Gu Yue approached like a goddess riding an elemental storm, her cold fury palpable.
Gu La's true form furrowed his brows. All his focus was now on maintaining the fragile Forest Sea Space domain and guiding the massive energy tides. He had no time to divert his attention to fight Gu Yue. Any misstep could cause the domain to collapse, triggering a spatial chain reaction that would doom them all!
In the blink of an eye, Gu Yue was already near.
Her gaze swept over the seven people in the array. When she saw Bo Xi, her purple eyes flashed with sudden realization and icy mockery:
"So that's how it is... He is also one of your avatars. What a clever deception, fooling the entire Star Luo Empire and everyone else. Watching yourself fight on stage must have been amusing?"
Her voice carried a bone-chilling coldness and intense sarcasm.
Without giving Gu La a chance to explain, she didn't even pause!
With a gentle wave of her hand, seven-colored elemental light instantly gathered and compressed in her palm, transforming into a violent elemental storm capable of tearing through space, carrying destructive power, and slamming fiercely into the teetering silver bubble domain.
Simultaneously, the supreme pressure of the Silver Dragon King erupted, like an invisible royal decree, forcibly dispersing the struggling true dragon souls being pulled by the array: "Get out, stay away from here!"
"Troublesome."
Gu La muttered inwardly.
He couldn't move, nor could he interrupt the ritual, but the power stored in the Forest Sea Space was his weapon.
With a thought, a vast, highly condensed "Telekinetic Storm" instantly formed at the edge of the domain.
This telekinetic force contained the terrifying mental power cultivation of Gu La's Spirit Domain Realm, its might rivaling a Super Douluo's full-powered strike!
Boom—!!!
The invisible telekinetic storm collided heavily with the seven-colored elemental storm. There was no earth-shattering explosion, only soul-shaking energy annihilation and silent spatial distortion.
Gu La's Psychic power was precise, condensed, and sharp as the keenest blade of intent, brutally tearing apart and dismantling Gu Yue's hastily formed elemental storm.
At the same time, the overwhelming telekinetic pressure acted like an invisible giant hand, forcefully suppressing and dispelling the dragon souls Gu Yue had unleashed.
Gu Yue's figure wavered slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. She hadn't expected Gu La to unleash such powerful mental force while maintaining such a grand ritual.
The flames of anger burned hotter in Gu Yue's eyes, and the elemental tides around her boiled once more, preparing for a more ferocious attack.
"Gu Yue!"
Gu La's voice rang directly in her mind through mental force, icy and filled with warning:
"If you dare to make another move, I will immediately detonate this domain along with the amassed dragon soul essence energy, enough to blow up half of the Dragon Valley small world! Do you think this fragile little world, akin to a soap bubble, can withstand it?" His words pierced Gu Yue's heart like icicles.
Gu Yue's hands, gathering elements, abruptly halted.
She glared at the violently fluctuating silver bubble, which seemed on the verge of collapsing any second, then looked at the fragile surroundings, already showing fine spatial cracks due to the previous collision.
She had no doubt Gu La could do it. If it exploded, the Dragon Valley would collapse instantly, and everything inside, including the dragon god core and herself, would be utterly swallowed and annihilated by spatial turbulence. She couldn't afford to gamble!
"What… do you know?!"
Gu Yue's voice was as cold as ice from the netherworld, filled with suppressed rage and a trace of barely perceptible suspicion.
The other party not only knew about the Dragon Valley and the dragon god core but also seemed to see through her purpose for this journey!
"What do I know?" Gu La's mental transmission carried a hint of mockery. "I know you want to inherit the core power left by the Dragon God, completing your path of reincarnation to become the new Dragon God?"
"I know what you need most right now is to quietly absorb that power, not to fight me here and risk the entire Dragon Valley and your own life."
With leading intelligence, he precisely struck at Gu Yue's vulnerable spot.
Gu Yue's pupils contracted slightly; the other party knew more than she had imagined.
"I can let you go this time…" She gritted her teeth, making a significant concession. "But you must stop immediately, cease absorbing dragon souls—they are the last remains of my race!"
"Impossible." Gu La rejected resolutely. "I came to the Dragon Valley for these dragon souls and clouds. Did you think I came for sightseeing?"
"You!" Gu Yue trembled with anger, her elemental power once again unstable.
"Don't rush." Gu La shifted his tone, adding a touch of persuasion. "Gu Yue, calmly think about it. Even if you drive me away today and preserve these dragon souls…"
"And then? After inheriting the Dragon God's power, you surely won't let Tang Sect continue using the dragon tomb for training. You'll definitely make the Dragon Valley drift away from Douluo Star into the universe…"
"But the universe is vast and full of wonders. The Dragon Valley contains such immense energy and precious dragon bones, like a huge treasure emitting an enticing aroma. How long do you think it can hide in the vast universe?"
"Sooner or later, it will be discovered by stronger beings. At that point, the dragon souls, dragon bones, and even the dragon tomb will inevitably be excavated, utilized, and possibly destroyed."
