Douluo Continent: My Martial Soul is the Black Dragon, I am the Lord of the Gods

……

Deep within the Papal Palace in Wuhun City.

Time has quietly passed, and several months have gone by since that "Heavenly Punishment" that shook the continent.

The situation on the mainland underwent a dramatic change amidst a strange calm and repression.

The two great empires, Tiandou and Xingluo, completely lost the will to resist. Under extreme fear, the remaining troops and nobles chose to surrender unconditionally.

The new policies of the Martial Soul Empire were rapidly implemented across the entire continent with unstoppable momentum.

The old system of privileges for Soul Masters was completely shattered, and a new order was established with almost brutal efficiency through the baptism of blood and fire.

Although there were still sporadic resistances and undercurrents during the process, under Xuanming's absolute deterrence, which hung over their heads like the Sword of Damocles, any behavior that dared to challenge the new order was quickly suppressed by his iron fist.

The entire continent seemed to have entered an unprecedented period of "peace." However, this peace was forged by absolute fear and obedience.

On that very day, as Bibi Dong finished reviewing the last document concerning the purge of the remnants of the two great empires and put down her vermilion pen, an invisible wave transcended the barriers of space and descended upon the consciousness of several key figures in Wuhun City.

In Xuanming's mind.

That cold and majestic divine will resounded once more:
[Fifth Test: Reshaping Order (Completed)]

[Evaluation: Decisive measures were taken, yet a compassionate heart was revealed. Although the process was brutal, the objective was clear, the will unwavering, and the methods resolute, effectively eradicating the deep-seated problems of the old order and laying an unshakeable foundation for the new order. This aligns with the evaluation principles of the gods of good, evil, destruction, and asura—clear responsibilities, practiced will, not bound by worldly notions of good and evil, but judging heroes solely by results.]

[Assessment Reward: One Divine Soul Ring (Blessed by the Goddess of Life).]

A beam of green light, brimming with vitality and gentle warmth, disregarded the distance in space and suddenly descended upon Xuan Ming within the Martial Soul City Research Institute.

Within the pillar of light, a divinely bestowed soul ring, containing immense life essence and sacred aura, slowly condensed and took shape. Its quality far surpassed that of the past, a gift from the Goddess of Life.

For Xuanming, who has already reached the god level and is still undergoing continuous transformation in all aspects, ordinary soul power enhancements or artifact rewards are meaningless.

This divinely bestowed soul ring, containing the fundamental laws of life, is an affirmation of his passing the test and may add a unique quality to his already vast power.

Xuanming calmly accepted the reward, paying it little attention, and casually absorbed it into his body, slowly merging it with his own power.

This assessment accurately summarizes the essence of his behavior.

He was not bloodthirsty; he simply chose the most direct and efficient path to achieve his ultimate goal of "reshaping order."

The killings during the process are merely a necessary price to pay for clearing obstacles.

The divine realm does not recognize his "kindness," but rather his ruthlessness and efficiency in "using any means to achieve his goals."

This confirmed his judgment: the divine realm, especially the main gods who govern the rules, views problems from a completely different perspective than mortals. They don't care whether the process is bloody, only whether the result conforms to the rules and whether it is conducive to the stability of the divine realm's order.

Just like the divine realm's attitude towards the dragon race and the Silver Dragon King.

If it weren't for his appearance as an "anomaly," the God Realm would never have given Gu Yuena any chance, and would have simply let her fend for herself on Douluo Star, or even secretly pushed for her demise.

In their view, an uncontrolled and powerful racial leader is a potential threat to the divine order.

So-called "fairness" and "benevolence" can be sacrificed in the face of maintaining the overall interests of the divine realm.

Similarly, in the eyes of the gods, the competition between the soul beast race and humans is nothing more than a natural part of the competition among the myriad races in the lower realm, and is insignificant.

Every moment, races rise and fall; the divine realm neither will nor should interfere excessively.

They would only intervene when such competition involved divine power and could disrupt the balance of the planes. "Know your responsibilities, know what you should do, know what you shouldn't do..." Xuanming repeated in a low voice the profound meaning hidden in the will of the divine test.

