The Assessment Completed, Ning Rongrong's Perseverance"Let's begin."
Dai Yao spoke slowly.
After everyone agreed, Dai Yao continued, "According to the original plan, Rongrong will go first, Wutong second, Zhuqing and Yanyan third and fourth, and I'll go last. Let's go!"
This arrangement was made after careful consideration. Apart from Ning Rongrong, everyone else was absolutely confident of completing the test. Feng Wutong's test only had 136 steps, and if it weren't for the need to better utilize the Sea God's Light for cultivation, she would have completed the assessment long ago.
Although Ning Rongrong broke through to the Soul Saint level, as a support-type Soul Master, her disadvantages were too obvious, making it difficult for her to complete the assessment alone.
Placing her at the front is to let her sprint with all her might, without distraction, and try to complete the test on her own, while everyone else will use their domains to assist her in climbing.
As for Dai Yao, he was responsible for mopping the floor last, so that he could help them complete the assessment in case of any unexpected events.
Ning Rongrong gazed ahead, took a deep breath, and felt a little nervous. Without further hesitation, she stepped onto the long staircase she had climbed countless times and began to ascend! Over the past year, she had tried countless times, each time failing. There was still a long way to go before reaching the two hundred and twenty-eight steps.
Today, she will give it her all to complete the task alone. Even if she can't, she will try her best to close the distance to the 228 steps.
Level 10, Level 20, Level 30...
Ning Rongrong walked forward at a steady pace, neither hurried nor slow. Although the pressure gradually increased, she only felt sweat on her forehead and her breathing became slightly rapid, but her steps remained perfectly steady. Finally, when she reached the hundredth step, Ning Rongrong paused for a moment.
Following behind Ning Rongrong, Feng Wutong's aura remained unchanged; she had long since adapted to the pressure brought by the hundred steps.
"Rongrong, do you need my help?"
Feng Wutong said succinctly.
Ning Rongrong shook her head, took a few deep breaths, and said, "Sister Wutong, it's not necessary for now. The domain consumes too much soul power; don't use it unless you're at your limit."
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Ning Rongrong stretched out her hand, and with a surge of soul power, a dazzling Ten Treasures Glazed Pagoda appeared in her palm.
The seven soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, and black—exuded a powerful and captivating aura. At only twenty-two years old, he had already become a support-type Soul Saint, and was also a Soul Master with the Ten Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul. Such a terrifying record would surely leave people speechless with astonishment if it were mentioned.
During the year of the Sea God's Light, Ning Rongrong broke through to level 70 and obtained a divinely bestowed soul ring. She did her best to push the age of the soul ring to about 70,000 years.
For a support-type Soul Master, a 70,000-year Soul Ring is an extremely terrifying number.
One after another, soul rings lit up, and a dazzling stream of light enveloped Ning Rongrong. Ning Rongrong felt her steps become lighter again, and she mustered her strength to climb upwards once more.
One hundred and twenty, one hundred and forty, one hundred and sixty—the next sixty steps posed no obstacle for Ning Rongrong. When she reached the one hundred and seventieth step, Ning Rongrong was extremely exhausted, and her seventh black spirit ring finally lit up.
Ten Treasures True Body!
For a normal Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Soul Master, the amplification effect is 80% at the seventh ring level, while for Ning Fengzhi, who possesses the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul, the amplification effect is 100% at the Soul Saint level.
But for Ning Rongrong, the Ten Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda endowed her with terrifying power that surpassed the ordinary Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda and Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. At the seventh ring, the amplification effect reached a terrifying 110%! Compared with the amplification effect of ordinary support-type soul masters, which is only 10% or 20%, this is simply outrageous!
After unleashing the Seven Treasures True Form, the amplification effect increases further, reaching almost a 200% amplification effect.
Panting heavily, Ning Rongrong forced herself to continue climbing.
The higher Ning Rongrong climbed, the slower her steps became. Although she had reached the 210th step, the remaining 28 steps seemed like an insurmountable chasm, making her feel increasingly powerless. Her soul power was visibly being consumed, and she could almost hear the creaking of her bones.
Slowly extending his foot, the movement was incredibly deliberate, as if trying to take another step. But after several attempts, he was deterred by the pressure of the next step.
Behind Ning Rongrong, on the steps, Dai Yao followed closely, making a protective gesture and observing her. He realized that Ning Rongrong had reached her limit. With a thought, a sharp aura was instantly released, enveloping Ning Rongrong, and a dense amplification continuously surged into her body.
The Sacred White Tiger Domain!
