Chen Ming was completely at a loss for words. From his perspective, this was an utterly blatant situation where the Dragon God devoured two God Kings, leaving behind only a few scraps. Why had none of the gods in the Divine Realm considered the possibility of such devouring?
Wait, based on the way the Asura God was operating on Douluo Continent now, it was hard to say whether the Asura God had already anticipated the Dragon God's actions and decided to create low-tier version as a countermeasure.
At the thought of this possibility, Chen Ming felt his head throb even more.
The Asura God was in the open—at least somewhat in the open—while the Dragon God was in the dark. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say the Asura God was in the dark, and the Dragon God operated in even deeper shadows. The Asura God was plotting on the Douluo Continent, while the Dragon God's schemes remained a complete mystery.
The Asura God's intentions were now mostly clear. At worst, Chen Ming could flip the table and leverage the other four God Kings—especially the Gods of Life and Destruction—to strike back against the Asura God. No matter how bad the situation became, at least self-preservation was achievable.
But the Dragon God?
Who knew what the Dragon God truly wanted? Was it resurrection? Rebuilding the Divine Realm? Reviving the dragon race? Achieving a higher level of existence? Or simply reuniting with his wife and children in the afterlife?
Everything about him was shrouded in mystery.
Chen Ming's understanding of the Dragon God was mostly based on what he had read in novels in his past life. He knew the Dragon God had a plethora of attributes and immense power. But as for how to deal with him? He had no clue.
Chen Ming had no idea what the Dragon God was thinking, why he acted, or how powerful he truly was. If luck was on his side, the Dragon God wouldn't show up after he ascended to godhood. But if luck betrayed him, who could say whether the Dragon God might target him, an anomaly in this world?
What if, just as he was reaching his stride, the Dragon God suddenly appeared, swallowed him whole, and instantly restored himself to full strength? What if the Dragon God exploited Chen Ming's unique nature to push forward once more?
Because the Dragon God's behavior constantly shifted along with the evolving setting, Chen Ming couldn't even estimate how he might act. This made Chen Ming extra cautious, keeping his guard up at all times.
He could, of course, choose not to confront the Dragon God or interfere with plans like electing a second-generation Dragon God. But this presupposed that he had the power to stand against the Dragon God—or at least the ability to escape from him. Only then could he flee if he ever got caught up in the Dragon God's schemes, avoiding becoming a disposable pawn in someone else's plans.
Chen Ming spent a long time chatting with the God of Arrogance, who shared much about the Divine Realm. At first, the conversation was proper and informative, but as it went on, the God of Arrogance's tone began to take on a mix of complaints and venting. He started ranting about the problems in the Divine Realm and criticizing the flaws and quirks of the other gods.
If not for the fact that he was waiting for Chen Ming to ascend to the Divine Realm, the God of Arrogance might have unleashed his grievances for an entire month, elaborating on every detail of the Divine Realm—from its rules to the flaws of its gods.
In short, there were very few people or things in the Divine Realm that the God of Arrogance respected. Among them, the two Supreme Gods—Destruction and Life—were figures he genuinely admired. His six fellow gods of the Seven Deadly Sins were close friends. Beyond that, not even the other three God Kings escaped his sharp opinions.
When it came to the Evil God and Good God, who were preparing to leave their positions, the God of Arrogance had particularly strong feelings. After all, these two God Kings hadn't even bothered to select a halfway-decent successor to maintain order in the Divine Realm. How could a veteran like the God of Arrogance swallow this frustration?
The Divine Realm was no dictatorship. Its highest decision-making body was the Divine Realm Committee, where major issues were decided through a collective vote of the gods. In such a system, the God of Arrogance, who embodied the sin of pride, considered it generous enough to show surface-level respect to the other three God Kings.
In his eyes, over half of the gods in the Divine Realm were nothing more than insects. How could the Divine Realm possibly prosper with such creatures running amok?
