"Boom--"
Shang Shujue waited on the stone steps for a while, thinking that Song Yanqing was just consolidating his cultivation. Unexpectedly, at this moment, dark clouds suddenly gathered above their shop, with lightning and thunder appearing one after another.
"This is..." Shang Shujue paused slightly, looked up for a closer look, then his pupils dilated slightly. He stood up abruptly from the stone steps, staring at Song Yanqing in disbelief, " Nascent Soul Tribulation Cloud?!"
Shang Shujue frowned, quickly realizing that it was Song Yanqing's breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Stage that had attracted the tribulation lightning. He then looked at the tribulation clouds above his head, whose power was no less than that of the tribulation clouds when he first entered the Nascent Soul Stage stage.
"You brat, how come you broke through so easily? You'd better get through this tribulation cloud, or else..."
Before Shang Shujue could finish speaking, he was about to use his spiritual power to ascend into the air and shield Song Yanqing from the tribulation lightning that was gathering power. If the tribulation lightning were to actually strike him, the consequences would be unimaginable.
" A-Jue, you don't need to help me, I can manage."
Song Yanqing's voice rang out at this moment. Shang Shujue looked at him and met his gaze. In that one glance, nothing could be seen clearly, but Song Yanqing didn't care about anything else. He flew away from the shop and headed into the deep mountains.
If Tribulation Transcendence lightning here, the entire convenience store would be reduced to ruins. He didn't want their little shop, which they ran together, to be destroyed.
Shang Shujue frowned slightly, still feeling uneasy. He turned around, closed the convenience store, and instantly teleported into the mountains, chasing after the direction of the tribulation lightning.
In Cloud-Piercing Village, elderly people sat in the courtyard enjoying the breeze and sunshine. Yuan Yuan was startled when he saw a dark, heavy cloud rising in the distance.
Everyone thought it was going to rain heavily and was getting ready to get up and go home to gather the clothes and crops that were drying in the sun, but before they could even get up, the dark cloud drifted away.
"Oh dear~ those clouds couldn't be blown away by the strong wind, they all went to the mountains and made a ruckus. We don't even need to bring in the things drying in the sun at home, just sit still, sit still, there's no rush~"
"Yes, yes! Third Brother's mom, come on home, my husband caught a whole swarm of bees on the mountain yesterday, everyone should have some, they're fried until golden brown and smell delicious!"
"Yes, yes, let's send some honeycomb to Qingwazi when he was little. He loved eating honeycomb when he was a kid~"
The elderly men and women spoke in their simple local dialect, their faces beaming with happy smiles, expressing their joy at receiving the gifts of nature; everyone seemed to be living a very happy life.
"Yeah, Qingwazi isn't young anymore, and he's good-looking too. Why doesn't he have a girlfriend? I heard from the kids at home that lots of boys in the city like other boys. Do you think Qingwazi is with that friend of his...?"
"Hey! Tiger's mom, don't say things like that. Qingwazi lives alone now, and it's not easy for him to have a friend to keep him company. What does it matter to you? We live in a different era now, don't be so old-fashioned."
"Oh, right, right. Our Qingwazi and that pretty girl look quite good together, and he's a nice guy too."
"He looks like a rich kid. He's willing to come to our village with Qingwazi, so he must care about you. But I'd better not say anything. What if he misunderstands and the couple starts arguing? I'm not saying anything more."
The elderly folks were chatting when the conversation drifted back to the relationship between Song Yanqing and Shang Shujue. They were interrupted after only a few words. The woman who had spoken thought about it carefully and realized that what she had said wasn't quite right. She immediately reflected on her words and then changed the subject, talking about other people catching their spouses in bed together.
The old woman who had stopped her earlier joined in, speaking with great indignation and vehemently condemning the cheating man.
They had no idea that they had just almost witnessed a spectacular scene of lightning striking people.
