Chapter 197: The Shattered Legend and a New God-making Plan
"Impossible! That… that's a Titled Douluo!"
When the Divine Power Douluo was slapped into the ground by Xiao Qiang, the morale that had just surged in response to his arrival collapsed instantly. The temporary alliance of soul masters, once roused by hope, now scattered like frightened birds, only to be hunted down swiftly one by one.
"Don't—don't kill me! I'm one of Shrek's elders!"
"I know," Xiao Qiang said, voice cold, "but I have a question. Can I exchange a half-dead elder like you for a 100,000-year soul bone?"
"This…" the man hesitated, panic overtaking him.
"Can't exchange? So you're not even as valuable as Fan Yu."
"I… I joined Shrek after I reached Rank 90!"
"So you're useless then?"
"No! No, please! Let me live! Everything in my storage soul guide is yours! I even have a 100,000-year-old transformed soul beast I caught. It could be your ninth soul ring!"
But Xiao Qiang wasn't moved. A black chain shot out and wrapped tightly around the Divine Power Douluo's neck, soul extraction following instantly. "What useless nonsense. If I kill you, all of it is mine anyway."
"Evil soul master? No! No, I can be loyal to you! Don't kill me!"
"Oh? I believe you," Xiao Qiang said mockingly. "Then be loyal to me in the Undead Demiplane."
With a flick of his hand, the Divine Power Douluo's body and soul were cast into the Undead Demiplane, destined to become one of Xiao Qiang's undead thralls.
After marking Mu Qingxue and instructing the group to continue their journey to the Sun and Moon Empire, Xiao Qiang himself entered the Undead Demiplane to inspect his rewards.
A trace of soul power activated the storage soul guide taken from the Divine Power Douluo. Countless priceless treasures spilled out, but Xiao Qiang's eyes fell on something far more extraordinary—Su Tong, the transformed soul beast trapped within a cage.
"Hmm? This aura…" Xiao Qiang began.
Before he could finish, the Snow Empress—who had been resting in Xiao Qiang's storage soul guide—rushed out. With a powerful slap, she shattered the cage imprisoning Su Tong.
"Damn human! How dare you touch one of my people!" the Snow Empress roared, her fury shaking the Undead Demiplane. Undead creatures all turned to look, sensing the wrath of the Ice and Snow Empress.
"This aura… You're the Snow Empress? The 700,000-year Ice and Snow Girl?" the soul of the Divine Power Douluo spat venomously. "Bastard! You collude with soul beasts! You're a disgrace to humanity!"
Xiao Qiang ignored him, glancing at the Snow Empress. "What should we do with this soul? Don't worry, here in the Undead Demiplane, he won't dissipate no matter how much torture he suffers."
The Divine Power Douluo's soul trembled.
"Test every torture your humans invented on him once," Snow Empress commanded. "If I'm not satisfied, do it twice. Then three times. Until I'm satisfied."
Xiao Qiang nodded. "Got it."
"No! No! Don't come over here!"
…
After two and a half days of torment, Su Tong had finally recovered and recounted her situation to Xiao Qiang and Snow Empress.
"So, you knew you wouldn't survive your next tribulation due to an earlier injury, and chose to transform into a human to try becoming a god at Rank 100?"
"Yes," Su Tong said softly. "I was planning to cultivate in a small city until I became a six-ringed Soul Emperor, then move to a bigger city for resources. But unexpectedly, that small city—where even Soul Douluo were rare—suddenly had a Titled Douluo appear. I was discovered and captured. Even though I still had my control over ice and snow, the soul power gap was too large."
"Your ideal is grand," Xiao Qiang said with a sarcastic smile, "but your plan was far too naive. The Dragon God has already forbidden soul beasts from becoming gods. Unless you reach his level and overturn his edicts, no soul beast can become a god at Rank 100."
Su Tong was stunned. "The Dragon God forbade soul beasts from becoming gods? What does that mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. Brother Tianmeng has already passed the million-year mark. But did he become a god? No. Soul beasts are barred from ascension. That's the Dragon God's decree. It's why for tens of millions of years, no soul beast has ever truly become a god."
Su Tong's heart sank. She had transformed and struggled for the dream of godhood, only to discover it was barred from the start. A human life of a few hundred years couldn't compare to living 100,000 years as a soul beast.
Just as despair overtook her, the Snow Empress gently rubbed Su Tong's head. "It's true soul beasts can't rely on Rank 100 to ascend, but we still have another path. Xiao Qiang, Tianmeng, Bingbing—we should let her join our god-making plan."
"Hmm? Can we do that?" Su Tong asked hesitantly.
She already knew of Xiao Qiang's staggering soul ring lineup—his base was a 100,000-year soul ring, followed by a 400,000-year Ice Jade Scorpion Emperor, a 200,000-year Titan Snow Demon King, and two million-year soul rings for his third and seventh. If Xiao Qiang couldn't become a god, then no one in the world could.
If they had met earlier, Su Tong would've been a valuable addition. But now? She was simply too weak.
"Su Tong's cultivation is only at the 100,000-year level. It'll lower the average strength of Xiao Qiang's rings," Tianmeng said reluctantly.
"But she has the Ultimate Snow attribute," Bing Di countered. "She can still amplify his power."
"But…"
"Alright, alright," Xiao Qiang interrupted, lifting his hand. "Tianmeng, Bingbing, Xuedi—hear me out."
"Speak," they said in unison.
"It's fine for Su Tong to join a god-making plan… but not necessarily ours."
"What do you mean?"
"It's simple," Xiao Qiang said with a confident smirk. "Why not create another god-making plan altogether?"