"Only those who hold light in their hearts and hope in their chests can join our Bright Church. Every follower of the Sea God has a bright future ahead.
"The Divine Envoy once said that the Sea God is omnipotent. But the ocean is free, and all the Sea God's people have the opportunity and right to pursue hope."
Li Qing walked on an unnamed island far from the Sea God Island.
He drove away the troublesome sea soul beasts while slowly speaking to the islanders living on the island.
"Young man, don't worry if you lose in a bet. It's your honor to join my fleet."
On the vast sea, a huge ship sailed swiftly through wind and waves.
Miwei stood on the broad deck, arms outstretched, facing the wind.
A charming smile graced her youthful face, infecting everyone present with her enthusiasm.
"The Divine Envoy said that during the process of becoming a god, the Sea God also gathers countless followers behind him, sheltering each other from the wind and rain, and resisting storms. As the children of the Sea God, we should also unite.
"The radiance of the Sea God shines equally on every child of the sea. In the Bright Church, there is only a difference in strength, not in status. From now on, we are one family!"
On a desolate island near the Sea God Island, Fei Li smiled warmly as she looked at the pale-faced young man in front of her.
She reached out and touched his still damp short hair.
His boat had been overturned by the waves, and he was washed ashore by the tide. Fortunately, Fei Li happened to pass by and prevented a suffocating death.
"Everyone is born with an independent soul, whether or not they have soul power. In the Bright Church, I believe you will find your own value.
"In different eras, people have different missions.
"The Divine Envoy said that in the foreseeable future, a disaster will come.
"Only by uniting can we resist that huge storm."
She gently patted the young man's shoulder, her eyes filled with encouragement.
"Are you ready?"
In the City Lord's Mansion of the Sea Maiden City, Su Cheng looked at the side of Luo Leilei.
At this moment, apart from her outstanding appearance, she was no different from an ordinary human woman.
Her fishtail had disappeared, turning into a pair of slender, white legs, covered with a black gauze skirt, concealing all her infinite beauty.
"Can you really help me avoid the requirement of guarding the Pillar of the Sea after completing the task?" Luo Leilei looked somewhat hesitant. "I still have a lot of time left."
"I can't guarantee that." Su Cheng felt somewhat helpless. This mermaid princess might look mature, but she had the temperament of a child, playful and carefree.
What they were discussing was Luo Leilei's fourth Black-Level trial.
Lorelei's final trial was to withstand the full force of the current Sea Maiden Douluo for the duration of an incense stick.
To be honest, the content of this assessment was obviously lenient.
Just looking at the comparison of strength between the two, the difficulty of this task was obviously very high, worthy of being the final hurdle of the Black-Level assessment.
After all, the current Sea Maiden Douluo was a peak Douluo with a level of ninety-five, while Luo Leilei only had an advanced Douluo cultivation. To complete this task, there would definitely be a risk to her life.
But the problem was that they were mother and daughter, and they also shared the same martial soul, and were very familiar with each other.
In terms of martial soul quality, Luo Leilei was also much stronger than her mother.
The genius of the mermaid clan, which had not been seen in ten thousand years, was not just talk.
In this case, Luo Leilei had a great advantage.
Moreover, the concept of "full force" in this "full force attack" was actually quite broad.
The full force in life-and-death battles was different from the full force in daily sparring.
In fact, it was not much different from a guaranteed pass. Everyone else understood this.
But this was normal. Since ancient times, the Pillar of the Sea Maiden had always been taken over by the successors of their mermaid clan, and they had long been accustomed to it.
Su Cheng looked at her and said with consolation, "For you, sooner is better than later. Your current cultivation level is still low. Even if you pass and receive the assessment rewards, it will only be a Douluo cultivation. You don't have to immediately assume the role of a Pillar Douluo. If you wait until after becoming a Titled Douluo, the difficulty of handling it will be much lower."
"You're right. I don't have much time anyway." Lorelei sighed. "But, are you sure about doing this? This is the mission given to the Pillar Douluo by the Sea God."
"The Sea God never forces anyone." Su Cheng remained unchanged, articulating his words precisely.
As the most devout follower of the Sea God, he had the highest authority to interpret the spirit of the Sea God.
