We all time-traveled at the same time, but why isn't anyone human?

Chapter 87 Brings Hope to All Beings

In the world of Douluo Continent, the Spirit Hall is an extremely special organization.

The Heaven Dou Empire, the Star Luo Empire, and their ten kingdoms and duchies all have branch halls of the Spirit Hall, covering a vast area across most of the continent.

Such a vast coverage area inevitably led to the fragmentation of power, especially during the Douluo Continent I era, when the level of productivity and communication was equivalent to that of the Middle Ages, making communication between the various branch halls and the main hall of the Spirit Hall even more difficult.

Furthermore, after Bibi Dong ascended to power, she was solely focused on inheriting the godhood and hunting 100,000-year-old soul beasts, further neglecting the lower-level Spirit Hall branches. As a result, their branch in Los City hadn't had any contact with the main hall for almost ten years.

"arrive."

The Spirit Hall Soul Masters with the Flying Leaf Mantis Martial Soul drove the carriage back to the city overnight under the moonlight. Looking at the dilapidated gate in front of them, they touched their heads somewhat embarrassedly.

"I'm sorry, we haven't received any funding from the main temple for almost ten years. Due to limited resources, please bear with us."

"However, once you join the Spirit Hall this time, the main hall should send someone to conduct an assessment. At that time, the funding for the past ten years should be able to be made up."

The Flying Leaf Mantis Soul Master smiled shyly, his face full of anticipation for Tang San and longing for the future.

"Oh right, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Los, a name I chose myself, the same as the name of this city."

.

Los then realized that he had been chatting with Tang San for so long but hadn't told him his name yet, so he immediately reached out his hand to greet him.

In their impoverished village, children didn't have names, only nicknames. It was only after joining the Spirit Hall that he gave himself the name Los, the same as the city, symbolizing his ambition to settle down here.

"My name is Tang San. I was originally a wandering free spirit master, but now I hope to join the Spirit Hall and work with you."

Tang San smiled, shook hands firmly with Los, and together they stepped into the dilapidated Los City branch hall, beginning his new life.

a.

Tang San peeked out from a pile of yellowed documents, looked at the few Soul Master colleagues around him whose strength was no more than level 30, and a strange smile appeared on his face.

It seems they've been abandoned.

The person Los said was "sent by the main temple to conduct the assessment" never came.

The other side simply replied with a perfunctory "make your own decision," and then sent him a set of Spirit Hall uniform and badges, which was considered full authority.

It's up to him.

As for the funds that were given to them?

They probably already got their hands on it ten years from now.

He should have expected this.

In my past life, even a small martial arts sect like the Tang Clan had all sorts of corruption and bribery issues, let alone a giant organization like the Spirit Hall that spans more than ten countries.

It would be strange if it weren't corrupt.

Furthermore, judging from the files Tang San has been reviewing during this period, there are probably quite a few cases like the Los City branch within the Spirit Hall.

"The Heavenly Dou Empire alone has ten provinces, sixty-three main cities, three hundred and seventy-two small cities, and countless villages and towns. The abandoned branch palaces have long been lost to time."

"Not to mention in those kingdoms and duchies where wars have been raging for years, the Spirit Hall branches have long since established close cooperative relationships with local interest groups, carving out their own territories and, except when the Pope issues an edict, they do not obey the Spirit Hall's orders on a regular basis."

"In summary, although the Spirit Hall appears to be unparalleled in its power and spread across the continent, it is actually hollow inside and has lost control over the lower levels."

Tang San pinched his brow, feeling that the task ahead was arduous and the road ahead was long.

In fact, these clues were already evident in the original work.

The Spirit Hall had been operating on the Douluo Continent for many years and originally held a transcendent position. During the Qian Daoliu era, even the appointment and removal of the emperors of the two great empires had to be approved by the Spirit Hall.

Bibi Dong, however, created a situation where she was an enemy of the world, established the Spirit Empire, and drained the last bit of the Spirit Hall's resources.

The core reason for all of this is that the Spirit Hall during Bibi Dong's time had gradually lost the support of the people.

