Fighting Heaven for Life, the Final Thunder

As he gazed at the heavy Thunder Clouds slowly rotating like millstones of apocalypse, so oppressive that they made it hard to breathe, Yu Yuanchen was far from completely confident. Although he had sworn the Oath of the Thunder God, he still harbored a trace of concern over this near loophole-like method of taking turns resisting the heavenly tribulation. Heavenly Might was unpredictable. Could Plane Law truly be deceived so easily? But the arrow was already on the bowstring; he had no choice but to fire. He took a deep breath, adjusted himself to peak condition, and prepared to honor his promise and offer all the help he could.

Rumble—!!!

The first wave of heavenly tribulation descended without warning! It was not one bolt or two, but countless bolts of thunder as thick as barrels and so dark they were nearly black, pouring down like an overturned celestial river. Interwoven, they formed a destructive Thunderstorm Forest that fiercely blanketed the mountaintop! The world was left with nothing but blinding lightning and deafening explosions!

Thunderclap Nethervine let out a low hum. The Thunder Clouds above its peak spun madly, erupting with immense suction! Those violent tribulation bolts were forcibly drawn into its body by its unique Thunder-Eating talent, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea. Its vines trembled violently, and the runes on its main trunk shone to their utmost brilliance, clearly bearing tremendous pressure. Yet its foundation was deep. Three thousand years of accumulation showed its effect at this moment, and it forcibly devoured the entirety of this terrifying first wave of thunder tribulation, which lasted for an hour! Its aura steadily rose amid the devouring, officially crossing the fifty-thousand-year threshold and advancing toward a higher realm.

Yet the heavenly tribulation gave it no chance to catch its breath. The first wave had barely subsided when a second, even more powerful wave had already gathered and crashed down once more! It continued without pause!

Thunderclap Nethervine devoured with all its strength, but Yu Yuanchen could clearly sense that the speed at which it swallowed and refined the lightning was beginning to fall behind the frequency and power of the descending Heavenly Thunder! Scorch marks began appearing on its vines, and its main trunk trembled faintly.

"Now!" Yu Yuanchen and Thunderclap Nethervine were connected by thought, needing no further words. A Purple-Gold radiance shot out from the Divine Vine's main body and instantly enveloped Yu Yuanchen.

In that instant, Yu Yuanchen felt a strange transformation in his senses! His perception of the surrounding lightning became incomparably clear. The Ultimate Thunder within him seemed to have found its home, and a powerful instinct to "devour" the violent energy before him arose naturally! This was the Thunder-Eating talent Thunderclap Nethervine had temporarily shared with him!

"Thunder Sacred Dragon, descend!" Yu Yuanchen growled. The Purple-Gold phantom of the Thunder Sacred Dragon behind him raised its head and roared at the sky as he charged toward the pouring tribulation lightning!

Boom!

Countless bolts of Heavenly Thunder seemed to find a new target and surged wildly into his body! Even with the foundation of Thunder-Eating and Ultimate Thunder, the vast energy far beyond his limits instantly flooded his limbs and bones, bringing tearing agony! He felt like a balloon being inflated madly, ready to burst at any moment!

He had to vent this energy!

"Sixth Soul Skill, Thunderous Armament!"

Purple-Gold lightning erupted, instantly solidifying into that ancient and savage-looking Thunderous Armor around his body. The Lightning Dragon Spear also appeared in his hand! This armament, originally formed purely from Soul Power, let out a joyous hum after absorbing an enormous amount of tribulation lightning energy of the same origin! In particular, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Right Arm Bone resonated intensely with it!

In a flash of inspiration, Yu Yuanchen did not hesitate. He wildly poured the tribulation lightning energy within him, which had nowhere else to go and was nearly bursting him apart, into the Thunderous Armament!

Hum—!!!

The armor and Dragon Spear instantly flared with brilliance! Their once somewhat illusory energy forms visibly became Solidified and heavy at a rapid pace! The Dragon Pattern on the armor seemed to come alive, its scales becoming clearer and sharper, while substantial Purple-Gold electric plasma flowed along their edges. The Dragon Spear let out a trembling cry like a Dragon Roar, and the Destruction Lightning gathered at its tip seemed almost capable of tearing space apart!

