Douluo Continent: Tonight, a Fairy Tale Descends

"Soul Masters are established by their strength." The Second Elder's voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of everyone in the council hall. "As long as our strength remains, our status will not change."

The Fifth Elder frowned slightly: "But the current situation is no longer one where might makes right. Ning Fengzhi."

“Ning Fengzhi is indeed good at handling those matters.” The Second Elder interrupted him, his tone still calm, without any sign of impatience after being interrupted.

"But we don't need to know what he knows. We only need to know our own set of skills."

He raised his gaze and swept it over the people present: "You all see the current situation on the continent clearly. The Fairy Tale Empire and the Martial Soul Church are two forces standing side by side, with no buffer zone in between and no possibility of third-party mediation. A war between them is inevitable."

His voice wasn't loud, but it made the atmosphere in the council chamber slightly subside. The candlelight flickered in the night breeze before settling back down.

The Fifth Elder's shoulders relaxed slightly: "You mean... Lady Eva will eventually go to war with the Martial Soul Church?"

"It's only a matter of time," the Second Elder said.

"It's certain. The current peace is only temporary. Once both sides are ready, the war will resume. At that time, she will need capable fighters, and our Haotian Sect has no shortage of capable fighters."

He paused, his gaze returning to the Fifth Elder's face, his tone resolute: "As long as we still have our hammers, she won't abandon us."

The Fifth Elder did not speak again.

He looked down at his thin, folded hands on the table and remained silent for a long time, as if digesting the weight of the Second Elder's words.

The Seventh Elder nodded slightly and placed the slightly cooled cup of tea back on the table: "Then let's put those matters aside for now. When the war breaks out, there will naturally be a time when we are needed to step in."

He paused for a moment, then asked, "So what should we do in the meantime?"

The Second Elder leaned back in his chair: "Take stock of the inventory, organize the disciple roster, and confirm the status of everyone in the sect. When the time is right, just be ready to strike the right place with those hammers."

……

In the depths of the Hall of Worship in Wuhun City, within a space shrouded in golden light, everything is completely different from the outside world.

Qian Renxue sat alone on the stone steps in front of the angel statue, her six golden wings slightly folded behind her, with tiny specks of light swirling around the edges of the feathers, flickering in the golden halo.

She had been in this position for a long time, so long that the light from the dome shifted from bright to serene, and then from serene to bright again.

She lowered her head, her gaze falling on the subtle changes in light and shadow on the ground, her fingertips aimlessly brushing the edge of her robe that hung down to her knees, as if using that gesture to fill the emptiness in the silence.

She has been an angel for some time now.

The sense of power that surged through her body the moment the divine test ended, the divine-level information flowing through her blood, and the door that opened completely before her eyes—all of this has settled down and become a part of her daily life now.

She was indeed much stronger than before. She could feel that she had established a new connection with the world, as if the scene she had seen through a thin veil had suddenly become crystal clear.

But she didn't immediately do the things she had thought she would do after becoming a god.

She did not leave the Hall of Worship, nor did she inspect the territory of the Martial Soul Kingdom, nor did she issue any decrees befitting her divine status.

She just stayed there, quiet as if waiting for something yet to begin.

Qian Renxue couldn't explain why she hadn't moved. Perhaps it was because she hadn't figured out what she should do.

After all, according to common sense, as the deity of the Spirit Kingdom, she should have fully supported the expansion of the Spirit Kingdom after her power was consolidated, and helped Bibi Dong achieve her ultimate goal of unifying the continent.

This is the logic of power, and also the inevitability of momentum.

But Eva controls the fairy tale empire.

The woman who had cooperated with her in the Heavenly Dou Imperial Palace and was once considered her ally was now sitting on the other side of the chessboard opposite her.

They were separated by an entire continent, by their respective armies and titled Douluo, and by those already demarcated borders.

They also have a daughter together.

snow White.

Qian Renxue's gaze sharpened slightly for a moment.

She remembered the last time Snow White appeared before her.

At that time, she had not yet entered the depths of the Hall of Worship to undergo the divine test. For the first time, she sat opposite Snow White as Qian Renxue.

Later she told her the truth.

Snow White's expression was very calm at the time, so calm that Qian Renxue almost thought she hadn't understood.

But she knew the child understood, so she simply chose to respond with silence, just as she had always done when dealing with things she didn't know how to face.

Qian Renxue's fingers stopped at the edge of her robe.

She could not lead the Martial Soul Kingdom to attack the Fairy Tale Empire as the Angel God, nor could she direct her power towards Eva and Snow White.

That's not a matter of power, it's a matter of stance, something she couldn't bypass even if she became a god.

So she chose to stay in the offering hall.

She remained in that golden halo, just as Qian Daoliu had once done, quietly waiting for something.

Waiting for my mind to truly settle down, waiting for me to figure out where I should take the next step.

Qian Renxue raised her head, her gaze falling on the angel statue that no longer radiated light.

The statue's face remained compassionate and majestic, but its eyes, once illuminated by divine power, had now dimmed.

Qian Daoliu once used his entire life to ignite it, but now it has burned out.

She sat in front of the statue, feeling the almost frozen stillness in the shrine.

