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Chapter 178: The Inheritance Begins
Seeing Neptune's look of sudden realization, the Sea God smiled faintly and said, "No sacrifice is ever made in vain. How could I not know of Bo Saixi's devotion? What I can do is grant her soul eternal life. And an eternal soul is something only a god can achieve. Although her body never reached a divine realm, after her death, she will be equivalent to a god. Do you still believe her sacrifice was in vain?"
"Indeed, it was not a sacrifice in vain."
Neptune nodded, but then added, "However, I believe this isn't what she truly wanted. If she had a choice, I think the High Priestess would rather stay in the Mortal Realm and spend eternity with her beloved, rather than go to the God Realm and live forever in solitude."
"Living in solitude..."
Hearing his words, a dazed look appeared in the Sea God's eyes. Then he actually nodded in agreement. "You're right. Life in the God Realm is much more boring and tedious compared to the Mortal Realm. Loneliness is the most terrifying thing. Back when I was in the Mortal Realm, I spent my entire life conquering the Great Sea. It was only when I reached the God Realm that I felt regret because I was all alone. Moreover, I am bound by many rules here, unable to easily leave the God Realm. Staying in this place feels like being in prison."
"That is why I decided to pass down my divine seat."
"For me now, this godhood has long become a restraint, leaving me with no freedom. Only by passing down my divine seat can I break free from the God Realm and explore the unknown universe," the Sea God explained truthfully.
"Now that you know the truth about becoming a god, do you still want to inherit my divine seat?" he finally asked. "You still have a chance to change your mind!"
"I have no choice."
Neptune said helplessly, "I don't know when that extraterrestrial meteorite will descend, so I must become a god as soon as possible and be prepared. Besides, there's nothing wrong with inheriting a divine seat. Even if I don't inherit the Sea God's position, I would eventually create my own anyway. After becoming a god, the outcome won't be any different. At worst, I'll just do as you are and find a successor to pass the position on to."
"Good, very good."
The Sea God nodded, looking at him with a smile. "I have waited for you for so long. You have not disappointed me; you are far more outstanding than I imagined. After passing my divine seat to you, I can also leave with peace of mind."
"Listen. Your inheritance is divided into six parts, and you will experience different kinds of pain and trials. You must remember, no matter what pain you endure, you must hold fast to your original heart. Only if your conviction remains unshaken can you become the new Sea God!"
"I understand!"
Neptune said with a solemn expression.
"Alright, enough nonsense."
"The inheritance begins now."
As he spoke, the Sea God's eyes suddenly lit up, like two suns. Neptune felt as if his soul was instantly sucked in; everything around him became unreal. Countless golden mists rose into the air, along with golden bubbles. In the intense distortion, he quietly became lost.
With a flash of light, a massive golden sphere appeared before the Sea God's chest. In an instant, a brilliant light burst forth, and the entire Sea God Temple began to tremble violently. Its frantic pulsing seemed as if it would purify everything.
Buzz!
Neptune, lost in the golden light, vanished amidst the explosion of this massive golden sphere. The Sea God Temple returned to normal as the golden light dissipated.
After the strange phenomenon disappeared, the Sea God let out a long breath and wiped away sweat that couldn't possibly exist on his forehead. Looking at the spot where Neptune had vanished, he murmured to himself, "Finally, a worthy successor. Kid, you'd better not disappoint me."
...
It seemed a massive golden vortex was swirling around him. Neptune felt that his entire field of vision had been consumed by the color gold, with nothing else visible.
Suddenly, the disorienting feeling vanished, and the vortex of golden light disappeared with it. He found himself on a Circular Platform.
This platform was golden, with a faint warmth emanating from beneath his feet. Surrounding the Circular Platform was a boundless, golden ocean. Even the sky was golden, creating a peculiar sight.
Neptune surveyed his surroundings. He knew this special space had to be for the Sea God's inheritance trial.
Around this Circular Platform, floating diagonally above, were six smaller circular platforms. Each appeared to be about two meters in diameter, arranged around the platform he stood on.
Six small platforms?
The Sea God had said earlier that to complete the Sea God's inheritance, he needed to pass six trials. It seemed they were related to these six circular platforms.
