That was the Nine Heavens Annihilation Black Thunder!
Everyone rushed to the edge of the deep crater and anxiously looked down.
At the bottom, the smoke and dust gradually cleared.
Qin Chen lay motionless at the bottom, his entire body charred black, without any sign of life, as though he had become a lump of charcoal.
"No... that's impossible... Third Brother won't die!" Qin Yu's legs gave way, and he fell to his knees beside the crater, tears spilling from his eyes.
Feng Yuzi and Mu Qing also looked ashen. They let out a long sigh and closed their eyes.
Yet just as everyone sank into despair...
Crack...
An exceedingly faint cracking sound suddenly came from the bottom of the crater.
Everyone's eyes snapped open, fixing intently on Qin Chen below.
A crack had suddenly appeared in the layer of charred dead skin covering Qin Chen's body.
Then the cracks rapidly spread, covering his entire body like a spiderweb.
Bang!
The charred dead skin abruptly burst apart, revealing a brand-new body as flawless as white mutton-fat jade, yet radiating terrifying power that made hearts tremble!
At the same time, a brilliant shaft of seven-colored light suddenly descended from where the tribulation clouds had dispersed, enveloping Qin Chen entirely.
"This is... Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy Replenishment! He's overcome the heavenly tribulation!" Feng Yuzi trembled with excitement, tears streaming down his aged face.
Bathed in the seven-colored light, Qin Chen slowly floated up from the bottom of the crater.
His eyes remained tightly closed as he greedily absorbed the purest spiritual energy between heaven and earth.
Deep within his dantian, his formerly liquid Xiantian true qi finally underwent a qualitative transformation after experiencing the lightning tribulation's destruction and rebirth.
Endless true qi compressed and spun furiously, finally condensing into a smooth golden core the size of a longan fruit, purple-gold throughout and covered in profound lightning patterns!
The Purple-Gold Lightning Core was formed!
Boom!
A terrifying pressure more than ten times stronger than before erupted from Qin Chen's body, sweeping across a hundred li in every direction.
So powerful was this pressure that even Feng Yuzi and Mu Qing, two veteran Golden Core stage cultivators, felt their hearts shudder again and again.
Qin Chen slowly opened his eyes, faint purple lightning flashing through their depths.
He lightly clenched his fist, feeling the terrifying power within him that seemed capable of shattering a mountain with one punch, and a satisfied smile curled his lips.
"The Golden Core stage... at last."
With a thought, a brand-new moon-white robe appeared out of thin air and draped itself over him.
Then his figure flashed, and he appeared before everyone at the crater's edge as though he had teleported.
"Third Brother!" Qin Yu threw his arms around Qin Chen, smearing tears and snot all over him as he laughed and cried. "You scared me to death! I thought you..."
Qin Chen affectionately patted Qin Yu's back and smiled. "Silly boy. I promised to give you a surprise. How could I go back on my word?"
Qin Feng and Qin Zheng also stepped forward and gave Qin Chen fierce hugs.
"Well done, you brat! You really pulled it off! You even endured that freakish lightning tribulation. Your eldest brother bows to you!" Qin Feng roared with laughter.
Feng Yuzi and Mu Qing looked at Qin Chen with complicated expressions. Then, unexpectedly, both bowed slightly at the same time, offering the salute of equals.
"Chen'er... no, Fellow Daoist Qin. Only after witnessing this today do I understand what a peerless prodigy truly is. With your current strength, I fear that even if Old Mu and I joined forces, we wouldn't last ten exchanges." Feng Yuzi was filled with emotion.
Qin Chen hurriedly stepped aside to avoid their salute and respectfully returned it. "Uncles, you honor me far too much. No matter how high my cultivation rises, you will always be my elders."
His words brought Feng Yuzi and Mu Qing great comfort, and they nodded repeatedly.
After exchanging pleasantries, Qin Chen turned his gaze toward Qin Yu, whose face was full of anticipation.
