Chapter 61: Gu Qingqiu is Autumn Too!

The Core Circle of the Star Dou Great Forest.

In the minds of ordinary soul masters, this place was bound to be a perilous and vicious forbidden zone teeming with menace. Yet, the reality was quite the opposite.

The first sight to greet the eyes was a tranquil lake. The lake was not particularly expansive, allowing one to gaze across to the distant shore at a single glance. In scale and ambiance, it felt remarkably similar to the Sea God's Lake at Shrek Academy.

The surface of the lake was as smooth as a mirror, its pale green waters resembling a piece of exquisite natural jade inlaid within the earth, shimmering with a verdant glow brimming with the breath of life. Towering ancient trees stood sentinel around the perimeter of the lake, soaring straight into the clouds, wreathed in wisps of light mist, the humid air laden with the unique, refreshing fragrance of flora.

A solitary figure stood quietly at the very center of this forbidden domain.

This was a man, towering at well over three meters in height, with a cascade of long black hair flowing loose down his back. His handsome, resolute facial features possessed an indescribable air of dominance, particularly his pair of golden pupils, which were both noble and tyrannical. Merely meeting his gaze inadvertently for a brief moment was enough to involuntarily evoke an overwhelming urge to proffer allegiance.

Compared to the so-called golden-eyed white lions or even the Golden Lion King, this was the true majesty that a king's pupils ought to possess.

The middle-aged man was none of other than Di Tian, the leader of the Ten Great Fierce Beasts, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King whose cultivation surpassed eighty-000 years.

The Three-Eyed Jade Kirin crouched beside Di Tian, lazily extending a paw to groom its golden fur, remaining completely relaxed.

Although it had no idea why Di Tian had summoned it to this place, out of trust for Di Tian, it had not given the matter excessive thought.

After all, ever since the Three-Eyed Jade Kirin had hatched, it was Di Tian who had looked after it, showering it with meticulous care over the past ten thousand years.

At that moment, a faint silver radiance surged from all directions, and an authoritative voice rang out simultaneously.

"Di Tian, I am already aware of everything."

"Lord Sovereign." Upon hearing this voice, Di Tian actually dropped to one knee in a respectful bow.

Meanwhile, the Three-Eyed Jade Kirin jolted awake instantly, springing to its feet to carefully perceive that mysterious yet familiar aura.

This stemmed from a somewhat distant memory; back before it had even cracked open its shell, it had been enveloped by this very aura, harboring an instinctive sense of closeness.

The owner of that majestic voice spoke faintly, "Three-Eyed Jade Kirin, your perception is not mistaken. It was I who created you back then using a sliver of bloodline power from my very own half-body. The bloodline within you does not originate from the Golden Dragon, but rather belongs to a true deity, the Golden Dragon King, which is why you are able to bear the fortune of the Star Dou Great Forest."

"Then what is the relationship between you and me..." The Three-Eyed Jade Kirin ventured tentatively, its tone vaguely carrying a trace of lingering anticipation. Within the Star Dou Great Forest, even the humblest soul beasts had parents who gave birth to them. Although it reigned as the Emperor Beast of Auspice, it had inevitably experienced feelings of envy and jealousy because of this.

It was simply that its stubborn nature meant it had never been willing to show it.

That voice seemed to grow much gentler.

"You may simply regard me as a close elder, for the bloodline flowing within you and me originates from the very same root. I shall bestow upon you a name derived from my own surname; from this day forward, you shall be called Gu Qingqiu."

"Gu Qingqiu..." The Three-Eyed Jade Kirin murmured involuntarily, those golden eyes growing increasingly luminous as an inexpressible joy welled up within its heart. Its four golden claws scratched playfully at the damp, soft soil beneath, before releasing simultaneously, evidently showing extreme satisfaction with this name.

More importantly, however, this held a profound symbolic significance for it.

Di Tian could not help asking in a deep voice, "Lord Sovereign, what about that human?"

"Do you still recall those two deities who perished ten thousand years ago?"

"The Angel God and the Rakshasa God?!" Di Tian's pupils constricted abruptly, as that fierce and bloody divine war of ten thousand years ago had left an indelible impression upon him.

That majestic voice continued, "The Angel God belonged to the camp of light-attribute deities, whereas the Rakshasa God belonged to the camp of darkness-attribute deities. Yet, these two opposing forces shared a single commonality: the masters of their respective primordial deity positions both originated from the Douro Plane, ultimately condensing faith to successfully forge their own divine positions. When those divine positions shattered back then, certain primordial essences naturally returned once more. And that human is the very choice made by the consciousness of the Douro Plane, the sole Son of Fortune for this era."

