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

……

The realm of gods, the supreme temple.

The usual solemn and dignified atmosphere vanished. The divine thoughts of the four god-kings clashed and clashed fiercely like thunder in a storm. If the temple itself were not formed from rules, it would probably have collapsed long ago in this invisible conflict.

"What else is there to argue about?" The God of Evil stood up. "Xuanming is resolute in his character, acts only according to his conscience, has his own standard of good and evil, and is not bound by worldly conventions! To achieve his goal, he is willing to sacrifice even rivers of blood! This self-centered and truthful nature is perfectly suited to my position as the God of Evil! He is worthy to inherit my divine position!"

"Absurd!" The Asura God slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "Evil! Put away your tricks of manipulating people's hearts! His blood-drinking, soul-devouring spear, his cruel methods of judgment and slaughtering millions of corpses at every turn—aren't they all deeply in line with the true meaning of the Asura God's position of killing and judgment? His path is to tread on mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He is a born Asura inheritor!"

The God of Destruction sneered, "Shura! Have you lost your mind? Your divine position has already been decided for that Bibi Dong from the lower realm! That woman wields the Shura Demon Sword, her Killing God Domain has mutated, and she's fully committed to breaking through to the divine position! Now you're going back on your word, do you even care about the face of the God King?"

"Evil! Xuanming's approach is to directly crush people's hearts, not toy with them! It's complete destruction and reconstruction! It perfectly aligns with my path of destruction and rebirth in order to destroy the divine position! I've said it before, I will pass my divine position to him!"

As the three male god-kings argued heatedly, their divine thoughts clashing to the point of almost sparking a tangible flame, the God of Kindness, who had remained silent all along, let out a soft, white-gold light that emanated from his body. His ethereal and calm voice rang out, yet it was like throwing a block of ice into a pot of boiling oil:
"Gentlemen, are we being too fixated on appearances?" the God of Kindness said softly.

"Xuanming's methods may seem ruthless, but at its core, he aims to establish a better order, to end millennia of conflict, and to give all beings a relatively fair starting point. Deep within him lies a steadfast commitment to and protection of ultimate goodness. He simply chose the most effective, yet also the most difficult, way to put it into practice. This essence of carrying a torch through boundless darkness, bearing sins while yearning for the light, is of the same origin as my benevolent divine position."

Upon hearing her words, the other three god-kings were initially stunned, then exploded like a powder keg that had been lit!

"Kindness! How dare you say that?!" The God of Evil laughed in fury. "Back when we dealt with those heretical pantheons, who suggested purifying their entire plane of faith as well? They were even more ruthless than me!"

The Asura God added coldly, showing no mercy: "That's right! Who personally took action last time to strip away the godhood of that fallen star god who betrayed the divine realm, inch by inch, and cast his soul into the eternally silent and desolate Realm of Return to Nothingness, to endure eternal torment ten thousand times more cruel than my Asura Judgment? Your kind methods are truly gentle!"

The God of Destruction scoffed, revealing his true colors: "Protecting greater good? What a joke! You're more ruthless than the three of us combined! When you used your ruthlessness to maintain the stability and good order of the divine realm, did you ever hesitate for a moment? Now stop pretending to be pure and innocent!"

After being repeatedly exposed, the holy radiance on the face of the God of Kindness seemed to waver slightly, but his smile remained gentle, though a sharp glint flashed deep in his eyes: "Necessary sacrifices are for greater good. Xuanming understands this well and is the best successor to my divine position."

For a time, the temple was in an uproar as the four god-kings exposed each other's shortcomings and argued fiercely.

Evil accuses Asura of indiscriminate killing, Asura mocks Destruction for being mindless, Destruction despises Kindness for being hypocritical, while Kindness calmly responds to everyone for being too "impulsive".

Everyone believed that Xuanming was the most compatible with them, and no one was willing to back down even a little, causing the situation to spiral out of control.

The Goddess of Life, who had been observing from the sidelines, sighed softly in resignation at the chaotic scene.

Her vibrant and soothing divine power rippled out like gentle waves, and though faint, it strangely calmed the fierce argument somewhat.

"Everyone, I think this matter should be decided by Xuanming himself," the Goddess of Life said softly.

“Xuanming is no ordinary successor candidate. The seeds of our five laws have gathered within him, which means he has unlimited potential. Forcibly incorporating him into a certain divine position might actually limit his future.”

She looked at the God of Destruction, who was arguing most fiercely: "Little Purple, wasn't it precisely because of his unconventional and independent qualities that you chose him in the first place?"

The God of Destruction remained silent for a moment, offering no rebuttal.

The Goddess of Life then looked at the other three: "Shura, your successor Bibi Dong is already on her way. Evil and good, your divine succession also has its own rules. Xuanming... he may be destined to take a different path."

