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"What's wrong?" Xuan Ming turned to look at Xiao Wu.
"Aren't you tired of climbing stairs so late at night?"
Xiao Wu didn't say anything, but just looked at Xuan Ming quietly, looking at the fatigue and vicissitudes that could not be concealed between his brows, and looking at the faintly visible and not yet completely healed fine cracks under his black robe.
Countless images flashed through my mind——
In the Xingdou Great Forest, a powerful figure descended from the sky and froze everything, saving her and her mother from Bibi Dong...
Outside Notting City, that shameless, childish kid who had bullied her for half a month...
Soto City, Shrek Academy, all these years, I have experienced laughter, tears, fighting side by side, and supporting each other with my companions...
And... the Ice Dragon King's words, icy yet tinged with hope, echoed in his ears:
When I saved you in the Xingdou Great Forest, it wasn't out of pure kindness, but more to pave the way for Xuan Ming's future...
His seventh soul ring required the willing sacrifice of a hundred thousand year old soul beast. Only the divine nature contained in the hundred thousand year old soul beast after undergoing the tempering of the heavenly tribulation could enlighten the most vicious weapon, endow it with its true soul core, and lay the foundation for its future transformation...
Fragments of the past surged past like a tide, eventually turning into the deepest determination in the eyes.
"Xuan Ming." Xiao Wu's voice was soft, but remarkably firm, "Let me help you."
Xuan Ming raised his head and looked at her with his ice-blue eyes.
Xiao Wu took a deep breath and forced a hint of her usual playful smile, but behind this smile was a calmness and composure that made her feel ready to face death. "I remember our promise, and I also remember what Senior Ice Dragon King said."
Her gaze fell on the faint shadow of the blood spear in Xuan Ming's palm. "The sacrifice of a hundred thousand year old soul beast, especially one like me who has experienced a heavenly tribulation, the ray of divine origin that erupts during the sacrifice should be able to help you. It can truly reach the core of the spear... perhaps, give it a true soul."
Her words were clear and direct, without any hesitation or retreat, as if she was stating something that had already been destined and she was willing to do it.
However, just as she finished her words, a figure with an anxious and panicked look suddenly rushed over from the side!
"No! Absolutely not!" Ah Rou pulled Xiao Wu behind her, shielding her daughter tightly with her own body. Her beautiful face was filled with unprecedented anxiety and determination, and her voice trembled slightly.
"Xiao Wu! Shut up! Live! Let Mom handle this matter!"
She suddenly turned to Xuan Ming, her eyes filled with sorrow and pleading, yet also with an undeniable maternal glow: "Xuan Ming! Use me! My cultivation is deeper than hers, and the effect of the sacrifice will only be greater! Let Xiao Wu live! She is still so young, she can live for a very, very long time..."
The sudden change made the atmosphere freeze in an instant, and the air was filled with a tragic and suffocating smell.
Xuan Ming watched the scene in front of him in silence.
He looked at Xiao Wu's eyes, which still shone with determination even though she was protected by her mother, and then looked at A Rou's slightly trembling but extremely firm back, which was full of sacrifice and protection.
After a moment, he shook his head slowly but with great determination.
"No need."
He knew what Arou was worried about and what she was afraid of.
If it was just a matter of preserving the soul's sacrifice, Arou wouldn't be so worried, but the blood spear was too dangerous now.
Once sacrificed, even the soul of a hundred thousand year old soul beast would most likely be devoured by the blood spear, with no possibility of resurrection.
To give the Blood Spear true will is to say that it is exchanging life for life.
"This is just the first test." Xuan Ming said lightly.
"If I need to rely on your sacrifice, on your lives, to pass even this first test, then how will I face the trials that are bound to be even more difficult and dangerous? What qualifications do I have to bear them?"
He raised his gaze again, sweeping over Xiao Wu and A Rou. His icy blue eyes remained unwavering. "Live on. Your lives have their own value. They shouldn't, and can't, be wasted here, wasted on my first test."
His words were cold and direct, even seeming a little cruel and inhumane, but they revealed an absolute confidence and... a pride that could not be tarnished that came from his bones.
If it is just to increase soul power, or there is no danger, then sacrifice is fine, as you can be resurrected anyway.
But now... there's no need for that.
...
Time came to the next day.
Xuan Ming did not hesitate at all and once again stepped onto the white jade staircase leading to the clouds.
Level 700, level 750, level 800...
He once again rushed up to that terrifying height at an astonishing speed, which was enough to make even a Titled Douluo unable to move. The pressure around him was like real lead and mercury, squeezing his body madly, and his bones groaned under the heavy burden.
But this time, he did not start tempering immediately.
Amid the destructive energy frenzy of the eight hundred steps, he stood firmly, took a deep breath, and turned his palms upward.
Buzz——!
The Vast Sea Universe Cover quietly emerged, and the azure triangle emitted a soft and deep light, forming a strange contrast with the violent golden light of the Sea God around it.
The moment the Heart of Sea God appeared, it seemed to be strongly stimulated by the same power. The light on its surface suddenly became brighter, and there seemed to be a tide surging inside, emitting a low humming sound.
Purer and more condensed threads of azure light flowed out from it, circling around Xuan Ming's arm like a living thing.
In the divine realm, inside the temple.
When Sea God, the god of the sea, saw this scene, his brows raised slightly and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"This brat... is he trying to..." he whispered to himself, a hint of uncertainty and faint worry in his tone, "Forcefully merge with the Heart of Sea God? Given his current state and zero affinity, the Heart of Sea God's own weak will would strongly reject him, making it nearly impossible to succeed! Even if he succeeded by chance, he wouldn't necessarily be able to control the Light of Sea God. The risk is too great..."
