161: Chapter 161: Everyone's Thoughts

The midday sun shone through the exquisite window lattices, casting light into the spacious and bright dining room.

On a round yellow pear wood dining table, there was an abundance of delicious dishes that were pleasing to the eye, fragrant, and tasty, with their aroma overflowing.

However, the few people sitting around the table did not have their minds entirely on the food.

Lu Jing, Wang Donger, Snow Empress, Qian Renxue, and Xiao Wu—it was rare for the five of them to be gathered together.

Having experienced twists, turns, and separation, although it seemed calm on the surface, the air was still filled with a subtle atmosphere of having survived a disaster, as well as contemplation over certain unresolved issues.

Wang Donger had changed into a fresh, goose-yellow long dress, and her complexion was much better than in the early morning, though her eyes were still slightly red; she was eating the food in her bowl in small bites, occasionally stealing glances at Lu Jing beside her.

Snow Empress remained cold and aloof, her movements elegant.

Qian Renxue sat with a dignified posture, though her eyes held deep contemplation.

Xiao Wu was eating absent-mindedly, her large pink eyes darting back and forth across everyone's faces from time to time.

In the end, it was Qian Renxue who first broke the somewhat dull dining atmosphere.

She gently wiped the corner of her lips with a silk handkerchief, looked at Lu Jing, and asked straightforwardly: "Xiao Jing, after you were taken away by that Silver Dragon King, what exactly happened? Did the other party give you a hard time? And... what did you two talk about?"

She had voiced the doubts within the hearts of those present.

Xiao Wu immediately pricked up her ears, and Wang Donger also put down her chopsticks, looking at Lu Jing with concern.

Lu Jing swallowed the food in his mouth, put down his chopsticks, and swept his gaze calmly over everyone.

He knew that some things could not be hidden, and there was no need to hide them.

He organized his thoughts and, in concise and clear language, recounted the process: from being taken away by the Silver Dragon King, to entering the Life Space, to the dialogue and probing between them, and finally how the Silver Dragon King had to let him go because Snow Empress exerted pressure by borrowing the power of the Divine Realm.

After hearing Lu Jing's account, the dining room was silent for a moment.

Wang Donger slightly frowned, put down her chopsticks, and her slender fingers unconsciously rubbed the rim of her bowl, her deep blue eyes filled with thought.

She pondered for a moment, looked at Lu Jing, and asked softly: "Then... Lu Jing, do you think we need her... or rather, do we need the help of the Soul Beast Clan in the future? If there is really a place where the power of Spirit Beasts is needed in the future, or... if this matter itself has any potential benefits for you or for our future plans. Helping her speak up and saying a few words in the Divine Realm, it seems... it's not entirely impossible, right?"

Her tone was consultative; it was not an overflow of saintly compassion, but rather a consideration purely from the perspective of the interests of Lu Jing and their small group.

If there was profit to be made, she would not mind doing a favor.

After all, Snow Empress was also a Spirit Beast, and if this matter could be accomplished, it could be considered a form of protection for Snow Empress.

However, Qian Renxue, who was on the side, gently shook her head, a look of disapproval appearing on her stunning face.

She looked at Wang Donger and said in a gentle yet clear voice: "Donger, this matter might not be as simple as you think."

She paused and analyzed clearly: "First, the rule that Spirit Beasts cannot become Divinities has existed in the Divine Realm for hundreds of thousands of years."

This means that in the eyes of the vast majority of Divinities in the Divine Realm, especially those veteran Divinities who participated in and formulated the rules, this rule is reasonable and necessary; it is one of the cornerstones for maintaining the stability of the Divine Realm and ensuring the advantageous position of humans.

Rashly proposing its abolition is equivalent to challenging their inherent cognition and vested interests, and the resistance will inevitably be immense.

"Secondly!"

Qian Renxue's gaze turned to Lu Jing, carrying a hint of worry: "Even if Xiao Jing successfully inherits the God Rank of Destruction in the future and becomes a God King, he is ultimately a newly promoted God King. How can his foundation, connections, and influence in the Divine Realm compare to those veteran God Kings who have existed for endless years?"

