Tongtian Cleaves the Thunder Tribulation with His Sword, Attaining Primordial Unity Golden Immortal

"Laozi merely wanted his flower to bloom to the twelfth rank, yet you used the Dutian Divine Thunder Tribulation. Hongjun, are you afraid?"

Laozi made a quick calculation with his fingers. A trace of surprise stirred in his calm, detached eyes as he looked at Lu Chen with pity and reluctance.

"Third Brother, you must not. This Dutian Divine Thunder Tribulation is not meant to test Lu Chen, but to... destroy him!"

"Lu Chen has been cultivating in seclusion on Kunlun Mountain all this time. He has never committed any slaughtering karma. Why?"

"Because of his talent!"

"Those monstrous geniuses are not tolerated by the Heavenly Dao..."

Yuanshi's expression changed drastically. He admitted that, upon learning Lu Chen's lotus platform had bloomed to at least the ninth rank, he had felt envy and even jealousy toward Lu Chen's talent. Yet when he thought that Lu Chen might be destroyed simply because his talent was too monstrous, a trace of compassion arose in his heart as well.

Tongtian stared blankly at the sky. Beneath those pitch-black clouds, not a glimmer of light could be seen, just like Lu Chen's current predicament. He had heard Lu Chen's inner voice just now. Was Hongjun the one behind this?

Tongtian desperately wanted to tell himself that Teacher Hongjun was not that kind of person, but... the Dutian Divine Thunder Tribulation was also known as the Destruction Divine Thunder. Its terror was far beyond anything the Six-Nine Heavenly Tribulation or even the Nine-Nine Heavy Tribulation could compare to.

Within the Primordial World, only the Violet Firmament Divine Thunder could rival it. Since his birth, this was the first time he had truly witnessed the Dutian Divine Thunder.

Its sheer terror left absolutely no chance of survival.

This thunder tribulation came from the Heavenly Dao, and after Hongjun's third lecture, he had integrated himself with the Dao. Thus, Hongjun could now be said to be the Heavenly Dao itself.

He could not even deceive himself.

"Can the Nine-Turn Origin Art provide such profound reserves of mana?"

Yuanshi stared at Lu Chen, whose physical body had once again been completely restored by mana, and muttered to himself.

This was already the fiftieth time Lu Chen had repaired himself.

The depth of mana Lu Chen displayed had already surpassed the limits of a Great Luo.

Lu Chen understood his own condition very well. The mana within his body had long since been drained dry. What sustained his body's recovery now was the remaining Spirit Liquid within the Heaven-Devouring Treasure Vase, continuously flowing into his body and then being converted into mana, barely keeping him going.

The Spirit Liquid in the treasure vase was being depleted at a visibly rapid pace.

"What number is this?"

"The eightieth."

In the sky, Lu Chen lowered his head and used mana to repair his scar-covered body. He was incomparably weak, looking as though he could collapse at any moment, as if he would fall the very next second.

Seeing Lu Chen in that state, Tongtian's eyes had already turned bloodshot. Grief filled his gaze as he stared fixedly at the sky, and an imperceptible trace of hatred flashed in his eyes.

If nothing unexpected happened, his astonishingly gifted eldest disciple would likely perish today. And the one acting against him was his own teacher.

Tongtian was suffering unbearably inside.

If he acted, it would mean defying the will of the Heavenly Dao and the will of his teacher, Hongjun. But if he did not act, was he supposed to watch his disciple die before his very eyes?

The next instant, the Sword Dao Law within Tongtian's body suddenly erupted. Dao resonance spread around him, and at some point, the Green Duckweed Sword had appeared in his hand.

He raised the Green Duckweed Sword and pointed it at the heavens.

Tongtian closed his eyes as the aura of Sword Dao abruptly surged. A sharp, piercing presence radiated from him, causing Yuanshi and Laozi to turn their eyes toward him.

The next instant, Tongtian swung the Green Duckweed Sword in his hand and slashed out at the Dutian Divine Thunder that was about to descend!