However, Xuan Ming in the mirror had obviously made up his mind.
He ignored the terrifying pressure around him that was enough to crush steel, and his entire mind was immersed in communicating with the Vast Sea Universe Cover.
He tried to slowly inject his mental and soul power into the vast sea universe cover, trying to establish a connection with the vast and ancient ocean will and guide its power.
Sure enough, just as Sea God expected, the Heart of the Sea God felt the invasion of external forces, and the weak autonomous will within it immediately produced a strong rejection reaction!
Buzz——!
The azure light became sharp and resistant, and a majestic resistance with the majesty of the ocean burst out from it, fiercely pushing away Xuan Ming's mental power, and even the recoil caused his soul to tremble, and a trace of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth again.
Outside, there was the destructive oppression of the Sea God's Light, inside, there was the intense repulsion of the Sea God's Heart, coupled with the constant and ferocious backlash of the Blood Spear within...
Xuan Ming instantly fell into an unprecedented difficult situation. His face was as pale as paper and his body was shaking violently, as if he could be completely crushed by the triple pressure at any time.
But the light in his eyes became brighter and brighter!
Deep in the ice-blue eyes, it seemed as if the shadows of an ice dragon and a fire dragon lit up at the same time!
In an instant, the Ice and Fire Dragon Crown on his forehead burst out with an unprecedented bright light!
The red and blue halos intertwined and flowed, and the dragon soul shadows of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King seemed to have completely awakened, letting out earth-shaking dragon roars!
Two vast soul powers originating from the god-level Dragon King rushed into Xuan Ming's body regardless of everything, forcibly supporting his body and mind that were about to collapse. At the same time, they transformed into two powerful forces with completely opposite properties but perfectly integrated, and rushed towards the fiercely resisting Vast Sea Universe Cover!
The freezing and imprisonment of ultimate ice! The smelting and penetration of ultimate fire!
The power of the Ice and Fire Dragon Soul, in an almost overbearing manner, forcibly suppressed, appeased, and began to slowly "refine" the resisting will of the Heart of the Sea God!
This is an extremely difficult and painful process.
The ocean will contained in the Heart of Sea God is vast and boundless. Even if there is only a faint trace of independent consciousness, its power of resistance is by no means trivial.
Although the power of the Ice and Fire Dragon Soul is strong, it is only a remnant soul after all, and it needs to distract itself to resist the terrifying pressure from the outside world and the backlash from the body.
Xuan Ming's body became the most tragic battlefield, and every inch of flesh and blood, every wisp of soul was suffering unimaginable torture.
Time slowly passed in this extreme pain and confrontation.
One day, two days, three days...
Xuan Ming stood there frozen in the destructive energy of the eight hundred steps, like a reef in a storm, enduring wave after wave of impact.
His body was on the verge of collapse time and time again, but was forcibly pulled back time and time again by the power of the Ice and Fire Dragon Soul and the vitality of the Blue Silver Emperor Soul Bone.
Bo Saixi stood quietly not far away, and the gentle aura around him isolated him from the pressure from the outside world.
She looked at the young man who was struggling in the golden frenzy and fighting against the will of the artifact. His eyes, which had seen all the vicissitudes of life, were filled with indescribable complex emotions.
Finally, when night fell on the third day, the deadlock was broken!
Buzz——!!!
A deeper and more vast humming sound, as if coming from the depths of the ancient ocean, came from the vast sea and universe cover!
The azure light that had been resisting fiercely at first gradually became docile and gentle, and finally, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, it transformed into an incomparably condensed azure light column, rising slowly, and finally connecting with the shining Ice and Fire Dragon Crown on his forehead!
The red and blue Dragon Crown greedily absorbed the vast and pure power of the ocean. The dragon patterns on it became clearer and more majestic, and the shape of the crown also began to change subtly. The edges and corners became clearer, and the lines became smoother, as if it had truly condensed into a solid entity!
The ultimate power of ice and fire, and the power of the vast ocean, began to slowly and arduously merge and sublimate on this magical crown!
The whole process is still full of pain and risks. The fusion of the three supreme powers is by no means easy. If you are not careful, there will be energy conflict and explosion and death.
But Xuan Ming, with his abnormally strong willpower, managed to maintain that delicate balance and guide this transformation.
When the first ray of sunshine on the fourth day fell on Sea God Island, the transformation was finally completed.
The crown on Xuan Ming's forehead has changed drastically.
It still retains the basic red and blue tones, but the colors are deeper and more restrained, as if it contains endless energy.
On the crown, the originally relatively simple dragon pattern turned into a more complex and mysterious pattern. Looking closely, the pattern seemed to be made up of fine dragon scales and waves interwoven, full of ancient and sacred aura.
In the center of the crown, a blue triangle that is countless times smaller but more solid is embedded in it, like the most perfect sapphire, emitting a gentle yet vast pressure.
Crown of Ice and Fire!
A brand new existence that integrates the power of the Heart of Sea God!
Although Xuan Ming did not gain the recognition and affinity of the Sea God, and could not use it to control the Sea God's Light, the existence of this Ice and Fire Crown greatly reduced the repulsion between him and the Sea God's Light, and he could perceive it more clearly, and even... guide a trace of the vast purifying power of the Sea God's Light into his body!
Xuan Ming slowly opened his eyes, his ice-blue eyes were filled with extreme fatigue, but there was also a hint of obvious joy.
It worked.