"Gu Que, this Celestial Dipper Unfading Formation is so extraordinary. Doesn't that mean Xugeng's tribulation is practically in the bag?" Song Wen asked within his sea of consciousness.
Gu Que said, "Not necessarily. Haven't you noticed? This formation consumes an enormous amount of spiritual power. Whether Xugeng succeeds will depend on whether his spiritual power can last until the lightning tribulation ends."
As the two spoke, Xugeng successfully withstood the twenty-sixth lightning tribulation.
However, Xugeng's face had turned the color of gold paper, and the aura around him was in disarray. He had clearly expended too much spiritual power and seemed to have reached the point where the lamp had run dry and the oil was gone, like a powerful crossbow at the end of its strength.
Even the forty-nine banner flags used to set up the formation were sent flying one after another.
Scarlet blood mist suddenly rose from all over Xugeng's body, making him seem as though he were shrouded in blood-red flames.
His body rapidly withered at a rate visible to the naked eye.
Yet his aura swiftly recovered, and his nearly depleted spiritual power began to brim over once more.
Song Wen immediately saw that the secret art Xugeng was using bore some resemblance to his Blood Spirit Sacrifice. Both consumed the blood essence throughout one's body in exchange for a rapid recovery of spiritual power.
However, Xugeng's secret art was even more violent, consuming far more blood essence, but restoring spiritual power even faster.
Whether because the blood essence within his body was insufficient or because the situation was urgent, Xugeng stopped activating the secret art after recovering roughly half his spiritual power.
With a wave of his hand, he once again controlled the forty-nine banner flags and set up the grand formation.
At the