Cataclysm of the God Realm

After the sparring match, everyone had gained a deeper understanding of one another. It was just that the process hadn't been particularly pleasant for the five students other than Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena... Once the battle concluded, Wu Zhangkong and Luo Yanglu stopped tormenting them and dismissed them to rest. Wu Zhangkong and Luo Yanglu also selected a room in the dormitory building and moved in. This was arranged by the academy so the two of them living here could better guide everyone. It was already late, so lessons of all kinds could wait until tomorrow. ... That night, Tang Wulin lay in bed with steady breaths as his consciousness gradually sank into a world of pure white. He looked around, expressionless. He had already ended up here several times. What did that voice want to say this time? Just as the thought crossed Tang Wulin's mind, a mechanical voice rang out from thin air. "Shrek Academy's motto—'Only mediocrities fear stirring up trouble.' As a chosen favorite of the heavens, living peacefully and comfortably will never do. You must whip up storms and endure worldly vicissitudes..." "You're wrong! If someone looks to stir up trouble, they only pick on those weaker than themselves; nobody goes around provoking people stronger than they are. When you look at it from the other side, doesn't 'only mediocrities fear stirring up trouble' just mean bullying the weak?" Tang Wulin listened for a moment before loudly cutting in to refute it. "Dad told me that if I ever bullied a younger classmate at school, he would definitely punish me. But if an older classmate bullied me, I had to resist bravely, and he would never blame me for it. "Teacher Wu Yu also told me that we in the Spirit Pagoda don't look for trouble, but we aren't afraid of it either! Wantonly bullying others is wrong!" Hearing Tang Wulin's words, the mechanical voice seemed somewhat incensed. "The law of the jungle is the absolute truth of this world!" Tang Wulin shook his head, his tone somber. "But if it's as you say—that only mediocrities fear stirring up trouble, and the strong have the right to bully others at will—then if I can rely on my strength to bully someone else, can't others do the same to me? If everyone acted like that, wouldn't this world just be hell? "Seniors from the Spirit Pagoda could have dragged me into the pagoda without asking for my opinion. A Spirit Pagoda Master uncle could have relied on his strength to deny me any chance of obtaining a Soul Spirit, or refused to help awaken my Martial Soul, leaving me unable to cultivate at all! Mom and Dad might have crossed paths with bad people while trying to scrape together money to buy me a Soul Spirit, and been captured by them. "The reason I can live in peace and happiness in this world isn't because of your so-called truth, but because of something far warmer!" Outside the white space, Tang San's divine sense gazed at Tang Wulin. His mouth opened slightly, but finding himself utterly unable to refute the boy, he fell silent. After thinking it over for some time, he had realized it was best not to instruct Wulin under the guise of 'Old Tang' for now, as that would easily arouse suspicion. Thus, he had chosen a method akin to dream visitation, imparting teachings to Tang Wulin in his sleep. Yet he discovered that he couldn't teach the boy at all. Wulin was simply too stubborn. Tang Ziran and his wife had exerted a tremendous influence on him, leaving him completely unwilling to listen to his guidance—he wouldn't even heed the Shrek Academy motto passed down across the ages. In fact... at times, he actually found a shred of truth in what the child said. What was he to do? Pondering for a moment, Tang San's divine sense sighed and temporarily sent Tang Wulin out, intending to reconsider his educational approach. He turned his gaze toward the Golden Dragon King seal within Tang Wulin's body. During the Battle of the God Realm, his true body had miscalculated several variables. The new God of Emotions had strongly supported the Godking of Destruction's proposal to expand the God Realm, defecting to Destruction's side in the middle of their great war. Furthermore, Destruction's overwhelming might had exceeded his true body's expectations. Originally, with the God of Destruction, Zhou Weiqing, turning traitor to aid him, and Wulin's birth helping break Destruction's seal, victory should have been assured. Never did he imagine that due to the unexpected interference of the new God of Emotions and his miscalculation of Destruction's strength, the God of Destruction's betrayal had instead become the fuse. Combined with the Goddess of Life subtly leaning toward his true body's side, Destruction was driven into an