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The Sunsetting Forest — the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye.
Ye Lan and Silver Wolf came down into the hollow on the hill. Fog rolled between the trees.
They hadn't gone far before they reached the outer ring of the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye.
Two quaint little wooden huts stood there.
Before they could approach, a verdant silhouette flashed out.
"Lan? Xingchen? What brings you here?" Dugu Bo clapped Ye Lan on the shoulder with delight.
Seeing Ye Lan had aged another year and grown a little taller, Dugu Bo nodded with obvious satisfaction.
Now everyone knew that the Spirit Hall's holy son was his grandson-in-law — and that made him a titled in-law of the Spirit Hall.
"Senior Dugu! I brought Little Lan along. You know how eye-catching his identity is; I have to guard him at all times," Silver Wolf said with a nod.
Dugu Bo nodded back. That was the face-value of having a grandson-in-law who came with a Title Douluo as an escort.
"Grandpa Dugu, I'm here to use the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye," Ye Lan said.
"All right. I'll take you to see Yanyan while I'm at it. That girl's been pestering me every day to see you," Dugu Bo offered helpfully.
At the thought of Dugu Bo's alluring granddaughter, Ye Lan nodded — he hadn't seen Du Gu Yan in months.
"Lan, go find Yan in the grove. I won't bother you two. Xingchen and I will discuss the 'Core of Spirit'." Dugu Bo said.
Silver Wolf agreed; once they reached the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye he no longer had to worry about Ye Lan's safety. Besides, he didn't want to be forced to watch Du Gu Yan and Ye Lan's PDA.
Ye Lan scratched his head and walked into the grove.
Through the shrubs, big trees, and mist, he found a woman of extreme, seductive beauty seated cross-legged. She held a pill in both hands, eyes closed.
With each breath the violet-haired woman took, her soft curves trembled slightly.
At a glance Ye Lan's mouth went dry. Du Gu Yan sensed someone approaching, opened her eyes a sliver, and saw the man she'd been longing for.
"My idol!! You came to see me!?" Du Gu Yan cried in delight. She abandoned all restraint and ran straight into Ye Lan's arms.
Ye Lan hugged her tightly. She felt like a bundle of cotton—so frail and pliant, exuding a faint violet floral scent.
"Of course. Didn't I come just to see you?" Ye Lan said coolly, cheeks unruffled.
Hearing Ye Lan said he'd come just for her, Du Gu Yan beamed and threw her arms around his neck, rising on tiptoe to nuzzle his face.
At their touch, Ye Lan felt as if he'd been plunged into a tropical sea: warm, passionate, and utterly eager.
Faced with Du Gu Yan's forwardness, Ye Lan had no choice but to yield.
After a long while, the two finally broke apart, panting, faces flushed crimson.
"Yan, didn't expect you to be skilled," Ye Lan teased.
"You pervert! You've had Leng Leng for over a year — why didn't you come to me?" Du Gu Yan's verdant eyes misted; she sounded pitiful.
"How do you know that?" Ye Lan asked in surprise.
"When Leng Leng visited me before, he told me himself," Du Gu Yan blushed.
"Told you himself? You must have badgered it out of him," Ye Lan laughed; he didn't believe Leng Leng would volunteer such news.
Du Gu Yan's face grew even redder. She bent and nipped the skin at Ye Lan's neck.
"Oof—"
"Easy, Yan." Ye Lan warned.
"Humph, you mocked me," she pouted in mock anger.
Suddenly Du Gu Yan felt cool fingers slip inside her clothing.
The strange sensation set her aflame.
"Uh—Idol, doing this outdoors…is that okay?" she mumbled, her eyes glazed, yet her body offered no resistance.
The wilderness only stoked the instincts of the Azure Phosphor Dragon Empress within her; she pressed her whole body against Ye Lan's.
"What's there to fear? Grandpa won't know." Ye Lan squeezed and said it lightly.
