A thousand miles away, You Chen's avatar easily defeated Li Ya and Li Jing. To prevent a repeat of the previous rescue soul skill situation, You Chen directly knocked them unconscious.
Some might wonder why the two mermaid princesses didn't wait until they were a safe distance away before using the rescue soul skill to bring their mother back.
In fact, it wasn't that they didn't want to, but rather… they couldn't.
First of all, this was a talent soul skill that only mermaids with a golden bloodline possessed.
Only Sea Princess and Li Ya had it.
Moreover, it had a cooldown period of one month.
Aside from forcibly pulling someone, they could also teleport to the target's side.
Li Ya had already used it once, so only Sea Princess could use it now.
But what would Sea Princess use it for? To pull back her daughter, who had just been sent away, to her death?
As for teleporting herself over?
The entire area was completely under You Chen's Divine Power.
With You Chen's speed, without the Sea Princess to restrain him, he could easily catch up from the Crystal Palace.
Not to mention that You Chen's avatar was also here, and without the support of her legion, Sea Princess could not possibly defeat You Chen's avatar to save her two daughters.
So no matter what, this was an unsolvable situation.
A strand of Sea Princess's Divine Power had been left on her two daughters, and when You Chen's avatar attacked them, it reacted immediately.
Seeing Sea Princess's fierce expression, You Chen knew he could skip the explanations and just get to the point.
"Living in this world ultimately requires making choices."
You Chen smiled and said, "So, Sea Princess, do you choose your own life, or do you choose to entrust hope to the future?"
Sea Princess's face darkened: "How can I be sure you will keep your promise? Despicable human!"
Although she spoke against it, Sea Princess's loyal subordinates could hear that she indeed had a hint of sacrificial intent, and they quickly urged her through their mental link.
"Your Highness, you mustn't!"
"This human is so cunning; he will definitely not keep his promise!"
"He must just want to force you to die for nothing!"
"Soul sacrifice, Your Highness, this is a fate worse than death!"
The subordinates urged her in a frantic tone.
But Sea Princess was, after all, the queen of the Northern Sea. As a ruler, how could she be swayed by the opinions of her subordinates?
At this moment, she had already considered sacrificing all her subordinates here to ensure the safety of her two daughters, allowing her bloodline to continue.
You Chen retracted his smile and said calmly, "I am willing to swear by my Martial Soul that as long as they do not actively become enemies with me in the future, I will not take action against them."
This was the truth.
From the moment the assassination failed, You Chen knew that he could not hide the fact that he was hunting Sea Princess today.
So he didn't mind if the two mermaids spread the news.
"Swear by your Martial Soul?"
Sea Princess furrowed her brows.
In this world where faith existed, swearing by one's Martial Soul was regarded as the heaviest oath and indeed had a certain binding power.
Many believed that once one betrayed their oath to their Martial Soul, they would suffer backlash from it, and there was even a risk of the Martial Soul shattering and falling.
But…
Sea Princess glanced at You Chen: 'Can this man's oath be trusted?'
A person who had just threatened to abduct her offspring had a low credibility.
Most importantly… Sea Princess did not want to die!
This was only natural; unless there were truly no other options, no intelligent life would willingly rush to their death!
So, was she truly at the end of her rope now?
If she chose to abandon these subordinates and give up her two daughters, could she escape from this man's grasp?
The hope was very slim.
Sea Princess did not know that the reason You Chen could display such terrifying suppression was that he had used the secret technique Spiritual Realm Burst, and once he left this state, he would fall into weakness.
Thus, in Sea Princess's eyes, the man before her seemed to have been injured in the previous battle, but in reality, he was still in control, and she could not see through his depths, unable to judge whether he had other hidden cards.
Sea Princess had to admit… even if she abandoned everything, she had no confidence in escaping from him.
"You only have the option to trust me." You Chen seemed to see through Sea Princess's thoughts and said lightly.
Sea Princess's heart wavered.
Yes, since she was going to die anyway, it was better to trust the other party; this way, there was still a glimmer of hope for her bloodline to continue.
But… she truly felt very unwilling.
Why, having lived peacefully in the Northern Sea, always avoiding conflict, did she have to endure such a tragic fate?
Sea Princess silently clenched her fists.
At that moment, You Chen, seeing the struggle on Sea Princess's face, intentionally increased the stakes and said lightly, "Soul sacrifice is not truly death. I can promise you that one day, if I become a god, I can reshape your body, and at that time, you will be able to resurrect smoothly."
"Become a god!?"
Sea Princess looked up in shock, unable to believe it.
The other soul beasts also showed expressions of astonishment.
You Chen wore a look of indifference and said in a flat tone, "Is that strange? I still need your soul sacrifice to make my Spirit Ring, and before this, I already had the strength to defeat you. Even so, you still haven't realized anything?"
