Douluo Dalu 2: The True God King

For this goal, Su Yu had to work hard and push himself—there was no other way.

"You're saying these meaningless things again. When are you going to learn to grow up?"

Gu Yuena sighed helplessly, her jade-like finger gently tapping Su Yu's forehead. Her tone carried a hint of frustration, like iron that couldn't be forged into steel.

Su Yu blinked innocently and put on a hurt expression. "Nana, I'm always thinking about you. Doesn't that count as being mature?"

Gu Yuena: "…"

The kind of maturity I'm talking about… is this what you think I mean?

Thinking about women makes you mature?

The more Gu Yuena thought about it, the angrier she got. She raised her hand and smacked Su Yu on the head.

She didn't know why, but her calm, lake-like state of mind always seemed to get disrupted when she was with Su Yu.

Su Yu rubbed his head and looked at her flawless, dreamlike face, muttering, "Nana, I'm warning you—if you keep hitting me, you'll lose me."

Smack!

Gu Yuena raised her hand again, delivering another crisp smack to his head.

Her beautiful but emotionless eyes stared at Su Yu as if to say: I hit you. What are you going to do about it?

Su Yu squinted his eyes, staring back at Gu Yuena for a long moment.

Then, with a dramatic thud, he fell straight backward onto the ground like a stiff corpse.

"Argh, I'm dying."

After saying that, he grabbed Gu Yuena's delicate foot tightly and began pretending to be dead.

Gu Yuena: "…"

It was as if a dark line of frustration fell across her perfectly sculpted forehead. She was utterly speechless.

Seriously? Are you pretending to be dead?

You're supposed to be the reincarnation of the Dragon God.

Where's your dignity as a Dragon God?

How could the reincarnation of the Dragon God end up like… this?

Gu Yuena felt utterly exhausted.

And if pretending to be dead wasn't enough, why was he holding onto her foot so tightly?

Was he planning to kiss it next?

With a deep sigh, Gu Yuena crouched slightly, allowing her silver silk-like gown to drape over Su Yu's face.

The icy, silky fabric carried a faint tingle.

Su Yu could even catch a unique fragrance lingering in the air.

It was Gu Yuena's scent—fresh, captivating, and intoxicating.

"Get up. Stop pretending to be dead," Gu Yuena said, trying her best to soften her tone.

As the Silver Dragon King, her status was incomparably noble, her heart incomparably proud.

But in front of this man, she always felt powerless.

She simply had no way to deal with Su Yu.

Su Yu didn't respond, only clinging tightly to her foot.

Even Gu Yuena couldn't pull her foot away unless she forcefully kicked him.

But using her foot to kick and using her hand to hit him were two completely different things.

Gu Yuena would never do such a thing.

It wasn't that she didn't dare to—it was that she couldn't.

She didn't want to insult Su Yu's dignity in such a manner.

It wasn't merely because of Su Yu's identity or talent—it was because, deep down, she didn't want to hurt him.

She didn't want Su Yu to truly be angry with her.

Sigh!

Seeing that Su Yu wasn't letting go, Gu Yuena sighed helplessly and knelt slightly.

Her flowing gown draped over Su Yu's face, covering his head entirely.

Su Yu instinctively pulled the fabric away. As he opened his eyes, he was met with Gu Yuena's clear, amethyst-like gaze.

Her eyes were mesmerizing, like violet gemstones radiating a noble and mysterious light.

She looked at his handsome, chiseled face with her usually cold, expressionless countenance.

For the first time, a faint smile broke through.

"Still pretending?" Gu Yuena asked.

Su Yu, unfazed by the situation, let go of her foot and sprawled out on the ground.

He gazed at the pearl-adorned ceiling above, his expression unreadable.

"Nana, if I told you I've fallen for a human girl, would you be mad?"

"Hmm?"

The faint smile that had just appeared on Gu Yuena's face vanished in an instant, replaced by a frosty expression.

Her entire presence seemed to emanate a chilling aura.

Even within the storage pouch, Snow Empress shivered from the sheer cold.

This wasn't physical coldness—it was a bone-deep, soul-piercing killing intent.

At that moment, Snow Empress couldn't help but admire Su Yu.

You dared to say that, huh?

"Who is it?" Gu Yuena's voice was icy, her silver hair swaying despite the absence of wind.

He had fallen for another girl— a human girl.

