The sacred golden pillar of light spread out in an instant.
Dazzling divine might shot straight into the sky.
At last, it formed a golden trident pattern and sank into Poseinan's brow.
The Sea God's Nine Trials!
As the God Trial began, its contents flooded into his mind as well. The energy was simply too overwhelming, and it knocked him unconscious.
"Your Highness the Divine Son!"
Bo Saixi's expression shifted. She moved in a flash to his side and caught him securely, then gently channeled her pure Soul Power into his body as she checked his condition.
Fortunately, he was fine.
A while later.
Poseinan's long lashes fluttered, and he slowly opened his deep blue eyes.
Bo Saixi and the seven Holy Pillar Douluo had gathered around him, their faces full of concern.
Bo Saixi asked softly, "Your Highness the Divine Son, how are you feeling? Is anything troubling you?"
Poseinan shook his still somewhat swollen little head and, with Bo Saixi's support, straightened up. "I'm fine. I was just a little overwhelmed all at once. Now I feel... great."
He moved his arms and legs. A warm, boundless force flowed through him, and his connection with the sea seemed clearer than ever.
Only then did Bo Saixi finally breathe easy. Her stunning face brightened with a smile again. "That's good."
Sea Dragon Douluo, the most straightforward of them all, couldn't hold back his curiosity. He scratched his head and asked, "Your Highness the Divine Son, I'm awfully curious. What's the content of your First Trial?"
The others nodded as well, their eyes brimming with curiosity.
This was the Sea God's own son.
No one had ever seen an assessment like the one he had received.
It had to be even more challenging than the High Priestess's Top-Level Eight Trials, at the very least, right?
Seeing how curious everyone was, Poseinan didn't hide anything. He answered directly, "My First Trial is to cross the Sea God's Light at triple intensity and climb 555 steps! I have ten years to complete it."
"Good heavens! 555 steps? And under triple the Sea God's Light?!"
Sea Witch Douluo cried out in shock, nearly jumping into the air. "Lord Sea God, that's just... just too strict!"
She had nearly called it insane, but under everyone's gaze—especially Bo Saixi's—she forced herself to change her words and sheepishly stuck out her tongue. "I misspoke, I misspoke..."
No one really held her slip of the tongue against her, because they were just as shocked by the assessment.
The native inhabitants of Sea God Island usually faced around a hundred steps in a Black Level Assessment, and most of the participants were adult Soul Masters.
His Highness the Divine Son was only six years old, yet he had to face 555 steps under triple the pressure of the Sea God's Light—and complete it within ten years.
Just imagining the difficulty made their scalps prickle!
Worry crept over everyone's faces.
Poseinan didn't think it was difficult. In fact, it seemed perfectly reasonable to him. His Soul Power was innately at level twenty, after all.
And then there was the Death God embryo Hela had given him.
Given enough time, it would develop into a Second Martial Soul.
With two god-level Martial Souls, what did he have to fear from the First God Trial's ten-year deadline?
Let's just say the advantage was mine this time!
Tell me! Once the dragon's riding in your face, how can you lose?
Over the next few days, Poseinan settled into a regular training routine.
During the day, he stood before the steps beneath the Sea God's Light and used its immense pressure to temper his Soul Power and body, advancing steadily as he adapted to the crushing force.
At the same time, he asked Bo Saixi to help him look for high-year Whale Rubber.
The reason he still hadn't absorbed his First Soul Ring was that he had been waiting for Whale Rubber.
The Divine Realm wasn't short on treasures that could strengthen the body. In fact, they were far more effective than anything in the lower realm.
But most resources were either too violent in energy for his current stage or couldn't help a Soul Master push the First Soul Ring's age to its limit as safely and effectively as Whale Rubber could.
Poseinan had already tempered his foundation in the Divine Realm until his physique rivaled that of an ordinary Soul Elder. Naturally, he was even less willing to settle for second best.
He wanted to push every single stage as close to its limit as possible!
So, even though Poseinan had tempered his body in the Divine Realm until it was almost as strong as an Soul Elder's, he still hadn't rushed to absorb a Soul Ring.
Bo Saixi didn't understand what he wanted the Whale Rubber for, but it was the Divine Son's request, so she did as he asked.
Since the sea was vast, Bo Saixi wasn't confident she could locate a whale Soul Beast on her own. So, she set out to sea with Demon Soul Great White Shark Xiaobai.
By her reckoning, they should be back around today.
Poseinan had just finished a round of weighted stair training. He rose from the reef by the shore and gazed into the distance.
On the blue horizon where sea met sky, a white streak came cutting through the waves, drawing closer at speed.
When it neared, he could make out a shark as white as jade, with Bo Saixi standing on her back, silver hair flying in the wind.
