"I can't go on..."
Ning Rongrong activated the "Freeloader Combo", launching herself to the 286th step.
The moment she landed, her head tilted, and she fainted right on the edge of the stairs.
Bo Saixi casually waved her hand, whisking Ning Rongrong away.
Now—
Only Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Shui Bing'er remained behind Tang Lan.
At level 69, Xiao Wu could barely hold on.
At level 59, Zhu Zhuqing was struggling hard.
And at level 53, Shui Bing'er was teetering on the edge of collapse.
She was clearly at her limit.
Tang Lan halted and looked at the three girls.
"Are you ready?"
"We're making our final charge."
All three nodded firmly.
"Good. Then—"
A small flying sword rose from Tang Lan's waist, pointing toward the top of the stairs.
His left eye's double pupils gleamed brightly.
Activating its million-year ability—Limit Break!
Five cloned Life Spirits of Blue Silver Emperor appeared, carrying thirty-five blood-red spirit rings, pulsing up and down.
Adding his original Blue Silver Emperor's seven rings, plus his Thunderflame Ice Haotian Hammer's two red and one purple-gold rings—
A total of 45 spirit rings, dazzling to the eyes.
But more than dazzling—
It was shocking!
What the hell is this?!
45 blood-red spirit rings?!
Wait!
Was Tang Lan about to…
"Crack—"
"Crack—"
"Crack—"
"Crack—"
"Crack—"
A rapid series of spirit ring shattering sounds filled the air.
Even Bo Saixi, who had remained indifferent for most of the assessment, finally turned serious, sensing an overwhelming presence!
"Spirit Bone Skill—Great Xu Mi Hammer!"
With the Grand Completion of his Undying Seal Technique and his precise spiritual control,
95% of the power from the shattered spirit rings was poured directly into the small flying sword.
The sword swelled into a giant slab-sized blade, completely filling the staircase passage.
—If Tang Lan hadn't restrained its size, it would've been at least ten times larger!
Tang Lan shouted, "Get ready!"
At the same time, he activated his divine ability—Three Heads, Six Arms!
The three girls leapt onto Tang Lan,
One clinging to his head,
One wrapping around his waist,
And one grabbing onto his third arm.
Then, all three activated—
"Fourth Soul Skill—Invincible Golden Body!"
Tang Lan's two free hands pressed forward with all his strength.
"Off you go!"
Like a spear piercing the heavens,
A sword beam shot up from the Sea God's Hall,
cleaving through the Sea God's Light in an instant!
Tang Lan rode the vacuum path left by the sword,
Using his Wave-Stepping Movement Technique, flashing forward repeatedly.
Before the Sea God's Light could restore itself,
He had already crossed the remaining steps and stood before Bo Saixi.
Leaving Bo Saixi completely dumbfounded.
Wait.
What just…
I…
You…
Huh?!
Bo Saixi never in her life expected Tang Lan to have this trick up his sleeve.
That Heaven-Sundering Sword,
Had no fancy techniques,
It was just pure, overwhelming power.
A force so immense that it overwhelmed all other skills.
The sheer impact—
Even as a Rank 99 Limit Douluo, she had felt threatened by it!
And Tang Lan was only level 76!
This…
I…
He…
Even as a Limit Douluo, Bo Saixi couldn't process it for a moment.
Only the Sea God's Mark remained unfazed, faithfully executing its duty.
「Sea God's First Trial: Pass Through Triple Sea God's Light—Complete!」
「Reached 1,001 Steps—Exceeding the requirement by 300%!」
「Reward: Sea God Affinity +15%!」
「Sea God's Second Trial Unlocked—Breaking Through the Ringed Seal: Cross the Circular Sea while avoiding the attacks of the 100,000-year-old Devil Soul Great White Sharks guarding Sea God Island, without killing any sea spirit beasts, and reach the opposite shore!」
Tang Lan smiled.
15% Sea God Affinity!
Three times higher than the 5% Tang San got in the original timeline.
Just as he predicted—
As long as he over-achieved in the trials, the rewards would also be amplified.
Tang Lan glanced at the stunned group and asked with a grin—
"What rewards did you all get?"
His words snapped them back to reality.
Soon, their lips curled into unstoppable grins.
"Sect Master! These rewards are insane!"
Dai Mubai beamed with excitement—
"Level increased by 1!"
"And because I exceeded the trial by 200%, I got an extra reward—
My first spirit ring has been upgraded to 1,000 years!"**
Dai Mubai revealed his soul rings.
Purple, Yellow, Purple, Black, Black.
The colors looked odd but strangely powerful.
