Seeing the surprise—and even a trace of worry and fear—in Xiao Wu's eyes, Tang San couldn't help but laugh. "Silly girl, don't be so tense. Let me finish what I'm saying first. The separation I'm talking about will be very brief."
"But, Brother, don't you still need us for your Sea God ascension? I still have to complete the Sea God Trial with you!"
Tang San smiled. "Of course. Not only do you need to go, but Mubai and the others will all need to come as well. Didn't Senior Bo Saixi say that without your help, I can't become the Sea God? When I said we'd separate temporarily, I meant that I'm going to the Star Dou Great Forest first, then returning to Sea God Island. You know how fast I can fly—much faster than everyone else. If you all came with me to the Star Dou Great Forest and then headed to Sea God Island, we'd be slowed down considerably. It'd be better if you went ahead to the seaside where we'll return and had Little White's kin summon enough Demon Spirit Great White Sharks. Once I've obtained the Soul Rings for my Clear Sky Hammer in the Star Dou Great Forest, I'll rendezvous with you. That way, we can save as much time as possible. The days we're actually apart probably won't even be ten."
Only after Tang San's explanation did Xiao Wu finally let out a sigh of relief, giving his chest a light punch. "You're so mean, always scaring me like that."
Tang San chuckled. "I've been wronged! Who knew you'd react so strongly? You didn't even wait for me to finish."
Xiao Wu pouted and playfully pounded his shoulder. Watching her adorable expression, Tang San felt his heart swell with affection. He leaned in and planted a firm kiss on her pouty lips.
Without further delay, after bidding farewell to their parents, the Great Master, and Xue Beng, the Shrek Seven split into two groups. Under the cover of night, they departed silently from the Tian Dou Empire's military camp. It had been Xue Beng's idea—Tang San's status in the army was far too prominent. If the soldiers learned he had left, it could damage their morale. So he slipped away in secret, with all news strictly sealed off. This both preserved their own fighting spirit and prevented the Spirit Empire from learning of his departure.
And just as Tang San and his group left the camp—as he prepared for his final push toward becoming the Sea God—another person, far away in the Spirit Empire, at the Elder Hall in Spirit City, had already reached the final critical moment.
Spirit City. The Elder Hall.
Standing silently at the center of the Elder Hall, facing the colossal Seraphim statue, Qian Renxue's entire body was enveloped in a layer of golden radiance.
What was completely different from when she had first arrived was that she was no longer merely someone who could kneel in worship before the Angel statue. Now, she had become the very core of the great hall, equal to the statue itself.
"Are you ready?" An aged yet calm voice echoed through the chamber.
Qian Renxue slowly raised her head. One could see that her eyes were now entirely golden, radiating a light saturated with sacred aura.
"Yes, I'm ready." Qian Renxue's voice had shed all trace of its former emotion, becoming indifferent and cold—as though it did not belong to a human mouth.
Another figure slowly emerged from behind the Angel statue—tall, imposing, and his aged voice growing clear and resonant with his appearance. "My entire existence has been to wait for this day. I have waited over a hundred years for it. Follow me."
The one who stepped out from behind the Angel statue was none other than the Grand Priest of the Spirit Empire—once one of the three Supreme Douluo—the Angel Douluo, Qian Daoliu.
In an instant, light flashed behind Qian Daoliu as his entire body was engulfed in a sphere of golden light. Nine Soul Rings materialized in perfect arrangement around him. Appearing simultaneously were three pairs of snow-white wings—his extraordinary Seraphim Martial Soul.
Apart from the wings, Qian Daoliu's entire form was sheathed in gold, but compared to the gold radiating from Qian Renxue herself, it seemed to lack something. Nevertheless, once his Martial Soul was unleashed, he replaced both Qian Renxue and the Angel statue as the focal point of the Elder Hall.
A diamond-shaped golden gem materialized on Qian Daoliu's forehead. Without any visible exertion, the very next instant he was standing before the Angel statue. A strange beam of golden light shot from the gem, striking precisely the center of the statue's brow.
Immediately, a golden vortex appeared at the statue's forehead, and the entire sculpture seemed to shudder.
Seeing this, even Qian Renxue—with her entirely golden eyes—showed a flicker of surprise. Clearly, this was her first time witnessing such a thing.
"Child, follow me." Qian Daoliu turned, beckoned to Qian Renxue, then suddenly accelerated, his body hurtling straight toward the colossal Angel statue.
Qian Renxue did not release her own Martial Soul, yet her body rose weightlessly into the air, following close behind Qian Daoliu as she too charged at the statue.