For a proposal that is not of one's own race and may invite huge controversy, is it worth offending other God Kings and even risking being jointly ostracized and suppressed?

We have just entered the Divine Realm; our primary task is to gain a firm foothold, not to make enemies everywhere.

Her analysis was calm and realistic, hitting the nail on the head.

The Divine Realm is not child's play, and the God Kings are not a monolithic block; interest games are everywhere.

To challenge the entire established order of the Divine Realm for the sake of Spirit Beasts, the risks and rewards are completely disproportionate.

Although Snow Empress and Xiao Wu did not speak, one could tell from their expressions that they agreed with Qian Renxue's analysis.

Especially Snow Empress; as a Spirit Beast, she had the deepest understanding of the cruelty of heavenly tribulations and the difficulty of Spirit Beast cultivation.

Even if that ban were truly abolished, so what?

Snow Empress put down her chopsticks, her ice-blue eyes looking at Lu Jing, and her cold voice rang out with a detachment that saw through the essence: "Qian Renxue is right. Even if the ban is abolished, the significance for the Soul Beast Clan as a whole may be limited."

For Spirit Beast cultivation, every major heavenly tribulation is a brush with death.

One hundred thousand years, two hundred thousand years, three hundred thousand years... until becoming a Divinity at one million years; how many devastating heavenly tribulations must be experienced during this period?

Those who can survive and make it to the end are few and far between.

Take me as an example; if not for you, Lu Jing, awakening the remnant soul of the Ice and Fire Dragon King to help me, I might not have been able to survive the seven-hundred-thousand-year heavenly tribulation.

How many Spirit Beasts with cultivation and foundation like mine are there in the entire continent?

Di Tian counts as one, and the Deep Sea Demon Whale King might count as one.

As for other Spirit Beasts, it is not that I look down on them, but talent, opportunity, and temperament are all indispensable; the vast majority might not even be able to pass the one-hundred-thousand-year heavenly tribulation.

She paused, her tone even calmer: "Even for you human Spirit Masters, wanting to become a Divinity is as difficult as ascending to heaven."

Except for lucky ones like you who have obtained a Divinity inheritance, relying on one's own cultivation to reach level ninety-nine, and then breaking through to level one hundred through various difficult tests, one might not appear in ten thousand years.

The path of cultivation for Spirit Beasts will only be a hundred times harder than this.

Therefore, abolishing the ban might only give a glimmer of hope to individual top-tier Spirit Beasts, but it does not fundamentally change the survival status of hundreds of millions of ordinary Spirit Beasts, nor the demand of human Spirit Masters for hunting spirit rings.

Snow Empress's words, like cold reality, extinguished that slight consideration Wang Donger had based on interest exchange.

Yeah, even if one helped, what could it change?

It seems nothing could be changed.

Xiao Wu also couldn't help but interject, her pink eyes filled with confusion: "Exactly, Lu Jing. For this matter, the rules were not set by us, and the consequences were not caused by us."

Whether Spirit Beasts will go extinct or what will happen to human Spirit Masters in the future, what does that have to do with us?

Why should we wade into these muddy waters? It's thankless work.

Xiao Wu's thoughts were more direct and more self-centered.

She only cared about herself and the people in her small group; as for how the outside world was, she didn't care much.

She felt heartbroken about the tragic future of Spirit Beasts, but she felt it was not worth it to let her and Lu Jing take huge risks for it.

After all, she was not a saint, and the Soul Beast Clan had never helped her.

Lu Jing listened quietly to everyone's opinions, with no displeasure on his face; instead, he nodded to show he understood.

"What you all said makes sense."

Lu Jing spoke slowly, his gaze sweeping over everyone: "The risks are huge, the benefits are unclear, and it is difficult to solve the problem fundamentally. I am clear about all of this."

I also have no intention of acting on impulse to become this savior and challenge the rules of the entire Divine Realm, just because of sympathy or because Snow Empress is a Spirit Beast."

He paused, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, his eyes becoming deep: "The reason why I did not directly refuse her, and even left her a glimmer of leeway, is for two reasons."