A special thank you to my patrons:
—Cain, Shahzaam, Varun Madhu, kevin Williams, Jose Carrillo, Jose Sierra, Silver, Archer, ManyEB, Acedia, Zhandos Kauzhanov, Kylo Ren, Mursuland, Vora, kurtis newman.
You can read 30 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - [email protected]/lesaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
-------------------------------------------------------------
Spirit Pagoda Headquarters.
A Pure White Recovery Room .
The group led by Tang Wulin from the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy had already left. The Federation had also obtained confirmation from Qiangu Dongfeng. At this point, there was no need to hide the truth any longer.
Leng Yaozhu staggered slightly as she arrived at the doorway of the room, her gaze fixed on Qiangu Dongfeng, who lay half-paralyzed on the bed. Her expression was indescribably complex.
Who would have thought that the once-revered master of the Spirit Pagoda, a Limit Douluo, would end up in such a state? Not only had his cultivation been completely crippled, but he could no longer even take care of himself.
"Yaozhu... you've come..." Qiangu Dongfeng was not surprised. With great difficulty, he propped himself up against the headboard.
"Don't call me that, you vile man." Leng Yaozhu's voice was laced with disgust. Qiangu Dongfeng had orchestrated everything that had led to this day. His current fate was nothing more than what he deserved.
"Hah... vile, you say? Well, perhaps. It's just that I didn't end up victorious in the end."
"Are you still refusing to see reason? You could never have succeeded! Even without Bai Xu, the master of the Tang Sect would have stepped forward to stop you!" Leng Yaozhu shouted.
"Maybe. Perhaps I was simply born at the wrong time." Qiangu Dongfeng let out a bitter chuckle before sighing softly. "Have you come here today to take revenge for Yun Ming?"
Leng Yaozhu took a deep breath, her mind drifting to the cherished memories of the one who had been her white moonlight. For a moment, she fell silent before finally speaking. "The Federation has sentenced you to death—and it will be broadcast live across the entire Federation. Although they've agreed not to implicate others, the Qiangu family will never be allowed to set foot in the Spirit Pagoda again."
This was the price of sacrificing himself to protect his family. Qiangu Dieting had been exiled to the Blood God Legion. Unless the Abyss was completely eradicated, he would never reappear in the world. Qiangu Qingfeng's whereabouts were unknown, and Qiangu Zhangting had been spared by Leng Yaozhu's intervention, but it was unlikely he would ever recover from this downfall.
The public execution of the former Spirit Pagoda master served two purposes: to placate the turbulent public sentiment and to dispose of a man who had lost all usefulness. With his cultivation destroyed and his body crippled, he wasn't even fit to be exiled to the Blood God Legion.
"Yaozhu... kill me." Having learned the fates of those he cared about, Qiangu Dongfeng no longer felt any attachment to this world. He was ready to die.
Leng Yaozhu's heart was heavy. She knew the man before her was the murderer of the one she had loved, yet seeing him in such a helpless state made it difficult for her to strike the final blow. After all, they had been colleagues for decades. She was well aware of his feelings for her over the years, but her heart had always belonged to another.
Yet, she did not act. Her clenched fists slowly relaxed, and the flames flickering around her dissipated. It seemed Leng Yaozhu had finally let go. With determined steps, she walked out of the room.
"I've handed the position of Pagoda Master to Nana. I'm tired."
Qiangu Dongfeng's dim eyes flickered briefly at the mention of Gu Yuena—the genius he had long overlooked, Bai Xu's former lover.
Though Bai Xu had not shown any overt reactions during the marriage selection, it was clear he still cared deeply for her.
Perhaps only with Gu Yuena as the new master of the Spirit Pagoda would the organization avoid complete annihilation in the future.
Bai Xu was not dead. This was a fact known only to a select few.
After all, his body had never been found. Would the Douluo Continent face even greater calamities in the future?
These were all unknowns.
---
Top Floor of the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters.
Gu Yuena sat once more in the seat of power. The Spirit Pagoda was now in a state of panic. Bai Xu's battle had crippled more than half of its combat strength. The three Limit Douluos of the Qiangu family had been utterly defeated, and the remaining elders and protectors, sensing the tides turning, had quickly distanced themselves. Under the relentless pressure from the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy, Gu Yuena had been pushed into her current position.
"Do they think I still have some use? That Bai Xu will return for me?" Gu Yuena sighed softly.
The Ten Thousand Beast Platform had been opened to all soul masters of the Federation, and the price of thousand-year spirit souls had plummeted in an attempt to salvage the Spirit Pagoda's collapsing reputation. Yet, even these measures could not quell the public outcry against Qiangu Dongfeng.
Especially from the families of the millions of Federation citizens who had perished under the barrage of soul-guided shells...
"Nana... are you there?" A voice called from outside the door, interrupting her thoughts.
"Teacher!" Gu Yuena quickly rose to greet her. The Heavenly Phoenix Douluo, Leng Yaozhu, looked exhausted, as if she had aged decades in mere days.
"You are now the master of the Spirit Pagoda. You shouldn't act so hastily." Leng Yaozhu sighed.
"But you will always be my teacher. That won't change, no matter what position I hold." Gu Yuena replied firmly.
Leng Yaozhu stood at the top floor, gazing into the distance. The ruins of Shrek Academy were slowly being rebuilt, new structures rising from the rubble.
"Nana... do you think he'll return? That day, not even the hundreds of Title Douluos from the Federation could find his body... I have a very bad feeling about this."
Gu Yuena stood beside her, also looking toward the reconstruction of Shrek. After a moment, she said, "Knowing Bai Xu, he will come back."
Leng Yaozhu glanced at her in surprise. "His body was shattered, his life force nearly extinguished. How could he possibly survive such a fatal state?"
"Otherworldly demons cannot be judged by ordinary logic, Teacher. Though I've always been curious about his extraordinary nature during our time together, I never imagined he was an outsider. His body is fundamentally different from ours."
"I suppose so. I just wonder how things will end between you two..." Leng Yaozhu looked at Gu Yuena with a bitter expression. Her disciple, too, was fated to suffer—falling for an outsider who had now become an irreconcilable enemy of the Douluo Continent.
This was even more twisted than the entanglement between her and Yun Ming. Would Gu Yuena stand with the Douluo Continent—or with the otherworldly demon?
Hearing this, Gu Yuena replied with conviction, "Don't worry, Teacher. I won't let him destroy the Douluo Continent. This is my home too. Even if it costs me my life."
Leng Yaozhu did not react with shock—only with a long, heavy silence.
Then, she left.
---
Late at Night.
Gu Yuena had just finished handling the day's affairs when an almost imperceptible spatial fluctuation rippled beside her.
A golden figure, shrouded in light that obscured its features, appeared.
However, its earlier panic had subsided, replaced by calm. The Will of the Plane spoke: "His condition has stabilized, but the battlefront is under pressure. We need you to activate the grand formation using your battle armor as the core."
"They've already discovered us?" Gu Yuena was stunned.
"Yes. The demons are highly sensitive to life energy. The beasts I sent over were originally transformed by Bai Xu. Seeing their creator in such a state, they flew into a rage and engaged the demons in battle."
"What about Di Tian and the others? The Demon Plane isn't that strong. Even with the suppression of the plane, the Demon Monarch shouldn't be a match for Di Tian."
"But they are vastly outnumbered!" The Will of the Plane carefully opened a portal, urging Gu Yuena to follow.
*****
T/N: Use the code "FERRY" on my p@treon and get 90% off your first month on the Pathfinder Tier.