Heavenly Tribulation Authority

Lei Xiao suddenly turned around, his pupils contracting sharply.

At this moment, the three thunder wyrms were completely different from when he had seen them in the Thunder Pool. First and foremost was their size—it had swelled ten thousandfold.

Their original bodies, merely over a dozen zhang long, had now become colossal creatures that blotted out the sky and covered the earth, like three deep-blue mountain ranges stretching across heaven and earth.

Moreover, Lei Xiao sensed a familiar aura from each of the three thunder wyrms: the aura of the Eye of Heavenly Retribution. It was simply far weaker than that of the Eye of Heavenly Retribution itself.

"Not good—"

At that moment, an extremely dangerous feeling rose in his heart. Lei Xiao looked up to see a great golden hand of magical power reaching down to seize him.

Before the palm even arrived, its terrifying pressure, like mountains collapsing and seas overturning, had completely locked down the space around Lei Xiao. Even the air let out a groan under the unbearable strain.

"Eastern Emperor Taiyi—"

He knew the aura emanating from that great hand of magical power all too well. After all, he had nearly died at the other party's hands on Purple Abode Island.

How long had it been? Yet he had run into him again.

"Eastern Emperor Taiyi, you really are a lingering ghost that refuses to disperse!"

Lei Xiao clenched his teeth, a vicious glint flashing through his eyes. He knew that if he were caught by this sky-covering golden hand, death would be nearly impossible to escape.

"You want to catch me? Dream on!"

His thoughts raced. The Eye of Heavenly Retribution between his brows suddenly erupted with an incomparably dazzling burst of purple light, resonating with the tribulation clouds.

At this moment, his will replaced the tribulation clouds, and the power of the Heavenly Dao—which only Saints could command—converged upon the Eye of Heavenly Retribution.

Boom—!

The originally violent and disorderly tribulation clouds seemed to instantly find their true sovereign. In a posture that defied all reason, they madly poured back into the Eye of Heavenly Retribution between Lei Xiao's brows.

The next instant, a bolt of purple lightning shot from the Eye of Heavenly Retribution, piercing straight through the golden hand of magical power and causing it to dissipate into the void.

"It's him. He's actually still alive."

Within the Demon Emperor Palace, Eastern Emperor Taiyi was puzzled. According to his previous estimate, Lei Xiao should have died beneath the Capital-Heaven Divine Thunder.

"You know him? Strange. He is only a perfected Golden Immortal—why can't I deduce even the slightest information about him?" Dijun looked at Lei Xiao, a trace of interest appearing in his eyes as well.

"He is the disciple of Tongtian I mentioned before. I'll capture him first and ask questions later..."

Before he could finish, the pressure of the Heavenly Dao descended, and both Dijun's and Eastern Emperor Taiyi's expressions changed drastically.

Normally, only Saints could mobilize the power of the Heavenly Dao. Yet Lei Xiao was merely a Golden Immortal, and he could actually wield it.

"Join forces and capture him. Make him reveal the secret of how he controls the power of the Heavenly Dao."

Dijun's eyes gleamed. That was the power of the Heavenly Dao. If they could control it, exterminating the Witch Race and unifying the primordial world would be as easy as turning over one's hand.

At the same time, Lei Xiao was also deeply shocked.

He had actually gained control of the Heavenly Tribulation Authority. It was precisely because of this Heavenly Tribulation Authority that he could mobilize the power of the Heavenly Dao.

At this moment, although his cultivation was still at perfected Golden Immortal, he felt that his strength had increased by more than a thousandfold.

His gaze pierced through the void and met Eastern Emperor Taiyi's.

"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Eastern Emperor Taiyi, you nearly killed me before, then plotted against me again. Today, I'll collect a little interest from you."

As soon as he spoke, without Lei Xiao making any visible movement, the void around Eastern Emperor Taiyi began to distort and turn into nothingness.

It was as though a terrifying force intended to erase Eastern Emperor Taiyi and the space he occupied together.

Crack—!