A bizarre scene unfolded. When Qian Daoliu's body struck the massive Angel statue, there was no violent collision. Instead, as though plunging through a layer of rippling water, there was a flash of light and he vanished.
Qian Renxue's experience was identical. Right on Qian Daoliu's heels, she too merged into the Angel statue.
The vortex at the statue's forehead slowly dissipated, and the ethereal sensation faded with it. Light flickered, and everything returned to stillness. But grandfather and granddaughter—Qian Daoliu and Qian Renxue—had vanished together into the receding golden light.
Qian Renxue found herself surrounded entirely by gold. She had entered a strange world. The first thing she felt was infinite warmth enveloping her body. Everything around her appeared unreal—illusory golden ripples constantly shimmering, as though she were passing through a tunnel woven from phantom light.
Qian Daoliu flew ahead, guiding Qian Renxue forward. It felt like an eternity before the scenery suddenly cleared, the illusory quality vanished, and reality returned.
Qian Renxue was startled to discover that she and her grandfather had arrived inside a great hall. The moment her body appeared here, she immediately noticed its strangeness.
Surrounding them was an endless night sky, studded with countless stars. The hall in which they stood seemed to float within that very sky.
The hall was hexagonal, its roof supported by six enormous golden pillars. There were no walls—everything beyond was void. Whether on the floor beneath their feet, the ceiling above, or the six great golden pillars, countless mysterious patterns were inscribed. All of them were formed from the motif of angel feathers.
At the very center of the hall stood a three-meter-tall Angel statue, identical in appearance to the one in the Elder Hall, though far smaller. This statue was not golden but a dull, lightless gray. Before it, a longsword of the same gray was thrust into the ground. Six wings spread wide behind the statue, vivid and lifelike.
"Grandfather, where is this?" Having arrived in this strange world, Qian Renxue's voice finally carried a hint of human warmth.
A strange smile appeared on Qian Daoliu's face. "This is the true Temple of the Angel—the place where the Angel God's inheritance is bestowed. Child, come here." As he spoke, he beckoned to her.
Led by Qian Daoliu, Qian Renxue walked up to the Angel statue. Qian Daoliu took her hand and gazed at the diamond-shaped golden gem that had also appeared on her forehead. "You will restore radiance to this place. You will bring the Angel back to the mortal world. This is where you will complete the ninth and final trial of the Angel, and also where you will truly inherit the Throne of the Angel God and enter the divine rank. The Soul Land has not seen a god appear in countless years. You will at last become the continent's supreme being, leading the Spirit Empire to the pinnacle."
Listening to Qian Daoliu's words, Qian Renxue's eyes gradually brightened, a fierce gleam shining within her golden irises. In that moment, a figure suddenly surfaced in her mind—the figure of the man who had once defeated her.
Qian Renxue could never forget the man who had bested her. His wisdom and his strength had made him the greatest enemy she had ever known.
"Tang San, I am about to become the Angel God. And you? Have you already been left far behind? I will come find you. What lies between us, I will settle with my own hands. When we meet again, you will have only two choices—submit or be destroyed. Apart from Grandfather, you are the only man I do not despise. I hope you won't disappoint me."
"Little Xue." Qian Daoliu's voice pulled Qian Renxue from her thoughts.
"Grandfather, what should I do?" Qian Renxue's gaze turned resolute once more. For reasons she couldn't explain, the mere thought of Tang San's name made her heart blaze with heat. The first time she had seen him, it had been under Ning Fengzhi's introduction. The last time, they had been enemies. Somehow, despite the fact that Tang San had destroyed over a decade of her painstaking infiltration of the Tian Dou Empire, Qian Renxue did not hate him. Instead, she admired him all the more. Deep in her heart, she did not want to kill Tang San—she wanted to conquer the only man she had ever truly admired.
"With your blood." Qian Daoliu pointed toward the round, transparent gem set in the pommel of the dull longsword before the Angel statue.
Qian Renxue took a deep breath. She knew the final moment had arrived at last. Her right hand slowly rose and came to rest upon the gem. Suddenly, her thumbnail swept across her middle finger, and a stream of peculiar blood sprayed from the cut, propelled outward by her Angel Soul Power, splattering onto the gem at the sword's hilt.
The color of Qian Renxue's blood was strange—not the red of a normal human, but a pale pink mingled with a faint gold. The bizarre blood even carried a subtle fragrance.
Suddenly, Qian Renxue felt her right hand tremble as her cut middle finger was violently sucked against the transparent gem. The smooth surface, which had moments ago seemed inert, was now like a vampire craving blood, frantically devouring Qian Renxue's life fluid. Blood gushed from the wound, causing her body to shudder involuntarily.
