The moment the azure triangular body appeared, it bathed Tang San's entire room in a deep ocean-blue hue. The gentle undulations of blue light were so dazzling that even someone with Tang San's mental fortitude couldn't help but be momentarily mesmerized.
Cradling the Ocean Sky Cover in both hands, Tang San felt a wave of puzzlement wash over him. What exactly was this thing used for? He didn't rush to channel his Soul Power into it. Instead, he studied the unusual object with its flowing patterns of light carefully, and cautiously extended a thread of spiritual power toward it.
However, the instant his spiritual energy entered the Ocean Sky Cover even slightly, an indescribable surge of immense force violently repelled it. His whole body, still clutching the artifact, pitched backward. His mind went completely blank. In the last moment before consciousness faded, he felt something strike his head.
If Tang San's spiritual power could be called formidable, then the spiritual energy fluctuation his thread of consciousness had touched inside the Ocean Sky Cover was vast beyond measure. They simply weren't on the same level. Fortunately, he had infused only a tiny amount when probing. Moreover, his own spiritual power was exceptionally stable and reinforced by his Spirit Gathering Wisdom Skull. Otherwise, that single counterattack from the Ocean Sky Cover would have been enough to damage his very soul.
The object that had struck his head was none other than the Ocean Sky Cover itself. Its pointed tip had opened a small cut on Tang San's forehead. For skin as tough as his to be pierced spoke volumes about the sharpness of that triangular point. Of course, at the moment of impact, the artifact had also emitted a special layer of blue light that nullified Tang San's defenses, which was how it managed to break through his skin at all.
Blood trickled forth. The Ocean Sky Cover spun around natively and settled flush against the wound on Tang San's forehead, almost as if it possessed a will of its own. His blood poured continuously into it, and the blue glow gradually shifted to red.
What was more, the recovery ability of Tang San's Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone—normally unstoppable—was rendered utterly ineffective beneath the artifact's radiance. The wound showed no sign of closing, and blood simply continued to flow into the triangular body.
After a short while, a faint wisp of blue light drifted from the Ocean Sky Cover and coalesced into a highly transparent phantom. A calm, ancient voice spoke: "I don't know how much time has passed, but at last I've found blood with a fine taste. And at last I've found a physique capable of bearing the power of the ocean."
The blue light flashed and retreated back into the triangular body. The luminous aura on its surface abruptly dimmed. It detached from the wound on Tang San's forehead, spun around, bounced off his shoulder, rolled down his arm, and came to rest in his palm. By then the artifact had reverted to its original blue color, with only a faint trace of red still flickering at its core.
Without the Ocean Sky Cover's restraint, the cut on Tang San's forehead healed rapidly. Yet he himself remained sunk in deep unconsciousness.
In his dormant state, Tang San's consciousness perceived something pulling at his body and soul. The tremendous suction made it impossible for him to control himself in the slightest.
Gradually, the pulling grew stronger and he felt increasingly weak, as though everything around him was fading away. It was then that a peculiar force seeped into his heart, flowed slowly into his brain, and merged with it as a cool, refreshing sensation. Though the weakness persisted, his mind became extraordinarily clear. He could no longer perceive the outside world, yet he could distinctly sense the blood flowing through his meridians, even the subtlest changes in his internal organs.
Time passed in a haze. Tang San's awareness remained dim until, without knowing how long it had been, he finally surfaced to find that night had fallen. He was no longer alone in the room. The other six Shrek Seven Devils had gathered around him. Xiao Wu sat blankly beside him, holding his hand. The other five wore expressions of deep anxiety.
"Hmm? How did everyone end up here?" Tang San rubbed his temples and slowly sat up.
Seeing him regain consciousness, everyone exhaled in relief. Dai Mubai said gravely, "Little San, what happened to you? If you hadn't woken up soon, we would have gone to fetch the Great Master and Headmaster Flandre."
Oscar said, "We checked your body. You're suffering from severe deficiency of both qi and blood. What on earth happened?"
Hearing this, Tang San noticed he did feel rather weak—the same state he'd experienced after being healed by his Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone.
