Douluo Continent: My Martial Soul is the Black Dragon, I am the Lord of the Gods

Chapter 333 Dragon Soul Sacrifice
……

"Human...you...are a formidable opponent." The Deep Sea Demon Whale King's mental message carried a resigned calm. "Let it begin...I, the Emperor...will fulfill my promise."

The deep purple sacrificial flames ignited once more from its broken body, this time with a purer and more resolute intensity.

Xuanming nodded and fell into the sea to absorb the second soul ring of the Black Dragon Martial Soul.

The deep purple flames, like rivers flowing into the sea, began to surge into his body. The immense energy accumulated over nearly a million years washed over his meridians, bringing both excruciating pain and a rapid increase in power.

However, just as the sacrificial process had stabilized, another anomaly occurred!
Within his body, the dragon bones of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King, which had been dormant for so long, seemed to be drawn by something and suddenly burst forth with an unprecedentedly brilliant light!
The red and blue dragon soul phantoms emerged uncontrollably, no longer displaying their previous majesty or mockery, but instead carrying a resolute, unwavering, and tragic grandeur!

"Brother, don't get distracted, stabilize your soul rings!" The Ice Dragon King's voice rang in his mind, still carrying that familiar tone, but with an indescribable weariness and... relief.

"What are you going to do?!" Xuan Ming's heart trembled violently, and an ominous premonition instantly gripped him.

He tried to distract himself to stop it, but the energy surge from the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's soul ring was too violent, and he was unable to move at all, only able to watch helplessly as everything happened inside his body.

The dragon souls of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King guided the last and most primal energy torrent within their dragon bones, not towards Xuan Ming's body, but... fiercely charging towards the torso soul bone that was slowly condensing from the sacrificial flames of the Deep Sea Demon Whale King!
That is the most important piece among the six soul bones of a Soul Master, bearing the core power of the body!
boom--! ! !
The red and blue dragon bone energy, like a flood bursting its banks, poured wildly into the still-developing deep purple torso bone! The soul bone was undergoing a transformation at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The color gradually changed from deep purple to a profound, dark purple that seemed to contain the starry sky, and complex and ancient dragon patterns began to emerge on the surface, with the energy fluctuations emanating from it soaring exponentially!

It's breaking through! Under the nourishment of the dragon bone's primordial divine energy, it's forcibly breaking through its limits, moving from nearly a million years to a true... million-year soul bone!

"Sister Bing, we don't think we discussed this before." Xuan Ming's heart grew incredibly heavy. He sensed that the dragon bone energy of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King was being consumed at a rate of burning! This wasn't just a slumber; this was... the depletion of their very essence!
But this is not over yet!
Just as the torso soul bone was about to be fully formed, radiating the terrifying pressure unique to a million-year-old soul bone, seemingly capable of suppressing the void, the dragon soul phantoms of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King exchanged a glance. Their eyes were filled with complex emotions accumulated over countless years, which eventually turned into a calm.

They took one last look at Xuanming's soul essence, which was struggling in the energy of the soul ring, and then... burst into flames!

That was not a physical flame, but the most thorough burning and sacrifice of the very essence of the soul!

"Brother, don't be sad. Didn't we agree on this a long time ago?"

In the sea of ​​spirit, the Ice Dragon King condensed a humanoid phantom for the first time, his face bearing his usual arrogance, yet his eyes held a gentle tenderness.

“I don’t remember you telling me about this.” Xuanming tried his best to resist and prevent the dragon soul power from merging into his body, but it was obviously to no avail.

The Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King already had very little spiritual consciousness left; their will was on the verge of dissipation. Sacrifice would burn their souls, and once their soul energy was completely exhausted, they would truly... perish completely! They wouldn't even have the chance to reincarnate! Let alone be resurrected!

“I’ve said it before, more than once.” The Ice Dragon King stepped forward slowly and gently embraced Xuanming.

"I told you, I would do anything to help you."

“There’s no need for that.” Xuanming’s voice trembled slightly.

"You didn't need to go this far."

“It’s necessary.” The Ice Dragon King closed his eyes.

“I’m the one who dragged you down this path; you didn’t have to be this tired.”

The Ice Dragon King's voice grew softer and softer, and his body began to turn transparent. "So... let me pave the last leg of your journey."

Boom——! ! !
The moment the Black Dragon Martial Soul merged with the two divine-level dragon soul origins, it let out a soul-shaking roar!

The martial spirit itself began a dramatic transformation, becoming more ferocious and majestic. Fine red and blue patterns began to appear on the black dragon scales, as if the power of ice and fire had been deeply imprinted within them!

The newly formed torso bone inside his body finally stabilized after completely absorbing the energy of the dragon bone and the afterglow of the dragon soul sacrifice.

Its entire body is a deep dark purple, with dragon patterns flowing on its surface, exuding a vast aura like a primordial beast awakening, and a trace of... the ancient pressure belonging to the dragon god!
The torso and bones of a million-year-old abyssal dragon emperor!