Amid a teeth-grinding burst of shattering void, Eastern Emperor Taiyi's originally indestructible protective golden light crumbled inch by inch beneath that force like fragile glazed glass.

He only felt a terrifying annihilating force descending from the very origin of heaven and earth, as though it would completely erase him from this world!

"How dare you!!"

Eastern Emperor Taiyi flew into a rage. As an innate divine being and the Demon Race's second-in-command, when had he ever suffered such humiliation?

A mere Golden Immortal actually wanted to kill him with a single glance.

He knew Lei Xiao was taking revenge on him.

Back on Purple Abode Island, he had attacked Lei Xiao with his gaze, nearly killing him.

Now, Lei Xiao had returned it to him intact.

What made Eastern Emperor Taiyi feel worst was that the killing power of Lei Xiao's gaze was truly formidable. His own strength could not withstand it.

With an angry roar, the Eastern Emperor Bell above his head trembled violently, releasing a bell chime that shattered heaven and earth. Terrifying sound waves transformed into tangible ripples and slammed viciously into that collapsing patch of void.

At the same time, Dijun made his move. The River Chart and Luo Script formed a grand formation that sealed off space, while stars came crashing down toward Lei Xiao one after another.

"What splendid Demon Emperor and Eastern Emperor—joining hands to deal with a single Golden Immortal, even using an innate supreme treasure and a top-grade innate spirit treasure. Aren't you afraid of losing face if word gets out?!"

Lei Xiao waved his hand, and the power of the Heavenly Dao surged. Each star that approached him turned into nothingness.

No, the power of the Heavenly Dao is too strong, while my cultivation is too weak. Although I can use the Heavenly Tribulation Authority to mobilize the power of the Heavenly Dao, my body simply cannot bear it. I will also turn into nothingness under the erosion of its power.

His physical body and Primordial Spirit were both being assimilated by the power of the Heavenly Dao.

He had to give up on killing Eastern Emperor Taiyi.

However, Dijun had deployed the River-Luo Grand Formation to seal off space, while Eastern Emperor Taiyi suppressed it with the Eastern Emperor Bell. Leaving by conventional means was simply impossible.

As his thoughts turned, Lei Xiao looked toward the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal of the Demon Race undergoing tribulation below. With his gaze, that Primordial Unity Golden Immortal of the Demon Race had his physical body swallowed by nothingness, leaving nothing behind.

He probably never would have imagined, even in his dreams, that he, a mere early-stage Primordial Unity Golden Immortal, would die beneath the power of the Heavenly Dao.

As the tribulation-crossing being died, the Thunder Pool began to fade into illusion.

"Eastern Emperor Taiyi, I will return."

After speaking, Lei Xiao raised a hand toward the three thunder wyrms. As his palm drew near, the three thunder wyrms' bodies began to shrink beyond their control. In the end, they seemed to become three specks of dust, caught in his hand.

Then he took a step forward and entered the Thunder Pool.

"Don't run—"

An angry roar rang out, followed by a golden hand grabbing toward the Thunder Pool. Yet it grasped only empty air.

The Thunder Pool was clearly still there, not having moved in the slightest, yet it could not be caught. It was as though the two sides did not exist within the same spacetime.

"Stay!"

Eastern Emperor Taiyi roared in fury. Never before had he suffered such a great loss—injured by a mere Golden Immortal.

He controlled the Eastern Emperor Bell and smashed it toward the Thunder Pool. That ancient bell expanded against the wind, turning in the blink of an eye into a colossal bell that blotted out the sky and covered the earth. The patterns of sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and land upon its surface all lit up at once, radiating the primordial aura of the first opening of chaos.

Bearing the supreme might to suppress the four poles of heaven and earth, the giant bell smashed viciously toward the phantom image of the Thunder Pool.

Boom—!

The space around the Thunder Pool shattered and collapsed, yet the Thunder Pool remained utterly unaffected.

Three breaths later, the Thunder Pool completely faded into illusion and vanished into the void, as though it had never appeared at all.