Sun Moon Empire, Moon South Archipelago, June Island, southern seas. The moon hung full in the sky.
The two people occupying Zhu Ziyang's thoughts—Jiang Nannan and Zhang Lexuan—were currently engaged in a rather unique trial in these waters. Each of them held a white net in hand, woven from luminous silver threads that shimmered like moonlight from afar.
Their gazes were focused intently on the sea surface in front of them. Suddenly, over a dozen uniquely shaped sea fish leapt from the water, tracing elegant crescent arcs through the air. The moment the two saw them, they moved, swinging their nets in an attempt to catch the fish.
These weren't ordinary fish—they were the targets of their trial. Each one was silver, less than fifty centimeters in length, with streamlined, spindle-shaped bodies that allowed for explosive bursts of speed. Their scales bore faint moon-patterns, enabling them to teleport under moonlight.
These sea spirit beasts were known as Silvermoon Spirit Fish, a unique species found only in the Moon South Archipelago. Legend held that they were kin to the Moonlight Goddess herself, and among the archipelago's people and soul masters, they were considered sacred. Most locals refrained from hunting them, believing it would incur the moon's wrath.
Thus, the Silvermoon Spirit Fish thrived. It was said their leader had already become a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, though no one had ever seen it.
Though Jiang Nannan and Zhang Lexuan didn't know the true strength of the Silvermoon Spirit Fish Empress, they knew this much: each of the ones assisting them in their Moonlight Five Trials was a ten-thousand-year soul beast.
Because of this, neither girl dared to slack off. After missing on their first attempts, they instantly released their martial souls and resolved to go all-out for a clean completion of the trial.
Behind both girls, soul rings began to appear under the moonlight, glowing in a splendid array. Zhang Lexuan's soul rings: three purple, four black, one red. Jiang NanNans: two purple, four black. These configurations were the results of the rewards they'd received over the past year of trials.
In just a year, both girls had increased their soul power by at least five ranks. Zhang Lexuan had undoubtedly reached Rank 90; all she needed was to absorb her ninth ring to become a Titled Douluo. Yet she remembered Zhu Ziyang's instructions and had not rushed to hunt it. Jiang Nannan had reached Rank 69, only one step away from her own breakthrough.
The moment they released their martial souls, the Silvermoon Spirit Fish began reacting to the pressure. Their teleportation under the moonlight became even more frequent, dazzling to the eye.
Jiang NanNans expression remained calm. She activated her first and fourth soul skills. Her body glimmered with silver radiance and instantly vanished, reappearing amid the school of fish. Her special spirit fish net swept out—three or four of the fish, unable to dodge in time, swam right into the net and immediately lost their ability to teleport in the moonlight.
Having caught three fish in one move, Jiang Nannan was thrilled. She triggered the second phase of her fourth soul skill and instantly returned to her original spot. Releasing the fish from her net, she said with a smile, "Thank you!"
The three Silvermoon Spirit Fish wagged their tails at her before swimming back into the group to continue the trial.
On the other side, Zhang Lexuan had a much easier time. Her Moon Martial Soul resonated with the moon above, casting immobilizing moonlight across the surface of the sea. Over a dozen fish were frozen in place. With a gentle smile, she tossed her net and scooped up ten fish at once. The osmanthus mark on her forehead glimmered, and she beamed.
"Nannan, I'm done!" Zhang Lexuan called out.
"What? That fast?" Jiang Nannan had just caught two more fish using the same technique. When she heard Lexuan's voice, her expression turned a bit distressed. "Ahhh! I've only caught five. I still need fifteen more!"
"Then you'd better work hard!" Zhang Lexuan laughed. "These little guys are really nimble!"
She released her ten fish back into the water. They wagged their tails at her and swam toward Jiang NanNans side.
Now surrounded by thirty Silvermoon Spirit Fish—all ten-thousand-year beasts—Jiang Nannan found the challenge growing even harder. Once their numbers reached a certain threshold, their scale reflections amplified the moonlight, expanding their teleportation field. This was a major test of skill.
Zhang Lexuan watched Jiang Nannan fumble a bit and couldn't help but smile helplessly. She wanted to help, but the trial rules were strict—this had to be completed alone. All she could do was cheer her on from the sidelines.
Seeing that Nannan wasn't truly struggling, Lexuan turned her attention to refining her own reward from the Red-Grade Fifth Trial.
Sitting cross-legged above the water, she closed her eyes. A line of text appeared in her mind: "Red-Grade Fifth Trial completed. Reward: One God Bestowed Soul Ring. One soul ring of your choice gains +1,000 years."
Without hesitation, Zhang Lexuan applied the boost to her third soul ring, turning it into a black ring. Truthfully, before receiving the rewards of the Red-Grade First Trial, she'd never imagined her soul rings would one day reach such an astonishing configuration. She found herself admiring the divine power of the Silvermoon Goddess even more deeply.
Opening her eyes, a red pearl appeared in her hand—her God Bestowed Soul Ring. Absorbing it would grant her a hundred-thousand-year soul ring. She had received one of these before, back after her Red-Grade Third Trial. But she still remembered Zhu Ziyang's warning: not to rush into absorbing new rings. And if Zhu Ziyang had said so, there must be a reason.
Her trust in him was absolute.
Time slipped by as Zhang Lexuan sat in stillness. Just before dawn, with the full moon about to set, Jiang Nannan finally caught her twentieth Silvermoon Spirit Fish. She had made it in time, not letting the trial spill into the next night.
She wasted no time and sat down immediately to accept the reward of the Moonlight Nine Trials. "Moonlight Nine Trials complete. Reward: +10% Divine Affinity, +1 Soul Power Rank, +1,000 years to all soul rings."
Compared to Zhang Lexuan's Red-Grade Eighth Trial, this reward was unquestionably superior. With the additional rank, Jiang Nannan reached Rank 70. Her soul ring colors didn't change much with the extra years, but what she cared about most was her Divine Affinity.
After her Fifth Trial, her Divine Affinity had already reached 60%. Now that she fully understood the nature of the Moonlight Goddess's inheritance, she knew exactly what that meant. Her heart overflowed with joy.
"Congratulations, Nannan!" Zhang Lexuan walked over, smiling warmly. "A seventy-ranked Soul Sage at eighteen… you're even better than me."
"No way!" Jiang Nannan grinned. "It's because of the divine trial boosts! You, on the other hand, got here on your own talent. By the way, Sister Lexuan, have you seen the Sixth Trial yet?"
"Not yet." Zhang Lexuan shook her head. "Let's check together."
"Okay!" Jiang Nannan agreed cheerfully, then focused her mind to view her Moonlight Sixth Trial. But when she saw it, she froze. A second later, she leapt up with a shriek. "Sister Lexuan!"
Zhang Lexuan had also just seen her Red-Grade Sixth Trial and was briefly stunned. Hearing NanNans excited yell, she quickly understood—they'd probably received the same task.
Stifling a smile, she said, "Let's say it together?"
"Okay!" Nannan calmed herself, nodded, and the two girls took a deep breath, looked each other in the eyes, and said in unison:
"Help Zhu Ziyang complete the Death God's Seventh Trial!"
(End of Chapter)
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