As the great white shark neared shore, she leaped high, sending sparkling water everywhere. In midair, her body shifted, transforming into a slender young woman with flowing silver hair and snow-white skin. She landed lightly.
Her eyes were bright and lively. At a glance, she spotted the striking blue-haired child on the reef.
With a few quick steps, she came right up to Poseinan as if they were old friends, then bent down and studied him with a cheerful smile. "You're the Sea God's son?"
"That's right. And you are?"
Poseinan had already guessed who she was, but since they were meeting for the first time, he could only pretend not to know.
"Hehe!"
Xiaobai held out her slender fingers and pinched Poseinan's baby-fat cheek without the slightest hesitation. It felt wonderful.
Her eyes curved into crescents. "My name's Xiao Bai. I'm your father's mount!"
Wow! So soft!
Poseinan's face squished under her fingers, and he protested helplessly, "Sister Xiao Bai, could you stop pinching my cheeks...?"
A mischievous glint flashed in Xiao Bai's eyes. "Nope! I guarded the island for Lord Sea God for over ten thousand years. What's wrong with pinching his son's cheeks now? Hehe, you're adorable!"
Who would've thought that Lord Sea God, so awe-inspiring and dignified, would have such an adorable son?
As the mount of Poseidon, Xiao Bai didn't feel much awe toward Poseinan. Instead, she treated him with unreserved warmth and affection.
Seeing this, Bo Saixi smiled and shook her head. Then she took a dark golden sphere of solid material from her concealed Soul Tool. "Nan Nan, here's the Whale Rubber you wanted. It came from a mutated Dark Gold Deep Sea Demon Whale that was seventy thousand years old."
"Wonderful! It's so high in age!"
Poseinan clearly hadn't expected the Whale Rubber to be so old—or for it to have come from a Dark Gold Deep Sea Demon Whale.
As everyone knew, Deep Sea Demon Whales were among the ocean's most powerful Soul Beasts, and they were born with the ability to devour.
In an age when true dragons were nowhere to be found, they were practically invincible.
And only one in ten thousand Deep Sea Demon Whales was born as the more powerful Dark Gold Deep Sea Demon Whale.
The quality of this piece of Whale Rubber was simply unimaginable!
Poseinan asked, "Sisi, could you soften the Whale Rubber for me?"
"Eat it?"
Bo Saixi was taken aback, and her gaze at Poseinan turned strange.
She had always thought the Divine Son wanted the Whale Rubber for research or perhaps to add to a collection.
She'd never imagined he meant to eat it straight away.
Xiao Bai stopped tormenting Poseinan's cheek and widened her eyes. "You little rascal! You're so young, but you already know all about that?"
Their meaningful looks made Poseinan's scalp prickle. He immediately realized they'd gotten the wrong idea.
In this era, Whale Rubber's widely known "special effects" were so firmly ingrained that they overshadowed its true value as a way to strengthen the body.
"Oh, come on, Sisi, Sister Xiao Bai, don't get the wrong idea. Actually, my dad said..."
Poseinan knew it would be hard to convince them, since people's first impression of Whale Rubber was so deeply rooted.
So he could only use his father as a shield.
And it worked.
The moment they heard the Sea God had said it could strengthen the body, neither Xiao Bai nor Bo Saixi objected anymore. They even secretly committed the idea to memory.
They could use Whale Rubber to train their clansmen and the young Soul Masters on the island.
Once heated, the Whale Rubber turned into a lump of gelatinous stuff. It looked pretty appetizing, but it smelled absolutely fishy and foul!
Poseinan was seriously doubtful. "Sisi, can this stuff really be eaten?"
"I've never eaten it either. But Nan Nan, Lord Sea God said so."
Bo Saixi held back a laugh and shook her head, then scooped up a spoonful and held it to his lips. "Be a good boy and eat it. Listen to me."
"All right."
Poseinan took a deep breath, opened his mouth like a man going to his doom, and swallowed the spoonful of Whale Rubber.
Strangely, it wasn't as awful as he'd expected. It tasted a bit like plain ice jelly without any toppings.
Not long after he finished the bowl, a scorching current suddenly rose from his lower abdomen and rushed through every part of his body.
Poseinan didn't dare delay. He sat cross-legged at once, calmed his mind, guided the Soul Power within him, and fully activated his Sea God Spirit.
The Sea God Spirit was truly astonishing in quality. Guided by that gentle yet supreme divine aura, the Whale Rubber's energy, though fierce, caused him no harm. Instead, it flowed like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, refined bit by bit, and merged into his bones and organs, quietly strengthening the foundation of his physique.
Bo Saixi and Xiao Bai kept watch beside him, guarding him as he cultivated.