So it really can! Yu Yuanchen was overjoyed. He had long discovered that this armament formed by his Soul Skill possessed the potential to "grow" after obtaining a Spirit Bone of the same origin! But he was currently in the golden period of cultivation, and Soul Power was precious. He needed it for his daily training as well, so he had been reluctant to pour in large amounts. He could only inject a little whenever he had spare time, barely making a difference.

Now, this immense and pure tribulation lightning energy was the finest nourishment for strengthening it! He even faintly looked forward to whether, if he continued infusing it, this armament could one day transform into the prototype of true Divine Equipment...

The time it took for an incense stick to burn swiftly passed amid the mad infusion of energy and resistance against Heavenly Thunder. Yu Yuanchen felt that he had reached his limit and immediately withdrew.

Thunderclap Nethervine, which had long been prepared, swiftly took over. It spread its Thunder-Eating domain once again and greedily devoured the tribulation lightning. It did not rush to use all the energy to raise its Cultivation Level. Instead, taking advantage of the temporary release of Plane Law's suppression, it cleverly stored and accumulated most of it! It knew well that if its Cultivation Level rose too quickly and caused the later heavenly tribulations to surge in power, Yu Yuanchen might not survive that crucial period of an incense stick's time. Then everything would be lost.

And whenever it endured a wave, or whenever Yu Yuanchen rotated out, it shared part of the pure Life Origin it had converted with him, helping him swiftly recover from his injuries and exhaustion. Within this cycle of destruction and New Life, the coordination between one man and one vine grew increasingly seamless.

Time passed amid the roars of the thunderstorm. One wave, two waves, three waves... More than twenty waves passed in all!

Every wave of heavenly tribulation it devoured allowed Thunderclap Nethervine to accumulate nearly three thousand years of cultivation foundation, though part of the energy had to be used for healing and converting Life Force. Its aura became ever more vast, and the energy it had amassed had reached a terrifying level, enough to support its final leap!

After Yu Yuanchen rotated out once more and accepted the Life Force shared by the Divine Vine to recover, Thunderclap Nethervine's thoughts reached him, carrying unprecedented gravity and resolve. "Human, the time has come! I will begin my assault on the hundred-thousand-year threshold! The process will be exceedingly dangerous. I must face it with all my strength and can no longer spare attention to help you recover. Take this strand of Life Origin and keep it for emergencies."

A Life energy several times richer than before flowed into Yu Yuanchen's body, and he carefully stored it away.

The next moment, the immense, unimaginable energy Thunderclap Nethervine had accumulated over more than twenty waves erupted with a thunderous burst! Its dark-purple trunk seemed to ignite, bursting forth with dazzling Purple-Gold radiance! Countless vines danced madly, stirring Wind and Clouds, while a tyrannical will that seemed determined to break free of heaven and earth surged into the skies!

It was assaulting the hundred-thousand-year realm! This was the final stage of its path against heaven!

The process was far more tortuous and difficult than imagined. The violent collisions of energy, the agony of its leap in Life level, and the ceaseless interference of the heavenly tribulation caused Cracks to continuously appear across Thunderclap Nethervine's body. Charred ruin and New Life alternated again and again. Yet the unyielding will forged over three thousand years of fighting heaven for Life, born from the depths of its bloodline, was like a spine that would never bend. It supported the Divine Vine as it desperately held firm amid the torrent of destruction! Again and again, it neared collapse, only to forcibly gather itself once more through sheer conviction and launch its final charge toward that legendary realm!

Yu Yuanchen watched from the side, his heart surging with emotion. He was deeply moved as well. Such an unyielding will deserved the respect of every living being.

At last, after enduring an unknown number of brushes with death, Thunderclap Nethervine's aura broke through a Critical Point. A vast, ancient pressure, as though it had fused with Thunder Law itself, spread outward Like a Tide! Its trunk became more ancient and vigorous, its color deep as the cosmic starry sky. Its vines churned like true Thunder Dragons, while the cluster of Thunder Clouds at its peak transformed into a Thunder Vortex surrounded by Nine-Colored Rays!

One hundred thousand years! It had succeeded! It had broken the destiny of its bloodline and become the first Thunderclap Nethervine in history to surpass one hundred thousand years!

