Oscar's next target was the absolute ruler of the deep sea, a being closest to godhood , the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
Although Oscar was only at level ninety-five, with the fully equipped ten-thousand-year soul rings of the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion, several soul bones of at least a hundred thousand years, the recently acquired soul bone armor, and the amplifications from his many sausages, he might well have the power to fight against it.
Of course, what gave Oscar the confidence to take this risk was mainly his life-saving divine skill , the external soul bone Evil God Hook's ability, "Arena of Life and Death."
With Oscar's already impressive strength and the foundation of his twin soul cores that complemented each other, he was confident that the Deep Sea Demon Whale King could not escape the "Arena of Life and Death."
With this hidden card, Oscar could hunt the Deep Sea Demon Whale King without fear.
Of course, if the other party was willing to become his soul spirit, Oscar would be even happier.
If not, that was fine too , Oscar would persuade it with virtue.
As the overlord of the ocean, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King had once fought the Sea God before he ascended to godhood. Its ferocity echoed throughout the seas, and even Sea God Island feared it.
As such a ferocious and powerful super soul beast, its territory was unimaginably vast.
And because of its massive size, it rarely left its territory, remaining inside to rest.
It took Oscar nearly a whole day to finally pinpoint the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's location. Then, he appeared boldly in the sky, his Title Douluo-level pressure descending directly upon the whale king.
With Oscar's current foundation, his pressure was already comparable to that of an Ultimate Douluo. Such a powerful presence startled even the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
Opening its eyes from slumber, it let out a terrifying roar. Soul beasts within hundreds of miles fled in panic like frightened snakes.
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King had only one eye left , the other had been pierced by the first Sea God.
Its remaining eye gleamed with ferocity, releasing a terrifying aura comparable to an Ultimate Douluo, locking onto Oscar who stood in the void.
Facing an opponent seemingly no weaker than itself, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King still displayed rare courtesy. "Human, why have you intruded upon my domain?"
Oscar smiled. "I've come to discuss a cooperation."
"Cooperation?" The whale king was puzzled.
Its name shook the entire ocean, and yet a human came to discuss cooperation with it?
This human was not from Sea God Island, which meant he must be from the mainland.
When did the mainland produce such a powerful being? It still remembered the great battle decades ago between two human Ultimates and the Sea God Island High Priest.
It had only been a short few decades , a mere nap for the whale king , and another human of such power had appeared.
The Deep Sea Demon Whale King sighed inwardly. Humans truly were the most favored of all creatures.
It had cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years, gaining power comparable to a million years through its talent alone, just one step away from transforming into a dragon and becoming divine.
Unfortunately, heaven had played a cruel joke on soul beasts, and it had never been able to take that final step.
After some thought, it said, "Tell me your purpose."
Oscar spoke slowly. "I know your ambition and your dream. The cooperation I offer can help you take that last step."
At his words, the stormy sea fell eerily silent.
Cooperation that would let it take that final step?
It had struggled for countless years without success, yet this human spoke of it as if it were simple.
Most puzzling of all was its question, "You, a human, wish to cooperate with me? Would those in the God Realm even allow this? Would they let me break through?"
Oscar smiled warmly. "You'll understand once you see this."
He raised a slender finger, and terrifying spiritual power condensed. Just as he had done with the Evil Demon Orca King, Oscar transmitted his knowledge of the soul spirit method and parts of his plan to the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
The whale king hesitated for a moment but eventually accepted the mental projection.
Its spiritual power was already at its peak, so it had no fear of Oscar's tricks.
After a long time, the whale king looked at Oscar in shock.
Oscar's eyes gleamed as four soul spirits appeared , Tianmeng, the Ice Emperor, the Snow Emperor, and the young Evil Demon Orca.
Because of Oscar, the Evil Demon Orca King's strength as a soul spirit had even surpassed its former self by several times.
Seeing these four spirits, including its junior, the whale king was completely convinced of the soul spirit method's validity.
Even so, it still hesitated. It knew that with Oscar's talent and these powerful spirits, he would surely reach godhood.
It could think of no reason to refuse , yet still…
Oscar said nothing more. The Evil Demon Orca King spoke up, "Senior, this is the closest we've ever been to that realm. What are you still hesitating for?"
The whale king looked at Oscar. "I have one request."
Oscar nodded. "Please, go ahead."
The whale king said softly, "I am not alone. I have a wife and daughter. I can become your soul spirit and work with you toward that step. But I hope you can give my wife and daughter a chance."
Oscar smiled. "Of course. This is cooperation, not servitude. I can agree to that.
Aside from me, I have several companions who will also reach that step. When the divine inheritances reappear across the continent, I will find partners most suitable for your wife and daughter. Will that satisfy you?"
With Oscar's promise, the whale king felt no further worries.
It knew that with its own power alone, it might never take that final step.
This cooperation was a heaven-sent opportunity. As a ruler who had dominated the seas for hundreds of thousands of years, it had the courage to seize it.
"In that case," it said, "I will merge with you now. Afterward, I will take you to find my wife and daughter and help you conquer the seas."
Oscar smiled. "As expected of a monarch who has ruled the ocean for so long , I like your boldness. I will not disappoint you."
Such smooth negotiations were beyond Oscar's expectations. After all, in the original story, the whale king was anything but reasonable.
But with what Oscar now offered, even he could not have refused had their positions been reversed.
