Chapter 142: Clash of Kings, Faith of Beasts
The battle between the Beast God Emperor Tian and the Snow Emperor was intense—but brief. Both had reasons to hold back. Emperor Tian was wary of another bear king joining the fray, while Snow Emperor was cautious about the humans nearby. Thus, the clash between the two great beings ended after a single exchange.
Snow Emperor, unleashing the full force of her strength, swung her Emperor Sword. A blinding arc of sword light tore through the surrounding darkness. The sheer might of the strike surged toward Emperor Tian like a blade cutting through the void.
Sensing the terrifying sharpness within the strike, even Emperor Tian, the mighty Beast God, dared not underestimate it. Soul beasts that surpassed 700,000 years of cultivation and reached the realm of quasi-gods all possessed extraordinarily powerful bloodlines. Whether it was Snow Emperor or the Evil Emperor, the fact that they had reached such heights in a harsh environment—without even the nurturing presence of the Lake of Life—meant their innate talent and potential were on par with his own.
Unlike them, he had been blessed with the protection of the auspicious beast, the Lake of Life, and the guidance of their mysterious master. If he had grown under the same harsh conditions as Snow Emperor or the Evil Emperor, it was uncertain whether he would have reached their level, let alone surpassed it.
Bloodline and talent were one thing. The trials and ordeals they had endured were far more arduous than his own, having always walked a path lit by external support.
With such thoughts in mind, Di Tian did not dare show even a sliver of carelessness. As the sword light neared, he instantly activated his trump card—the Dragon King Claw!
Channeling his full soul power, Emperor Tian unleashed the Dragon King Claw bestowed upon him by the Dragon God. The mighty claw crushed through the sword light in a devastating explosion of force, shattering it completely.
"You are…" Snow Emperor began, her eyes narrowing.
"Dragon King Claw," Di Tian replied calmly. "You and the Evil Emperor—both of you are extraordinary. If I were born in your world, with your limited resources, I might never have achieved what you have. But in the end, this battle is mine to win."
Snow Emperor slowly sheathed the Emperor Sword in her hand. Of her three most lethal techniques—Emperor Sword, Emperor Palm, and Emperor Hantian—the Emperor Sword carried the greatest destructive power. Since even that had been blocked, there was no point in continuing the battle.
"You're stronger than I expected," she admitted. "Especially with the Dragon King Claw. I have one question, though."
"What is it?" Di Tian asked.
"You possess the Star Dou Great Forest, the largest concentration of soul beasts on the continent. Under your command are fearsome powerhouses—Bear King, Ten Thousand Demon King, Bi Ji. Their strength is no less than top-ranked human Title Douluo. Even Chi Wang and Zi Ji, though a little weaker, are still among the top ten most formidable beasts—roughly equivalent to rank 97 human soul masters."
She paused, then said bluntly, "With such forces under your command, how did you let Shrek bully you? Years ago, during the beast tide against Shrek, you clearly had the advantage. You were one step away from leveling it—but you retreated. Because of that, Shrek still dares to flaunt themselves above even the auspicious beast. Why?"
Emperor Tian fell silent for a long time, his golden eyes reflecting a flicker of resignation.
"…I had my reasons. For now, we must endure."
"Endure? Until when?" Snow Emperor frowned. "Until the day soul beasts face extinction?"
"Of course not." Di Tian's voice was firm. "If humans push too far, I will make them pay dearly. But the time isn't right. We must wait… for the day soul beasts rise again."
"'Rise again'?" Snow Emperor's mind quickly calculated the true power of the soul beasts. Even just the Star Dou Great Forest had Emperor Tian—a quasi-god—and Bear King, who was nearing the peak of rank 98. Bi Ji and Ten Thousand Demon King were extreme Douluo of the auxiliary and control types. Add to that Red King and Purple Princess, both equivalent to rank 97. In terms of raw numbers and elite combat strength, the soul beasts were certainly not inferior to humans.
Moreover, if she and the Evil Emperor were counted among the soul beast faction, then the balance of power clearly favored the soul beasts. So what did Emperor Tian mean by needing a "re-emergence"?
"You don't have to understand it now," Di Tian replied. "In ten thousand years, you will. That day will mark the true path forward for soul beasts. Only then can we survive and thrive."
As he spoke, his eyes glimmered with resolve. Snow Emperor finally understood what he meant. She had heard vague whispers—rumors that all soul beasts now shared one master.
"…Ten thousand years?" she muttered. "You believe soul beasts will get their chance after waiting ten thousand years?"
"I do," Di Tian said without hesitation. "That lord… will not disappoint us. Of that, I am certain."
Faced with his conviction, Snow Emperor said nothing more. The battle between them was officially over. Beast God remained worthy of the title—for now, no one could shake his throne.
As they descended from the sky and returned to the edge of the Lake of Life, Snow Emperor casually raised her hand. A large, hollow snowball appeared in the air. She guided it gently into the Lake of Life to absorb its sacred waters.
The snowball, nearly ten meters wide, gradually filled. Di Tian's mouth twitched, but he said nothing as she kept drawing the lake's life energy—until it was halfway full.
"That's enough," Di Tian finally said. "If you keep going, we won't have enough left."
Snow Emperor didn't argue. She withdrew the snowball, compressed it into a palm-sized, glowing bead of pure white tinged with emerald green, and slipped it away. Still, her dissatisfaction was obvious as she glanced at Di Tian, who met her gaze with stoic resolve.
He couldn't afford to be generous. Everything in the Lake of Life belonged to their master. It would be irresponsible to give away too much, even to someone as strong as Snow Emperor. Had it not been for his recent conflict with the Evil Emperor and concern over those two uniting against him, he wouldn't have offered any water at all.
Since Di Tian was unmoved, Snow Emperor could only yield. She wasn't strong enough to force the issue.
She then stepped toward the lake's center and turned her gaze toward the boy standing nearby.
"Little brother," she called out, her tone softening. "Come wash your feet."
Hearing her voice, Xiao Qiang quickly stepped into the Lake of Life. As the water rippled around him, he reached out to Tian Meng in his spiritual sea. "Brother Tian Meng…"
"I got it. Leave it to me," Tian Meng replied.
Tian Meng immediately activated Xiao Qiang's skin, opening every pore in contact with the sacred water to fully absorb the lake's life essence. This life breath could greatly strengthen Xiao Qiang's vitality.
Watching the boy wade deeper into the lake, removing the Snow Queen's boots to immerse himself completely, Di Tian remained silent. Snow Emperor had already stopped draining the lake's water. Letting a human soak in it for a while posed no threat. After all, how much could a mere human absorb compared to a 100,000-year-old soul beast?
Both humans and soul beasts had a natural limit to how much life energy they could absorb. Once that limit was reached, they needed time to digest it before continuing.
Thus, Di Tian paid it no mind.
Not until two and a half hours had passed.