Not only that, on the 135th step below, a crimson domain rushed upwards in an instant, and on the 150th step, Zhu Zhuqing's Netherworld Domain and Dugu Yan's Azure Dragon Domain both covered upwards! The two women started at the same time, heading towards the end of the assessment.
With the four domains overlapping, Ning Rongrong felt an unparalleled strength and solidity in her body. She gritted her teeth, mustered her strength, and stepped upward once more.
Ning Rongrong steadily climbed the steps from the 210th to the 221st. However, just as she stepped onto the 222nd step, the surrounding pressure suddenly increased dramatically, crashing towards her like a tidal wave. Fortunately, Ning Rongrong was prepared and didn't fall.
"Just as Dai Yao and the others said, the pressure will undergo a qualitative change after the 222nd step."
Ning Rongrong gritted her teeth and struggled forward.
Poseidon Temple.
Poseidon sensed the commotion below and sighed softly:
"It must have been incredibly painful. I never imagined that a support-type Soul Master could do this. It's unbelievable. The remaining six steps were like hell to me back then. Rongrong, can you do it?"
Immediately, Poseidon turned her gaze to Dai Yao, who was standing behind Ning Rongrong with a worried expression, her eyes filled with complex emotions and helplessness.
"What an incredible fellow! He's climbed the 222nd step and still shows no signs of fatigue. No wonder the Sea God values him so highly..."
······
As she climbed higher, Ning Rongrong's body swayed more and more, and she was on the verge of collapse. Faint beads of blood appeared on her skin.
"There are only three steps left, I can't lose!"
Ning Rongrong thought with extreme reluctance, and her usually calm and beautiful eyes now seemed to be burning with flames. Her unwavering determination made her unwilling to give up, and suddenly, she seemed to hear a 'poof' sound in her mind—she had broken through her bottleneck!
Level 72 to Level 73!
The sudden surge of soul power gave Ning Rongrong a boost of strength. She took a slow but firm step, and despite the immense pressure of the collapsing mountain and tsunami, she landed steadily.
Three levels to go! Two levels to go! One level to go!
When she stepped onto the last step, Ning Rongrong almost threw herself off before landing heavily on the 228th step.
"The first of the top eight trials, Transmigration, Enhancement, and the Light of the Sea God, has been passed. Soul Power has increased by one level. The age of all Soul Rings has increased by one thousand years."
Just then, an unfamiliar voice rang in her mind. The eight-pointed star on Ning Rongrong's forehead released a dazzling light, layers of red light emanating and sweeping down. Bathed in the red light, every cell in Ning Rongrong's body seemed to groan with pleasure. A red halo descended from the sky, enveloping Ning Rongrong's body directly, and then gradually merging into her body.
This is truly a double celebration.
Under extreme conditions, she broke through one level, and with the additional level bonus, her soul power level increased by two levels directly. Moreover, the age of each soul ring increased by one thousand years, which meant that her first and second soul rings, which were previously hundred-year soul rings, had become thousand-year soul rings. For a support-type soul master, such an increase was vastly different from before.
"I did it!"
Sweat poured down her face, and she was exhausted, but Ning Rongrong was in surprisingly good spirits. She turned to look at Dai Yao and excitedly celebrated.
If Dai Yao hadn't been under immense pressure during the assessment, she would have already pounced on him.
Looking at Ning Rongrong, who was beaming with joy ahead, Dai Yao felt both heartache and happiness for her. He hadn't expected that Ning Rongrong would complete the assessment on her own. In his memory, in the original story, Ning Rongrong couldn't even complete the 136th step on her own.
"Rongrong, you should rest first. You've worked so hard to finish the assessment, and your body is completely exhausted. We can talk about anything after everyone else has finished."
Dai Yao laughed, as if the pressure of the more than two hundred steps had no effect on him at all.
Ning Rongrong then snapped out of her euphoria, realizing that everyone was still undergoing assessments. She nodded somewhat guiltily and said:
"I'm sorry, Brother Yao, I was just too excited. My soul power just broke through, and I can still hold on for a while. If anyone can't hold on, I'll use my martial soul to help them. I can rest after everyone is done."
After thinking about it, Dai Yao agreed.
After seeing Ning Rongrong complete her task, the remaining three stopped holding back and began climbing at top speed.
Feng Wutong stood on the 135th step, then gently stepped onto the 136th, completing the assessment first. Standing on the last step of the top-level seven tests, Feng Wutong's forehead was only slightly sweaty, her demeanor calm and composed. Clearly, 136 steps were far from her limit.
Standing on the 170th step, Zhu Zhuqing and Dugu Yan exchanged a glance, and their seventh soul rings lit up simultaneously. After unleashing their Martial Soul True Form, they rapidly climbed upwards.
