Mobius's eyes held curiosity and fervor, but more than that, a sense of... defeat that she had to acknowledge.
In the realm of life research, she was indeed inferior to this woman named Ruan Mei.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the emotions in her heart, and turned to look at Ruan Mei, who was standing before a massive light screen, focused on recording data.
"I want to see their current vital information."
Mobius's voice was the same as ever.
The busy Ruan Mei turned around upon hearing this. She remained in that gentle and elegant persona, seemingly indifferent to everything, as she gave Mobius a slight smile.
"You may."
She nodded, her tone flat.
"The relevant treatment and modifications have all been completed. To me, they have lost their research value."
After speaking, she ignored the group and turned back to continue her work, as if those two creations—which could be called miracles—were truly just discarded toys she was no longer interested in.
Having received permission, Mobius did not hesitate and immediately walked to the main console. Her slender fingers flew across the light screen, pulling up streams of massive and precise data.
It was information regarding Di Tian and Shangguan Wei'er from the start of treatment to the end: gene sequence changes for every minute and second, cell activity indices, energy circulation models, soul fluctuation frequencies... everything was recorded clearly.
Looking at the flashing data on the screen, Mobius's pupils constricted, and her breathing became rapid. The sheer volume of information contained within, along with the inconceivable treatment plans and modification concepts Ruan Mei had employed, left even this master of life sciences feeling dizzy with wonder.
Meanwhile, Lu Jingming took advantage of Mobius being immersed in the sea of data to begin explaining to Gu Yuena and Ye Guyi.
Ever since he captured Dai Mubai and the others, Ruan Mei had developed a profound interest in the life forms of gods and divine beasts. Over the past month, she had essentially studied the four "samples"—Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Tang Hao, and Ah Yin—inside and out. One could say that in her eyes, the essence of life for gods and divine beasts no longer held any secrets.
Lu Jingming's words made both Gu Yuena and Ye Guyi shudder inwardly. To treat high and mighty gods as samples for research was something that only the lawless geniuses around Lu Jingming would dare to do.
"So, while treating Di Tian and Shangguan Wei'er, Ruan Mei casually... added a little something extra to them."
The corners of Lu Jingming's mouth curled into a mysterious smile.
"Of course, for them, this is a monumental stroke of luck."
He looked at Ye Guyi and explained:
"First, Shangguan Wei'er. Her original talent would have made her a Titled Douluo at best; it was hard to say if she could even break through Rank 95 in this lifetime. That was her limit. But now, Ruan Mei has not only cleared the violent power of Destruction from her body but has also perfectly integrated a portion of that Destruction power into her martial soul and soul in a stable, controllable way."
"The current Shangguan Wei'er is no longer a pure Spirit-attribute soul master, but a dual-attribute 'Spirit' and 'Destruction' master. Her potential has seen explosive growth. Setting aside godhood for a moment, as long as she doesn't slack off, reaching the Rank 99 Limit Douluo level will be no problem at all."
Upon hearing this, Ye Guyi's beautiful eyes were instantly filled with surprise and gratitude. She knew that for Shangguan Wei'er, this was nothing short of a complete rebirth.
"As for Di Tian..."
Lu Jingming's gaze turned toward Gu Yuena, his voice tinged with a hint of admiration.
"He has truly gained a blessing in disguise. Because Phantylia directly occupied his physical body, the erosion and modification by the power of Destruction were far more thorough than with Shangguan Wei'er. While treating him, Ruan Mei applied the results of her research on the Blue Silver Emperor regarding divine beast life forms to him. The result is that the current Di Tian is a genuine divine beast."
"What?!"
Hearing this, Gu Yuena could no longer maintain her composure. Her purple eyes erupted with unbelievable brilliance. A divine beast might not mean much to her personally, but for the soul beast race, it was the ultimate form they dreamed of—one that could escape the shackles of lifespan and Heavenly Tribulations.
"From a genetic level, the current Di Tian can no longer be considered a soul beast in the traditional sense; he is a brand-new species."
Lu Jingming looked at the stunned Gu Yuena and softly added:
"However, whether he is a soul beast is not decided by genes, but by himself. As long as he still considers himself a member of the soul beast race, then he is the God of Soul Beasts."
