The Sea Dragon's entire body had already turned into a translucent dark black, as if the whole dragon had been carved from fine black jade.
Although it hadn't reached the level of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, it still possessed a vast amount of soul power. So, while its strength affected the surroundings, it only repelled nearby energy with soul power—it didn't cause everything to freeze like Xiao Wu once did.
Looking at the Sea Dragon that had turned into a black jade sculpture, Yu Tianming suddenly felt a connection and took a few steps forward, placing his hand on the dragon's snout.
At the instant they made contact—
The dark light that filled the surroundings suddenly condensed into a massive ring, which began shrinking around the Sea Dragon and Yu Tianming. At the same time, the sacrificial effect on the environment began to fade, and the previously-stilled sea breeze resumed its flow.
As the ring contracted, Yu Tianming immediately entered dragon form, ready to receive the Sea Dragon's soul power.
The sacrifice happened quickly—from the moment Yu Tianming touched the Sea Dragon to the moment the dark light shrank completely beneath his feet—it only took half a breath.
In that instant, the Sea Dragon's massive body atop the sacred pillar was blown away by the wind, vanishing into nothingness, not even a speck of ash left behind.
Clunk—
Only a single blue crystal skull remained, falling onto the platform of the Sea Dragon Pillar and rolling to a stop at Yu Tianming's feet.
He paid no attention to the soul bone, instead sitting cross-legged to calmly absorb the Sea Dragon's immense soul power.
This ancient dragon, of indeterminate age, possessed an enormous reservoir of energy.
Compared to a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, the Sea Dragon's soul power was like a mountain of sand, while the latter's was like a cart full of steel balls. It didn't have the same quality, but the sheer volume surpassed even a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
Even Yu Tianming in his dragon form felt his body swelling painfully from the overwhelming soul power, though he wasn't injured.
As the Sea Dragon's sacrifice ended, Bo Saixi and Sea Dragon Douluo returned to the pillar.
Bo Saixi, draped in her red robes and leaning on her staff, quietly observed Yu Tianming as he absorbed the soul ring.
Watching his rapid progress, her sea-blue eyes gradually grew distant—perhaps thinking of her own final divine trial drawing near, or maybe of Tang Chen, who had vanished long ago and never returned.
Sea Dragon Douluo stood beside her, holding the skull left behind by the Sea Dragon. He was silent, seemingly lost in thought, but tears silently slid down the rugged face of the over two-meter-tall man.
Time flew by, and midnight came.
The two remained lost in their thoughts, but Yu Tianming had fully absorbed the soul power from the sacrifice.
He slowly opened his eyes and looked at Bo Saixi, who stood nearby with her eyes closed.
"Great Worshipper, I've completely absorbed the Sea Dragon's soul power. I should be able to attempt a hundred-thousand-year soul ring the next time I use a God-bestowed ring."
Bo Saixi returned to herself and opened her eyes, offering a gentle smile.
"Then congratulations, Tianming. Absorbing the power that dragon saved up for so many years—you must've gained quite a few levels."
"The Sea Dragon gave me five levels. I'm at level 65 now. Won't be long before I reach 70."
In the original story, Tang San gained 4.5 levels from a God-bestowed hundred-thousand-year ring, from 70 to 74.5. But Yu Tianming had an ultimate attribute martial soul, and he absorbed more soul power than even a hundred-thousand-year beast could offer, yet only advanced from level 60 to 65.
Bo Saixi didn't understand why he gained so little, but she still smiled and asked, "You look happy. Did you get a powerful soul skill?"
Yu Tianming glanced toward Sea Dragon Douluo.
"My sixth soul skill is Forbidden Magic Wave. It releases a rapidly expanding spherical wave that causes sluggish soul power circulation for those caught in it—severe cases can't circulate soul power at all."
As he spoke, his sixth soul ring shimmered, and a blue wave expanded from him. Bo Saixi's soul power stuttered slightly under the wave, but a flash of golden light passed over her and restored it immediately.
