Gu Yuena raised her eyes toward the Sky Screen.
"Leaving the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King alive wasn't mercy."
"Poseidon needed a sea soul beast capable of threatening those who came after him."
"And the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King happened to be the perfect whetstone."
Di Tian's expression shifted slightly.
"Those who came after him?"
"The Sea God Inheritance requires trials," Gu Yuena said. "A demonic whale approaching a million years is the best possible trial."
On the Sky Screen.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King retreated to the seabed in defeat.
His enormous body sank into the deep blue waters, leaving only vast patches of purplish-red blood.
Fury still burned in his single eye.
Countless comments flashed across the Sky Screen.
[So this is number six?]
[His cultivation was eaten, and his strength was piled up!]
[Poseidon blinded him with a single strike. The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King amounts to nothing more than this!]
[A nine-hundred-and-ninety-thousand-year fraud!]
[He doesn't live up to his reputation!]
[A walking million-year soul ring!]
[Once he's killed in the future, he'll provide a million-year soul ring!]
In the Demon Whale Sea.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King raised his head to look at those comments.
The surrounding seawater churned continuously.
He could accept the Heavenly Dao exposing his devouring origin.
But he could not accept these creatures calling him a fraud.
Still less could he accept being treated as a soul ring.
"In all my years of cultivation, I have devoured countless sea soul beasts and survived nine heavenly tribulations."
"My body has already approached a divine body."
"What right do you have to say I don't live up to my reputation?"
His enormous body burst out of the sea.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King opened his cavernous mouth.
A massive whirlpool formed on the surface.
Waves hundreds of zhang high surged in every direction.
[He's getting worked up!]
[The fraud's starting to prove himself!]
[He didn't cultivate that power himself, but we're not allowed to say it?]
Outside Sunset Forest.
Upon seeing the last comment, Dugu Yan immediately turned toward Ning Xian.
"A million-year soul ring?"
"Who is Tang San?"
Ning Xian stood beside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
The bodies of the fire dragon and ice dragon were still slowly taking shape.
He looked up at the Sky Screen, a hint of a smile appearing on his lips.
"Speaking of which, the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King really is the million-year soul ring Poseidon left for Tang San."
Dugu Bo frowned slightly.
"Senior, you know Tang San?"
"Not at present."
Ning Xian looked at the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King on the Sky Screen.
"But according to the future shown by the Sky Screen, he'll die at Tang San's hands."
Dugu Yan blinked.
"A nine-hundred-and-ninety-thousand-year soul beast will become a soul master's soul ring?"
"Not an ordinary soul master."
Ning Xian withdrew his gaze.
"Tang San will receive the Sea God Inheritance in the future."
"The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's body, soul ring, and soul bone will all become resources for his ascent to god level."
Dugu Bo's expression grew grave.
"Poseidon left the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King alive to await that inheritor?"
"At least, that's one of the reasons."
Ning Xian did not explain further.
The scene on the Sky Screen had changed again.
The Devouring Domain surrounding the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King gradually expanded.
Purplish-black light covered the sea.
The mingled origins within his body separated once more under the Heavenly Dao's golden light.
Those masses of external power were drawn out.
The origin belonging to the Demon Soul Great White Shark.
The origin belonging to the Evil Spirit Orca.
The origin belonging to the Deep Sea Flood Dragon.
And the flesh-and-blood essence left by countless sea beasts.
These powers circled the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King, forming a massive black vortex.
And at the center of the vortex.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's own origin gradually revealed itself.
Beneath his black scales, golden patterns lit up inch by inch.
His skeleton had already transformed completely.
Divine radiance flowed ceaselessly through his flesh and blood.
Although he had lost his left eye.
His right eye was even larger.
Golden text began to appear.
[The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King has experienced nine heavenly tribulations in his lifetime.] [During his first heavenly tribulation, he devoured the origins of three ten-thousand-year sea soul beasts, forcibly completing his transformation.] [During his second heavenly tribulation, he devoured spirit herbs from the seabed and formed his Devouring Domain.] [During his third heavenly tribulation, he devoured a hundred-thousand-year sea soul beast, completing the reconstruction of his flesh and blood.] [During his fourth heavenly tribulation, he devoured the origin of a Deep Sea Flood Dragon, obtaining a divine dragon bloodline.] [During his fifth heavenly tribulation, he devoured divine crystals from the seabed, transforming his skeleton into divine bones.] [During his sixth heavenly tribulation, he devoured the origins of vast numbers of sea soul beasts, completing seventy percent of his divine body.] [During his seventh heavenly tribulation, he endured heavenly lightning head-on for nine days, completing eighty percent of his divine body.] [During his eighth heavenly tribulation, he encountered the Sea God Poseidon, and his left eye was pierced by the Golden Trident.] [During his ninth heavenly tribulation, he devoured all the external origins he had accumulated, completing ninety-nine percent of his divine body.]
The entire continent fell silent.
The comments that had been mocking the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King briefly stopped.
Immediately afterward, new words filled the sky.
[Nine heavenly tribulations?]
[Doesn't he rely solely on devouring?]