"Instead of us making the decision for him here, we should give him the choice."

A brief silence fell over the hall.

The four god-kings exchanged glances, unwilling but understanding that the Goddess of Life's words made sense. The unique nature of Xuanming indeed defied conventional wisdom. Forcibly seizing it might not be a good thing.

Finally, the God of Evil snorted first: "Fine! Let that kid choose for himself! I want to see what kind of tricks he can come up with!"

The God of Asura and the God of Destruction nodded in agreement, tacitly acknowledging the plan. The God of Kindness naturally had no objections either.

Thus, a test message containing the shared will of the five God-Kings traversed layers of space and descended into Xuanming's sea of ​​consciousness in the lower realm:

[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.]

The assessment has been conducted, and the choice has been handed over to Xuanming.

However, although they outwardly agreed to let Xuanming choose for himself, in secret, no one would give up easily. In the coming year, they would inevitably use their own methods to observe and even... subtly exert influence.

……

Douluo Continent, Wuhun City.

With the complete submission of the two great empires and the full implementation of the new policies, the massive war machine of the Martial Soul Empire began to shift its focus to internal governance and development. Although undercurrents still surged beneath the oppressive rule, on the surface, the continent entered an unprecedented period of "peace."

Inside the Papal Palace, Bibi Dong finished reviewing the final outline of the empire's development plan for the next five years and slowly put down her vermilion brush. A trace of weariness flashed in her purple-gold eyes, but more so, a resolute determination.

“Xue’er,” she said, looking at Qian Renxue, who stood to the side, radiating a holy light but with a complex expression in her eyes, “from today onwards, you will have full authority over the daily affairs of the empire.”

Upon hearing this, Qian Renxue's golden pupils narrowed slightly, revealing a hint of disbelief and wariness: "What...do you mean?"

Bibi Dong stood up, walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, looked down at the gradually recovering Wuhun City, and said in a calm voice: "I am going into seclusion to try to break through to godhood."

Qian Renxue was stunned. She hadn't expected Bibi Dong to so readily hand over the reins of the empire to her.

This may seem like a decentralization, but considering Xuanming's absolute power and the complex and close relationship between Bibi Dong and Xuanming, it's more like... the behavior of a hands-off manager.

He left her with the tedious administrative tasks and went off to pursue greater power.

"The Asura Godhood?" Qian Renxue asked, her tone tinged with complexity.

“And Rakshasa,” Bibi Dong added, her tone carrying a barely perceptible unease.

Qian Renxue was even more puzzled: "How can one person... possibly hold two divine positions?"

Conflicts over divine positions are fatal.

Bibi Dong didn't turn around, but simply said, "I have my own way."

She does have a way.

The remnant soul of the nine-tailed celestial fox still resides within her body.

Earlier, when she attempted to fuse the two divine powers, she risked transferring most of the more sinister and unpredictable Rakshasa divine power to the remnant soul of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, while she herself focused on controlling the more domineering and pure Asura divine power.

This is essentially a clever "coexistence of two gods," but it carries enormous risks, especially when attempting to reach true godhood, as the conflict between the two divine powers will be more intense than ever before.

She needs time, she needs absolute quiet, to balance and conquer these two powerful forces.

Entrusting the empire to Qian Renxue was both a helpless move and a disguised test, and perhaps a faint trace of trust that even she herself was unaware of.

After all, Qian Renxue has become a god and is the only one who can keep the situation under control right now.

Qian Renxue watched Bibi Dong's retreating figure, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

She suddenly gained power, but she felt no joy at all. Instead, she felt a heavy sense of being pushed into the limelight.

She knew that she had taken over a vast empire that appeared calm on the surface but was fraught with crises on the inside.

But she had no choice but to accept it, nor could she refuse. This was her chance to prove her worth, and also a responsibility she had to shoulder.

"I understand." Qian Renxue finally nodded, her tone regaining the majesty and composure befitting an angel goddess.

She accepted the past because of Xuanming, but she could not give up the present because of that past, nor could she give up Xuanming.

Bibi Dong said nothing more, her figure slowly dissipating from the spot, clearly having entered a deep seclusion.

The power of the Martial Soul Empire was transferred in a subtle and tense atmosphere.

Qian Renxue quickly summoned several retainers, preparing to further consolidate her power in this vast empire.

In the current Martial Soul Empire, only the Angel Legion and these few elders can be considered her confidants. As for the others...

They were either killed in that woman's previous purge, or they disappeared under Xuanming's lightning punishment.

This Spirit Empire and the former Spirit Hall, apart from a nominal succession relationship, have completely different legal and organizational structures...

They have almost no connection whatsoever.

It's no exaggeration to say that this Martial Soul Empire was entirely built upon the support of two god-level martial forces, Xuan Ming and Bibi Dong. (End of Chapter)