Chapter 173: Completing the Second Assessment, Bo Saixi’s Anger
Chapter 173: Completing the Second Assessment, Bo Saixi's Anger
"Sea Dragon Douluo makes a lot of sense; the kid has used his ninth soul skill already, and I believe that's about all he can handle."
Sea Dragon Douluo's remark resonated with many.
Qin Xiao's performance had shocked everyone present.
But everything has its limits, right? A teenager defying the heavens is one thing, but overly defying them seems improper.
Otherwise, how could others stand a chance?
However.
When Qin Xiao lifted his foot again, everyone's opinion shifted.
"Is this kid trying to move forward? Does he have a death wish?"
"He really doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth!"
"I think he doesn't know how the word 'death' is written."
"He dares, he really dares to take another step?"
From a distance, the seven pillar guardians were stunned.
It was then that Sea Dragon Douluo solemnly said, "Is there a possibility that even if he wanted to stop, he couldn't?"
Whoosh.
Sea Horse Douluo suddenly turned back, looking incredulously at Sea Dragon Douluo and asked, "Boss, are you saying that Lord Sea God's test for Qin Xiao hasn't stopped? Even reaching the nine hundredth step doesn't mean he has completed Her Majesty's assessment?"
"Exactly," Sea Dragon Douluo nodded slightly.
Everyone became unsettled upon hearing Sea Dragon Douluo's words.
The difficulty was genuinely no small matter.
"I was wrong, I thought Lord Sea God valued Qin Xiao highly, even reducing the difficulty of the first task. It seems that's not the case."
"If he keeps going forward, there's still no hope for Qin Xiao; the difficulty increases exponentially beyond this point."
As guardians of the pillars, they knew a lot.
The further up one went, the more unimaginable the difficulties became.
Bo Saixi once said personally that only she could reach the one thousand and first step, ascend to the very top, and enter that temple.
But what kind of strength does Bo Saixi possess?
A peerless powerhouse of level ninety-nine. No, to be precise, even a level ninety-nine Titled Douluo is not as powerful as her.
Let's not forget that Bo Saixi also possesses the divine power bestowed by Lord Sea God herself, her real strength having transcended human limits, at least equivalent to a demi-god.
But what about Qin Xiao?
No matter how exceptional, he was just a high-level Titled Douluo, and with the aid of soul skills, his cultivation barely reached the level of ninety-seven; he couldn't possibly compare to Bo Saixi.
"What a joke?"
"Not to mention reaching the top step, even taking one more step is a huge challenge for him."
"Hey, wait, you guys look, he just lifted his foot, and now he's putting it back down."
"He chickened out, it looks like he chickened out."
"It could also be called knowing when to retreat."
From the viewpoint of the many pillar guardians, Qin Xiao had lifted his foot but then placed it back down.
"Zhuqing, do you think His Highness is feeling the pressure?"
Elsewhere, Ning Rongrong's face was filled with anxiety; her hands clasped together, forcefully squeezing each other.
Even turning blue and purple, she didn't let go.
This was a subconscious act, as she was too nervous to even remember the pain.
But.
Who wasn't worried?
Meng Yiran, Dugu Yan, and Zhu Zhuqing all stared intently at Qin Xiao, completely engrossed, unable to hear any outside noise.
They weren't fools; they could sense that Qin Xiao was not in a good state.
"It's challenging, at least more challenging than I had imagined."
"To take another step forward, even a level ninety-seven Titled Douluo would have to kneel."
Qin Xiao frowned, having expected that it would take reaching the nine hundred and fiftieth step before encountering such pressure.
The pressure at the one thousand and first step must be immense.
He estimated that even a level ninety-nine cultivation might not be sufficient.
"Damn, Sea God, this old guy is not being fair. Is it because I drained his divine power? Does he have to retaliate like this?" Qin Xiao muttered internally. But giving up was not in his plans.
With a thought, the first soul ring on Qin Xiao lit up.
Roar!
A several meters tall Thunder Titan appeared behind Qin Xiao.
Due to the suppression of the Light of Sea God, Qin Xiao's soul skills were weakened, otherwise, the Thunder Titan's size would be more than double what it was now.
"What is this kid planning?"
"This soul skill is powerful!"
The Pillar Guardians were puzzled.
Soon, Qin Xiao provided the answer.
"Self-destruct!"
Qin Xiao pointed forward, and the Thunder Titan leaped into the air.
