Time flew by. As the second year turned and March drew near, the New Year had just passed.
High above the sea, Yang Yunhai sat with Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo on the back of the Thousand Ton Ant Emperor, flying toward Sea God Island.
With the New Year gone, the deadline for the third Sea God Test of Dugu Yan and the other three women was fast approaching. Yang Yunhai felt it was time to check on them, and at the same time deliver the two soul bones and the Dark Devil God Tiger's bead. As for Dugu Bo, he remained at the academy, watching over the children.
Buzz, buzz, buzz…
The Thousand Ton Ant Emperor's six wings beat rapidly, soon reaching the territory of the Demon Whale King.
Splash!
The massive head of the Deep Sea Demon Whale King rose from the waves. Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo immediately sensed it and released their aura.
"Damn it!" The Deep Sea Demon Whale King roared furiously, shrinking its head back into the ocean.
How did these two humans advance so fast? It could sense they had already reached rank 99. And on top of that, they had actually subdued a 100,000-year Thousand Ton Ant Emperor as their mount.
One against four? It couldn't win. Absolutely not.
The Whale King pulled back its gaze. The Thousand Ton Ant Emperor continued on.
Several days later, they arrived at Sea God Island.
"What's that?" The island's residents looked up at the massive ant flying overhead, with figures standing on its back.
"Looks like it's Young Master Yang and his people."
"No way… Young Master Yang actually subdued a soul beast as a mount? That ant's so huge—its cultivation must be terrifying."
Their chatter spread quickly as the ant passed overhead.
"That's… a 100,000-year soul beast." One of the nearby Sacred Pillar guardians flew up, stunned as he watched them vanish into the distance, then quietly returned to his post.
Before long, Yang Yunhai drew near the Ring Sea. The sea below churned violently—he knew Dugu Yan and the others were in the middle of their test. Smiling faintly, he had the Thousand Ton Ant Emperor descend. But before they even landed, five figures leapt from the sea.
"You brat, what's with this 100,000-year soul beast!?" Xiao Bai's eyes locked on the ant, her brow furrowing.
"My new little brother. You can call him Tianjun." Yang Yunhai leapt down from the ant's back, nodding slightly.
The giant ant dipped its head. "I follow the Honored One of my own will. It was he who helped us three brothers ascend to become 100,000-year soul beasts."
"Three brothers?" Xiao Bai was taken aback. "Where are the other two?"
"They sacrificed themselves for the inheritance of a god." Yang Yunhai explained calmly. "They hitched a ride to become divine beasts. It was too good of an opportunity to pass up."
"Hmph. As if I'd be jealous." Xiao Bai turned her head proudly.
As the king of the Devil Soul Great White Sharks and the guardian beast of Sea God Island, she had her own responsibilities.
Dugu Yan shook her head slightly, then walked over with Zhu Zhuqing. "Yun, how are things on the mainland?"
"Xue'er and Bibi Dong have both gone to undergo their god tests. It isn't the time to act, so everything is calm for now." Yang Yunhai smiled, taking the two women's hands. "As for Tianjun's two younger brothers, they became the missing soul rings for Bibi Dong. But since they didn't want to follow her, they chose to dwell within soul bones instead. I brought them along this time for you two to absorb."
"Tianjun will remain here on Sea God Island, so the three brothers won't be scattered apart."
The two women instantly understood—Yang Yunhai had been planning soul bones for them. Warmth stirred in their hearts.
Behind them, Ye Lingling and Ning Rongrong weren't fools either. They could guess as much. Though envious of the bond between the three, they kept silent and simply watched.
"Yun… thank you." Dugu Yan's voice softened.
Zhu Zhuqing didn't speak, but the slight tightening of her hand and the look in her eyes said everything.
"With this little fellow around, their third test will probably be altered." In the God Realm, the Sea God muttered to himself.
Absorbing soul bones right into a bottleneck…
"As it should be." Yang Yunhai smiled. "Come on, let's find a place to sit together, then we'll get the bones absorbed."
"Xiao Bai, want to join us? I brought a lot of mainland delicacies this time."
Xiao Bai licked her lips unconsciously, finally giving in. "Fine. I'll try some."
The group climbed back onto the ant's back and flew to Sea Horse City.
When they arrived, Yang Yunhai let the Thousand Ton Ant Emperor wander the island on its own while he and the others entered a residence.
After some time, Xiao Bai left satisfied, her belly full. Yang Yunhai then took Dugu Yan and Zhu Zhuqing inside to help them with their bone replacement.
Hours later, Zhu Zhuqing successfully replaced her previous Swiftwind Leg Bone with the Thousand Ton Ant Emperor's left leg bone, her soul power breaking through from rank 69 to rank 70.
