"No, the God Realm shouldn't be so simple."
Xu Yuan only had a suspicion and quickly dismissed his own idea.
If a single Stellar (Celestial) Phenomena could evolve into a God Realm, then the God Realms in this universe wouldn't be so rare.
He had learned from the nine Dragon Kings that the God Realm wasn't just limited to the Douluo God Realm. In the vast universe, there were many God Realms—paths of continued cultivation explored by powerful beings close to the level of God Kings.
According to the Dragon Kings, only within a God Realm could one achieve the status of a God King.
Without the support of a God Realm, even if someone somehow managed to break through to level 150 and reach a level comparable to a God King, they would soon suffer backlash.
The nine Dragon Kings seemed to have seen much during their lifetimes.
Regarding this, Xu Yuan didn't find it surprising.
In the world of dragons, bloodline was a key factor in determining status. They were all Dragon Kings but not among the strongest few. Thus, they enjoyed the status of Dragon Kings without the pressures faced by the nine strongest Dragon Kings at the God King level.
To put it simply, they were like second-generation rich heirs who could enjoy the perks of being Dragon Kings—traveling the universe and gaining knowledge about many things was normal for them.
But their knowledge was only superficial.
When it came to specific principles, their understanding became vague.
At this moment, within the dream space, when Xu Yuan questioned the nine Dragon Kings, they couldn't provide answers.
"Is the God Realm created, or is it a special existence discovered and developed by some strong individuals?"
Xu Yuan's question left the nine Dragon Kings bewildered.
In their understanding, the Dragon God was the creator of everything—at least, the predecessor of the Douluo God Realm was opened by the Dragon God. Later, the Dragon God led more than ten God Kings to develop the realm, achieving the glory of the Divine Dragon Domain.
Thus, regarding the possibility that the God Realm might evolve from a Stellar Phenomenon, they couldn't provide an answer.
"The Stellar Phenomenon is rare in the universe, but not to the point of being unseen. As we know, there are many strong individuals trapped just before the God King level, and their various powers often involve abilities nurtured by special areas like the Stellar Phenomenon. So, encountering a Stellar Phenomenon isn't too difficult for them. If the Stellar Phenomenon were key to evolving a God Realm, they wouldn't be at a loss for direction."
The creation of a God Realm couldn't be as simple as the evolution of a Stellar Phenomenon.
"This Stellar Phenomenon evolved from your original dream space is indeed special, but not to the extent of having a unique connection to the God Realm. Your judgment is based on energy compression, but you must understand that the endpoint of energy compression isn't Divine Energy." The Light Dragon King said gravely.
His insights were deeper.
Among the nine Dragon Kings, the Light Dragon King understood high-level abilities the most.
"Oh?" Xu Yuan looked at the Light Dragon King, his curiosity piqued.
This Light Dragon King seemed to have some understanding of Divine Energy.
"I don't know much, but I know that Divine Energy is definitely not the result of energy compression," the Light Dragon King said.
The Mountain Dragon King also spoke: "The power of many god-level beings in the stars is fundamentally higher than Divine Energy, yet they lack many characteristics of Divine Energy. The birth of Divine Energy involves more layers, possibly related to the birth of the God Realm. These are beyond our knowledge."
"Since Divine Energy can't evolve, what will happen after energy is highly compressed?" Xu Yuan narrowed his eyes, becoming interested in the future evolution of this Stellar Phenomenon he had created.
"Special substances might be born, or special forces, such as the Crimson Gold Mysterious Flame I mentioned earlier, or the intense compression of energy might cause spatial anomalies," the Light Dragon King said.
As he spoke, the Light Dragon King's expression slightly changed.
Xu Yuan was reminded by the last part of what the Light Dragon King said.
"The spatial elements within this Stellar Phenomenon is very sensitive, different from other Stellar Phenomena we know. This is another characteristic of this phenomenon," the Light Dragon King said.
"So, the fluctuation of these already sensitive spatial elements caused by high energy compression will create what?" Xu Yuan narrowed his eyes.
"We don't know. It's hard to say what spatial anomalies will lead to," the Light Dragon King replied bluntly.
Although he said that, he still gave a likely guess.
