Chapter 41: The New Era’s Youth

The soul… ends…

"Haha! Even if my divine soul is completely destroyed, I will never let you all have it easy."

Gu You suddenly felt an unbearable pain in his head. The black light was formed from divine power, and even his power of destruction could not break through it without the support of divine energy.

Suppress!

Yun Ming gripped his Sky-Piercing Spear, his aura stabilizing. With a light tap on the ground, a wave of white energy expanded outward, dispersing the black light and rendering the so-called evil curse ineffective.

"Impossible! You…" Yue Zi seemed to realize something. "How could you… possibly do this?"

Her voice faded into nothingness, finally falling into an eternal slumber within Qian Yu's body.

"What just happened? My mind went completely dark for a moment—I was scared to death!"

An annoyed voice echoed in Gu You's mind.

"Why don't you come out and see for yourself? I might as well introduce you to someone and explain a few things."

"Oh!"

A bright red soul ring appeared beside Gu You, and a small Ice Emperor Scorpion materialized, scanning its surroundings before its gaze landed on Yun Ming. In an instant, it scurried behind Gu You in fear.

What had it just seen? Nine red soul rings! Even if it offered its life, it wouldn't be enough to make up for that difference in power.

"What are you afraid of? This is Uncle Yun. Besides, his soul rings are already maxed out—he wouldn't be interested in you," Gu You scoffed, glancing at the Ice Emperor Scorpion with disdain.

"I… I'm not afraid, but the aura of those nine soul rings makes me extremely uneasy." The Ice Emperor Scorpion tried to change the subject.

"Ice Emperor Scorpion? Ultimate Ice. You chose a good soul spirit," Yun Ming said as he withdrew his aura, observing the small scorpion.

"This breakthrough—have you stabilized the energy within your body?" Yun Ming asked.

"Completely! I've also learned a lot about the secrets hidden within me," Gu You patted his chest confidently.

Speaking of which, he lifted Qian Yu's lifeless body onto his back. "Let's find a place to bury her. We can't just leave her corpse out in the wild."

Yun Ming nodded. The two of them disappeared from sight.

…

"Lord Qingtian." Qiong Shiyu saluted.

The General gazed at Gu You and Yun Ming standing side by side, and suddenly, everything became clear. However, he still didn't understand—why hadn't Lord Qingtian intervened sooner? If he had, some of his comrades might still be alive.

What Qiong Shiyu didn't know was that Yun Ming had indeed wanted to step in. But every time he attempted to unleash his soul power, a certain aura would suppress him.

"This incident is of great significance. The Federation takes it very seriously. The Extreme North has remained unexplored for years, partly due to concerns about global warming, but this deliberate preservation has ironically turned it into a haven for criminals. Even high-ranking federal officials have been found among their ranks. The Northern Army Corps, as a division of the Federation's North Sea Corps, holds great strategic importance. This situation is not entirely your fault—it even caught me off guard." Yun Ming rubbed his temple.

"You are too modest, Lord Yun Ming. A mistake is a mistake. Failing to protect the people means we have failed," Qiong Shiyu said bitterly.

Gu You stood there, dumbfounded. Why did he feel like he couldn't fully understand their conversation? It seemed like every sentence carried deeper implications.

Qiong Shiyu then turned to Gu You. "I presume this is your disciple—"

"He's my godson," Yun Ming said indifferently.

Qiong Shiyu froze.

Huh?

"I understand now. Young man, on behalf of the army, I sincerely thank you for your heroic actions. If not for your efforts in buying time, our deployed regiment might have been completely wiped out. It would be an honor if you would take a photo with us. Would you be willing?"

Gu You glanced at Yun Ming, whose expression indicated that he definitely should.

"Let's go! You're about to become famous…"

"The hell?! Do you have any respect for your elders?" Gu You exclaimed, feeling utterly speechless as he found himself casually putting his arm around Qiong Shiyu—a centenarian general—in front of the entire crowd, with no sense of propriety whatsoever.

…

Desolation. Nothing but desolation.

An eighth-level soul-guided bomb had left behind a crater a kilometer in diameter. Even when viewed from satellite imagery, it was a glaring scar on the landscape. The surrounding five-kilometer radius was stripped of all traces of snow. The air remained frigid, carrying a faint, acrid scent.

This was true desolation—the desolation of a land devoid of life.

In the distance, a unique willow tree stood resiliently, radiating life energy. Beneath it, a small burial mound lay.

This was Qian Yu's grave. Gu You hadn't planned to take her body elsewhere. Instead, he carefully prepared this site for her eternal rest.

Why? Because Gu You felt that this was where her mother was…

The Federation, meanwhile, issued a nationwide announcement. Across the internet and city streets, missing person notices were posted. The general consensus was that the kidnapped victims had been reduced to ashes in the explosion, leaving no remains to be claimed. Even if someone came forward, what would be the point? There weren't even bodies left to bury.

However, Gu You had overlooked one thing—the Master of the Plane had the power to revive the dead. Even without a soul, as long as there was a lingering trace of life, resurrection was possible. It only required an enormous amount of planar energy.

In the original story, after the Douluo Plane devoured the Abyss Plane, its energy surged. It was during that time that Tang Hao reemerged and, for once, acted as a good person—reviving many who had perished.

A faint golden light descended from the sky, scattering across the area surrounding Qian Yu's grave…

…

Shrek Academy's Golden Tree Inner Court

Long Yueye gazed at the gradually humanoid form of the Golden Tree's energy, frowning. "What happened?"

"Hmm," the energy transformed into an elderly figure. "The Master of the Plane has intervened. I don't know why, but the energy expenditure was massive. I sensed that the soul power levels of the entire Douluo Star dropped by one percent."

One percent?!

Long Yueye was stunned. That was an enormous amount—equivalent to reducing the cultivation speed of all soul masters worldwide by one percent.

That wretched Master of the Plane—never doing anything good, always stirring up trouble. The last so-called "Child of Destiny" they chose ended up becoming an evil soul master, forcing the Federation's Ultimate Douluos to join forces in eliminating him.

"Sigh, a new era is approaching. One day, my energy will be depleted as well. I can only hope the true chosen one appears soon…"

The old man dissolved back into pure energy.

The Chosen One.

Long Yueye murmured the words a few times under her breath.

It was time to step outside. Time to convene a small Inner Court meeting and discuss the future plans of the Academy. Due to old injuries, she had been stationed in this area of immense life energy for long-term recovery.

…

BREAKING NEWS from Donghai City's official channels:

"The Model Youth of the New Era!"

It wasn't just Donghai—almost every city had this headline.

A photo was attached. In it, a young man held a banner that read:

"Most Beautiful Youth of the New Era"

Beside him stood General Qiong Shiyu, patting Gu You's shoulder.

"…What the hell is this?" Leng Yaozhu stared at the photo of Gu You and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

His expression was completely exasperated.

No one—not even Gu You himself—had expected to become such an awkwardly famous figure.

It was, without a doubt, the greatest humiliation of his life!!

(End of Chapter)