Dugu Yan replaced her former Man-Faced Demon Spider left arm bone, her power surging from nearly rank 79 to rank 80.
"Yun, should we absorb the god-bestowed soul rings now?" Dugu Yan asked.
"Wait until you've cleared the second test first. Who knows—you might trigger a breakthrough reward." Yang Yunhai answered.
"I knew it." The Sea God twitched his lips in the God Realm, then cut off the divine connection with a wave of his hand.
"Alright." Both women nodded.
Crash, crash, crash!
Out at sea, the weather shifted without warning, a storm lashing through the night until the early morning.
The next day, the group returned to the Ring Sea.
"Xiao Bai, today we're ready to finish the test." Dugu Yan's eyes shone with confidence.
"Then show me your strength." Xiao Bai poked her head out of the sea, grinning.
"The Seven Treasures turn out with Glorious Light—first is Strength, second is Speed, third is Soul, fourth is Defense, fifth is Attack!" Ning Rongrong summoned her martial soul, light flaring as she boosted Dugu Yan, then followed Ye Lingling and Zhu Zhuqing into the sea.
Dugu Yan swept her hand and the surrounding seawater parted, swirling into a three-meter-wide spherical vortex.
Splash, splash, splash!
Sea soul beasts that came too close were sucked in and flung away.
Step by step, the four advanced unimpeded.
Yan's control over water has really improved. Yang Yunhai thought to himself.
Before long, the four reached the latter half of the Ring Sea. Xiao Bai surged forward, launching her attack.
"Heh, Xiao Bai, watch this—Lunar True Water, Frost Dragon Transformation!" Dugu Yan clasped her hands, the whirlpools spun faster, three water dragons forming, then freezing solid. The middle dragon opened its maw, swallowing the four into its body.
Roar!
With two flanking and one leading, they barreled forward. Wherever they passed, the sea froze into an icy corridor.
"Devil Shark Domain—Crystal Form!" Xiao Bai bellowed, turning the water ahead into layers of crystalline ice.
"Dragon's Gaze!" Dugu Yan's eyes flashed, two beams of milky light shooting forth, piercing the crystals instantly.
'That's basically Tang San's Purple Demon Eye beam…' Yang Yunhai's brow lifted. With strong enough spiritual power, compressing and releasing it as an attack wasn't hard—his lightning vision worked on a similar principle. Clearly, after the Tianmeng Iceworm's sacrifice, Dugu Yan's spiritual power was strong enough to pull it off.
'This girl's spiritual power… so strong!' Xiao Bai's heart jolted, forcing her to dodge aside.
"Go!" Dugu Yan flicked her hand, sending the two ice dragons lunging at her.
"Devil Shark Fangs!" Xiao Bai roared, conjuring countless sharp teeth that shot into the dragons. Crack, crack, crack! Ice shards flew, slowing them but not breaking them. "So tough!" Xiao Bai's eyes widened as she darted from the side, closing in.
"Devil Shark Bite!" A massive phantom shark manifested, maw snapping down at the four.
"Xiao Bai, you've fallen for it." Dugu Yan smirked, finger tapping her brow.
"Spiritual Shock!" A terrifying wave of mental force burst out.
Blub, blub, blub!
Countless bubbles erupted, disorienting the waters before Xiao Bai. Her consciousness faltered.
"See you, Xiao Bai!" Dugu Yan laughed, urging the ice dragons to sprint for the shore.
"Damn it!" Xiao Bai snapped back, bursting free of the turbulence—only to see the dragons already almost upon her, ice sealing the path behind.
"…!" Out of the corner of her eye, the other dragon was already carrying the four girls far away.
"Arghhh! You little brat, how dare you toy with me!" Rage burned in her chest. "Despair Wave!" A massive pulse blasted forward, shattering the dragons and sending seawater flying. She charged straight through, crashing through the ice layers in pursuit.
"Hehe, too late, Xiao Bai!" Dugu Yan teased, layering ice walls behind her as they raced ahead.
The hundred-meter stretch was covered in moments. In a flash, the ice dragon leapt out of the sea.
"Let's go!" At Dugu Yan's call, the four jumped from its mouth, landing safely on shore.
Moments later, Xiao Bai's head shot out of the water. She shifted to human form, leaping ashore with a scowl. "You cheated! That wasn't a fair fight!"
"Doesn't matter—we passed." Dugu Yan just grinned.
Xiao Bai's chest heaved furiously before she crossed her arms and turned away. "Hmph! Call it luck this time. But the next trial won't be so easy. Be careful." With that, she leapt back into the sea.
At that moment, golden light blossomed. Marks on the four women's foreheads lit up.
