Douluo Continent Villain Simulator: Persecuting Qian Renxue at the Start

Chapter 193 The Divine Song of Zhenhai

"Divine Messenger, more than three thousand ordinary people among the core members of the Ming Cult have now successfully cultivated soul power."

On an uninhabited island not far from Poseidon Island, Li Qing stood next to Su Cheng, reporting on the current situation of the Ming Cult.

More than a decade has passed since he left, during which time the Ming Cult has been expanding rapidly.

In addition to the original nearly 10,000 core members, the number of peripheral members has increased dozens of times.

It can be said that now, apart from the people on Poseidon Island, most of the people living at sea have joined the Ming Cult.

Even the core members have grown to over 100,000.

However, Su Cheng has not returned all these years, so the Innate Skill has not been passed down, and ordinary people among the new Ming Cult members have not yet had the opportunity to cultivate soul power.

Of course, whether these people can truly be considered core members remains to be seen by Su Cheng himself.

"Three thousand people...?"

Hearing Li Qing's words, he nodded to himself.

This number is actually quite good.

At that time, the vast majority of the nearly 10,000 core members were ordinary people with zero innate soul power, numbering over 6,000, which means that nearly half of them had successfully cultivated soul power.

As for the fact that many people have not been able to successfully cultivate soul power, this is also normal.

After all, people who are born with soul power are completely different from those who are not.

Even if it's just a trace of soul power, it's equivalent to reaching a threshold, and the amount of bloodline power can be quantified by it.

If a person is born without any soul power, it means that their martial soul bloodline is so thin that it is almost nonexistent.

This is why even two people who are born with zero soul power can be quite different from each other, and it is difficult to determine the threshold at which they can generate soul power.

Of course, as long as you persevere in your practice, you will eventually achieve something.

Everyone in this world can awaken their martial spirit, which means that they all possess bloodline power to varying degrees; it's just a matter of when they will reach the critical point.

The fact that thousands more ordinary people have become Soul Masters is quite good news for Su Cheng.

He wasn't interested in these people's combat strength.

Ordinary people with zero innate soul power, even if they successfully cultivate soul power and become soul masters through cultivation techniques, the vast majority of them will not have a very high potential in the future, and so far there are not many who have cultivated to the level of great soul masters.

After all, the techniques he passed on were universal and could be used by everyone, so the effects were relatively mediocre and had limited impact on improving bloodline aptitude.

Ultimately, this only compensates for these people's innate deficiencies and gives them an opportunity to cultivate. To truly improve further, they still need various resources and opportunities, as well as their own comprehension and hard work.

What Su Cheng needs is the strengthened resolve and ambition they have gained as a result.

People born with extraordinary willpower are extremely rare in this world. When one is powerless and even finding a place to settle down becomes a luxury, how can one force these people to pursue their ideals?

In addition, the resulting influence is also very important.

Despite lacking the talent of a Soul Master, the ability to cultivate Soul Power is incredibly appealing to others.

In this world, the status of Soul Masters is vastly different from that of ordinary people. If it weren't for the success stories of these individuals, the Ming Cult might not have been able to expand so rapidly.

Faith and doctrine are only one factor; real benefits are more likely to move people's hearts.

"Three months from now, I will be spreading the Dharma on the high seas. You should make arrangements in advance."

Li Qing nodded emphatically upon hearing this, her eyes shining as she looked at Su Cheng, her longing evident in her expression.

He lacked natural talent and encountered many difficulties.

As a Soul Master, he was already in such a state of mind simply because he was slightly less talented; one can only imagine how much worse it was for ordinary people who didn't even have Soul Power.

Having drifted on the sea since childhood, Li Qing has witnessed far too much despair and struggle of ordinary people.

The ocean is indeed rich in resources, but it is far more dangerous than the mainland.

Countless powerful sea spirit beasts are eyeing them covetously, and all sorts of harsh weather are ever-present. Frequent storms and tsunamis are like swords hanging over the heads of all the sea people, constantly threatening everyone's lives.

His faith in the sea god was more like a psychological comfort that kept him going until he met Su Cheng, at which point he truly saw the hope for the future.

At this moment, a powerful aura emanated from the direction of Poseidon Island in the distance.

Li Qingchao glanced over and said, "Divine Envoy, the Sea Maiden Douluo has arrived, so I'll take my leave now."