"Rather than letting unknown cosmic plunderers benefit, why not let me use them now? At least I can offer you an offer you can't refuse."
"An offer?" Gu Yue sneered. "What can you give me?"
Gu La's voice carried a certainty as if he knew everything: "A piece of information. Information about the Dragon God."
Gu Yue's heart jolted: "Speak!"
"The Dragon God… isn't actually dead." Gu La dropped this bombshell.
"Impossible." Gu Yue refuted instinctively, her purple eyes filled with disbelief.
"I am the half-body born after the Dragon God perished! How could the Dragon God still be alive?! If he were alive, why hasn't he returned? Why hasn't he led the dragon race back to the divine realm?!"
Her voice carried a trembling she hadn't noticed herself and… a faint glimmer of hope?
"Heh," Gu La sneered. "Even deities at the God King level can retain a shred of their soul to reincarnate after their divine body is destroyed. What kind of existence is the Dragon God? A supreme being surpassing God Kings. His dragon soul core is right there!"
Gu La's mental force pointed toward the direction of the core valley. "Even the core fragments are preserved so completely. Think about it yourself, is he truly dead?"
"Do you believe it? If he truly wanted to return, why hasn't he? Is he powerless? Or… unwilling? Or is he waiting for something?"
Gu La's words struck Gu Yue's heart like a heavy hammer. These questions instantly churned in her mind.
Reason told her the other party might be lying, but deep down, a suppressed longing and admiration for her father god, buried for countless years, was subtly nudged open by this shocking news.
She clenched her fists tightly, her knuckles turning white, her spirit shaken violently.
Gu La keenly captured the intense fluctuations in her spiritual state and immediately intensified his verbal assault, his words like sharp knives, aiming straight for her deepest insecurities:
"And you, Gu Yue. Do you really think you are the rightful heir according to the Dragon God's will? You know very well! You developed a 'human Gu Yue' personality and even feelings for Tang Wulin after merely three years of interaction…"
"This itself shows that you are not flawless at the spiritual level. You have fatal flaws. Forget about the schemes plotted by Sea God Tang San and his father Tang Hao; flies don't lay eggs in uncracked shells!"
"Your own spiritual fissures allowed them to gradually lead you into their schemes, making you part of their plans. With what do you plan to inherit the complete will of the Dragon God? With your now 'impure' heart?"
"Shut up!!!"
Gu Yue was like a cat whose tail was stepped on, utterly enraged.
The brilliance of the Silver Dragon King shone wildly on her, the terrifying elemental tides nearly out of control.
Gu La's words were too vicious, too sharp, ruthlessly tearing open the contradictions and fears she had deliberately avoided deep within her heart.
However, Gu La's mental strength remained as steady as a rock, bearing a detached coldness.
"Whether I am wrong or not, you know best. Anger doesn't change facts."
Watching Gu Yue's trembling figure, wrought with anger and pain, Gu La once again dangled the bait, reiterating old words:
"But, I have a way. I have a way to make you become a true, complete Dragon God. Not inheritance, but… becoming! Surpassing that inherited will, becoming a new existence that controls your own destiny. Are you… willing?"
Gu Yue's expression struggled intensely. Instinctively, she doubted Gu La's words, but the mysteriousness, strength, and knowledge of the Dragon God's secrets displayed by the other party made it impossible for her to completely deny.
Becoming a true Dragon God… the temptation was too great!
Great enough to temporarily suppress her anger over the desecration of her kin's remains. But could this be another trap?
Gu La perceived her struggle and doubts and timely retreated a step: "I know you don't trust me. It's alright. You can first enter the valley and try to accept the power of the Dragon God's core."
"Go and feel whether that power truly accepts you entirely, whether it can truly allow you to become the new Dragon God without hindrance."
"After you've tried, if you find my words nonsensical, or if you succeed, then naturally you don't need to seek me out. But if you discover… that the road ahead is not smooth, or that you still want to hear my 'method'…"
Gu La's mental force left a clear imprint in Gu Yue's mind, "You can always find me through this imprint. Now, please proceed. Don't delay my affairs, and don't delay your own opportunity."
Gu Yue stared intently at the still solid silver bubble amidst the chaotic energy and Gu La's blurred figure, clenching her teeth tightly.
Ultimately, her desire for the Dragon God's core and the need to verify her own path overwhelmed her anger over the plundering of dragon souls.
She gave Gu La a deep, icy look, as if to etch his image into her soul, then, without a word, turned sharply and transformed into a dazzling silver light, shooting towards the valley of the core dragon tomb without looking back.
As for stopping Gu La from absorbing dragon souls? She no longer had the mood for that!
Watching Gu Yue's figure disappear into the valley entrance, Gu La exhaled silently, his tense spirit slightly relaxing.
The previous verbal battle and confrontation had caused tremendous pressure on him in maintaining the domain and controlling the energy tide. Several more spatial cracks appeared at the edges of the domain. He quickly composed himself and focused fully on stabilizing the domain.
