Although Li Chang’an’s body was nourished by two martial souls, he was still only a Spirit Saint. A million-year soul ring, however, had long since transcended the limits of ordinary spirit masters.

Even someone like Bibi Dong, when she absorbed her million-year ring under the divine guidance of the Rakshasa God, took nearly three days to complete the process.

So when Li Chang’an began absorbing his first million-year ring, he immediately felt something he had never experienced before — pain beyond reason, a tearing agony that seemed to rip apart his very soul.

Each time the golden halo struck his body, he trembled violently. Sweat poured down his face, and blood began seeping from his shoulders. It was clear how immense the suffering was — even for him.

"Brother!" Xiao Wu cried, taking a step forward, but Hu Liena grabbed her arm tightly. "Don’t! If you go now, you’ll only make it worse!"

Even so, tears rolled freely down Hu Liena’s cheeks. Li Chang’an was the type of man who never showed pain — yet seeing him like this, trembling and bleeding, was unbearable.

"Chang’an..." Mu Xi was sobbing uncontrollably, her tears falling like rain. She wished she could take his place, to spare him the pain.

Even Ye Lingling, quiet and reserved as ever, clenched her skirt tightly. Though Li Chang’an had never touched her, he had already become one of the most important people in her life — second only to her master.

"He’ll be fine," she told herself — but her heart said otherwise.

Above them, Bo Saixi stood watching, her brow furrowed deeply. Three times she had raised her hand to intervene — and three times she had forced herself to lower it again.

As the Grand Priestess of Sea God Island, the Sea God’s most devout and powerful follower, Bo Saixi had not felt such indecision in over fifty years.

She was the one who guided divine ring bestowals; she knew better than anyone how close Li Chang’an’s body was to the edge of collapse. And yet, each time she thought he would fall, a surge of unyielding willpower erupted from him — a faith so fierce that it seemed to reshape his reality.

His two martial souls worked tirelessly, harmonizing and drawing in the energy of the god-bestowed ring. Each time he teetered on the brink of destruction, he clawed his way back, refusing to yield.

Even for Bo Saixi, a being who stood at the peak of the mortal realm, it was unfathomable.

A Spirit Saint challenging a million-year ring... is he mad?

But he was also the chosen of the Sea God, the bearer of the Sea God’s Nine Trials. Perhaps only someone like him could possess such defiance and endurance.

At last, when Bo Saixi raised her hand a fourth time, intending to stop the ritual, Li Chang’an’s blood suddenly erupted outward in a scarlet explosion.

"—He’s collapsing!" she gasped, her expression changing drastically.

But before she could act, the blood splattered across the nine golden rings surrounding him — and to her astonishment, they began to change.

The red was absorbed, and the halos turned completely golden, merging together — nine into one, forming a colossal golden ring that floated around Li Chang’an like a divine sun.

At that moment, Li Chang’an felt as though his body had disintegrated — his consciousness scattered into golden dust, dissolving into the world itself. Yet that dissolution brought no fear, only an overwhelming sense of ecstasy, as though he had been reborn in a realm of pure gold.

And then, power erupted — vast, ancient, and divine.

A force not of this world burst from Li Chang’an’s body, sweeping across the sea in all directions. The women instinctively stepped back, and even Bo Saixi was forced to retreat half a step.

This... this is the power of a million-year ring?

Her hand trembled as she slowly lowered it. Her heart, calm for decades, fluttered uncontrollably. Turning toward the Sea God Temple at the summit, her voice trembled softly as she whispered:

"He has succeeded."

A red silhouette — Bo Saixi herself — rose into the air, her expression unreadable. None of the others saw the single crystal tear that slid down her cheek.

It was a tear of awe, admiration, and joy.

The others didn’t dare disturb Li Chang’an. He sat unmoving, bathed entirely in gold, like a statue forged by the gods themselves.

Ah Rou, Ah Yin, Hu Liena, Meng Yiran, Mu Xi, Ye Lingling, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong — nine pairs of eyes shimmered with light.

His will, his courage, his resolve — it had touched them all. Without exchanging a word, the nine women stepped forward together, ascending the staircase toward the Sea God Temple.

Ah Rou and Ah Yin were drawn purely by the aura of his conviction, while the others — even Ye Lingling — felt the same determination burning inside. None of them wanted to remain sheltered behind him. They wanted to grow stronger, to stand beside him.

Three days passed.

Li Chang’an remained cross-legged where he had fallen. When he finally opened his eyes, a faint golden light flashed within them before fading back to calm.

If one looked at him now, they might think he was an ordinary young man. But those who knew him understood the truth: this was a sixteen-year-old Spirit Douluo — bearing a million-year spirit ring.

"You’re awake."

Meng Yiran stood before him in a fitted green battle dress, her aura now unmistakably that of a Spirit King. She had broken through during his meditation.

Farther down the stairs, the other women were still cultivating on the twentieth step, their eyes closed in deep focus.

Li Chang’an smiled faintly. "I feel great. What about everyone else?"

As he spoke, he summoned a thin layer of icy water to cleanse the blood from his body, then calmly changed into a fresh set of clothes before her. His movements were casual, but his posture carried an effortless grace.

The handsome Li Chang’an had returned.

"They’ve all improved a lot," Meng Yiran said, her voice soft but tinged with awe. "I just broke through to Spirit King. The others... even the weakest have reached the sixtieth step. Your spirit fruits really are miraculous."

Her gaze lingered on him — on his lean, sculpted physique, revealed briefly as he dressed. Her heartbeat quickened despite herself. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

He looked at her, puzzled by her silence. "What is it?"

Instead of answering, Meng Yiran’s lips curved in a mischievous smile. She swayed closer, her slender waist twisting with serpentine grace as she whispered against his ear:

"Daddy~"

Her voice was like silk — low, breathy, and unbearably seductive.

In that moment, even the ever-composed Li Chang’an couldn’t help but chuckle. His arm slipped around her waist, and in the next instant, both vanished from sight.

Meng Yiran’s laughter echoed faintly through the air — a soft, alluring sound that lingered long after they were gone.

Like a serpent, she coiled around him — and the Sea God’s Light shimmered silently above, bearing witness to another legend in the making.