[Surviving nine heavenly tribulations already makes him stronger than the vast majority of soul beasts!]
[A ninety-nine percent divine body, and you call him a fraud?]
[He's only one step away from a true divine body!]
[That's probably part of why Poseidon didn't kill him, too!]
[Sixth place-he truly deserves it!]
On Sea God Island.
Bo Saixi watched the golden words on the Sky Screen.
Her fingers slowly tightened around her scepter.
Nine heavenly tribulations.
Each heavenly tribulation represented a trial of life and death.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King had not survived to this day through devouring alone.
His flesh, bones, and will had also been tempered by nine heavenly tribulations.
Sea Dragon Douluo looked at that enormous body.
"A ninety-nine percent divine body."
"He's only one final step away from completing his transformation."
Bo Saixi did not answer.
She looked at the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's sole remaining eye.
Even after losing to Poseidon and losing an eye, he had still survived.
Such vitality could no longer be measured by the standards of ordinary soul beasts.
In the Demon Whale Sea.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King watched the assessments on the Sky Screen.
Seawater rose continuously around him.
The fury that had built up earlier finally found an outlet.
"Do you see?"
"I have survived nine heavenly tribulations."
"My divine body is already ninety-nine percent complete."
"I am only one final step away from becoming a true million-year soul beast."
He raised his enormous head.
Golden divine runes lit up simultaneously across his black scales.
A heavy pressure blanketed the sea.
The distant sea soul beasts fled one after another.
No sea soul beast dared continue mocking him.
Because the Heavenly Dao had already given its answer.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's cultivation did indeed contain external power.
But he had also survived nine heavenly tribulations.
He could integrate those vast, disparate origins into his body, and he could withstand the baptism of heavenly lightning through his own strength.
His devouring attribute was merely the way he grew.
Those nine heavenly tribulations were the credentials that secured his sixth-place standing on the Powerhouse Ranking.
In Star Dou Great Forest.
After reading the Sky Screen's contents, Xiong Jun raised his head toward Di Tian.
"Nine heavenly tribulations."
"He's actually survived nine heavenly tribulations."
Di Tian did not answer.
His gaze settled on the line of golden text reading "completing ninety-nine percent of his divine body."
Black dragon scales emerged on the backs of his hands.
Di Tian had cultivated for eight hundred and ninety thousand years and had experienced numerous heavenly tribulations himself.
But every heavenly tribulation had exacted an enormous price from him.
He was still a hundred thousand years away from a million years.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King had cultivated for only a little over three hundred thousand years, yet had pushed his body to a ninety-nine percent divine body.
This stirred a sense of oppression in Di Tian's heart.
"Is the Heavenly Dao targeting me?"
Xiong Jun froze for a moment.
"Di Tian, what did you say?"
Di Tian raised his head toward the sky.
"I possess the Black-Eyed Golden Dragon King Bloodline."
"I have mastered the Dragon God Claw."
"I have cultivated for eight hundred and ninety thousand years, yet I still dare not say I can survive the million-year heavenly tribulation."
"By devouring external origins, he has reached a ninety-nine percent divine body."
Di Tian looked toward the Demon Whale Sea.
"They're both Soul Beasts. Why is the gap so vast?"
Gu Yuena stood in the center of the Lake of Life.
Silvery ripples slowly spread out beside the hem of her dress.
"His path is different from yours."
Di Tian turned to look at her.
"My lord, could his divine body be stronger than mine?"
"Not necessarily."
Gu Yuena said, "His divine body was built up through the Devouring Origin. Its power is immense, but not pure enough."
"But he has endured nine heavenly tribulations."
"Each heavenly tribulation purged impurities from his body."
Di Tian fell silent.
Gu Yuena looked up at the Sky Screen.
"He is now only one step away from a million years."
"If he can take that step, he will truly complete his transformation."
Xiong Jun looked at Di Tian.
"Boss, if you fought him, who would win?"
"On land, I can defeat him."
Di Tian said, "In the sea, I can still win."
This time, Xiong Jun asked no further questions.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's strength had already been confirmed by the Heavenly Dao.
His sixth place was not an empty distinction earned through a cultivation figure.
It was a ranking he had truly fought his way to through nine heavenly tribulations and a ninety-nine percent divine body.
Outside Sunset Forest.
Dugu Bo gazed at the Sky Screen and softly exhaled.
"Nine heavenly tribulations."
"If I could survive even one of them, I would already have ample reason to count myself fortunate."
Dugu Yan looked toward the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings in the distance.
"He clearly only has a little over three hundred thousand years of cultivation, yet he has survived nine heavenly tribulations."
"Do heavenly tribulations descend on Soul Beasts according to their cultivation age, or their strength?"
"Both."
Ning Xian watched the Sky Screen.
"The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King accumulated power too quickly."
"Every time he completed a transformation, he drew a heavenly tribulation."
"So, although his true cultivation age is not high, he has endured quite a few trials of life and death."
Dugu Bo nodded.
He finally understood why the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King could withstand such immense amounts of external origin.
Devouring brought power.
