Inside the Sacred Law Demiplane, Zhu Ziyang sat cross-legged with his five hearts facing the sky, diligently refining the golden soul ring hovering above his palm.
Not far from him, Ma Xiaotao, Jiang Nannan, Qian Lingyi, and Wu Huan'er surrounded the Heavenly Cyan Dragon's corpse, processing the god-level dragon body.
Every part of a dragon's body was treasure: dragon scales, horns, and bones were the rarest and highest-grade soul tool materials; dragon blood, meat, and tendons were exceptional medicinal and culinary ingredients. For the four women, however, these were secondary. The most important was the soul bone produced by the Heavenly Cyan Dragon—a god-level soul bone!
When Zhu Ziyang successfully refined the golden soul ring and awoke from cultivation, he saw the four women excitedly chattering around a cyan-gold soul bone.
"What are you talking about? You seem so happy," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile, walking over.
"Ah! Brother, you've absorbed the soul ring!" Jiang Nannan exclaimed in delight, pointing at the cyan-gold soul bone. "Look, this is the Heavenly Cyan Dragon's soul bone."
"Oh!" Zhu Ziyang's interest was piqued. He took the soul bone and examined it closely. It was a right arm bone, perfectly intact, including the forearm, upper arm, and elbow joint—the highest-quality right arm soul bone. The bone glowed cyan with golden radiance, occasional electric arcs flickering across it, yet its aura was remarkably gentle.
"It's truly a work of art!" Zhu Ziyang marveled. The Heavenly Cyan Dragon's right arm bone was exquisitely crafted, resembling a sculpture carved from cyan jade.
"Right? We think it's beautiful too," Qian Lingyi said.
"Ziyang, why did this Niu Tian produce a soul ring and soul bone?" Ma Xiaotao voiced her confusion, which she had shared earlier with the others, but none could explain it.
"Well," Zhu Ziyang said, stroking his chin as he recalled past information. "I think it's because Niu Tian was originally a soul beast."
"Originally a soul beast?!" The four women were shocked, especially Wu Huan'er, who blurted out excitedly, "Impossible! How can a soul beast become a god?"
"Calm down and let me explain," Zhu Ziyang said, glancing at Wu Huan'er with a meaningful glint in his eyes. "The Heavenly Cyan Dragon's origins are extraordinary. You all know about the Sea God Tang San from ten thousand years ago, right?"
"This Heavenly Cyan Dragon is the Sea God's familiar!" Hearing Zhu Ziyang mention the Sea God, Ma Xiaotao immediately voiced her second, more pressing doubt. "Why does the Sea God want to kill us?"
"That's a complicated question. I'll explain later," Zhu Ziyang said, grasping Ma Xiaotao's clenched fist to comfort her. "First, let's talk about this Heavenly Cyan Dragon."
"I know," Wu Huan'er said, her expression complex. "I think this Heavenly Cyan Dragon is the overlord of the Star Dou Great Forest from ten thousand years ago—the Heavenly Cyan Bull Python! It sacrificed itself to Tang San before he ascended to godhood. It's said to be the brother of the Sea God's wife. Revived by the ascended Sea God in the God Realm as a divine beast isn't impossible!"
"Exactly!" Zhu Ziyang nodded. "That's the reason."
"But what about his soul ring?" Ma Xiaotao, still puzzled, pressed on.
"Since he's a divine beast, simulating a soul ring for disguise is easy, isn't it?" Zhu Ziyang said with a light laugh.
"Oh! I see!" The women nodded, their faces lighting up with understanding.
"Now, about this soul bone—I don't need any more soul bones," Zhu Ziyang said, weighing the Heavenly Cyan Dragon's right arm bone. "Which of you four wants it?"
"I don't need it," Ma Xiaotao said first.
"I already have a right arm bone. I don't need it," Qian Lingyi followed.
"This soul bone doesn't suit me. I don't want it," Jiang Nannan said, shaking her head.
"I…" Wu Huan'er started, but Zhu Ziyang cut her off.
"In that case, this soul bone goes to Huan'er," Zhu Ziyang said, tossing it to her.
Wu Huan'er caught it instinctively but looked troubled. "Can I not take this soul bone?" Truthfully, she didn't want to absorb it—not for any deep reason, just pure distaste.
