Chapter 245: Tidal Body Tempering
Just as everyone was filled with confusion, a voice came from the distance.
"You will soon understand what Tidal Body Tempering is. This trial will be personally overseen by me."
Wearing a red robe, Poseidon appeared in front of the group, looking more solemn than usual. There was even a hint of something different in her eyes, and Yang Xiong felt as though Poseidon was deliberately, or perhaps unintentionally, gazing at him.
After saying this, Poseidon led the group in the opposite direction of Sea God's Mountain. Though the pace wasn't fast, the rhythm was exceptionally well controlled, and each step seemed incredibly light.
Everyone quickly followed behind Poseidon, trying their best to keep up.
They walked for over two hours, crossing forests, hills, and even seeing the other Seven Sacred Pillars of Sea God Island. It could be said that they had a basic understanding of Sea God Island's general layout.
The entire Sea God Island was a massive island, with a diameter likely exceeding 400 kilometers, resembling a unique continent that had almost every type of terrain.
At this moment, they heard a rumbling sound, like the waves crashing against the shore, but it was far more intense than any regular wave, as if the booming thunder was shaking the very soul, making one feel as if their spirit was being struck.
Yang Xiong, feeling extraordinarily sensitive, noticed that the sound seemed to carry some special mental power that made it deafening.
Under Poseidon's guidance, they arrived at a towering peak, standing 100 meters high. The entire mountain was pitch black, with not a single blade of grass, seemingly made entirely of a special kind of stone.
When Yang Xiong and the others reached the mountain top, the scene before them was nothing short of breathtaking.
What lay before them was a massive valley, shaped like a ring, with a gap. Boundless seawater poured in from the gap.
The entire valley was made of black stones that looked extremely hard.
As the seawater poured in, the once calm sea turned into raging waves, crashing furiously against the valley's stone walls. The highest of these waves were hundreds of meters high, and new waves continuously emerged one after another, making the vastness of the sea and the majesty of nature palpable.
The deafening roar seemed to consume everything, and Yang Xiong and the others felt incredibly small, as if they were facing the boundless ocean.
Poseidon spoke: "This is the location of your third trial: the Raging Tide Abyss, one of the unique features of Sea God Island. Even the top sea soul beasts in the world cannot reach here. Do you know how this Raging Tide Abyss was formed?"
After saying this, Poseidon unexpectedly focused her gaze on Tang San, her eyes carrying some hidden meaning.
Tang San quickly replied: "Senior, could it be that the valley was formed by the crashing of the waves?"
Poseidon nodded calmly: "You guessed correctly. The entire valley was formed by the waves crashing. Under the endless assault of the waves, the rocks were compressed over time, becoming harder than refined iron and extremely dense. This is a unique feature of Sea God Island."
Tang San, slightly puzzled, asked: "Senior, then what exactly is our trial?"
Poseidon didn't answer directly. At that moment, she summoned nine soul rings, and behind her appeared the blue shadow of her martial soul.
This martial soul was incredibly tall and imposing, exuding an aura of immense power, almost as if it were the ocean itself, with a presence akin to that of a deity.
This was Poseidon's martial soul, one of the two god-level martial souls in the world. Poseidon's soul was of the same caliber as Qian Renxue's Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul, considered one of the most powerful in history, and one of the very few martial souls with a domain.
At this moment, Poseidon looked like a god. Her nine soul rings lit up, eight black and one red—such a soul ring configuration was unprecedented, causing those around them to be in awe.
A blue glow radiated from her, and the entire Raging Tide Abyss, which had been raging with violent waves, immediately calmed eerily.
Yang Xiong's heart tightened at the sight. This wasn't just the domain of her martial soul; it seemed like Poseidon herself had merged with the ocean, using its power as her own.
At that moment, thirteen massive pillars rose from the sea, each over 50 meters tall and about a meter in diameter. At the top of each pillar was a small cross, with five small rings on it.
Whether it was Yang Xiong or the others, they were all struck by Poseidon's power. The pillars were so thick and made of a special metal that they seemed terrifyingly heavy. The fact that thirteen of them were supporting the weight at once was astounding.
Poseidon appeared completely calm: "This is where your trial will take place. For the Black-level Four Trials, you will need six hours; for the Black-level Six Trials, eight hours; for the Red-level Seven Trials, nine hours; and for the Red-level Eight Trials, fourteen hours. In the beginning, you can shorten your time, but from now on, for the next 365 days, the average time spent on the Silver Pillars must be as I just said, or you will fail the trial."
