Chapter 457: The Incense Burns Out
In front of the Sea God Temple.
The dazzling exchanges between Dai Yao and Bo Saixi left the seven Sea Pillar Douluo utterly stunned. Now, as the two paused to gather themselves, the Pillar Douluo also found a moment to catch their breath.
"What a pity," murmured Sea Maiden Douluo, lounging against her bubble and tapping her tail in barely concealed amusement. "The Grand Priestess could have easily taken down Dai Yao several times if he hadn't been lucky enough to dodge. But now she has him completely on the defensive. It won't be long before Dai Yao loses."
Sea Dragon Douluo, however, kept his eyes fixed on the confrontation above, his tone grave as he replied without looking at her, "Luck? Do you really think that's all it is? If any of us faced those three strikes, not one of us could hold out. But although Dai Yao may appear a bit battered, he hasn't suffered a single injury. To call that 'luck' would be to underestimate the Grand Priestess far too much."
"Bo Saixi doesn't make mistakes."
The others froze at his words. Just as Sea Maiden Douluo said, Bo Saixi had indeed held the upper hand throughout the battle, and Dai Yao's defeat seemed inevitable. But could there be something deeper going on?
Sea Lance Douluo took a step forward, glancing suspiciously up at Dai Yao in the sky, then asked, "Sea Dragon, do you think Dai Yao has been hiding his strength? Do you believe he might actually pass the trial?"
Sea Dragon Douluo shook his head. As the strongest among the Seven Pillar Douluo, he could faintly sense something unusual in their exchanges. He replied solemnly, "I don't know."
"If Dai Yao has been holding back, that's beyond daring—it's reckless. Bo Saixi is one of the world's supreme powers, and concealing strength from her would be no different from courting death. But if he is still hiding something, then it's hard for us to grasp his chances of victory. Their battle is something the world rarely witnesses, and even if Dai Yao ultimately loses, he has already surpassed us all. If it were us up there, we wouldn't last a single round."
"What we should do now is learn from this battle—not assume Dai Yao will certainly lose out of mere prejudice."
With that, Sea Dragon Douluo cast a meaningful look at Sea Maiden Douluo before returning his gaze to the sky.
The other Douluo shared knowing glances, each giving a wry smile. Compared to Dai Yao, they were worlds apart.
Meanwhile, Sea Maiden Douluo bit her lip and looked up with a complex expression.
At the foot of Sea God Mountain.
The battle had kept Zhu Zhuqing and the others on edge, their hearts racing.
"Do you think Brother Dai will be alright?" asked Bai Chenxiang, her hands clasped tightly and trembling slightly, her gaze full of worry as she looked to the others.
Despite her own tense expression, Dugu Yan forced a reassuring smile. "Chenxiang, don't worry. Although it seems Dai Yao is on the back foot, he hasn't been injured. This shows he's still within his comfort zone and has control over the situation."
Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, and Feng Wutong, while visibly worried, showed no signs of panic. Despite their youth, they had experience and insight surpassing even many Title Douluo, allowing them to perceive the subtleties others missed.
Dai Yao was not as helpless as he appeared.
Chenxiang's brows knitted in confusion. Her strength wasn't enough to sense the deeper layers of the battle. All she saw was Dai Yao struggling under Bo Saixi's relentless attacks. Watching Bo Saixi's casual strikes split the ocean itself had overturned everything she thought she knew about soul masters' power.
"Yan," Chenxiang said slowly, "I don't know if you're just trying to comfort me, but it's helped calm me down."
At that moment, Feng Wutong approached Bai Chenxiang, taking her hand. Startled, Chenxiang turned to find Feng Wutong's usual dignified, composed face.
"Chenxiang," Feng Wutong began seriously, "ever since you joined us, I've kept my distance because I thought you were approaching Dai Yao with some ulterior motive. But seeing your genuine concern for him now has changed my view of you."
"You and I are both Dai Yao's wives. We're all here together. You don't have to carry this worry alone."
