Chapter 12: Aftermath — Lin Yu's Weakness and His Choice!
The next livestream would be in fifteen days?
When this message appeared in the broadcast room, many people were caught off guard.
The interval had changed again?
It seemed that the Q&A livestream didn't follow a fixed schedule. But what determined the timing—no one knew.
As the livestream ended—
Whether it was those participating for the rewards or just watching for fun, everyone began exiting the broadcast room.
At the same time, atop a mountain deep in the forest behind Holy Soul Village—
Tang Hao, dressed in ragged clothing with messy hair, sat beneath a waterfall.
Beside him, a strange vine-like Blue Silver Grass swayed gently in the wind.
"Ah Yin… I'm sorry. I didn't get the answer right last time. Otherwise, I would've wished for your complete recovery… for you to become human again."
"And this time… I didn't know the answer either. But even if I did, today's reward wouldn't have helped you."
"I just hope that someday, the livestream will ask a question with a reward that can help you…"
Sitting beside the Blue Silver Grass, Tang Hao sighed deeply, eyes filled with complex emotions.
Hearing his words, the vine gently wrapped itself around Tang Hao's arm, as if comforting him.
Pain flickered in Tang Hao's eyes as he held his head and forced a bitter smile.
"Ah Yin… this is all my fault."
"Now you can talk to Xiao San through the stream, but because our names can't be revealed at the same time without exposing us to Spirit Hall…"
"You still can't acknowledge him. And as for me… I'm sure Xiao San still thinks I'm just a regular blacksmith and drunk. He probably never imagined I was the so-called 'Clear Sky Douluo' that Yue Guan mentioned…"
Ah Yin, still in her Blue Silver Grass form, couldn't speak, so she merely wound her delicate vines around Tang Hao's arm, lightly brushing against him to comfort him.
…
Far to the north, atop a snow-covered mountain—
The Ice Emperor and Snow Emperor, two kings of the Extreme North, stood together.
Around them, palaces and houses made entirely of ice and snow sparkled under the sun. Though built for one, the place radiated vitality.
"Snow Emperor, will this livestream only ask questions about humans? If so, we soul beasts won't have a chance to gain the knowledge needed to survive the next tribulation," Ice Emperor frowned, dressed in a vivid green dress and looking like a twin-tailed loli with jade-green hair.
For soul beasts, cultivation up to 100,000 years was safe.
But once they passed that threshold, at 200,000 years they faced a Heavenly Tribulation—what the soul beast world called the "Fierce Beast Tribulation," immensely powerful and almost impossible to survive.
Only a tiny fraction of soul beasts had ever survived even one.
And starting from 200,000 years, one tribulation came with every additional 100,000 years—each stronger than the last.
Snow Emperor and Ice Emperor had already surpassed their limits, with cultivations of 690,000 and 390,000 years respectively.
Both had survived multiple tribulations, but they no longer had confidence in facing the next.
Thus, they had been searching for a method to survive it.
As for this newly emerged Q&A system—
While human factions focused on rewards, Snow Emperor and Ice Emperor saw value in the punishments.
By intentionally answering incorrectly, they could use the system to reduce their cultivation—avoiding the next tribulation entirely.
By carefully managing their power level, they could avoid disaster indefinitely.
But as proud rulers of the Extreme North, both still hoped to find a way to overcome the tribulation—not just avoid it.
And so, they placed their hopes in the Q&A system—not for reduction, but salvation.
Unfortunately, today's reward was only useful to humans, which greatly annoyed the Ice Emperor.
"Ice Emperor, don't be too anxious. This is only the second question."
"The first reward worked for us too. Be patient—more questions and more chances will come."
Snow Emperor, noble and elegant in a flowing white gown with long snowy hair and flawless beauty, answered calmly.
…
Meanwhile, beneath the endless sea in the Demon Whale Territory—
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King opened his massive crimson eyes, staring toward the distant human world.
This reward doesn't help me… When will the Q&A finally offer something useful to me?
…
In the core of Star Dou Forest, deep underground—
Within a crystalline cave glowing with light, the forest's fiercest beasts had gathered.
At the center, sealed within the cavern ceiling, lay the massive Ice Silkworm covered in ten golden rings—none other than Tianmeng.
"We've killed so many soul masters over the years and taken everything from them—including their soul tool storage devices—yet this is all the literature we've collected?"
Di Tian's voice echoed as he stared at a pile of books on the floor.
"That's all we have," Bi Ji replied softly, hands folded in front of her.
"Fine. Then your task is to finish reading all of these."
"No matter what, the livestream's reward must be ours. Even if it's useless to us, we can trade it with humans later."
Scanning the room, Di Tian's voice turned serious.
"Everything… is for our Lord."
Above them, within the crystal sealing Tianmeng, strands of spiritual power flowed outward—quietly scanning the books piled on the ground.
…
Back in Windmill Village—
After leaving the livestream, Lin Yu furrowed his brows in thought.
From today's Q&A, he realized a major weakness—
He only knew the main plot of Douluo Dalu.
But when it came to the world's details—like the Soul Tool Empire, which existed before the founding of the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires—he knew absolutely nothing.
And today's question proved that more historical topics could appear.
Without access to that knowledge, he was at a disadvantage.
And only by joining a powerful faction could he access those records.
This realization gave him a headache.
Would he have to choose a faction to join after all?
On Douluo Continent, the most resource-rich factions were: Spirit Hall, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the Heaven Dou Royal Family, and the Star Luo Royal Family.
Heaven Dou Empire was too weak. Instant pass.
Star Luo had strength, but their emperors were known for using ruthless methods and treating their heirs like insects in a pot—likely not a free environment. Also pass.
That left…
Should he join the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?
Or Spirit Hall?
Lin Yu fell deep into thought.
And after a while—
He made his decision.
(END CHAPTER)
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