"If you can lead our tribe out of the shackles of this plane and allow us to roam freely in the universe, we will definitely be able to find the cosmic route back home."
After his initial excitement, Tianhuo fell into deep thought. There was no such thing as a free meal, let alone one that delivered itself to his doorstep.
"So… what does the Beast God require from our Fire Li Tribe in return?"
"For now, the Fire Li Tribe will temporarily join the soul beast race. Once you find your homeland, the Falan Plane, you may decide your own fate."
"Additionally, there is one other thing. I hope I will never have to use it, but if that time ever comes, I will let you know."
Di Tian stated his conditions—one clear, one vague—without elaborating further.
On the Falan Plane, the Fairy Continent was ruled by the Yao (Demon) and Jing (Spirit) races, while humans were merely their vassals. There was no place more suitable than this for the soul beast race to establish a new future.
"Agreed!"
Tianhuo accepted without any hesitation, even though one of the conditions was vague. He made the decision on behalf of his entire tribe, not just because the situation forced him to, but because they desperately wanted to return home.
Even after spending countless years in the War God Hall, they still felt out of place in this plane.
Now that they finally saw a glimmer of hope for returning home, they were willing to take this path, no matter how difficult or dangerous it might be.
As for joining the soul beast race and going to war against human soul masters?
That was not even a problem.
The Fire Li Tribe had always been a warrior race. Hadn't they just fought against Di Tian earlier to aid the War God Hall?
Now, they were just mercenaries switching allegiances. Nothing unusual about that.
Considering the ongoing hostility between the soul beast race and human soul masters, Tianhuo gritted his teeth and said,
"I hope this item can be of use to you."
As he spoke, he flicked his wrist, and a small flame floated out from his palm.
When the flame emerged, the surrounding sea of lava suddenly dimmed, as if bowing in submission to this fire.
Its color was difficult to describe—almost transparent, yet constantly shifting through a spectrum of colors.
At its core, the flame burned with a white incandescence, but within it, seven colors continuously shimmered and changed.
The flame landed in Di Tian's palm. The moment it made contact, it burned slightly before imprinting itself onto his right hand, forming a lotus-shaped mark.
The base of the lotus was white, with seven colored petals—red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple.
"This is the Fire Li Tribe's innate true flame—the Seven-Colored Lotus Flame. Only those of the purest royal bloodline possess it."
"Originally, I was supposed to inherit the position of tribe leader, but we were forced to this plane."
"Through experimentation, we found that the Seven-Colored Lotus Flame can be fueled by this plane's soul power. It has the ability to burn everything, though its energy consumption is immense."
"This should be of considerable help to you."
Di Tian clenched his fist, feeling the strange energy surging within his palm.
"Thank you."
"I will consider this flame a loan. When the time comes for you to return home, I will return it."
As a plane capable of nurturing gods, any treasure born within it would undoubtedly possess extraordinary power.
When fueled by the Seven-Colored Lotus Flame, Di Tian's attacks could pose a deadly threat to deities.
Originally, he had planned to strengthen their bond before asking Tianhuo to lend him the flame, but since the latter was offering it voluntarily, that was even better.
At the same time, the surrounding darkness dissipated, releasing the Fire Li clansman who had been swallowed by it earlier.
With everything settled, Di Tian left the seventeenth level and proceeded deeper—to the eighteenth level, the very depths of the War God Hall where the Eternal Heaven was stored.
His goal was clear: obtain the Eternal Heaven first, then return to take the Fire Li Tribe with him.
The eighteenth underground level of the War God Hall was guarded by Sky Overlord Douluo, Guan Yue, who was standing in for Chen Xinjie.
Guan Yue sat cross-legged, a white spear resting across his lap, glowing with a milky-white radiance.
At first glance, the spear's aura seemed harmless, but in reality, Guan Yue had refined it to an extreme level of control. If he released its power, he could deliver a strike that posed a lethal threat even to a near-Demigod Limit Douluo.
If he didn't possess such strength, he wouldn't have been ranked alongside Yun Ming as the Twin Sky Divine Spears in the past.
In an instant, the meditating Guan Yue suddenly opened his sharp eyes, his pupils flashing with a keen light.
A sense of unease crept up his brow.
"What was that fleeting feeling of dread?"
He muttered in confusion, completely unaware that Di Tian had just passed by him—so close that they had almost brushed shoulders.
Soon, Di Tian arrived at the cave chamber where the Eternal Heaven was stored.
The cavern was cold but not damp.
At this moment, his mastery of space was fully on display.
With his unparalleled spatial abilities, Di Tian effortlessly retrieved the last remaining twelve-rank Fixed Soul Ammunition—Eternal Heaven.
He had arrived empty-handed but departed fully loaded.
As he left the War God Hall, he happened to cross paths with Chen Xinjie, who was also leaving with something valuable.
Chen Xinjie was cradling the Soul-Nurturing Wood that housed Long Yeyue's soul, his expression filled with both guilt and determination as he made his way back toward the War God Hall.
He was determined to make amends to Long Yeyue, to atone for their lost child.
He intended to personally deliver the Eternal Heaven to Long Yeyue and then leave both the War God Hall and the Poseidon Legion, devoting all his strength to rebuilding Shrek Academy.
However, the future he envisioned was no longer possible.
Di Tian paid no attention to them and directly stepped through space, vanishing.
The only person at the War God Hall who noticed his departure was Yali.
She had deliberately remained outside the War God Hall to "avoid suspicion."
Standing atop a mountain peak, she gazed in the direction where Di Tian had disappeared, her eyes filled with an indescribably complex emotion.
…
Time passed silently through the night, heavy with the weight of countless emotions.
At dawn, as mist veiled the sky, a dragon's roar shook the heavens from within Star Dou Fortress.
"ROOOAAARRR—"
Under normal circumstances, the Star Dou Fortress was both physically and acoustically sealed.
Even if a ninth-rank Fixed Soul Ammunition exploded inside the Star Dou Forest, no sound should have escaped beyond the fortress.
Yet this dragon's roar pierced through all barriers, echoing in every direction as if unimpeded.
A Titled Douluo guarding the fortress was immediately jolted out of his cultivation by the reverberating roar.
His blood churned violently within him.
Under ordinary circumstances, his short temper would have caused him to erupt into a fit of rage, but now, he was utterly silent.
Because this was just a sound—and yet, as a Titled Douluo and a three-word Battle Armor Master, he felt as though his life was in danger!
A look of sheer terror overtook his face.
His first thought: Something must have happened in the Star Dou Forest!
Without hesitation, he rushed toward the fortress' central control room.
When he finally arrived and looked at the monitoring screen, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in disbelief.
(Chapter End)