Once Ye Lingtian had come of age and could shoulder responsibility on his own, Ye Yu and Qian Renxue felt it was finally time for them to step back.
They passed the imperial throne to Lingtian, after which Qian Renxue assumed the role of Retired Emperor and formally withdrew from court life, moving outside the palace.
Of course, in truth, Spirit Hall had arranged a stand-in to reside in the specially built palace. The real Qian Renxue stayed by Ye Yu's side, ready to journey with him and the other women to explore the many wonders of Douluo Planet.
The prospect of adventures across the Endless Sea was something that excited all of them.
Before leaving the Douluo Continent, however, Ye Yu wished to honor his debts of gratitude once more.
As a man who never forgot kindness, he first wanted to repay his uncle Wang Hongshan.
And since his own rise began in Nuoding City, he also intended to give back to the nobles and commoners there—the very people who had once helped him.
His repayment was simple yet profound.
Now that the Heaven Dou Empire had unified the continent, the old imperial capital was no longer ideally placed.
For a Heaven Dou Empire that stretched across the entire Douluo Continent, the Heaven Dou Imperial City's location seemed far too remote.
Logically, to radiate influence across the land, the new imperial capital should be in the continent's central regions, either by designating an existing city or constructing one anew.
In the end, Ye Yu chose Nuoding City as the new imperial capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Nuoding's location was far from poor.
Its surrounding plains were fertile and rich enough for the city to feed itself.
Looking further, the Farnos Province's border was guarded by the Bailin Mountains, a range stretching east to west, broken only by a few narrow passes—all fortified with strongholds.
To the center of the former Pelagius and Kirikres Kingdoms lay the Austel Mountains, the Calamity Range, and the Border Ridges, forming a natural barrier. With the passes defended, even a lone soldier could hold off ten thousand.
Toward the former Balak Kingdom, the mighty Balak River provided a water barrier. With a properly trained navy, the defense would be near unbreakable.
Thus, if Nuoding became the imperial capital, its natural defenses would far surpass those of the Heaven Dou Imperial City, which was dangerously exposed near Jialing Pass.
For the nobles and citizens of Nuoding, this was a stroke of unimaginable fortune.
Overnight, they would become subjects living beneath the Emperor's feet, the most privileged of the privileged.
From then on, one could even say—Nuoding folk would be addressed as "Lords of Nuoding"!
As for his uncle Wang Hongshan and his family, Ye Yu planned something even greater. After their natural deaths, he would craft new immortal bodies for them from the Blue Silver Spirit Jade Tree, granting them eternal life to witness the dawning of countless new ages.
This was Ye Yu's way of repaying grace.
To him, "A drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring."
Compared to Tang San's so-called gratitude, Ye Yu's repayment carried weight beyond measure. Those who understood—understood.
During Ye Yu's voyages with his women across the seas of Douluo Planet, their cultivation also advanced rapidly, many of them breaking through to Limit Douluo.
For those desiring to inherit god positions, Ye Yu reached out through Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling to contact the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life. He asked them to inquire in the Divine Realm which deities were seeking successors.
Among Ye Yu's companions, Ning Rongrong and Shui Yue'er expressed the strongest intent.
In the end, Ning Rongrong inherited the position of the Goddess of Nine Colors, while Shui Yue'er became the new Ice God. (PS: Shui Bing'er gave up the Ice God's inheritance and passed it on to her sister Shui Yue'er.)
Meanwhile, after passing the throne to her son, Qian Renxue returned to Spirit City to undergo the Angel God's Nine Trials. Once completed, she would inherit the Angel God's position.
As for Zhu Zhuqing, Huo Wu, Shui Bing'er, and Hu Liena—lacking suitable inheritances—they resolved to gather faith themselves and forge god positions of their own.
Yet Ye Yu had not forgotten a grudge.
Through Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, he had learned that both the God of Asura and Sea God Poseidon once intended to descend and personally interfere with Spirit Hall's unification of the continent.
He decided that when Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling ascended to the Divine Realm, he would follow them—and slay Asura and Poseidon himself.
Their positions, after all, would be perfect for Zhu Zhuqing and Shui Bing'er.
Once those two gods were dead, Zhu Zhuqing and Shui Bing'er could inherit their positions.
For Huo Wu and Hu Liena, Ye Yu planned to create god positions of his own design: a Goddess of Flame for Huo Wu, and a Goddess of Fate and Bonds for Hu Liena—domains where faith would be easily gathered.
Time flowed.
From the moment Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling had first gained the qualifications for godhood until now, two or three decades had already passed.
Both had long since completed the Nine Trials and formally inherited the positions of the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life.
By mortal reckoning, thirty years had passed.
But in the Divine Realm, that equated to nearly a month—long enough for the two deities awaiting succession to grow impatient, urging them to ascend quickly.
At last, the time came.
On a luxurious Soul Tool cruise ship, floating upon the Endess Sea, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling prepared to depart.
Though reluctant, they knew the moment had come.
"Everyone… until we meet again!"
They waved farewell to Ning Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, Qian Renxue, and the others, then followed their divine resonance to tear open space and ascend to the Divine Realm.
Ye Yu, though not yet a god, already wielded power surpassing that of the God Kings.
He too had long since sensed the existence of the Divine Realm.
Thus, he followed.
Compared to Douluo Planet, the Divine Realm was clearly smaller.
There was no sun, no stars, only endless skies filled with drifting white clouds.
The weather was forever bright and warm.
"So… this is the Divine Realm?"
The heavens shimmered faintly with seven-colored light, radiant clouds stretching endlessly.
The air was so rich in spiritual essence that even a single breath could raise an ordinary Spirit Master's cultivation by several ranks.
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling could not help marveling at the divine environment.
But standing beside them, Ye Yu's handsome face bore only a cold smile.
At last, they had arrived.
Asura. Poseidon.
Your end has come.