Heavenly tribulations tempered the body.
Only through the continual accumulation of both had he reached where he was today.
The images in the Sky Screen gradually drew to a close.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's body sank beneath the sea again.
Ninety-nine purple-black rings of light encircled the space behind him.
More than sixty of them gradually dimmed.
The thirty-odd rings at the very center, however, condensed into a pitch-black, fathomless wheel of light.
Golden text appeared one final time.
[The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King's true cultivation age is a little over three hundred thousand years.] [He has devoured large quantities of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures and the origins of Sea Soul Beasts.] [He has endured nine heavenly tribulations in his lifetime.] [His divine body is ninety-nine percent complete.] [He possesses the Devouring Domain, a divine body, and energy approaching a million years.] [Although he has not truly entered the million-year level, he possesses the qualifications to strive for god level.] [Sixth on the Powerhouse Ranking: Deep Sea Demonic Whale King.] [His ranking is fully deserved.]
The Heavenly Dao's assessment ended.
The images high in the firmament slowly dispersed.
Yet the words "ninety-nine percent divine body" remained in the hearts of all living beings.
The earlier mockery had vanished.
Envy and apprehension had taken its place.
[Nine heavenly tribulations, a ninety-nine percent divine body!] [The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King isn't a fraud!] [He just hasn't truly completed the final step!] [If he refined all that external origin, wouldn't he immediately become a Million-Year Soul Beast?] [Sixth place really should be his!] [I wonder what the Heavenly Dao will reward him with!]
The Demon Whale Sea.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King raised his head to gaze at the firmament.
He no longer cared about those scrolling comments.
Although sixth place had not satisfied him.
As long as the reward was powerful enough, he could take that final step.
"The reward."
"Let me see just what the Heavenly Dao can give me."
Purple-red light flared in his single eye.
The vortex on the sea gradually stopped.
All the Sea Soul Beasts raised their heads, waiting for the Heavenly Dao's reward to descend.
The Star Dou Great Forest.
Di Tian likewise looked toward the Sky Screen.
He wanted to know whether the Heavenly Dao would grant the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King a divine position.
If the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King could complete his transformation through the reward, he would be even more eager to obtain his own opportunity.
The Far North.
Holding the Heavenly Frost Sword, the Snow Empress fixed her gaze on the Sky Screen.
The Ice Empress stood beside her.
"Sister Snow, what will he receive?"
"Keep watching, and we'll know."
The Snow Empress did not look away.
Sea God Island.
Bo Saixi and the Seven Sacred Pillars Guardian Douluo stood before the Sea God Hall.
They, too, were waiting for the reward to appear.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King was Sea God Island's greatest threat.
If he gained even greater power, the sea would inevitably be plunged into turmoil once again.
Outside Sunset Forest.
Ning Xian raised his hand and gathered in the Mystic Yellow Radiance.
The Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' bodies had not yet been fully reconstructed.
But the golden light within the Sky Screen had already begun gathering again.
Dugu Yan looked up at the firmament.
"Senior, will the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King receive a divine position?"
Ning Xian gazed at the gradually brightening golden light.
"What he needs most is not a divine position."
"Then what does he need?"
"To complete himself."
Ning Xian withdrew his gaze.
"His body has already reached ninety-nine percent."
"Only that final bit remains."
Outside Sunset Forest.
Above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Crimson and azure light intertwined.
The outlines of the two dragon silhouettes had already become fully solid.
The fire dragon had crimson-gold scales, and when its wings spread, waves of heat swept through the valley.
The ice dragon was azure from head to tail, its horns seemingly carved from ice crystals, and the moisture around it condensed into a sky full of frost blossoms.
The two dragon silhouettes opened their eyes at the same time.
All the medicinal herbs in the valley bowed low.
Standing in the distance, Dugu Bo found his Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul manifesting of its own accord.
The enormous emerald-green serpent coiled behind him, lowering its head toward the two Dragon Kings.
Dugu Yan also felt the submission in her bloodline.
She looked up at the two dragon silhouettes.
"Senior, have they awakened?"
"There's still one final step."
Ning Xian raised his hand.
The Heaven-Earth Xuanhuang Pagoda hovered above his head.
All four stories of the pagoda lit up at once.
Mystic Yellow Radiance descended from the base of the pagoda, enveloping the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
The crimson spring water and the azure icy pool surged at the same time.
Drawn by the Mystic Yellow Radiance, the two dragon silhouettes slowly descended toward the center of the valley.
The fire dragon's bones gradually joined with its flesh and blood.
The ice dragon's body also took shape anew amid the cold air.
Their originally incomplete soul origins seemed to be rearranged by a pair of invisible hands.
Dragon scales covered their bodies.
Dragon claws stepped through the void.
Two true giant dragons appeared above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
The fire dragon spread its wings.
Crimson-gold flames descended from the sky, falling around the valley.
The ice dragon raised its head.
Great swathes of snowflakes drifted down from the sky, draping the entire medicinal garden in a layer of silver-white.
The forces of heat and cold did not clash again.
They slowly revolved around the two Dragon Kings.
Before you continue