"Perhaps the greatest possibility is the evolution into a spatial channel—not the spatial channel between Douluo Star and the Abyss, but a completely cross-space gap channel."
A wormhole?
The Light Dragon King's description sounded very much like a wormhole.
Connecting one end of the universe to the other.
"These aren't directions you need to consider for now. Even though the spatial elements here are sensitive, the energy concentration required to cause spatial anomalies and form a long-distance spatial channel is very high, not something achievable in a short time. Before that, consider what good things can be nurtured here with such dense energy concentration."
Xu Yuan's thoughts were pulled back, and he nodded.
Nothing else mattered; getting all the benefits of the Stellar Phenomenon was the most important.
---
Shrek City.
Sea God Island.
"Being threatened by the God-Slaying Missile and being stuck in Shrek isn't a solution. Since it feels like the opportunity has arrived, go ahead. The exchange program has already started. The Spirit Pagoda side doesn't have strong escorts, but the War God Hall has Chen Xinjie coming to our academy. Even if you temporarily leave, we still have the strength to resist," Feng Wuyu said.
After breaking through to Limit Douluo, Feng Wuyu couldn't return to the Demon Plane normally, so he stayed in Sea God Pavilion to consolidate his realm.
As Feng Wuyu spoke, he glanced at Long Yeyue, who was sitting quietly.
The reason for Chen Xinjie's visit to Shrek was still uncertain.
Long Yeyue remained silent.
"With Chen Xinjie here, we can roughly count him as a force to deal with the God-Slaying Missile. Besides him, our biggest trump card is still Tree Elder," Yun Ming said.
He didn't trust Chen Xinjie much.
Xu Yuan had previously laid out many guesses which aligned with his own suspicions.
Now, master and disciple shared the same stance toward the Sea God—they were both cautious. They believed that Douluo Plane already had a plane master, and that master was likely the parents of the Sea God.
Yun Ming's caution wasn't due to believing Xu Yuan's threat theories but rather because his path was blocked.
According to his cultivation route, his status as the strongest on the continent, and being near the Golden Ancient Tree—a core of the plane—he should have been able to explore the direction of becoming the plane master long ago.
However, he never walked down that path.
Because the position of plane master was already taken.
Strictly speaking, Tang Hao obstructed Yun Ming's cultivation path.
Even though Yun Ming was preparing to walk another path now, he hadn't let go of the resentment from decades of blocked progress.
In Yun Ming's view, Tree Elder was more reliable.
Tree Elder, with the help of the Demon Plane, had replenished much of the power consumed when granting Xu Yuan and Tang Wulin.
If Tree Elder personally mobilized, combined with the recent array setups, it would truly be used to resist the damage of the God-Slaying Missile.
Yun Ming's role was decapitation.
Whoever launched the God-Slaying Missile, Tree Elder could withstand it, while Yun Ming would unhesitatingly rush into the missile's aftermath to kill the launcher.
Only Yun Ming knew this beforehand.
Because Tree Elder had only contacted a few people—Xu Yuan, Tang Wulin, and Yun Ming.
And regarding the God-Slaying Missile, only Yun Ming and Tree Elder had communicated.
"Tree Elder?" Feng Wuyu realized.
That mysterious consciousness belonging to the Golden Ancient Tree was now active and sheltering Shrek.
"When the God-Slaying Missile falls, your task is singular: gather all top-tier forces, avoid the missile's destruction range, and do your utmost to kill all enemies!" Yun Ming said sternly.
Kill all enemies.
Not just the evil soul masters?
Feng Wuyu noticed this detail, his expression turning grave.
Long Yeyue naturally also detected the nuance in Yun Ming's wording.
"The academy has shelters. With Tree Elder's power, there's enough time to get students into shelters. Your goal isn't meaningless sacrifice but to kill the enemy."
In the original story, everything came too suddenly. Yun Ming could only concentrate all forces to resist the God-Slaying Missile momentarily, severely injure Ghost Emperor, and kill most of the evil soul masters. Meanwhile, many pavilion elders could only burn themselves to resist even briefly, buying time for students to enter shelters.
In fact, the pavilion elders were the second line of resistance, dispersing the remaining destructive force. Next were all the Outer Court teachers, burning themselves to hold back the dispersed force for a bit longer.