"Oh? Not bad, not bad." Tang Lan nodded approvingly. "Let's hope next time you overachieve again and get your second ring upgraded to a thousand years."
Dai Mubai was thrilled at the thought.
Tang Lan then turned to the others.
"My reward is the same," Oscar said with a grin, revealing his matching Purple, Yellow, Purple, Black, Black soul ring combination.
Jing Ling also grinned from ear to ear and showed off an even better lineup—
Purple, Yellow, Black, Black!
As the first successful Soul Spirit experimenter, he had reaped serious benefits—
His third soul ring was second only to Zhu Zhuqing's in power, reaching ten thousand years!
"That's odd… Why is my reward different from yours?" Ning Rongrong smirked.
Then—
She proudly displayed her soul rings—
Yellow, Purple, Black, Red!
One ring, one color!
Everyone was already familiar with her 160,000-year fourth spirit ring—
That wasn't surprising.
But—
Her first ring was still a hundred years, so how did her second ring suddenly become a thousand years?!
And even more shocking—
How did her third soul ring become ten thousand years?!
Wasn't Ning Rongrong's original third ring from a 4,399-year Earth Violent Bear?!
As the group gawked, Ning Rongrong proudly lifted her chin and announced smugly—
"My reward was one level increase and +500 years to all my soul rings. So, my first ring turned yellow, and my second ring turned purple."
"Since I overachieved by 200%, my third ring got an additional 5,000-year boost, making it a ten-thousand-year soul ring!"
"Jealous?"
"Hehehe—"
Seeing how ecstatic Ning Rongrong looked, everyone couldn't help but feel a little sour.
But after thinking it over—
Ning Rongrong's Top-Tier Eight Trials were meant to nurture her as the future Grand Priestess.
Meanwhile, their Black-Level Trials were just piggybacking off the system for rewards.
So, it shouldn't be that big of a deal—
Like hell it wasn't!
"You gaining more years doesn't even matter," Oscar muttered, trying to console himself. "Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's buffs scale by percentage, so at most, you'll just get a bit tankier. No big deal. I'm not jealous at all!"
Dai Mubai and the others gritted their teeth and nodded.
—Absolutely not jealous!
Ning Rongrong stuck out her tongue playfully and laughed smugly.
—Cry about it!
"Alright, you guys have it better than me," Xiao Wu suddenly spoke up, then turned to Bo Saixi.
"Xi-jie, why is my reward stacking up?"
"Mine too," Zhu Zhuqing added.
"Same here," Shui Bing'er chimed in.
The three girls exchanged glances—something was up!
Bo Saixi stepped forward,
Glancing at Ning Rongrong first and nodding in approval.
"Good, you've reached level 50. Keep up the hard work."
Ning Rongrong grinned and cheerfully agreed.
Her God-bestowed spirit ring had already been secured in her storage ring.
But she wasn't in a rush to absorb it.
With a 160,000-year Soul Spirit, she could gain three to five more spirit rings.
Until level 80, she didn't need to consider absorbing any normal spirit rings.
Bo Saixi then turned to Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Shui Bing'er.
"You should ask Tang Lan what his reward was."
No need to ask.
Tang Lan answered on his own—
"My reward was +15% Sea God Affinity."
Clearly, this reward was meant to groom him as the future Sea God.
Everyone waited for a few seconds—
But Tang Lan didn't continue.
Wait—
"That's… all?" Zhu Zhuqing asked.
"Yep, that's it," Tang Lan nodded.
"...What the—"
The group exchanged looks, unsure what to say.
Bo Saixi remained calm and explained—
"Your reward system is different."
"All trials below the Sea God's Nine Trials, including Ning Rongrong's Top-Tier Eight Trials, exist to quickly strengthen Sea God Island.
"That's why their rewards primarily focus on improving raw strength."
"But Sea God's Nine Trials, and the companions participating in it, have their rewards stacked until the very end—where quantity transforms into quality."
"To put it simply—"
"Rongrong, would you rather level up from 49 to 50 or from 89 to 90?"
Was that even a question?
Ning Rongrong instantly blurted out—
"Of course, from 89 to 90!"
The group suddenly understood.
Tang Lan, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Shui Bing'er—their rewards were accumulating for a massive power surge later.
"This actually makes me a bit jealous now," Dai Mubai muttered. "If I could stockpile my level-up rewards, I'd save them until I hit Title Douluo."
The others nodded in agreement.
Except for one person—
Standing completely stunned in place.
Tang Lan had noticed him a while ago.
"Xiao San, what's wrong?"
"Not happy with your reward?"
Tang San lifted his head, looking at Tang Lan with a grim expression.
Because—
His reward wasn't just bad—
It was unbelievably awful!
(Chapter End)