Chapter 178: The System Went All Out

Two days later, Zhao Ling held Bo Saixi, who was sleeping soundly beside him, and summoned the diary panel to start venting.

[I really didn't expect that escorting Xi'er back to Sea God Island would lead me to run into the newly descended Sea God.]

[It was absolutely ridiculous—like "absurdity itself opening the door for absurdity to walk in." Honestly, when I first saw that guy, I was super nervous.]

[After all, my current actual combat power is equivalent to a level 98 or 99 Limit Douluo. If I had to fight the Sea God, I'd probably get wrecked like a dog.]

[But what caught me off guard was that the Sea God instantly saw through my bone age, soul power level, and the nature of my twin martial souls. He even figured out something I didn't know myself—that I possess something akin to divine-level golden blood.]

[As expected of the Sea God, a first-rank deity. That perception of his is absolutely insane.]

[That guy feels kind of goofy though. He actually mistook me for a direct descendant of some deity, so he was extremely polite and even wanted to ask which gods my parents were.]

[Heh. As if. I know my own background—just a transmigrator from Blue Star, nothing more.]

Zhao Ling curled his lip at that and silently flipped a middle finger toward the ceiling of the Sea God Temple, expressing his utter disdain for the goofy Sea God.

But the middle finger only lasted a second before he quickly retracted it.

He was still in the Sea God Temple. If the Sea God saw that, even if he believed Zhao Ling to be some god's direct descendant, he might still teach him a lesson.

After expressing his contempt, Zhao Ling continued venting on the diary panel.

[But I guess this turned out to be a good thing. Originally, I was planning to wait until I got strong enough to match the Sea God, then head to the Douluo Divine Realm to try securing the Sea God inheritance for Xi'er.]

[Never would've thought the Sea God was even more eager than I was.]

[After discovering Xi'er's newly transformed physique, he upgraded her original top-tier Eight Trials into the Sea God's Nine Trials himself.]

[That helped me resolve a lingering concern. As long as Xi'er completes the Sea God's Nine Trials, she'll become the new Sea God, gain near-infinite lifespan—super nice.]

[Of course, the most important thing is that even if Tang San manages to return to Douluo Continent, without the Sea God inheritance, his future strength will take a major hit.]

[However, Tang San still has the Shura God inheritance, which is currently with Tang Chen. I'll need to find a way to extract that inheritance from Tang Chen before it ends up back in Tang San's hands.]

[But once I do, who should I give the Shura God inheritance to? That's an important question. I certainly don't want it for myself.]

[Maybe I should give it to Dong'er. Compared to the Rakshasa God, Dong'er might actually be a better match for the Shura God. She's not like the black widow she was in the original story.]

[Yeah, let's go with that. As for Xiao Wu, who was originally supposed to be the scabbard for the Shura Divine Sword, I'll find another divine position for her later.]

[After all, being a scabbard for the Shura Sword isn't exactly something to be proud of. Might as well give her a proper inheritance.]

[Speaking of Xiao Wu, I didn't run into her or her mother, Xiao Rou, last time I went to the Star Dou Forest. I had thought about trying my luck in the 100,000-year soul beast territory, but gave up on the idea.]

[At that time, I had just become a Titled Douluo and didn't have a clear understanding of my strength.]

[The biggest concern was running into Da Ming and Er Ming. That could have caused a misunderstanding. If I died in the Star Dou Forest because of that, it'd be too embarrassing.]

[This time, once I return to the mainland from Sea God Island, I'll head to the Star Dou Forest and see if I can find Xiao Wu and Xiao Rou. Ideally, I'll get them out of the forest.]

[According to the original story, Xiao Rou would enter the dangerous regions a few years after Xiao Wu's transformation and die while searching for her husband.]

[Xiao Wu, freshly transformed, would end up as an orphan—no father, no mother. Pretty pitiful.]

[As a perfectly normal LSP (Lolicon Supreme Professional), how could I stand by knowing such a beautiful girl might die? That would go against my great ideals.]

[Of course, once I find Xiao Wu and Xiao Rou, I must confirm one thing.]

[There's a saying on Blue Star—rabbits only take six months to mature from birth.]

[And once mature, a female rabbit can produce 6–8 litters a year, each with 6–8 kits. Considering Xiao Wu and Xiao Rou are 100,000-year rabbit ancestors… how many rabbits have they had? Sneaky grin JPG...]

After venting, Zhao Ling clicked [Upload] on his diary and received an S- rating. Along with it, he was rewarded with the upgrade of two designated soul bones to the 100,000-year level.

"Holy crap???" Zhao Ling's eyes widened. The system really went all out this time—upgrading two of his soul bones to 100,000 years.

And this wasn't just a cosmetic change in age. A 100,000-year soul bone usually came with two soul skills and was vastly more powerful than a 10,000-year one.

After a moment of thought, Zhao Ling selected the Iron Arm Ape's left arm bone and the Armored Giant Rhino's torso bone to upgrade.

He had obtained both soul bones fairly early on. The Iron Arm Ape's bone was about 16,000 years, and the Rhino's was 37,000—kind of weak now compared to his current level.

Getting to upgrade both to 100,000 years? Who wouldn't want that?

As soon as he confirmed the upgrade, Zhao Ling saw two golden beams shoot from the diary panel—one into his left arm and the other into his torso. Immediately, his entire body glowed brilliantly.

The dazzling light only lasted about ten seconds before fading. At that moment, Zhao Ling noticed that his Iron Arm Ape bone, which previously only had one soul skill, had gained a second one called Gravity Domain.

The Gravity Domain's effect and range could be controlled at will, with a max radius of 500 meters and maximum gravity of up to ten times a target's weight.

Zhao Ling hadn't expected his second domain-type skill to come from a soul bone, and it was quite powerful. A 500-meter range that could stack with his existing Heaven's Net Domain? Perfect.

Just imagining his enemies suffering inside his dual-domain setup made him feel ecstatic.

The upgraded Armored Giant Rhino bone also gained a new skill: Iron Wall Guard. It could instantly boost his defense sixfold, nullify all debuffs to defense, and reflect 60% of all damage.

Uh… Zhao Ling felt this skill was a bit situational. After all, he already had damage redirection from the system. Although that could only be used three times a day for three minutes each, it was usually enough…