As Chen Xinjie put on the divine artifact, the Sea God Helmet, a majestic aura instantly rippled out from within him. His originally sky-blue soul power gradually transformed into the deep, dark-blue power of the Sea God. At this moment, he was the spitting image of the Sea God reincarnate.
Thud! Ulpianus felt his heart shake when he saw Chen Xinjie manage to steadily take his full-strength strike. The path to godhood indeed possessed its own unique merits.
With the first exchange, the two were evenly matched. Chen Xinjie remained expressionless, his demeanor unchanged.
By the third exchange, several wounds had appeared on Ulpianus's body, while Chen Xinjie was slightly surprised by the fierce severity of his opponent's force.
After the fifth exchange concluded, though Ulpianus's offensive was suppressed, Chen Xinjie could clearly feel the surging, vigorous blood essence within his opponent's body, showing absolutely no signs of waning.
Once the tenth exchange passed, Ulpianus's Sea-Calming Anchor was knocked from his grip, yet the aura he accumulated grew increasingly heavy. Chen Xinjie could no longer utter his arrogant claim of "settling this in five moves."
The moment the anchor left his hand, Ulpianus seized the opening to press Chen Xinjie's Trident against the bottom of the anchor, using the counterforce to violently smash the Sea-Calming Anchor down toward the ocean floor. His entire aura continuously condensed and climbed. Chen Xinjie could not spare any attention for the strange direction the anchor was falling, simply because the brute strength of the man before his eyes was still rising frantically.
Fighting up to this point, Chen Xinjie nearly cursed out loud. Back when he fought Yun Ming, it was well within reason for his opponent to make a breakthrough during battle and comprehend the spear momentum. However, the strength amplification of the person before him was simply too absurd! Staring into Ulpianus's bloodshot eyes, he could not help but wonder: Is this really still a human physique?
The more they fought, the grander Ulpianus's stature became. His originally stout frame now featured muscles bulging as thick as armor, and every punch carried the mountain-collapsing, stone-shattering might of a cataclysm.
In truth, the principle behind Ulpianus's move was extremely simple--squeezing the potential of his muscles, using his willpower to control his brain, blocking certain nerve transmissions, and forcibly breaking the body's instinctive protection mechanisms. Once the limits were breached, even an ordinary person could unleash tons of damage, though the price would be death after sustaining it for a few seconds.
Gazing at Ulpianus's aura as it climbed to its absolute peak, Chen Xinjie understood clearly in his heart: The next move would be the deciding one!
[Whale-Slaying Tyrant Fist]
Ulpianus condensed his entire body's strength into his right arm and swung it out savagely. An indescribable might surged toward Chen Xinjie like a tsunami. This single punch directly shattered the Trident that Chen Xinjie had refined for nearly a century, slamming heavily against the chest of his Four-Word Battle Armor.
Like a kite with a broken string, Chen Xinjie was blasted flying hundreds of miles, crashing deep into the ocean. The impact actually caused the sea level across a thousand-mile radius to cave inward. Meanwhile, all of Ulpianus's meridians ruptured as blood leaked from his seven facial orifices, yet he still stood firmly upon the sea surface.
Having plunged into the deep sea, Chen Xinjie remained entirely focused on observing Ulpianus from beginning to end, silently studying this rare physical school of martial arts. The man before him had managed to contend with someone in the True God realm like himself for so long using merely the status of a Limit Douluo; the potential of the human body was indeed unfathomable.
Especially that final move--Chen Xinjie clearly perceived that Ulpianus had held back. If he had truly exerted his full strength, it would definitely not be as simple as a dented breastplate; he would likely have been killed already.
"As expected, one cannot underestimate the people of the world... Four ribs are broken..." Even though he was in the deep sea, Chen Xinjie, who possessed an ocean martial soul, remained completely unharmed. As a peerless genius, he had roughly comprehended Ulpianus's path of blood essence. Though his mastery was not as exquisite as his opponent's, his physical strength still skyrocketed several fold.
In the next second, Chen Xinjie flashed to Ulpianus's side. Looking at the blood-soaked man, he asked, "Your Eminence! To go to such lengths just to delay me for a moment, isn't that a bit too extreme?"
Ulpianus thought to himself, "A True God is indeed powerful. At this moment, I am no longer his match. Regrettably, my main body's Anatta Avatar has not yet reached great completion, and I relied too much on the core power of the whale this time..." He did not respond, only quietly staring at Chen Xinjie.
