Thought it was a death trap, but ended up gaining a lot on the spot

The moment the thunder roared and exploded, Hu Liena did not wait for her body to be shattered into pieces.

What she felt first was warmth.

It was not the tearing sensation that should have accompanied the descent of the lightning tribulation, not the pain of bones being crushed, nor the numbness of her Divine Soul being split apart.

It was a very familiar warmth, seeping out from the depths of the fabric, flowing along her shoulders, spine, and waist, wrapping around her inch by inch.

It was as if someone, in her most desperate moment, had reached out and pulled her entire being into their embrace.

Hu Liena kept her eyes closed, her eyelashes trembling slightly.

Was it over?

...It was not over.

She was still alive.

The moment this thought surfaced, the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment on her body suddenly vibrated with a "hum," and the golden light that had been tightly contained against her skin burst forth violently.

It was not one layer, nor two; the entire magical garment lit up from the inside out, shining so brightly that even the Purple-Black Divine Thunder pressing down from above was forced to pause for an instant.

The Three-Legged Golden Toad on the lapel came to life.

It truly came to life.

The toad's back arched, golden patterns flowed, and its two eyes suddenly snapped open, the pupils filled with brilliant gold.

It raised its head and opened its mouth; the movement was devoid of any flair, even bordering on blunt—

One bite.

It swallowed the Purple-Black Divine Thunder, a force capable of tearing the Pope Palace apart, in one gulp.

The entire plaza fell so silent that one could hear the sound of rolling gravel.

Bibi Dong braced herself against the ground, looking up at this scene, her movements frozen.

Her mind went blank for a split second.

The Divine Punishment lightning tribulation, the killing intent of Asura, things that even the laws of the plane could not withstand, were just... swallowed by a golden toad embroidered on a garment?

How could this be possible?

Yet, the truth was right before her eyes.

That thick, despair-inducing pillar of lightning had truly been severed.

The purple-black lightning light was held within the mouth of the Three-Legged Golden Toad, struggling frantically. Arcs of lightning exploded at the edges of the toad's mouth with crackling sounds, and wisps of blood-red killing intent darted out, as if trying to tear the golden toad apart from the inside out.

But the golden toad did not even sway; its throat bulged, and it swallowed.

Gulp.

The sound was not loud.

Yet everyone in Martial Soul City heard it.

The next instant, the Divine Punishment that had been so fierce it seemed intent on destroying the world simply withered away.

The lightning arcs shrank from a thick pillar to the thickness of a finger, then from the thickness of a finger to a wisp of current as thin as a hair. It darted around in the toad's mouth twice, and finally dissipated with a "hiss," leaving not even a single spark behind.

It was gone.

It was truly gone.

Hu Liena stood dazed on the spot, her eyelids slowly lifting.

Before her, there were no charred ruins, no shattered body of her own, and no void left by a destroyed Divine Soul.

There was only a brilliant golden light, enveloping her entire being.

The Tribulation-Avoiding Garment was brighter than usual, its hem floating gently. The Three-Legged Golden Toad had returned to its position on the lapel as if nothing had ever happened, though the golden patterns on its back were slightly more fluid than before.

Then, a gentle, warm current seeped out from the magical garment, traveling inward along her meridians.

It was not repairing injuries.

She had not been injured at all.

It felt more like she had consumed a great tonic.

The warmth burrowed into her limbs and bones, smoothing out the meridians that had been tightened by the pressure of the Divine Punishment, and even the soul power churning in her dantian settled down, even increasing by a small margin.

Hu Liena lowered her head, looking at her unscathed hands, then touched the golden toad on her lapel.

Her fingertips felt warm.

Her eyes suddenly grew hot.

So, he had even accounted for this.

So, when he spoke of "avoiding the tribulation," it was not comfort, nor was it a boast; he could truly shield her even from Divine Punishment.

Bibi Dong finally stood up.

There was still blood at the corner of her mouth, and dark purple divine power flickered on and off at her palms, but her gaze was fixed intently on the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment on Hu Liena, as if seeing this garment for the first time.

"This... how is this possible?"

Her voice was suppressed, so low it sounded parched.

"That was Divine Punishment descended by a God King himself!"

The latter part was squeezed out from between her teeth.

It was not as if Bibi Dong had never seen a grand spectacle.

She had accepted the inheritance of the Rakshasa God and endured the backlash of divine position fusion for so long; her vision was certainly not something a lower-realm soul master could compare to.

