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*****
"I've spent over a year studying forging techniques, and he mastered them in just ten days?"
Kuang Tie could hardly believe it.
How was that even possible?
Over those ten days, all he did was demonstrate each technique once—he hadn't even performed a full live demonstration. Yet Su Yu had somehow managed to digest and internalize everything on his own?
Still, the metal piece in his hand was radiating an intense spiritual aura, its essence nearly bursting forth—clear proof that it had reached the highest possible quality below Heaven-level forging!
"..."
Kuang Tie was speechless.
After leaving Heaven Dou City, Su Yu finally headed toward the Star Dou Forest.
Five days later—
Core Region of the Star Dou Forest.
Lake of Life.
"What's he doing here?"
Sensing the approaching fluctuations of soul power, Di Tian frowned, clearly puzzled.
He didn't particularly welcome or reject Su Yu's arrival.
This human had, after all, discovered a viable path to ease the current plight of soul beasts. But Su Yu was still a human.
And those who are not of our kind must be treated with caution.
As long as both soul beasts and human soul masters continued to exist, true peace would never be possible.
At present, the strength of soul beasts and human soul masters was relatively balanced, and the divine realm had yet to deeply interfere with the lower planes.
However, judging from how that Sea God used to interfere from the divine realm every few thousand years, it was likely the future would be no different.
Which meant soul beasts would inevitably be weakened over time.
And once the balance of power tipped, even with this so-called soul spirit cultivation system, the survival of soul beasts might still become increasingly difficult.
In fact, one day, soul masters might view hunting soul beasts and seizing their bloodline power to form soul rings as a mark of personal accomplishment.
As for peacefully negotiating for a share of essence blood?
Heh. Once true power is in hand, who would bother asking nicely? They'd probably just show up and take it by force.
That's why Di Tian had never been deeply grateful to Su Yu. He merely refrained from resenting Su Yu's identity as a human, because the man's efforts had genuinely alleviated some of the soul beasts' suffering.
"What did you say?"
Di Tian could no longer remain calm. His soul power surged violently as he stared at Su Yu.
The Abyss?
Another plane entirely?
As Su Yu detailed the situation surrounding the Abyss, Di Tian's heart gradually grew heavier.
No matter how fiercely humans and soul beasts fought on the Douluo Continent, this plane was still their shared home. Di Tian would never allow another dimension to devour it.
Especially since if Douluo were swallowed, soul beasts would lose their only habitat and be doomed to extinction—likely slaughtered entirely during the Abyss's invasion.
Even with the Silver Dragon King behind them, Di Tian—fully aware of how powerful she had been at her peak—couldn't be certain she could stop a divine-tier Abyssal Lord in her current state.
Her injuries were far more serious than anyone imagined.
According to the Silver Dragon King, they were virtually incurable. Her main focus now wasn't healing, but steadily shedding her own strength. When her injuries finally exploded beyond control, she would undergo a form of rebirth—transcending death to regain control of her power step by step.
"You're right. The Abyss is on the verge of invading, and one of the main reasons I came here is to invite the major soul beasts of the Star Dou Forest to join us at the Extreme North when the time comes, to resist the invasion together."
Di Tian fell into deep thought, carefully probing Su Yu for more specific details.
"I may not know the exact nature of the Abyss, but isn't a plane that devours surrounding dimensions supposed to be under the Divine Realm's supervision? Don't tell me they've neglected their duties. Even if the Abyss has gathered the full power of its own plane, it's barely at the level of a first-tier god. There's no way it would dare act under the Divine Realm's nose."
"You're right about that. But… what if the Divine Realm deliberately allowed the Abyss in?"
"…Hm?"
Di Tian was momentarily stunned, clearly not expecting that answer from Su Yu.
"Di Tian, aren't you even a little curious? If the Douluo Plane managed to devour the Abyss instead—what kind of potential would that unlock?"
"You… you're saying let the Douluo Plane devour the Abyss?!"
Impossible!
But after the initial shock, Di Tian began analyzing the idea and realized that, with enough preparation, it could be possible to reverse the devouring process and absorb the Abyss instead.
The key, however, would be controlling the core of the Abyss—the fundamental power that enables devouring.
"That part… you don't need to worry about."
Di Tian narrowed his eyes, carefully studying Su Yu, as if seeing the human soul master in a new light.
"If I had to guess," Di Tian said evenly, "the one who wants to devour the Abyss—is you."
Su Yu didn't deny it. If he wasn't the one, he wouldn't have brought up the idea of reversing the devouring process.
"With my talent, I will inevitably become a god. I intend to forge my own divine seat. To ensure that my godhood isn't too weak, I need the energy of the Abyss. That said, even for my divine ascension, I won't need more than ten percent of its total energy. The remaining power would still be enormous for the Douluo Plane."
"I believe that once the Douluo Plane evolves, it will at least be able to support the existence of god-level beings!"
"Heh. And what of it? So what if the plane can support gods? We soul beasts still can't become gods!" Di Tian sneered.
Soul beasts couldn't become gods—not because they couldn't enter the Divine Realm, but because they had no path to ascend.
No matter how much the Douluo Plane evolved, soul beasts would always be blocked beneath the god level.
If the plane continued to progress, the ceiling for human soul masters would skyrocket, while soul beasts would remain stuck below, powerless. Once their threat was gone, their future would collapse even faster than Di Tian had feared.
"This does nothing to benefit the soul beasts."
"No, that's not entirely true," Su Yu said, shaking his head. "Isn't the Abyss' energy beneficial to the Silver Dragon King's recovery? And besides, while soul beasts as a whole may be limited… the Silver Dragon King shouldn't be."
What!?
"How do you know about the Lady?" Di Tian was once again shocked.
"All things are guided by fate," Su Yu replied mysteriously, invoking the power of destiny to subtly surround himself.
As Di Tian sensed that profound aura enveloping Su Yu—the same mysterious force once displayed by the divine beast who had wielded the power of destiny—he realized something.
Su Yu had mastered the power of fate!
Monstrous.
Terrifying.
And once he understood that, Di Tian could no longer assume Su Yu's statement was a mere joke.
In the grand scheme of devouring the Abyss, the soul beasts' benefit would be concentrated in the Silver Dragon King's recovery, while human soul masters would see their collective potential skyrocket.
At first glance, it seemed like the humans were clearly gaining the upper hand.
"But once the Lady recovers, she alone will be more than enough to counter any god-level human soul master," Di Tian muttered to himself, thoughts racing through his mind as he weighed the risks and rewards.
(End of Chapter)