With preparations made in advance, the objectives were now different.
Getting beaten?
It was impossible not to retaliate.
"What about Ya Li and the others?" Feng Wuyu asked.
"Inform them to prepare for the collapse of the Demon's Gate. Have Yuanen Ye Hui come back once. Tree Elder will extract a trace of her essence. Place this essence far from Shrek City. If the Demon's Gate is destroyed under the God-Slaying Missile, this will be their hope to return. Once Yuanen Ye Hui breaks through to the ninth ring over there, she can reopen the Demon's Gate."
Yun Ming didn't mention recalling those on the other side.
There was no need to recall them.
Staying there was safer than staying at Shrek.
"Yun Ming, are you sure that after you leave, the Holy Spirit Sect will definitely act?" Long Yeyue asked, puzzled.
"Sister Yue, I'm eighty percent sure," Yun Ming replied.
Feng Wuyu's expression turned heavy.
Eighty percent!
This was already a very dangerous signal.
Therefore, as long as Yun Ming stayed at Shrek, the Holy Spirit Sect wouldn't make a move. But once Yun Ming left, the probability of the God-Slaying Missile falling would greatly increase.
"Is the Holy Spirit Sect's goal not to kill you? Did you find something that gives you eighty percent certainty?" Feng Wuyu, though straightforward, deduced some things inversely.
Yun Ming glanced at Feng Wuyu, unsurprised.
"Shrek City has the largest population, so it's the target of the Holy Spirit Sect, not because Shrek is here," Yun Ming briefly explained.
"Originally, the Holy Spirit Sect had some other purpose. The more people die, the smoother their plan will proceed," Feng Wuyu said in a low voice, but without disbelief.
Historically, the Holy Spirit Sect had always been like this.
Every time they appeared, the most prominent characteristic was slaughter.
"Even if I stay at Shrek City, I can't forever prevent the God-Slaying Missile from being launched. Instead, it might make the Holy Spirit Sect wary and change their target."
Two God-Slaying Missiles falling on two large cities would be an enormous harvest for the Holy Spirit Sect.
If it fell on Shrek City, perhaps the harvest would double or even triple, but there were risks. If Shrek's preparations were sufficient, fewer people might die compared to choosing another city, and they might not be able to harvest the souls.
Yun Ming's departure would reduce the risk, at least from the perspective of the Holy Spirit Sect.
Unfortunately, they didn't know the current situation inside Shrek, didn't know how active Tree Elder was now, didn't know about the existence of the Demon's Gate, and were unaware that Shrek's core had long since transferred to the Demon Plane.
The Sea God Pavilion meeting this time only had three participants.
Shrek's three Limit Douluo basically confirmed the next steps to deal with the God-Slaying Missile.
After the meeting ended, Feng Wuyu was responsible for coordinating with Ya Li and others in the Demon Plane. Yun Ming left, and Long Yeyue fought once with Chen Xinjie three days later and then left Shrek City.
---
Spirit Pagoda.
"Chen Xinjie entered Shrek, and Long Yeyue left." Qiangu Dongfeng assessed Shrek's current strength.
Yun Ming leaving meant that even with Chen Xinjie's arrival, it was difficult to make up for the disparity.
There was no way around it. Yun Ming was the Master of Sea God Pavilion, directly controlling all of Shrek's core forces and able to deploy various contingency plans prepared by Shrek for unexpected situations.
Chen Xinjie couldn't do that.
And after Yun Ming left, Long Yeyue would probably inherit all of Shrek's contingency plans.
However, now Long Yeyue had also left.
"Finally, the opportunity has arrived!"
On the other side of the soul-guided device, Ghost Emperor's voice carried a hint of excitement.
Qiangu Dongfeng frowned.
"I advise you not to act rashly. The God-Slaying Missile is best used as a deterrent. Once you lose it, Yun Ming will surely scour the entire continent to destroy your base, no matter how deeply you hide; he absolutely has the ability to find it."
"Hahaha, Qiangu Dongfeng, even if Yun Ming goes berserk, the first one he'll come after is you," Ghost Emperor wasn't afraid at all.
However, his voice carried a slight tremor.
