Looking at the three options that appeared in the simulation, Zhou Qing considered them for a while before choosing the second.
If he were in the Three Realms, he would never have dared face the tribulation at this time.
From what he could currently see, although his simulated self was doing well in every respect, it was not enough to guarantee he could overcome the Heavenly Tribulation.
In particular, with his Heartforce at the second level, he would find it difficult to overcome the Heart Demon Tribulation formed by the combined Empyrean God Tribulation and First-Class Celestial Immortal Tribulation.
But this was the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, a power with several World Realm experts where both the Fiendgod Body Refining Path and the Ki Refining Path were exceptionally advanced.
Compared with the crude preparations the cultivators of the Three Realms made for their tribulations, the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom had long since developed a series of methods to reduce their difficulty.
First came the three tribulations of wind, fire, and lightning.
These three tribulations mainly tested whether cultivators had powerful defensive treasures.
In the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, where treasure forging was highly developed, it was perfectly ordinary for a Void immortal or Fiendgod to possess a dozen or even a hundred top-grade immortal-ranked treasures.
Thus, for Ki Refining Path immortals who cultivated a second- or third-class Jindan technique, the difficulty of the three tribulations of wind, fire, and lightning was hardly worth mentioning.
And if an immortal cultivated a first-class Jindan technique, there was even less to worry about.
That was because there were few powers in the entire Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom that possessed first-class Jindan techniques, and those powers could readily provide Xiantian Spirit-Treasures to disciples about to undergo the First-Class Celestial Immortal Tribulation.
Unlike those in the Three Realms, Xiantian Spirit-Treasures in the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom had restrictions placed upon them, making them far more powerful than Xiantian Spirit-Treasures of the same grade in the Three Realms.
With the help of such Xiantian Spirit-Treasures, immortals who cultivated first-class Jindan techniques had a very high chance of overcoming the three tribulations of wind, fire, and lightning.
The same principle applied to the Fiendgod Body Refining Path.
As for the Heart Demon Tribulation, the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom naturally had a way to deal with it as well: the Three Treasures for Overcoming Demons.
The three treasures were Demon-Expelling Incense, Spirit-Awakening Pills, and Soul-Calming Jade.
First were the Demon-Expelling Incense and Spirit-Awakening Pills. The materials for both treasures came from the Heavenly Heart Divine Tree.
The Heavenly Heart Divine Tree was a divine tree in the chaos near the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, and it had many uses. Its leaves could be refined into Spirit-Awakening Pills, its branches could be made into Demon-Expelling Incense, and its heartwood had even been claimed by several World Realm almighty beings. As such, it was known alongside the Thousand-Rotten Divine Tree and the Ethereal Divine Tree as one of the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom's three great divine trees.
The effects of the Demon-Expelling Incense and Spirit-Awakening Pills were simple.
Taking a Spirit-Awakening Pill during the Heart Demon Tribulation would make the user more clearheaded for a short time, cutting the tribulation's difficulty in half.
The Demon-Expelling Incense was even more astonishing. Lighting it during the Heart Demon Tribulation would reduce the difficulty to a tenth of its original level.
As for the Soul-Calming Jade among the three treasures, it was produced in the Heavenly Gate Chaos World under the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom's rule.
Carrying an ornament made from it could put one's mind at ease, and during the Heart Demon Tribulation, it could reduce the difficulty by a tenth.
Although its effect could not compare with the first two treasures, its advantage was that it was not consumable and could be passed down for continued use.
With these three treasures, and with Heartforce inheritances being more widespread in the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, its immortals and Fiendgods had a much higher success rate at overcoming the Heart Demon Tribulation than those in the Three Realms.
Generally speaking, second-level Heartforce was enough to guarantee one could overcome the Heart Demon Tribulation of an Empyrean God or a first-class Celestial Immortal.
Back then, Zhou Qing had overcome his Heart Demon Tribulation with some danger but no mishap, using his second-level Heartforce, a piece of Soul-Calming Jade from his sect, and the Demon-Expelling Incense and Spirit-Awakening Pill that Ancestor God Fantian had found for him.
His simulated self was a direct descendant of the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom's royal family, so he would lack neither Xiantian Spirit-Treasures nor treasures for overcoming demons when facing the Heavenly Tribulation. It was entirely feasible for him to undergo it now.
Of course, to be safe, he still chose to have his Second Primaltwin undergo the tribulation first.
[Considering yourself fully prepared, you tell your grandfather, the King of Nine Directions, of your decision to have your Second Primaltwin undergo the tribulation.]
[The King of Nine Directions agrees with your choice and takes you to a place in the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom that no one knows about, where you can undergo the tribulation.]
[After you advance your Ki Refining Path cultivation to Void Perfection, the Heavenly Dao senses it and begins to send down the Heavenly Tribulation.]