The powerful soul force spread out in all directions, significantly reducing the pressure on Qin Xiao.
Taking advantage of this, he surged forward.
This time, his step wasn't just one stair but fifteen.
He had reached the nine hundred and fiftieth step.
Simultaneously, his seventh soul ring lit up—his Martial Soul True Body.
With his Martial Soul True Body activated, all soul skills below the seventh ring could be used without cooldown.
He could continuously use his first soul skill.
So, the rhythm was set—self-destruct, and then self-destruct again.
Qin Xiao literally blasted a path toward the temple.
"Holy smokes, can he even do that?"
"Such brutality, using powerful soul skill explosions to counter the pressure of the Light of Sea God, only he could think of this."
"Actually, the idea isn't that hard; a strong power burst can indeed achieve this. What's hard is to have such powerful force and sufficient soul power. Not everyone has a hundred thousand-year first ring that allows for unlimited use."
Seeing Qin Xiao's tactics, even a mighty Titled Douluo like Sea Dragon Douluo at level ninety-five had to admire him.
He couldn't help but inwardly give Qin Xiao a thumbs up.
Having the idea is one thing; executing it is another.
Qin Xiao's strength had completely conquered him.
He thought to himself that even if he combined forces with the other Pillar Guardians, they wouldn't stand a chance against Qin Xiao.
Under a series of explosive attacks, they definitely wouldn't survive.
Even a level ninety-eight Titled Douluo might not make it.
"Probably only the Grand Priest could withstand Qin Xiao's assault."
Sea Dragon Douluo thought to himself.
In no time, Qin Xiao had surged to the one thousandth step.
At this moment, everyone couldn't help but marvel—it was truly spectacular.
They no longer pondered over Qin Xiao's assessment; instead, they purely hoped Qin Xiao could take one more step and stand on the final stair.
Undoubtedly, this would be a monumental feat, a miracle.
"Ning Rongrong, help me!"
Suddenly Qin Xiao's shout rang out.
Not only on the island, but even those outside could hear it clearly.
"It's Qin Xiao, he's asking me to help him!"
Ning Rongrong was startled.
However, before her mind could catch up, her body had already reacted.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda appeared in her palm, and almost simultaneously, four dazzling beams of light shot out from the pagoda and landed on Qin Xiao.
Yes, four beams.
In the past year, Ning Rongrong's cultivation had improved tremendously.
After completing the trial of the Light of Sea God, her cultivation reached level forty, and she even received a divine soul ring.
As for Qin Xiao, with Ning Rongrong's support, his strength, speed, and soul power all saw tremendous improvements.
Not to mention, his soul power began to surge.
Crack.
In an instant, Qin Xiao felt a crisp sound within him.
"My soul power level has reached ninety-eight!"
Qin Xiao's eyes lit up.
Ning Rongrong had not let him down, enhancing his soul power under the augment of the Thunder Emperor Armor to rival that of a level ninety-seven Titled Douluo, and pushing it even further.
Of course, while his soul power level reached this stage, his understanding was far less.
But does that matter?
He had the ability of the Thunder Titan's self-destruction; brute force was enough.
"Thunder Titan!"
At this moment, Qin Xiao's soul power, as if it were inexhaustible, crazily surged into the first soul ring.
Whoosh!
A red light lit up, dazzlingly brilliant, even the golden Light of Sea God couldn't overshadow it.
"Gurgle."
"He's too strong, this kid is just too strong
. What more does he have up his sleeve?"
Sea Horse Douluo swallowed hard, his expression filled with tension.
"I don't know how many more tricks he has, but what I can be sure of is that what he's shown us so far is not even his last resort," Sea Dragon Douluo answered solemnly.
Yet, his eyes never left Qin Xiao; he was afraid to miss any spectacular moment.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a series of roars rang out.
A massive phantom of a Titan Giant Ape coalesced behind Qin Xiao once again.
This time the Titan was exceptionally large; even under the pressure of the Light of Sea God, it towered over twenty meters high.
Compared to it, Qin Xiao's height of over one meter eighty seemed like that of an ant.
"Self-destruct!"
Qin Xiao's demeanor was calm.
He uttered the word again.
But unlike before, the power of this explosion was incomparable to any previous ones.
Boom, boom, boom.
Thunder exploded above the island, with dense flashes of lightning.
