Far away on the Douluo Continent, Chen Yi knew nothing of the undercurrents swirling in the Divine Realm nor the gods' reactions. In this moment, his mind was wholly immersed in the transformation brought by his awakened supreme bloodline.
Inside the secret chamber, Chen Yi's seated body was completely enveloped in dazzling purplish-gold lightning.
This was no ordinary thunder. In each arc flickered the primordial will as if it had forged the very world itself; intertwined within was the purest force of destruction and rebirth, transforming the chamber around him into an unparalleled, blazing field of thunder.
Time passed quietly amid the roar and silent change of thunder.
No one knew how long had elapsed. Gradually, the phantom of a soul ring, edged in purplish-gold lightning, appeared around Chen Yi, swirling about him. This was his seventh soul ring, condensed from the revived aura of the Thunder God's bloodline, formed deep within his body.
The instant it solidified and manifested, without any conscious direction, an inexpressibly mighty peal of thunder resounded. The raging, wandering thunder in the chamber, as if called by the supreme summoning, instantly converged into the soul ring, transforming the entire secret room into the Thunder God's sanctuary.
Behind Chen Yi, at the heart of the boundless thunder, a vague yet majestic phantom slowly took shape. It wasn't human but resembled the gods of ancient legend — the indistinct body of a dragon, yet bearing contours of a human face. Proud, holy, stern: the very image of the Supreme Thunder God of the heavens.
This was the blurred depiction of Thunder's god in Chen Yi's mythic memories of past lives.
As the phantom fully formed, an unspeakable resonance seemed to shatter the walls of space and time, forging a subtle connection with some great will in the depths of the cosmos.
At the same time, Chen Yi's body quietly underwent complete transformation. There was no unbearable pain from torn meridians or rebuilt bones, for this change flowed from the very deepest part of his own bloodline.
Like the gentlest spring rain, it quietly seeped into every corner and cell.
Wherever it passed, all impurities burned away, replaced by a new structure attuned to lightning energy. The power of Chen Yi's bloodline, once intermixed and diversified by various soul rings and bones, was now silently purified, homologized, and cleansed by the supreme thunder aura.
His body evolved in perfect harmony with Thunder's bloodline.
The Diamond Mammoth soul bone of his left leg lost its jewel-like luster, becoming a deeper purple-gold of thunder, its texture more flexible and eternal, fusing completely with Chen Yi's leg bones until they could no longer be distinguished apart.
Behind him, the external soul bone Frost-Ending Heavenly Wings, once obtained from the Water and Fire Dragon King, underwent even greater change. The resplendent colors of ice and flame vanished, the bony wings morphing and elongating within the thunder, ultimately transforming into a pair of lightning wings made only from purplish-gold energy and indestructible bone.
On these wings, two vague dragon-shaped phantoms flickered, bathed in pure thunder and quietly sighing.
"This aura… far surpasses even that of the Dragon God."
"No wonder Thunder God chose this human as his successor. He holds a secret capable of shaking the world itself..."
"Just maybe...this is our...chance as well."
When the whispers ceased, the two phantasmal dragon souls merged completely into the newly formed thunder wings, becoming one.
As his bloodline's power circulated, all dissonant energy around Chen Yi was thoroughly cleansed, unified into the pure, undiluted purplish-gold of the Thunder God's authority. In that instant, his aura became perfectly integrated inside and out, absolutely flawless.
Time seemed both to freeze and to race ahead.
At last, the purplish-golden soul ring phantom floating on Chen Yi's body, constantly absorbing the energy of the thunder pool, suddenly erupted in brilliant light. In an instant, it solidified, transforming into a true, material soul ring as if formed straight from the pure laws of thunder. Faint dragon shadows danced on the ring, ancient lightning motifs swirling across its surface.
The moment the spirit ring formed, the vast thunder pool outside, finding its home, roared deafeningly, transforming into torrents of purplish-gold light, all of which flowed into the seventh soul ring.
When the intense energy fluctuations suddenly subsided, silence returned to the secret chamber.
Chen Yi's long, thick lashes trembled slightly as he slowly opened his eyes.
Buzz—
From his gaze shot two solid-looking, sacred beams of light three feet long. It was as though a divine being had awakened from a deep slumber and descended upon the world — thunder cleaving the darkness.
With a sigh of relief, Chen Yi slowly raised both hands. Without using his soul power, only his physical strength, he gently pressed the air before him, and as if reality could not bear the weight, faint crackling sounds erupted, sending out ripples.
What surprised Chen Yi even more was the faint, light golden luster he could detect under his skin, as if his bones and muscles were enveloped in a layer of warm, hard, golden light.
"Golden Body Realm..."
Feeling an invincible surge from within, Chen Yi inhaled deeply, eyes wide in amazement.
Even before his secluded breakthrough past level 70, his physical training had already reached the third stage of the "Flawless Golden Body," namely "Forming." Today, not only was his innate soul ring condensed by the activation of Little Thunder bloodline, he achieved the ultimate purification and renewal, propelling his body to the fourth stage: "Golden Body."
Once the golden body is formed, his strength, power, speed, and recovery all leap dramatically. Even confronting experts, Chen Yi now had the capital to challenge them.
"To condense an innate soul ring and cultivate to the realm of Golden Body..."
Chen Yi couldn't help but break into a broad grin, feeling a tide of power unlike anything before: "Now, I truly have the means to stand at the continent's apex, to participate — even dominate — in the game!"
After his burst of joy, Chen Yi calmed his emotions, suppressed his external aura and divine radiance, and with a single thought, sank his consciousness once again into his spiritual sea.
Within his spiritual ocean, the nebula continued gently swirling, yet compared to before, it seemed more solid, tangible, and stable.
Chen Yi soon fixed his gaze at the site where Thunder God's image had appeared. Brimming with eagerness to share his success, he cried out loudly:
"Teacher! I did it!"
His voice resounded throughout the illusory spiritual sea.
But there was no answer.
At the nebula's heart, nothing remained. The solemn figure with the gentle smile was gone; only Thunder God's sacred throne quietly floated at the very center of his consciousness, emanating endless purplish-gold light.
As Chen Yi gazed at the serene divine throne before him, the dazzling light in his eyes from breaking through began to fade away.
He stood there silently for a long time, staring into the starry void.
The image that had activated his bloodline was Thunder God's final legacy as a god — when its mission was completed, even this last trace vanished. From this moment on, there was no more guide: all inheritance, all expectation, all responsibility, would rest on his own shoulders, to be realized step by step in this world.
"Teacher..."