Tribulation Transcendence

Northern Juru Continent, a rare stretch of wilderness free of miasma. Red dust billowed through the air, mingling with grievance qi that had lingered for hundreds of millions of years, making the place especially eerie.

One day, a youth strolled through the area.

"A hematite vein, and a super-large open-pit deposit at that. This really is an ideal place to undergo tribulation."

The youth was Li Yang. Since leaving the Immortal Crossing Sect and returning to Northern Juru Continent, he had visited all seven locations suitable for undergoing tribulation. This was the best one.

The vein stretched for more than two hundred li and was almost entirely exposed. No vegetation grew there, and no living creatures dwelled there.

If he underwent tribulation here, he would not need to worry about affecting too many intelligent life-forms and incurring tremendous karma.

Although there was a small risk of a human tribulation, it was still preferable to incurring massive karma.

"Actually, the human tribulation can be mitigated, too."

Li Yang murmured and lightly patted his Storage Pouch. Countless Array Flags, Array Plates, and Golden Pills flew out, transforming into streaks of light. Some landed on mountaintops, some sank into the soil, some fell into streams, and others melded into the void.

"Five Elements Eight Trigrams Array, rise."

"Sky Covering Sun Obscuring Array, rise."

"Nine Palaces Array..."

Li Yang's hands flashed through a series of gestures, sending out spell seals one after another. The world around him quietly began to change.

This was a composite array he had designed for himself, combining formations he had studied based on his Senior Brother's research.

Countless grand arrays and minor arrays, illusion arrays, trapping arrays, killing arrays, and so on were interwoven, each layer linked to the next. They were dense and intricate, yet somehow coexisted in perfect harmony.

These arrays were like a complex program, executing their functions with precision and efficiency.

"Conceal!"

When Li Yang completed the final hand seal, the grand array vanished from sight. It could only be seen once it was deliberately activated.

"The grand array is so vast that even a tribulation cloud stretching a hundred li across won't be able to destroy it completely.

"On top of that, I have 108 Golden Core Clones at the Origin Immortal Realm. With such a powerful array, I wouldn't fear even a Celestial Immortal."

Indeed, the grand array had never been meant to counter the Heavenly Tribulation. It was designed to deal with the human tribulation.

Qi Practitioners who roamed Northern Juru Continent sometimes came across someone undergoing tribulation to become an immortal. Seeing that person weakened, some wouldn't mind playing the part of a bandit.

This grand array was meant for them.

The array drew its energy not only from spiritual qi, but also from the turbid qi in the earth's veins and the energy of the Heavenly Tribulation he would undergo in the future.

As long as he didn't maliciously exploit loopholes in the Heavenly Tribulation, the Heavenly Dao didn't care if he took and used the energy generated by its aftermath.

The sect's books often mentioned such things.

He lightly patted his Storage Pouch, and several magical treasures flew out, transforming into three lotus flowers, a Lotus Platform, and Five Elements Qi.

The three lotus flowers hovered above Li Yang, scattering Three-Colored Divine Light.

The Lotus Platform flew beneath his feet and raised an Azure Shield.

The Five Elements Qi revolved behind Li Yang, slowly connecting with the Five Elements of heaven and earth.

Then Li Yang glanced at his status panel.

[Name]: Li Yang

[Birthplace]: Primordial Wilderness

[Dao Lineage]: Immortal Crossing Sect

[Cultivation]: Return to Dao Ninth Stage

[Entry 1]: Work-Life Balance (The longer the rest period, the better the cultivation results. Current rest period: 20 months, 1 day, 3 hours, 6 quarters)

[Entry 2]: Locked (Unlocks at the Origin Immortal Stage)

"Twenty months, one day, three hours, and six quarters. That can be converted into two months of cultivation time. It'll be enough."

Without hesitation, Li Yang tapped the entry, then sat cross-legged and began meditating.

In an instant, his current rest period dropped to zero, and his mind and Divine Soul became crystal clear. The many texts and Daoist scriptures he had read over the past twenty months, along with everything he had accumulated over the previous ten years, were rapidly digested.

The sudden increase in his comprehension allowed him to understand and absorb all this knowledge with ease. Even the principles that had flashed past him only briefly now came back to him with perfect clarity.

At the same time, he combined this knowledge with the many ideas he had developed over the past twenty months, rapidly organizing the principles and incorporating them into his understanding.

The Golden Core Clone method can be improved this way. With these changes, even a clone made from the simplest mortal materials will start at the ninth Qi Refining Stage.

The Golden Core Clone at the Origin Immortal Realm can be improved this way. Its power will increase by more than tenfold.

The Star Dou Great Array can be expanded further. Its power can double, then double again, and again.

If I improve Fellow Daoist Please Stay this way, I can poison Yuwen Ling to death in less than half a breath—and his Divine Soul, too. Based on the True Immortal aura I've collected, in theory, I could even poison a True Immortal.

This composite array...

The methods for alchemy, artifact refinement, Array Formation, clones, and talismans expanded rapidly under the influence of his vast knowledge.

Li Yang had understood this long ago: the more he knew about a field, the greater the changes he could make to it while comprehending the Dao, and the greater its power would become.

What was more, because these fields influenced one another, understanding one principle could lead to breakthroughs in countless others.

Every bit of knowledge he had accumulated over ten years, every experience and lesson from that decade, now became his deep foundation and the fuel that propelled him forward.

If I temper my body this way, it will become far stronger. By incorporating methods from alchemy, artifact refinement, talismans, and formations, I can make my body stronger than an immortal's before I even become one.

If I cultivate qi this way, I can accelerate the growth of my mana...

This spell can be modified like this...

Li Yang was changing with every passing moment.

Li Yang was making progress with every passing moment.

His cultivation realm rapidly rose: Origin Immortal, True Immortal, Celestial Immortal, with no end in sight.

Two months passed in the blink of an eye.

The bonus from the entry vanished at once. Li Yang slowly opened his eyes, unable to hide his delight.

"My cultivation realm has reached the Celestial Immortal level. That means there'll be no more obstacles before I reach the Celestial Immortal level; the path ahead has become the Great Dao of Heaven.

"Now, the only difference between me and a true Celestial Immortal is our cultivation level—and the Immortal Ascension Tribulation I still need to undergo."

Li Yang sensed his cultivation stirring restlessly as a result of his rapid advancement. He stopped suppressing it.

"Whoosh!"

With every breath, countless streams of spiritual qi emerged from the void and flowed into his body, becoming his mana and repairing the flaws in his foundation caused by his rapid progress.

The clone that could convert Void Energy into spiritual qi was doing everything in its power to provide him with spiritual qi and lay an even stronger foundation for him.

Another month passed. As Li Yang sensed that his cultivation had reached its limit, he was suddenly overcome with restlessness. An obscure, mysterious Dao Rhyme appeared around him.

The Heavenly Tribulation is coming!

A hint of understanding arose in Li Yang's heart. He knew he had reached the end of the Mortal Realm, and that the Immortal Ascension Tribulation was about to arrive.

He flipped his hand and formed a seal, using dozens of special active and passive methods to scan the area within a thousand li.

"Three months. Two Qi Practitioners at the Void Refining Stage passed through, and no immortals came by. It seems I chose the right place to undergo tribulation.

"In that case, let the tribulation begin!"

Li Yang released his full aura. A faint pressure gradually spread across the sky.

"Rumble!"

Amid the muffled thunder, dark clouds suddenly filled the sky. Layer upon layer of gray-black tribulation clouds rapidly gathered, forming an Immortal Ascension Tribulation that covered roughly ten li above Li Yang.