Then a blue soul light flashed around Ye Lan's body.
The isolation barrier he had once used to threaten Xiao Wu's development flared to life again.
This time the barrier stretched fifty meters in radius.
Du Gu Yan gave a soft whimper and, dazed, asked, "Idol, what is this?"
"This is a soul skill I developed. It isolates sounds inside and out—so no one outside can see what we're doing," Ye Lan explained.
At that, Du Gu Yan dropped her last threads of modesty and toppled Ye Lan without reserve.
"You can't run anymore!"
"Heh—don't beg for mercy later."
Dugu Bo, hearing movement from their direction, snorted with amusement and walked off with Silver Wolf, shouting in his heart:
"Little Lan, go for it!! Try to give me a nice chubby great-grandson!!"
Hours later, Du Gu Yan lay curled in Ye Lan's arms, bliss written over her face.
Ye Lan hugged her tighter. "Yan, does it still hurt?"
"No… I'm the Azure Phosphor Dragon Empress!" Du Gu Yan tried to sound brave though pain still showed on her face.
Ye Lan pinched her cheek, then placed his palm on her lower abdomen. A verdant soul light bloomed in his hand.
After Blue-Silver Grass transformed into extreme life force, he channeled it into Du Gu Yan.
She felt warm and hummed softly.
Hearing that sweet sound, Ye Lan blushed faintly, swallowed his own rising emotions, and concentrated on healing.
Du Gu Yan, soothed by Ye Lan's gentleness, relaxed.
"Idol, I didn't expect you had such a fierce side," she murmured, watching his calm face.
"Heh, I don't know what made me use 100% of my power. You said the 'Nine-Heart Sacred Armor' couldn't take it, but the 'Azure Phosphor Dragon Empress' can," Ye Lan said helplessly.
Du Gu Yan's face went scarlet. Excitedly she added, "Hehe, this time I and Leng-Leng won! Idol, don't tell Rongrong or she'll tear me apart!!"
"I won't tell, you horny dragon!" Ye Lan replied.
"Hmph, I'll show you how awesome I am." Once healed, Du Gu Yan mounted Ye Lan again.
Ye Lan offered no resistance; he simply lay back and enjoyed it.
Days passed.
When Ye Lan finally satisfied the Azure Phosphor Dragon Empress, he rubbed his old waist and said, "Yan, you should train now. I'm going to the inner ring of the Ice-Fire Spring. Go tell Grandpa Dugu and Uncle Wolf."
"I'll train hard. I'll try to refine a Dragon Pill within two years! Be careful, Idol," Du Gu Yan nodded.
Ye Lan turned his back to her, waved, and went toward the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye.
To retaliate against Tang Hao, he had to nurture the Blue-Silver Sovereign, at least enough to ensure its survival.
A short while later Ye Lan pushed through thick white fog and arrived before the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye.
Here he could feel neither cold nor heat.
That was because his Blue-Silver Grass possessed the Ultimate Radiance—a light derived from the sun.
Moreover, it had absorbed the Octagonal Profound Ice Herb and the Blazing Apricot Blossom, granting Blue-Silver Grass the Ultimate Water as well, making it immune to the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye's frost poisons.
After appreciating the spring for a moment, Ye Lan circled the lake's shore and finally reached the boundary where ice and fire met.
He withdrew the Hundred-Year Blue-Silver Sovereign from his Ruyi Treasure Pouch.
Using the Ancient Beast's Touch, he dug a deep, black pit and planted the Blue-Silver Sovereign inside.
The Blue-Silver Sovereign clung to Ye Lan's calves even as it was planted, unwilling to leave him.
Watching how clingy it was, Ye Lan shook his head helplessly—this plant was far too attached.
He did not notice that the lake's surface trembled slightly, in a way different from before.
Beneath the lake, a faint azure consciousness spoke:
"Brother, that human is back!!"
"And this time his martial soul has threefold Ultimate Power!!"
