The key to opening the tenth barrier gate was the Power of Le-Wu, requiring a Martial Soul Fusion between Bule and Xiao Wu.
When Tang San saw Bule sitting lazily outside the gate, wearing his trademark cowboy hat, Xiao Wu suddenly lit up with joy. She broke away from Tang San's side and threw herself straight into Bule's arms, exclaiming:
"Brother Bule! Xiao Wu missed you so much—!"
Tang San's face instantly turned dark green.
Damn it! At this point, they're not even pretending anymore!
Gritting his teeth, Tang San said in a low voice:
"Xiao Wu, don't forget—I am your husband."
Still nestled comfortably in Bule's embrace, Xiao Wu pouted and said unhappily:
"Ah San-gege, why do you always try to control me? Xiao Wu and Brother Bule are just pure friends—it's not what you think. Can't Xiao Wu have any other male friends besides you?"
Bule gently stroked Xiao Wu's back and looked at Tang San with disapproval:
"Ah San, Xiao Wu may be your wife, but she's also an independent person. She deserves freedom, including the freedom to have her own friends. As a man, can't you be a little more open-minded?"
You want me to be open-minded?
Watching Xiao Wu lean affectionately against Bule's chest, Tang San felt like coughing up blood.
It took a while before the two finally separated.
Then Tang San looked up at the carved relief on the barrier gate—on one side was a rabbit, and on the other, a pair of heavenly nets. There was no need to guess what kind of test this was going to be.
"Looks like this barrier requires Brother Bule and me to perform a Martial Soul Fusion," said Xiao Wu.
Bule sighed dramatically.
"That's troublesome. Ah San, didn't you say you didn't need my help?"
Tang San said through clenched teeth,
"Whatever your condition is, name it. As long as you can fuse souls with Xiao Wu and open this gate, I, Tang San, will agree to anything."
Bule's eyes gleamed.
"Anything? Truly anything?"
"Anything!" Tang San affirmed.
By this point, Tang San had long abandoned all sense of dignity in his pursuit of godhood.
Bule smiled faintly.
"Well, I've always been fond of married women, so I have one… rather improper request, Ah San. Could you…?"
Tang San's fists trembled. His green hair covered his face, hiding his twisted, wormhole-like expression.
Finally, he hissed through gritted teeth:
"I can!"
What exactly happened during the next hour remains unknown, but what Tang San once saw in the illusion of his past life had now materialized in the real world.
Eventually, Xiao Wu and Bule completed their Martial Soul Fusion—"Tight-Bound Illusion Dance: Thousand Silk Mirage."
With Bule and Xiao Wu's full strength, and Tang San's own… participation, the tenth barrier was finally broken.
At this point, Tang San fully understood why his divine trial had included these ten accursed individuals.
But as he looked ahead at the eleventh gate, he prayed silently—please don't tell me it's another one of these…
Yet the moment he saw the new relief, his face turned even greener.
The carving depicted a rabbit occupying half the gate, while the other half featured a white tiger, a sausage, and a phoenix.
The meaning was painfully obvious.
The eleventh barrier required a combination of Ma-Wu Power, Ao-Wu Power, and Bai-Wu Power—three different fusion forces—to open.
Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar appeared together on the platform.
Dai Mubai placed a hand on Tang San's shoulder and said warmly:
"Third brother, we meet again. Looks like you'll need our help this time too."
Ma Hongjun grinned, adding:
"Yeah, third brother, what's the plan this time?"
Oscar followed up with a friendly pat.
"Don't be shy, we're brothers. Tell us what you need—we'll handle it together."
Tang San lowered his proud head, his green hair hanging down to hide his face, which twisted like a black hole.
Three hours later…
After enduring another unspoken ordeal, the Shrek Trio and Xiao Wu performed a triple Martial Soul Fusion—
"Sacred Flame Gentle Tiger Transformation."
The twelfth gate's relief showed a rabbit and, beside it, the figures of Ma Hongjun and Yu Tianheng, symbolizing dragon and phoenix—a heavenly pairing.
The key was the Ma-Wu Power combined with the Wu-Heng Power.
After another "two-hour transaction" filled with unspoken suffering, Ma Hongjun, Yu Tianheng, and Xiao Wu fused souls in the "Radiant Thunder Dragon-Phoenix Transformation," finally breaking through.
