"This place is actually the Sea God Temple?"
Lin Mu surveyed the pitch-black Sea God Temple, a strange glint in his eyes.
Although Qian Daoliu's usual quarters were simple, they were at least filled with light, a million times better than this Sea God Temple.
Generally, a Sea God Temple should at least have some blue light symbolizing the ocean.
Instead, it was a pitch-black hall; living in such a place long-term would be pure mental torture.
Undeniably, the deep sea is indeed incredibly dark, but not all creatures live there, especially since people were supposed to live in this Sea God Temple!
A normal person would probably suffer a mental breakdown after living there for half a year.
Thinking of this, Lin Mu's gaze fell on Bo Saixi ahead, a hint of pity in his eyes.
Comparatively, Qian Daoliu's treatment was far better than Bo Saixi's; not only could he leave Spirit City, but the Worship Palace was also a much more suitable place to live than the Sea God Temple.
From every aspect, it was clear that although Bo Saixi was outwardly a revered High Priestess, she was actually imprisoned on Sea God Island.
And to make matters worse, she lived in this godforsaken place.
An unsuspecting soul master might mistake this for the legacy of the God of Darkness or some evil god.
"Tang San, come forward."
Bo Saixi's calm voice echoed from the front, reverberating through the dark hall.
Hearing this, Tang San immediately turned to Lin Mu and respectfully said, "Master, we'll go take the assessment first."
"Okay, we'll wait for you here."
As he spoke, Lin Mu released Ye Lingling's soft hand, gesturing for her to follow Tang San and Xiao Wu.
After walking a short distance, Tang San led Ye Lingling and Xiao Wu to the Sea God Platform, where they met the kind-faced Bo Saixi.
Next, Bo Saixi recounted her experiences before becoming a priestess.
She then told them some stories about Tang Chen. Although Tang San wasn't particularly interested, he listened patiently.
From another perspective, Bo Saixi's fate was sealed the moment she received the Red-level Eight Trials, and after becoming a High Priestess, she lived a monotonous life.
Perhaps the few years she spent with Tang Chen were as eventful as half her life.
A while later, Tang San finally arrived before the Sea God Trident. This trial had no restrictions; he could use all his power.
However, he didn't intend to borrow the power of the Myriad Demon King.
Asking the Myriad Demon King for help might anger the Sea God.
After all, it was a divine artifact, and one symbolizing the Sea God's majesty; the Sea God certainly wouldn't allow outsiders to interfere.
As for Ye Lingling and Xiao Wu behind him, they were basically useless except for healing his injuries and cheering him on.
Even so, with the enhancement of his complete set of soul bones, Tang San finally managed to pull out the Sea God Trident.
In an instant, the entire Sea God Mountain trembled, and a dazzling golden light shot into the sky from the Sea God Temple, its intense radiance enveloping the entire Sea God Island.
Simultaneously, the seven holy pillars on Sea God Island lit up.
Seven beams of golden light of varying thickness shot from all directions, converging with the central golden pillar to form a golden phantom image of the Sea God.
At this moment, all the soul masters on Sea God Island felt the power of the Sea God and knelt devoutly on the ground.
However, if they looked closely, they would see that this golden statue was not the Sea God they had previously worshipped, but a "new Sea God" with a face exactly like Tang San's.
With the completion of the seventh trial, Ye Lingling and Xiao Wu had finished all their assessments.
They received essentially the same rewards: not only a three-level increase in soul power but also two divinely bestowed soul rings, each with a five-thousand-year age limit increase to all their soul rings.
They also gained red-level authority on Sea God Island, meaning both were qualified to succeed as High Priestess.
However, Lin Mu certainly wouldn't let Ye Lingling become a High Priestess; being the High Priestess of Sea God Island was too much of a hardship.
From beginning to end, he was only here to fleece the Sea God.
Now that his goal was achieved, he wouldn't consider any obligation.
Once Tang San truly succeeded as the Sea God, there would be no need for a successor for tens of thousands of years.
Therefore, Sea God Island needed reform; it couldn't remain as rigid as it was now.
After completing the seventh trial, Tang San could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, unconscious, with the Sea God Trident pressing down on him.
Xiao Wu and Ye Lingling, who were closest to him, immediately rushed to remove the Sea God Trident.
However, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't budge the divine artifact an inch.
This Sea God Trident weighed a staggering 108,000 jin, and even Bo Saixi, a Limit Douluo, could only barely move it.
"Let me do it."
A voice that brooked no refusal rang out, and Lin Mu appeared beside Bo Saixi at some point, grabbing the Trident's shaft.
Although Lin Mu held the trident with one hand, the pressure on Tang San vanished instantly.
Then, with a low shout, Lin Mu directly stood the Trident upright; if he had used both hands, he could have even lifted it.
Keep in mind that Lin Mu wasn't using his martial soul; he relied entirely on his soul power and brute force!
Watching this scene unfold, Bo Saixi was utterly astonished. This guy's strength was so formidable, completely overturning her understanding of soul masters.
Lin Mu supported the Trident with one hand, preventing it from toppling over again.
At the same time, he turned to Ye Lingling, his expression calm, and said, "Lingling, come and heal Xiao San."
With Lin Mu by her side, Ye Lingling could focus on treating Tang San.
Not long after, Tang San regained consciousness. Before him stood Xiao Wu, tears streaming down her face, his master holding the Sea God Trident, and Ye Lingling healing his injuries.
"Xiao San, here's your Sea God Trident back."
Seeing Tang San awake, Lin Mu stepped forward, holding the Sea God Trident, and handed it to him.
Although Tang San's strength was far inferior to Lin Mu's, he had gained the Sea God Trident's approval, making it weigh only 108 jin in his hands.
After confirming Tang San was unharmed, Ye Lingling prepared to absorb the divinely bestowed soul ring.
"Lingling, don't rush to absorb the soul ring. Fuse this right arm soul bone first, then absorb the divinely bestowed soul ring."
Lin Mu took out the right arm soul bone of the Myriad Demon King from his soul tool and handed it to Ye Lingling.
Besides life-attribute soul bones, plant-attribute soul bones are most suitable for Ye Lingling, especially since this is a 500,000-year-old soul bone, which can greatly enhance Ye Lingling's physical strength.
After a while, Ye Lingling not only fused with the Myriad Demon King's soul bone, but her eighth soul ring also reached 100,000 years.
Just then, a faint light entered Ye Lingling's brow, forming a simple tree-shaped mark.
Almost simultaneously, all three divine trials Lin Mu had obtained disappeared.
Instead, a mark symbolizing the divine trial of the God of Destruction appeared!