The two women were unmatched among Soul Saints, and even some lower-level Soul Douluos might not be their match. Now, unleashing their Martial Soul True Forms, their aura had become incredibly refined.
A god-level martial soul has no flaws. Whether in melee or ranged combat, in terms of recovery or amplification, it is top-tier among all martial souls, even in a class of its own. The combined effect of these various aspects is far more than a simple addition; it's exponential.
Moreover, with their seventh spirit ring, they did their best. Although they did not obtain a 100,000-year spirit ring like Dai Yao, they still achieved a spirit ring that was only slightly inferior to a 100,000-year spirit ring, reaching a level of over 90,000 years.
The seventh spirit rings surrounding the two women even showed a faint blood-red hue.
After unleashing her Martial Soul True Form, Zhu Zhuqing didn't change much; unlike ordinary Beast Martial Soul Masters who transformed into wild beasts, her body became almost transparently white, and her once cascading black hair turned deathly pale. A bone-chilling cold surged from her body, even covering half of the sea outside Seagod Mountain with frost.
Dugu Yan transformed directly into a green dragon, with a slender body, majestic yet elegant and beautiful.
They climbed much faster than Ning Rongrong, without pausing, until they reached the 222nd step. Only then did Dugu Yan let out a dragon's roar, and Zhu Zhuqing also paused for a moment. But immediately afterward, the two women lifted their feet even more steadily and landed, completing the last six steps in one go.
After completing the assessment, the pressure of the Sea God's Light was relieved, and Feng Wutong leaped up the 228th step, standing side by side with Zhu Zhuqing and the others.
The sound of assessment rewards echoed in their minds, but they had no time to pay attention to it, urging Dai Yao on:
"Brother Yao, hurry up and finish the mission."
Dai Yao knew this wasn't the time for idle chatter; standing on the 228th step was taking a toll on him. Turning his head, he gazed at the seemingly endless staircase, took a deep breath, and sprinted upwards.
This time, he held nothing back.
Amidst Bai Chenxiang's incomprehensible gaze, the proud stares of Zhu Zhuqing and the other three women, and Poseidon's almost dazed look before the Sea God Temple, a sacred giant tiger with wings on its back stood steadily on level 333.
The majestic tiger head looks down, with the foot of Poseidon Mountain and the sea at its feet.
With a calm and composed demeanor, the 333 steps were far from Dai Yao's limit.
"Is this... a monster?"
Poseidon stared wide-eyed at Dai Yao on the long steps in shock, her jade hands trembling slightly.
Back then, she nearly died after just stepping onto the 228th step, but Dai Yao not only completed the test, which was several times more difficult than hers, in a shorter time, but also with such ease. Even the world's top experts couldn't help but question their own existence.
A life lived on extraordinary luck is truly remarkable.
When Dai Yao completed the assessment, the surrounding pressure melted away like ice and snow. He withdrew his Martial Soul True Body, feeling wistful, letting the sound of the assessment reward echo in his mind. He had long been confident of completing the assessment, but he had delayed it because he wanted to cultivate within the Light of the Sea God. Now, a year later, recalling this arduous training experience, he still felt a little regretful.
This reminded him of the time he spent studying diligently at the Star Luo Royal Academy.
After a moment of reflection, he hurried down to reunite with his wives.
"It's been a year, and it's finally finished."
Dugu Yan said with some emotion.
"Brother Yao, I completed the assessment on my own. Aren't I amazing?"
Ning Rongrong raised her little fist excitedly and asked, looking forward to Dai Yao's praise.
Dai Yao smiled, gently brushed a stray hair from Ning Rongrong's ear, and said with a smile:
"Of course it's amazing. A support-type Soul Master completed such a difficult task all by himself. Anyone else would have given up long ago."
Ning Rongrong smiled contentedly, then asked with some curiosity:
"Brother Yao, the rewards for Zhu Qing, Sister Yan, and me are all an increase of one level in soul power and an increase of one thousand years in the age of all our soul rings. Wu Tong's reward is only an increase of five hundred years in the age of her soul rings, the other rewards are the same as ours. Your assessment is the Nine Trials of the God-level, what is your reward?"
Dai Yao thought for a moment, recalling the deep and authoritative voice in his mind just now, and said:
"It seems to be 'Transmigration, Double, Light of the Sea God, Trial Passed. With unbelievable talent, you swept away all difficulties before you. The limit of the first test was far from the limit of the examinee. You exceeded the first test, and your affinity with the Sea God increased by 10%, currently at 10% overall.'" (End of Chapter)