Bo Saixi's mouth parted slightly in awe.
"This soul skill—it's the Sea Dragon's signature move. Against soul masters of the same level, it disrupts their rhythm. Against weaker ones, it outright prevents them from using soul skills."
Sea Dragon Douluo's expression shifted after being silent for so long. Looking at Yu Tianming, he thought to himself: This little guy from the Blue Lightning Tyrant clan was tested by the Sea Dragon with this exact skill when he first crossed the Sea of Trials.
Now, just two days later, he had obtained it himself. Could this be the will of the Sea God?
He took out the Sea Dragon's skull soul bone and handed it to Yu Tianming.
"I already have a head soul bone. I don't need this one. I hope you'll protect her soul and become a god one day."
Yu Tianming looked at Sea Dragon Douluo's chiseled features, his expression shifting slightly. This soul bone contained the Sea Dragon's soul—was he just handing it over like that? But he didn't say anything, simply took the soul bone solemnly.
"As long as I become a god, I'll bring her back."
Sea Dragon Douluo nodded. He didn't speak, but his eyes held a trace of joy.
Yu Tianming turned to Bo Saixi.
"Great Worshipper, please take me back to Sea God Mountain. I want to begin cultivating right away."
She nodded. A flash of red light, and the two vanished from the Sea Dragon Pillar, leaving behind the solitary Sea Dragon Douluo.
Yu Tianming felt the spatial shift, and the next instant, he was at the foot of Sea God Mountain. Before he could say goodbye, Bo Saixi disappeared.
The three girls who had been cultivating saw him return and quickly ran over to surround him.
"Tianming-ge, you were gone for so long—was it the Sea Dragon who sacrificed for your soul ring?"
"Young Master, what level are you now?"
"What soul skill did you get?"
Yu Tianming waved them off.
"After the sacrifice, I reached level 65. The soul skill is called Forbidden Magic Wave. It suppresses soul power, just like what we encountered when we crossed the Sea of Trials."
He looked at Ah Zhu and Ah Zhi and asked Ah Zhu, the elder sister, "How many steps can you climb now?"
"Replying to Young Master, I can climb eighteen steps, and Ah Zhi, who's physically stronger, can do twenty-three."
Yu Tianming nodded. They had only been training on the Sea God's Light for one day—this was already a great result.
Ah Zhu's amplification skills mostly increased flame damage, while Ah Zhi was a heavy-armored warrior with physical-strength-boosting skills. Though Ah Zhi's soul power level was lower, her performance was stronger, which made sense.
Suddenly thinking of something, Yu Tianming pulled Dugu Yan into his arms and smiled.
"I've got something to tell you."
Being pulled close in front of Ah Zhu and Ah Zhi, Dugu Yan blushed deeply and protested, "If you've got something to say, just say it—why are you pulling me?"
Despite her tone, she didn't pull away. Instead, she smiled at the two girls.
Yu Tianming smiled back, didn't say much, and pulled out the Sea Dragon's soul bone from his storage ring.
At once, all three girls' eyes locked onto it.
This Blood River treasure was stunning, shimmering blue like the ocean, reflecting light like waves. Traces of dragon aura scattered from it, scaring off the fish swimming nearby.
Ah Zhu looked away first and said, "Young Master, this soul bone has strong dragon aura and is at the eighty-thousand-year level—it suits you very well."
Yu Tianming shook his head. Ah Zhu had seen a lot in the Blue Lightning Tyrant sect, but her vision was still limited. She, like Grandpa, thought he should absorb a ten-thousand-year soul bone. Still, her first thought was for him—that counted for something.
He turned to Ah Zhi with meaning in his voice.
"This soul bone doesn't suit me. Its attributes aren't a match."
Hearing that, Dugu Yan stiffened. Then she started struggling to pull free from his arms. She had already been reluctant to accept Yu Tianming giving Ah Zhi a fifty-thousand-year left arm bone. But this eighty-thousand-year head bone—whether by age or quality—was beyond compare.