Su Cheng didn't say anything more, just nodded, "Go."

Not long after, a mermaid girl emerged from the sea, her enormous tail swaying gently, the exquisite arc extending from her long tail fin all the way to her waist.

Her fair and supple waist was unclothed, revealing her small, round navel, and the wet scales on her long tail reflected a dazzling array of colors in the sunlight.

Compared to more than ten years ago, Lorelei's appearance seems to have remained unchanged; she is still beautiful and charming, maintaining the look of an innocent young girl.

"Su Cheng, you finally decided to come back!" After reaching the shore, a hint of dissatisfaction appeared on her face. She gently slapped the surface of the sea with her fishtail, appearing somewhat irritated. "You didn't say you were going to stay on the mainland for so long."

"It's only been a little over ten years, it's nothing to you, right?" Su Cheng chuckled.

Lorelei looked suspicious. "Did you meet someone on the mainland and forget about us old friends? I've heard that many sea spirit masters met land spirit masters after arriving on the mainland, then got married and had children there, never to return to the sea. This is especially true for those spirit masters who were expelled from Seagod Island."

Although Su Cheng was not exactly banished, since he did not accept the Sea God's test and is now over thirty years old, he naturally cannot return to the Sea God Island.

Lorelei said these words not because she had any other feelings for Su Cheng, but simply because she was unhappy with him.

Back then, Su Cheng coaxed and tricked her into joining the Ming Cult in order to research the Seven Sacred Pillars and to find a backer for the newly formed Ming Cult. In the end, he turned around and became a hands-off manager, running off to the mainland.

After so many years, the novelty wore off, and given her personality, she had long since grown tired of the Ming Cult.

"At least you weren't trapped in the Seven Sacred Pillars forever. You can swim freely in the sea. Aren't you satisfied?" Su Cheng raised an eyebrow and chuckled.

Upon hearing this, Lorelei gritted her teeth inwardly.

That is absolutely true.

If it weren't for Su Cheng's help, she wouldn't even have had the chance to come out and would have had to stay under the Sea Maiden's Sacred Pillar to guard Sea God Island year after year.

Moreover, the existence of the Ming Cult does have some effect; at least it makes this sea much more interesting than before.

"Don't worry, I'm not leaving again this time," Su Cheng continued. "It's time we did something big."

"That's more like it." Lorelei breathed a sigh of relief, but was also a little curious. "What are you thinking now?"

"No rush, I just got back and need to check the current state of the sea," Su Cheng said casually, then immediately asked, "How's your martial spirit cultivation going?"

Unlike other Sacred Pillar Douluos who inherit their martial souls through special means, the Sea Maiden Sacred Pillars have always been passed down within the Sea Witch clan, whose true form is the Sea Witch. Because of this, the martial souls of the Sea Maiden Douluos often change from generation to generation.

Lorelei's martial soul is a sea demon flute.

"My cultivation level has now reached level ninety-two, and I have fully mastered the ninth soul skill."

As he spoke, a black flute appeared in his hand, and nine spirit rings emerged beneath him.

"Very good." A hint of joy appeared on Su Cheng's face. When he left, the other party had only recently broken through to the Title Douluo level, and his ninth soul skill was not yet proficient.

"Unleash your full power on me with your Sea-Suppressing Divine Song, and let me see it."

"Are you sure?" Lorelei raised her eyebrows high upon hearing this.

That's what she said, but she also looked eager to try it out.

Her ninth soul skill is not suitable for one-on-one combat and is difficult to use when fighting powerful sea spirit beasts. There has been no large-scale battle on Seagod Island so far, which means that her ninth soul skill, the Sea-Suppressing Divine Song, rarely has any opportunity to be used on a daily basis.

"Of course I'm sure, come on over."

Upon hearing this, Lorelei no longer hesitated. She held her black magic flute horizontally across her chest, and the seventh spirit ring under her fish tail suddenly shone brightly.

To unleash the full power of the Zhenhai Divine Song, one must first enhance it with the Martial Soul True Body.

As a descendant of the sea witch race, her martial spirit form is different from that of normal humans. The light emanating from the black flute simultaneously enveloped the flute in Lorelei's hand and her true form. Immediately afterwards, black light shot into the sky, and her body, along with the black flute in her hand, rapidly grew larger.