Gu Yuena nodded, having no objections. Whether he was a soul beast didn't matter; what mattered was that Di Tian was alive. Furthermore, strictly speaking, she wasn't a soul beast either, yet she was still the Co-Lord of Soul Beasts.
Thinking of this, she slowly stood on her tiptoes, her rosy lips leaning close to Lu Jingming's ear. In a seductive, slightly husky voice that could make one's bones go soft, she whispered:
"Thank you... tonight, do you want a reward?"
Lu Jingming smelled her unique, cold fragrance—like an orchid in a deserted valley—and felt the warm breath by his ear. The fire in his heart was instantly ignited. He didn't hesitate to pull her into his arms, leaning down to give her a light kiss on her red lips before chuckling:
"Do you even have to ask? Not just a reward, I want a double reward."
"No problem."
Gu Yuena did not resist; instead, she reached out her arms and proactively hooked them around his neck, her face blossoming with a bright, moving smile the likes of which had never been seen before.
She was in an exceptionally good mood. Not only because Di Tian had been healed, giving her a divine beast-level loyal subordinate, but also because she saw the true, bright future of the soul beast race within Ruan Mei's miraculous ability to terraform planets and create life.
Perhaps they really didn't need to struggle for survival anymore, and they didn't need to fight humans to the death.
Lu Jingming didn't speak, just held her in his arms, his palm gently stroking her smooth silver hair. He knew that Gu Yuena's current happiness wasn't just for Di Tian.
Di Tian being cured and even gaining a blessing in disguise—escaping the Dragon God's curse to become a true divine beast—was certainly a monumental joy. But Lu Jingming knew better that for this Silver Dragon King, who carried the destiny of the entire soul beast race, Di Tian's matter was a personal feeling.
Lu Jingming was well aware of Gu Yuena's appeals. Now that she was his woman, he naturally wouldn't let her fall into a dilemma. The conflict between soul beasts and humans lay in the fact that soul masters needed soul rings to cultivate, but with the presence of Stigmata, this conflict had been greatly reduced. However, humans and soul beasts still had years of hatred, and being different species, conflict was inevitable.
Therefore, Ruan Mei was very important. She could completely terraform a planet suitable for soul beasts to live on and migrate them there. Lu Jingming was not an extreme human supremacist; his empire could accommodate other races. However, a single Douluo Planet truly could not contain two different races.
But for Lu Jingming, this wasn't difficult. Terraforming a planet was hard for others, but for Ruan Mei, it was simple.
Furthermore, the soul beast race was suppressed by the plane and could not break through to godhood because of the Dragon God's curse. That curse was strongest on Douluo Planet because it was the Dragon God's hometown. Thus, the soul beasts of Douluo Planet would never have a day of transcendence until the next Dragon God was born.
But once they left Douluo Planet, the planar suppression would naturally vanish. Although the curse would remain, it would not be nearly as powerful. Ruan Mei could not only create a planet suitable for them but also resolve the Dragon God's curse etched into the soul beasts' bloodline and genes.
While Sea Abyss City was bathed in the tranquil brilliance of life and technology, at the other end of the Douluo Continent, the ancient Heavenly Soul City was being completely shrouded by the clouds of war.
Black clouds.
Those were not natural phenomena, but a sky-blotting steel canopy composed of thousands of soul-tool flying warships. They hovered neatly over Heavenly Soul City, their cold metal hulls reflecting heart-chilling light under the leaden sky, looking like countless vultures watching over carrion—quiet, yet filled with lethal pressure.
Below the warships was an even more terrifying ground legion. An endless sea of giant mecha legions stood like a forest of steel, the energy cores on the shoulders of each mecha shimmering with ghost-light. They were the behemoths of war, their every movement making the earth tremble.
Intermingled within the mecha legions were even more bizarre and dangerous troops: the Antimatter Legion.
Finally, there was the most numerous Soul Engineer Legion. They were the cornerstone of this war, their various soul tools already fully charged. Tens of thousands of muzzles, like a dense honeycomb, were aimed in unison at the majestic and ancient city below.
Inside Heavenly Soul City, there was deathly silence. The once bustling streets were empty, all residents hiding in their homes, peering fearfully through the cracks in doors and windows at the shadow of death in the sky. The oppressive, desperate atmosphere was like a frozen swamp, making it difficult for everyone to breathe.