uncontrollable fury. A true, deadly fury ignited as Destruction led his subordinates and the God of Emotions in relentlessly battering him and the God of Destruction. In the end, his true body's divine form suffered grave injuries, his divine power was nearly depleted, and the God of Destruction was laid flat. Had the Goddess of Life not stepped in to stop both sides, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Afterward, the God Realm was struck by turbulent temporal currents, and the Godkings of Life and Destruction perished while resisting the temporal storm. It was under those very circumstances that the Golden Dragon King broke out of the God-Forbidden Land! Having continuously absorbed the immortal spiritual energy of the God Realm to cultivate while sealed away, the Golden Dragon King had grown even more formidable than Destruction, faintly surpassing the Godking realm. His battered, bloodied true body had once again been pursued and relentlessly beaten. Back then, the two Godkings of Goodness and Evil had long been lured away by Destruction; Destruction and Life were dead; the God of Destruction Zhou Weiqing was down and out; Rong Nianbing had fled; and the new God of Emotions lacked the foundation of the aforementioned gods and held a grudge against his true body. By that point, his true body couldn't find a single trusted deity to share the burden of protecting the God Realm's core (in the original work, Huo Yuhao had helped Tang San shoulder it, struggling so hard that he nearly passed out). He had no choice but to shoulder the full pressure of the entire God Realm defense system being squeezed by the turbulent temporal currents, rallying a host of gods to confront the Golden Dragon King. As a result, numerous deities perished in battle, and Divine Tools were scattered in all directions, their whereabouts unknown. To protect the remaining deities and maintain his prestige, his true body could only sacrifice his position as the Sea God, barely holding on. Had the two Godkings of Goodness and Evil, who had been lured beforehand by Destruction to the Five Elements Continent, not returned in the nick of time, the dignified God Realm Law Enforcer would have died at the hands of the Golden Dragon King! Yet even though he survived, his true body's condition had deteriorated to the absolute extreme. After utilizing the Three Realms Judgment Sword to slay the Golden Dragon King, his divine power had been completely exhausted, making it impossible to recover in the short term. He hadn't even been able to complete the Golden Dragon King seal on his own, requiring the assistance of the other two Godkings... This was precisely why it was essential for his wisp of divine sense to retain its memories: because the Golden Dragon King seal before him had been forged from an amalgamation of various divine powers, it had certain flaws! Tang San's divine sense looked at the seal and let out a deep sigh. With Wulin in such a state, how could he feel safe entrusting this power to him? ... Early the next morning, Gu Yuena was awakened by a wafting aroma. "What is this smell?" Gu Yuena's eyes lit up. She quickly got dressed, tidied herself up, and headed down to the first-floor kitchen, where she found Huo Yuhao and Luo Yanglu busily at work inside. The dormitory did have a kitchen; it was just that she and Yuhao had never used it before. *So Yuhao knows how to cook... It smells amazing.* As Gu Yuena peered into the doorway, Huo Yuhao noticed her from inside and extended his hand to pass her a plate. On it were xiaolongbao. Huo Yuhao smiled. "Want to try one?" Aided by his Spirit Eyes and honed through years of traveling far and wide, his culinary skills were quite good. Gu Yuena blinked, reached out to take one, and took a gentle bite. Her eyes shone instantly, and like a little hamster, she chewed with rapid delight, her entire being radiating an aura of sheer bliss. She completely ignored the nourishing energy in the food—flavor was the only thing that mattered to her! Delicious! By the time Huo Yuhao helped Luo Yanglu finish breakfast and entered the main hall, he found Gu Yuena already sitting eagerly at the dining table. Her bright, watery black eyes remained fixed on... the tray in his hands, the plate beside her already emptied clean. "..." Saying nothing, Huo Yuhao walked over, sat down beside Gu Yuena, and nudged the food tray toward her hand. Having already witnessed her appetite, he was well used to it. When Xie Xie and the others got out of bed and rushed over following the scent, this was the exact scene that met their eyes. "When they lived here before, do you think they were always like this?" Xu Xiaoyan's eyes sparkled, her face lighting up with gossip-hungry curiosity as she turned toward Xie Xie.