The fist radiance collided fiercely with the Nine Dragons lightning pillar. They held against each other for but an instant before both shattered, becoming a storm of destructive energy that swept across heaven and earth.
Li Qingshan's body shook violently. The rebounding force blasted him hundreds of zhang backward, and a sweet taste rose in his throat as a trace of golden blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
Yet there was not the slightest sign of dejection in his eyes. Instead, they blazed with an even fiercer fighting spirit.
"Only such heavenly might is worthy of the name of the Four Extremes Secret Realm!"
He wiped the golden blood from his mouth and let out a long cry. The newly born power of the Four Extremes surged and roared within him.
His figure once more became a crimson-gold Divine Rainbow that tore through the void, and he charged straight into the terrifying thunderclouds that had yet to disperse!
He used the Golden Crow Rainbow Transformation Technique to its utmost, darting at extreme speed through the gaps between the nine writhing lightning dragons, searching for that elusive sliver of an opening.
"Sun Emperor Fist: Sky Breaker!"
Seizing the opportunity in the flash of an instant, he gathered all his strength and threw a punch like a falling star crashing into the world.
It struck with unerring precision at the reverse scale of the largest lightning dragon phantom, the one in the center!
"...!"
The lightning dragon seemed to let out a pained howl, and its enormous phantom rippled violently.
It dimmed considerably in an instant, and the destructive lightning coiling around it fell into disorder.
The lightning tribulation seemed utterly enraged. The remaining eight lightning dragons, bearing even more violent power,
Surged at him wave after wave, their roars shaking the heavens as the sea of lightning churned.
Yet Li Qingshan grew braver the longer he fought. He perfectly fused the ancient secret arts recorded in the Sun True Scripture with the martial combat techniques he had comprehended himself.
One fist technique after another, imbued with the intent to shatter mountains and split the earth, surged in power under the drive of the divine power of the Four Extremes and met the dragons' heads head-on;
His steps followed the Bagua, profound and unfathomable. He shifted and dodged within the space of a few inches, evading the lightning dragons' deadly bites time and again.
In the midst of the fierce battle, inspiration struck Li Qingshan. The Divine Seed in his sea of consciousness erupted with an unprecedented surge, resonating deeply with the Great Dao of lightning that remained in this part of heaven and earth.
"It's time!"
He drew a deep breath, seeming to swallow all the worldly essence Qi within a hundred li into his belly.
The next moment, he stopped dodging. Spreading his limbs wide, he drew in the remaining fury of the lightning that filled the sky, taking it all into his limbs like a hundred rivers returning to the sea!
"Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!"
Four clear, immense Dao sounds rang out almost simultaneously from the deepest recesses of his limbs and bones, as though some lock of heaven and earth had been completely broken!
An unprecedented feeling of freedom and power instantly spread throughout his body.
The First Extremity of the Four Extremes Secret Realm was complete!
At that moment, he could clearly feel that his limbs had truly become bridges connecting heaven and earth.
Endless worldly essence Qi poured into his body through those four "heavenly pillars."
With every movement, he could stir the void and make it tremble, with laws following in his wake.
"The ancient texts say that the Four Extremes Secret Realm forges the Bridge of Heaven and Earth.
"Those who reach this realm can sever rivers and seas with a fist and overturn mountains with a palm. They already possess the might to destroy nations and shake the earth.
"Before, it all seemed impossibly far away. Now that I stand in this realm myself and draw the great power of heaven and earth into my body,
"Only now do I know that this is the beginning of transcending the mortal and entering the sacred, and that the open road of the Great Dao is no empty claim."
He murmured softly to himself, having understood the true essence of this realm.
His limbs were the four pillars supporting the heavens, holding up his own small universe and linking it to the greater world outside!
The instant his realm stabilized, the dormant dark-gold bell embryo in his Bitter Sea suddenly began to vibrate of its own accord!
The lightning-attracting patterns on its surface erupted with dazzling divine light.
It began greedily devouring the pure origin of lightning that had yet to fully dissipate from the surrounding world.
Stranger still, under the baptism of lightning and the nourishment of Dao resonance, the once-blurred patterns on the bell embryo's surface became incomparably clear.
They also evolved of their own accord, revealing ancient, mysterious totems that intertwined and resonated with the Lightning-Attracting Mark, giving off a faint primordial presence.
Hmm? Has the rudiment of an artifact spirit embryo actually formed at this moment?
Surprised, Li Qingshan took out the bell embryo and held it in his palm.
The little bell turned slowly. Its chime was no longer merely clear and melodious; it now also carried the faintest trace of life's rhythm, its sound lingering in the air.
He sent his divine sense into the bell embryo and perceived a wisp of spiritual life taking shape, extremely faint yet pure and full of potential.
It had no independent consciousness yet, but it had already laid a solid foundation for growing into a powerful artifact spirit in the future.
The Lightning-Attracting Divine Mark and the Solar Sacred Diagram had blended perfectly, evolving into an entirely new set of Divine Markings, more complex and profound.
As a result, the Dao Bell not only retained its ability to draw down heavenly lightning, but also gained the supreme, wondrous ability to gather and refine Solar True Force.
"This tribulation has brought gains far beyond my expectations."
In excellent spirits, Li Qingshan returned the Dao Bell to his Bitter Sea to continue nurturing it.
He could clearly feel that his strength had undergone a qualitative leap. Not only had he successfully entered the Four Extremes Secret Realm, but his body, tempered a thousand times over by the Nine Dragons Lightning Tribulation, had become strong to an inconceivable degree.
