When the Godzilla mark appeared, Yu Xiaowei immediately felt that the sea was under his control.
The Holy Seahorse Pillar, which was somewhat repulsive to land-based soul masters, now radiated a sense of closeness.
Poseidon asked in confusion,
"What is this thing on your head?"
As the world's most devout follower of the Sea God, he clearly knew that the Sea God's symbol was a trident pattern.
But now, on Yu Xiaowei's forehead, there was the head of a strange soul beast.
What was even stranger was that this peculiar Sea God mark truly emitted the orthodox aura of the Sea God.
For a moment, Poseidon was dumbfounded.
What exactly was going on?!
Yu Xiaowei, feeling refreshed, slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Poseidon staring at him, he couldn't help but point at his face and ask curiously,
"Senior, is there something on my face?"
"No."
Poseidon smiled, covering his awkwardness. "Alright, the trial is over. Let's go."
On the beach, the seven Guardian Douluo and Sword Douluo craned their necks anxiously. When they saw the two figures approaching, they quickly walked over.
"High Priest, what kind of trial did the Sea God give this child?"
"Xiaowei, how are you? Are you feeling unwell? What is this thing on your forehead?"
After Sword Douluo spoke, everyone noticed the strange mark on Yu Xiaowei's forehead.
Just as they were about to ask further, Poseidon gently tapped his scepter on the ground, and everyone immediately fell silent.
"This child is the first person to undergo this trial since the founding of our Sea God Island."
"He has accepted the Sea God's Trial."
The seven Guardian Douluo, led by Sea Dragon Douluo, were instantly stunned.
The Sea God's Trial.
A trial that existed only in legends.
It was the hardest trial, and its reward was the greatest. There were a total of nine tests. Those who completed them all would become the next Sea God.
But in the tens of thousands of years of Sea God Island's existence, no one had ever completed the Sea God's Trial.
Even Poseidon himself, who was extremely talented, only completed up to the eighth trial.
How could a land-based soul master now undertake such a top-tier trial?!
A land-based soul master actually had the hope of becoming the next Sea God. In an instant, absurdity, shock, disbelief, and various other complicated emotions flooded the hearts of the seven Guardian Douluo.
"Convey my orders. From today, before this child completes the Sea God's Trial, he will be a VIP of our island, and no one is allowed to disrespect him."
"This is closest to Seahorse City in Eurasia, so let them stay in Seahorse City."
"Tomorrow, the Sea God Temple will discuss this matter."
After saying this, Poseidon's body turned into light and disappeared in an instant.
After Poseidon left, Seahorse Douluo collected his thoughts and enthusiastically invited Chen Xin and Yu Xiaowei to Seahorse City.
Along the way, Seahorse Douluo kept subtly questioning Yu Xiaowei, trying to find out his soul power level, his personal experiences, and the contents of his trial.
But Yu Xiaowei brushed them off with jokes.
That night, lying on his bed, Yu Xiaowei frowned as he looked at his first trial.
The sequence was the same as in the original story: the first trial was to climb the Sea God's Light, with a time limit of one year.
The difference was that originally, Tang San and the others only needed to climb 130 steps before the forbidden zone.
Tang San alone climbed 333 steps.
Why did he have so many to climb?
If he remembered correctly, weren't there only 1,001 steps in total? That meant he needed to climb to the summit of Sea God Mountain!
At that time, Tang San relied on two 100,000-year spirit rings and a soul power level of 75 to climb 333 steps.
Yu Xiaowei was only at level 57 now, and even with the Sea God's Light accelerating his cultivation, under such a tight timeframe, he could at best climb with the strength of a Spirit Emperor.
Looking at the Godzilla head on his forehead in the mirror, he had every reason to suspect that the old Sea God was taking revenge on him.
In fact, he was right.
Although the divine consciousness of the Sea God on Sea God Island wasn't synchronized with the Sea God's consciousness in the Vast Sea Universe Realm, it was still directly connected to the Sea God, allowing him to sense if his descendants appeared in the mortal world.
But when Yu Xiaowei was baptized by the Holy Pillar, the Godzilla phantom devoured the Sea God's divine consciousness again, taking over the power of the Sea God's mark.
The Sea God in the Divine Realm sensed this instantly and became furious.
What angered him even more was that, because the gods in the Divine Realm fiercely competed for descendants, once a divine trial began, it could not be stopped or altered, not even the rewards.
With the Sea God's Trial already underway, there was no way to revoke it.