At this moment, the protagonists being discussed were in the mountains. Song Yanqing was gathering his strength to fight against the tribulation lightning. Shang Shujue had traversed many mountains and finally found him, but he did not go over. He simply stood quietly to the side, gazing intently.
"Boom--"
When the first bolt of lightning struck, Song Yanqing withstood it. Then the second and third bolts struck together. He saw the two blue lightning bolts, his eyes sharpened, and he steadily caught them. He only had some wounds on his body, and his foundation was not damaged.
There are seven lightning bolts in total. Song Yanqing has already endured three of them, leaving four more. And the power of these four bolts will only increase with each one, becoming increasingly stronger and more powerful.
" Mr. Shang, do you need us to support the barrier?"
After dealing with the rebel forces, Lu Yunqian, the captain of the law enforcement team, was preparing to return to report when he saw the Nascent Soul Tribulation Lightning before leaving. He was startled and, fearing that the ordinary people around him would be threatened, he led a group of people to chase after the tribulation clouds.
As soon as they arrived, they saw Song Yanqing receive the fourth tribulation lightning strike. His brows were furrowed with restraint, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, a sign of pain. The strike had injured his internal organs, but it was not fatal.
Lu Yunqian originally wanted to help, but when he saw Shang Shujue standing to the side, who was calm but frowning and clenching his fists without making a move, he stopped and went to his side. After nodding slightly, he offered a small suggestion.
"No need. This tribulation lightning has already locked onto its target; it can only overcome it on its own. If we, the people around it, assist it, it will only make the tribulation lightning more powerful. Officer Lu, thank you for your kindness."
"Boom--"
"Puff--"
As soon as Shang Shujue finished speaking, the fifth lightning bolt struck Song Yanqing. He could no longer withstand it and spat out a mouthful of black blood. However, he used his magic to resist again and did not fall down. But his clothes were already tattered.
Shang Shujue's pupils trembled, and he unconsciously took a step forward, but he couldn't bear to look away. He clenched his fists and turned his back, his fists turning white.
Seeing this, Lu Yunqian was slightly surprised and couldn't help but look up at Song Yanqing, who was fighting against the sixth tribulation lightning in mid-air. He saw Song Yanqing's tense face and dark eyes.
The sixth bolt of lightning struck down heavily on Song Yanqing, Song Yanqing coughed up blood again and crashed to the ground, creating a deep crater.
Blood flowing from all seven orifices, blood flowing backwards... What a pity...
Lu Yunqian sighed inwardly, turned to look at Shang Shujue, and was about to say something when he saw that Shang Shujue did not turn around, but his clenched fist had his nails digging into his palm and was trembling slightly.
No, Mr. Shang is still blocking the way...
Thinking of this, Lu Yunqian suddenly looked up at the sky and found that the tribulation clouds had not disappeared, which meant that Song Yanqing in the deep pit was not dead!
"Ah! Come on--"
Before Lu Yunqian could even look at the location of the deep pit, Song Yanqing's explosive voice suddenly rang out. Everyone looked over and saw Song Yanqing, covered in blood, his eyes bloodshot as he gathered all his power to fight against the last purple tribulation lightning bolt in the sky, which was imbued with a trace of heavenly might...
"Boom--"
"Peng--"
"Quickly set up a protective barrier!"
A deafening roar followed by a flash of white light and a delayed explosion that reached everyone's ears. Lu Yunqian was startled and reacted quickly. Shang Shujue also turned around, his eyes reddening. With a wave of his hand, the barrier was formed.
The calamity clouds dispersed, and the white light disappeared. Song Yanqing, covered in blood, slowly fell from the sky, his body radiating golden light.
The light grew increasingly dazzling, rapidly healing his injuries and coalescing into a nascent Nascent Soul as tender as an infant yet indestructible. It then settled within his dantian, taking root and growing wildly...
At this moment, yet another Nascent Soul Stage cultivator has appeared in the world!
Everyone was shocked. So this was what the Early Nascent Soul Stage looked like. They had witnessed a miracle.