Boom!
The heavenly tribulation collided with the Waning Moon Sword, and purple lightning instantly engulfed Ye Xuan.
A furious roar rang out from within the lightning. At the same time, a sword light shot skyward, breaking through the lightning and heading straight for the tribulation clouds.
Ye Xuan came into view again, but his clothes were in tatters. Fortunately, he was unhurt.
"What powerful heavenly lightning. I need seventy percent of my strength to withstand it head-on. There are still eight bolts left, each stronger than the last."
Ye Xuan's expression grew grave. Sure enough, the Heavenly Dao would never let him pass through the lightning tribulation unscathed.
However, if Ye Xuan could survive the lightning tribulation, the benefits would also be tremendous.
Boom!
Without giving Ye Xuan much time to rest, the second bolt of heavenly lightning finished gathering and struck at him with boundless might.
The heavenly lightning came bolt after bolt. By the fourth, Ye Xuan had to use every ounce of his strength to shatter it.
The fifth bolt arrived in an instant.
This time, Ye Xuan did not fight it with all his strength. Instead, he did his utmost to protect his body, switching to defense and enduring the heavenly tribulation head-on.
"Aah!"
Ye Xuan's scream rang out from within the lightning. The lightning entering his body made him tremble all over, and he circulated the Golden Bone Art Ji Fenghe had taught him at full power. In just an instant, with the lightning tempering his body, Ye Xuan brought the Golden Bone Art to perfection. Every bone in his body shone with golden light.
Before the lightning around Ye Xuan had dispersed, the sixth lightning tribulation descended, followed closely by the seventh and eighth.
When the eighth bolt of heavenly lightning struck, blood was already seeping from the corner of Ye Xuan's mouth, and not a single part of his body remained unscathed.
At that moment, the ninth bolt of heavenly lightning crashed down.
System, check in!
Ye Xuan shouted inwardly the instant the ninth bolt of heavenly lightning reached him.
It was already the next day, and he was within the strongest heavenly lightning. This was definitely a good opportunity to check in.
[Ding!] [Check-in successful!] [Host's first check-in during a Golden Core Lightning Tribulation. Congratulations to the host on obtaining a supreme-grade lightning spirit root!] [Would you like to claim your check-in reward immediately?]
Claim the reward!
Ye Xuan's spirits lifted. A lightning spirit root was not one of the five innate spirit roots, but an extremely rare variant spirit root. He had never expected to obtain a supreme-grade lightning spirit root on his first check-in.
Upon claiming the reward, Ye Xuan felt the lightning striking his body instantly weaken. Streaks of lightning coursed through his body and merged into his lightning spirit root, constantly tempering it while tempering his flesh as well.
The ninth bolt of heavenly lightning soon passed. To Ye Xuan, it had not even been as threatening as the eighth.
High above, the thunderclouds churned, seemingly very dissatisfied with this outcome, lingering for a long time without dispersing.
Holding Waning Moon, Ye Xuan stood ready for battle. Even the tribulation clouds could temper him repeatedly; who said Golden Core heavenly lightning could only come in nine bolts?
However, despite gathering for a long time, the thunderclouds failed to produce a tenth bolt of heavenly lightning. In the end, they dispersed resentfully into the sky.
"It's finally over."
Ye Xuan collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. After being struck by heavenly lightning nine times, he was close to a lamp running out of oil. If a tenth bolt came, he was not confident he could survive it.
The tribulation clouds' complete dispersal signified that Ye Xuan had successfully survived the lightning tribulation and entered the Golden Core Realm.
Crack!
A shackle within Ye Xuan broke open. The galaxy inside his Dantian seethed once more, collapsing toward a singularity.
An imposing presence surged skyward from Ye Xuan.
Once a Golden Core entered his belly, his fate belonged to him, not Heaven.
Ye Xuan had finally succeeded in Core Formation!
Crack!
The skin on Ye Xuan's body, previously charred by heavenly lightning, began to split, revealing healthy, fair flesh beneath. Shedding his outer shell, Ye Xuan returned to this world as though newly born.
