Chapter 541: The Strongest Gift

Xu Yang was never one to seek fame or take credit. He always fulfilled his responsibilities and commitments. Conquering the Sea Demon Lord was, in fact, a promise he had made to the mermaid clan, so he naturally wouldn't go back on it.

"No need to be polite, Your Majesty, it was just a small favor."

"Please, can you stop making it sound so understated? As if conquering me was easy. My strength is no less than yours; I am a genuine god-level expert, you know?"

As soon as this voice echoed in his mind, Xu Yang couldn't help but chuckle. "Alright, alright, you're strong, okay? But no matter how strong you are, aren't you still my sacrificial beast? Don't forget, now if I want your life, it's as simple as a single thought."

The Sea Demon Lord was furious. It knew that Xu Yang would act recklessly and control it after gaining power. However, no matter how exasperated it felt, it dared not show even a hint of defiance, for Xu Yang indeed possessed the power of life and death over his sacrificial beast, and no one would dare challenge him in the slightest.

"Alright, I concede. You're amazing, okay?"

Xu Yang chuckled and said no more, instead turning to look earnestly at the Mermaid Queen in front of him.

At the same time, the Supreme Sea Pearl in the Queen's palm began to shine brilliantly, its radiant aura seemingly filling the entire space.

"Oh my goodness, is this the power of a top-tier oceanic divine artifact? It's simply unbelievable!"

Those around him clicked their tongues in astonishment, unable to suppress their awe. The fluctuations emanating from such a divine artifact were far beyond what any ordinary magical artifact could achieve.

"Of course, can anything be called a true divine artifact for nothing? Moreover, this Sea Pearl seals the true power of the Sea God; how can it be ordinary?"

Ling Yao and Shi Lingyun, standing nearby, eyed it with great envy. However, both girls knew very well that this was a genuine, top-tier treasure of the mermaid clan, and no one could possibly covet it.

However, what unfolded next surprised everyone. The Mermaid Queen, holding the Supreme Sea Pearl with both hands, presented it to the esteemed Xu Yang.

"Sir, this is a gift from our mermaid clan. Please, you must accept it."

Xu Yang was instinctively startled. He truly hadn't expected the mermaid clan to offer such a grand gift so readily.

"Your Majesty, what is the meaning of this? How can the supreme ancestral treasure of the mermaid clan be given to an outsider like me?" Xu Yang was not feigning politeness; he clearly understood what this item meant to the entire mermaid clan.

The Mermaid Queen, however, sincerely wished to bestow it. "To be frank, Sir," she began, "while this treasure is indeed precious, in our hands, it is simply wasted. We can never truly unleash its full power. More importantly, this item was previously used to seal the Sea Demon Lord. Now that the demon has been suppressed and subdued by you, keeping this divine artifact serves little purpose. Beyond this, our mermaid clan has nothing else worthy of offering as a gift to repay you. What's more, the secrets sealed within it should be of help to you. If it weren't for you, our mermaid clan would likely have faced utter destruction. Therefore, you must not refuse this gift, or our mermaid clan will not know how to conduct ourselves."

Anyone could see that the Mermaid Queen genuinely intended to give it away. If Xu Yang were to decline further, it would seem unreasonable.

After all, this divine artifact had an irreplaceable role for Xu Yang at the moment. It seemed to be the only core clue connecting to the Glacial Ruins. If even this divine Sea Pearl couldn't reveal any clues about the Glacial Ruins, then Xu Yang's team's hope of finding it would be quite slim.

"Since that's the case, I, Xu Yang, won't stand on ceremony. From today onwards, if the mermaid clan encounters any trouble in the far northern sea, simply send a message through the Sea Pearl. I will receive feedback immediately and rush to the battlefield to support and protect your safety."

Without further hesitation, Xu Yang shook his palm and held the divine Sea Pearl, allowing its incredibly brilliant light to envelop his entire body.

It's important to note that a divine artifact acknowledging its master requires a relatively long and careful process. This is especially true for top-tier divine artifacts imbued with immensely powerful divine energy, which need to check if the host's body contains elemental forces that are extremely repellent to them.

Although Xu Yang's perfect Asura God inheritance was fierce and its attributes rather unique, the neutralizing power of the Angel's Heart provided significant compatibility with other top-tier divine inheritances. Thus, it caused no repulsion with the Supreme Sea Pearl.

This meant that both Xu Yang and the sacrificial beast, the Sea Demon Lord, within him were qualified to inherit the divine power of the Supreme Sea Pearl.

"Ahahaha, kid, you're something else! What kind of charm do you possess to make the Mermaid Queen give you even a supreme divine artifact? Don't tell me she's taken a fancy to you?"

Xu Yang introspected his inner space and deliberately used powerful soul energy to pressure the Sea Demon Lord, making it suffer a bit.

"You impudent fellow, stop talking nonsense. Her Majesty is simply repaying me this way. The Queen is so proud; she never likes to owe anyone favors, and this time is no different. Offering this divine artifact is her way of expressing gratitude to me."

The Sea Demon Lord stopped dwelling on the topic and instead became eagerly anticipative. "Kid, quickly absorb the Pearl's power!" it urged. "This is the true inheritance of the Sea God's power. If it hadn't been for its suppression back then, would I have been trapped here for over a hundred thousand years? Now, not only have I broken free from the suppression, but I can also inherit a portion of the Sea God's power! I'm truly overwhelmed with excitement, ah hahaha!"

Xu Yang helplessly shook his head and sighed, seemingly speechless at the Sea Demon Lord inside him.

However, since he had taken it in, he naturally had to play the role of its caretaker. A small portion of the power he inherited would, in turn, become a boon for the Sea Demon Lord.

"Sir Xu Yang, I know your strength is infinitely close to that of a true god, and your combat ability even surpasses some ordinary gods. What you lack is merely the acknowledgment of the myriad paths of the heavens to condense a true divinity and become an accredited member of the Upper Realm Divine Domain. I hope this inheritance and blessing of Sea God's power can help you touch that bottleneck."

Xu Yang chuckled, "Then I shall take your kind words to heart. However, there's no rush for such things. Without sufficient accumulation, forcefully pushing it would only be in vain. Besides, for me now, crossing the divine bottleneck is only a matter of time. What I truly want to do right now is find the Glacial Ruins, obtain the Angel Soul Pillar's power, and rescue my person."

Xu Yang's words were truly sincere. For him, rescuing his person as quickly as possible was the top priority.