Chapter 171: The Deep Sea Demon Whale King Falls into Despair
"Impossible!"
"You're lying! Trying to shake my will!"
Upon hearing Neptune's revelation the cruel truth of the world that would drive any soul beast to despair the Deep Sea Demon Whale King let out an earth shaking roar. Its massive aura surged, and its colossal body twisted violently in the ocean. Its enormous tail suddenly whipped upward, swinging toward Neptune in midair.
A fan shaped blast of deep blue and purple light shot out, surging straight toward Neptune.
The sheer force ripped through the air, distorting the space around it. The edges of the light wave crackled with black lightning, carrying an overwhelmingly destructive aura. This time, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King wasn't relying on the ocean's power this was a pure attack fueled by its own energy.
Neptune wouldn't remain passive this time.
With a firm grip on the Sea God's Trident, he activated another Sea God's Light, bathing the trident in golden brilliance. Then, he spun the weapon in the air, forming a massive golden ring around himself.
Boom!
The golden ring collided head on with the incoming whale tail energy wave.
And then
Silence.
A deathly quiet filled the sky.
There was no explosion.
No shockwave.
The overwhelming energy attack vanished without a trace, leaving behind not even the slightest ripple.
It was as if it had never existed.
After effortlessly nullifying the attack, Neptune spoke again.
"Lying to you? You already know in your heart that what I said is true. You just refuse to accept reality."
A sudden stillness overtook the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
Its fierce aura faltered for a moment, as though Neptune had stabbed straight into its soul.
It was exactly as he had said.
The whale wasn't angry because it thought Neptune was lying.
It was angry because it knew Neptune was right.
"You must have felt it yourself," Neptune continued, his voice calm.
"That invisible barrier keeping you from breaking through."
"And those Heavenly Tribulations each one worse than the last, growing stronger every ten thousand years. They weren't meant to help you evolve."
"They were meant to kill you."
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King's body trembled.
Its entire existence had been dedicated to overcoming those tribulations, but now
Was Neptune saying that everything had been rigged from the start?
"Honestly," Neptune said, gripping the Trident tighter, "I respect you."
"You survived ten tribulations that were specifically designed to wipe out soul beasts. If we were living in the era when soul beasts could still become gods, you'd at least be a First Class God by now."
"Unfortunately... you were born in the wrong era."
"The era when soul beasts could become gods?"
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King immediately caught on to the key phrase.
"So you're saying… soul beasts could become gods in the past?"
For the first time, its aura calmed down.
It desperately wanted answers.
"Of course," Neptune answered without hesitation.
In order to convince the Deep Sea Demon Whale King to surrender, he didn't mind revealing the truths that were already well known to the gods.
In fact
Once the whale fully realized the depth of its despair, it would no longer have the will to resist.
And when that happened
Neptune would offer it a way out.
"The story begins with the Divine Realm... Tell me, how much do you know about it?"
"I only know that once someone becomes a god, they ascend to the Divine Realm. The Sea God from ten thousand years ago did exactly that."
"Good. That makes things easier."
Neptune nodded.
"The Divine Realm," he explained, "is exactly what it sounds like the realm of the gods. But it isn't just a paradise. It's also the ruler of countless worlds."
"Our world, Douluo Continent, is just one of the many realms controlled by the Divine Realm."
"And here's the most important rule once someone becomes a god, they MUST ascend to the Divine Realm. They are forbidden from staying in lower worlds."
"Furthermore, gods are not allowed to descend at will."
"So that's why Poseidon never returned…"
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King muttered to itself, finally understanding.
"I always thought he just abandoned the ocean. But it turns out the Divine Realm doesn't allow gods to come back… So even the gods are trapped."
"Trapped?"
Neptune laughed to himself.
"You don't even know the half of it."
To him, the Divine Realm was less like a paradise and more like a glorified prison.
"But let's move on. Here's where things really get interesting."
Neptune's expression turned serious.
"A long time ago, both humans and soul beasts could become gods."
"Back then, there were no Heavenly Tribulations targeting soul beasts."
"Soul beasts even had their own divine advancement system."
"Then why did everything change?!"
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King couldn't hold back.
This information was too shocking.
"It all started with the Dragon God."
"A soul beast who ascended to the Divine Realm… and changed everything."
"At that time, soul beasts who became gods were under the rule of human deities."
"But think about it why would a powerful beast god ever be satisfied with serving humans?"
"And so, the Dragon God led the soul beast deities in an all out war against the Divine Realm!"
"And what happened?!"
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King felt its body stiffen.
"They lost."
"Every single one of them was slaughtered."
"The gods, as the victors, decided that soul beasts must never be allowed to rebel again."
"So they rewrote the rules."
"From that moment on, soul beasts were permanently locked out of godhood."
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King fell completely silent.
It felt like its entire world had collapsed.
And Neptune wasn't done.
"Now do you understand?"
"Even if you somehow stole my Sea God position and forced your way into godhood…"
"You would be hunted down and exterminated immediately."
"The Divine Realm will never allow a soul beast to become a god."
"At best, they might erase your mind and enslave you."
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King remained frozen in place.
It had lived for a million years, yet it had never felt this level of despair.
Everything it had worked for
Every hardship it had endured
Every tribulation it had survived
All of it had been meaningless.
And with that final realization…
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King finally fell completely silent.
(End of Chapter)
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