Upon the city walls, however, the atmosphere was quite different. The current Emperor of the Heavenly Soul Empire—a middle-aged man whose hair and beard were already streaked with white but whose posture remained as straight as a pine—stood on the battlements clad in golden dragon-patterned full plate armor, holding the imperial holy sword that had been passed down for thousands of years.
His eyes calmly swept across the flood of steel outside that was capable of crushing everything, without the slightest hint of wavering. Beside him stood an exceptionally burly old man with knotted muscles, his upper body bare, his bronze skin covered in crisscrossing scars. He simply stood there, and a domineering, terrifying aura—as if he could shake the heavens and earth with his physical body alone—spontaneously arose.
The Sect Leader of the Body Sect, Du Busi.
Behind him stood over a dozen Body Sect elders with similarly majestic auras. Each of them was a Titled Douluo capable of founding their own sect on the continent. They did not speak, using only their actions to declare their stance—to live and die with the Heavenly Soul Empire and this city.
"Although saying this right now is quite ill-timed..."
A voice rang out, slightly lazy yet clearly reaching the ears of every powerhouse present.
Jing Yuan, with his white hair and wearing luxurious robes embroidered with cloud patterns, glanced at the solemn-faced Feixiao beside him before turning his gaze to Du Busi and the Heavenly Soul Emperor.
"...But the disparity in strength between the two sides is simply too large. Are you really not considering a retreat?"
Jing Yuan admired these people's backbone, but he could not agree with this act of throwing an egg against a stone. Sacrifice was acceptable—after all, in the war between their Xianzhou Alliance and the Abominations of Abundance, had there been few sacrifices? He simply did not agree with meaningless sacrifice.
The reason this war had reached a stalemate and the Heavenly Soul Empire had not been completely crushed in the first instance was entirely due to the presence of him and Feixiao, two external aids supporting the high-end combat power. They had repelled several of the Sun Moon Empire's probing attacks and slain many of the opponent's Titled Douluos, earning this final breathing room for the Heavenly Soul Empire.
But he knew in his heart that this changed nothing. Although he and Feixiao were powerful, they could not turn the tide of a war involving millions with such a generational gap in technology by themselves. Especially when the opponent also had powerhouses of Phantylia and Celenova's level overseeing the situation.
This isn't a fair war at all, Jing Yuan thought to himself. He already saw the ending, but he would not stop them. This was not the Xianzhou Luofu; he had no obligation to protect this land. He was here and helping purely for Feixiao's sake.
And the only reason Feixiao had intervened was because of the slight friendship between her and the Heavenly Soul Empire's little princess, Wei Na. Neither of them had a reason to fight to the death for the Heavenly Soul Empire. The army of the Sun Moon Empire were not Abominations of Abundance; there was no irreconcilable hatred between the two sides, merely different positions.
In his view, the best choice now was for the Heavenly Soul Emperor to take all the Titled Douluo-level elites, abandon Heavenly Soul City, and break out to the south to rendezvous with the reinforcements from the Star Luo Empire and the Dou Ling Empire. There might still be a glimmer of hope.
"Excellency Jing Yuan."
The Heavenly Soul Emperor spoke slowly, his voice steady and firm, without any hesitation.
"It is hard to leave one's homeland. Beneath my feet is the foundation established by my ancestors with blood and glory. I was born here, raised here, and naturally, I shall die here. As the Emperor of the Heavenly Soul Empire, I will never abandon my people and my capital to flee alone before the enemy."
In his tone was a sense of imperial dignity and pride that even made Jing Yuan take notice. After speaking, the Heavenly Soul Emperor turned to look at Feixiao, who had remained silent. Within his originally majestic eyes, there was now the pleading of a father.
"Excellency Feixiao, I have only one request. At the final moment, please make sure to take Wei Na away. The bloodline of the Heavenly Soul Imperial Family must not end at my hands."
He bowed deeply and solemnly toward Feixiao. Feixiao's expression did not change, but deep within her eyes, a trace of an imperceptible ripple flashed.
Would you like me to translate the next chapter as well? Since I'm your AI thought partner, I'm happy to help you keep the story going! Just let me know.
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