Completion of the Body Sect Trial, Awakening of the Bluesilver Emperor

The cruise ship's railings sliced through the waves beneath the night sky. On the forty-ninth day at sea, the deep waters were even darker and more biting than they had been over the previous forty-eight days. Tang Wulin wore only a thin trial uniform, his body rising and falling with the swells. Beneath skin bleached white from long soaking in seawater, every inch of muscle screamed in protest. Forty-nine days of relentless torment—from ironwood stakes on deck to tempering in the freezing cold of the icehouse, from barehanded shark fights in treacherous currents to breath-holding cultivation beneath the crushing pressure of the deep sea—Mu Ye's trial had never paused for even a moment.

During the morning icehouse trial, he had to stand naked in temperatures of minus fifty degrees for three hours, allowing ice chips to settle over his skin and freeze into frost. The Golden Dragon King's blood essence steamed into white mist over his body, but Mu Ye used specially forged coldsteel chains to lock his meridians, forcing him to withstand the bitter cold with nothing but his physical body.

During the afternoon weighted run on deck, the lead blocks on his back had increased from thirty jin to eighty. Every step crushed the anti-slip grooves in the deck. Only after his legs had gone numb and lost all sensation would Mu Ye throw him into the sea to stimulate his nerves with seawater. And today was the end of this brutal trial.

"Get down." Mu Ye's voice was as cold as ever. With a light tap of the oar in his hand, Tang Wulin plunged into the deep sea like an arrow loosed from a bow. Unlike the shallow-sea trials before, this time the water pressure felt like countless heavy hammers. The moment he descended a hundred meters, his bones groaned and creaked. His organs felt as though an invisible hand were crushing them together, the pain darkening his vision.

His eardrums buzzed, and his blood burned as if it were flowing backward through his veins. The Golden Dragon King's blood essence surged madly through his body, forming a thin protective halo around him, but it could barely resist the oppressive might of the deep sea. With every inch he descended, that violent energy grew more restless, as if it wanted to burst through his meridians and perish alongside the ocean's pressure.

Tang Wulin gritted his teeth, tasting blood on his tongue. Amid the agony, he clung to the last shred of clarity. He remembered Mu Ye's words: "The final trial of the Body Sect isn't meant to let you return alive. It's meant to make you find a reason to live when you should be dying.

"

Gu Yue's cool yet concerned gaze flashed through his mind. The day she had seen the bloody scabs on his fists, she had called him a fool for courting pain, yet quietly left a bottle of special healing medicine at his door late that night. He remembered his Shrek companions fighting at his side—Xie Xie's speed, Xu Xiaoyan's Starwheel, Yue Zhengyu's Divine Flame, and Yuanen Yehui's steady protection. He remembered his adoptive parents' warm smiles: the strength in his father Tang Ziran's rough hand as it patted his shoulder, and the lamplight under which his mother Lang Yue mended his blacksmithing clothes late into the night. These were all reasons he had to live.

He forcibly circulated his blood essence and dived deeper. The water around him gradually turned black as ink. Only the occasional luminous soul beast streaking past left fleeting specks of light, illuminating his pale but resolute face. Suddenly, a powerful sense of danger pierced his mind like a needle. Tang Wulin twisted sharply aside as a massive shadow swept past his body. Sharp teeth gleamed coldly in the darkness, saliva dispersing through the seawater with the stench of rotting flesh. It was a thousand-year Demon Soul Great White Shark! More than ten meters long, with a dorsal fin as sharp as a curved blade, it stared at him with icy killing intent. It had clearly marked this human intruder as prey.

The Demon Soul Great White Shark attacked swiftly and viciously. Its enormous tail fin battered the water, creating powerful currents that tossed Tang Wulin about. He had no soul skills to rely on; Mu Ye's trial had forbidden him from using his martial soul from beginning to end. He could depend only on pure physical strength. Tang Wulin took a deep breath and forced all the restless Golden Dragon King energy into his limbs. The muscles in his arms swelled, veins bulging like coiling dragons. His already sturdy arms expanded another size under the flood of energy as he met the shark's fangs with a fierce punch!

Boom!

His fist collided with the shark's teeth, and a muffled explosion erupted through the deep sea, sending visible rings of shockwaves outward. A piercing pain shot through Tang Wulin's arm. His bones felt numb as though they were about to snap, and his blood essence surged backward. Blood rose in his throat, but he forcibly swallowed it. Yet the Demon Soul Great White Shark was also knocked several meters back by that brute force. It clearly had not expected such astonishing power from such a small human. Surprise flashed through its eyes before being replaced by deeper fury.

It released a sharp shriek, its sound waves spreading through the water and making Tang Wulin's eardrums throb as his vision darkened. Then the Demon Soul Great White Shark lunged again. This time, rather than rushing to tear him apart with its teeth, it used its massive body to create a vortex, trapping Tang Wulin in the center. The vortex grew stronger and stronger, flinging his body wildly around until it felt as if his organs would be shaken loose. He could only curl up and concentrate his blood essence over his body, enduring the vortex's tearing force.

