Chapter 41: Xiao Bai – I Do Not Agree to War Against Humans!

Even the neutral faction of the sea soul beasts distanced themselves physically from the Sea Princess and the mermaid clan.

They had joined the neutral faction simply to avoid involvement in oceanic conflicts, but that did not mean they would remain neutral in a war between species.

To hesitate in a species war was unacceptable.

Even many members of the mermaid clan were now looking at the Sea Princess with a mix of doubt and reproach. This was their clan leader, the ruler of the merfolk, and the most spiritually powerful being among the sea soul beasts.

Their reproach stemmed from the fact that the great Beast God had bestowed upon them a golden opportunity—so why wasn't their queen leading them to resolutely follow him?

After all, the merfolk had suffered more at the hands of humans than any other sea soul beast species. Mermaid tears were worth a fortune in human society, sought after by nobles as the pinnacle of luxury. Behind this extravagant demand was the endless suffering and bloodshed of their mermaid kin!

The doubt came from the fact that, ten thousand years ago, their queen had launched a sea soul beast tide against humanity without hesitation, an all-out war that almost ended in mutual destruction.

Back then, the merfolk had still belonged to the Sea God's faction, and the Sea God himself had even manifested in the human world. That meant the Divine Realm was still in place at the time. Yet, despite being under the authority of a human deity, the Sea Princess had still initiated a beast tide against humans.

So why was she hesitating now?

At this moment, perhaps only the Sea Princess's eldest daughter, the Mermaid Princess, understood the reason behind her mother's silence and hesitation.

The Mermaid Princess gazed anxiously at her mother, her crystalline eyes shimmering. Mother, you must decide quickly. Otherwise, if you become the enemy of the entire ocean, we will be doomed.

The Sea Princess kept her gaze withdrawn, unwilling to meet the eyes of any soul beast, not even those of her own kin. Her heart was in turmoil.

It wasn't that she had any bias toward humanity. After all, in the past, even while serving under the Sea God, even with a human deity ruling over her, she had still launched a beast tide to take revenge on humans.

But now, she had her own concerns.

If Di Tian led the soul beast race to seize living space from humans, what then?

Would they simply stop after securing enough territory? Impossible!

Di Tian, as a former divine beast of the Divine Realm and the Dragon God's personal guard captain, harbored a grudge against the current Divine Realm that could never be reconciled. Now that the Divine Realm was cut off, he had finally been given a once-in-a-millennium opportunity—there was no way he would let it slip away!

This era was the only chance for the soul beast race to rise again!

True, the human gods were arrogant and likely wouldn't bother with a race whose path to godhood had been severed. But that didn't mean those exalted gods would tolerate their dignity being challenged.

If the Divine Realm were to return one day and discover that a group of soul beasts had provoked their authority, the only outcome would be the utter annihilation of the soul beast race.

Still, even this was not enough to make her waver. Her people had already been pushed to the brink of extinction. If the only choices were slow destruction or one last desperate fight, then she would rather take a stand.

But… she had one reason to hesitate, one reason to struggle, one reason to hold back.

Her daughter—Liya, her youngest and most beloved daughter.

Ten thousand years ago, Liya had become a spirit soul for Tang San's son-in-law, the new God of Emotions, Huo Yuhao, and had thus ascended to the Divine Realm.

When the Sea God's miracles could still manifest normally, the Sea Princess could communicate with the Divine Realm through Sea God Island and catch glimpses of her youngest daughter.

But now, if she followed Di Tian in challenging the gods' authority and failed, she could not even imagine what might happen to Liya in the Divine Realm, what kind of fate would await her.

She herself could die—it didn't matter. If it was for her species, she was willing. But she could not bear for her youngest daughter to suffer again.

Liya had barely survived after surpassing the hundred-thousand-year threshold, only to be captured by humans and nearly killed.

She had finally transformed into a spirit soul, preserving her life, and had even ascended to the Divine Realm, gaining eternal existence—a seeming light at the end of the tunnel.

But then Liya had told her that the gods of the Divine Realm did not welcome ascended soul beasts. Even those who had become spirit souls were no exception.

Even though Liya had eventually shed her spirit soul form, she still faced constant limitations in the Divine Realm and could only reside within Huo Yuhao.

The Sea Princess could already imagine it—if she turned against the human gods, Liya, who was already unwelcome in the Divine Realm, might be torn apart by those human gods in an instant.

But she was not just a mother.

She was also the ruler of the merfolk, responsible for her people.

The ocean still held her eldest daughter, her many kin, and her suffering race.

Could she truly make a choice?

It was a decision between two beloved halves—no heart could be split in two while still alive.

This was what had bound her hands and feet all this time.

It was also the reason behind her actions throughout the prolonged oceanic war.

The main reason she had protected the Demon Spirit Great White Shark, Xiao Bai, and its last surviving descendant was to safeguard her daughter Liya in the Divine Realm—who now resided within Tang San's son-in-law.

But an oceanic war was just an internal conflict between sea soul beasts. With her rapidly growing strength, she had barely been able to suppress it.

Now, however, this was a full-scale war between species—one of life and death.

She could not stop it.

If she misspoke, not only she but even her entire race would be branded as traitors and suffer a fate worse than death.

Just as the Sea Princess was consumed by her internal struggle, Xiao Bai suddenly spoke up.

"No!"

"I do not agree with the soul beast race waging war against humanity!"

"I absolutely oppose it!"

The thousands of beastly eyes that had been focused on the Sea Princess instantly shifted to the source of the voice—Xiao Bai, the Demon Spirit Great White Shark.

Some gazes were scrutinizing, others were filled with anger, and some were outright bloodthirsty…

But Xiao Bai paid them no mind. Who was she? She had been the steed of a god, ridden by one—her status was far nobler than that of these mere mortal beasts. She would not deign to care about their stares, for she looked down on them from the very depths of her heart.

She spoke up now only because, in the future, when the Sea God returned, he would still need the faith and power of the sea soul beasts. She did not want to see them foolishly march toward their deaths alongside Di Tian.

This world was inherently biased in favor of humans. The first Sea God, Poseidon, was human. The next Sea God, Tang San, had inherited the position, defeated the Angel God and the Rakshasa God, and ascended to the Divine Realm with seven gods, his talent unmatched through the ages. As the Sea God's steed, Xiao Bai had taken pride in this.

Now, humanity was at its peak. Even if the strongest of the soul beasts, Di Tian, resisted, he would likely be crushed.

As one of the Sea God's earthly representatives, Xiao Bai felt it was both her right and duty to command the sea soul beasts to turn back before it was too late.

She began to speak in a lofty, declarative tone.

"I understand that you are all furious because our kin and friends have been slaughtered by humans…"

(Chapter End)