The God Realm shimmered with a constant, golden glow, a truly ethereal sight. Islands dotted the swirling, misty clouds, each home to magnificent palaces where gods and their families resided. Each palace hummed with a unique divine power and grandeur.
One palace stood out. Perched high in the God Realm, it pulsed with a blue-golden divine light, like a radiant star. Ethereal oceans swelled around it, and at its heart, a towering golden trident sculpture gleamed, radiating immense power under the sun. Above its entrance, the ancient, flowing calligraphy proclaimed "Sea God Palace," each stroke infused with the overwhelming might unique to a God King.
Silence settled over the Sea God Palace. In its center, a strikingly handsome young man sat cross-legged. His long, deep-blue hair, like the ocean itself, cascaded smoothly down his back. This was none other than Sea God Tang San, one of the God Realm's renowned Enforcer Gods.
Suddenly, Tang San's eyes snapped open, a flicker of doubt in their depths. Just moments before, a "chess piece" he'd casually placed hadn't worked as expected. This seemingly small deviation had caused a hitch in one part of his meticulously laid plan. Though not crucial to the overall scheme, even a minor error was enough to catch the attention of someone as cautious as Tang San.
With that thought, Tang San slowly closed his eyes. Yet, an invisible wisp of his divine sense silently pierced through countless spatial dimensions, landing on the Douluo Continent. Following the faint trace of his "chess piece," this divine sense shot like lightning towards the Extreme North, abruptly stopping where the "chess piece's" aura vanished. Instantly, blue-golden divine power rippled outwards from his divine sense, attempting to replay the past events of that very spot.
Just as the surroundings began to twist and past scenes were about to appear, a pitch-black snake shadow lunged from the void without warning, quick as a flash. It opened its gaping, blood-red maw, baring sharp fangs, and viciously bit into the divine sense.
"Hmph!" A low, commanding snort echoed from within the divine sense, like distant thunder. Immediately, a golden trident phantom appeared, piercing the snake shadow with blinding speed. Its mighty force tore away a bizarre mass of purple energy. But before Tang San's divine sense could react, the snake's tail, like a thick black whip, swept across with immense power. In an instant, the entire snowy mountain crumbled under the terrifying force, shaking the very earth. The snake shadow, twisting violently, dissolved into countless specks of light, vanishing completely.
Tang San's divine sense witnessed this, instantly understanding that the other party wasn't trying to attack him, but rather to serve another purpose: to erase any traces from the area. Realizing he'd been outmaneuvered, another angry snort emanated from his divine sense. Tang San was about to follow the lingering traces to uncover the truth when he abruptly paused. After a brief thought, he quickly returned to the God Realm, carrying the intercepted purple energy like a shooting star racing across the night sky.
Inside the Sea God Palace, Tang San's expression was grim as he gripped the purple energy brought back by his divine sense. His gaze, sharp as a torch, pierced the distance. Far away, a handsome young man with short purple hair, cloaked in purple, stared with piercing eyes directly at the Sea God Palace, his gaze filled with an unmistakable warning. Other gods in the God Realm keenly sensed this tense standoff but showed no surprise, clearly used to such scenes. The animosity between the Sea God and the God of Destruction was well-known throughout the God Realm. This silent confrontation was remarkably restrained compared to their usual clashes.
"Third Brother, what's wrong? Has that Destruction guy come to bother you again?" A clear, melodious voice filled the Sea God Palace. A girl with a black scorpion braid gracefully appeared. Her features were exquisitely beautiful, and she exuded a mature, captivating aura. This was Xiao Wu, Tang San's beloved, the sheath of the Asura Sword. She approached Tang San, her face etched with concern.
"There's a small problem on the Douluo Continent. I sent a wisp of divine sense to investigate, and unexpectedly, Destruction found it," Tang San replied. He rarely kept secrets from Xiao Wu, sharing most things with her unless they were deeply personal and inexpressible.
"Destruction is truly something," Xiao Wu pouted, glaring fiercely towards the distant God of Destruction's Palace. "Third Brother, as an Enforcer God, it's your duty to protect the planes under the God Realm. It was just a wisp of divine sense, not direct interference with the lower realm. Why did he have to be so serious?"
"It's fine, Xiao Wu," Tang San gently stroked her head, comforting her softly. "I did overstep my bounds. Destruction was just giving me a warning; it's better not to escalate this." He didn't want a full-blown confrontation with the God of Destruction yet, as he wasn't entirely confident he could win. The God of Destruction was an experienced God King, and his subordinate Primal Sin Gods were all top-tier First-Class Gods. Before his plan for the Douluo Continent was complete, a direct conflict with the God of Destruction was truly unwise. He knew he needed more power and stronger allies to gain the upper hand in this power struggle within the God Realm.