Embarrassed at first by Feng Wutong's words, Bai Chenxiang blushed, but as she looked around and saw each woman's supportive gaze, she felt the warmth of family surround her.
"Thank you, sisters," Bai Chenxiang said gratefully.
Dugu Yan's expression was a mixture of amusement and exasperation. On one hand, she hadn't expected Feng Wutong to be so suspicious of Bai Chenxiang when, if anything, Dai Yao himself was the one with ulterior motives. On the other, she was amused at Feng Wutong's simple and blunt nature.
"They're all so sincere," she thought, glancing at Zhu Zhuqing's composed face and Ning Rongrong comforting Chenxiang. "Aside from Zhuqing, who's too sharp to bother, the rest are a little too trusting. I suppose it falls to me to be the sly, calculating 'schemer' in Dai Yao's life."
Suddenly, a strange sensation in the sky caught everyone's attention, and they looked up.
"Is that what you meant?" Bo Saixi raised a brow, her surprise momentarily flashing across her face before a small smile curved her lips. "I look forward to seeing what surprises you'll bring me."
With her words, nine spirit rings appeared, each slowly rising from Bo Saixi's feet. Their radiance—nine black and one red—was so imposing that Dai Yao felt the pressure intensify.
"So strong!" His forehead broke into a cold sweat. The sheer power of Bo Saixi overwhelmed anything he'd felt before. Not even Bibi Dong had forced him into such a corner. For the first time, he felt as though he were looking up at a deity.
His heart skipped a beat.
In his Omniscient state, he sensed spirit energy from the surrounding heaven and earth swirling toward Bo Saixi like a vortex. She absorbed the immense power as though she were a black hole. Moreover, water elements across the sea's surface in all directions were beginning to boil.
This was an exceptionally dangerous spirit ability Bo Saixi was preparing—not just one, but multiple abilities stacked together.
"Can I escape?" he wondered. "Even with Omniscience, predicting Bo Saixi's moves is almost useless in the face of her overwhelming strength. I don't even have time to escape… then in that case…"
Calculating the flow of the battle, Dai Yao's gaze sharpened as his fourth, sixth, and eighth spirit rings lit up. The spirit bone in his left leg, from the Evil Demon Orca King, began to emit a dark red glow.
In the skies above, storm clouds gathered, lightning crackling and thunder echoing all around. Bo Saixi's white hair billowed wildly in the wind as she focused her icy gaze on Dai Yao. She sneered slightly as she took in his stance.
"A head-on clash?" she taunted. "Dai Yao, I don't know whether to call you bold or foolish."
Her third spirit ring lit up.
"Third spirit ability, Sea God's Gaze."
A golden beam shot up from her forehead, drawing all the water elements in the atmosphere toward her. Behind her, a towering figure of the Sea God appeared. Her eyes turned gold as she slowly raised her right hand, and the enormous Sea God projection mimicked her, extending a hand the size of a mountain toward Dai Yao.
"Damn, that pull is insane!"
Dai Yao's eight wings flapped furiously, the wind currents lifting massive waves beneath him as he desperately tried to evade the Sea God's Gaze.
But the predictive power of Omniscience was nearly useless here, as Sea God's Gaze was a tracking skill—unavoidable. No matter how godly Dai Yao's senses were, he couldn't evade an unavoidable skill.
Watching Dai Yao narrowly dodge again and again, Bo Saixi remarked in surprise, "Even Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu couldn't escape my third spirit ability; they had no choice but to take it head-on. Dai Yao, the fact that you've lasted this long is remarkable. But I won't give you any more chances."
Bo Saixi's fifth spirit ring lit up.
"Fifth spirit ability, Sea God's Summons: Legion of the Deep."
Her crimson trident symbol flashed brightly as four towering walls of water rose around Dai Yao, creating a prison. From the water walls, countless soul beasts emerged, crowding the space and surrounding Dai Yao.
A pulse of pure white light erupted from Dai Yao, the White Tiger Domain. Light waves shot out, claws and lightning tearing through the oncoming soul beasts. Though he cut down countless beasts, their endless numbers trapped him within the prison of water walls.