Soul Ring after Soul Ring materialized around Qian Renxue's body. With a thunderous rush, six enormous wings burst from her back and unfurled into the air. Under the relentless drain of her blood, her Martial Soul had been forcibly manifested.
Qian Daoliu stood to the side, watching everything with tense anticipation.
As more and more of Qian Renxue's blood flowed out, the gem on the sword's hilt gradually began to glow. At first, it shimmered with the same pink-gold light as her blood. But as time passed, the pink faded from the radiance, transforming into pure, brilliant gold. The golden light flowed downward from the gem, slowly seeping into and saturating the peculiar longsword.
A sense of weakness began to settle into Qian Renxue's mind, yet she held her position with unwavering resolve—even channeling her Soul Power to accelerate the blood flow.
Gradually, Qian Renxue found she could no longer move her body. The weakness grew ever stronger. But the golden light emanating from the longsword before her was also intensifying, its surging radiance filling the entire Temple of the Angel. Every pattern inscribed upon the temple walls came alive, faint light flowing through them as though they had awakened. The pale golden glow was slowly but steadily growing brighter.
Qian Daoliu smiled. His eyes burned with fervent light as he murmured, "I have waited far, far too long for this moment. Tang Chen, in the end you are still one step behind me! Though I could not reach level one hundred and become a god, my descendant has done so. Who would have thought I would finally surpass you at a time like this? What a pity—I don't know whether you're still alive. If you are, what expression would you wear when you see my granddaughter ascend to godhood? Ha... hahaha."
With visible effort, Qian Daoliu raised his right leg and stepped forward, positioning himself between the gray Angel statue and the longsword that was gradually turning golden.
The fervent heat in his eyes softened into tenderness as he gazed at Qian Renxue. "Child, this is your final trial—and also my final trial. No matter how great the pain, you must succeed. In the future, if you encounter a Supreme Douluo named Tang Chen, you must defeat him on my behalf. He was my rival for life."
"Grandfather, what are you going to do?" Qian Renxue managed to cry out. A surge of intense unease flooded her heart. It was Qian Daoliu's gentle, tranquil gaze that was the source of her dread.
Qian Daoliu smiled softly. "Silly child. To gain something, one must always give something in return. This is my destined fate. As the guardian of the Angel God, my entire existence has been for the inheritance of the Godhead. Without me, you cannot complete this final process. Don't grieve. Right now you cannot move—let alone stop me. Remember my words: lead the Spirit Empire to glory. And if you ever meet Tang Chen, defeat him for me."
As he spoke, a thunderous roar erupted and fierce golden flames blazed upward from Qian Daoliu's body. The flames carried no heat, yet in that instant they illuminated the entire temple. The faint golden light-patterns that had adorned the walls now blazed with intense radiance. Qian Daoliu had even replaced the Angel statue as the focal center of the divine hall.
"Grandfather, don't—!" Qian Renxue screamed and struggled with all her might. But just as Qian Daoliu had said, she could not move a fraction. Her entire body was held fast by the gem on the longsword, utterly immobilized.
Qian Daoliu's entire being had turned golden. These were golden flames he had ignited himself—not merely burning his Soul Power, but his body, his soul, and everything he was. The purest of angelic flames were gradually consuming him. And behind him, the gray Angel statue was ravenously absorbing the energy erupting from the flames.
"Little Xue, listen to me. There is something I have never told you. The reason your mother treated you poorly—even wanting to abandon you when you were small—was not entirely her fault. However, it was because you existed that I chose not to kill her. Your father did not die at the hands of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao. Back then, Tang Hao only gravely wounded him. The one who truly killed your father was your mother, Bibi Dong."
"What?" Qian Renxue stared blankly at her grandfather, having even forgotten the golden flames still rising from his body.
Qian Daoliu sighed. "Everything that has happened has already happened. I know the full story. Bibi Dong is a genius, but the methods your father used to keep her were admittedly underhanded. Still, no one expected her to strike after enduring so many years. By then, you had already lost your father, and I did not want you to lose your mother as well. After you become the Angel God, you will need to think carefully about how to face her. There is one thing I must warn you about. If there is anyone else on the Soul Land who has a chance of becoming a god, it is your mother. Her heart has been consumed by evil. Should she succeed in her breakthrough, she will become the God of Slaughter—the direct opposite of you, the Angel God. But you are her daughter, and deep in her heart, she has always loved you. You must reclaim control of the Spirit Empire. As for what to do with Bibi Dong, that is your decision. My advice is: do not make things difficult for her. If the two of you could join forces, then sweeping across the continent would be the simplest thing in the world."