The moment the thought crossed Yun Chen's mind, light flashed. When he opened his eyes again, he was back in his room—sprawled across the floor in a decidedly undignified pose.
"Ah... that hurts..."
Yun Chen rubbed his head. The pain in his body was nothing compared to the stabbing ache that kept flaring inside his skull.
"What happened? That must have been my Sea of Consciousness just now."
"Wait... how could my Sea of Consciousness be that big?"
Yun Chen had looked out across it and hadn't even seen the end. How was that possible?
Yun Chen closed his eyes and focused. His consciousness sank into the Sea of Consciousness once more, much more smoothly this time. The phantom of the Sea God's Heart still floated silently above it.
Yun Chen tried to gauge the Sea of Consciousness's size. His awareness swept outward in every direction, and he let out a soft breath.
The Sea of Consciousness is huge. Uh... about...
Yun Chen was at a loss for words. He knew his Sea of Consciousness was large, but he couldn't describe its size precisely. After all, the era of Douluo I had neither the mental power testing devices nor the mental power classifications of Douluo III.
"Looks like the Sea God's Heart even threw in a mental power boost. Not bad."
If Yun Chen had known the Sea God's Heart had raised his mental power straight to the level of a Soul Ancestor, he would have been even more surprised.
For now, Yun Chen turned his attention to the Sea God's Heart floating silently overhead.
He reached out to touch it, but his hand passed straight through.
"It's an illusion..."
Yun Chen withdrew his consciousness and opened his eyes again. His gaze fell on the Sea God's Heart resting quietly on the table.
The one he had just seen was only a phantom. This was the real thing.
Yun Chen placed his hand on it again. A sensation of perfect harmony flooded his body, and the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud's four skills and their details poured into his mind.
"Vast Sea Bodyguard Shroud, Cosmos Spirit-Calming Shroud, Vast Sea Raging Waves, Cosmos Demonbreaker."
Yun Chen smacked his lips. Looking at those skills, he nearly started drooling.
"The Sea God sure is generous. Damn, of all the gods I could reach right now, the Sea God's the most generous."
"Who knows where the Angel God has vanished to? And the Rakshasa God isn't even worth mentioning. She's a complete trap."
"As for the Shura God, just look at Tang Chen. If Tang San had gone to him early on, he probably would've been done for too."
"But from what people online said in my past life, the Shura God and Tang San seemed to have some kind of special relationship. Heh... interesting..."
"Still, the skills the Sea God gave with just this token of inheritance are worth more than two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones."
Yun Chen placed his hand on the Sea God's Heart and tried channeling Soul Power into it.
"Vast Sea Bodyguard Shroud!"
A blue-gold barrier instantly enveloped Yun Chen, sealing him off from everything outside. It was like one-way glass: he could see out, but no one could see in.
The original story's description of the Vast Sea Bodyguard Shroud's abilities was even more outrageous.
But in the next instant, the barrier shattered with a crash, dissolving into specks of light that sank into Yun Chen's body. Yun Chen hit the floor with a thud, his face frighteningly pale. He was barely short of foaming at the mouth.
"I... damn it... forgot my Soul Power... is only... rank fourteen now."
Using the last of his strength, Yun Chen crawled back onto the bed. Even that nearly drained him completely. Breathing hard, he no longer wanted to think about anything. He had only one thought left: sleep.
Before long, Yun Chen drifted off.
Qian Renxue, meanwhile, couldn't sleep.
She sat at her desk by candlelight, writing furiously.
The letter was destined for Spirit Hall's Hall of the Pope and Worship Hall.
After writing for a long time, Qian Renxue let out a deep breath and slowly set down her pen.
Weariness showed on her delicate face. She rubbed her brow in frustration, tossed the pen aside, and leaned hard against the back of her chair, lost in thought.
First was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. What they had done today infuriated Qian Renxue. They had actually dared to attack Yun Chen. She could not accept that.
"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect... you're asking to die..."
"Don't think this ends here. It's time to turn up the heat on the Soul Hunting Operation."
Qian Renxue murmured the words. Her face grew calmer, but the chill in her eyes would not fade.
In the letter she had just written, Qian Renxue had not only agreed to the Soul Hunting Operation Bibi Dong had proposed, but had also raised the stakes.
It read:
"I believe the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is far stronger than anticipated and possesses immense wealth. Since the Clear Sky Sect went into seclusion, they have practically become the foremost sect in the world. Their influence and resources are beyond imagining."
"Moreover, Ning Fengzhi keeps playing both sides. He will become the greatest obstacle to Spirit Hall's unification of the world."
"Therefore, as a precaution, I suggest assigning two additional elders from the Worship Hall alongside the original plan."
"I recommend Azure Luan Douluo and Mighty Lion Douluo."
The pairing of those two Titled Douluo was interesting. Mighty Lion would provide overwhelming force, while Azure Luan would make sure no one escaped.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was in for a world of pain.
Qian Renxue rubbed her brow again. What troubled her most wasn't actually the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, but the secret the Xue Family had been hiding. The thought of it left her shaken.
If the Nation-Stealing Plan went ahead and she forcibly seized the empire in the end, would Xue Ye simply take her down with him?
"The Xue Family... actually has ties to the Sea God..."
Qian Renxue's expression turned strange as she muttered to herself.
When Xue Ye had spoken with Qian Renxue today, he had driven home one point: the Xue Family was not as simple as it appeared.
Qian Renxue should have realized it sooner.
With the Xue Family so weakened, how could they have held the throne of the Heaven Dou Empire without something to rely on?
"To think the Xue Family are the Sea God's representatives on land. No wonder... Xue Ye could unleash that kind of power."
"But... aren't these representatives a little weak? A representative with only eight rings? That Sea God..."
Qian Renxue did not know what to make of it. She was speechless, but she had misunderstood the Sea God. Back then, she had merely granted them a measure of power to ensure the Xue Family's survival.
After all, the Sea God had protected the Xue Family and made them her representatives so they would find someone destined for her and pass on the Heart of the Ocean. Over the past several thousand years, however, none of those who had obtained the Sea God's Heart had truly satisfied her.
Over those thousands upon thousands of years, the Xue Family had also drawn on that power more than once. Today, it had finally been exhausted.
It wasn't that Xue Ye was so generous that he would waste such power on a single genius. The truth was that it would have dissipated in another five or six years even if left unused.
The Xue Family was simply too weak. That power needed to be nurtured by a Titled Douluo to recover even a little. But expecting someone with the Swan Martial Soul to become a Titled Douluo was asking rather a lot, wasn't it?
At first, it had been fine. The Xue Family had Titled Douluo back then. But too much time had passed, and the Swan Martial Soul had proved disappointingly weak. Their attempts to nurture the Sea God's power had become almost futile.
Qian Renxue could still remember what Xue Ye had said at the end, his voice full of helplessness.
"Qinghe, your father has failed you."
"I never became a Titled Douluo, so I couldn't preserve this power. Fortunately, I've left you someone with the potential to become one. Nurture him well, and above all, make sure he remains loyal to the imperial family."
Before you continue