She didn't know how much longer she would have to sit there, maybe until the day she figured things out, or maybe until some external force pushed her out of there.

Meanwhile, in the Papal Palace, Bibi Dong was also processing the same information in her own way.

Qian Renxue has completed the divine test, but she has never left the Hall of Worship, nor has she participated in any political affairs of the Martial Soul Kingdom.

She seemed to have locked herself in a space isolated from the outside world, oblivious to the changes happening around her.

Bibi Dong didn't care about this.

Whether Qian Renxue participates in political affairs or not makes no real difference to her.

The existence of that woman alone provided the Martial Soul Kingdom with sufficient deterrence.

As long as she remains in the temple, as long as her divine power remains, it will be enough to make the Fairy Tale Empire more cautious in its actions.

As for Qian Renxue herself?

Bibi Dong didn't care why she was in the offering hall, nor what she was thinking.

She just wanted that woman to stay in her own place and not appear in front of her.

Bibi Dong lowered her eyes and refocused her attention on the final threshold of the Rakshasa God's test.

The threshold was getting thinner and thinner, so thin that she could almost feel the wind seeping through the crack. She didn't have much time to waste.

Thus, Douluo Continent entered a rare and long period of peace.

There has been no large-scale conflict along the border between the Fairy Tale Empire in the north and the Martial Soul Cult in the south for a long time.

Both sides' troops were stationed within their designated defensive lines. When patrolling scouts occasionally met on the border, they would only exchange glances from a distance for a moment before retreating to their respective sides.

The areas that were repeatedly scorched by war are slowly recovering.

The farmland that had been cratered by artillery shells was filled in, new shoots sprouted from the edges of the forest scorched by soul skills, and smoke began to rise again from the abandoned village.

Those who lost their homes in the war gradually settled down in their respective controlled areas, rebuilt their houses, replanted crops, and resumed the life that was especially precious during the lulls in the fighting.

The wind blew from the northern plains, carrying the scent of earth and withered grass, making the flags fluttering in the air above the border towns.

The deep purple flags stood in a wide-open buffer zone, separated from the golden angel flags to the south, facing each other from afar.

Amidst this tranquility, a figure is traversing the dense forest at the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Her long pink hair peeked through the shadows of the trees, and her steps were light and familiar, as if she had walked this road many times before.

Xiao Wu is back.

She walked deeper into the woods, following the winding paths she remembered.

She left the Starry Sky Forest with great eagerness and anticipation, believing that as long as she worked hard enough, she could get close to her goal in the shortest amount of time.

But after experiencing those things firsthand, she realized that war was far more devastating than she had imagined. Every step she took teetered between reality and illusion, and every choice carried consequences she could not easily bear.

She wanted to return to the trees, to the mist of the Lake of Life, to places where she didn't have to constantly be on guard against her surroundings.

She walked through one woodland after another, shaded by the canopy of trees. The ancient trees still stood in their original places, their branches and leaves making a familiar rustling sound in the breeze, exactly the same sound as in her memory.

The air was filled with the moist scent of earth and the unique fragrance of grass and trees, blending together to create a sense of peace she couldn't find anywhere else. In the distance, the sound of a stream flowed, low and continuous.

Xiao Wu walked along the stream for a while, and when she turned a corner, she saw the familiar ancient tree, and a familiar figure was squatting beside its roots.

Erming was sitting with his back against the tree trunk, his huge hands supporting his chin, and his lantern-sized yellow eyes were half-closed, as if he were dozing off.

Its snoring made the leaves around it tremble slightly.

Xiao Wu paused for a moment, then called out, "Er Ming."

The sound wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the woods in the afternoon.

Erming's ears twitched, and the snoring stopped abruptly.

It opened its eyes, and the moment it saw Xiao Wu, its yellow eyes lit up as if someone had lit a lamp inside.

It suddenly stood up, moving so fast that it almost bumped into the tree branch above its head, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

"Sister Xiaowu!" Erming's voice was hoarse, as if he had been choked with surprise, "You're back!"

Xiao Wu walked up to it and patted its rough knuckles: "I'm back."

Erming looked down at her, his huge hands clenching and unclenching restlessly at his sides, as if he had a lot to say but didn't know where to begin.

It took it a while to finally squeeze out a sentence: "Sister Xiaowu, you've lost weight."

Xiao Wu paused for a moment, then smiled: "Really?"

Erming nodded vigorously: "You've lost weight. Is it tough outside? Are you hungry? I'll go pick some fruit for you. The trees over there have grown so much taller, and the fruit is plentiful and sweeter than before..."

It turned to walk towards the woods. Xiao Wu reached out and grabbed its finger: "I'm not hungry. Erming, where's Daming?"

Erming stopped in his tracks: "Big brother is guarding the Lake of Life, and Lord Auspicious Beast is also there."

Xiao Wu nodded: "Then I'll go see them." She took two steps and then stopped, turning her head to look at Er Ming, "You come with me too."

Erming's yellow eyes brightened again, and he quickly followed in her footsteps.

The ground trembled slightly from its heavy footsteps, and the branches of the ancient trees were bent low as it passed by, only to spring back to their original positions.

After passing through several woodlands and walking along the last stretch of vine-covered path, the familiar lake finally came into view.