This is the true standard for selecting successors in the divine realm: absolute rationality, a clear sense of boundaries, and the courage to take necessary measures to maintain a greater order.

If he remains fixated on so-called "benevolence," harbors pity for the old order, and hesitates to kill, he might gain the sympathy of the Goddess of Life, but he will never pass the test of the four main gods—Good, Evil, Destruction, and Asura—who represent the enforcement of the rules of the divine realm!

Especially the Goddess of Kindness! The deity whose name is "Kindness" is often the one who deals with the most troublesome and darkest affairs in the divine realm. Her methods are sometimes more ruthless and unquestionable than those of the God of Destruction.

Because the other side of "kindness" is "evil" that must be carried out in order to protect a greater "good".

In less than a day, the divinely bestowed soul ring, containing the blessing of the Goddess of Life, was completely absorbed and refined by Xuanming, just like a drop of water merging into the ocean.

It is still at the limit of millions of years, but the immense life force contained within it is the true core.

This spirit ring did not significantly increase his total divine power or destructive force, but it infused a gentle yet resilient life force into his power system, which already contained the nascent laws of Asura, evil, destruction, and goodness.

Although it is only in its nascent stage, the emergence of this life law means that it has touched upon one of the most fundamental forces that constitute the world, and its value far exceeds that of mere energy accumulation.

From then on, the core laws represented by the five God-Kings of the Divine Realm—the seeds of Asura, Evil, Destruction, Goodness, and Life—were all buried within him.

This is by no means a coincidence, but rather more like a deliberate guidance and preparation by the divine test.

Xuanming could sense that the preliminary groundwork was complete. Next, the God Realm was about to get serious.

The laboratory door was gently pushed open, and Gu Yuena walked in.

Her aura was more solid and vast than before, and a sense of creation and origin flowed subtly around her.

After being nourished by the life energy rewarded by the gods through several trials, her essence, which was damaged by the split of the dragon god, has been mostly repaired.

“Xuanming,” Gu Yuena’s voice carried a hint of solemnity, “my Creation Godhead is ready to begin its formal fusion.”

She paused for a moment, then said, "Xuanming, you have already broken through to level 100, and your power has long surpassed that of ordinary priests, and is even no weaker than that of a first-level god. But you... have not yet truly condensed your own godhood."

Xuanming remained silent, indicating his agreement.

Gu Yuena continued to explain: "Divinity and divine position are different. A divine position is more like a post in the divine realm, bound to the rules of the divine realm and existing based on the power system of the divine realm. Gods can leave the divine realm, but divine positions cannot. The number of divine positions is closely related to the strength of the divine realm."

"Divinity is the deity's own understanding, control, and condensation of the laws of heaven and earth; it is their own original power! Like the angel god and the sea god, they first condensed their divine positions through faith and opportunities, and after ascending to the divine realm, they gradually condensed their own divine identities over a long period of time, based on their divine positions."

"But the five great god-kings of the divine realm, and I... our divine status is innate, a manifestation of powerful laws originating from the source. My creation god status originates from the dragon god and belongs to the god-king level."

"Although you have broken through level 100 and your power has reached the divine realm, you have not experienced the tribulation to become a god, nor have you condensed your own divine spark. Therefore, in the definition of the divine realm, you cannot yet be considered a true god."

"Now is the time for you to consider condensing your own divine essence."

The instant Gu Yuena finished speaking, that cold yet immense divine will, as if it had been waiting for a long time, once again crashed down upon Xuanming's sea of ​​consciousness:

[The Sixth Trial Begins: The Choice of Divine Position.]

[Content: Within one year, clarify your own divine path, gain the recognition of at least one god-king level being, or condense your own divine spark, taking the most crucial step towards godhood.]

Xuanming was slightly taken aback.

The first five tests served as a screening and preparation, confirming his qualifications and planting the seeds of the five great divine king laws within him.

This sixth test is the real turning point. (End of Chapter)