Tang San's gaze fell to his right hand. There, lying quietly in his palm, was the Ocean Sky Cover. Strangely, its former brilliant radiance had vanished. Although it was still entirely azure, it now looked like nothing more than an ordinary gemstone.
"It knocked me unconscious. I never imagined such a small thing could contain so much enormous energy." Tang San held the Ocean Sky Cover up for everyone to see and briefly recounted everything that had happened since he visited the palace.
Listening to his account, Ning Rongrong said, "Then it should be a good thing, right? It told you to infuse Soul Power, but you insisted on using spiritual energy instead. Still… could this be the royal family's…?"
Though she trailed off, everyone understood what she meant. Dai Mubai snatched the Ocean Sky Cover from Tang San's hand. "Only one way to find out." Without a moment's hesitation, he began channeling his own Soul Power into it.
"Mubai—" Tang San called out anxiously, reaching to take it back, but Dai Mubai's Soul Power had already been infused. He knew that Dai Mubai had grabbed it to test for danger on his behalf.
No danger materialized. Or rather, nothing happened at all.
The Soul Power Dai Mubai poured into the Ocean Sky Cover vanished as if absorbed by sand, yet the artifact itself showed no change whatsoever. It merely flickered with a brief glimmer of blue light before returning to normal, without any dramatic reaction.
"Boss Dai, any findings?" Ma Hongjun asked.
Dai Mubai scratched his head. "Not really. My Soul Power just disappeared." His hand lightened as the Ocean Sky Cover returned to Tang San's grasp.
Tang San's eyes flashed with a stern light. "Mubai, don't do that again."
Dai Mubai smiled faintly. "We're brothers—no need for all that talk."
Looking at the smile on his face, Tang San's expression softened. He shook his head helplessly, then turned his gaze to the Ocean Sky Cover. "Let me try."
With that, he carefully channeled a thin thread of Soul Power into the artifact. Having learned his lesson, he was far more cautious this time, infusing only the barest amount.
Strangely enough, the Ocean Sky Cover—which had shown no response when Dai Mubai fed it Soul Power—behaved entirely differently in Tang San's hands. The instant his thread of Soul Power entered, blue light bloomed brilliantly. The azure triangular body seemed to come alive, radiating a mystical luster and recreating the dazzling appearance it had shown when Tang San first obtained it. Water-like waves of blue light rippled and undulated throughout the room. Strange patterns materialized across its surface. Tang San could clearly feel the artifact's hunger for his Soul Power, and instinctively increased the flow.
Ning Rongrong's face changed color and she took an involuntary step back, her beautiful eyes wide with alarm. She realized that this seemingly tiny triangular object was somehow giving her an overwhelming urge to bow in reverence.
It was a tremor that originated from the very depths of her Martial Soul. Her own top-grade Martial Soul, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, was experiencing an impulse to pay homage. What in the world was this thing?
Ning Rongrong's Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was not merely a support-type Martial Soul. Categorized more precisely, it belonged to the supreme echelon of treasure-type Martial Souls—which was precisely why she had been able to locate so many rare ores in Gengxin City.
Yet the feeling this Ocean Sky Cover gave her now was nothing short of astonishing. If the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was a tower among treasures, then this Ocean Sky Cover was the mountain that stood above all peaks.
Everyone else was captivated by the dazzling radiance emanating from the artifact and hadn't noticed Ning Rongrong's reaction.
As Tang San continued channeling Soul Power, the blue glow intensified. The brilliant light swelled, and the azure triangular body slowly rose from his palm, floating up until it hovered before his face. It then began to rotate of its own accord.
Just as Tang San wondered what was happening, he glimpsed a flash of crimson light within the Ocean Sky Cover. Immediately after, a beam of blue light shot into the space between his brows. His entire body shuddered as an enormous stream of information flooded his mind through spiritual transmission.
The scenery before his eyes transformed. Tang San's soul and consciousness were immersed in a wondrous world—an endless expanse of emerald sea and azure sky. Beneath his feet, the ocean surged and roared. Above, the heavens stretched clear and cloudless for ten thousand miles. That sensation of total clarity in body and mind filled him with boundless longing. The weakness that had plagued him moments ago had completely vanished.
