"So... what about the last version?"
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King continued to question Shui Bing'er.
"The fourth version is somewhat similar to the first. The difference is that the Dragon God didn't originate from the Douluo Continent, but from the universe itself. One day, he discovered two different drops of water. One was the Water of Destruction, the other the Evil Wind. Curious, the Dragon God lingered."
"As time passed, a tree sprouted from the Water of Destruction—this tree became the Tree of Life. Meanwhile, the Evil Wind split and gave birth to a kind aura. Soon, four beings were formed by nature and took on human form: the God of Destruction, the God of Evil, the Goddess of Kindness, and the Goddess of Life. They became companions of the Dragon God and together, they created the Divine Realm."
"After the Divine Realm was established, life followed. Creatures of order emerged, and they were called the Shura Gods."
"Once the Divine Realm was born, the five supreme gods and Dragon God began to explore other planets in search of faith energy to help expand the Divine Realm."
"At that time, any creature that cultivated hard enough could ascend to the Divine Realm. Humans were not as strong as they are today."
"Humans might train for hundreds of years, but beasts had to cultivate for thousands or even tens of thousands. It was clearly unfair."
"Over time, more and more human gods began to populate the Divine Realm. Some divine beasts proposed to the Dragon God that new rules should be introduced. Otherwise, human gods would eventually dominate the Divine Realm."
"At first, the Dragon God didn't care."
"As his strength increased, and the number of human gods continued to grow, the Dragon God noticed that beings ascending to the Divine Realm brought with them a strange energy—he called it negative emotion."
"Negative emotion was like pollution, corrupting the water source. It gradually affected the local gods and inhabitants of the Divine Realm. So, the Dragon God suggested reforms. But the five supreme gods rejected the idea."
"Multiple rounds of negotiation followed between the Dragon God and the five supreme gods, but the answer remained the same. The divide between the conservatives and reformists deepened into conflict."
"The Dragon God foresaw the Divine Realm falling into a spiral of intrigue, bloodshed, and power struggles if things continued unchanged. So, he separated from the Divine Realm Committee with the divine beasts and began reforms on his own, relying on the central control of the Divine Realm he still held."
"Perhaps due to swallowing too many negative emotions, the Dragon God had to enter seclusion before completing his reforms."
"Humans saw an opportunity and began whispering into the ears of the five supreme gods."
"But the five supreme gods had a strong bond with the Dragon God and weren't swayed so easily."
"Still, the human gods felt they were being suppressed. Friction with the divine beasts escalated over time, until finally, war broke out."
"Human gods weren't stronger than the divine beasts at the time, but they invented the Divine Punishment Formation. With it, they could fight back against the divine beasts."
"The battle became a stalemate, but the Divine Realm was suffering from the ongoing war. Eventually, the God of Evil and the God of Destruction joined the fight. Soon after, the Shura God intervened."
"Of the Nine Dragon Kings from the dragon clan, almost all perished because of the three supreme gods' involvement. When the Dragon God awoke and learned what had happened, he was furious. He broke out from seclusion and confronted the three supreme gods."
"The Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction were husband and wife, and the Goddess of Kindness and the God of Evil were another couple. The Dragon God's sudden return gave the divine beasts an upper hand, but in the final battle, the two goddesses also took the field."
"With the combined power of the five supreme gods—the Goddess of Life, Goddess of Kindness, God of Evil, and God of Destruction—they restrained the Dragon God. The Shura God then struck with the Shura Sword and split the Dragon God in two."
"The Dragon God was immensely powerful, already half a step into the realm of a Creator God. Even after being cleaved in two, he used his own strength to form the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King from his halves."
"That's the fourth version of the war in the Divine Realm you wanted to hear."
…
After Shui Bing'er finished, she locked eyes with the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King paused, then said thoughtfully, "According to the oral legends passed down by my Deep Sea Demon Whale Clan, I'm more inclined to believe the fourth version."
"It doesn't really matter which version is historically true," Shui Bing'er said calmly. "What matters is this: after that war, human gods dominated the Divine Realm. And to prevent another war between humans and beasts, the Shura God, who now controlled the Divine Realm's core, rewrote the laws of the Divine Realm and the 108 worlds under its rule."
"Beasts were no longer allowed to become gods. Unless a beast transformed into human form, it could only linger at the peak... until death."
"You can only linger at the peak until you die. You can only linger at the peak until you die. You can only linger at the peak until you die!" The Deep Sea Demon Whale King's voice grew louder, filled with rage.
As his mood spiraled, the quiet sea erupted into massive waves.
"Deep Sea Demon Whale King, do you understand now? Even if you devour me... even if you train for another 300,000 years, you will never become a dragon. All you'll achieve is transforming one percent of your body, then one-thousandth, then one-ten-thousandth…"
"In the end, no matter how hard you try, you'll never truly become a dragon or a divine beast," Shui Bing'er said coldly.
Her words deeply provoked the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
"Despicable gods! I fuck your ancestors!"
He roared, his voice echoing like thunder under the sea.
"But," Shui Bing'er added, "if you truly want to become a god, there's one other path. You can transform into a human and start cultivating again—just like Xiao Wu did."
"Transform into human form?" A glimmer of hope lit up in the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's eyes—then faded.
Transforming and starting over? It was easier said than done.
He didn't have the courage. With his temper and pride, he would never survive long enough in the human world to reach even the Spirit Saint stage.
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King, a ruler who had lived for over 300,000 years, gradually calmed down. He stared at Shui Bing'er and asked, "You didn't tell me all of this just to make me your mount, did you?"
"No," Shui Bing'er answered. "What I want is to take you to the Divine Realm."
"Take me to the Divine Realm? But the path for spirit beasts to ascend is blocked. That shark didn't ascend with the Sea God for that very reason."
He looked toward the Demon Great White Shark in the distance.
"You're right," Shui Bing'er nodded. "Xiaobai didn't ascend because of that rule. But... there's a bug in the Divine Realm's laws."
"What's a bug?"
"It means a loophole."
"What loophole?" the Deep Sea Demon Whale King asked curiously.
"If a spirit beast sacrifices itself to a god, it merges with that god. So when the god ascends, it can bring the beast with them," Shui Bing'er explained.
That was her goal from the start. Everything she said was to persuade the Deep Sea Demon Whale King to become her sacrificial spirit beast.
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