So, the furious Sea God immediately maxed out the trial's difficulty.
Yu Xiaowei got up early the next day.
After having breakfast in Seahorse City, he and Chen Xin, led by a soul master from Seahorse City, headed toward the forbidden area of Sea God Island.
The distance of just 200 kilometers wasn't far for Yu Xiaowei, who possessed extraordinary physical strength, or for Chen Xin, a Title Douluo.
Thus, the spirit saint leading the way did not slow down, and they arrived at the forbidden area in only two hours.
The forbidden area of Sea God Island was actually an island within the island, where the Sea God Temple that enshrined the Sea God stood.
This island was also known as the true Sea God Island.
Rather than calling it an island, it would be better described as a mountain. The entire island was covered in a layer of brilliant golden light. This was the Sea God's Light, the same kind of energy Yu Xiaowei had felt during his trial.
At the top of the island stood a square palace carved from what looked like white jade.
The purple-robed spirit saint of Seahorse City pointed at the jade steps in front of the Sea God Temple and said:
"Honored guest, this is where you must pass the trial. There are a total of 1,001 steps."
"And please do not cause a disturbance on Sea God Mountain, so as not to anger Lord Poseidon."
Chen Xin raised his eyebrows, his face serious.
When he saw the Sea God Temple on the island, he couldn't help but feel the urge to worship.
"Is this the power of a god?"
He muttered to himself, his heart full of awe.
Yu Xiaowei rarely smiled, but his face was serious as he looked at the thousand jade steps.
He turned to the purple-robed spirit saint and said sincerely:
"Senior, please prepare our meals regularly. We'll need to stay here and cultivate for some time."
"Understood."
After receiving the reply, Yu Xiaowei signaled to Chen Xin, and the two flew toward Sea God Mountain.
When the sea soul beasts in the surrounding waters sensed Chen Xin, who didn't have the Sea God's aura, some tried to attack him.
But as soon as Chen Xin released his Title Douluo cultivation, the sea soul beasts that had partially surfaced quickly retreated.
Although the sea soul beasts had grown much stronger under the enhancement of the Sea God's Light, aside from the 100,000-year Devil Spirit Great White Shark, no sea beast dared provoke a Title Douluo.
After landing at the foot of Sea God Mountain, Chen Xin's eyes filled with even greater awe.
He had just come into contact with the divine-level energy, and the bottleneck that had trapped him for over twenty years began to loosen.
This was something he had never expected.
The Sea God's Light not only tested one's physical limits but also, for Title Douluo above level 95, this initial contact with higher-level energy could allow them to grasp a sense of the divine realm.
And this level of perception was the biggest hurdle for every Super Douluo.
While doing warm-up exercises, Yu Xiaowei explained the precautions for climbing Sea God Mountain.
"Grandpa Jian, don't use soul power or offensive soul skills. The Sea God's Light can only be resisted with your physical strength, body protection, and strengthening-type soul skills."
"Training here won't only benefit me but also you."
"Come on, let's climb together."
Chen Xin nodded and eagerly stepped onto the first step.
The moment he stepped onto the step, tremendous pressure squeezed his body as if he had hit an invisible barrier in front of him.
A golden mist appeared all over his body. Surrounded by this mist, Chen Xin's soul power began to deplete rapidly.
However, this consumption and resistance were nothing for a Title Douluo, and he could endure it completely.
With just one step, Chen Xin's understanding of level 97 surged like a tidal wave.
It was truly miraculous.
After only one step, he had gained such insight. If he climbed higher, wouldn't he soon be able to break through to level 97?!
Excited, Chen Xin quickened his pace and even forgot about Yu Xiaowei beside him, rushing forward with large strides.
Ten steps, twenty steps, fifty steps, one hundred steps.
In just ten minutes, Chen Xin had climbed to the hundredth step.
Although he wasn't a Title Douluo known for physical strength, a hundred steps were no big deal for him.
The reason he stopped was that after calming down, he suddenly remembered that he had forgotten about Yu Xiaowei.
By his estimation, the pressure of a hundred steps was roughly what an ordinary Spirit Sage could withstand.
"Grandpa Jian, why did you stop? Just keep going."
Hearing this familiar voice, Chen Xin turned his head in surprise and looked at Yu Xiaowei, who also looked relaxed. His heart churned like a raging sea.
He clearly remembered that Yu Xiaowei was only a Spirit King now!
Even if this kid could kill a powerhouse like Tang Hao, even if his spirit rings were extraordinary, this was the pressure of the Sea God's Light at the Spirit Saint level.
