Chapter 293: Lifting the Restrictions on Soul Beasts Attaining Godhood

Chapter 293: Chapter 293: Lifting the Restrictions on Soul Beasts Attaining Godhood

Inside the Grand Hall of the Divine Realm Committee, as the God of Destruction’s voice faded, the assembled Gods erupted into a clamor of discussion.

"Expanding the Divine Realm? Devouring other planes? This is no trivial matter..."

"The Divine Realm truly is saturated; if we don’t expand soon, newly ascended Gods won’t even have a vacant seat to call their own."

"But what if we encounter a powerful plane—one we can’t defeat? What then?"

Voices rose and fell in waves—some expressing approval, others apprehension; some filled with anticipation, others with fear.

Finally, all eyes settled upon Jiang Bai.

Jiang Bai remained silent for a moment.

He rose to his feet, his gaze sweeping across the multitude of Gods.

"I am in favor of the God of Destruction’s proposal."

His voice was not loud, yet it reached the ears of every single God with crystal clarity.

The God of Destruction’s eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth curled upward ever so slightly.

He had waited a long, long time for this day.

Jiang Bai continued, "The Divine Realm does indeed require expansion. The growth of the Plane’s Origin benefits every single God. Furthermore, the issue of the saturation of divine positions must be resolved through expansion."

The Gods nodded in unison. This was an undeniable fact—one that no one could dispute.

"However..."

The hearts of the Gods skipped a beat.

"Expansion must not be a blind act of aggression. We cannot simply devour other planes indiscriminately for the sake of expansion alone. Doing so would only create too many enemies and, ultimately, cause us to suffer the consequences of our own actions."

His gaze settled upon the God of Destruction—calm, yet imbued with an indisputable authority: "We must expand selectively, systematically, and according to a plan. First, we explore; then, we evaluate; and finally, we decide whether or not to devour."

The God of Destruction parted his lips, intending to speak, but ultimately held his tongue.

Jiang Bai was right; his own previous plan had indeed been somewhat overly aggressive.

Blind expansion would only incite resistance; were the Divine Realm to find itself besieged by enemies on all sides, the costs would far outweigh the gains.

"Furthermore, I have one condition," Jiang Bai’s voice rang out once more.

The Gods pricked up their ears.

"The Divine Realm’s restrictions on Soul Beasts attaining godhood must be lifted."

At these words, the Grand Hall erupted into an uproar. "If Soul Beasts were to ascend to godhood, wouldn’t they end up competing with us for resources?"

"So what if the restriction is lifted? They’d still have to spend hundreds of thousands of years cultivating—and endure the Heavenly Tribulation—just to become a god!"

"There are so many Soul Beasts; if they all managed to ascend, where in the Divine Realm would we possibly find the room to accommodate them all?"

"What on earth are you spouting! Soul Beasts are adorable—why shouldn’t they be allowed to become gods?"

"Oh, you shameless furry-lover! Don’t think I don’t know exactly how many beast-girls you’ve been secretly keeping as pets!"

Voices rose and fell in a clamor of discussion—some heated and contentious, others voicing agreement.

Jiang Bai remained silent, simply gazing calmly upon the assembled gods.

A nine-colored divine radiance emanated from his body, gradually quelling the murmurs until the voices grew fainter and fainter, eventually fading into silence.

That radiance felt like an invisible mountain, pressing down upon the very hearts of every God present.

Finally, silence once again descended upon the great hall.

Jiang Bai spoke, his voice as calm and placid as still water: "Should Soul Beasts ascend to godhood, they will not compete with you for resources. On the contrary, they will serve as fresh blood for the Divine Realm, bolstering its overall strength."

"Furthermore, the issue of Soul Beasts ascending to godhood has been left unresolved for far too long. The curse cast by the Dragon God all those years ago—it is finally time for it to be lifted."

The gods fell silent. Such a momentous matter was beyond their authority to decide; they could only wait to see where the various God Kings stood on the issue.

The God of Destruction was the first to declare his stance: "I agree."

His voice was steady and firm, devoid of even the slightest hesitation. He had long since come to the realization that allowing Soul Beasts to ascend would bring nothing but benefit to the Divine Realm.

Moreover, his own successor—Jiang Li’er—was a Soul Beast who had taken on human form; what possible reason could he have to object?

The Goddess of Life nodded as well, her voice gentle yet resolute: "I agree."

As the Goddess of Life, she presided over the very essence of life itself. Soul Beasts were living beings, just the same; she had never once harbored any prejudice against them.

The God of Kindness and the God of Evil exchanged glances, then nodded in unison: "We agree."

They were on the verge of making their escape from the Divine Realm and had no desire to antagonize the new Dragon God over a matter such as this.

The God of Slaughter nodded as well: "I agree."

As the God of Slaughter, he presided over warfare and judgment. He cared not whether a being was a Soul Beast or a human; his sole concern was the stability and strength of the Divine Realm.