In the confusion, the Sea God's massive hand finally caught Dai Yao.
Realizing he'd reached his limit, Dai Yao folded his eight wings around himself, forming a protective cocoon. Golden chains shot out from the Sea God's hand, locking tightly around his winged cocoon.
Bo Saixi, satisfied, gave a nod as she slowly commanded the Sea God's hand to draw him in.
"It's over, Dai Yao," she said coldly.
A faint sense of emptiness settled over her. Dai Yao's defeat meant he had failed the sixth trial, and she would survive. But it also meant that the Sea God's inheritance, and all it represented, had ended.
In front of the Sea God Hall, the seven sacred pillar Douluos stood in silent awe. The power of the High Priest was simply terrifying. Just from observing the battle, they could feel an overwhelming, suffocating force. Even if all seven joined forces, they doubted they could withstand even a single strike from Bo Saixi.
At the foot of Sea God Mountain, Zhu Zhuqing and the others wore tense expressions on their beautiful faces, cold sweat trickling down their foreheads.
Though they had unwavering confidence in Dai Yao's strength, the perilous situation was enough to shake their hearts.
Zhu Zhuqing stared into the sky, and suddenly, as if noticing something, her tense expression softened. The dark clouds covering the heavens had not dispersed, and lightning, like silver serpents, streaked across the sky. It was a scene she recognized all too well.
This was Dai Yao gathering his strength!
"Dai Yao, do you have any last words?"
Bo Saixi lightly tapped her staff, and the Hand of the Sea God slowly unfolded. Looking at the "cocoon" bound by numerous golden chains, she calmly asked.
The air grew still, leaving only the rumble of thunder echoing from the heavens.
All the onlookers held their breath, straining to hear Dai Yao's response.
"Last words? Ha, Bo Saixi, do you think your victory is certain?"
As his voice fell, a golden beam of light shot into the sky. The trident-shaped mark on Dai Yao's forehead shone brilliantly, causing the golden chains formed by the Sea God's Gaze to tremble violently under its interference.
"Not good!"
Bo Saixi's pupils constricted. She raised her staff, intending to stop Dai Yao from escaping. But she underestimated his decisiveness!
Rip!
Dai Yao's eight wings shattered halfway, exchanging excruciating pain for a fleeting chance. Ignoring the agony, he broke free from the golden chains. Facing the nearby Bo Saixi, his golden hair whipped wildly as a menacing smile spread across his face.
He was an assault-type Spirit Master, and his specialty was close-quarters combat. Bo Saixi was well aware of this and wouldn't allow him to get close.
Thus, from the very beginning, Dai Yao had schemed to narrow the gap between them. When Bo Saixi used her third spirit ability, realizing he was outmatched, he feigned being captured to lure her in.
Now, at last, his bloodthirsty fangs were bared for all to see.
"Eighth Spirit Ability—Divine Fall!"
Dai Yao roared.
The eighth spirit ability he had prepared descended from the sky.
A pillar of light pierced through the dark clouds, striking directly at Bo Saixi.
Bo Saixi's expression shifted slightly. The power of Dai Yao's eighth spirit ability was astonishing, comparable to the strongest strikes of some Rank 98 Title Douluos. Even she had to face it with her full strength.
Layers of water shields formed above Bo Saixi's head, and water walls summoned from the elements rose to her defense.
The energy beam showed no mercy, crashing down relentlessly. The blinding light forced everyone to avert their eyes, and their ears rang with its deafening impact.
Moments later, as the smoke cleared, an enormous crater marred the previously calm sea.
Everyone gazed at the crater in stunned silence, unable to speak. But before they could process what had happened, the sky changed again!
At the instant Divine Fall was unleashed, Dai Yao summoned the wings of his Holy White Tiger martial spirit. Though it was only a single pair, it was better than nothing. Activating explosive speed, he flapped his wings and darted toward Bo Saixi like a lightning bolt.
