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..."You succeeded?" Bo Saixi asked softly.
Xuan Ming nodded, saying nothing more, and walked directly toward the Sea God Statue. "I need to contact the Sea God."
Bo Saixi did not ask further. She clasped her hands in a seal and prayed devoutly. The Sea God Statue emitted a soft golden light, and a vast Divine Thought slowly descended.
"Kid, you're back to look for me so soon?" Poseidon's Divine Thought carried a hint of teasing, but when he sensed Xuan Ming's aura as a level 100 True God, his tone became significantly more serious. "Tsk... a level 100 True God. You truly are..."
"Is there a way to strip a spirit ring that a human Spirit Master has already obtained?" Xuan Ming interrupted his exclamation and asked directly.
Poseidon's Divine Thought fell silent, seemingly contemplating. "Strip spirit rings? Why are you asking this?"
"To resolve the fundamental conflict between humans and Spirit Beasts." Xuan Ming replied concisely.
Poseidon's voice carried a hint of helplessness: "The method... theoretically exists. The power of a God, especially power involving the Law level, can achieve it. But this is extremely troublesome and requires highly refined control over the Soul and the Spirit Origin. A slight mistake could lead to the Spirit Master's Soul being damaged or even collapsing. Moreover, this can only target individuals; it cannot be widely implemented. You want to use this to resolve the conflict between the two races? It's unrealistic."
Xuan Ming frowned slightly. Poseidon's answer was similar to Gu Yuena's, both pointing toward the Law itself.
Just then, another gentle yet even more vast and magnificent Divine Thought quietly joined, like a spring breeze.
"Perhaps I can give you a more detailed answer to this question." The God of Kindness's voice sounded directly in the minds of Xuan Ming and Poseidon.
"God of Kindness?" Poseidon's Divine Thought fluctuated slightly.
"Xuan Ming," the God of Kindness's voice was peaceful and full of wisdom, "you seem to think that the rule requiring Spirit Masters to hunt Spirit Beasts for spirit rings was set by our God Realm?"
A flicker of surprise crossed Xuan Ming's ice-blue eyes. "Is it not?"
"That is not the case." The God of Kindness said slowly. "The core rules of the Douluo Continent's Spirit Master System—such as the birth of Spirits, the existence of spirit power, and the need for Spirit Masters to absorb spirit rings to break through a Bottleneck—these were naturally formed by the World Law of the Douluo Star itself. Just like the movement of stars in the Universe, the need for life to breathe, or the requirement to pass the Heavenly Tribulation to become a God, these are inherent Laws of this heaven and earth."
"World Law?" Xuan Ming repeated the phrase.
"Yes. This is the specific manifestation of the Universe's Laws within the Douluo Star's domain. Even we God Kings cannot fully fathom all of its mysteries, let alone easily change its foundation. This is not a setting imposed by the God Realm, but the underlying logic of the World."
The God of Kindness paused, then changed the subject: "However, the Law is not immutable. Historically, there have indeed been beings who changed localized Laws. For example, the Ice Dragon King should have told you that the Dragon God once set the rule that the Beast Clan cannot become Divinities."
Xuan Ming's heart stirred, and he nodded. The Ice Dragon King had indeed mentioned this point.
"But what I want to talk about is the profound meaning behind this rule." The God of Kindness's tone became meaningful. "During the time the Dragon God ruled, the Dragon Clan was the supreme Overlord, and ten thousand races were under its coercion. After the Dragon God Calamity, the Dragon Clan declined. If the Dragon God was only worried that the Dragon Clan would be targeted after becoming Divinities, he could have simply set the rule 'The Dragon Clan cannot become Divinities'."
"But he specifically set the rule that 'All Beast Clans cannot become Divinities'."
The God of Kindness's voice carried a hint of guidance: "Xuan Ming, with your wisdom, you should be able to figure out why."
Xuan Ming remained silent for a moment, the light in his ice-blue eyes shifting before he slowly spoke: "Kidnapping."
"Oh?" The God of Kindness seemed slightly surprised by his blunt terminology, but immediately expressed approval. "A very precise description."
"The Dragon God worried that if other Beast Clans could become Divinities while the Dragon Clan could not, the beast races that had accumulated countless grudges under the Dragon Clan's oppression would certainly seize the opportunity to retaliate, adding insult to injury to the already weakened Dragon Clan. Divinities cannot easily interfere in the Lower Realm, but the God Realm would find it difficult to intervene much in the slaughter between Beast Clans in the Lower Realm."
"More importantly," Xuan Ming's voice was cold, "if only the Dragon Clan was restricted, and other Beast Clans could freely become Divinities, then the so-called 'Revival' of the Dragon Clan would become a complete joke. At that point, let alone revival, it would be questionable whether the Dragon Clan could even survive under the hostility of numerous newly promoted Beast Clan Divinities."
"Therefore, the rule the Dragon God set was to forcibly bind the fate of all Beast Clans to the Dragon Clan. Want to become a God? Fine, but you must first help the Dragon Clan revive, and you must first overthrow this rule set by the Dragon God! All Beast Clans must do their utmost for the Dragon God's return. This was a gamble and a kidnapping that involved the entire future of the Beast Clan."
The God of Kindness's Divine Thought transmitted a soft sigh: "Exactly. The Dragon God used this rule to force all Beast Clans to become 'Allies' of the Dragon Clan's Revival, or rather... 'Hostages.' This is not about right or wrong; it was simply the most extreme yet most effective choice the Dragon God could make for the survival of the race under those circumstances."
"I am telling you this," the God of Kindness's voice regained its peaceful tone, "to make you understand that changing the Law, especially changing the inherent underlying Law of the World, is extremely difficult and the consequences are unpredictable. The Dragon God's actions back then had specific historical context and unavoidable reasons, and their impact continues to this day."
"Your idea to resolve the conflict between humans and Spirit Beasts is good. But the spirit ring System, as part of the World Law, is not easily changed. You need to consider not just 'if' it can be changed, but 'how' to change it, and what series of chain reactions the change will trigger."
"This Fifth Trial, 'Reshaping Order,' might be an opportunity for you to think deeply and practice. But remember, haste makes waste."
"Then why are you only giving me three years?" Xuan Ming asked.
"Because I believe you have the ability," the God of Kindness replied.
"What's more, Reshaping Order isn't about truly making this World better. Rather than saying I'm giving you three years to reshape the order of the Douluo Continent, it's more like..."
"I want to see, in three years, what extent you can reach?"
"Or rather, what you want this World to become."
Three years was not meant to yield a perfect answer, but to observe the path he chose and the extent he could achieve.
Xuan Ming remained silent, his gaze involuntarily falling upon the Million Year Kindness Ring on his own body, which emitted a soft white light.
This spirit ring was extremely special. It did not grant him any direct offensive or defensive Spirit Abilities. The energy contained within was vast and pure, resembling more of an... Origin, a type of Authority.
This feeling was subtly similar to the Sea God's Heart he had previously undergone Fusion with.
If the will of the God of Kindness was primarily behind this Fifth Trial, then her granting this special spirit ring was certainly not without purpose.
She saw the destructive tendency growing within him, and she also knew that the irreconcilable conflict between humans and Spirit Beasts was one of the Core Problems.
This Fifth Trial was perhaps intended to see which path he would ultimately choose, given sufficient power and a not-so-extreme time limit: whether to move toward complete Destruction and Reconstruction, or to find a path that was... more constructive, even if only preliminary, for easing the conflict.