—not like certain others, rats in sewers… Disgraceful!"
Tang Hao finally straightened up, brimming with the pride of a "God King's Father" standing atop the moral high ground.
Yet, in the next instant, he froze.
The posture of arrogance faded from his face.
Because Su Wen's right hand now displayed another Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud—identical in blue triangular metal form.
Su Wen weighed one in each hand, grinning.
"Thanks for the gift, Brother Hao; I'll keep these."
"These things aren't of much use to me, but it's always nice to collect…"
"Co-collect?!"
Tang Hao's face twitched violently.
What the hell is this?!
A priceless divine relic, used to inherit the Sea God's power, is just… a collectible?!
Also…
There's a second one?
Xiao San never said so!
Tang Hao's expression flickered—his head spinning—were all his "deductions" wrong?
This guy was deep.
"Alright."
Su Wen clapped his hands.
He smiled at Tang Hao. "Well, until next time then…"
"Hopefully never…," Tang Hao muttered.
"Oh right, Ah Yin."
Su Wen suddenly turned, giving her a bright smile.
"You're as gentle and beautiful as ever."
"…"
The entire room fell silent.
Yun Ming immediately dropped his head, pretending to see nothing—internally freaking out: This drama is crazy!!
A classic love triangle?
Or… ancient gods-level… even crazier!
"Wait, what did you say!"
Tang Hao paused, rage flaring as he lunged to grab Su Wen—only to slam into an invisible barrier.
The golden tree's power.
Just like that—not just Tang Hao, but even Ah Yin and Yun Ming were stunned.
"Ah Yin, did you…" Tang Hao asked, a mix of shock and fury, looking at her.
"I—I don't know either…" Ah Yin nearly cried. "It just… happened…"
Yun Ming nearly laughed, but held back.
"It just happened…
Doesn't that mean…?"
"We're leaving."
Su Wen waved his hand, strolling out, his figure melting away in the golden tree's afterglow.
Just before he vanished, he even took a bit of the golden tree's blessing with him.
Tang Hao: "…"
"I—I really don't know what happened."
Ah Yin was beside herself.
"It's like my body wasn't under my control…"
"But… the golden tree is under your control, more than 90% of the time…" Tang Hao said quietly.
She had nearly absorbed all its power, so what did "can't control myself" mean?
"But I really…"
"Okay, I believe you. Ah Yin, I definitely do." Tang Hao took a deep breath, comforting himself.
After all, she's been through so much with me—she couldn't possibly do anything like that. She wouldn't, she wouldn't…
But after many minutes, he couldn't resist asking,
"In your pre-human form… you really didn't know him?"
Ah Yin: "…"
"Pffft—" Yun Ming finally burst out laughing.
Catching the two elders' killing glare, he choked it back, coughed, "Sorry—just thought of something funny. You two carry on…"
"No! Really no!" Ah Yin wailed in despair.
"Okay…"
Tang Hao was silent.
Minutes later.
"Really not?!!"
He finally had to ask again.
Ah Yin: "…"
Yun Ming: "Sorry, seniors, I've got… spirit beast business. Please excuse me a moment…"