Soul bones were the most valuable things on the continent. Even the eighty-thousand-year White Ring Sea Serpent King arm bone, obtained for her father's ninth ring, had served as her engagement gift. This Sea Dragon head bone was too precious to give away so easily, even if it matched Ah Zhi.
Seeing her upset, Yu Tianming thought: If she gets jealous over two maids, how will she react if I take more wives? To calm her, he quickly kissed her on the cheek.
Caught off guard by the public kiss, Dugu Yan froze in place.
Yu Tianming took the chance to explain.
"Yan Yan, you're my fiancée, and you'll be the mistress of Ah Zhu and Ah Zhi in the future. This soul bone is quite valuable—you should be the one to give it to Ah Zhi."
Her expression darkened again. She had already seen the soul bone as shared property. Letting her give it away herself so Ah Zhi would owe her a favor—she still felt extremely reluctant.
Seeing her hesitate, Ah Zhi quickly bowed.
"Thank you, Mistress."
They weren't fools. They understood how valuable this soul bone was—just this one could buy an entire village of kids like Ah Zhi, who had only four innate soul power.
Hearing their words, Dugu Yan's expression was still cloudy, but she made up her mind. If she couldn't keep it, she might as well make a gesture. She reluctantly handed it over.
"This soul bone is yours. Now that you've received something this valuable, you must serve Tianming faithfully."
Ah Zhi bowed low.
"Thank you, Mistress. I understand."
Yu Tianming smiled.
"Alright, best not to delay. Ah Zhi, go absorb the soul bone. Yan Yan, this one doesn't suit me, but I'll find you a better one in the future."
Ah Zhi nodded confidently and sat nearby to begin the absorption. Yu Tianming led Dugu Yan aside to console her.
———
Several hours later, the sun rose once again, shining down on Sea God Mountain.
It was the third day since they'd arrived.
Ah Zhi finally opened her eyes after a night of absorbing the soul bone. Yu Tianming, one arm around Dugu Yan, looked at her and asked, "What's the skill of this head soul bone?"
"My soul bone skill is called Boundless Sea Unity. Its effect is simple—it allows me to transfer received damage to any part of my body."
She paused for a moment, then added, "It also seems to allow transferring damage to armor created by soul skills."
Yu Tianming nodded.
"With this skill, you're now a top-tier defense-type soul master."
Though it sounded simple, the effect was significant for defense-types.
Ah Zhi had always been more of a defense-leaning battle soul master. With this skill, she could redirect damage to her armored soul skill—she'd become capable of withstanding far more.
Yu Tianming mused: Sea Dragon Douluo had the anti-domain Breaking Demon Domain, the Sea Dragon Beast had Forbidden Magic Wave to suppress enemy soul skills, and now Ah Zhi had this top-tier defensive skill.
Seems the Sea Dragon, which could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, had some traits of its own—where the Tyrant Dragon excelled at raw power, the Sea Dragon countered with suppression and defense.
Ah Zhi hesitated, then looked at Yu Tianming, unsure.
"I think there's a sleeping soul inside the soul bone."
Yu Tianming smiled.
"After the Sea Dragon sacrificed itself, its soul entered the soul bone. I promised Sea Dragon Douluo that once I become a god, I'll bring it back."
Ah Zhi blushed, clearly thinking of something.
"Can the Sea Dragon's soul... sense what's happening outside?"
"It's not a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, so it'll probably remain asleep. And besides, it was a female. Even if it did see something, so what?"
Though he teased her, Yu Tianming still reminded her seriously.
"The Sea Dragon Beast was Sea Dragon Douluo's closest kin. As long as you protect her, you'll definitely gain his support."
Ah Zhi nodded, half-understanding.
Yu Tianming thought, Here on Sea God Island, debts make you important. Right now, the one who wants me to become a god the most might not be me—but Sea Dragon Douluo.
(End of Chapter)
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