Sea Princess's pupils constricted, her lips trembling as she said, "You… you are not even a Titled Douluo, are you?"
Not a Titled Douluo, yet able to crush her and her subordinates!?
If such a person could not become a god, she truly could not imagine who else could.
"So, I ask again, is that strange?"
You Chen looked deeply at Sea Princess and said, "The Sea God you believe in was once just a human Soul Master. And I can achieve feats far beyond that Poseidon, becoming a god? For you mortals and beasts, it may be a distant dream, but for me, it is merely a step along the way."
"You dare to directly call the name of the Sea God!?"
The firmly held belief in her mind made Sea Princess blurt this out, glaring at You Chen.
"It seems you really enjoy being a servant, huh?"
You Chen lazily crossed his arms and nodded: "In that case, when you become my great divine beast, there will be no need to think of a divine name or position for you. Since you enjoy being beneath others, I will fulfill your wish; you can simply be my mount from now on."
Looking at You Chen, who had already planned her future, even Sea Princess was somewhat dazed.
Hearing him speak of becoming a god and divine beasts, Sea Princess inexplicably felt that her faith was becoming somewhat nonsensical.
It was as if… she had inexplicably lost to him in some way.
Yes, although she had already considered the idea of sacrifice, in such a short time, Sea Princess's heart could not possibly yield; she naturally did not want to submit to a human.
However, You Chen's words had shattered Sea Princess's filter regarding gods.
She bit her soft red lips and said with a questioning tone, "Even if you can become a god, do you know what soul sacrifice is? What does a human like you understand about soul sacrifice!? That is a complete offering of the soul, directly leading to the soul scattering; how could there be a resurrection!"
"What do I understand about soul sacrifice?"
You Chen looked at Sea Princess with disdain and sneered, "I at least understand it better than you. After a soul sacrifice, it is not the soul scattering; rather, like a normal sacrifice, the soul resides within my Spirit Ring. As long as the Divine Power is strong enough, it can be revived again. Divine Power is a universal force; as long as the Divine Power is sufficient, it can reshape the body. At that time, I can extract your soul from the Spirit Ring and place it into the newly formed body, allowing you to naturally resurrect! Moreover, during my ascension to godhood, the Spirit Ring, as part of me, means you, as part of my Spirit Ring, can also enjoy the elevation of divinity and directly become a divine beast."
Sea Princess was momentarily stunned.
In fact, You Chen was not lying.
In the original work, Xiao Wu needed a process for soul revival, but with Sea Princess's cultivation and Divine Power, she could naturally complete the soul revival right after the sacrifice.
As for using Immortal Herb and inner elixirs to reshape the body, and sacrificing Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone…
To be honest, that was because Tang San was still a human Soul Master at that time, which made it so complicated.
You Chen had not yet truly mastered Divine Power, but over the past six months, through some analysis of Immortal Spiritual Energy and recalling the content of the original work, he had come to many conclusions.
The universality of Divine Power was one of them.
The rewards in the divine examination, such as the divine Spirit Ring, Spirit Ring age enhancement, and soul power increase, were likely the results of utilizing Divine Power.
So if Divine Power was sufficient, creating a body would not be difficult.
Seeing Sea Princess still in a daze, You Chen snorted softly and said, "Since you seem so eager to understand soul sacrifice, are you mentally prepared? Then let's be quick about it; hurry up and sacrifice yourself to me! I will also wake up your two daughters and send them away!"
Upon hearing this, Sea Princess's gaze flickered, and after biting her lip, she finally lowered her head and said, "I can sacrifice myself to you, even my soul! However, I have one request!"
Sea Princess paused, and seeing that You Chen did not immediately voice opposition but silently watched her, she swallowed hard and said, "If I can truly retain my soul, let me see Li Ya and Li Jing, my two daughters, one last time! Then… you will protect them!"
Meeting Sea Princess's hopeful gaze, You Chen's mood suddenly felt somewhat strange.
It was as if a single mother was entrusting her daughters to a second husband.
"Alright."
You Chen said, "But I won't let them eat for free; since they are with me, they will have to work for me."
Two hundred-thousand-year soul beasts equate to two Titled Douluo levels of combat power, and they were mermaids, a type of support Titled Douluo.
It was hard to say who was losing out.
You Chen looked at Sea Princess, narrowing his eyes slightly.
He had originally thought of just tricking Sea Princess into sacrificing herself, and as for the later resurrection and body reshaping, he would deal with that when the time came, merely a pipe dream.
But now, if Sea Princess's two daughters joined him and became his good employees, working diligently for him in the future… then it would indeed be hard not to revive this Sea Princess.
So—was this also part of your calculation, Sea Princess?