"Yu, did you gain any insights from watching me undergo my tribulation just now?" Qin Chen asked with a smile.
Qin Yu's expression grew solemn, and he said earnestly, "Third Brother, I understand now! External Cultivation isn't a path without a future! As long as the body is strong enough, it can withstand heavenly lightning head-on and possess the power to destroy heaven and earth! I'll work twice as hard and cultivate External Cultivation to its utmost!"
"Chen, now that you've broken through to the Golden Core stage, Old Mu and I will take our leave."
Feng Yuzi spoke slowly.
"That's right."
"Uncles, stay safe on your journey."
Qin Chen did not try to keep them and cupped his hands.
Feng Yuzi and Mu Qing left, and Qin Yu and the others also prepared to return.
After returning to the Eastern Pacifying Prince's Residence, Qin Chen did not make his achievement public. Instead, he went straight to his father Qin De's secret study.
When Qin De sensed the almost tangible, terrifying pressure within Qin Chen, which made even a Xiantian Paragon expert like him struggle to breathe, the Eastern Pacifying Prince, who ordinarily would not flinch even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, grew so excited that both his hands trembled slightly.
"The Golden Core stage... and such an incomparably overbearing aura! Chen'er, you truly did it!" Tears filled Qin De's tiger-like eyes. After enduring in silence for so many years, the Qin Family had finally produced a true dragon of the nine heavens.
Qin Chen smiled and reined in his aura, instantly dispelling the oppressive feeling in the study. Then his expression turned serious, and he said gravely, "Father, I've successfully broken through, and my strength is now sufficient to suppress any unforeseen developments within the Chu State. But for our Qin Family's coming grand undertaking, I need something you possess."
"What do you want? As long as I have it, as long as the Qin Family has it, you may take it!" Qin De said without hesitation.
"I want the highest authority over the Heavenly Web." Qin Chen's gaze blazed. "I want to mobilize all of its covert agents and intelligence networks to investigate one person and locate two items."
Qin De did not ask why. He simply reached inside his robes and took out a black token, neither metal nor jade, carved with intricate dark patterns. Solemnly, he handed it to Qin Chen. "This is the Heavenly Web's Dark Emperor Token. Seeing this token is the same as seeing me. From this moment on, the lives and actions of the Heavenly Web's tens of thousands of covert agents and assassins rest on your word!"
Qin Chen immediately exercised his authority. Sitting upright in the seat of honor, he looked at the several supreme commanders of the Heavenly Web kneeling below and coldly issued his orders. "Within twenty-four hours, I want Zhen Xu's exact location and every defensive arrangement around him."
The Heavenly Web's efficiency was terrifying. Only eight hours later, a thick intelligence dossier was delivered to Qin Chen's desk.
"Reporting to the Dark Emperor, Zhen Xu is currently hiding in a secret manor outside Ying City, the capital of the Chu State. This estate is called Blood Plum Manor. On the surface, it belongs to a wealthy merchant, but in truth, it is the headquarters of the Xiang Family's covert guards. Not only do over a hundred peak Houtian experts patrol the manor day and night, but three layers of grand formations have also been laid down, and two Mid Xiantian experts provide Zhen Xu with close protection," the commander reported respectfully.
As Qin Chen read the intelligence, his lips curved into an icy smile.
"Very good. You may withdraw. I'll handle what comes next myself."
Blood Plum Manor, outside Ying City, the capital of the Chu State, was shrouded in deathly silence and a murderous chill.
Zhen Xu, the sinister man who controlled the Chu State's largest assassination and intelligence network, was sitting in a secret chamber, toying with a dark-gold, diamond-shaped iron plate by dim candlelight.
Thirty-six illustrations of strange movements were carved into the iron plate.
"What secret does this hold? Why do I still have no clue after studying it for years..." Zhen Xu muttered to himself, his brows tightly furrowed.
"Because you're useless. Naturally, you can't understand a wondrous text like this."
An indifferent voice rang out without warning in the sealed underground chamber.
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