The last time Yun Ming chased him, he nearly died.
Qiangu Dongfeng's warning was still useful to him.
But only slightly.
Now that the Demon Emperor had awakened, Ghost Emperor didn't think she would stand idly by and watch him get killed by Yun Ming.
Qiangu Dongfeng was also troubled.
Indeed.
If the God-Slaying Missile really fell, what worried him most was Yun Ming coming after him.
So, the most fundamental point in his cooperation with the Holy Spirit Sect was to deal with Yun Ming.
But now, with multiple unexpected events, when Yun Ming was at Shrek, the Holy Spirit Sect didn't dare to act.
Now that Yun Ming had left, just three days later, Ghost Emperor seized the opportunity to inquire about the situation.
Upon learning that Long Yeyue had also left, Ghost Emperor's words now revealed signals of launching the God-Slaying Missile quickly.
Qiangu Dongfeng took a deep breath and again warned Ghost Emperor not to act impulsively.
"Long Yeyue's departure might just be a superficial signal. Knowing that you have the God-Slaying Missile, Shrek wouldn't leave such a big loophole!"
"Hahaha, Qiangu Dongfeng, from start to finish, you've always been the stupidest one." Ghost Emperor mocked, unilaterally ending the communication.
Qiangu Dongfeng looked at the disconnected soul-guided communication, his face darkening.
"I'm the stupidest one?"
---
Endless Mountain Range.
A figure appeared above the Blood God Legion.
Yun Ming looked down, observing the Blood God Legion. In a short time, he figured out the layout here.
He hadn't served in the Blood God Legion. As the Master of Sea God Pavilion, he didn't have five years to spend here.
However, taking advantage of Cao Dezhi's convenience, he had secretly entered a few times.
In the Blood God Legion's kitchen, Mu Ye, who was cheerfully cooking a blood-red giant shrimp over three meters long, suddenly looked up.
Yun Ming withdrew his gaze, ignored the Blood God Legion, and directly teleported to the entrance of the Stellar Phenomenon's spatial channel.
The soldiers guarding the entrance seemed unable to see his presence and merely flashed past. Yun Ming entered the interior of the Stellar Phenomenon.
"The laws are indeed unique."
As soon as he entered the Stellar Phenomenon, Yun Ming's vital energy spread out.
With his vital energy spreading and controlling the surrounding space, his perception directly covered the law level.
Why did Tang Hao's existence hinder his path? Because he truly had this ability.
In an ownerless plane, fifty years ago, he could have figured out the direction of becoming the plane's master. Then, walking in this direction for fifty years, he would have almost reached the fusion stage.
If combined with his many conditions from the previous fifty years—the prestige of being the continent's strongest and Shrek's tens of thousands of years of accumulated luck—he would have likely succeeded.
Unfortunately, he cultivated on Douluo Star, facing interference, unable to walk the path of becoming the plane's master. He was stuck for more than fifty years, without a clear direction, forced to develop comprehensively, breaking through his spiritual power to the Divine Origin Realm and widely exploring the comprehension of laws.
"Combining reality and illusion, this space has probably transcended actual dimensions."
Each plane wasn't simply a three-dimensional world but was maintained by deeper forces hidden in higher dimensions.
Douluo Star wasn't three-dimensional but four-dimensional.
Similarly, the Abyss was the same.
This spatial channel was previously four-dimensional because it crossed material dimensions and energy dimensions, experiencing countless spatial dimensions in between.
Countless three-dimensional spaces were crossed, forming a channel.
And now, the combination of reality and illusion seemed to elevate this space once again.
"Will combining reality and illusion elevate this place to the fifth dimensions?" With curiosity, Yun Ming began exploring this peculiar space. (I'm not gonna lie, Douluo's explanation of the different dimensions really got me fked up. If anyone's interested in having a look: https://soulland.fandom.com/wiki/Multidimensional_Space)
On the other hand, Xu Yuan didn't know that Yun Ming had arrived.
He was also exploring the Stellar Phenomenon.
Their exploration directions were different.
Yun Ming explored the essence, while Xu Yuan's subsequent exploration leaned towards the benefits the Stellar Phenomenon could bring, although he would still stray into high-level areas where answers couldn't be obtained.
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