"Third Brother, what is this thing? Such a high-level energy fluctuation, it's not inferior to divine power, yet I've never seen it before. It feels so strange." Xiao Wu suddenly noticed the purple energy clutched in Tang San's hand, her eyes filled with curiosity.
"This is the unexpected situation that appeared on the Douluo Continent. I'm not sure if it's from a powerful being from another realm, or some kind of treasure that accidentally fell into the Douluo Continent?" Tang San's eyes also showed a hint of doubt. Logically, the Douluo Continent had always been under his strict surveillance. Even when he was in seclusion, Rong Nianbing watched over it for him. If a powerful being from another realm truly entered the Douluo Continent, he would never have been unaware. Yet, this unexpected situation had now arisen on the Douluo Continent, and his plan was slightly affected. Fortunately, the overall main plan is still under his control.
Tang San looked at Xiao Wu, an imperceptible flicker of apology in his eyes. He knew that if Xiao Wu learned what he had done to Xiao Qi, she would be furious. But he felt he had no choice. To advance further in the God Realm and to successfully suppress the God of Destruction, he urgently needed to harness the Douluo Continent's fortune to boost his own strength. He also needed the Douluo Continent's Child of Destiny to ascend to the God Realm and become his key ally against the God of Destruction. Thus, Xiao Qi became a necessary sacrifice in this plan.
However, in Tang San's view, it wasn't a true sacrifice. After all, they were just two small fragments of Xiao Qi's soul. Xiao Qi's main essence was currently sleeping in his hands, and everything those two soul fragments experienced would be nothing more than a fleeting dream for Xiao Qi. Furthermore, everything he had done was also to help Xiao Qi continuously build her foundation and fully prepare for her future path to godhood. Even as the daughter of a God King, successfully achieving a divine position and becoming a true god was by no means easy; the hardships and dangers could only be overcome step by step by oneself. Therefore, he had meticulously arranged everything for Xiao Qi long ago, believing that all he did was for Xiao Qi's future.
However, Xiao Qi's potential was, after all, limited. To realize his grander plan, Tang San knew he had to have a son. His deeply ingrained patriarchal ideas from his previous life remained. Even now, having become a high-ranking God King, this notion was still difficult to completely eradicate. Thinking of this, Tang San's gaze involuntarily fell upon Xiao Wu. Xiao Wu keenly sensed the burning gaze in Tang San's eyes. In an instant, her face flushed crimson, appearing charming and delicate.
In this warm and intimate atmosphere, neither Tang San nor Xiao Wu noticed that a small portion of the mysterious purple energy had quietly diffused, like wisps of smoke, slowly blending into the God Realm itself.
In Hǎiyuān City, Herta's lips curved into a meaningful smile. "You little rascal," she murmured, "you truly know that so-called Sea God like the back of your hand. He indeed acted as you predicted, taking a portion of the Honkai Energy from that snake and bringing it back to the God Realm."
Lu Jingming heard this, an "as expected" expression on his face. He'd long suspected that Xue Di's situation was likely connected to Sea God Tang San. His earlier disruption of Tang San's plan would surely draw the Sea God's attention, and he could use this chance to set a trap for him. Even if things didn't go exactly as planned, it would merely be a waste of some time. Fortunately, Sea God Tang San hadn't disappointed him.
"Then, my great Lady Herta," Lu Jingming said with a faint smile, looking at Herta with anticipation, "the coordinates of the God Realm must be successfully locked, right?"
"Even though it's in a different spatial dimension, Honkai Energy is simply too obvious in this universe," Herta replied calmly, her tone radiating confidence. "Using Thousand Realms One Voyage, it was very easy to find the so-called God Realm." For her, this wasn't a difficult task. Even without the Honkai Energy acting as a signal within the God Realm, she was confident she could find its precise location given enough time.
"That's good. The next phase of the plan will entirely depend on you," Lu Jingming said, exhaling slightly in relief.
"You certainly know how to order people around," Herta feigned annoyance, though her purpose was clear. "You're the first one to dare boss me, Herta, around like this. Don't you dare forget what I asked for; remember to get it for me."
"Don't worry, I won't forget!" Lu Jingming said helplessly. The items Herta needed weren't from this world and could only be materialized by him using his True Force. It looked like he'd have to pay a steep price this time.