Each of these points hit her heart like a dagger.

She could tolerate Su Yu teasing auspicious beasts. She could tolerate him messing with Snow Empress.

But she couldn't accept him genuinely liking another girl.

Especially a human.

Even though Gu Yuena had lived for an eternity, her experiences with emotions were a blank slate.

Su Yu had barged into her heart in such a clumsy, awkward way.

Though she never expressed it, a seed had taken root in her heart.

Over the years, that seed had sprouted and grown.

Now, Su Yu's words felt like someone had touched her reverse scale.

Perhaps deep down, Gu Yuena had already claimed Su Yu as her own.

The territorial instincts of dragons were intense, their possessiveness even more so.

At this moment, Gu Yuena was like a child whose beloved toy had been snatched away.

That anger ignited a murderous intent within her.

"Nana, you're angry," Su Yu said with a smile, sensing the invisible pressure.

Gu Yuena enunciated each word: "I am asking you—who is that human girl?"

"Nana, do I have to answer you if you ask?"

"If you don't treasure me, does that mean no one else can?" Su Yu teased shamelessly.

"You scoundrel!"

Gu Yuena was trembling with rage, her overwhelming aura shaking the underground chamber.

Crystals fell from the walls, and the ground cracked like a spiderweb.

Gu Yuena's face darkened completely.

Her amethyst eyes glowed dangerously with icy light.

Su Yu felt a shiver run down his spine.

Oh no, he had taken the joke too far.

Gu Yuena was about to lose control.

"Nana, I was just joking!" Su Yu quickly said.

"Ha…"

Gu Yuena let out a cold laugh, her gaze gradually freezing into an icy chill.

Su Yu shivered involuntarily, activating his Wind God's Legs to their fullest potential, dashing toward the tunnel at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow.

This time, he had truly overplayed it.

He had underestimated Gu Yuena's possessiveness over him and her capacity for rage. What was initially meant as a playful jab to provoke her into acknowledging her feelings for him had spiraled out of control.

He had expected her to be angry, but not this angry. Judging by her murderous aura, she seemed ready to peel his skin off.

Just as Su Yu was about to dart into the tunnel, a hand as flawless as an artistic masterpiece reached out and grabbed his ankle. His previously rapid motion came to a sudden halt.

"In a rush to leave? Didn't you just say I don't cherish you enough? Let me show you how much I cherish you now," Gu Yuena said with a voice laced with chilling calm.

With a firm grip on Su Yu's ankle, she began dragging him back into the underground space, step by step. Su Yu could only watch the tunnel grow further away, his heart bleeding with despair.

So close. Just one step away.

He desperately tried to crawl forward, but under Gu Yuena's grasp, he couldn't move an inch. He could only look on helplessly as she dragged him back, all while his face reflected pure resignation.

Facing the impending disaster, Su Yu made a desperate decision: he sealed off his mental sea, cutting off all communication with the Ice Empress and the others outside.

Embarrassing himself was one thing, but embarrassing himself in front of others? Absolutely not.

Unfortunately, Snow Empress, who had remained in the Wishful Hundred Treasure Purse, witnessed everything through her spiritual connection.

"Tsk, what a pitiful guy," Ice Empress clicked her tongue, a trace of schadenfreude evident in her voice.

This guy had been arrogant for so long, and finally, someone had come to put him in his place.

Well done, Great Sovereign.

Indeed, from the moment Su Yu entered the underground space and sensed Gu Yuena's aura, Snow Empress had already deduced Gu Yuena's true identity. After all, it wasn't hard to guess.

Someone far stronger than Di Tian could only be the Great Sovereign herself.

But what shocked her the most was the ambiguous and unclear relationship between Su Yu and the Great Sovereign.

Su Yu… truly had some nerve.

She had thought it bold enough when he flirted with her. Who would have guessed he'd dare to do the same to Gu Yuena? And as if that wasn't enough, he even dared to mention other women right in front of her. The man had nerves of steel.

Honestly, Snow Empress couldn't help but admire Su Yu's courage.

How dare he?

Well, now he was paying the price.

Hearing Su Yu's muffled cries of pain, Snow Empress found them surprisingly melodious.

"Yes, hit him. Hit him harder."

Snow Empress chuckled to herself as she mentally munched on her imaginary popcorn, thoroughly entertained.

...

Meanwhile...