"Even the assessment itself is not mandatory for every child of the Sea God; everything depends on voluntary participation. Even you were requested to come and inherit the position of the next Sea Maiden Douluo by your tribe leader and your mother.
"The Sea God will give all his children sufficient freedom of choice. If there is a way to avoid the task of guarding the Pillar, there will naturally be no problem. It's just that with your abilities, you cannot achieve it."
With the deadline for Luo Leilei's final trial still a few years away, her original plan was to wait until the last moment to attempt it.
Before that, she could play for a few more years.
Because after becoming a Pillar Douluo, she would have to guard the Pillar of the Sea Maiden, like the current Sea Maiden Douluo.
In that case, she would spend most of her time near the Pillar, making it difficult for her to have her own free time.
As for helping Luo Leilei avoid this task, Su Cheng actually had no assurance, but there was definitely a chance.
This was not arrogance on Su Cheng's part.
In the past tens of thousands of years that the Sea God Island had existed, the seven Pillars of the Sea had not always been fully occupied, and occasionally there were situations where they were incomplete.
Obviously, this meant that the Pillar Douluos did not need to be on duty at all times.
After separating from Luo Leilei, Su Cheng headed towards the Sea God Mountain.
Today was the monthly study time.
But to be honest, up to now, Bo Saixi hadn't taught him anything.
Their time together was more about mutual communication.
Talking about their understanding of the will of the Sea God, the lives of the people of Sea God Island, and so on.
By now, Bo Saixi obviously didn't see him as a junior anymore.
"But those few who accepted the Black-Level trials..."
Thinking of this, Su Cheng sighed, feeling somewhat troubled.
It wasn't that those people weren't good to interact with.
Although those people were much older than him in terms of cultivation and age, Su Cheng, as Bo Saixi's disciple, coupled with his unique talent and unparalleled cultivation progress, had already gained recognition from the high-level members of Sea God Island.
In fact, in the eyes of many, Su Cheng had a good chance of obtaining the top-level trial.
There were three candidates for inheriting the position of Pillar Douluo, all of whom he had communicated with and knew about their respective tasks.
The key issue was that he genuinely had no opportunity to intervene.
The fourth trials of these three people were quite similar, all involving sailing out to battle powerful sea soul beasts. There was no shortcut to defeating or even killing these sea soul beasts.
In this situation, he could only help them enhance their strength by using his own methods, such as potions or the Nirvana Scripture, otherwise, they would not be able to pass all their trials.
But Su Cheng would never do that.
The risk was too great and not worth it at all.
These people had value of their own.
They were powerful, well-connected, and highly respected on Sea God Island.
With their talents and influence, they could potentially play a better role in spreading the faith. This was indeed what Su Cheng valued.
If there was a chance to help, it might become a support in the future.
But that was all.
In the end, these few people were only worth as much as dozens or even hundreds of others.
If he exposed himself for this reason, it would be complete folly.
Besides enhancing their strength, Su Cheng actually had some ideas on how to block the assessment marks above their heads.
But this was something he would never do. It was too risky.
However, over the years, he had not been without other gains.
Using the excuse of helping those being assessed, Su Cheng had gained a deep understanding of the Pillar of the Sea Star. Combined with his close relationship with the Sea Maiden Douluo, he occasionally had the opportunity to visit. At this point, he had a deeper understanding of the seven Pillars of the Sea.
This was also why he was somewhat confident in being able to assist Luo Leilei.
More than seven years had passed in the blink of an eye. In less than half a year, Su Cheng would turn eighteen.
By then, he would go to accept the assessment of Sea God Island.
Under the Sea God Mountain, Bo Saixi stood beside Su Cheng.
The sea breeze blew over her red clothes and long hair, carrying a fragrant breeze.
At this moment, she no longer had the aloofness and nobility she had over a decade ago, becoming more and more like an ordinary person.
However, amidst this ordinariness, her aura became increasingly vast and profound.
While ordinary people might not perceive it, Su Cheng could confirm that her strength had increased by at least ten percent compared to the past.
Don't think ten percent is insignificant.
With Bo Saixi's profound strength, even a slight improvement was considered a significant progress.
If she could improve by another ten percent, even if she left Sea God Island to battle the deep-sea Demon Whale King, she might not necessarily fall behind.