As Neptune was pondering, waves of golden light surged from the Circular Platform beneath his feet, rushing into his body and rendering him completely immobile.
At this moment, aside from being able to see, he couldn't react in any way. Even the flow of soul power within his body slowed to a crawl.
Suddenly, without any warning, a searing heat erupted from his left arm. It was immediately followed by a powerful tearing sensation that exploded into excruciating pain, making Neptune's vision go black!
Damn this feeling.
It was as if someone was forcibly using a knife to slice open his skin, cut through his muscles, and brutally tear his bone out! And worst of all, it was without any anesthetic. One could only imagine the pain.
Fortunately, at that moment, a burst of golden light surged forth. The Sea God Trident he was holding began to emit a hazy golden glow. Shrouded in this golden light, Neptune felt the intense pain slowly diminish. Although it was still agonizing, it was at least within a tolerable range, not so painful that he would pass out.
At the same time, one of the six small platforms surrounding the Circular Platform where Neptune stood flew out, floating about a meter in front of him.
The platform shimmered with beautiful, wave-like golden patterns. Unfortunately, Neptune, who was having a soul bone brutally torn from his body, was in no mood to appreciate it.
A streak of golden light flew from his left arm and landed precisely on the small circular platform. It didn't collide but instead floated about fifty centimeters above it. It was, unmistakably, a left arm bone emitting a black light.
This was a ten-thousand-year soul bone, one that came with his character profile upon transmigration. Because his originally god-level profile had been downgraded, it was only a soul bone of several tens of thousands of years, not a 100,000-year one.
At this moment, Neptune suddenly found he had regained his mobility. At the same time, a prompt sounded in his ear, "The restraints will be lifted. If you resist the soul bone's removal, the trial will be forcibly terminated. The most severe consequence for termination is annihilation. You must not leave the two-meter radius from the platform's center, nor must you move the part of your body from which the soul bone is being removed. Otherwise, it will be considered as forfeiting the inheritance."
"Are the six trials just about removing soul bones?"
"I feel like it's not that simple. There have to be other trials. Otherwise, if it's just enduring pain, that would be too easy," Neptune thought.
(end of chapter)
Seeing Neptune's look of sudden realization, the Sea God smiled faintly and said, "No sacrifice is ever made in vain. How could I not know of Bo Saixi's devotion? What I can do is grant her soul eternal life. And an eternal soul is something only a god can achieve. Although her body never reached a divine realm, after her death, she will be equivalent to a god. Do you still believe her sacrifice was in vain?"
"Indeed, it was not a sacrifice in vain."
Neptune nodded, but then added, "However, I believe this isn't what she truly wanted. If she had a choice, I think the High Priestess would rather stay in the Mortal Realm and spend eternity with her beloved, rather than go to the God Realm and live forever in solitude."
"Living in solitude..."
Hearing his words, a dazed look appeared in the Sea God's eyes. Then he actually nodded in agreement. "You're right. Life in the God Realm is much more boring and tedious compared to the Mortal Realm. Loneliness is the most terrifying thing. Back when I was in the Mortal Realm, I spent my entire life conquering the Great Sea. It was only when I reached the God Realm that I felt regret because I was all alone. Moreover, I am bound by many rules here, unable to easily leave the God Realm. Staying in this place feels like being in prison."
"That is why I decided to pass down my divine seat."
"For me now, this godhood has long become a restraint, leaving me with no freedom. Only by passing down my divine seat can I break free from the God Realm and explore the unknown universe," the Sea God explained truthfully.
"Now that you know the truth about becoming a god, do you still want to inherit my divine seat?" he finally asked. "You still have a chance to change your mind!"
"I have no choice."
Neptune said helplessly, "I don't know when that extraterrestrial meteorite will descend, so I must become a god as soon as possible and be prepared. Besides, there's nothing wrong with inheriting a divine seat. Even if I don't inherit the Sea God's position, I would eventually create my own anyway. After becoming a god, the outcome won't be any different. At worst, I'll just do as you are and find a successor to pass the position on to."
"Good, very good."
The Sea God nodded, looking at him with a smile. "I have waited for you for so long. You have not disappointed me; you are far more outstanding than I imagined. After passing my divine seat to you, I can also leave with peace of mind."
