The pain Da Ming now felt was as intense as the pride he had once held for his ultimate techniques.
After being forced out of his True Body state, Da Ming felt a surge of blood rushing up his throat, threatening to spill out. But he knew he couldn't let it—doing so would cause his condition to plummet irreversibly.
Forcing the blood back down, Da Ming prepared to re-enter his True Body state.
For ordinary soul masters, having their True Body broken would impose a lengthy cooldown period. However, Da Ming was no ordinary soul master—he was a divine official disguised as one. His True Body state was merely an outward manifestation of his bloodline's power. As long as he could re-condense his strength, he could activate it again.
But just as Da Ming began to gather his energy, his body froze in place.
At this moment, Da Ming was kneeling on one knee, while Ye Wen stood before him, one hand casually tucked into his pocket. His right hand was raised, and his index finger glowed with the intensely condensed Overclock·Red, now pointed directly at Da Ming's forehead.
Cold sweat poured down Da Ming's face. This attack wasn't just terrifying in its physical destructive power—it also locked onto his soul. The slightest movement would mean death.
Yet, even as fear gripped him, Da Ming couldn't help but wonder deeply: Was this really the strength a quasi-god should possess?
At this moment, Ye Wen's voice drifted calmly through the air.
"It's over. You've lost."
Da Ming, who had been tense just moments ago, felt a wave of relief wash over him upon hearing these words. From the tone, it seemed the other party didn't intend to kill them.
However, Er Ming, watching from nearby as his older brother was subdued by Ye Wen and now immobilized by the same attack that had gravely injured him earlier, felt his eyes well up with tears.
"Da Ming!"
Er Ming, now recovered and ready to fight, lunged forward to save his brother.
But after their previous battle, Da Ming had realized the vast gap between their quasi-god strengths. He quickly extended his hand to stop Er Ming.
"Don't come any closer, Er Ming!"
Though Er Ming was usually reckless, he instinctively obeyed Da Ming's commands. Gritting his teeth, he glared at Ye Wen from a distance but dared not move.
Ye Wen chuckled softly. "A wise decision."
With the situation settled, the victor stood tall, and the defeated bowed low. Da Ming spoke in a deep voice:
"I can tell you don't intend to take our lives. What are your terms?"
It had to be said—unlike Tang San's superficial pretense of benevolence, Da Ming truly bore responsibility. For those who weren't even blood-related, he was willing to risk everything, even his life.
Unfortunately, he wasn't the protagonist; he could only play a supporting role.
But from the very beginning, Ye Wen had never intended to kill the two brothers. After all, dragging the God Realm into this battlefield was still premature.
Thus, Ye Wen decided to instill the necessary intimidation.
"You two brothers are quite strange!
You're both quasi-gods, just a step away from level 100 like me, yet you lack the willpower that true powerhouses should possess.
It's as if your strength was forcibly elevated."
At Ye Wen's pointed words, Da Ming's pupils contracted sharply.
"Then again, if you're High Priests of a god, that wouldn't be surprising.
But I'm curious—there's something off about your soul rings.
So don't tell me you're also a High Priest of some god? Isn't it odd for a single god to have two High Priests?" Ye Wen added another jab.
At this, Da Ming finally broke into a cold sweat.
He recalled the explanation he had once given Er Ming. If it were just Er Ming alone, it might have been believable, but for both brothers to claim they were High Priests of gods—it was far too suspicious.
As the saying goes, one lie requires more lies to cover it.
Now, Da Ming could only press on and try to patch things up.
"You're right—we are both High Priests of gods.
However, we don't serve the same deity. Each of us has our own god to worship.
Our bond as brothers is simply one of mutual respect and sworn kinship. After all, look at our martial souls—they're completely different. How could we possibly be blood-related?"
Ye Wen pretended to nod in acceptance of this explanation, then used his impeccable acting skills to look expectantly at Da Ming.
"So, does the god you serve currently have a god position available for inheritance?"
At this moment, an awkward silence fell.
To say that Da Ming and Er Ming could technically be considered High Priests wasn't entirely false. With the Sea God Island now gone, they served as the sole executors of Tang San's Sea God will on the Douluo Continent.
But did Da Ming have a god position to pass on to Ye Wen? The answer was obvious.
"I'm sorry… My god currently has no intention of passing down a god position," Da Ming said with difficulty.
Ye Wen once again delivered a flawless performance, transitioning from hopeful anticipation to a darkened, despairing gaze. It was a perfect portrayal of hope crumbling into despair.
"Is that so…
I thought today would be my lucky day—meeting two High Priests, surely one of them could grant me a god position and eternal life. But it turns out, it was all for nothing.
Now that you hold no value to me, since I'm destined to die anyway, why should you get to live peacefully?"
Ye Wen growled menacingly, and the Overclock·Red in his hand flared brilliantly, as if it would snatch Da Ming's life in the next second.
Da Ming's mind went blank, and visions of his life began flashing before his eyes.
The other party hadn't initially intended to kill him—but he had made a grave mistake. In his final moments, Da Ming regretted fabricating the lie of being a High Priest, dashing a Supreme Douluo's hope of eternal life and plunging him into despair.
But just as the rapid montage of memories replayed a fleeting figure calling out his name—
Da Ming instinctively shouted, "Wait!"
To his surprise, Ye Wen actually stopped his fatal strike.
This extreme shift between life and death left Da Ming utterly disoriented.
Ye Wen inwardly sighed in relief. Given Da Ming's intelligence, he should have thought of a way to persuade him earlier. Why had he waited until the last possible moment? Ye Wen truly didn't want to kill a divine official.
Still, the show had to go on. Ye Wen feigned impatience and asked:
"What is it? Any last words?"
Da Ming, snapping back to reality, began rapidly analyzing his conversation with Ye Wen.
"Hurry up and speak! Stop trying to stall for time.
If I'm going to die sooner or later, I'll drag you down with me!" Ye Wen's impatient voice urged him on, and the previously suppressed fluctuations of soul power surged again.
Finally, Da Ming thought of a way out.
"Wait! Don't kill me! You want to ascend to godhood and achieve immortality, right? I have a way!"
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