As her body grew larger, Lorelei appeared to become somewhat transparent, giving her a slightly ethereal look.

Her body swelled to more than ten meters above the sea before stopping, her huge tail gently stirring the waves as she lay horizontally on the surface.

For an ordinary person, magnified several times, they would inevitably appear rough and terrifying, but Lorelei is different. Her current form has become even more beautiful, and every subtle movement and expression she makes exudes great charm.

Su Cheng silently closed his eyes, and his aura calmed down, as if he had merged with the entire world.

"Waaah—"

The next moment, a pleasant, soft sound echoed in my ears.

Lorelei had stopped looking at Su Cheng and was now completely absorbed in playing her black flute. The flute's melody was delicate and plaintive.

The cool sea breeze dissipates, and the vast blue waves are as smooth as a mirror.

In that instant, the entire world fell silent, with only rings of black sound waves emanating from Lorelei's body.

Her ninth soul skill, the Sea-Suppressing Divine Song, is essentially a large-scale mental attack skill.

The attack of the flute can prevent the listener from having any thought of resistance.

As a rare spiritual skill, this soul skill is powerful and has a wide range. However, the performer is relatively fragile and needs to charge up when using it, making it more suitable for team battles. This is why she rarely uses it in her daily life.

However, this level of mental attack obviously posed no threat to Su Cheng.

He stood quietly on the shore, immersed in the sound of the flute, letting the black sound waves attack him and then seep into his body.

Not only that, he was even actively drawing those sound waves into his soul and body.

As the flute music resonated, Su Cheng felt his entire soul trembling slightly, his energy, blood, and other vital forces being repeatedly cleansed by the sound waves.

Amidst the emotional impact of this sonic mental offensive, his innate power began to converge and merge further.

However, as time went on, Lorelei was starting to falter, and the flute music gradually became scattered.

After all, the consumption of the Martial Soul True Body and the Ninth Soul Skill is simply too enormous.

Lorelei reluctantly stopped using her soul skill, and her body returned to its original size, her pretty face somewhat pale.

"Slap, slap, slap."

After a while, Su Cheng opened his eyes, clapped his hands with a smile, as if praising the beauty of the flute music.

Seeing this, Lorelei felt deflated and muttered under her breath, "Tch, you really are a monster."

"When the two of us stand together, I think you look more like a monster," Su Cheng said, pointing to the fish tail beneath the other man.

"What kind of taste do you have?" Lorelei flicked her huge, long tail, dismissing his teasing, then asked curiously, "Just how strong are you now?"

"Me?" Su Cheng reached out and touched his chin, pondering as he said, "I'm probably a little bit better than the teacher."

Lorelei rolled her eyes. "You really know how to brag."

She knew that the "teacher" the other person was referring to was Poseidon, the high priest of Poseidon Island.

Su Cheng smiled and didn't refute, instead asking, "How are the Seven Sacred Pillars doing lately?"

"The Seven Pillars?" Lorelei was taken aback. "What's going on? It's the same as before."

Su Cheng glanced at her but didn't ask any further questions.

The Seven Pillars are certainly very different now, but Lorelei didn't notice.

It's also possible that these people didn't have a deep understanding of the essence of the Seven Pillars, and because they stayed nearby for many years, they couldn't perceive the subtle changes.

It's unlikely we'll learn anything from the other party; he'll have to find out the specifics himself later.

"Alright, now that I'm back, let's do something fun together in a few days."

"No problem." Lorelei's face showed a hint of anticipation upon hearing this.

"You can go now, the teacher will be here soon."

"Is the High Priest coming?"

When Lorelei left, she still had some doubts in her mind, not understanding how Poseidon knew about Su Cheng's return to the sea so quickly.

She was unaware of Poseidon's current situation.

Over the years, Poseidon rarely showed her true self when she went out, so she always thought that the other party still stayed in the Temple of Poseidon.

Lorelei's arrival today was also announced by someone from the Ming Cult.

Over the years, she naturally developed other means of communication with members of the Ming Cult.

But given Poseidon's status and position, unless she herself is willing to investigate, who, apart from a few Saint Pillar Douluos, is qualified to go to Poseidon Mountain to report to her?

However, not long after leaving, Lorelei learned how Su Cheng planned to tell Poseidon about his return.

(End of this chapter)