He could sense it. Even though Divine Fall had struck Bo Saixi, her aura showed no signs of weakening!
"Faster, just a bit faster!"
Dai Yao roared inwardly.
In his omniscient state, he noticed that Bo Saixi was regaining her composure. If she managed to escape the battle, he would lose his only chance.
"Orca Shard Slash!"
At the critical moment, Dai Yao lashed out with his left leg. This was a soul bone ability from the Demonic Orca King. Though not as powerful as Divine Fall, it was still a skill from a 100,000-year-old soul bone and capable of stalling Bo Saixi.
This brief delay was enough for Dai Yao to close the distance.
Just as Bo Saixi recovered from Divine Fall's disorienting impact, countless blood-red crescent blades streaked toward her.
"A 100,000-year soul bone ability?"
Bo Saixi's beautiful eyes narrowed. With a wave of her slender fingers, water shields formed before her. The crimson blades clashed against them, creating a misty spray. The resulting shockwaves sent ripples across the sea.
"Impressive spirit ability, but if you think this is enough to defeat me, you're too naive—wait, what?"
Bo Saixi's eyes widened in shock.
Amidst the dispersing mist, Dai Yao's figure appeared, already at close range.
His back was bloodied, his clothes tattered, but his eyes burned with determination. Lightning flickered across his body as he bent slightly, charging up his right fist. His golden hair danced wildly in the wind, and his unrestrained, do-or-die stance stunned even Bo Saixi.
"Fourth Spirit Ability—White Tiger Thunder God Strike!"
With a thunderous shout, countless bolts of lightning converged onto Dai Yao's right fist.
The fourth spirit ability, which had accompanied Dai Yao for so many years, was one of his hidden trump cards. Though only a ten-thousand-year spirit ability, it had grown in power alongside his cultivation, aided by the Lightning Inferno Vine.
Now, its strength rivaled even Divine Fall!
Dai Yao's electrified fist smashed toward Bo Saixi. At this moment, she could no longer summon water shields to defend herself.
The thunderous punch shattered the protective field surrounding the Rank 99 Peak Douluo. For the first time since the battle began—and perhaps in years—Bo Saixi was forced to evade!
No, it was the first time in her life that she had to dodge.
"A golden opportunity!"
Dai Yao's eyes gleamed with ferocity. Once Bo Saixi dodged the first attack, she would be forced to dodge again. He would not give her a moment to recover!
Dai Yao's right hand shifted forms like a spear, thrusting toward Bo Saixi repeatedly.
She was forced to evade again and again.
But Dai Yao pursued relentlessly, refusing to let her escape his range. His every strike was wild and unyielding, leaving Bo Saixi no time to regroup. Fleeing further from him, she had no choice but to keep retreating.
Yet Dai Yao's explosive steps, white tiger wings, and Blue Silver Emperor soul bone's flight skill enabled him to stay on her heels.
Bo Saixi could not escape.
However, her years of experience eventually gave her a moment to gather her spirit power. She aimed her palm forward, preparing to strike Dai Yao and end the fight.
But Dai Yao narrowly dodged her attack at the last second. Not only that, his frenzied assault resumed with even greater intensity.
"That strange spirit ability again!"
Bo Saixi realized what was happening. Dai Yao's omniscient-like soul ability allowed him to predict her moves.
Dai Yao's spear techniques were forged in life-or-death battles, honed to an instinctual level unmatched on the continent. When wielding a spear, his attacks were embedded into his very bones, requiring no thought.
The combination of omniscience and his spear skills completely sealed off Bo Saixi's chances of escape.
In the relentless assault, Bo Saixi couldn't tell how much time had passed before finally spotting an opening. Spirit power surged, her spirit rings glowed, and she prepared to launch a counterattack.
Yet, amidst Dai Yao's heavy breathing, a voice reached her ears.
"The incense has burned out."
Bo Saixi abruptly turned.
Before the Sea God Hall, the incense stick planted in the ground had burned to its final ember. The orange glow dimmed, and the ash fell silently to the ground.
The sixth trial was complete.
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