"See!! I told you I wasn't mistaken!!"
A crimson consciousness, after carefully sensing Ye Lan's martial soul, did not answer the azure aside from saying: "Little sister, why is that human here again?"
"I don't know. Let's observe. This time don't stop me." the azure urged.
"Little sister, don't be impatient. He can't run away anyway." The crimson replied. It still wanted to watch the blond human longer.
By talent alone, he already qualified to inherit their legacy.
Ye Lan took the Blue-Silver Sovereign from his calf; the plant sulked as though transformed into a moody Blue-Silver Grass, convinced the "God" who planted it would leave it behind.
Ye Lan patted the plant tenderly. A verdant domain bloomed around him.
The moment the domain opened, countless immature fairy herbs, spirit plants, and all manner of natural life nearby cried out in joyous worship. They began to revere the blond human standing at the center of the Natural Domain.
For now, Ye Lan was the sole emperor of natural life.
Only then did the Blue-Silver Sovereign feel its life force surging with astonishing speed.
If in the dark, damp chamber its growth pace had been 1, then in the outside natural environment it was 100.
When the "God" transplanted it here, it became 1,000.
Now, with the Natural Domain active, its growth rate shot up to ten thousand times!!!
In mere moments the Blue-Silver Sovereign felt the past ten years had been wasted.
It wept inwardly—this "God" treated it so kindly compared to how that human had abused it. The "God" favored it so!
Before it finished its thanksgiving, Ye Lan cut the palm of his hand. A stream of Ultimate Life Blood—a level far beyond its comprehension—began to drip into its roots.
The Blue-Silver Sovereign sent out the highest of devotions.
Ye Lan sensed a mysterious divine force within him, but he couldn't draw on it. Instead he circulated his soul power and used his soul force to create a Blue-Silver Grass—Radiant Lifeform, converting it into life energy and dripping it into the Blue-Silver Sovereign.
He didn't use soul power directly to form Ultimate Life because Blue-Silver Grass could absorb the plant's wants for growth plus Ultimate Water and the Natural Domain's bonuses. After consuming all these life bonuses, the Blue-Silver Grass's converted Ultimate Life was unbelievably strong.
This time the Blue-Silver Sovereign enjoyed the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye's life-boost multiplied a hundredfold by the Natural Domain.
Combined with homogenous Blue-Silver Grass Ultimate Life, the plant began to grow at a visible, insane rate.
In the stone chamber before, it had taken only ten-plus seconds to become the Hundred-Year Blue-Silver Sovereign.
Now, in just over ten seconds, it rose to the Thousand-Year Blue-Silver Sovereign!
Though growth slowed after reaching a thousand years, the Blue-Silver Grass-generated Ultimate Life was so extreme the plant's growth still sped onward.
Two thousand years!
Three thousand!
Four thousand!
In seven or eight minutes the plant swelled from thumb-thick to waist-thick like a woman's waist, flashing gold and verdant light across its body.
It had ascended.
Now the Blue-Silver Sovereign had become the Ten-Thousand-Year Blue-Silver Sovereign. Aside from the outward change, its internal transformation was even more astonishing.
Ye Lan sensed that his Sect-level blood was most effective for plants of under ten thousand years.
Once a plant surpassed ten thousand years, the effects of his Sect-level Ultimate Life Blood would fall to one percent of their prior power.
In other words, if he wanted to advance the Blue-Silver Sovereign another ten thousand years now, it would require twelve hours of bloodletting!
Even if it drained him dry, he could not do it. He thought of Leng Leng's Nine-Heart Sacred Armor and its limitless soul power—using that to continue nurturing the Blue-Silver Sovereign would be easy enough.
But Ye Lan lacked the face to ask Leng Leng for such a favor. After all, the Blue-Silver Sovereign was Tang Hao's wife, a naïve young thing.
Though Leng Leng would likely agree, Ye Lan couldn't get past his own scruples. After all, how could he exploit another man's wife to raise her as his maid?