It was like someone cooking a feast and offering it to you , all you had to do was join and eat.
Without further words, Oscar summoned the Sky Azure Spirit Jade Sword, a blood-red soul ring circling around it.
He sat cross-legged atop the whale king's island-sized body and began fusing with it using the soul spirit method.
The whale king cooperated fully. It understood what cooperation with Oscar meant.
This was a gift from heaven , to ignore it would be to waste all its years of existence.
As a true million-year soul beast, its energy far surpassed that of the Heavenly Dream Iceworm, granting Oscar a terrifying boost.
The fusion took half a month. During this time, Tang San and the others had already taken Purple Pearl Island and were anxiously waiting.
Oscar's promise of resting a few days turned into over half a month.
Still, they knew Oscar must have been delayed by something important.
They decided that if Oscar did not return within a month, they would head to Sea God Island on their own.
They refused to believe that without Oscar's protection, they could not make it there.
After all, Jin Chen and the others were Soul Emperors, and Tang San, after a year of hard cultivation with sealed power, had also broken through to level sixty-one Soul Emperor.
Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu were not far behind, only a step away from the same level.
With such a lineup, crossing the sea to Sea God Island should not be difficult , especially since Purple Pearl, the pirate leader, knew the route there.
...
In the vast Deep Sea Demon Whale territory, a lone figure now sat cross-legged above the sea. Before him floated a sky-blue sword, and two soul rings , one crimson, one dark gold , pulsed slowly around him.
After an unknown length of time, Oscar opened his eyes, releasing a terrifying aura.
After fully merging with the whale king's power, Oscar experienced an unprecedented transformation.
With the whale king's million-year-level soul ring and soul bone, Oscar's body and spirit both soared, surpassing even the level of a ninety-ninth rank Ultimate Douluo.
If one had to define it, he had reached the half-step god level.
His soul power rose smoothly to level ninety-nine, and he even formed the prototype of a third soul core , when complete, it would mark his breakthrough into godhood.
Three soul cores , something unheard of even ten thousand years later.
The core's main component was the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's million-year whale pearl.
This third core had no attribute yet, for Oscar had a bold idea.
He wanted to use the whale pearl as a foundation and gather faith from all beings to form the core.
That meant his future godhood would grow alongside himself.
If he succeeded, the moment his core was complete, he would reach level one hundred and ascend to godhood.
And with a god position sustained by faith, his divinity would be eternal and indestructible.
Even if all life perished, Oscar would remain , an eternal deity.
With that thought, he already had his divine title in mind.
"Eternity."
Eternal and unyielding , even if the world ended, Oscar would forever exist, undefeated and undying.
Within his spiritual sea, another mighty soul spirit appeared, while the Evil Demon Orca King remained the youngest.
With the whale king's full energy, Oscar also gained a million-year torso bone, further perfecting his soul armor. Only one piece , the left leg bone , remained missing.
With the whale king's power, the armor's might nearly reached divine level, despite that missing piece.
The immense surge in power made even Oscar feel thrilled.
He now longed for an earth-shaking battle to test his new strength.
He only hoped to soon find the tracks of the Killing King and Bibi Dong, so he could descend like a god and utterly annihilate them.
With his current power and foundation, he had every right to say so.
Even Qian Daoliu and the Sea God Island High Priest Bo Saixi might not be his match now.
Unknowingly, Oscar had become unmatched on the continent. His last trace of worry was gone.
All that remained was to follow his plan step by step, to forge eternal glory and become an existence unprecedented in Douluo history.
In the God Realm, the many gods who silently observed the mortal world looked at one another.
They realized they might be witnessing the rise of a truly defiant being.
With Oscar's talent and achievements, perhaps only the Dragon God of the past could compare to him.
This meant that soon, the God Realm might gain a true leader , one born of humanity, who could even reconcile the age-old conflict with soul beasts.
Though the war of the Dragon God had once forbidden soul beasts from becoming gods and stripped many of their divinities, nearly one-third of the gods in the current realm were still beast gods.
If their powers could be united, the God Realm would become truly mighty , perhaps even strong enough to expand and prevent the chaos of time and space that threatened the future.
Oscar, this rising supreme genius, might well be the key to it all.
At this moment, the gods eagerly awaited to see how far he would go.
Oscar put away his Sky Azure Spirit Jade Sword, activated his space-time soul core, and instantly appeared on Purple Pearl Island.
He arrived just in time to hear Ning Rongrong and the others planning to sail for Sea God Island.
Seeing him return, everyone was overjoyed.
Oscar thought their plan interesting and decided to let them try.
He said, "Since you wish to temper yourselves, I'll allow it. After half a month of rest and training, you should all be ready."
"So I've decided to leave. The rest of the path, you will walk on your own."
Hearing this, their faces changed slightly, but none objected.
Ning Rongrong said, "Fine, I'm confident. Are you all?"
They were all young, and Oscar was their idol. How could they admit weakness before him?
Satisfied, Oscar nodded, took out a token, and handed it to Ning Rongrong.
It was his Young Sect Master's Order, imbued with a trace of his spirit power , enough to protect them from danger.
With his near-divine spiritual power, this was an easy task.
Then Oscar opened a spatial gate and stepped through, vanishing.
Ning Rongrong and the others exchanged glances, their eyes burning with determination, and began preparing enthusiastically for their journey to Sea God Island.
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