Yet, precisely because she understood, she was all the more aware of how absurd the scene before her was.

A God King acting personally.

Targeting the soul.

Lightning tribulation combined with killing intent.

Such a thing should not have been blocked.

And it certainly should not have been swallowed in one gulp.

Ye Lingling was also stunned for three breaths.

Then, she jumped straight up.

"I knew it! I knew it!"

She pointed at the golden garment on Hu Liena, her voice cracking with excitement.

"It's the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment! The Tribulation-Avoiding Garment gifted by the Celestial Master has revealed its power!"

"I told you the Celestial Master's items would definitely work! They definitely would!"

As she shouted, her eyes brightened; the little face that had been blanched with fear just moments ago was now flushed, and she looked as if someone had pressed a trigger, eager to run three laps around the plaza.

Hu Liena listened to her voice, her lips moving, but no words came out.

It wasn't that she didn't want to speak.

It was that her throat was constricted.

In that moment just now, she truly thought she was going to die.

She had even recited the name of Shen Yichen in her heart.

It wasn't out of spite or bravado; it was that final thread one grabs when reaching a dead end.

Even she hadn't expected that at the moment of life and death, the first person she thought of would actually be him.

And he had truly protected her.

He hadn't appeared in person.

But this Tribulation-Avoiding Garment was his hand left by her side.

When the Divine Punishment descended, he was not in Martial Soul City.

Yet, he still saved her.

Hu Liena's fingertips gently stroked the Golden Toad on the lapel, the moisture in her eyes impossible to suppress.

She didn't want to lose her composure in front of her teacher and Ye Lingling, but her nose felt terribly sore, and her vision began to blur.

Shen Yichen...

Once again, you saved me when I was at my most desperate.

As this thought emerged, she was startled by it herself.

Once again.

Even though they had never truly met in the literal sense, this phrase surfaced in her heart, surfacing so naturally that she couldn't even bring herself to refute it.

The Severing Thought Sword counted as one, and the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment counted as another.

That man sitting on Tiandang Mountain had already blocked two death traps for her from places she couldn't see.

Hu Liena sniffled, forcing that sense of wretchedness back down.

She couldn't cry.

At least, not right now.

But the corners of her eyes were still red.

Bibi Dong walked up to her, reaching out to press down on her shoulder with a force slightly heavier than usual, as if confirming whether she was truly alive.

The moment her fingertips touched the Tribulation-Avoiding Garment, the Golden Toad pattern emitted a soft golden light, yet it did not repel her.

Bibi Dong stared at Hu Liena for two breaths before speaking in a hoarse voice.

"Are you hurt?"

Hu Liena shook her head.

"No."

She paused, then added in a low voice.

"It swallowed the lightning."

Even as she said it, she felt how absurd it sounded.

Yet, it was the truth.

Bibi Dong fell silent.

In all her years, this was the first time she felt she had so much to say, yet couldn't utter a single word.

That robe draped over Hu Liena was like an answer laid out before the entire Douluo Continent—the betrothal gift Shen Yichen sent down was not a gift, but a death sentence.

Whoever dared to touch Hu Liena.

Must first answer to this garment.

Around the plaza, the Martial Soul Hall soul masters who had been pinned down by the lingering pressure of the Divine Punishment slowly lifted their heads, staring at Hu Liena on the steps with expressions of utter numbness.

Shock?

That was an understatement.

It was the dazed state of a mind whose perception of reality had been pulverized.

Chrysanthemum Douluo gripped his knees and stood up, his throat bobbing twice before he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence.

"The Divine Punishment... was swallowed?"

Ghost Douluo sat on the ground, raising a hand to wipe his face.

"I'll be damned, I've truly seen it all today."

His voice drifted, hollow.

"If anyone tells me that's a lower-realm artifact again, I'll fight them to the death."

And higher up.

In the God Realm, at the Asura God Hall.

The Asura God had been sitting on his throne, his divine sense piercing through the Plane Barrier, waiting to watch Hu Liena and her soul be blasted into ash.

He had even planned his next move—with the Fate-Suppressing Cauldron losing its master, Tang San's fortune would flow back, and the Sea God's position would be completely solidified.

Everything was going smoothly.

Until that Three-Legged Golden Toad opened its mouth.

The smugness on the Asura God's face froze instantly.