Finding the Ultimate Life Blood's effect limited, Ye Lan stopped the blood flow from his palm.
Just as he moved forward to inspect the plant, the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye began to tremble violently. The boiling crimson spring roared more fiercely; the ice-blue surface cracked.
Ye Lan's outstretched arm froze midair as he stared in astonishment.
Before he could wonder at the sudden change, two gigantic dragon phantoms—each a hundred meters long, one fire-red and one ice-blue—burst out from the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye.
Ye Lan immediately activated his Golden Eyes. If anything went wrong, he prepared to use Flash, Instant Step, or Echo Shift to teleport to Grandpa Dugu and Uncle Wolf.
Sensing the blond human's tension, the ice-blue dragon phantom spoke in a bell-like girl's voice: "Don't be nervous. Don't be nervous. We're not bad people—oh no, we're not bad dragons."
At the ice-blue dragon's chime, Ye Lan's taut shoulders relaxed.
"What dragons are you?" Ye Lan asked, puzzled. In his past life he had not known the origin of the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye. Who were these two dragons?
"We're good dragons!" the ice-blue phantom replied earnestly.
"Sister!" A stern male voice scolded the ice-blue phantom.
The ice-blue phantom looked at the fire-red phantom in grievance and whispered, "Brother…"
"Human, greetings. I and the one beside me are the remnant souls of the Fire Dragon King and the Water Dragon King. You may call us Little Fire and Little Water." The Fire Dragon King's voice was imposing.
"Greetings, Senior Fire, Senior Water. May I ask what you need with me?" Ye Lan cupped his fist respectfully.
Fire Dragon King? Water Dragon King?
What relation did they have with the Silver Dragon King? Were they formerly god-level beings as well?
Ye Lan bowed to no deity lightly.
Seeing Ye Lan's courtesy, the Fire Dragon King nodded approvingly.
The Water Dragon King chimed, "Don't call me senior. Call me Sister Water, hehe."
"Sister Water." Ye Lan answered.
Hearing such a handsome human call her "sister," the Water Dragon King grew delighted and began to wheel and glide across the Ice-Fire Two-Yi Eye in free, elegant motions.
Watching the Water Dragon King's graceful form, Ye Lan finally understood what a perfect creature looked like.
Her winged flight was so beautiful he nearly lost himself in admiration.
"Human, what were you doing just now? What is your relationship with this Blue-Silver Sovereign?" the Fire Dragon King asked curiously.
Ye Lan snapped back to attention. "Senior Fire, this Blue-Silver Sovereign is extremely close to me. It's my subject. For over ten years it lived in a dark, damp chamber. To make up for the life energy it lacked, I thought this place would help plants grow. So I brought it here to heal its life deficiency."
"Is that so? Little sister thought you were aiding a spirit beast; I thought you were cultivating a soul ring," the Fire Dragon King said, watching Ye Lan intently.
At that moment Ye Lan felt an immense, terrifying pressure and presence.
It was like being eyed by a natural predator. Millions of pores tightened; countless hairs stood on end.
Yet before that infinite pressure, Ye Lan relaxed, inhaled deeply, and his instinctive alarm dissolved.
Then he replied calmly, "Senior Fire, if you're looking to incriminate me, you'll find excuses aplenty."
Seeing Ye Lan pass this pressure test, the Fire Dragon King nodded with satisfaction.
In truth, even if Ye Lan were cultivating a soul ring there would be no great crime. Only someone with true power could ensure their dragon-line investments wouldn't be wasted. As long as he was close to spirit beasts, he deserved a chance.
"Human, then tell me—where does that one hundred-thousand-year spirit beast aura on you come from?" the Fire Dragon King asked next.
Ye Lan felt the pressure ease by half and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Look." Three soul lights flashed about Ye Lan's body.
Deep yellow, violet, black-purple, and blood-red soul rings burst forth.