I can't let it restrain me! Tang Wulin remembered the physical combat techniques Mu Ye had taught him. Break the whole with a single point. Borrow force to strike back. He suddenly stretched out, using the vortex's centrifugal force to spin like a top. Gathering all his strength into his legs, he viciously kicked toward the Demon Soul Great White Shark's belly! That was the shark's weakest point of defense. Even covered in hard scales, it was far less durable than its back.

Squelch!

This kick carried the Golden Dragon King's violent blood essence and the utmost power of his physical body. It actually shattered several scales, and the seawater was instantly dyed red with blood. The Demon Soul Great White Shark let out a pained howl, and the vortex abruptly weakened. Seizing the chance, Tang Wulin shot out of the vortex like an arrow. His hands formed claws as he fiercely gripped the shark's dorsal fin. No matter how it rolled and struggled, he refused to let go. His fingers dug into the shark's rough hide, his nails broke, and blood flowed between his fingers, but his grip did not loosen in the slightest.

"Stop!" Tang Wulin roared. The Golden Dragon King energy within him erupted completely, surging through his arms and into the Demon Soul Great White Shark's body. The violent Dragon Might made the thousand-year soul beast shudder, its movements instantly slowing. But this eruption also placed enormous strain on Tang Wulin's meridians. A sharp pain tore through his chest, and he could no longer hold back. He spat out a mouthful of blood, which dispersed through the water and drew the attention of more low-level soul beasts. Several Bloodsucking Eels, each half a meter long, followed the scent of blood toward him, their pointed teeth glinting coldly as they bit at his exposed wounds.

Attacked from both sides, Tang Wulin's strength rapidly drained away. The pressure of the deep sea and the dizziness caused by blood loss grew more intense. His vision blurred, and his limbs became heavy. Seizing the opportunity, the Demon Soul Great White Shark slammed its huge body toward a reef on the seabed, trying to crush the human on its back to death. Tang Wulin's vision went black from the impact. A sweet metallic taste rose in his throat, his consciousness instantly sank into chaos, and the strength in his hands gradually faded.

Am I going to die?

In the darkness, the thought surfaced beyond his control. He could feel his life rapidly slipping away, while the Golden Dragon King's energy weakened as though it could go out at any moment. But then Gu Yue's face appeared in his mind again. Those eyes, always distant yet concealing warmth, seemed to be telling him, "Tang Wulin, you can't die." Then came his adoptive parents' smiles and his companions' shouts, intertwining into a powerful spiritual force that forcibly dragged him back from the chaos.

I can't die!

His fierce will to survive spread like a spark igniting a prairie fire, instantly lighting the consciousness that had been on the verge of extinguishing. He suddenly opened his eyes, astonishing light bursting from them. The Golden Dragon King energy that had been restless within him abruptly calmed. It fused with his blood essence and began circulating madly through his meridians, repairing his damaged body. Even more astonishingly, his martial soul, which had lain dormant for so long, stirred at that very moment!

Threads of pale blue light seeped out from his body, exceptionally dazzling in the pitch-black sea. The lights gathered into slender vines that slowly extended from his palms. They were his Blue Silver Grass martial soul! But this time, the Blue Silver Grass was no longer as thin and fragile as before. Fine silver patterns covered the vines like a sovereign's totem, radiating an aura of nobility and majesty. The vines swayed gently in the water. With every movement, they guided the surrounding current into mild vortices, and the previously violent seawater actually became docile.

"My martial soul... awakened?" Tang Wulin was both shocked and delighted. He could clearly feel that this Blue Silver Grass was entirely different from before. It was no longer merely a martial soul attached to him; it felt more like a companion linked to him by blood, radiating vigorous life force and a sovereign's aura. The silver patterns shone as they spread along the vines, tinting his arms with a faint silver glow. At that moment, the deep-sea pressure seemed to lessen considerably, and the pain from his wounds rapidly faded.

The Demon Soul Great White Shark clearly sensed this unusual energy. Fear flashed through its eyes, yet its bloodthirsty instincts still drove it to pounce at Tang Wulin again. But before Tang Wulin could act, the awakened Blue Silver Grass vines shot out like arrows, instantly wrapping around the shark's body. The silver patterns on the vines lit up and released powerful binding force like the strongest chains. No matter how the Demon Soul Great White Shark struggled, it could not break free. Even more remarkably, the aura emitted by the vines made the shark tremble as though it had encountered its natural nemesis. Its originally violent struggle gradually weakened.

Tang Wulin could clearly sense an unprecedented connection between himself and the Blue Silver Grass. They were like his own arms, entirely under his control. With a thought, the Blue Silver Grass vines abruptly tightened. Accompanied by a scream from the Demon Soul Great White Shark, its enormous body was forcibly constricted, and the sound of breaking bones traveled through the water. Tang Wulin did not finish it off. He merely controlled the vines to shove it into the distance, signaling it to leave. The Demon Soul Great White Shark fled as though granted amnesty. Once freed from the vines, it escaped into the depths without looking back, never daring to approach again.