Unfortunately, to maintain his composure, You Chen did not directly voice such inexplicable thoughts.
He only asked, "By the way, since we will be together for a long time in the future, calling you Sea Princess doesn't feel quite right. What is your name?"
"Lina."
Seeing You Chen's demeanor, Sea Princess Lina let out a sigh of relief. Since he specifically asked for her name, it could be considered that they had truly reached a consensus.
She slightly bowed and smiled, saying, "Master, my name is Lina."
Then, the two dismissed those around them, and with a flash of red light, the irreversible sacrifice officially began.
Even though she had heard You Chen's solemn promises beforehand and had mentally prepared herself, at this moment, Sea Princess still felt anxious and fearful.
After all, she was not like Xiao Wu, who had feelings for Tang San; no matter how much she dressed it up, fundamentally, she was being coerced by You Chen into facing death.
However, once the sacrifice began, it was irreversible; she could only brace herself and proceed.
In fact, You Chen did not initially demand any sacrifice.
It had developed to this point merely because he had a sudden inspiration after seeing Li Ya and the others escape, and he took the opportunity.
A sacrifice was completely a soul beast actively cooperating with a Soul Master; the absorption process would be smoother, with less energy loss, and the burden of the Spirit Ring on the Soul Master would also be reduced.
Especially for soul sacrifices, not only would the compatibility greatly increase, but even if the lifespan limit and Spirit Ring age were far apart, it could be absorbed with almost no burden.
However, sacrifice was a talent skill of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, and getting a hundred-thousand-year soul beast to actively sacrifice, especially a soul sacrifice… was a daydream for most Soul Masters.
Terrifying waves of soul power surged, and the special barrier formed by the rules of heaven and earth during the sacrifice pushed away all soul beasts that had not completely left the area, while Sea Princess Lina's body softened and fell to the ground, her soul and soul power all rushing towards You Chen, and her three-meter-long mermaid form began to gradually revert to a juvenile state.
'Lina, send me the list of soul skills you can generate.'
Seeing this, You Chen ruthlessly demanded Lina's cooperation in his mind.
'Huh? Ah, okay.'
Regarding her future master's orders, Lina naturally complied, her tone inexplicably obedient.
It was as if, in this two-person world without her subordinates, Lina had completely shed the authority and vigilance she had to maintain as a queen.
Through the mental connection, even if there were words Lina had never heard, in this brain-to-brain communication, the meanings were smoothly conveyed.
You Chen browsed through the list of soul skills Lina provided, increasingly recognizing his initial goal.
The two soul skills he aimed for were both within the selectable range.
However, all the skills Lina listed did not develop You Chen's Martial Soul power, focusing entirely on Sea Princess's soul skills.
Theoretically, with such a high compatibility, relying on the human race's inherent suitability for spiritual attributes, combined with the energy of six hundred thousand years—no, with the enhancement of You Chen's Spirit Ring age, it was already six hundred thousand years of cultivation—was enough to forcibly add a certain spiritual attribute to Stardust Dragon.
A hesitation flashed through You Chen's mind.
Should he choose to develop the spiritual attribute for Stardust Dragon, or leave it unchanged?
The necessary condition for evolving into a Meteor Dragon was a heart of clear reflection; perhaps choosing this development route was precisely the foundation needed for Stardust Dragon's evolution?
However, recalling the perfect form of Stardust Dragon he had seen during Reflecting on the Origin, he gritted his teeth and ultimately decided not to make any changes.
Relying solely on the power formed by the fusion of three attributes, Stardust Power was already the most perfect force. Adding a spiritual attribute might seem fine at first glance, but it could also be a pollution like the previous evil energy!
And with Lina's soul sacrifice, combined with the terrifying age of six hundred thousand years, this would undoubtedly bring about irreversible changes!
If things went wrong, the path of Stardust Power that had already been established would be completely abandoned!
This was a huge loss that You Chen could not accept!
After all, Lina agreeing to perform a soul sacrifice was already an unexpected joy; he had not envisioned such a situation.
You Chen decided to stick to his original plan and choose the two soul skills focused on Sea Princess!
This was absolutely the right choice!
After informing Lina of his goals and having her actively assist in enhancing the strength of the soul skills after they took shape, You Chen then conveyed in his mind: 'Lina, for the Spirit Bone part you drop, choose the head Spirit Bone! As for the Spirit Bone skills, can the generated Spirit Bone skill list differ from the Spirit Ring skills?'
At this moment, Lina was somewhat bewildered.
Because she had already realized that she was not being absorbed as a Spirit Ring for breaking through to Titled Douluo, but rather… the sixth ring!?
'So the master isn't even a Soul Douluo?'
Still shocked, she felt an inexplicable power surge into the Spirit Ring, and then the Spirit Ring, along with her cultivation age within it, easily broke through six hundred thousand!