[First come the Wind Tribulation and Fire Tribulation. To you, with several top-grade Xiantian Spirit-Treasures, they are like a gentle breeze brushing your face, not worth mentioning.]
[Next comes the Lightning Tribulation. Thunderclouds that blot out the sky and sun slowly gather, and then heavenly lightning strikes at you in an unbroken succession.]
[One-Nine... Five-Nines... Nine-Nines...]
[Amid laughter and conversation, you overcome the Nine-Nines Lightning Tribulation with the help of your Xiantian Spirit-Treasures.]
[As your body transforms into an immortal spirit body, the Heart Demon Tribulation quietly descends.]
[The heart demon world created by the Heavenly Dao strikes straight at your heart. In this world, neither your father nor your mother has died, and the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom enjoys peace and prosperity, flourishing with each passing day.]
[And you, the eldest prince's youngest son and the King of Nine Directions' youngest grandson, are doted on by everyone in the royal family.]
[This happy life enchants you. Yet the effects of the Three Treasures for Overcoming Demons are simply too strong. Though you willingly give yourself over to it and wish to sink into it, after a few months you still awaken from the heart demon world with tears streaming down your face.]
[Immortal music rings out, auspicious clouds descend from the heavens, and golden lotuses spring from the earth.]
[Once you complete the First-Class Celestial Immortal Tribulation, surging power of heaven and earth pours into your body, gradually merging your Zifu space, the Qiantian Fire Spirit Pearl, and your golden lotus Primal into one, finally transforming them into a glittering golden Jindan.]
[At this moment, the King of Nine Directions takes out a small white bottle and opens it, then pours out a thick, five-colored liquid.]
[The King of Nine Directions waves his hand, and the five-colored liquid pours into your Jindan space, soaking into your Celestial Immortal Jindan bit by bit.]
[As the five-colored liquid seeps in, you feel the essence of your Jindan slowly improving.]
World Essence...
Zhou Qing was no stranger to the five-colored liquid that appeared in the simulation.
As everyone knew, to become a first-class Celestial Immortal, one needed a World Realm expert to condense a Jindan using the power of a vast world equivalent to hundreds of Great Xia Worlds.
But a World Realm expert could not extract the power of heaven and earth on the spot every time he helped someone become a first-class Celestial Immortal.
Thus, the World Realm experts of the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom would often extract World Essence from heaven and earth in advance, bringing it out when someone needed it to become a first-class Celestial Immortal.
When Zhou Qing's true body became a first-class Celestial Immortal, Immortal Wanren had also used World Essence to help him form a first-class Jindan.
[A short while later, after you finish absorbing the five-colored liquid in your Jindan space, your Jindan's presence surges, and it gives off a sense of perfection.]
[With this, your Second Primaltwin becomes a first-class Celestial Immortal.]
[Less than ten years after your Second Primaltwin becomes a first-class Celestial Immortal, you have your true body undergo the tribulation as well, becoming both an Empyrean God and a first-class Celestial Immortal.]
[After your true body and Second Primaltwin overcome their Heavenly Tribulations, the King of Nine Directions is overjoyed and makes the news of your survival public.]
[As soon as the news emerges, it causes an uproar throughout the court and beyond. Your father's direct followers in particular are greatly heartened upon hearing it.]
[Because the King of Nine Directions pays no attention to affairs of state, your father, the eldest prince, used to oversee the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom's daily affairs.]
[However, after your father died in battle several hundred years ago, power began to seek a new master, for a kingdom could not go a single day without a ruler.]
[In the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, only your father's two brothers, the second and third princes, can succeed him.]
[The second prince accidentally fell into the Ocean of Myriad Torments, a perilous region of the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, many years ago. Ever since, he has been muddleheaded and deranged, clearly unable to wield power over the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom.]
[Thus, the third prince naturally began overseeing the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom's daily affairs.]
[As the saying goes, a new emperor brings new officials. After the third prince took power in the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom, your father's former subordinates either went over to the third prince or were pushed out of the center of power.]
[Your father's direct followers in particular were banished to remote regions of the Nine Directions Chaos Kingdom with a single written order.]
[Faced with such suppression, your father's direct followers naturally refuse to sit and wait for death. Thus, after learning that you are still alive, their leader, Ancestor Immortal Heavenly Frost, requests an audience with you.]
[They are your father's direct followers, after all. After some thought, you decide to meet Ancestor Immortal Heavenly Frost.]
[When Ancestor Immortal Heavenly Frost meets you, he is exceedingly respectful. He then tells you how the third prince's faction has suppressed them over the past several hundred years, and says that they are willing to support you as their new lord and do everything in their power to help you become the new regent overseeing the kingdom.]
[In response to his proposal, you choose: one, gladly accept. Two, politely decline.]