Lei Shang nodded in satisfaction. After carefully explaining a few more important matters, he turned into a streak of silver lightning and shot away through the sky. Lei Jie watched the supreme elder leave but made no rash moves. As the youngest venerable of the Wind-Thunder Leopard clan, he knew this matter was no small affair and far from simple.
An ordinary cultivator, upon hearing that his opponent was only in the Array Formation Realm, would likely have let his guard down or even barged recklessly into Thunderclap Valley to search. But Lei Jie was different. He understood the value of this Human Race youth better than anyone-a boy capable of crossing the barriers of the cave-abode world undoubtedly carried a heaven-shaking secret.
"The more important the prey, the more patience the hunt requires," Lei Jie murmured, the lightning around him gradually drawing inward. He sat cross-legged at the most advantageous position near the valley mouth, his eyes fixed like lightning on the entrance as he perfectly concealed his aura. This steady approach was precisely why Lei Shang had chosen him to take over the watch.
Meanwhile, deep within Thunderclap Valley, Shi Yi knew nothing of what had happened outside. He was wholly absorbed in inscribing profound formation patterns within his body, every line imbued with the aura of primordial chaos. The third portion of the Primordial Chaos Heaven-Refining Grand Formation was slowly taking shape inside him, a process that demanded absolute concentration and peace.
Through an unexpected twist of fate, Lei Jie's caution had instead given Shi Yi the cultivation time he needed most. One waited outside the valley for his opportunity, while the other cultivated in seclusion within.
As the formation patterns circulated within his body, Shi Yi slowly opened his Double Pupils, primordial chaos churning in his eyes. "With my cultivation improved, inscribing the Primordial Chaos Heaven-Refining Grand Formation really has become much faster." He gazed at the formation patterns emerging in his palm, his brows furrowing slightly. "But this final formation pattern..."
Whenever he reached that crucial point, an inexplicable tremor welled up in his heart, as though some great terror hidden in the unseen were warning him. Shi Yi withdrew the formation patterns in his palm and turned his gaze deeper into Thunderclap Valley. "My immediate priority is to improve my strength. With the formation patterns as complete as they are now, I should be able to withstand the lightning farther in."
Profound patterns lit up around him, forming a protective curtain of light as he sped deeper into the valley. His Double Pupils blazed within the gloomy thunderclouds, piercing layer upon layer of lightning barriers. Suddenly, he stopped-the aura of the lightning Dao in one spot ahead was several times denser than its surroundings, and even the air flickered with silver sparks.
Following the unusual fluctuations, Shi Yi arrived before a craggy cliff. At its foot, a pitch-black cave mouth gaped like the jaws of a giant beast, occasionally flashing with blinding silver light. The stray arcs of lightning struck the rock walls, burning deep furrows even into the hard thunderstruck stone.
"Interesting..." He drew a deep breath, runes circulating within his Double Pupils, and cautiously took his first step toward the cave entrance.
Thunderclap Valley lay deathly silent, as though heaven and earth themselves had held their breath. Shi Yi stood before the hidden cave, profound light flowing through his Double Pupils-without those eyes that could see through false appearances, no one could have discovered this blessed grotto so meticulously concealed by the forces of nature.
The cave was black as ink, yet every detail stood clear in his Double Pupils' vision. As he ventured farther inside, pinpricks of lightning gradually emerged like stars awakening in the night. When he reached the depths of the cavern, a thunder pool only a few feet across suddenly came into view. Thunder spirit liquid shimmered within it, every flicker illuminating the rock walls as brightly as daylight.
This marvel, nurtured by heaven and earth, could only condense in a land of eternal lightning after a thousand years of tempering by a natural Grand Array. Although inferior to the legendary thunder tribulation liquid, it was still a supreme treasure that even sect-leader-level experts would flock to-it could restore flesh to bare bones and bring the dead back to life, advance cultivation, temper the body, and serve as an unsurpassed medium for comprehending lightning Treasure Arts. If this pool of thunder spirit liquid appeared in the world, it would surely unleash a storm of blood.
"Thunder spirit liquid..." The dancing lightning reflected a brilliant river of stars in his eyes. This pool of opportunity had come at just the right moment. Once he fully refined it, not only could his cultivation rise to another level, but the Primordial Chaos Heaven-Refining Grand Formation, stalled at its final hurdle, would at last reach completion.
Shi Yi had barely taken a few steps when lightning flashed and thunder roared within the cave. Countless dazzling bolts danced wildly like silver snakes, striking down from every direction!
"Nether Annihilation!"
His gaze sharpened, his fists surging like dragons. Every blow carried spatial runes, unleashing waves of force that crushed the incoming lightning inch by inch into nothingness. Yet the closer he drew to the thunder spirit pool, the more terrifying the lightning became. Violent bolts tore through the air, even leaving scorched marks across his body.
"It can actually ignore my Primordial Chaos Heaven-Refining Grand Formation and lock directly onto my aura?" Shi Yi frowned slightly, runes circulating within his Double Pupils as he discerned the workings of this natural Grand Array. "Looks like I'll have to break through by force."
He moved like lightning, weaving through the gaps between the bolts. His Double Pupils continuously analyzed the Grand Array's weaknesses while fists, palms, and fingers struck in succession, precisely shattering the nodes of its formation patterns. At last, after a fierce battle, he reached the edge of the thunder pool. The shimmering thunder spirit liquid reflected his stern face.
Within the thunder pool, silvery-white thunder spirit liquid churned ceaselessly. Streaks of lightning leaped across its surface like roaming dragons, casting the entire cavern alternately into light and shadow. Shi Yi stood beside the pool, delight gleaming in his deep eyes. Slowly, he extended a finger and tentatively touched the mysterious liquid.
"Crackle-"
A dazzling streak of lightning abruptly burst, and intense numbness shot straight up from his fingertip. Rather than alarmed, Shi Yi was delighted, a smile lifting the corners of his mouth. "It truly deserves its reputation as a sacred treasure for tempering the body. Even with my flesh as strong as it is now, I can still feel such intense stimulation."
He gazed at the churning thunder spirit liquid and sighed with regret. "If I could combine it with a few sacred body-tempering medicines now, the effects would surely rise to another level. Unfortunately..." His gaze turned toward the distance, as though wary of something. "Powerful enemies are watching, and time waits for no one."
Without further hesitation, Shi Yi leaped into the thunder pool. In an instant, countless bolts swallowed him like raging dragons. Amid the dazzling lightning, his skin visibly charred and cracked, turning into blackened flakes that peeled away in moments. Exposed to the violent lightning, his crimson flesh was tempered into charcoal inch by inch. Pale golden blood evaporated into mist the moment it seeped out, gleaming strangely amid the lightning.
Shi Yi did not resist the lightning within the thunder spirit liquid. He allowed it to ravage his flesh, because he wanted to use its power to destroy the imperfections in his flesh so that the newly formed flesh would be more perfect.
The lightning not only destroyed his flesh but also invaded his body. Lightning flashed through his internal organs and every bone, hammering and lashing them like hammers and whips, making his organs denser and the bones throughout his body stronger.
Pain surged like a tide, eating into every nerve and leaving nowhere to escape. It swept through his entire body like ten thousand arrows loosed at once, piercing flesh and bone. It was almost impossible to endure.
But now, he could only persevere. Shi Yi understood that if he gave up, all his previous efforts would come to nothing, and everything he had endured would lose its value. After paying such a heavy price, he would be left with nothing in the end.
Half a day passed. Not a single patch of flesh on Shi Yi's body remained intact. It was all torn and ruined, with bone already visible in places, yet he still gritted his teeth and held on.