"Listen. Your inheritance is divided into six parts, and you will experience different kinds of pain and trials. You must remember, no matter what pain you endure, you must hold fast to your original heart. Only if your conviction remains unshaken can you become the new Sea God!"
"I understand!"
Neptune said with a solemn expression.
"Alright, enough nonsense."
"The inheritance begins now."
As he spoke, the Sea God's eyes suddenly lit up, like two suns. Neptune felt as if his soul was instantly sucked in; everything around him became unreal. Countless golden mists rose into the air, along with golden bubbles. In the intense distortion, he quietly became lost.
With a flash of light, a massive golden sphere appeared before the Sea God's chest. In an instant, a brilliant light burst forth, and the entire Sea God Temple began to tremble violently. Its frantic pulsing seemed as if it would purify everything.
Buzz!
Neptune, lost in the golden light, vanished amidst the explosion of this massive golden sphere. The Sea God Temple returned to normal as the golden light dissipated.
After the strange phenomenon disappeared, the Sea God let out a long breath and wiped away sweat that couldn't possibly exist on his forehead. Looking at the spot where Neptune had vanished, he murmured to himself, "Finally, a worthy successor. Kid, you'd better not disappoint me."
...
It seemed a massive golden vortex was swirling around him. Neptune felt that his entire field of vision had been consumed by the color gold, with nothing else visible.
Suddenly, the disorienting feeling vanished, and the vortex of golden light disappeared with it. He found himself on a Circular Platform.
This platform was golden, with a faint warmth emanating from beneath his feet. Surrounding the Circular Platform was a boundless, golden ocean. Even the sky was golden, creating a peculiar sight.
Neptune surveyed his surroundings. He knew this special space had to be for the Sea God's inheritance trial.
Around this Circular Platform, floating diagonally above, were six smaller circular platforms. Each appeared to be about two meters in diameter, arranged around the platform he stood on.
Six small platforms?
The Sea God had said earlier that to complete the Sea God's inheritance, he needed to pass six trials. It seemed they were related to these six circular platforms.
As Neptune was pondering, waves of golden light surged from the Circular Platform beneath his feet, rushing into his body and rendering him completely immobile.
At this moment, aside from being able to see, he couldn't react in any way. Even the flow of soul power within his body slowed to a crawl.
Suddenly, without any warning, a searing heat erupted from his left arm. It was immediately followed by a powerful tearing sensation that exploded into excruciating pain, making Neptune's vision go black!
Damn this feeling.
It was as if someone was forcibly using a knife to slice open his skin, cut through his muscles, and brutally tear his bone out! And worst of all, it was without any anesthetic. One could only imagine the pain.
Fortunately, at that moment, a burst of golden light surged forth. The Sea God Trident he was holding began to emit a hazy golden glow. Shrouded in this golden light, Neptune felt the intense pain slowly diminish. Although it was still agonizing, it was at least within a tolerable range, not so painful that he would pass out.
At the same time, one of the six small platforms surrounding the Circular Platform where Neptune stood flew out, floating about a meter in front of him.
The platform shimmered with beautiful, wave-like golden patterns. Unfortunately, Neptune, who was having a soul bone brutally torn from his body, was in no mood to appreciate it.
A streak of golden light flew from his left arm and landed precisely on the small circular platform. It didn't collide but instead floated about fifty centimeters above it. It was, unmistakably, a left arm bone emitting a black light.
This was a ten-thousand-year soul bone, one that came with his character profile upon transmigration. Because his originally god-level profile had been downgraded, it was only a soul bone of several tens of thousands of years, not a 100,000-year one.
At this moment, Neptune suddenly found he had regained his mobility. At the same time, a prompt sounded in his ear, "The restraints will be lifted. If you resist the soul bone's removal, the trial will be forcibly terminated. The most severe consequence for termination is annihilation. You must not leave the two-meter radius from the platform's center, nor must you move the part of your body from which the soul bone is being removed. Otherwise, it will be considered as forfeiting the inheritance."
"Are the six trials just about removing soul bones?"
"I feel like it's not that simple. There have to be other trials. Otherwise, if it's just enduring pain, that would be too easy," Neptune thought.
(end of chapter)
