Chapter 1128: Enhanced Sea God's First Trial

Douluo Dalu 5: Rebirth Of Tang San

The staircase slowly rose beneath them, and Mei Gongzi could clearly feel the mounting pressure. It wasn't just physical; it extended into the spiritual realm as well.

"This trial is aimed at those below the tenth order? Is it even possible to pass?" Mei Gongzi couldn't help but ask.

Tang San smirked. "Since I could pass it back then, I believe someone will eventually manage it again. Besides, this is just a beautiful memory from my past life. Whether someone passes it or not, does it really matter to us? We'll be leaving here before long anyway. That said, this sacred mountain is quite nice. Who knows, maybe we'll take it with us when we go."

Mei Gongzi smiled. "As long as you're happy~"

Since becoming a Crown Princess herself, she had seen Tang San become more composed by the day. Even when facing the Emperors, he met their gaze as an equal. Compared to before, he was less wary of showing off his power and more… transcendent. In fact, even she couldn't tell how powerful Tang San truly was now.

The construction of the Blue Gold Sacred Mountain, the Blue Gold Palace, and the Tower of Life was in order to have a proper setup for their marriage, but that was only secondary. More importantly, these places were meant for secluded cultivation before ascending to Emperorhood. As she followed Tang San up the mountain, Mei Gongzi still found it a little surreal. This was the very core of the Ancestral Court! And they were building a cultivation sanctuary just for the two of them—under the watchful eyes of the Emperors, no less, and with the Rainbowglaze Nymph Emperor personally establishing the foundation. If they found out Jin Miaolin's true identity, who knew how they would react?

The man at her side was daring to the point of recklessness, and yet, he had made the impossible real. Just being with him was enough to stir excitement in her heart.

Since Tang San was actively building the staircase as he walked, he and Mei Gongzi took two full hours to reach the summit. The staircase ascending to the peak was now complete, and it was far longer and more intense than the one from his original Sea God's First Trial. For someone below the tenth order to pass the trial as it was now was practically impossible. Let alone them, even peak tenth-order beings would struggle to reach the top. Only eleventh-order beings stood a chance. Yet by Ancestral Court custom, only those at the ninth order or below would attempt the climb, so who knew how many millennia would pass until someone made it to the top?

Tang San let out a deep breath, and a serene smile spread across his face. The entire climb, every step of that staircase, wasn't just a nostalgic experience; it was actually beneficial. It wasn't the memories that helped him, but the step-by-step process of grounding himself, quietly sensing the changes in his body, and reawakening the powers of his previous life.

Ascending to Emperorhood would be harder for him than for anyone else, because the moment he did, he would begin the road to return. He would start to reclaim the immense power he had once held as a God King. Since arriving in this world, he had relied on the Mysterious Heaven Technique; this was what allowed him to use others' bloodline powers as his own. Meanwhile, the Sea God's divine seat was intact and belonged to Tang San, but many of the Sea God's powers were still beyond his reach. His former divine strength represented his true foundation; he had to get it back.

Taking advantage of this memory-laden climb through the Sea God's First Trial, Tang San reawakened part of that former power. It stimulated his memory and gave his body a renewed sense of connection with that past strength, laying a solid foundation for his upcoming seclusion.

The mountaintop was not barren. Numerous precious materials had already been sent over. In addition to ores with elemental attributes corresponding to the five phases, there were also materials specially delivered by the Blue Gold Tree clan: a massive amount of lumber. This included not just goldenwood and other types of precious wood, but even… bluegold wood!

This wood was, of course, not harvested by felling Blue Gold Trees. It was simply branches shed by Blue Gold Trees, as well as the remains of those who had fallen to the schemes of other clans or perished naturally after reaching the end of their lifespan. To build the Ancestral Court's Tower of Life and the towers of the main cities, the Blue Gold Tree clan had thoroughly emptied their reserves. This offering had gained unanimous recognition from the Ancestral Court's Emperors.