"How perilous… almost couldn't suppress it…" Bai Yuan, Bo Xi, and other avatars transmitted their thoughts through mental links. The spirit souls and bloodlines within their bodies, stimulated by Gu Yue's oppressive force and Gu La's forced suppression, were already restless, like volcanoes about to erupt.
"Don't get distracted, focus on absorption. Evolution is happening now!" Gu La's true form sternly commanded, fully unleashing the guidance of the Ancient Memory soul skill.
Boom—!!!
The long-suppressed vast temporal power burst forth entirely.
The flow of time within the entire silver bubble domain seemed distorted and stretched! The gathered liquid essence of dragon souls and clouds became purer and more primordial under the wash of temporal might, resembling the pure energy of ancient dragons in their prime.
At the same time, the pull of soul skills such as Ultimate Devouring and Gravity Vortex was maximized.
The spirit souls within the six avatars could no longer be restrained!
Behind Bai Yuan, the phantom of the Abyss Taotie crazily expanded and solidified in the liquid energy.
Black scales covered with dark golden patterns emerged, the giant eyes under the armpits opened, emitting ghostly light that devoured souls, releasing an even purer, more domineering aura of devouring heaven and earth! The Dark Phantom Spirit Soul evolved – Abyss Devouring Beast!
Within Bo Xi, the phantom of the Great White Shark King underwent dramatic changes under the nourishment of pure dragon souls and vast water elements.
Its body became more slender and robust, covered with azure and silver interwoven dragon scales, its dorsal fin transforming into sharp dragon spines, its sharp teeth gleaming with cold light, exuding the presence of an ocean overlord combined with dragon majesty!
The Great White Shark King Spirit Soul evolved – Deep Sea Dragon Emperor Shark!
Mu Yi's emerald Adamantine Wood Spirit Soul roots grew wildly, piercing into the seven-colored energy pool, forming crystalline Life Dragon Crystals between branches, radiating boundless vitality and the unique heaviness of dragon lineage… Other avatars' spirit souls were undergoing earth-shattering transformations as well!
Across the entire dragon tomb area, centered on Gu La's seven figures, a massive energy vortex formed, stirring the dragon essence of the small world.
Countless dragon souls wailed as they were drawn in and refined. A gluttonous feast targeting the final legacy of the dragon race finally began unhindered.
Inside the core area, Dragon Tomb Valley.
Gu Yue manifested her true form as the thousand-meter-long Silver Dragon King, her massive dragon body coiled within the valley, covered entirely in brilliant silver scales, with seven-colored radiant light flowing around her, exuding supreme dragon majesty.
She raised her head and emitted a silent dragon roar, calling upon the residual power of the Dragon God.
Buzz—!
Deep within the valley, the nine-colored dragon god dragon soul core was thoroughly activated.
Vast, pure, and imbued with the essence of creation and destruction, the nine-colored light poured in like a reversed celestial river, surging into the body of the Silver Dragon King.
Her aura soared at a terrifying speed. Nine-colored patterns began to emerge faintly on her silver scales, her power rapidly growing.
However, Gu Yue's heart felt empty.
Gu La's words echoed like a curse in her mind: "…you have flaws… your spirit isn't pure… manipulated by Tang San…the Dragon God isn't dead… become the true Dragon God…"
Her power increased, yet confusion and unease loomed over her heart like shadows.
The power of the Dragon God's core was immensely strong. She could feel herself growing stronger, nearing godhood, yet… this power seemed merely "given" rather than "fused."
She could become the inheritor of the Dragon God's power, but could she truly become the "Dragon God" itself? Could surpassing the God King level really be achieved through inheritance alone?
Tang Wulin… the Golden Dragon King's divine core… protected by Sea God Tang San… how should she seize it? Was accepting the conditions set by the enigmatic, purpose-unknown Gu La really the only way?
Just as her mind was unsettled, immersed in the growth of power and inner struggles, her perception caught two approaching presences at the valley entrance—precisely Tang Wulin and Dai Yun'er, drawn by bloodline resonance!
Irritation! Overwhelming irritation surged in her heart! It was because of this human that she developed the personality of "Na'er," creating so-called "flaws," and now he appeared here, interfering with her inheritance.
A flash of icy malice flickered in the huge dragon eyes of Gu Yue, and she lightly swung her tail!
An invisible, powerful dragon majesty shockwave instantly swept across.
At the valley entrance, Tang Wulin and Dai Yun'er, who were struggling against the dragon majesty to move forward, suddenly felt an irresistible, immense force hit them. Darkness enveloped their vision, and they collapsed unconscious without a sound, falling limp to the ground.
Tang Wulin's excellent opportunity to refine the Golden Dragon King's blood essence through the "Thousand Days Burial Dragon" ritual in the Dragon Valley environment was thus interrupted.
Gu Yue withdrew her gaze, no longer paying attention. Her massive dragon body bathed in the nine-colored pillar of light, her power growing, her thoughts increasingly complex.
The bait cast by Gu La and the revealed "truth" were like boulders thrown into a tranquil lake, the ripples stirred up refusing to subside for a long time.
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