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Immediately, Tang San began examining the Sea God's Trident and noticed a peculiar fluctuation within it. This fluctuation seemed to resonate with the blood flow and soul power circulation within Hawk's body, responding to the Sea God's light. However, the efficiency was relatively low.
This was likely due to the absence of the Sea God's Heart in the trident.
Next, Tang San instructed Hawk to hold the Sea God's Trident while releasing his own martial soul: the trident, and to align it with the divine artifact.
Hawk followed the instructions, carefully controlling his martial soul to become translucent energy that covered the Sea God's Trident. Under Tang San's guidance, he used a special method of operation that created a link between the two.
Instantly, Hawk felt a strange sensation, as if part of his martial soul had fused with the Sea God's Trident, imbuing the artifact with a faint, almost imperceptible spirit.
"Good," Tang San said, recording the frequency oscillations between the two. "According to the resonance between your soul and the Sea God's Trident, using the crude method I've devised for soul power circulation, within twenty years, you will fully integrate this artifact with your martial soul. At that point, you won't need to hold it like this anymore; it can be stored inside you, just like your martial soul."
Tang San continued, "I must say, your martial soul and the Sea God's Trident are strikingly similar. Your martial soul even contains a blue gem. Once you succeed, the Sea God's Heart will essentially be reformed halfway. Afterward, you just need to find a water-based treasure and refine it into your martial soul."
"At that time, your strength will reach level 99."
"This artifact is the best treasure for a martial soul."
Hawk, filled with excitement, asked, "Does that mean I'll be free from the Sea God's influence?"
"No," Tang San shook his head. "After all, the Sea God's mark is on your forehead, and your body has already been altered by it. The influence has been established, so removing it will naturally be difficult, but it's not impossible..."
"What method?" Hawk grew anxious as Tang San stopped speaking, eager for him not to leave things hanging.
"The first method is that within the next twenty years, you should conquer the oceans of Douluo Continent, walk the path of the Sea God, and experience the Sea God's way for yourself. Although the path is the same, each person's experience is different. Once you achieve this, you'll naturally be free from the Sea God's influence."
Tang San proposed a difficult solution, one that required unyielding perseverance.
As for Hawk's determination… it seemed unlikely.
Sure enough, after only a brief moment of thought, Hawk gave up, saying, "That's too difficult. The ocean is vast and boundless. Before Poseidon became a god, he conquered the sea. I seriously suspect he had a secret connection with the mermaid tribe. After all, among the Seven Holy Pillars guarding Douluo, one of them is a mermaid, and it's well-known among the Sea God Island's followers that the mermaid is the Sea God's favorite."
"This can't be without reason. I even suspect that Poseidon was able to avoid getting lost at sea because he married a princess from the mermaid tribe."
"Regarding 'conquering with one's strength,' I'm sure that during Poseidon's conquest of the ocean, he had many companions. At the very least, the mermaid tribe and the Soul-eater Great White Shark tribe were subdued by Poseidon to help him rule and navigate the seas... But among these companions, only Poseidon was fully human, so his strength was considered to come from one person."
As a transmigrator, Hawk understood the shape of this world and was also aware of the general strength of the various soul master realms. So, he didn't blindly believe in legends.
Even so, Poseidon's ability to command Sea Soul Beasts was still an incredible talent.
But he definitely couldn't do it!
Simply being the successor to the Sea God wasn't enough to command the mermaid tribe or the Soul-eater Great White Shark tribe—especially the king of the Soul-eater Great White Sharks, who must protect Sea God Island and couldn't leave for long.
"The second method," Tang San said slowly, "is to wait."
"Wait?" Hawk was confused. "Wait for what?"
"The ascension channel to the divine realm. You know about it, right?"
"Yes," Hawk replied, naturally aware of the spatial passage between the Divine Realm and Douluo Star. The gods couldn't truly fly from the Divine Realm to Douluo Star—it would be an immense waste of time. Plus, even if they could, finding the right world in the vast expanse of the universe was a monumental challenge.
However, Hawk didn't know the exact location of the spatial passage, nor could he understand why Tang San was asking about it... Could it be that Tang San intended to take control of the ascension passage linking Douluo Star to the Divine Realm? But how would that help him break free from the Sea God's influence?
"Since the Divine Realm can't contact the mortal world, the Sea God can no longer affect you, right?" Tang San said with a smile.
"I see now!" Hawk immediately understood, then asked, "Do you have a way to sever the link between the Divine Realm and the mortal world?"
"Yes, but that's a secret," Tang San replied, implying that Hawk still wasn't fully trustworthy.
Hawk felt a restless itch in his heart, but he knew that by revealing this much, Tang San was confident that he would no longer side with the gods.
The reasoning was simple—Hawk could never accept the Sea God, who sought to change his thoughts and beliefs.
This was the crux of the matter—inheritance of a divine position required physical transformation, which Hawk had accepted as the price for power. However, to subtly alter his way of thinking... that was too much! It felt as if they didn't consider him human anymore.
Indeed, none of the gods in the original story ever truly treated mortals as equals.
Mercy was not a divine obligation...
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"In Hawk's case, it seems like the Holy Son might be a transmigrator too?" Outside the lab, near the garden, Xiao Qing and Xiao Bai were watering the flowers, discussing the matter.
"So what?" Xiao Bai replied nonchalantly, "Is it really that important whether someone's a transmigrator these days?" Given the current atmosphere in Soul Master City, it wasn't that much different from modern society. The only difference was that Soul Masters held a higher status, and under the guidance of the Spirit Hall, the higher the status, the more important tasks one had to take on.
As for the original idea that "cultivation is for wealth and status," that had gradually been reshaped into "cultivation is for oneself." Now, the reporting standards of Spirit Hall had shifted from a focus purely on strength to one emphasizing overall capability.
This shift also reflected the growing talent pool within Spirit Hall. After all, powerful Soul Masters were everywhere, and there was no shortage of fighters. To enjoy higher treatment, one had to stand out in fields other than combat.
This trend had led to an increasingly competitive environment for Soul Masters in Spirit Hall. Now, Xiao Bai and Xiao Qing were thankful for their capture, as it had allowed them to secure an easier job.
If there were other transmigrators in this world, they would likely be feeling quite uneasy. After all, they had come to conquer and rule, or at least become local lords. Who would have thought that in such a rapidly changing era, they would be starting to work for a living?
(End of Chapter)