"With my current physical strength alone, I'm confident I could take on the Golden Core heavenly tribulation head-on."
Ye Xuan clenched his fists and found that his body, tempered by the heavenly tribulation, brimmed with strength. A mere wave of his hand produced a sonic boom.
Not only his body, but Ye Xuan's soul had also grown stronger. Most noticeably, his spiritual sense could now cover a hundred-li radius, taking in every stir of wind and grass within that range.
Ye Xuan turned his attention inward. He wanted to see what his Golden Core looked like.
In the Qi Refining Realm, his Dantian had seemed shrouded in a nebula.
In the Foundation Establishment Realm, a galaxy had hung high within his Dantian.
Now, he was in the Golden Core Realm!
"Holy shit, why is my Golden Core black?!"
Inside Ye Xuan's Dantian, a black sphere rotated silently. Wisps of Spiritual Qi merged into it without changing its color in the slightest.
"Th-this couldn't be a black hole, could it?"
No matter how Ye Xuan examined it, something about his Golden Core felt wrong. Even his spiritual sense could not penetrate it. Spiritual Qi entering it was like a stone sinking into the sea, never to be heard from again.
Boom!
Ye Xuan circulated his cultivation method at full power. The black core within his body erupted with boundless might, devouring all the surrounding Spiritual Qi.
"It looks like only the color is wrong."
After testing it back and forth for two hours, Ye Xuan found nothing abnormal about the black core and simply stopped bothering with it.
Putting on fresh clothes, Ye Xuan donned his mask and continued racing east.
The flying shuttle Ye Xuan had ridden would not return to Qingyu City for another ten days, so he still had time to travel and experience the Southern Region's local customs.
Having broken through to the Golden Core Realm and obtained a supreme-grade lightning spirit root, Ye Xuan now truly flickered with lightning when using the Wind Thunder Step. His speed was more than ten times what it had been before.
Several thousand li east of Ye Xuan, several figures streaked swiftly through the sky.
The person in front was none other than Wu Yuehua, whom Ling Ziling had just accepted as a disciple. She had left the sect to gain experience, only to be ambushed by Demon Sect elders. Fighting desperately, she had killed one of them and escaped with her life.
To her surprise, the others disregarded everything and pursued her relentlessly. From the looks of it, they were determined to kill her.
Wu Yuehua held her sword, her expression slightly cold. Her terrible injuries and nearly depleted Spiritual Qi left her unable to continue.
The four Demon Sect elders behind her seemed to have noticed that Wu Yuehua was like a lamp running out of oil. Instead of hurrying, they stayed close behind her and attacked from afar without approaching, guarding against a desperate counterattack.
Boom!
Wu Yuehua desperately blocked a sword light, but could hold on no longer. Her body plummeted toward the ground.
Overjoyed at the sight, the four Demon Sect elders surrounded Wu Yuehua, relentlessly attacking her with the Spirit Artifacts in their hands.
"I was careless."
Wu Yuehua held a protective jade pendant, barely blocking the Demon Sect elders' attacks. But cracks had already appeared across the pendant; how much longer could it hold?
When she left the sect this time, she had initially encountered only one Demon Sect elder. While pursuing him, she had carelessly fallen into a trap and become caught in an entrapment formation. Unable to use the communication jade slip Ling Ziling had given her, she could only rely on herself.
The nearest city was still ten thousand li away, and now she was already a lamp running out of oil, powerless to flee. She could only slowly await death.
"Is this where it ends?"
Wu Yuehua was somewhat unwilling to accept it. She had only recently formed her Golden Core and been accepted as the sect master's direct disciple. Her future had been bright, and she might even have explored the realm beyond Sword Heart. She had never expected to be cut down halfway and die here.
Crack!
The protective jade pendant shattered. Wu Yuehua closed her eyes and calmly waited for death to arrive.
Suddenly, Wu Yuehua opened her eyes and looked toward the distant sky.
A Sword-Ray spanned a hundred li and descended upon the battlefield!