Pillars of crystalline information flowed into his mind, each one perfectly clear. The triangular Ocean Sky Cover shifted and rotated within this information, demonstrating its myriad wondrous uses. The method of wielding it was imprinted effortlessly into Tang San's consciousness—there was no need to memorize it. It would exist alongside his soul forever.
The other Shrek Seven Devils watched the unfolding scene with tense anticipation. After a beam of blue light had entered Tang San's forehead from the Ocean Sky Cover, his body shuddered slightly and then stilled. But moments later, his entire form was enveloped in that same dazzling blue radiance, and his body, much like the artifact, slowly rose from the ground.
His left hand lifted naturally and gracefully. The Ocean Sky Cover drifted gently into his palm, spinning with each revolution. Every turn amplified the blue light around Tang San. The areas shining most intensely were his head, his back, his right leg, and his right arm—the four locations where he possessed spirit bones.
Among the Shrek Six Devils, everyone except the still-dazed Xiao Wu unconsciously formed a circle around Tang San. They could feel that something extraordinary was happening to him. Though they didn't know exactly what it was, they sensed it was not harmful but beneficial.
Ring after ring of blue fluctuations solidified around Tang San's body, painting everything in azure tones. Within his eyes, blue light pulsed and receded—unlike the radiance once emitted by his Purple Extreme Demon Eye, this light now appeared crystal-clear, like a natural extension of his body.
Time trickled past. When Tang San finally emerged from that wondrous world, it felt as though only a moment had elapsed. But the daylight streaming through the window told him that dawn had already broken. An entire night had passed without his knowing.
His body settled silently to the ground. Seeing his companions' concerned gazes, Tang San couldn't help but sigh. "This time, the gift the Tian Dou Empire sent really is far too generous."
Ma Hongjun couldn't resist asking, "Third Brother, what exactly does this thing do?"
Tang San picked up Xiao Wu, who was sleeping nearby, and said, "Come. I'll demonstrate it for you outside."
Xiao Wu opened her drowsy eyes, saw that it was Tang San holding her, nestled her head against his chest, and drifted back to sleep.
Leaving the wooden cabin and stepping into the courtyard outside, Tang San's eyes flashed with blue light. The Ocean Sky Cover shot into the air of its own accord, hovering before him and moving in tandem with him as he walked. It didn't even need to be held.
Tang San halted. "Although I don't know why Mubai's Soul Power had no effect on it, I should have mastered its method of use now. Calling it a divine artifact wouldn't be an exaggeration. If the Eight Treasure Soft Armor forged by Elder Lou Gao qualifies as a divine artifact, then this would be a divine artifact among divine artifacts. Watch."
As he spoke, the blue light in his eyes blazed suddenly brighter. A luminous blue triangular mark materialized between his brows. The Ocean Sky Cover shot skyward, rising roughly five meters in the blink of an eye. Under everyone's astonished gaze, it expanded at tremendous speed, growing over a hundredfold in an instant. With a flash of blue light, it descended and enveloped the entire Shrek Seven Devils within its field.
The surroundings turned into a world of blue. Yet they could still clearly see everything outside, as though an invisible triangular dome had enclosed them.
Tang San explained, "This is its first wondrous use—and the most important one. Once this barrier forms, it acts like a room, shielding us within. At the same time, after enveloping us, it becomes invisible. It doesn't even have a physical form. It conceals not only our bodies but also completely masks our aura. With this, no matter how dangerous a place may be, releasing it will protect us."
With a wave of his left hand, the blue light vanished and the Ocean Sky Cover returned to his grasp. Tang San swept his left hand outward again, and it spun away once more, heading toward Dai Mubai.
Dai Mubai suddenly felt a nameless surge of danger and retreated rapidly by instinct. But in the flash of blue before his eyes, the Ocean Sky Cover had already expanded and engulfed him. This time, however, the space inside was far smaller than before—just large enough to contain his body. What startled Dai Mubai even more was that he found himself completely unable to move within it.
The blue light flickered and the Ocean Sky Cover retracted once more. This time it transformed into a streak of blue light, vanishing into Tang San's forehead and sinking into the space between his brows.