Everyone swallowed hard, now understanding the meaning of Tidal Body Tempering: standing on the Silver Pillars while enduring the force of the waves.
Poseidon continued: "Everyone's trials are the same, so the positions are not fixed. However, Yang Xiong, as you are doing the Double Tidal Body Tempering, your position is unique."
Upon hearing this, Yang Xiong quickly looked toward the sea. Indeed, among the thirteen pillars, one was slightly out of place, appearing to have been prepared in advance. Yang Xiong's group of eight was placed together, while Tang San's group of six was positioned relatively close.
Before anyone could respond, a blue light instantly wrapped around everyone. It was as if their bodies were completely out of their control, and they were rapidly drawn toward a Silver Pillar. Even Yang Xiong was shocked, as at that moment, it felt as though his martial soul was completely suppressed, with no ability to resist.
Before Yang Xiong could react, five small rings from the Silver Pillar locked around his body, securing his waist, limbs, and leaving him unable to move freely.
At that moment, it felt like his martial soul and soul ring were also completely controlled, with his soul bone skills unavailable. It reminded him of the feeling when he was in the Killing City.
The others were in a similar situation, with their martial souls, soul rings, and soul bone skills suppressed, as if they were helpless lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
At that moment, the sea, which had previously calmed down, began to churn again. The waves rose as if to engulf everyone.
Everyone's eyes filled with terror as they faced the vast ocean, as if standing before a giant beast.
A wave over 50 meters high slammed into Yang Xiong, then immediately hit the others. The air was dispersed by the immense force of the wave, making it hard to breathe, and their bodies felt as though they were being battered by the ocean's fury.
Everyone endured the pain, the suffocating feeling gradually fading away. After the first wave, they realized that the trial might not be as hard as they had expected.
However, before they could fully react, a second wave came crashing down, hitting their bodies once again, adding to the already overwhelming force of the previous wave.
With wave after wave hitting them, the relentless pressure seemed to continue without end. Everyone's bodies were soaked, and they felt as though they were drowning, yet the waves would give them brief moments of respite.
As time passed, the group began to feel the terrifying nature of this trial, and their bodies endured extreme pain.
All present were at least Soul Saints, or a few were Soul Emperors, meaning they were all skilled soul masters, with decent strength.
But with the constant assault of the waves, especially the unending bombardment, it felt as though not only their bodies but also their very souls were being attacked.
The waves seemed to have some special energy that penetrated their skin, gradually attacking their muscles, meridians, bones, and even their bone marrow.
After countless waves, their bodies became numb. Each impact felt like being struck by a master, rapidly draining their soul power.
Once their soul power was exhausted, they could only rely on their bodies to endure. What was once a numb feeling turned into increasing agony, as though they were being tortured in hell.
Yang Xiong recognized this pain very well. Every time he tempered his body or broke through his limits, it felt just like this—pain that penetrated to the bone.
...
As the Tidal Body Tempering continued, everyone felt the pain intensifying.
Among Yang Xiong's group, the first to collapse under the pressure were Fire Dance and Shui Bing'er. Both were top-tier Soul Emperors, but their physical strength was weaker than that of Soul Saints, and neither had top-tier soul bones.
In contrast, Oscar and Ning Rongrong were only support-type soul masters, but their higher soul power, along with their soul bones—especially the critical trunk soul bones—made their physical strength comparable to that of battle soul masters.
As for the eldest brother, Yang Wei, Qin Shuang, and Feng Xiaotian, they were also holding up quite well. Yang Wei, in particular, had several excellent soul bones, and even as a Weapon Soul Master, his body was no weaker than Beast Soul Masters.
Fire Xiaotian and Qin Shuang, both top-tier Beast Martial Souls and Soul Saints, were doing their best to endure as well.
In comparison, Tang San and his six companions were having more difficulty. Although they had four Soul Emperors among them, even Tang San and Xiao Wu's physical strength might not be as strong as Ning Rongrong's and the others.
As time passed, no matter how proud and strong Zhu Zhuqing and Dugu Yan were, they were the first to succumb to the pain and passed out.
After that, Fire Dance and Shui Bing'er also started to lose consciousness.
Soon, even the strongest among them—Tang San, Qin Shuang, and Yang Wei—collapsed from the endless waves.
Among Yang Xiong's group, only Shui Bing'er and Fire Dance remained conscious, and the rest had all reached Soul Saint level, though the strongest physiques were Qin Shuang and Yang Wei.
As the battle continued, it seemed the only one left standing in the Raging Tide Abyss was Yang Xiong, and he appeared increasingly excited, his fighting spirit rising even more.
(END CHAPTER)
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