Lightning bolts stretching for miles, like ferocious electric snakes, danced wildly.
The ground shook, the mountains trembled, raising waves tens of meters high.
Crack, crack.
It was unimaginable—cracks spiderwebbed across the island under the domain of Sea God's power, evidence of the sheer force of Qin Xiao's attack.
His power had reached the limits of what Douluo Continent could withstand, and even the protective force of Sea God seemed insufficient to contain it.
"This kid, is he trying to destroy the sacred site?"
"Such a heavenly-defying attack."
"How do we stop him?"
The many pillar guardians were astounded, not having anticipated Qin Xiao reaching such extremes.
What would they do if Qin Xiao actually destroyed this place?
"Boss, say something."
Everyone looked towards Sea Dragon Douluo, seeking to intervene.
"What's the panic?"
Sea Dragon Douluo glanced at them dismissively, "Don't worry, the Grand Priest will intervene."
The Grand Priest!
At this, everyone brightened, as if finding their backbone.
Undoubtedly, Bo Saixi was regarded as an authority, an omnipotent being in their eyes.
Whisk, whisk, whisk.
Their gazes, almost tangible, turned back to the island.
This time, however, they eagerly watched not Qin Xiao but the temple at the summit of the island where the Grand Priest resided.
"Enough!"
As expected, a voice, ethereal, cold, yet filled with authority, rose above all noise and slowly spread.
Accompanying it was a burst of blue light from the Temple of Sea God.
Wherever the light touched, the thunder ceased and the waves calmed.
Even the cracks on the island slowly closed up, and the white jade steps that had been destroyed seemed to heal as if alive.
Rumble.
The doors of the Temple of Sea God slowly opened.
After opening about three meters wide, they stopped.
A figure in a red gown, holding a scepter, and with a dignified expression, Bo Saixi, walked out.
She looked at Qin Xiao, who had somehow reached the one thousand and first step, and remained silent for a long time.
Indeed.
Qin Xiao had succeeded.
At a certain cost, he had managed to stand on the highest step.
"Hisss, Qin Xiao really did it!"
"Terrifying."
The many pillar guardians had mixed feelings about this result.
It seemed both expected and surprising.
To be honest, no one had thought Qin Xiao could be so extreme.
As for shock?
Please, their shock was like waves, one after another, and they hadn't yet come out of that emotional state.
"Yay, I knew it, I just knew it."
Elsewhere, Ning Rongrong jumped up excitedly, her hands waving uncontrollably.
She was so happy she couldn't even speak a complete sentence.
"His Highness has never let us down."
Zhu Zhuqing wouldn't behave like Ning Rongrong, but the joy in her eyes was nearly spilling over.
Meanwhile, on the island.
"Do you realize, if I hadn't intervened just now, how much trouble it would have caused?"
Seeing Qin Xiao silent for a long time, Bo Saixi couldn't help but ask.
She was somewhat angry. Qin Xiao really seemed to act recklessly.
If not for her intervention, the restrictions left by Sea God would have been damaged, and the island in the heart of the sea would have been fractured and submerged by the ocean.
The damage would have been tremendous.
In response to Bo Saixi's query, Qin Xiao spread his hands helplessly, "Am I to blame? I was merely completing the trial, following the rules. You know the difficulty of these one thousand and one steps; I had to give it my all."
He indicated he couldn't take the blame for this.
Blame should only be placed on Sea God himself for setting such a difficult task.
For instance, if doing eight push-ups completed the first eight trials, Qin Xiao would be willing.
Even if the ninth trial required push-ups, Qin Xiao would have no complaints.
If it came to it, a few sit-ups would work too, right?
Bo Saixi frowned.
Qin Xiao invoking Sea God put her in a tight spot. This also helped calm her initially agitated mood.
"Could it be possible that Lord Sea God wanted you to have sufficient cultivation to use a more gentle approach?"
"No way, I'm just straightforward in my approach."
Qin Xiao shook his head resolutely.
As he spoke, a golden light enveloped him.
The power of Sea God descended.
Simultaneously, a vast voice echoed in his mind.
"The second trial is complete."
Bo Saixi said nothing more, merely watching quietly.
After a moment, Qin Xiao asked, "May I know where I can find the Demon Soul Great White Shark?"
Hmm? Why was he looking for the Demon Soul Great White Shark? A bad premonition flickered in Bo Saixi's mind.
(End of Chapter)
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