In the western borderlands of the Heavenly Soul Empire, in Maple Leaf City.

Maple Leaf City was an important supply hub for the empire, located along its frontier. After all, it wasn't just the Star Luo Empire that shared a border with the Sun Moon Empire; the western border of the Heavenly Soul Empire did as well.

On the boundary between the two nations, the Heavenly Soul Empire had made significant efforts to fortify its defenses.

In the heart of the city was Maple Leaf Square, the most bustling area. However, today, the square was far from its usual crowded state. Instead, it had been cordoned off and was under strict lockdown.

Elite troops from the Heavenly Soul Empire guarded the perimeter, while inside the square stood several dozen figures.

These individuals seemed to be divided into two factions, standing roughly ten meters apart, locked in a tense standoff.

On the left stood a middle-aged man dressed in white, exuding an air of self-righteousness.

If Su Yu were here, he would have immediately recognized him as Yan Shaozhe, the Dean of the Martial Soul Department at Shrek Academy.

Behind Yan Shaozhe were more than a dozen individuals, including two middle-aged men and a group of young men and women.

These two middle-aged men were prominent instructors from Shrek Academy's Soul Engineering Department, one of whom was named Fan Yu, an eighth-level Soul Engineer by the academy's standards.

The students accompanying them were all inner court disciples specializing in Soul Engineering, most of whom were fifth-level Soul Engineers.

Among them, two stood out as sixth-level Soul Engineers: the team leader and a dark-skinned young man—He Caitou.

In terms of Shrek Academy's hierarchy, He Caitou had now reached the sixth level of Soul Engineering mastery.

On the opposite side of Yan Shaozhe's group stood another dozen figures.

Leading them was a slightly chubby man—Jing Hongchen, the Hall Master of Illustrious Virtue Hall.

Behind Jing Hongchen stood an elderly man Su Yu was familiar with: Elder Ma, who had previously led the Sun Moon team during the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament.

Elder Ma was accompanied by a group of young men and women, with the most prominent being the siblings Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.

Yan Shaozhe kept glancing at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy's team, clearly searching for someone. When he failed to spot the figure he was looking for, a hint of disappointment flashed across his face.

Jing Hongchen noticed this and smirked. "Dean Yan, what an unexpected pleasure to see you leading this delegation. It seems your academy is taking this exchange program quite seriously."

Yan Shaozhe smiled. "Likewise, Hall Master Jing. It's rare to see you step forward personally. Your academy values this exchange as well."

Jing Hongchen chuckled faintly. "This exchange marks the first collaboration between our academies. Naturally, it deserves our full attention.

"If this exchange proves successful, it could pave the way for deeper collaboration between our institutions. Don't you agree?"

Yan Shaozhe's expression softened slightly. "Hall Master Jing is correct. I also hope both sides' students can gain valuable knowledge from this program.

"On behalf of Shrek Academy's Martial Soul Department, I welcome your students to study with us."

Jing Hongchen smiled and replied, "The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy likewise welcomes your esteemed students to Illustrious Virtue Hall.

"I assure you, your students will receive the finest education possible."

Yan Shaozhe added, "Similarly, the gates of our inner court will always be open to your students. We guarantee they'll leave with real knowledge."

"Deal?"

"Deal!"

At this moment, Jing Hongchen and Yan Shaozhe seemed to have reached a mutual understanding.

After the formalities, Yan Shaozhe glanced at the Illustrious Virtue Hall delegation and asked, "Hall Master Jing, I do have one question. Why is Su Yu not part of this exchange program?"

Had he not seen Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen in the group, Yan Shaozhe might have suspected Jing Hongchen was trying to pull a fast one on them.

Su Yu's absence from the program was a glaring omission, and Yan Shaozhe couldn't simply ignore it.

Jing Hongchen chuckled. "That little rascal Su Yu is too headstrong. Even I can't control him.

"You know how he is—stubborn and unpredictable. He refused to join the exchange program, and there's not much I could do."

Yan Shaozhe frowned. The more he listened, the more it sounded like Jing Hongchen was showing off.

So what if your academy has a student like Su Yu? Does that make you so great?

Also, Yan Shaozhe wasn't convinced. Too headstrong to join?

No way. Isn't it more likely that you deliberately kept him out for your selfish reasons?

Yan Shaozhe, ever the sharp-minded dean, felt confident he had uncovered the real truth.