The series of events capable of shaking the worldview was enough to leave Lina dazed; who wouldn't be bewildered in such a situation?
'Lina?' You Chen urged again with a hint of inquiry.
'I'm here!'
Sea Princess Lina quickly stood at attention in the Spirit Ring, realizing that this was not the time to be distracted. Recalling You Chen's earlier question, she quickly explained: 'Depending on the position of the Spirit Bone, the soul skills that can be added will vary; especially the head Spirit Bone is very special, as it generally adds mental-type skills. However, the restrictions of Spirit Bone on soul skills are less than those of Spirit Rings, so the range of choices is correspondingly larger. Master, this is the list of soul skills available for the head Spirit Bone.'
A lengthy explanation that would take one or two minutes to say was conveyed in an instant through this close mental link.
You Chen reviewed the list of Spirit Bone skills and soon his eyes lit up.
He even discovered the previous rescue skill "Mermaid's Guardian" among them.
Not only could it bring someone to his side, but he could also teleport to the rescue target's side to perform the rescue.
Looking at the description of this skill, You Chen belatedly realized the limitations of the skill, and at that time, Lina indeed had no way out, which likely influenced her easy agreement to the sacrifice.
The functionality of this soul skill was self-evident.
The original Mermaid's Guardian required kinship and bloodline to use intentionally; when transformed into a Spirit Bone skill, it only needed to establish a mental anchor in advance, allowing You Chen to summon the target to his side at any time.
If there was a target he wanted to protect, the value of this soul skill was undeniable.
For characters like Luo Feng from Swallowing the Starry Sky, who were protective of their families, or Xiao Yan from Battle Through the Heavens, who valued loyalty, this would definitely be a necessary skill.
Even if they lacked a major move, they would likely not hesitate and would directly choose this skill.
However… You Chen did not have such a target.
Even for Grace, Ignis, Qian Renxue, and Yan, these close ones in You Chen's heart did not hold enough value for him to reserve a Spirit Bone skill for them.
And aside from forcibly protecting someone, this soul skill had little other use.
If it could forcibly leave an anchor point in the enemy's spiritual sea, it could indeed achieve a zero-distance ambush effect.
But being able to forcefully leave a mental anchor point on the enemy during battle, You Chen could directly crush the opponent with her Divine Power, which seemed a bit redundant.
'No, no!'
A flash of inspiration struck You Chen.
She hadn't thought of using this soul skill for a surprise attack before because the targets she needed to ambush could not be forcefully implanted with a mental anchor point.
And even if she wanted to set it on someone close to them, how could that person possibly approach them while carrying
And even if she wanted to set it on someone close to them, how could that person possibly approach them while carrying this mental anchor point?
Once they sensed something was off, anyone with a bit of intelligence would realize something was wrong and report it first. This would eliminate the most crucial prerequisite for a surprise attack: the element of surprise.
However, You Chen suddenly recalled a target, someone who wouldn't report such things and could frequently be close to the person You Chen considered her target—Hu Liena!
Years had passed since You Chen had planted the seed of fear in Hu Liena using the Soul Shackling Art, and now Hu Liena's fear of You Chen no longer caused her to react as if she were having a seizure upon meeting her.
But if You Chen were to do something to her again, it would trigger her protective mechanism, causing her to "forget" what had happened.
Thus, a perfect nail was successfully forged.
As for wasting a soul skill slot for Bibidong?
Basically, the vast majority of Spirit Ring skills and Soul Bone Skills lose their effectiveness at the divine level, far inferior to the divine skills created by the gods themselves.
Although You Chen had not yet ascended to godhood, she was already considering the enemies she would face after becoming a god, which is why she chose functional soul skills and mechanism-type soul skills as much as possible.
Even these two types of soul skills would have their effects greatly weakened after ascension.
Was it really worth it to occupy a soul skill slot specifically for one of the main enemies in the early stages of becoming a god, or perhaps to consider it from a slightly worse perspective...?
Even if it ultimately went unused, You Chen wouldn't feel it was a waste.
Unfortunately, aside from this soul skill, You Chen did not see any other skills related to space.
After confirming with Li Na whether Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone could select duplicate soul skills, and receiving an affirmative response, You Chen's four soul skill choices were finally settled.
Spirit Ring skill: Curse of the Stardust Heart, which is the Sea Princess's innate skill, Ocean Heart; Light of Despair, which forcibly imprisoned You Chen and sealed her soul power.
Soul Bone Skill: Curse of the Ocean Heart, which is the Sea Princess's innate skill, Ocean Heart; Mermaid's Protection, a bidirectional rescue skill.
-Support me in Patreon for more chapters 35+ chapters in there
patreon.com/QueenTL
Thanks!