The Divine Seat Returns, Storms Gather

Sea God Island, before the Sea God Palace.

Nine beams of divine light descended from the heavens, spiraling down like nine golden dragons and completely enveloping Tang San. His body slowly rose, floating in midair. Within the divine radiance, his Blue Silver Emperor martial soul underwent a complete transformation, becoming sea-blue divine Vines that coiled around his body. The Clear Sky Hammer was likewise tempered by divine power, its surface engraved with Sea God Runes and radiating a pressure capable of suppressing the Western Sea.

Boom—!

With a thunderous crash, the divine seat returned to its rightful place.

Tang San opened his eyes. The golden light within them was gone, replaced by a deep blue as profound as the sea itself, as though they contained the entire ocean. He raised a hand lightly, and the sea surface parted on its own. Countless Sea Soul Beasts lowered their heads in worship; even century-old Soul Beasts could not help trembling. This was submission rooted in bloodline and soul.

"Welcome, Sea God!" Bo Saixi dropped to one knee, her voice solemn.

All the soul masters on Sea God Island knelt in worship. Only the wind gently brushed past Tang San's hem.

He lowered his head and looked toward the figure that had long vanished beyond the jade-green waves. In a low voice, he said, "Yang Jun, I remember what you asked me. This divine seat is not the end, but the beginning."

Three days later, at a small city on the border of the Heaven Dou Empire.

In the middle of the night, a blue radiance suddenly lit up the sky, spreading like a tidal wave and covering the entire city. The townspeople woke in alarm and looked upward, only to see a figure standing amid divine light above the clouds, Vines wrapped around his body, the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand, and eyes as deep as the sea.

"I am Tang San. Today, I inherit the seat of the Sea God and proclaim my first divine decree:

First, all people of Douluo Continent, whether soul masters or ordinary folk, must take it upon themselves to protect all living beings. None may bully the weak through strength, nor oppress others with Soul Power.

Second, should Spirit Hall commit slaughter again and harm the innocent, I will personally come to hold them accountable.

Third, Sea God Island will open the Sea God Trial. Any who aspire to protect others may go there to train, regardless of origin or bloodline.

This decree takes effect today. Those who violate it shall suffer divine punishment."

As his words fell, the divine light faded, and Tang San's figure disappeared beyond the horizon.

The entire city fell silent. After a long while, deafening cheers erupted. "The Sea God has appeared! The Sea God has appeared!"

Meanwhile, at Spirit Hall headquarters, Qian Xunji was beside himself with rage. With a single palm strike, he shattered a stone pillar. "Tang San! You dare use the name of a god to suppress me? Do you think Spirit Hall's fate can be decided by you alone?"

He raised his head to the heavens, frenzied battle intent blazing in his eyes. "Since you have become a god, then I shall—slay a god!"

Extreme North Snowfield, before Solitary Cultivation Hall.

Yang Jun stood amid the wind and snow, using the Shennong Hoe to tap the ground lightly and plow a shallow mark. Yu Xiaogang emerged from the hall and handed him a bamboo scroll. "These are ancient records from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon lineage. They record an old pact between their ancestors and the Sea God. Perhaps they can answer your doubts."

Yang Jun accepted it and opened it, his gaze stopping on one page. "Gods are not born; they are made from men. The path is not bestowed by heaven; it is upheld by the heart."

He chuckled softly. "So gods were once mortals too."

Yu Xiaogang said, "You saved Tang San and protected him through the Divine Tribulation, but why did you not contend for it? With your strength, if you entered Sea God Island, you might not have failed to claim a divine seat."

Yang Jun shook his head. "A divine seat is not won through contention, but kept through protection. I till the fields not to become a god, but so every seed can break through the soil. If I became a god yet forgot how to till the land, then I would rather not have this godhood at all."

Amid the wind and snow, he turned and walked into the hall, leaving behind a single sentence. "A true god is not in the heavens, but among mankind."

Deep within the Star Dou Great Forest, a black shadow moved in secret.

Clad in a black robe and concealing his aura, he was none other than the commander of Spirit Hall's covert division—Ghost Leopard Douluo. He held a Soul Tool in his hand, receiving intelligence from the Extreme North: "Target confirmed. The Solitary Cultivator remains in the Extreme North and has not allied himself with the Sea God. Recommendation: eliminate him before he grows stronger."

Ghost Leopard Douluo sneered. "A mere mortal dares challenge divine authority. He truly does not know the meaning of death."

Just as he was about to activate a soul skill, the ground suddenly trembled.

A thousand-year Ice Bear Soul Beast leaped from the snow and lunged at him with an angry roar. Ghost Leopard Douluo was about to strike when a streak of green light flashed past. The Ice Bear was instantly frozen solid, then shattered into countless ice crystals that scattered in the wind.

"The Land of the Extreme North is not a place you should have come to."

The voice was cold and clear, like a plow breaking through snow.

Ghost Leopard Douluo's pupils contracted sharply. He turned to flee, only to see a furrow slowly extending across the snow ahead of him, reaching all the way to his feet.

"Y-you're Yang Jun?!"

"Since you came, leave something behind." Yang Jun emerged from the wind and snow, raising the Shennong Hoe slightly. "For example—your martial soul."

The Convergence of Gods and Mortals

Meanwhile, Heaven Dou City.

Tang San stood atop the imperial palace, gazing into the distance. Xiao Wu quietly came up behind him. "Are you really going to fulfill that oath?"

"Which one?"

"To protect all living beings and not betray the Solitary Cultivator's question."

Tang San nodded. "I have become a god, but a divine seat is not a privilege. It is a responsibility. Yang Jun questioned me with the body of a mortal. If I answer wrongly, then I am unworthy of being a god."

Xiao Wu gently caressed his hand. "Then I will stay with you, even if we must face the whole world."

Tang San smiled and tightened his grip on her hand. "With you by my side, I fear nothing."

At that moment, a blue ray shot in from the Extreme North and went straight into his brow.

Tang San closed his eyes to sense it. A moment later, he opened them and murmured, "Yang Jun... You sealed Ghost Leopard Douluo's martial soul by yourself?"

He looked up at the sky as divine light rose once more. "It seems this storm has only just begun."

Seeds of the Path Take Root, and the Future Holds Promise

Several days later, the Heaven Dou Empire issued a new decree: the Solitary Cultivation Academy would be established, dedicated to disaster relief, water management, and land reclamation, with Yu Xiaogang in charge. The people cheered, calling it "the academy founded jointly by the Sea God and the Solitary Cultivator."

Among the people, more and more soul masters began laying down their conflicts and devoting themselves to matters of livelihood. One farmer said, "Though I have no Soul Power, tilling the fields every day is also a form of protection."

A soul master said, "I am willing to use my Soul Power to draw water and help the people dig canals. This is my 'tilling.'"

Amid the wind and snow, before Solitary Cultivation Hall, Yang Jun looked at the cooking smoke rising in the distance and said softly, "The path does not lie in a divine seat, but in the hearts of people. So long as someone is willing to till the land, hope will never be cut off."

He raised the Shennong Hoe, plowed through fresh snow, and sowed new seeds.

—This furrow plowed the earth, broke fate, and planted the path.