A cyan sword aura tore across the sky...

After unleashing that strike, Tongtian felt as though his whole body had become lighter.

He did not wish to defy anyone's will, but neither would he sit by and watch his disciple die!

At that moment, Tongtian's mind suddenly became clear.

Then, an unfathomably profound aura spread around Tongtian.

"This is!"

Yuanshi and Laozi shifted their attention from Lu Chen to Tongtian.

An aura surpassing the Great Luo realm emanated from Tongtian. At that moment, Tongtian felt like a sword to them—a sharp sword capable of sweeping aside and severing every obstacle standing in its path!

"This is... Tongtian has entered the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm!"

The final bolt of thunder tribulation descended.

This time, it did not strike Lu Chen's body, but the lotus platform above his head.

The lotus platform above his head lasted less than three breaths beneath the Dutian Divine Thunder before shattering. The remaining divine thunder struck Lu Chen.

Lu Chen was fighting desperately as well. He could no longer afford to hide his strength, so he summoned the Heaven-Devouring Treasure Vase and directly drew the divine thunder into it.

Besides absorbing objects, the Heaven-Devouring Treasure Vase could also absorb attacks.

This was the trump card Lu Chen had kept for himself.

After the eighty-first thunder tribulation descended, the ink-black clouds did not release any further tribulation lightning. Instead, they quietly dispersed, and a ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds and fell upon Lu Chen.

Yet he could not feel the slightest warmth...

His eyes rolled back, and his body fell freely.

Duobao, who had been standing nearby, hurriedly flew over and caught Lu Chen. Looking at Lu Chen's battered body, tears filled Duobao's eyes.

"Eldest Brother, how is Lu Chen?"

"He still has a thread of breath left. It seems Third Brother's final sword strike proved useful."

Laozi appeared beside Duobao. After placing his fingers on Lu Chen's wrist and examining him, he shook his head.

"Lu Chen's Great Luo Dao Fruit has been destroyed by the thunder tribulation. Although his Great Luo cultivation remains, I fear he has no hope of advancing any further."

"It's fine. As long as he is alive, that is enough."

Tongtian could accept this outcome. Compared to having his body and Dao extinguished, at least he was still alive.

At the foot of Kunlun Mountain, a frail young man in black robes with a somewhat pale face sat atop a blue stone. In his hand was a top-grade fishing rod made from ten-thousand-year green bamboo and thousand-year ice silkworm thread. He propped his chin up with one hand and watched the peaceful river, where fish swam back and forth.

A chubby little boy with an honest-looking build flew over from afar. He came to the young man's side, looked at the hook in the water, and a trace of confusion appeared on his face. "Eldest Brother, if you want to fish, why don't you use bait? Why use this old, ordinary iron hook instead?"

The frail young man smiled faintly. "When fishing, those willing will take the hook."

"Eldest Brother, this is a new spiritual treasure I found for you."

The chubby little boy extended his small plump hand before the young man. Resting in his palm was a small seal engraved with dragon and phoenix patterns.

"A lower-grade innate spiritual treasure, the Dragon-Phoenix Seal."

Seeing the small seal in the chubby little boy's hand, the young man smiled softly. He reached out and took the seal into his hand.

"Let's go. We should head back."

With a slight flick of his wrist, the fishing hook rose from the water, and he stood up from the blue stone.

The young man was rather thin, as though he might be blown over by a gust of wind. The chubby little boy followed behind him with his hands slightly outstretched, ready to support him the moment he stumbled.

"My body is not that weak yet."

The young man turned back with a smile. Yet his face was pale and devoid of color, and his smile looked somewhat forced.

Sorrow appeared in the chubby little boy's eyes.

"Eldest Brother..."

"Disciple, this is the Nine-Turn Golden Elixir I obtained from Eldest Brother. Eat one, and the nourishment of its mana will make your body feel better. And this treasure gourd—I have already refined it. Take it with you for protection."

"Master, Duobao, I am really not as fragile as you think..."

A bitter smile appeared on Lu Chen's face.