Otherwise, if each branch hall raised its arms and called for action, countless soul masters and ordinary people who had awakened their martial souls with the help of the Spirit Hall would praise the Spirit Hall, and who would be an enemy of the Spirit Hall?

In the eyes of many elderly people, the status of the Spirit Hall is similar to that of a savior. They can rebel against the empire and kill the emperor, but they cannot disrespect the Pope.

after all.

The emperors of the two great empires only levied taxes on them, but the Spirit Hall actually gave money to spirit masters and helped people at the bottom of society awaken their spirits.

"In the short term, the Spirit Hall still has a good reputation and there is still room for improvement."

"What I need to do is bring hope to people through these countless branch halls of the Spirit Hall, and at the same time—select talent for myself and for the World Tree!"

Yes.

Tang San chose to join the Spirit Hall not only because he saw hope in the eyes of the people there, but also because the Spirit Hall was the easiest place to connect with children.

The World Tree once said that they were just the first generation of chosen children, and there would definitely be a second generation, a third generation, and so on, with the Children of Light succeeding each other generation after generation.

Now, because it is being monitored by the gods, the World Tree cannot directly appear on Douluo Star and cause unnecessary trouble.

So.

Let him choose the children for the World Tree, and at the same time, give those children a chance to change their destiny.

Soon, rumors about the "Red Phantom" spread throughout Los City and the surrounding areas.

Some say they only saw an eye flashing red light, and the next second, they lost consciousness and did many things they didn't know they were doing.

Some say that the eye had the power to control souls, dominating his body and soul. Even after he recovered, a fear remained in his heart that he would never dare to betray.

Some people say that the red phantom is actually a 100,000-year-old soul beast that has taken human form, and its true purpose is to invade the human world and bring disaster to the world.

In short, the stories about the Red Phantom have become increasingly fantastical.

But all Los of the Spirit Hall knew was that more and more people were joining the Spirit Hall recently, and they were working harder and more diligently than the last. Many things that he couldn't do alone before were now easily solved.

All of this changed after the arrival of a newcomer named "Tang San".

"Carlo, don't forget about the matter I told you about going to Senqing Village to awaken your martial soul."

"I've already been there, and I even used the power of my martial spirit to repair several houses for them. I also led a group of people to repair the road leading there, so it won't be so inconvenient for them to enter the city in the future."

"Till, today we're going to negotiate with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School to see if they can send a few Soul Masters to assist us in artificially irrigating the nearby villages, which have been suffering from drought for a long time."

"No need. The Soul Masters from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School have already set off. I'll be leading people there in a bit. Twenty-three Soul Masters with water-attribute martial souls should be enough. We can add more if needed."

".——

—

Looking at the new people who had joined the branch hall, Los always felt like he was dreaming.

He used to be incredibly busy every day, but now he's become completely idle. He's handling all the affairs, big and small, in the dozens of villages and more than a dozen towns around Los City in an orderly manner. Some of the elderly people are even moved to tears, saying things like, "With the Spirit Hall here, the heavens are restored!"

If this is a dream, then please let it last a little longer, and preferably never wake up.

"Hey, Los, good morning."

However, just as Los was in a daze, lost in a state of satisfied bliss.

Tang San's voice came from outside the door.

"I've applied to the main branch, and next month I'll be transferred to the Carter City branch next door."

"However, there's no need to worry. These newly joined Soul Masters will obey your orders. Just feel free to command them. They all want to contribute to the resurgence of the Spirit Hall."

"Don't you agree?"

A red glint flashed in Tang San's eyes. The next second, the Soul Masters who were buried in their work trembled and stood up in unison, nodding in response.

"yes!"

'

"7

Looking at the group of young people whose faces were full of enthusiasm, Los wiped away the tears that had welled up in his eyes and nodded vigorously.

"Okay, okay."

"With you all at the Spirit Hall, how can we not revive and become great?"

Seven days later, in a desolate area outside the city of Los.

Tang San stared coldly at the Soul Masters standing in a row before him and spoke calmly.

"Carlo, the previous bishop of the Spirit Hall of Los City, conspired with the city's nobles to embezzle the Spirit Hall's funds for seventeen years. He oppressed the people on a daily basis and secretly had business dealings with the Heaven Dou Empire's legions. Am I right?"