Among these tree trunks and limbs were the remains of those who had been murdered by the Tenebrous Demon Emperor's acolytes and then recovered by Xu An'yu from Black Dragon City. He had not kept anything for Crystal City; as Tang San had previously requested, Xu An'yu had delivered all the remains to the Ancestral Court.

But Tang San generously let him take a part of these remains for Crystal City's Tower of Life. Tang San himself only kept the remains of the Third Elder—now one of the most massive Blue Gold Tree trunks before him. Though far from comparable to the Ancestral Tree, the main trunk of a Great Nymph King was an incredibly rare asset and held vast life energy. Moreover, the Third Elder had once received the Ancestral Tree's life imprint, which made this bluegold wood even better attuned to life energy.

Mei Gongzi turned to look at Tang San. "You're building it yourself? You're not calling your clansmen?"

Tang San shook his head. "No need. I'll do it myself. Don't forget, I inherited the legacy of the Crystal Demon Emperor. It would be a waste not to use it, no?"

Mei Gongzi rolled her eyes. "Alright, Clan Leader Jin. You're really enjoying this role, huh?"

A gentle flicker of light rippled beside Tang San, and a massive array shimmered into view. In the next instant, accompanied by a deep dragon's roar, the towering form of the Scourge Dragon appeared beside him.

From afar, the sight was breathtaking. Atop the summit of the deep blue Sacred Mountain, glowing with golden light, a hundred-meter-long dragon with dark purple scales towered above everything, casting its fierce gaze across the Ancestral Court. It was a magnificent, awe-inspiring sight.

Nihil took a deep breath, feeling the rich elemental energy and life energy around him, then turned his gaze toward Tang San.

Tang San said, "Brother Nihil, today we'll build a place that belongs to us. Help me move these materials aside."

With a low growl that sounded vaguely like acknowledgement, Nihil twisted around and whipped his tail a few times. By sheer brute strength, he swept the piles of materials to one side in a few quick moves, clearing the center of the mountaintop.

Although the contract between Tang San and Nihil was one of equal partners, over time—and especially after his divine consciousness cleared enough to be permanently awake—Nihil had begun to see himself as more of a subordinate to Tang San. Unlike others, he could clearly sense Tang San's hidden power, a power that seemed to surpass anything he had ever felt. Though he had no idea what a divine seat was, the aura gave him a profound sense of reassurance. He could also feel that its tier was beyond anything the Emperors could compare to.

Moreover, Nihil could sense the terrifying bloodline imprints in Tang San's body, especially those of transcendent bloodlines. Tang San hadn't explained much about them, but neither had he concealed anything.

It was that very foundation that allowed Tang San to balance out the annihilation energy and help Nihil stabilize his condition.

Before being auctioned, Nihil had firmly believed that his life was nearing its end. In his rare moments of clarity, he imagined himself going fully berserk and being slain, or maybe his cultivation rising so high that he lost control, drawing an Emperor's tribulation and being obliterated by the power of the plane. He had long since fallen into despair.

Until he met Tang San.

Tang San had brought Nihil true hope. The moment their contract was sealed, he had felt it—this man would be the one to save him. Tang San had not promised much apart from temporary relief, but Nihil had a bone-deep feeling that things were far better than they appeared; this man would help him escape the prison of his own nature, freeing him from the torment of destruction.

Since that day, the destructive impulses had no longer troubled him.

This recent stretch of time had been the absolute best time of his life. Tang San had never once forgotten to help him balance his annihilation energy. In Tang San's hands, even this supremely destructive power that could obliterate anything seemed to grow gentle.

the poing team's Thoughts

penguin: bruh Nihil sure must be getting some good supplements from TS if he practically doubled in size. Those are some hella good gains. Also holy cow, talk about skeletons in the closet 💀 our boi TS is literally building his house out of his clan's dead bodies