Naturally, Tang San "participated" once again and offered his power.
The thirteenth gate's relief: a rabbit, a Titan Giant Ape, and a Mighty Gorilla.
The key: Ming-Wu Power and Wu-Long Power.
After another grueling four-hour ordeal and yet another "unspoken deal," Xiao Wu, Er Ming, and Tai Long performed the "Heaven-Shaking Moon Ape Transformation."
Tang San once again contributed part of his strength.
The fourteenth gate showed a rabbit and two white tigers.
The key: Wu-Bai Power and Wu-Si Power.
After three more hours of unspeakable "negotiation," Dai Mubai, Dai Weisi, and Xiao Wu fused into "Sacred Phantom Moon Tiger Transformation."
The barrier broke, with Tang San participating again.
The fifteenth gate's relief: a rabbit, and beside it, three mighty beasts—the Phoenix (Ma Hongjun), the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon (Yu Tianheng), and the White Tiger (Dai Mubai).
Dragon, tiger, and phoenix—the ultimate trio. Xiao Wu truly feasted well this time.
After another mysterious and morally questionable "exchange," the four performed the "Radiant Thunder Holy Moon Transformation," combining three immense forces to shatter the barrier—with Tang San, of course, once again taking part.
The sixteenth gate: a rabbit, and opposite it, three human figures—Xue Beng with his Swan Spirit, Tai Long with his Mighty Gorilla, and Bule with his Heavenly Net.
As the saying goes—it's easy to meet the King of Hell, but hard to deal with his little demons.
These three alone brought Tang San immense psychological trauma. Their combination wasn't just additive—it was destructive.
After enduring several more hours of humiliation and a four-hour-long "unrecorded negotiation," Tang San finally persuaded them to perform the triple fusion—
"Silken Dome Sky Collapse Transformation."
Under the combined power of Le-Wu, Wu-Long, and Wu-Beng, the sixteenth barrier… was finally broken.
(Tang San's descent into spiritual torment continues…)
By the seventeenth trial, the restriction statues had become far more intricate.
The rabbit occupied half of the relief carving, while the other half was divided among the White Tiger, Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon, Titan Giant Ape, Phoenix, and Sausage—five martial souls in total.
This lineup was all too familiar to Tang San; it was the exact same one he had seen during the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament.
After Tang San's pleading and a secret deal that lasted over seven hours, they finally, albeit reluctantly, agreed to his request. They fused their martial souls with Xiao Wu to form a Six-Headed Chimera, helping Tang San break through the seventeenth restriction.
At last, Tang San and Xiao Wu walked up the staircase leading to the final trial.
At this moment, Tang San's heart grew incredibly heavy.
The final trial.
Even without reaching the destination, Tang San could already foresee what the last trial would entail.
This final trial would be the hardest to pass, for it was their last chance to stop him from completing the God Examination.
In the previous trials, they had agreed readily enough, but this final one—they would never let him pass so easily. *What should I do? Must I continue to swallow their shameless demands just to become a god?*
For the first time, Tang San felt lost about his future.
But with his bottom line shattered long ago, Tang San no longer had anything left to lose. Ascension to godhood was his sole purpose.
"Ah-San giegie, we're here," Xiao Wu said.
They had arrived at the entrance to the final restriction. This gate opened directly into the Asura Space—once inside, Tang San would claim the Asura God Throne.
Yet the true trial awaited him here.
Embedded in the gate was another relief carving.
The rabbit claimed half, while the other half was evenly divided among: White Tiger, White Tiger, Phoenix, Sausage, Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon, Heavenly Net Dual Shields, Titan Giant Ape, Vigorous Orangutan, Gale Dual-Headed Demon Wolf, and Swan.
Bu Le and the other ten stood before Tang San and Xiao Wu.
"Yo, yo, yo, Hei Wo A-San, we meet again," Yu Tianheng said.
Tang San spoke in a low voice: "Enough pretending. State your conditions."
"Conditions?" Dai Mubai said. "Third brother, you're too distant. We're brothers—your business is our business. Right, everyone?"
"Right! A brother's trouble is our trouble!"
At first, Tang San was wary and uncertain. But what happened next left him stunned.