However, just as Yu Yuanchen thought the heavenly tribulation would temporarily cease after its breakthrough, another change arose!

The Thunder Clouds in the sky, which had seemed about to disperse, gathered again at even greater speed! Their color was no longer deep black or chaos, but became a heart-palpitating blackish-purple, as though capable of swallowing all light! A pure, terrifying pressure carrying the meaning of ultimate destruction, greater than all the previous heavenly tribulations combined, locked onto the mountaintop!

Yu Yuanchen and Thunderclap Nethervine simultaneously came to a realization—this was Plane Law's final judgment! It was punishment for their act of exploiting a loophole! This final wave of tribulation lightning contained only two bolts, but within them lay true destructive power capable of annihilating all things! Endure them, and the world would open before them; fail, and they would be reduced to ashes!

Roar—!!! Thunderclap Nethervine's thoughts released an unwilling shriek. Though it had just broken through, its body was already riddled with wounds. Yet it still dragged its battered form forward, unleashing all its power to meet the first blackish-purple tribulation bolt!

Boom!!!

Just one bolt! Its incomparably tough trunk was blasted full of Cracks, and countless vines broke apart inch by inch, turning Charred and withered as its Life Force rapidly drained away before the Naked Eye! Before absolute power, even that steadfast will seemed unable to bring forth another miracle.

Yu Yuanchen's heart sank sharply. He admired the Divine Vine's courage and conviction, but he understood even more clearly that the final Heavenly Thunder had already surpassed his limits. Only an existence with the Life Force of a Fierce Beast might possibly withstand it head-on. If he went forward, not only would he be unable to help, but his own foundation would be destroyed, and he might even perish. Moreover, deep in his heart, he still harbored a trace of desire for the possible Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.

As the second and final blackish-purple tribulation bolt took shape, carrying the will to end everything and preparing to strike, Thunderclap Nethervine was already at the end of its strength and had nearly lost all ability to resist.

"It can't end like this!" Powerful unwillingness and a trace of yearning for a Spirit Bone intertwined in Yu Yuanchen's heart. His gaze sharpened, and he made his decision!

He abruptly took out the Jade Pendant, the family inheritance token his Grandfather had given him—one containing the defensive power of Tyrant Dragon Douluo's full-force strike! Rather than use it on himself, he frantically activated its core with Soul Power, doubling its defense once more. He even allowed its structure to overload and head toward collapse without hesitation! (Chapter 14)

"Go!"

The Jade Pendant became a streak of light and instantly appeared above Thunderclap Nethervine's battered body, erupting into a Solidified blue protective barrier! At the same time, Yu Yuanchen's Martial Soul left his body. The phantom of the Thunder Sacred Dragon roared as it remotely formed another Purple-Gold lightning barrier before the Divine Vine!

He did not rush forward to block the lightning with his body. That was the limit of his rationality. But he was willing to sacrifice this precious life-saving token and provide remote support, trying to win the Divine Vine that slim thread of survival!

Crack—!

The final blackish-purple tribulation bolt descended. The defensive barrier created through the Jade Pendant's self-destruction, capable of blocking a Super Douluo's strike, shattered instantly like paper! The Jade Pendant itself turned to dust.

But the tribulation bolt did not fully disperse. Though weakened considerably, it still crashed down fiercely! It easily tore apart the Purple-Gold barrier Yu Yuanchen had created and struck Thunderclap Nethervine's ruined body, which had nearly lost all Life Force!

"Wuu—!" A faint cry filled with extreme pain rang out in Yu Yuanchen's mind, then abruptly ceased.

As the lightning faded, the Thunder Clouds began to slowly disperse, and light returned to the sky.

Yet the mountaintop was dead silent. Thunderclap Nethervine, which had just broken its destiny and risen to one hundred thousand years, lay quietly upon the Charred, shattered ground. Its trunk was broken, its vines withered, and not the slightest sound or energy fluctuation remained.

The heavenly tribulation was over.

Yu Yuanchen stood where he was, gazing at the ruins with complicated emotions. He had done his best, but he had also lost his family's life-saving token. In the end, it seemed he had still failed to change fate against heaven.

It seemed that nothing had been left behind.