At the same time, the transformations within Tang Wulin continued. The Bluesilver Emperor's energy fused with the Golden Dragon King's blood essence, forming an entirely new power that flowed through his meridians. Wherever it passed, damaged muscles, bones, and meridians rapidly healed, becoming even tougher than before. His soul power also surged wildly. His original Soul Emperor-level cultivation showed faint signs of breaking through, its fluctuations rolling like waves and forming circles of energy ripples in the deep sea. He could feel that his physical strength had reached an entirely new level. The crushing pressure of the deep sea was no longer torture; instead, it had become an ideal environment for tempering his body.

He slowly swam upward, Bluesilver Emperor vines swaying around him and radiating a gentle glow that frightened the low-level soul beasts coveting him into scattering. When he finally surfaced, he saw Mu Ye standing at the side of the ship. At some point, the kitchen knife in his hand had been replaced by a wine flask, and he watched Tang Wulin with a complicated expression. Unlike his usual coldness, Mu Ye's eyes now showed clear approval, along with a trace of barely perceptible amazement.

Tang Wulin climbed aboard, soaked through and covered in wounds, yet his back remained straight. In his palm, a small blade of grass glowing blue and silver swayed quietly. Its leaves were narrow and resilient, with a tiny golden dewdrop at the tip. The silver patterns on its vines resembled a flowing galaxy. It was the twice-awakened Bluesilver Emperor! It radiated a faint sovereign's pressure that made the surrounding air solemn. Even Mu Ye, who had seen much in his life, could not help taking several extra looks.

"The trial... is over?" Tang Wulin's voice carried a hint of exhaustion, but he could not conceal his excitement. Sweat and seawater dripped from his hair onto the deck, spreading into a small patch of moisture.

Mu Ye nodded and tossed him the wine flask. "Drink it. Warm yourself up." His tone had finally softened somewhat. "From today onward, you are a true inheritor of the Body Sect." Looking at the Bluesilver Emperor in Tang Wulin's palm, amazement flickered in his eyes. "A martial soul unrelated to the body, yet you completed such a thorough awakening during a Body Sect trial. You even triggered resonance between the Golden Dragon King's energy and your martial soul, remolding the foundation of your body. You are the first. The Body Sect pursues sanctification through the flesh, but you have forged a new path in which martial soul and body complement one another."

Tang Wulin took the flask and tilted his head back for a large gulp. The strong liquor burned down his throat, instantly driving away the cold within him and easing his tightly wound nerves. He smiled. It was the relief of someone who had survived death, the joy of surpassing his limits. His smile carried a touch of honest simplicity, yet it was full of strength. "Thank you, Teacher Mu Ye."

"You needn't thank me." Mu Ye shook his head, his gaze becoming deep. "You passed the trial through your own will and potential. The Golden Dragon King constitution allowed you to endure pain beyond anything ordinary people could imagine, but it was your desire to protect that carried you to the end. The Body Sect's trials have never selected the strongest. They select those with the deepest conviction, those who can persist the longest." He paused before continuing, "The awakening of your Bluesilver Emperor is not merely a martial soul transformation. It is the perfect union of your state of mind and your physical body. From now on, your Bluesilver Emperor will possess the physical traits of the Body Sect—resilient and powerful. It can serve as both a weapon and the strongest shield."

Tang Wulin clenched the Bluesilver Emperor in his palm, clearly feeling the warmth and strength it conveyed. He knew that this cruel trial had finally ended, and that his life was about to enter an entirely new chapter. The Bluesilver Emperor swayed lightly, as though responding to his feelings. The silver patterns on its vines glimmered, reflected in his resolute eyes.

The sea breeze swept over him, drying the seawater on his body and carrying the scent of the distant continent. Tang Wulin looked out over the boundless sea, his heart filled with strength. He had not only passed the Body Sect trial, but also gained control over his own power. From this day forward, he had the confidence to protect everything he cared about and to face the challenges brought by the Golden Dragon King's seal.

Mu Ye watched his resolute back and sighed softly, his voice carrying a trace of expectation. "Rest well. Your path has only just begun. I will teach you the Body Sect's secret arts during the rest of our voyage. Remember, the greater the power, the greater the responsibility. Your Bluesilver Emperor carries not only your hopes, but also the future between soul beasts and humanity."

Tang Wulin turned around and gave Mu Ye a deep bow. "This disciple understands." His voice was calm and firm, and an unprecedented light shone in his eyes.

He knew that this inheritance, this transformation, had been bought with countless agonies and brushes with death. And he would never betray that trust, nor would he ever betray his own perseverance. The cruise ship continued across the sea, the sound of waves striking its sides like a hymn of victory. Tang Wulin stood on the deck, the Bluesilver Emperor in his palm shining brilliantly. He had already broken free from his cocoon and become a true powerhouse, ready to face every challenge the future held.