Tribulation Transcendence

Streams of purplish-golden qi flowed rapidly through his meridians, slowly widening the narrow channels into broad thoroughfares.

At last, the golden qi poured into a vast sea. It was a purplish-golden ocean, golden in its splendor and purple in its mystery. Faintly visible in its depths, a magnificent platform rose from the ocean floor.

Just as Bai Yixin's deeper transformation was about to end, Stone Village was far from peaceful.

"Grandpa Chief, hasn't Brother Little White come back yet?" Little One asked that day. He had returned from training under all kinds of heavenly might, soaked through, bruised all over and covered in wounds. Even after taking Treasure Medicine and resting, he still hadn't seen Bai Yixin.

The old chief, Shi Yunfeng, shook his head and said worriedly, "I wonder how Little Bai is doing. He's been gone for a month already. I hope nothing's happened to him."

"That can't be. Brother Little White managed to lift a hundred-thousand-jin boulder with one arm a month ago. He's so strong—how could anything happen to him? Something must have held him up," Little One said, though he wasn't entirely sure.

The Vast Mountain Range was teeming with all kinds of ferocious Primordial Remnants. If Bai Yixin had really encountered some peerless beast, it was hard to say whether he was safe.

"Little Bai is very clever. He'll be safe and sound... May the Willow Deity protect him. I hope he returns safely." Shi Yunfeng offered a prayer to the willow tree.

Rain came. At first, the sky was dim, and a light drizzle pattered down.

Before long, dark clouds rolled in from afar, spreading across the sky in a heavy mass. The rain grew heavier and heavier, gathering into streams on the ground.

The sky suddenly went dark, as if night had fallen in an instant. It was so black that they couldn't see their hands before their faces, though it should have been daytime.

The world was pitch-black beneath a curtain of torrential rain. Several enormous clouds collided, and thunder exploded. Lightning danced like golden serpents, connecting heaven and earth.

"Rumble!"

The sky trembled. Golden serpents streaked across the heavens, illuminating the dark firmament and spilling down their radiance. The rain poured in torrents, and the world became a boundless expanse of water.

The thunderstorm came without warning, its terrifying lightning making all kinds of fierce birds and beasts in the Great Wilderness cower in hiding, afraid of being struck by disaster.

For anything with a spirit, defying the natural order too greatly could draw down lightning and bring about its destruction. Lightning Struck Wood and ancient demons were just two of many such examples.

And this thunderstorm, which clearly hadn't formed naturally, might mean some heaven-defying treasure had appeared.

Lightning blazed fiercely, making it impossible to keep one's eyes open. Their scalps tingled, and the hair all over their bodies stood on end.

With a "boom," a bolt of lightning suddenly crashed down, enormous and thick, striking a small mountain.

That small mountain was where the cave Bai Yixin had chosen for his secluded transformation was located.

The thunderbolt crashed down, and the mountain instantly shattered into pieces before turning to ash. The power of nature was truly terrifying!

The small mountain blocked the first bolt, but that wasn't the end. A second bolt immediately followed, striking the same spot.

And this time, it still didn't so much as graze Bai Yixin.

The reason was simple: an invisible protective barrier had sealed off the area around him.

Bai Yixin had specially purchased a powerful formation to keep other creatures from disturbing his transformation. It offered strong protection and concealed his presence.

But clearly, it couldn't shield him from the workings of heaven.

It seemed Bai Yixin had defied the natural order too greatly, drawing down a tribulation to test whether he deserved to exist in this world.

"I could avoid this tribulation, but there's no need!"

Bai Yixin sat cross-legged inside a giant pot that had long since dried up. His eyes opened and closed, blazing with divine light.

"Heaven is impartial, and the Great Way is fair to all. This is both calamity and fortune!"

Bai Yixin sprang to his feet and let out a long howl at the heavens. His long hair stood on end as he spat out a mouthful of essence. Spiritual light danced around him like divine butterflies, and in that moment, his energy, spirit, and vitality pierced the sky.

"Come fight!"

Before the lightning could shatter the barrier, Bai Yixin dispelled the protective formation himself and soared into the sky.

"Use thunder to shatter thunder!"

Bai Yixin wielded the Suanni Precious Technique, commanding golden lightning. A Suanni took shape and shot skyward, like a Thunder God.

"Rumble!"

The thunder roared. The third bolt crashed down, weaving into a curtain of lightning that fell like a waterfall.

With a boom, the Suanni split apart and exploded. Golden bolts danced through the air, flattening the mountain forest until nothing remained.

A figure rose from the ruins. He didn't seem to have suffered any serious injuries.

Bai Yixin hadn't used Bone Text to shield himself, yet his flesh gleamed with a crystalline luster, radiating a hazy light. His body had taken the remaining lightning head-on—and succeeded!

His body shook violently, and the hazy glow faded. Though pain racked him from head to toe, his bones remained unharmed. He had withstood the bolts, which was truly astonishing!

This was the result of months of hard work: training every day and tempering his body. Add in this transformation after changing cultivation paths, and now he didn't need to use Bone Text or circulate spiritual energy to protect himself. A layer of treasure-light rose on its own from his body. It was the power of his pure blood and qi, shielding him instinctively.

"Hahaha, again!"

Golden lightning wrapped around him once more. Bai Yixin didn't choose any other method. He was going to fight thunder with thunder and withstand the tribulation with his body!

This was an exceptional trial and a rare opportunity to break through in the art of thunder. He would let lightning wash over his body and temper his sinews and bones!

The mountain peak was flattened by the aftershocks of the lightning. Bolts interwove overhead, flashing fiercely as they struck one after another in wild succession, like a vast ocean.

Even when Bai Yixin breathed, lightning poured from his mouth. He bathed in the storm, yelping as it shocked him—louder and louder with every strike—yet his aura grew ever stronger, brimming with vitality.

"Ah, ow!!"

The ninth and final bolt showed no mercy. It blasted Bai Yixin away, scorching him until black smoke rose from his body. His hair stood up in every direction, and the faint scent of roasting meat drifted from him.

The ground was blown to pieces as well. Boulders weighing tens of thousands of jin were reduced to dust.

An ordinary person would have been pierced through and shattered completely. Even Bai Yixin was in excruciating pain. His flesh smelled burnt, and he felt as though he were being roasted alive.

Being struck by a tribulation inevitably meant suffering injuries, but Bai Yixin had still been too reckless this time. He was gravely wounded. Terrifying cracks spread across his crystalline flesh. Even with a body as powerful as his, he had been hurt this badly—so one could imagine how terrifying the tribulation was!

"Hahahaha, so what if it's a tribulation? I'll bathe in lightning and forge my Undefeated Divine Body!!"

Bai Yixin looked utterly wretched, blackened from head to toe, with every strand of hair standing on end. Only his big eyes still shone; the rest of him looked like a lump of coal. If he returned to Stone Village like this, Little One might not even recognize him.

Once the nine bolts had fallen, the dark clouds immediately dispersed. Gentle sunlight poured down, and a beautiful rainbow bridge appeared on the horizon.