If allowing Soul Beasts to ascend could serve to strengthen the Divine Realm, then he welcomed it wholeheartedly. All five God Kings agreed, and the other gods dared not offer any further objections. They exchanged glances, and in the end, could only bow their heads in submission.

Jiang Bai nodded: "Good. Then it is settled; we shall carry this out immediately following the meeting!"

He turned toward the God Kings and continued: "Returning to the matter of expanding the Divine Realm—I have an idea."

The God of Destruction asked, "What idea?"

Jiang Bai replied: "Last night, through the use of my divine power, I sensed a massive, blood-red world situated within the void, far removed from our Divine Realm."

The God of Destruction furrowed his brow, then suddenly realized: "That must be the Abyss, then?"

He had observed it himself on previous occasions.

That Abyssal World was intensely aggressive; it would extend countless tentacles to latch onto the planar barriers of smaller worlds, then slowly grind open a small breach through which it would ceaselessly dispatch Abyssal creatures to engage in plunder and slaughter.

If it encountered a powerful world, these breaches would be sealed off.

However, if it encountered a weak world, these breaches would grow ever larger—large enough to allow the Abyss’s most powerful entities to pass through—whereupon they would slaughter the world’s inhabitants, devour its World Origin, and ultimately assimilate the smaller world into the Abyss itself, thereby replenishing the Abyss’s own Origin.

Jiang Bai nodded: "Yes, that is the one."

In the past, the Divine Realm had only been able to contain the Abyss, never to completely eradicate the Abyssal Plane.

Although the Divine Realm possessed more God Kings than the Abyssal Plane, so long as the Abyss did not encroach directly upon the Divine Realm, the Divine Realm was forced to launch "expeditions"—engaging in combat on foreign ground.

The Abyssal Monarch possessed the combat prowess of a First-Rank God; yet, when bolstered by the Abyss’s Super Divine Artifacts and the inherent power of its plane, he was capable of effortlessly holding his own against several God Kings simultaneously.

Consequently, the Divine Realm had previously found itself helpless against the Abyss, able only to wage small-scale skirmishes across various planes, both large and small.

Yet, the one thing the Abyss feared least was war; indeed, it was capable of "sustaining itself through conflict"—growing ever stronger with each battle it fought.

However, things were different now, for the Divine Realm possessed Jiang Bai—a Supreme God King.

In this vast universe, a Supreme God King was a singular, peerless existence—one who wielded power capable of utterly crushing all opposition.

Jiang Bai stated, "If we can annihilate the Abyssal World, not only will all life throughout the entire universe be grateful to our Divine Realm, but the Divine Realm will also be able to devour the Abyssal World’s very essence, thereby making our Divine Realm even more powerful!"

Shura and Destruction exchanged glances, deeming the plan feasible.

The Abyss had long been a grave threat to the Divine Realm; if it could be eradicated in a single stroke, the Divine Realm could expand with complete peace of mind.

Kindness and Evil remained indifferent; after all, they were preparing to make their exit soon anyway.

Life simply went along with the majority; she rarely involved herself in such decision-making.

Seeing that none of the five had raised any objections, Jiang Bai made the final call: "In that case, we shall launch our campaign against the Abyss tomorrow!"

...

One day in the Divine Realm is equivalent to one year in the Lower Realm.

While only two days had passed for Jiang Bai in the Divine Realm, two years had already elapsed in the Lower Realm.

Upon the Ascension Platform...

Shui Bing’er’s figure slowly materialized upon the Ascension Platform.

An azure divine radiance swirled around her body, while six blue wings gently fluttered behind her back.

These wings were an external soul bone dropped by the Deep Sea Demon Whale King, formed from its fins.

She looked around, her eyes filled with wonder and novelty.

Is this the Divine Realm?

The air was permeated with a rich, ethereal spiritual energy; in the sea of ​​clouds stretching into the distance, countless islands floated suspended, their surfaces bristling with palaces and shimmering with brilliant divine light.

A figure descended from the heavens, landing directly before her.

The Old Sea God.

He appeared exactly as always—clad in azure divine robes, his countenance both handsome and majestic. Yet, at this moment, his face bore a somewhat ingratiating smile.

"Bing’er, congratulations on completing your Divine Trials and becoming the new Sea God!"

Shui Bing’er curtsied slightly: "Thank you, Senior."

The Old Sea God waved his hand dismissively: "Don’t call me Senior anymore; you are a Sea God now, too. Just call me Brother Sea God."

He lowered his voice: "Ahem... Bing’er, now that you have ascended, it is time for me to set off and roam the universe. I leave the affairs of the Divine Realm in your hands."

Shui Bing’er blinked in surprise: "Senior, are you leaving already?"

The Old Sea God nodded: "Indeed. I have waited a very long time for this day."

He turned around, preparing to take his leave.

"Wait."

A calm voice drifted in from behind.

The Old Sea God’s body stiffened.

He slowly turned around.

Jiang Bai stood not far away; with his hands clasped behind his back, he gazed at the Old Sea God, the corners of his lips curving upward ever so slightly.

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