Regarding her own strength improvement, Bo Saixi herself felt somewhat inexplicable, but Su Cheng understood it very well.
Her soul was becoming stronger.
Compared to the vast yet empty feeling in the past, her soul now seemed much more condensed and radiant.
Without experiencing the trials and tribulations of the mortal world, without experiencing the ups and downs of life, no matter how old she became, it would only be a waste of time, and her strength, no matter how strong, would only be an accumulation of power.
In just these short ten years, she had transformed from the lofty overseer she once was, guided by Su Cheng, into a bystander in the mortal world.
And finally, she changed her identity to become a participant in it.
This kind of mental realization was completely different from the past.
All the changes in between, in Su Cheng's words from his past life, were called "heart refinement."
Although due to her extraordinary strength, Bo Saixi ultimately couldn't truly integrate into ordinary society, this was still much better than her previous state.
With a profound soul power, one could possess power far beyond the ordinary; with superior realm, one could perfectly control the power one possessed; and with a powerful mind, one could unleash power beyond one's own limits.
Bo Saixi looked at Su Cheng standing beside her, her eyes shimmering with bursts of brilliance.
She watched him step by step cultivate to the present state.
A talent with almost zero innate soul power had reached the pinnacle of Soul Emperor level within just over ten years, at less than eighteen years old.
His martial soul had also continuously evolved during this process.
Bo Saixi could feel that the quality of Su Cheng's long sword martial soul was now no weaker than the martial soul quality possessed by those innate full soul power Soul Masters.
And this enhancement was completely traceable, not an overnight success, but a gradual upward improvement. Each time they met, there would be some different changes.
"Do you really want to experience the Light of the Sea God now?" she looked at Su Cheng and asked softly.
In her opinion, Su Cheng didn't need to be so anxious.
It would be completely fine to come after accepting the trial, at most it would only take a few more months.
With his qualifications, the level of assessment was definitely above the top tier.
"I want to give it a try." Su Cheng nodded, but didn't explain further.
In theory, one couldn't enter the range of Sea God Mountain unless the assessment level reached the Black tier.
But this requirement was not rigid.
As long as the High Priest herself didn't oppose it, and he could rely on his own strength to pass through the circular sea surrounding Sea God Mountain, there shouldn't be much problem trying the Light of the Sea God.
At this moment, Bo Saixi obviously also sought his opinion and didn't explicitly oppose it.
So all he needed to do next was to try to enter the island within the island.
Sure enough, seeing Su Cheng nod, Bo Saixi didn't say much more, indicating that he could try on his own.
Su Cheng stretched out his hand, and a blue long sword appeared in his right hand, with six soul rings swirling around his feet.
When he stepped into the range of the circular sea, suddenly a huge pressure surged from the circular sea beneath him.
Immediately afterward, a huge black shadow emerged from the water, aiming directly at Su Cheng.
It was a fish-type soul beast with a body length of about five meters, its long mouth resembling a sharp spear, occupying one-third of its body length. After leaping out of the water, it shimmered with a faint light, accelerating like a black lightning bolt.
Su Cheng glanced sideways, swung his sword diagonally, but had no intention of engaging with it, and swiftly dashed forward.
There were definitely more than one soul beast in the water.
The longer he delayed, the more troublesome it would become.
The sword light slashed, and the fish-type soul beast also had a fast reaction speed, easily dodging the vital points.
But Su Cheng's speed of attack was obviously extraordinary, even with its speed, it couldn't completely evade, and was hindered by the sword light for a moment.
In just that instant, Su Cheng's figure had leaped more than ten meters forward, pulling away from the soul beast.
In the next moment, several black shadows pounced from the front, locking all his breakthrough paths.
Su Cheng's fourth, fifth, and sixth black soul rings lit up simultaneously.
"Tide's Coming!"
As the soul skill was used, a tidal pressure surged from Su Cheng's sword and from all directions like the tides of the sea.
The formation of several soul beasts blocking the front instantly became chaotic, leaving a large opening.
And Su Cheng, propelled by this force, quickly dashed forward.
With a flick of his sword in his hand, he seemed to blend into the sea beneath his feet, rushing towards the foot of the Sea God Mountain on the opposite side.
After landing, the originally chaotic circular sea calmed down immediately.
