Bo Saixi's arrival was like a boulder dropped into a placid lake, sending waves surging in every direction.
Her peerless beauty and vast, oceanic divine might seemed to freeze the air along the entire street.
Seahorse Douluo, who stood closest, was the first to react. Without hesitation, he dropped to his right knee, placed his left hand over his chest, bowed his head deeply, and called out in a voice filled with reverence—even piety, "I pay my respects to the High Priestess!"
His voice rang out like a command, instantly jolting everyone nearby out of their daze.
The Sea Soul Masters responsible for keeping order, the children who had just awakened their Martial Souls and their parents, even the onlookers in the distance—all of them, without exception, dropped to one knee the moment they saw the red-clad figure.
Everyone lowered their heads and kept their eyes fixed on the ground, daring not to overstep in the slightest. Not a soul dared even breathe too loudly.
On Sea God Island, the hierarchy was strict to the extreme.
Bo Saixi, the High Priestess, was the Sea God's representative in the mortal world and an existence of supreme authority.
Her majesty had long since become ingrained in everyone's hearts.
Even Seahorse Douluo, a Sacred Pillar Guardian of the highest rank, wouldn't dare set foot inside Sea God Hall without being summoned.
Bo Saixi's personal arrival was a divine miracle that most residents of Sea God Island would never witness in their entire lives. All they could do was express their awe with the most exalted of gestures.
Though Li Qing was a transmigrator, he understood the rules of Sea God Island.
Seeing everyone around him kneeling in a dark mass, he didn't want to stand out too much either. He had just started to imitate Seahorse Douluo and bend his knee in salute when—
As soon as his knee began to bend, a gentle yet irresistible force appeared out of nowhere, like an invisible hand lightly supporting him and keeping him from kneeling.
Li Qing looked up in surprise and met Bo Saixi's beautiful eyes, deep as a sea of stars.
He saw her right hand lift almost imperceptibly. The force had come from her.
She looked at Li Qing, and her ethereal, dignified voice rang out, clear enough for everyone present to hear, yet carrying an unquestionable finality:
"Child, you needn't bow."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over the Golden Trident Mark on Li Qing's forehead, which had yet to fade completely. Her tone grew solemn, like a proclamation. "Since you have received Lord Sea God's inheritance, from this moment on, no one on Sea God Island—not even I—will be worthy of your salute. You are one favored by the Sea God."
At her words, although everyone kept their heads lowered, the stifled shock in the air was palpable, along with the sound of people sucking in sharp breaths.
The Sea God Inheritance? What a supremely blessed opportunity!
It meant that this child named Li Qing would hold a position above every resident of Sea God Island—even one comparable to the High Priestess!
Countless eyes, hidden beneath bowed heads, brimmed with disbelief, reverence, and envy beyond words.
Li Qing froze for a moment, then quickly took the opportunity to straighten up. He did his best to sound obedient. "Oh, thank you, High Priestess."
On the surface, he acted composed, but inside, he was practically bursting with excitement.
Whoa! So this is Bo Saixi, the Sea God Douluo? She's even more stunning up close! That face, that bearing, that figure... absolutely incredible! No wonder that bird-brained High Priestess Qian Daoliu from Spirit Hall and that hammer king Tang Chen from the Clear Sky Sect were both utterly smitten with her and couldn't forget her for decades, even a century. If it were me... Ahem, maybe I'm getting ahead of myself. But speaking of which, beauty often meets a tragic end... No, wait, a fate full of twists and turns. She's destined to sacrifice herself for the Sea God Inheritance. Sigh...
While Li Qing was busy ranting and sighing to himself, he didn't notice that the moment Bo Saixi heard his inner voice, her beautiful eyes—calm as a still well—suddenly narrowed, her pupils trembling ever so slightly!
The elegance and authority on Bo Saixi's peerlessly beautiful face froze in an instant. For the briefest moment, she even looked utterly stunned!
Even with her boundless cultivation and a state of mind honed to be as unshakable as the depths of the ocean, the sudden voice echoing in her mind left her shaken!
What was going on?!
Bo Saixi's heart lurched.
That voice... came from the child in front of her? But he hadn't said a word!
Could it be... his thoughts?!
Almost instinctively, she unleashed her vast spiritual power and carefully sensed her surroundings, ruling out any possibility of telepathy or a hallucination.
At last, she was absolutely certain: the voice, clear as day and brimming with a distinct personality and opinions, had indeed echoed directly in the depths of her consciousness. It came from this harmless-looking black-haired boy who had just awakened his Martial Soul—Li Qing!
If so, why could she hear his inner voice?
A huge wave of confusion swept through Bo Saixi's mind.
As a level-ninety-nine Peerless Douluo, her spiritual power was as vast as the sea and her senses exceptionally keen. Yet she had never heard of an ability that could directly peer into another person's thoughts.
That left an explanation even more difficult to believe.
This ability to hear someone's thoughts was one-sided, and it had manifested in her alone.
Was it because of the resonance of the Sea God Mark? Or because of that unknown Martial Soul called the "Mysterious Origin Water-Controlling Flag"?
But before Bo Saixi could make sense of her first shock, the information revealed in Li Qing's inner voice hit her like a thunderbolt. Her delicate body swayed almost imperceptibly!
Qian Daoliu... Tang Chen... How could he know?!
Those two names—especially "Tang Chen"—were like the sharpest needles, piercing the softest, most deeply buried corner of Bo Saixi's heart.
The history between her, Qian Daoliu, and Tang Chen was a secret buried for decades. Apart from the three of them, not a fourth person in the world knew the details!
This six-year-old child had lived on Sea God Island since birth. Where could he possibly have learned about it?!
Confusion and shock swept over Bo Saixi like a cold tide, drowning out her reason.
So completely, in fact, that Li Qing's words praising her beauty were swallowed up by the waves of information crashing over her.
Bo Saixi's daze lasted only a moment, but for someone of her caliber, even that was highly unusual.
Li Qing saw her fall silent and stare at him with a complicated expression. He blinked his clear eyes, and his mind began to churn again:
Hmm? What's with this pretty big sister? Why's she staring at me without saying anything? And why does she look so strange... Is she considering how to train me because of my incredible talent? Or is it...
An even more outrageous thought popped into his head.
Or is she feeling conflicted because Tang Chen never came back, and she's thinking about how she might have to sacrifice herself for me, the Sea God Inheritor, in the future? Maybe she doesn't know how to face me right now?
Boom!
That second thought exploded in Bo Saixi's mind like a thunderclap!
Together, those two thoughts revealed an even more earth-shattering amount of information!
As High Priestess, Bo Saixi's greatest mission and ultimate fate were to sacrifice herself for the true Sea God Inheritor and open the path to godhood.
That was the divine oracle left by the Sea God, the duty decreed by fate!
Not only did this child know about Tang Chen, he even knew the details of her ultimate fate?!
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