"Till, the Heaven Dou Empire's spy planted in Los City, and also the regional head of the 'Fake Soul Coin Project,' over the years, you've been secretly replacing the gold soul coins issued by the Spirit Hall to soul masters with counterfeit soul coins, while the real soul coins flowed into the Heaven Dou treasury. Am I wrong about you?"

"And Dison, Lott, Os—"

Every time Tang San pronounced a name, the Soul Masters in front of him trembled and showed expressions of fear and unease.

Although Los City is just a small city, it has tens of thousands of civilians within its territory. The network of interests from all sides and the connections of various forces form an invisible and very complex web.

While direct suppression with absolute violence is simple, once this nobleman is gone, other nobles, merchants, or ambitious individuals will immediately take his place. Ultimately, it is only a temporary solution and cannot bring hope to the people here.

To eradicate these deep-seated problems, Tang San chose the following method—

"My lord, I won't dare to do it again, my lord, we will definitely listen to you from now on, we—"

"Shut up."

A crimson light flickered in Tang San's left eye, and an invisible force of control precisely covered the heads of each Soul Master, silencing them instantly and leaving them with expressions of struggle and despair on their faces.

"Your only value lies in paving the way for the 'Children of the World Tree' I have chosen for the rest of your lives, and in atoning for everything you have done before. This is the 'Mark of Domination' etched deep within your hearts."

boom!!

As Tang San finished speaking, the struggle and pain on the faces of the group of Soul Masters vanished instantly.

Instead, a bewildered and helpless expression appeared.

Tang San's figure had already disappeared into the night. A month had passed, and he needed to hurry to the second city to continue accumulating his power of hope.

The Seal of Domination is a new ability developed by Tang San, and it is also a prototype of the Evil Eye of Domination's evolution into the third stage (the God Stage).

Its effect is to plant an absolute mental imprint in the mind of the target, so that no matter how much time passes, even if they suffer from amnesia, fainting, or physical destruction, they will always follow this mental imprint and it will never change.

With Tang San's current power, even weaker second- or third-level gods cannot use divine power to dispel the Seal of Domination. Only first-level gods and god-kings can forcibly wash away the Seal of Domination.

But would such a high and mighty being cast its gaze upon these humble, earth-shattering mountain and wilderness places?

As for the "Children of the World Tree," they are dozens of children that Tang San discovered in the area surrounding Los City, who have the potential to become "Chosen Children."

Their martial spirits and soul power may not be very strong, but they must be people with delicate emotions and pure hearts. He had observed each of them for a long time and checked their memories with the "Evil Eye of Domination," so there was no mistake.

"The World Tree is also satisfied with the candidates I chose. They may not be able to evolve into their ultimate form, but if they evolve into their complete form, they will have the potential to be at the priest level."

Thinking about everything he had done over the past month, Tang San felt a warm glow in his heart, and an unprecedented sense of accomplishment and mission gathered on his shoulders.

During that month, he visited dozens of villages and towns, and saw tens of thousands of ordinary people.

Seeing their joy, sorrow, relief, and admiration, seeing the expressions on their faces and the hope in their eyes, Tang San's heart was touched.

These scenes were things he had never seen in his past and present lives combined.

It turns out that simply expending a sliver of Soul Venerable-level Soul Power to bring rain to a long-parched farmland is enough to earn everyone's gratitude and praise.

It turns out that simply punishing a few nobles who oppressed the people and returning the money they had squeezed out to the people was enough to earn them a place in the local chronicles and be recorded for a long time.

It turns out that simply helping some children learn to read and write, and enabling some uneducated farmers to learn to read, was enough for him to be called a saint and to be revered and loved by the local people.

It turns out that getting hope really is that simple.

"World Tree, I think I'm gradually understanding the meaning behind what you've made us do."

Tang San walked through the darkness. Although there was no light on him, he felt as if a halo surrounded him, condensing a strange radiance.

"As we unite the hopes of everyone, the emotional power that was almost exhausted in our hearts will be replenished little by little, and the ultimate forms that have evolved will also grow anew after experiencing these things."