"Clap, clap, clap..."
Clear applause sounded from between Bo Saixi's fair and slender fingers.
Somehow, she had also arrived at the foot of the Sea God Mountain not far away.
A trace of admiration appeared on her face. "Very skilled combat skills, not a single bit of excess effort wasted, truly rare."
Su Cheng passing through the circular sea didn't surprise her.
Sea God Mountain and Sea God Temple weren't guarded by such things.
They relied on the Light of the Sea God and her, the top Sea God High Priest in the mortal world.
But the way he handled the battle did surprise her.
At least among his peers, no one could be as decisive and efficient as Su Cheng.
After saying that, Bo Saixi looked towards the nearby stairs. "That's where the Light of the Sea God is located. You can go and give it a try. If you feel too much pressure, just retreat, there won't be any danger to your life."
Speaking of which, she chuckled lightly, "I've been your teacher for so many years and never taught you anything. The Light of the Sea God will help with your cultivation, consider it compensation for you."
Upon hearing this, Su Cheng gently bowed to her, expressing his gratitude, "Thank you, teacher."
Approaching the stairs, a solemn and solemn atmosphere enveloped him.
Su Cheng knew that it was the densest concentration of soul power energy.
He took a step forward, stepping onto the stairs.
In an instant, he felt as if he had collided with a resilient and soft wall. Obviously, from the position of the stairs onwards was the true coverage of the Light of the Sea God.
Then he lifted his right foot, and his whole person stood on the first step.
The next moment, immense pressure surged overwhelmingly, forcefully compressing his body, and a layer of golden mist appeared around his body.
Su Cheng keenly felt that his soul power began to be rapidly consumed.
"The soul power here is somewhat special..." he focused his senses for a moment, his expression somewhat enlightened, "It condenses the power of faith."
Thinking for a moment, Su Cheng didn't rush to respond, planning to take a few steps forward first.
The soul power here was still somewhat sparse.
Resisting the pressure, he took another step. Just as he had anticipated, when he reached the second step, the pressure increased again, by about ten percent more than the first step.
Then, the third step, the fourth step, the fifth step...
Without much effort, Su Cheng reached the position of the thirtieth step.
Arriving at this point, even with his physical strength, Su Cheng began to feel considerable pressure.
"Almost there..." Su Cheng's soul rings shimmered beneath his feet.
He began to employ his own soul skills.
In the trial of the Light of the Sea God, conventional soul skills couldn't be used.
Because the energy density here was too high, unless one's strength was strong enough to break through this kind of energy pressure, it was impossible to attack it.
But the Light of the Sea God couldn't prevent Soul Masters from using auxiliary soul skills to enhance themselves.
And most of Su Cheng's soul skills happened to be of the auxiliary nature.
"Tide's Coming!"
Azure waves emerged around Su Cheng, and at this moment, he seemed to transform into the vast sea itself.
In this gentle state, he effortlessly dissipated the strong pressure coming from all directions.
Soon, Su Cheng stood on the fiftieth step, looking around with a calm demeanor.
He could continue to climb higher.
At least in his view, ascending above the hundredth step wouldn't pose a significant problem.
But there was no need for that.
The energy density here was already sufficient for him to condense soul rings.
Yes, Su Cheng's purpose in entering the Light of the Sea God today was to ascend to the Soul Saint realm here!
Su Cheng calmed his mind, and his spiritual sea became tranquil.
As time passed second by second, he gradually saw the faint light emitted by his soul.
But not long after, his soul's brightness began to diminish.
This was a little trick Su Cheng had developed over the years, called "self-hypnosis."
The soul power here was indeed extremely concentrated.
But the problem was, it was difficult to absorb.
This nearly solidified soul power was highly inert, unlike the freely flowing soul power in the air, making it challenging to incorporate into the body.
The soul power of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes, although powerful, was continuously evaporating in real-time.
And the abundant soul power in the Forest of Blue Silver Grass came mainly from numerous plant-type soul beasts actively contributing.
The situation here was different from those two places; he had to use some special methods.
As his soul light dimmed, his aura began to change. It became extremely similar in nature to the soul power here, as if they could merge into one.
Gradually, external soul power spontaneously flowed into his body, and the two began to interact with each other.
