The morning after the soul awakening ceremony dawned beneath a veil of heavy, brooding clouds. Sea God Island, always touched by ocean winds and salt-kissed breezes, found itself caught in an unnatural calm. Not a single gull cried out, and the waves that lapped at the shores had stilled into quiet, trembling silence. It was as if the very soul of the island was holding its breath, watching over the one who had shaken the tides the night before.
Hai Shenling sat quietly on a stone at the edge of Pearl Mirror Lake, the sacred waters clear as polished glass. He was barefoot, dressed in a simple blue robe far too large for his slender frame, trailing behind him like trailing kelp beneath the sea. His gaze did not lift to the sky or the temple spires behind him. Instead, his attention remained fixed upon the reflection in the lake—a reflection that no longer felt like his.
He had always been special to Bo Saixi, always felt the touch of something ancient in the sea's lullabies. But yesterday… yesterday, everything changed. The Siren. The Sea God's divine projection. Two martial souls awakening in his small body, one filled with haunting allure and the other with boundless, crushing power.
And yet, he felt... incomplete. Lost.
He raised his hand slowly, watching how his reflection mimicked the movement, the fingers trembling ever so slightly. He remembered the moment her fingers touched his chest. Not Bo Saixi's. Hers. The Siren. That haunting presence of the deep. He focused.
The water stirred. A pulse rippled outward.
And then she came.
The figure of the Siren emerged slowly from the mirrored surface like a goddess risen from dreams. Her presence made the air shimmer, and her translucent body seemed carved from moonlight and sea glass. Her long hair flowed behind her, black and endless, rippling like a shadow across the water's surface. Her mouth did not move, but her voice echoed inside his very bones.
"You are mine. But you do not yet know how to sing."
Shenling blinked, his lips parting. "Sing? I don't understand... What song?"
The Siren's eyes shimmered with starlight, empty yet endless, and she raised a finger to his heart. Her finger passed through him like mist. Instantly, the lake surged—not physically, but emotionally. Ripples expanded outward and glowed faintly, shimmering like thoughts.
In those ripples, visions appeared—Bo Saixi kneeling at the sea's edge, her face lit with sorrow; the Seven Douluo standing with reverence; and himself, small and silent in the Temple of the Sea. These were not just images—they were feelings, echoes of past moments made manifest.
Then they vanished.
"Illusion. Emotion. Echo. These are your weapons."
He stood up slowly, swallowing the lump in his throat. "How do I use them? What's my skill?"
The Siren gave no answer, only a lingering whisper as her form dissolved into glittering mist.
"Call them to dream. Then pull the tide."
That evening, in the sacred Hall of Tides, Bo Saixi convened the council of the Seven Children of the Sea. The chamber echoed with the soft lapping of water, the pool at the center perfectly still, as if honoring the weight of the meeting. A translucent dome of spirit energy kept the room separate from the outside world.
Shenling stood at the center of the pool, barefoot once more. The light from the crystal lanterns overhead danced across his pale face. Every breath he took created small ripples beneath his feet, as if the water itself responded to his presence.
Bo Saixi, in her full ceremonial robes, spoke first. "My son has awakened a skill from the Siren. It is powerful. But its nature is... unlike anything we have seen."
Sea Dragon Douluo, the strongest among them, frowned deeply. His voice was a low rumble. "Then we must see it. No theory, no speculation. Only truth."
Shenling glanced nervously at Bo Saixi, who gave him an encouraging nod. "Let the Siren speak," she said.
He nodded and closed his eyes.
He inhaled deeply and slowly raised his hand. His fingers danced through the air, tracing unseen runes he barely understood. As he did, the water beneath his feet began to pulse, then glow with a pale blue light.
"First Soul Skill: Siren's Echo."
The moment he uttered the words, sound bloomed in the room. But there were no instruments. No voice. Only music—ethereal, melancholic, and laced with longing. A shimmering mist poured from his body, curling around the chamber like fog from the abyss.
The air chilled. The Douluo stiffened.
Sea Ghost Douluo's voice cracked. "What... is this?"
And then, they saw.
Each of the Seven Douluo stood paralyzed—not by fear, but by memory. For in the mist, the Siren spun illusions drawn from their deepest sorrows and desires:
Sea Dragon Douluo stared at the apparition of a boy, his little brother, who had drowned decades ago. The boy smiled and reached out for him.
Sea Spear Douluo dropped to one knee, tears brimming as his wife's voice whispered forgotten lullabies.
Sea Star Douluo stood face-to-face with the beast that once scarred her. But this time, it cowered before her in fear.
Bo Saixi gasped, her breath catching in her throat. She was not immune.
Before her, the sea surged. She held a child in her arms—Shenling. But he dissolved into water, slipping through her fingers as he had once in her worst nightmares. "No!" she cried, reaching forward.
"Enough!"
Shenling, wide-eyed and panicked by their reactions, flinched and severed the skill. The mist dissipated. The music died. Silence fell.
The chamber returned to its normal state, but none spoke for a long while.
Bo Saixi moved first, stepping toward her son. She knelt beside him, taking his trembling hand in her own.
"Are you alright?" she asked softly.
"I didn't mean to make them cry," Shenling murmured, voice barely audible. "I just wanted to show them..."
"You did nothing wrong," Bo Saixi said. "You revealed their truth. That is a gift... and a burden."
Around them, the Douluo regained their composure.
Sea Woman Douluo's voice was the first to cut through the silence. "That power... It manipulates not only sight but memory. It stirs the soul. Illusion, yes—but also revelation. This is no child's trick."
Sea Ghost Douluo nodded solemnly. "It pierced my spiritual defenses. This wasn't deception. It was resonance—emotional projection. A reflection of our truest selves."
Sea Dragon Douluo crossed his arms, eyes still shadowed. "It is dangerous. If enemies see only their nightmares, it will break them. But allies may fall to sorrow just the same. He must learn to control not just the skill, but the emotion behind it."
Bo Saixi's eyes turned toward Shenling. "And that is why we must guide him. Carefully. His next spirit ring must match this path—not hinder it."
Sea Spear Douluo stepped forward. "There are deep-sea spirit beasts that embody deception. One I know of—the Moonshadow Abyss Eel. A phantom swimmer, whose mind creates endless echoes. It's agile and produces resonance crystals. It might evolve the Siren's powers of misdirection."
Sea Fantasy Douluo added, "But the Lamenting Ocean Wraith... its cry is legendary. It weeps across the sea and lures even high-ranked spirit beasts to their deaths. If Shenling fuses with it, his illusions could gain emotional command."
Seahorse Douluo offered a more cautious note. "Be warned. If he leans too far into this... manipulation, it may unbalance the harmony between his martial souls. The Sea God is clarity. The Siren is mystery. We must find the right path."
Shenling looked to each of them, feeling both smaller and stronger than ever before. "Then... which one should I choose?"
Bo Saixi cupped his face. "What does your soul tell you, Ling'er? Close your eyes. Do not listen to fear. Do not chase power. Listen to the tide."
He obeyed.
He saw the sea inside his mind.
To the left: a chasm filled with darting lights, whispered secrets, and illusionary echoes.
To the right: a broken ship resting on coral, from which rose a sorrowful melody.
He turned toward the melody.
"I want the song," he whispered. "Even if it's sad. I want to understand it."
Sea Star Douluo bowed her head. "Then the hunt begins."