This time, these guys didn't block him at the final trial. On the contrary, they agreed to his request with astonishing ease and fused their martial souls with Xiao Wu.
Tang San was shocked—and overjoyed. He lifted his head and watched the martial soul fusion of eleven people taking shape.
Xiao Wu and their bodies pressed tightly together, enveloped in a green light cocoon. Green light rained down from the heavens, bathing Tang San beneath it.
In this moment, Tang San truly believed green was the most beautiful color in the world.
Finally, the Eleven-Headed Chimera revealed itself.
It was even more ferocious and domineering than the Six-Headed Chimera.
Dragon wings, phoenix wings, and swan wings sprouted from its back. It stood on two legs with six arms and eleven heads. The rabbit head grew from its abdomen, while ten more heads extended from its crown—each representing one of Xiao Wu's ten male best friends and their respective top-tier martial souls.
The moment the Eleven-Headed Chimera appeared, it unleashed a torrent of powers onto the relief:
Ma-Wu Power, Wu-Bai Power, Ao-Wu Power, Wu-Si Power, Wu-Long Power, Le-Wu Power, Ming-Wu Power, Feng-Wu Power, Xue-Wu Power, and Wu-Heng Power.
Under the combined force of these ten powers, the relief began to slowly rotate.
When it had turned about three-quarters of the way, a tentacle extended toward Tang San. Xiao Wu's voice rang out:
"A-San giegie, Bu Le's soul power is running out. Help him!"
Tang San immediately grabbed the tentacle: "Take it—all my soul power is yours!"
Bu Le shouted: "Ah! I feel Tang San's soul power surging in—watch my even greater Le-Wu Power!"
"A-San giegie, Brother Dai Mubai is running low!"
"A-San giegie, Little Brother Er Ming is running out!"
"A-San giegie, Brother Feng Xiaotian is fading!"
"A-San giegie, Brother Dai Weisi is almost empty!"
Finally, through the combined effort of all twelve, the relief rotated into the open position.
Tang San collapsed to the ground, utterly spent. He stared at the carving with ecstatic joy, tears streaming down his face. Before he could utter a word of realization, he saw the Eleven-Headed Chimera disintegrate.
Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, and the others did not fall to the ground. Instead, their bodies were enveloped in radiant light.
Xiao Wu looked at Tang San and said: "A-San giegie, congratulations—you are about to become the Asura God."
Dai Mubai added: "Congratulations, third brother. Once again, we witness your coronation as a god."
Yu Tianheng said: "We'll be waiting for you in the Asura Space."
With that, they transformed into beams of light and flew toward the relief.
Xiao Wu merged into the rabbit carving, while each of her ten male best friends dissolved into their respective martial soul symbols on the gate.
Their departure left Tang San with one lingering doubt:
*Wait—you're all coming to my Asura God coronation space??*
Then, a majestic voice echoed through the God Examination space:
Congratulations, Examinee. You have completed the Ninth Trial, walked the Path to Godhood, and opened the Gate of Asura. Enter the Asura Space, and you shall be crowned a god.
Upon receiving this message, Tang San instantly forgot his confusion. What followed was pure, explosive joy.
He recalled every hardship of his rebirth:
- His father accidentally killing Xiao Wu's mother, causing her to misunderstand him.
- His previous life's trajectory veering further and further off course.
- His brothers betraying him.
- His wife giving birth to seven children—each with a different father, none his own.
- His father sabotaging him.
- Gangzi morally blackmailing him under the guise of a teacher.
- Enduring seventy-two deaths just to activate the God Examination.
- Every step of the God Exam fraught with obstacles.
- Enduring endless humiliation—kneeling and kowtowing at every trial.
- Even killing his own father, committing the unforgivable sin of patricide.
And yet, he had endured it all.
He had borne every pain, every torment, every degradation—for this moment. For the final, glorious harvest.
He would cross the Gate of Asura, complete the Asura God Examination, and return at the pinnacle—with 100% affinity—surpassing the grand ambitions of his previous life.
He would prove it:
What cannot defeat me, Tang San, will only make me stronger.
"Hahahahahahaha…!"
Tang San raised his overly long arms, clenched his fists, and pounded his chest like a madman, letting out a shrill, ape-like roar to release all the grievances and suffering he had carried for so many years.