"If the Three-Eyed Jade Kirin bears the fortune of the Star Dou Great Forest, then that human is perhaps the ultimate hope of the entire Douro Plane."

"Could it be that the consciousness of the Douro Plane is gradually fading, and has been forced to take countermeasures in desperation? Hoping that human will attain the position of a deity, thereby contending for that sliver of an opportunity to elevate the plane?" Di Tian wore a look of profound shock. "Yet, did you not state, Lord Sovereign, that the Douro Plane is still far from reaching a state of decline?"

"The weakening of the Douro Plane's consciousness is not because the plane is in decline." That voice fell silent for a long time before providing this response.

The Three-Eyed Jade Kirin—or perhaps she should now be called Gu Qingqiu.

Listening to the conversation between Di Tian and that mysterious voice, her eyes remained utterly blank.

Gu Qingqiu did not understand the underlying implications of the Douro Plane's consciousness being weakened or the elevation of the plane; she merely felt that that human seemed to be just as special as she was.

As expected, they were truly of the same kind.

...

Shrek Academy, Sea God's Pavilion.

Specks of golden light converged, and Elder Mu's form reappeared upon the reclining chair in the first-floor lobby of the Sea God's Pavilion.

A slovenly figure rose from the protruding rock in the center of the open ground before the Sea God's Pavilion, arriving beside Elder Mu in the very next instant.

Although Elder Xuan had spent these past years in decadence, Zhang Lexuan's astonishing kneel had finally provided him with a graceful way out. Coupled with the persuasion of the various elder council members of the Sea God's Pavilion, he had logically and naturally chosen to remain behind.

"Where on earth have you been these past few days, Elder Mu?"

"I went to observe some rather interesting things." Elder Mu smiled faintly, his weary and aged eyes brimming with a joyful and gratified smile.

Elder Xuan was none the wiser, but he could perceive that Elder Mu's mood was exceptionally fine, and so he chuckled along with him.

"It must be something favorable, then."

Elder Mu smiled without a word, slowly closing his eyes.

Ye Xixuan was regarded by him as the hope of Shrek Academy. Although this trip merely involved escorting Tang Ya to the outer zone of the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt soul beasts, he had personally followed behind the pair to ensure nothing went wrong.

It was only after Ye Xixuan and Tang Ya safely stepped out of the Star Dou Great Forest that he returned to the Sea God's Pavilion.

"A fragmented divine consciousness from a foreign plane, the unprecedented choice of a million-year soul beast, and the encounter with the Emperor Beast of Auspice, the Three-Eyed Jade Kirin..."

All these signs were testifying to the fact that Ye Xixuan had been bestowed with peerless favor, born inheriting the tides of fortune, and was destined to stand at the absolute summit of this era in the future.

"With Xixuan here, Shrek can be guaranteed a millennium of peace and stability." Elder Mu let out a long sigh inwardly, yet a trace of guilt inevitably welled up within him.

"Yet, when all is said and done, I am still utilizing the life of a child like Lexuan to bind the future of the Academy."

Given Zhang Lexuan's insistence during that conversation back then, his harsh words afterward might not have entirely lacked a deliberate calculation to firmly bind Ye Xixuan and Shrek Academy together through Zhang Lexuan.

Although this had not been his original intention, the reality had indeed turned out this way, and he considered himself to be nothing more than a hypocrite draped in righteousness.

After all, Xuanzi and Yan Shaozhe possessed glaring flaws in their personalities, rendering them inadequate to succeed his position for long, while Beibei's innate talent ultimately fell somewhat short. Consequently, only Ye Xixuan remained as the optimal choice to inherit the position of the Pavilion Master of the Sea God's Pavilion.

Fortunately, as he gradually witnessed the heartfelt smiles that Zhang Lexuan and Ye Xixuan revealed when interacting in recent years, Elder Mu's heart finally found a measure of solace.

What he hoped to see most of all right now was for Ye Xixuan to mature swiftly, and subsequently have a child with Zhang Lexuan, leaving behind an enduring bond within the Academy.

Only then could he thoroughly fulfill his wish and depart in peace.

As for the matter concerning Tang Ya, it was harmless for young people to be somewhat romantic and passionate.

In his own youth, hadn't he also satiated so many ferocious, tigress-like female soul masters?