Chapter 449: "I Had No Choice"
At the same time, Tang San secretly used his divine power to make his eyes redden, causing tears to stream down his face.
He looked as if he had suffered an immeasurable injustice.
He raised his voice.
"For the sake of the Divine Realm, I can endure any hardship.
But what I don't understand is this: why is it that those who contribute the most to the Divine Realm also suffer the most?
God of Destruction, why must you keep hounding me over the matter of Qiankun Wenqing Valley?"
"Yes, I admit it I did go to Qiankun Wenqing Valley with Rongrong.
Yes, I tested Xiao Qi and a few mortals.
Yes, I even planned to prevent anyone from inheriting the Love God's position
But I did it all for the sake of the Divine Realm!
Do you think I didn't know this would technically break the rules?
I had no choice!"
"No Choice?"
The God of Destruction sneered.
His crimson eyes gleamed coldly.
"Tang San, stop making excuses.
What 'no choice' could possibly justify this?
The evidence is indisputable.
Let's proceed to the vote I propose we punish Tang San immediately.
As for the specific punishment "
Tang San's Counterattack
"Destruction!"
Tang San cut him off before he could finish.
"Let me finish speaking!
Even when interrogating criminals, they are given a chance to defend themselves.
And I am not a criminal!
I am one of the five god kings of the Divine Realm!
My status is equal to yours!
The Divine Realm Committee does not belong to you alone, nor is it your personal playground for abusing power.
Every god king here has the right to speak freely and fairly!"
He slammed his hands down on the table, his body leaning forward as if he were making a last stand.
"Or what?
Are you afraid that I might say something inconvenient for you?
Is that why you're so desperate to shut me up so that this whole Qiankun Wenqing Valley affair is quickly settled?
If that's the case, then go ahead and declare me guilty right now.
But let me make one thing clear justice has no guilt!"
The God of Destruction narrowed his eyes.
He knew that Tang San was twisting the situation to put him on the defensive.
With a cold snort, he chose to remain silent, allowing Tang San to continue.
After all, the evidence was overwhelming let's see how he planned to wiggle his way out of this.
Meanwhile, the Goddess of Life, Ji Dong (the God of Evil), and Lie Yan (the Goddess of Good) did not intervene.
Tang San's demand for a chance to speak was reasonable.
And no matter what wrongdoing he had committed, he was still a god king one of the five strongest deities in the Divine Realm.
Letting him present his defense was a matter of respect for his power.
Tang San's "Justification"
Tang San saw that no one stopped him and calmly continued.
"I had to interfere with the Love God's inheritance for the greater good of the Divine Realm.
The Love God's position is a first tier divine seat.
If someone were to inherit it, they would become the nineteenth main god of the Divine Realm.
But because the Love God's divine position was damaged, the Divine Realm could only create the three trials in Qiankun Wenqing Valley.
This drastically lowered the standard of the candidates, meaning someone unworthy might inherit the position.
In the short term, this would mean one more first tier god which sounds good.
But in the long run?
If someone mediocre inherits the Love God's position, they will never fully unleash its potential.
A god's talent determines how far they can push their divine authority.
A better candidate can elevate the power of the position itself!
Look at me!
I have surpassed the original Sea God!
If a weak successor inherited my divine seat, even if they spent twice as much time as I did, they would never achieve what I have!
That is why I personally intervened
To ensure the Love God's successor was worthy!
If protecting the Divine Realm is a crime,
Then I must already be a sinner beyond redemption!"
The God of Destruction's Disdain
The God of Destruction scoffed.
Tang San was truly shameless.
He claimed to have surpassed the original Sea God, but wasn't that only because he had control of the Divine Realm's Core?
That gave him convenient access to massive amounts of faith power, which let him steal extra divine energy to enhance his abilities.
This had nothing to do with his "innate talent"!
And now, he was pretending to be a martyr as if he was sacrificing himself for the Divine Realm!
But in reality, wasn't he just acting in his own interest?
As far as the God of Destruction was concerned, the disappearance of the Love God's corpse and divine artifact had Tang San's fingerprints all over it.
Sure, there was no direct evidence, but who else could have stolen them?
Certainly not a mortal from Douluo Star!
That was simply impossible.
No human had the power to steal and hide a god's remains and divine weapon.
Only a deity could have done it.
And who had been in Douluo Star recently?
Tang San and Ning Rongrong.
The timing was just too convenient.
To the God of Destruction, Tang San's speech was nothing but empty rhetoric.
Other God Kings' Reactions
The other three god kings exchanged exasperated looks.
Had this been before, Tang San's speech might have actually swayed them.
But after witnessing too many of his hypocritical justifications, they were no longer so easily fooled.
Tang San's Final Gamble
Tang San assessed their reactions.
He was slightly disappointed but pressed on.
"Since the new Love God has yet to appear, I am willing to take responsibility for that.
For the sake of the Divine Realm's strength and stability,
Once this vote is over, I will personally reach out to the first generation Gods of Good and Evil.
I will urge them to pass down their Ultra Divine Weapons to Ji Dong and Lie Yan!"
Ji Dong and Lie Yan's Shock
The moment Tang San said this, both Ji Dong and Lie Yan were visibly stunned.
They exchanged looks of surprise.
Why?
Because Ultra Divine Weapons were crucial.
The absence of these weapons was one of the reasons they were the weakest of the five god kings.
Their lack of experience in the Divine Realm meant their divine power was less refined.
Their lack of Ultra Divine Weapons meant their combat power was lower than the other god kings.
If Tang San could convince the first generation Gods of Good and Evil to pass down their weapons, their strength would skyrocket.
But this also meant something else.
Tang San was bribing them.
If they accepted his help, they would have to support him in the upcoming vote.
But this violated Divine Realm law which required god kings to vote fairly based on the realm's best interests.
Ji Dong and Lie Yan locked eyes.
Without speaking or using divine telepathy, they understood each other's thoughts.
They had a decision to make.
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