"Why?" the others asked, confused.
"No reason. I just don't like it," Wu Huan'er said, shaking her head and pushing the soul bone back into Zhu Ziyang's hands.
"You're so willful!" Ma Xiaotao said helplessly, poking Wu Huan'er's forehead with a jade finger, her tone a mix of reproach and affection.
"Nannan…" Zhu Ziyang turned to Jiang Nannan, the only one besides Wu Huan'er among the five who needed a right arm bone.
"No!" Jiang Nannan refused decisively, her face showing disgust as if Zhu Ziyang held a ten-year soul bone, not a god-level one.
"Fine. Since none of you want it, I'll keep it for now. It might come in handy later," Zhu Ziyang said helplessly, storing the Heavenly Cyan Dragon's right arm bone in his Starflame Ring.
"Now, can you tell us why the Sea God wants to kill us?" Ma Xiaotao was fixated on this question. If she didn't get an answer, her mind wouldn't be at ease.
"It's not that complicated. It's simply because we've inherited divine positions," Zhu Ziyang said, waving his hand with a helpless expression.
"Just because of that?" Ma Xiaotao asked in disbelief, staring at Zhu Ziyang. His helpless look showed he wasn't joking. "Why? Why does our divine inheritance mean he wants us dead? Does he not want us to become gods?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but it's likely," Zhu Ziyang said, shaking his head thoughtfully. "Niu Tian mentioned we were obstructing the Sea God's grand plan. Combining that with what I know, let's make a bold assumption.
The Sea God doesn't mind us becoming gods—he just doesn't want us to do so outside his plan. Or rather, we might not be among those he permits to ascend. He controls everyone who becomes a god on the Douluo Continent. More precisely, he wants to control the Douluo Continent itself!"
"This…" The four women looked shocked, then worried.
Jiang Nannan said discontentedly, "It's hard to believe the Sea God is so ambitious."
Ma Xiaotao, a trace of disgust between her brows, said, "What right does he have to do this? What qualifies him to decide the Douluo Continent's future? Just because he's the Sea God?"
Wu Huan'er sneered coldly. "As expected, Tang San is no good!"
Qian Lingyi asked worriedly, "Brother, what should we do?"
"There's no other way but to keep moving forward," Zhu Ziyang said seriously. "Compared to the Sea God, we're far too weak. Our only chance is to become gods. Only then can we stand a chance against him. Fortunately, as a god, the Sea God can't act against us directly now, giving us time to grow steadily!"
"We understand!" Jiang Nannan, Qian Lingyi, and Ma Xiaotao's eyes shone with gravity, resolve, and fearlessness. As Zhu Ziyang said, they had no retreat—only forward!
The woman's emotions churned for a while before settling.
"Ziyang, when did you realize this?" Ma Xiaotao asked curiously.
"When Teacher fell," Zhu Ziyang said, his tone devoid of emotion, yet it sent waves of shock through Ma Xiaotao and the others. They all thought of a possibility.
"C-Could it be… Elder Mu was…" Ma Xiaotao's voice trembled, her eyes wide with fear and disbelief.
"Yes," Zhu Ziyang said coldly. "The teacher's soul was damaged, and he ultimately fell because he refused the Sea God's order to kill me."
"Ah!" Ma Xiaotao let out a mournful cry of grief and anger. In that moment, the last trace of faith she held in the Sea God vanished.
A few hours later, Zhu Ziyang and Ma Xiaotao emerged from the Sacred Law Demiplane, landing on the ground. The divine trace in the Sun Moon Mountain Range had vanished, and neither planned to investigate further. They set off again, heading north toward Anyang City in the Heavenly Soul Empire.
On the way, Zhu Ziyang reviewed the gains from the Heavenly Cyan Dragon soul ring, pleasantly surprised. After absorbing it, his soul power broke through levels 94, 95, and 96, reaching level 97 directly.
Additionally, the Heavenly Cyan Dragon soul ring granted three soul skills to his Heavenly Frost White Dragon King martial soul, bringing its soul ring configuration to an unprecedented seven red and two gold.
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Here are the chapters for today (づ￣3￣)づ╭～
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