"Your Eminence! May I know your name?" Chen Xinjie's expression was solemn, but his other hand silently reached out toward Ulpianus's chest.
"Ulpianus." Ulpianus calculated the time; the moment had arrived.
Just as Chen Xinjie's hand was about to pierce his chest, the sea surface suddenly trembled violently. Ulpianus twisted his body in an instant, causing the attack to miss its mark and merely gouge a large hole in his abdomen. At the same time, a spatial gate appeared beneath his feet--the [World Root Gate] instantly teleported him away.
On the other side, Skadi and the Demon Empress's operation proceeded exceptionally smoothly. Among the seven sacred pillar guardians of Sea God Island, the highest was only at the Super Douluo rank, making it utterly impossible for them to stop the Demon Empress, who was in the Demigod realm. Aside from one who was killed, and Sea Ghost Douluo, who had left the island with Chen Xinjie, the Demon Empress's task was inherently just to shatter the sacred pillars and prevent the guardians from utilizing the "power of the Sea God," ensuring no one else could occupy the pillar stones.
After successfully killing a Titled Douluo, the Demon Empress restrained her urge to slaughter, quietly waiting for Skadi on the altar. Meanwhile, Skadi flew straight into the air above the altar, confronting Tang San's divine sense. After dealing with Tang San, she stood directly above Sea God Island and began to ignite the power of faith within the Seven Sacred Pillars.
The Seven Sacred Pillars were the foundation of Sea God Island, having continuously absorbed the Sea God's power of faith for tens of thousands of years. Even though Tang San had failed to fulfill his promise to protect the Soul Beast, this power had still been gathering incessantly. The moment Skadi ignited the power of faith, a massive amount of karma instantly flooded the entirety of Sea God Island.
The authority of the Sea God inherently included ruling the oceans, raising tsunamis, stirring up storms, and controlling marine creatures--all of which Skadi had long since achieved, and her affinity with the Divine Seat had reached the absolute peak. Yet few people knew that the Sea God possessed another ability--earthquakes.
Poseidon, one of the twelve Olympian gods, bore the title of "Earth-Shaker" in addition to "Sea God." He could cause continents to sink, crack the heavens and earth open, and crush all things with massive earthquakes. For Skadi to thoroughly control the Sea God's Divine Seat and integrate the concept of the "Lord of Earthquakes" into the oceanic priesthood, she had to trigger an earth-shattering earthquake.
Skadi began to summon the tens of thousands of Seaborn around Sea God Island, raising towering waves; millions of Sea Soul Beasts swam around the island, churning the clouds and winds. Losing the protection of the Sea God's divine power, Sea God Island ultimately could not withstand the endless torrents--the horizon line that separated the sea from the sky vanished completely, and Sea God Island was shattered and swallowed by the colossal waves.
Watching the surviving sacred pillar guardians flee toward Chen Xinjie with their clansmen, Skadi paid them no mind, while the Demon Empress merely closed her eyes, listening to the tragic wails of Sea God Island. The Seven Sacred Pillars that were originally infused with the golden divine power of the Sea God, along with the Sea God's Light that protected the island, dissolved into nothingness amidst the churning of the giant waves. Sea God Island was broken into fragments, leaving only the Seven Sacred Pillars to be swept to Skadi's side by the torrents, while the remaining land was entirely consumed by the waves.
Precisely because Ulpianus had delayed Chen Xinjie for a moment, the Sea God Helmet failed to arrive at the altar in time; furthermore, the divine sense on Sea God Island that controlled the divine power had been swallowed by Skadi, and added to the fact that Tang San had never given the other sacred pillars the right to employ divine power in the first place, this island ultimately could not escape destruction.
Skadi waved her hands, and the towering waves subsequently calmed; millions of Sea Soul Beasts cried out in unison, and the Seaborn went into hiding, awaiting orders. The ignited fire of faith shone around her body, reflecting her breathtakingly beautiful figure. She raised her hand and swept it toward the sky, instantly dispersing the weather phenomena that the Sea Soul Beasts had previously gathered.
"Ocean! In the name of God, I command you--be calm!"
As her voice fell, the dark clouds vanished entirely, and the vast, boundless sky-blue ocean came into view once more. Seven or eight silver-white little fish emerged behind Skadi's head, connecting head to tail to form a circular halo.
"The Sea God changes masters! I, Ishar-mla Skadi, officially succeed as the new Sea God!"
Her declaration of ascension to godhood boomed outward from the former site of Sea God Island, spreading toward the entire continent.