After venting his frustrations, the God of Arrogance gradually calmed himself down. He then warned Chen Ming not to repeat certain things he had said. After offering numerous reminders, he reluctantly pulled out a golden flask from a small treasury he had brought with him when he left the lower realms.
"This is a wine brewed by the God of Food using thousands of ingredients. While its flavor is only slightly above average, it has the unique effect of refining the soul, enhancing its strength and quality, and even increasing one's aptitude for spiritual power. Because of its unique effects, it's called Drunken Dreaming of Life and Death."
"This was originally a gift from the God of Food to the God of Lust. When I descended to the lower realms recently, the God of Lust passed it on to me. The God of Food isn't the God of Wine, so while his wine-making skills are decent, they're just that—decent. For a first-level god like me, this Drunken Dreaming of Life and Death doesn't have much use. Consider it my gift to you."
This could be considered a hush gift from the God of Arrogance—not to keep Chen Ming silent about Divine Realm secrets, but to ensure he wouldn't spread the God of Arrogance's complaints among the other gods.
Although he wasn't afraid of the other gods, the God of Arrogance preferred to avoid unnecessary trouble. And even as a first-level god, offending those petty-minded gods could make his life in the Divine Realm a bit more troublesome. After all, the Divine Realm wasn't just about fighting; it also involved social politics. Who knew when he might need someone's help in the future?
Chen Ming stood up, smiling as he expressed his gratitude to the God of Arrogance. He then accepted the flask of Drunken Dreaming of Life and Death. Out of caution, he asked how it should be consumed.
The God of Arrogance replied that it should be drunk like any normal wine. Despite its name, Drunken Dreaming of Life and Death couldn't even make someone drunk. Thanks to its soul-enhancing effects, the more one drank, the more energized they would feel.
Since the wine was crafted by the God of Food, even a mortal could drink it all in one go without any problems. At most, the wine's effects might be slightly wasted. Its inability to intoxicate, in the God of Arrogance's opinion, made it unworthy of its dramatic name.
While it wasn't comparable to treasures like the Fruit of Life, the wine was still a rare and valuable resource for gods. Even a century of hard work by a god's cleric or Divine Realm enforcer might not earn them a flask of this wine.
After repeatedly expressing his gratitude, Chen Ming stored the flask in his soul-guided storage device. He planned to share the Drunken Dreaming of Life and Death with those close to him to enhance their spiritual abilities. By combining this with his life-control abilities, he could significantly improve the state of those around him.
After saying everything he needed to, the God of Arrogance left the God Trial Secret Realm, destination unknown. Chen Ming, meanwhile, returned to the base of Thunder God Mountain, where he began enduring lightning strikes while contemplating his future.
The God of Love—or rather, the second-generation God of Love, who had inherited the position after the Divine Realm's upheaval—had fallen on the Sun Moon Continent, creating the Yin Yang Love Querying Valley. On the same continent, there were also remnants from the Purple Annihilation Dragon King after his fall.
Currently, the Purple Annihilation Dragon King's legacy was in the hands of the Tyrant Dragon Empire, not the Xu family. This suggested that, at some point in the past ten thousand years, the Xu family had somehow integrated the Purple Annihilation Dragon King's inheritance into their lineage.
The site of the Purple Annihilation Dragon King's fall was likely within the Tyrant Dragon Empire's borders on the Sun Moon Continent.
These two godfall sites were likely closely tied to the Dragon God. Once his strength improved further, Chen Ming planned to acquire additional life-saving measures from the God of Destruction before exploring these locations. He might uncover critical information there.
As for the Dragon Cemetery.
In this era, the Dragon Cemetery should still be located on one of the two undeveloped continents. The last descendants of the Behemoth race, who fed on dragons, also lived outside the Dragon Cemetery. The Mountain Dragon King and the soul bones of many other dragons were also hidden there.
However, considering the uncertain existence of the Dragon God's lingering consciousness, Chen Ming didn't dare to touch the Dragon Cemetery for now. He even resolved to tread carefully when spreading his faith across the remaining continents in the future, lest he fall into some unforeseen trap.