Your casual attitude would make all other Spirit Saints lose face.
Not only Chen Xin, but also the purple-robed spirit saint at the foot of the mountain and Poseidon in the Sea God Temple were all horrified.
They had all taken this test before.
They knew exactly how difficult it was to pass through the Sea God's Light.
Even Poseidon himself, when he completed the first eight trials back in the day, had already reached level 74 and was an Emperor Soul Master.
Even so, when he first took the first trial, he only climbed to the sixtieth step.
Ultimately, this first trial trapped him for a full year, and he barely completed it after raising his soul power to Spirit Saint.
As for Yu Xiaowei's soul power, Poseidon had probed it thoroughly when he landed on the island. He was only at level 57.
But how could he be so relaxed in the Sea God's Light?
What the others didn't know was that at this moment, golden energy continuously surged through Yu Xiaowei's limbs.
This energy resonated with the Sea God's Light within his body, allowing him to quickly adapt to the pressure exerted by the Sea God's Light.
His complete soul bones already gave him astonishing physical enhancement.
Moreover, after absorbing Da Ming's spirit ring, his already terrifying body became even stronger.
By Yu Xiaowei's own estimate, purely in terms of his body, he could at least rival a Title Douluo who hadn't trained their physical body.
On top of that, with the Sea God's power devoured by the Godzilla phantom, he didn't feel any pressure within the first 100 steps.
No wonder the first trial was so difficult.
When the pressure of the Sea God's Light didn't exceed the Sea God's power in his body, Yu Xiaowei could easily climb hundreds of steps.
Even if the Sea God's power in his body couldn't fully offset the pressure, it would still weaken it.
In other words, he had a decent chance of climbing all the way to the 1,001st step, a feat as difficult as ascending to the heavens for an ordinary Super Douluo.
So, under the intense gazes of Poseidon and Chen Xin, Yu Xiaowei continued climbing.
As he climbed higher and higher, Poseidon's hands began to tremble slightly.
What kind of monster was this?
For tens of thousands of years, countless geniuses had appeared on Sea God Island, but no one had ever climbed past the 50th step at the Spirit King level.
But now, this youth, who had accepted the Sea God's Trial, had climbed to the 400th step in less than an hour.
Even faster than some Super Douluo.
At this point, Yu Xiaowei finally began to feel the pressure.
As expected, at the 400th step, the Sea God's power within his body could still resist the Sea God's Light, but it could no longer completely offset the pressure.
The pressure at this stage wasn't unbearable yet, and didn't affect his steps much, but as he climbed higher, the pressure grew stronger.
When he reached the 500th step, the pressure had increased to the point where it began to hinder his climbing.
At the 600th step, Yu Xiaowei's pace began to slow down. He could no longer ascend ten steps at a time, but could only climb step by step.
By the 700th step, Yu Xiaowei was already struggling, exerting great effort just to take a single step.
Poseidon was already numb.
The purple-robed spirit saint who hadn't left yet was on the verge of kneeling in shock.
In his heart, he could only sigh, "Inhuman!!!"
Chen Xin had stopped at the 465th step, where the pressure had increased to a level even a Super Douluo like him had to stop and rest.
Watching Yu Xiaowei still struggling upward, Chen Xin's eyes were filled with indescribable shock and pride.
This was the future son-in-law of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
What genius from another sect could even compare to his shoes!!!
Standing on the 721st step, Yu Xiaowei could no longer move. Under the immense pressure, blood spurted from multiple places on his body, staining him like a man drenched in blood.
Looking at the 280 steps remaining, he took a deep breath.
His fifth soul ring lit up.
Red Lotus Mode activated again.
With a sky-shaking roar, the over four-meter-tall Red Lotus Godzilla appeared on Sea God Mountain.
The Sea God's Light, which had previously suppressed Yu Xiaowei and made it difficult for him to move, suddenly became like a grasshopper trying to stop a war chariot. Taking advantage of the surge of power, Yu Xiaowei charged forward.
In just a quarter of an hour, he rushed to the 890th step.
At this height, Yu Xiaowei's soul power was finally completely exhausted, and he collapsed.
Although Yu Xiaowei did not reach the 1,001st step in one go, this result was enough to shake all of Sea God Island.
A level 57 Spirit King.
He had managed to reach nearly the 900th step in the first trial.
Soul masters from the other six cities flocked to Seahorse City, all eager to witness the face of this unparalleled genius.