"With wisdom guiding strength, you nearly single-handedly led your team past the ten-thousand-year Devil Soul Great White Shark's defense. Second Sea God Test, perfectly completed. Reward doubled—Sea God affinity +5%, total affinity 10%. Cultivation at bottleneck—additional reward: one god-bestowed soul ring." A majestic voice echoed in Dugu Yan's mind. A golden orb condensed before her.
"Top-tier Eight Trials, second test complete. All soul ring ages +500 years, +1 rank soul power. Cultivation at bottleneck—soul power reward converted to one god-bestowed soul ring." Zhu Zhuqing heard the voice too. Her first yellow ring turned purple, her set shifting to purple, purple, purple, black, red, black.
Ye Lingling's changed the same, her rings becoming purple, purple, purple, purple, black, black.
Only Ning Rongrong's Black Six Trials were weaker—her rank rose by one, reaching 56.
'Good thing I've stored up so much faith power, or I'd be drained dry by now.' In the God Realm, the Sea God could only sigh. Yang Yunhai's cunning was being proven again and again.
"Third Sea God Test: Battle of the Peak Sharks and Whales. Assist the Devil Soul Great White Shark clan to slay the Evil Demon Orca King within one year." The next test descended into Dugu Yan's mind.
At the same time, Xiao Bai received the same revelation.
Her body froze mid-swim, joy flashing in her heart before she spun around and returned.
"What's your third test?" Dugu Yan asked, after stowing the god-bestowed ring.
"Battle of Sharks and Whales. Help the Devil Soul Great White Sharks kill at least sixteen Evil Demon Orcas, to prevent their over-expansion and slaughter of sea soul beasts, maintaining the ecosystem's balance." Zhu Zhuqing answered steadily.
"Mine is to ensure the Devil Soul Great White Shark King doesn't die." Ning Rongrong followed.
"Same for me." Ye Lingling added.
"The Evil Demon Orca King… sounds formidable. Likely a 100,000-year beast like Xiao Bai. But how many are in their pod?" Dugu Yan frowned.
"About three hundred. Two hundred adults." Xiao Bai leapt from the waves.
"So many!?" All four women were shocked.
"Let's go find Yun," Dugu Yan said quickly. "We'll plan together."
"Remember—outsiders can't interfere in your trials," Xiao Bai warned.
Dugu Yan nodded, then conjured another ice dragon to carry them across the sea.
"Yun, our third test is the Battle of Sharks and Whales." She explained once they reached Yang Yunhai.
"The Sea God clearly wants that Evil Demon Orca King to be your eighth ring," Yang Yunhai nodded.
"Xiao Bai said there are three hundred of them… that won't be easy." Dugu Yan frowned.
"It's not that hard. This trial likely doesn't forbid your soul skills. Your torso bone alone can suppress sea soul beasts. With Tianmeng's aid and your spiritual power, you can restrain everything except the 100,000-year Orca King. Add in the Devil Soul Great White Shark clan's support, and you can absolutely wipe them out." Yang Yunhai explained. "But too much is as bad as too little. The Evil Demon Orca King may be cruel and bloodthirsty, hunting even when not hungry, but their species still has a place. I'd bet they serve as the ocean's cleaners."
"Even in the endless sea, resources are limited. Some fish reproduce too fast, draining the ocean's bounty. That's when the Evil Demon Orcas cull them."
He turned to Xiao Bai. "And your Devil Soul Great White Sharks are no different. With your appetites, unchecked breeding would wipe out all nearby sea soul beasts. The orcas exist to restrain top predators like your clan."
His words were blunt, but true. "That's the balance of nature."
Xiao Bai's face darkened. Though she knew he was right, who would willingly see their own kin die?
In truth, this battle was also meant to cull her own clan. Zhu Zhuqing realized it, but said nothing.
She knew Xiao Bai's clan already numbered over five hundred. The Sea God giving Ning Rongrong and Ye Lingling the task of protecting Xiao Bai showed old sentiment was still considered. And at the same time, the trial forced them to kill the Orca King.
Xiao Bai herself now understood. Every few years, decades, or centuries, her clan warred with the orcas over food and territory, both sides losing heavily. Wasn't this exactly the balance Yang Yunhai described?
Her chest tightened at the thought, helplessness rising.
"I need some time." She dove back into the sea without another word.
The others exchanged glances. Yang Yunhai shook his head, then looked at Zhu Zhuqing. "Zhuqing, a seventh ring grants only one skill. A god-bestowed ring tailors itself perfectly to you. Use yours for your seventh ring. Once you've absorbed it and stabilized, you can face Xiao Bai's trial."
"Alright." Zhu Zhuqing nodded softly.
Before long, the group returned to their residence in Sea Horse City.
Zhu Zhuqing went alone into a chamber and began absorbing the god-bestowed soul ring.
(End of Chapter)
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