But Xuanming felt no joy whatsoever. He successfully absorbed the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's spirit ring. Although his spirit power level did not increase due to the spirit ring, the quality of his spirit power had reached an extremely terrifying level, even surpassing that of ordinary peerless Douluo. His torso bones transmitted unparalleled power, and his Black Dragon Martial Soul had also become significantly stronger.

But in his heart, there was only a cold, lifeless silence.

He could clearly sense that the soul auras of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King were rapidly dissipating, like candles flickering in the wind, about to be completely extinguished.

……

In the realm of the gods, within a magnificent temple.

The scene reflected in the mirror made the expressions of the several god-kings extremely solemn. They clearly saw the resolute, soul-burning sacrificial process of the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King.

"These two... are so resolute!" The God of Evil's playful smile vanished, his brows furrowing deeply. "Their souls are completely consumed, even the marks of reincarnation will dissipate; this is true annihilation of both body and soul!"

A flicker of emotion crossed the Asura God's icy eyes, but he remained silent. "Not good!" The God of Kindness abruptly stood up, his expression changing drastically. "Their final mark is about to dissipate!"

Almost without thinking, she thrust her right hand forward! A mysterious and unpredictable divine power, carrying the meaning of judgment and order, instantly pierced through the barrier between the divine realm and the mortal realm, ignoring the distance in space!
This divine power was not an attack, but rather it precisely locked onto the special mark on Xuanming's body that represented his qualification for the divine examination. Using this mark as a medium, like the most exquisite carving knife, it forcibly imprinted two extremely subtle and almost imperceptible divine imprints deep within the dragon pattern at the core of that newly formed, dark purple torso bone that exuded the pressure of millions of years!

These two marks, like the strongest anchors, firmly locked the last trace of the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King's original dragon soul imprints that were about to completely dissipate!
Om-!
The dragon pattern on Xuanming's torso bones glowed slightly, and the two dark red marks flashed by and disappeared completely.

The soul connection between the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King, which was originally like a spark about to be extinguished, although still so weak as to be almost lifeless, miraculously stabilized and stopped dissipating!
"Phew...that was close!" The God of Kindness withdrew his hand, breathed a sigh of relief, and wiped away non-existent cold sweat. "They almost really died. Although it's no different from being dead now, at least a seed was left behind, and there's always a possibility that it can be reignited in the future."

Her sudden action drew the attention of the other god-kings.

"I say, don't you... have too little faith in me?" The God of Evil was somewhat speechless.

The God of Kindness was slightly taken aback. "What's wrong?"

"When I bestowed this second test, I had already placed the Dragon Soul Mark of the Ice and Fire Dragon King on this kid's Ice and Fire God Crown," the Evil God said helplessly.

"Do you think I do things without taking any precautions?"

As soon as the God of Evil uttered these words, the eyes of several god-kings in the temple all focused on him.

The God of Kindness frowned slightly: "You left a dragon soul mark on the Ice and Fire Crown? When did that happen?"

"It was right when he was given the second test." The God of Evil shrugged, with an expression that said, "How come you only just realized?"

"I noticed those two old guys weren't in a good state, and they might risk their lives for this kid at any moment, so I kept a backup plan. After all, if they really fail in the Divine Exam and this kid's mentality collapses, wouldn't all our efforts have been in vain?"

"However, this kid doesn't know about this right now. It's good to let him feel bad for a while. A little pressure will help him grow faster."

"Pressure?" The God of Kindness looked at the empty Xuanming reflected in the mirror of light.

“I think he can’t be under any more pressure. If he is, I’m afraid something will go wrong.”

"Not enough," the Asura God said calmly.

"The Dragon God's mess is far more troublesome than this. If he can't handle it now, it means he's nothing special."

The God of Destruction glanced at the God of Asura, but said nothing.

"You're being too harsh..." Poseidon couldn't stand it anymore.

"Shut up!" The Asura God glared at Poseidon.

"You have no idea how troublesome this is, don't cause trouble."

……

Demonic Whale Sea Area.

Xuanming slowly opened his eyes. The million-year-old abyss dragon king's torso bone had perfectly fused with his body, bringing an unparalleled sense of power, as if he could shake mountains and rivers with a mere gesture.

The transformation of the Black Dragon Martial Soul is quite obvious, its majesty is even greater, and ice and fire dragon patterns are faintly visible.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz—!!
Four dazzling halos, each radiating a distinct yet boundless aura, suddenly rose from beneath his feet.

The first two were white-gold from the Heavenly Dream Ice Silkworm and dark red-gold from the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.

The last two, the Ice Dragon King's ice blue and the Fire Dragon King's crimson, are two special soul rings, both bearing pale golden dragon patterns.

Its power is unprecedented.

However, there was no joy in his icy blue eyes, only a cold, lifeless emptiness.

He clearly remembered every moment when the Ice Dragon King and the Fire Dragon King burned their dragon souls and turned into points of light to merge into his body, and he remembered their final thoughts filled with relief and determination.

He could no longer sense their souls, not even a little bit.

That emptiness was more unbearable than any physical pain.

(End of this chapter)