The Water Dragon King, seeing the glaring blood-red light, became excited: "Brother, see!! How is my sister's eye for talent!?"
The Fire Dragon King shot the Water Dragon King a glare—silly thing, was she going to give away their secrets?
Realizing her slip, the Water Dragon King hurriedly pretended nothing had happened and flew off in the distance.
"Is this a soul beast that sacrificed itself to you?" the Fire Dragon King fixed his gaze on the hundred-thousand-year soul ring. Only now upon landing did he notice the one-hundred-thousand-year spirit beast aura on the blond human.
He hadn't expected a hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
"Hey, you clumsy ape, did you offer yourself willingly?" the Fire Dragon King asked. His phantom form began to emit a certain wave.
Ye Lan's face did not change, but his golden pupils contracted slightly.
It was already too late—his fourth soul ring and the Fire Dragon King's remnant soul began to resonate.
Ye Lan's golden eye light brightened; he fully opened his Golden Eyes. If things went awry he would retreat.
"Don't call me clumsy. You a dragon—what's the big deal? I volunteered." The Titan Ape's voice came from within.
The Titan Ape did not know the Fire Dragon King's history. It had only felt the dragon's mighty presence, but no pressure compared to Ye Lan.
Ye Lan was destined for godhood; to hitch a ride and meet Xiao Wu again, the Titan Ape hadn't minded doing a favor.
Moreover, when it sacrificed itself and saw Ye Lan's talent, it truly volunteered.
Though Ye Lan's methods then were somewhat despicable, to the Ape they were a virtue.
Ye Lan had unmatched innate talent, treated kin well, gave his all—yet toward enemies like Tang Hao, Tang San, or his beloved Xiao Wu, he would use whatever means necessary without psychological restraint.
A person with both natural gift and ruthless means—if such a one didn't become a god, who would?
Ye Lan looked at his fourth soul ring with mixed emotions. He hadn't expected the Titan Ape to speak up for him.
"Human, my sister and I were not mistaken," the Fire Dragon King's gaze grew brighter. Then he began to tell Ye Lan their purpose slowly:
"Human, do you know of the Divine Realm?"
"The Divine Realm? What is that?" Ye Lan asked.
The Fire Dragon King's remnant soul sighed. "The Divine Realm is the abode of the long-lived—residing there grants immortality."
"The origin of the Divine Realm has many legends. The most widespread and accepted one says the Creator God, unwilling to see friends and family die, created a realm that granted eternal life—the Divine Realm."
"Although the Divine Realm grants immortality, it has limits. To be immortal you must reside there forever. Once you leave, immortality vanishes."
"Moreover, the Divine Realm's immortal power is too unnatural. Any god who appears outside the Divine Realm will be rejected by the 'Cosmic Consciousness.' So outside the Divine Realm, immortals do not exist. Even if one did appear, the Cosmic Consciousness would use countless means to kill them."
"Perhaps the current Divine Realm is what remained after creator-friends lived countless years, grew weary, and left, leaving vacancies."
"Or perhaps with the Creator God's aid, some ascended beyond the bounds of the Divine Realm, surviving unbound in the universe or rising to higher dimensions."
"No matter the cause, those vacant divine thrones were either inherited by lower-world beings, or by those who gathered belief and won the positions."
"Of course, the Divine Realm is not singular. It once numbered countless realms. After the ancient epoch's gargantuan Divine Wars, few Divine Realms now remain."
"My sister and I come from the Divine Realm that occupies the star region where Douluo Star resides. You may call it the Douluo Divine Realm."
"So you mean Senior Fire and Sister Water were gods of the Douluo Divine Realm? If you were gods, how did you end up at the Ice-Fire Spring of Douluo Star?" Ye Lan asked.
Hearing the Fire Dragon King's introduction, Ye Lan finally had a clear picture of the Divine Realm.
So that's how the Divine Realm came to be.
He decided to learn more about the Douluo Divine Realm from the Fire Dragon King.
(End of Chapter)