The soul power consumed when climbing the steps quickly recovered.
The next moment, Su Cheng's blood and energy fluctuated, and the bloodline of his martial soul surged into view.
Now, he no longer needed drugs to stimulate the bloodline of his martial soul.
The martial soul and the soul were closely related, deeply bound to each other.
This was also a little trick Su Cheng had figured out.
Under the vibration of his soul, the foundation of his bloodline was easily revealed.
The Nirvana Scripture operated at full capacity, and a faint halo appeared outside his sixth soul ring, forming the empty seventh soul ring.
The Light of the Sea God, or rather the extremely dense soul power here, which originally interacted only with Su Cheng's body, seemed to have found a new space, rapidly filling into it.
White, yellow, purple, black—the colors of the seventh soul ring changed one by one, becoming even more profound...
At this moment, Su Cheng was completely unconcerned about the changes in the external environment, or rather, he had no time to be distracted, striving to stabilize this newly formed soul ring.
Soon, the limit of the seventh soul ring's age arrived at ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine years, and a hint of red light faintly appeared.
At this moment, Su Cheng's body was also approaching its limit.
But at this moment, everything abruptly stopped, and he couldn't take that final step.
A moment of confusion appeared in Su Cheng's mind, "What's going on? Clearly, I still have energy left, and my body and willpower are completely capable of supporting it..."
The newly formed seventh soul ring trembled under Su Cheng's feet, as if it could shatter at any moment.
At this point, his best choice was to stabilize it, solidifying it into the seventh soul ring. However, in doing so, he would miss the opportunity to obtain the hundred-thousand-year seventh soul ring.
After all, in this world, he hadn't yet achieved the Five Elements balance, nor could he make all soul rings resonate to increase the age limit of previous soul rings.
If he continued to force a breakthrough, with the current state of his soul ring, he might easily fail.
Light repercussions could result in losing the seventh soul ring and suffering backlash, while severe consequences might damage his martial soul's bloodline, or even affect his soul. After all, this time he formed the soul ring using his soul power.
While the former could be dealt with, the latter, if it occurred, would be extremely fatal.
"Wait a minute! The soul..."
Su Cheng's mind moved, realizing what he lacked.
Ten-year and hundred-year soul rings were merely energy concentrations, nothing special.
Thousand-year soul rings carried a bit of resentment, and ten-thousand-year soul rings had a certain soul impact, but their core was still the rules, which didn't affect much.
However, at the hundred-thousand-year level, there was a qualitative change.
"The power of the soul..."
Su Cheng's mind quickly calmed down, feeling somewhat fortunate, "Fortunately, there was this simulation."
If not for his comprehension of soul power over the years, even if he returned to the real world, he would have long figured out how to condense soul rings, with his physical strength far surpassing his cultivation level. Moreover, he could continuously increase the age limit of soul rings, but he would never be able to condense his own hundred-thousand-year soul ring without killing soul beasts.
Because within the hundred-thousand-year soul ring was contained the essence of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, the entirety of a life form close to humans.
He used the rules of the martial soul as the core, the dense soul power from the feng shui treasure land as energy, but ultimately lacked that touch of divine charm.
"So, how do I make up for it?"
Su Cheng remained silent for a moment, recalling the scenes of the rebirth of the Phoenix Flame and the Blue Silver Emperor right leg bone condensing into a life core, and then reawakening.
Immortal Intent!
This powerful sentiment far surpassed the ordinary charm of living beings and was completely unique, belonging solely to his own unique realm comprehension.
Whether it was extinction or immortality, they were existences transcending the mundane.
Even if Su Cheng's comprehension was only superficial, it still far exceeded that of countless ordinary people.
The next moment.
The pitch-black soul ring was filled with dazzling red light!
Su Cheng's seventh soul ring finally appeared!
The crimson hundred-thousand-year soul ring floated quietly under his feet, shimmering with a captivating light.
At the foot of the mountain, Bo Saixi's mouth slightly opened, her delicate eyelashes trembling gently, gazing dazedly at the figure on the staircase leading to the Sea God Mountain.
At this moment, her mind was blank, and her thoughts seemed to have frozen.
With his own strength, condensing a hundred-thousand-year soul ring completely compatible with himself!
That was the authority of a god!