He had a feeling that ordinary weapons on Earth could scarcely harm him in the slightest now.
He drifted down to the ground and tried circulating the power of the Four Extremes.
He merely gave a casual stamp with his left foot, and the hard mountain rock beneath it silently sank half a foot, leaving a clear footprint.
"Let me test the might of this newborn Dao Bell of yours."
He took out the bell embryo again and injected a wisp of pure divine power of the Four Extremes into it.
"Hum...!"
The bell sounded again. Unlike its earlier clear chime, this one carried an invisible, ponderous pressure that spread outward like tangible ripples.
The bell waves swept over a small hill dozens of zhang high in the distance. The hill shook with a thunderous rumble, bottomless cracks split across its surface, and great boulders tumbled down!
Li Qingshan nodded slightly, quite satisfied with its power.
The tribulation clouds had now dispersed from the sky, leaving it clear once more.
He lingered no longer and turned to leave.
Yet just as he reached the foot of the mountain, he suddenly stopped, his gaze flashing like lightning toward the depths of the dense forest to one side.
"Those hiding their heads and showing their tails, come out."
His voice was calm, but it carried an unquestionable authority. The Qi and blood around him stirred slightly, and an invisible pressure spread through the air.
Amid a rustling sound, two figures emerged from the forest. They were not humans, but two strange beasts.
One resembled an Azure Luan, its wings flowing with rosy light;
The other looked like a young Bai Ze, snow-white all over, with a single horn growing from its forehead.
Their eyes were filled with awe and fear. They stayed at a distance, not daring to approach.
"Were you drawn here to spy by the strange signs of the heavenly tribulation just now?"
Sensing no malice from them, Li Qingshan restrained his presence.
The Azure Luan gave a low cry. Holding a stalk of spirit medicine in its beak, wreathed in purple Qi with a cap like a cloud, it carefully placed the offering on the ground, then retreated. Its posture was humble, as though expressing goodwill.
Li Qingshan glanced at the purple lingzhi. It was at least three thousand years old and rich in spiritual Qi, an excellent main ingredient for refining high-grade pills.
He nodded slightly and drew the purple lingzhi into his hand from a distance.
"I'll accept this. You may go."
The two strange beasts, as though granted a pardon, quickly turned and became two streaks of light that vanished into the dense forest.
"An unexpected gain."
He put away the three-thousand-year-old purple lingzhi.
Just then, Li Qingshan faintly sensed an area deeper within the Mount Kunlun Range.
Clouds and mist swirled there, and a faint, unsettling presence emanated from it.
Is something strange going on deeper in?
Li Qingshan's divine sense spread in that direction like a tide.
But it felt like a clay ox entering the sea, blocked by layer upon layer of ancient, powerful natural formations.
He could only vaguely sense a hidden but deeply malicious gaze watching him; he could discern nothing specific.
My cultivation has only just been established, and the Dao Bell still needs to be refined. This is no time to invite extra trouble. I'll remember this and investigate later.
He suppressed his curiosity. For now, consolidating his Four Extremes Realm cultivation and thoroughly refining the Dao Bell were his foremost priorities.
He hesitated no longer and headed toward the temporary cave abode with Xiaobai.
On the charred and shattered mountaintop, only the scars of battle remained everywhere,
Along with the lingering presence of lightning in the air, imbued with traces of destructive Dao resonance, silently telling of the astonishing battle against heaven that had just taken place.
After returning to the temporary cave abode, Li Qingshan waved a hand and laid down several layers of concealment and protective formations, sealing the inside off from the outside.
He sat cross-legged and took out the Dao Bell, whose spiritual life had just been born, and the three-thousand-year-old purple lingzhi he had just obtained, preparing to refine them further.
The Dao Bell floated before him. The new Divine Markings that had evolved upon it circulated slowly as divine power flowed into them, drawing lightning and gathering solar power in a wondrous display.
Purple Qi rose from the purple lingzhi, and its medicinal fragrance filled the air.
"This purple lingzhi will serve perfectly as the main ingredient, with other materials to supplement it. Using the Dao Bell's power,
"I'll refine a batch of Nine Yang Body-Tempering Pills to stabilize my Four Extremes Dao foundation and temper my body and divine soul."
Having made up his mind, he calmed his heart and settled his Qi. He took out the alchemy notes and the cultivation notes left by his seniors that he had obtained in the Kunlun Secret Realm once more, immersed his divine sense in them, and studied them carefully.
The fundamental truths of alchemy, the properties of divine materials, and the forms of precious medicines recorded on those ancient scrolls
Corroborated some of the vaguely remembered names he knew from reading the original Shrouding the Heavens in his previous life.
Many things he had not understood before suddenly became clear, completing the last important piece of his understanding of this vast world of cultivation.
Half a day later, Li Qingshan suddenly opened his eyes. Divine light lay hidden in their depths, and he already had a well-formed plan.
With a thought, the Heart Fire Divine Seed emerged from between his brows and transformed into an illusory divine furnace. The Dao Bell hung above it, sending down streams of Solar True Force and residual lightning essence.
He placed the three-thousand-year-old purple lingzhi and several supplementary spirit medicines into the divine furnace. His divine sense, fine as silk, precisely controlled the fire, removing impurities and refining the medicines' properties.
Six hours later, the furnace fire gradually died down. The medicinal fragrance grew intensely rich, and three precious pills slowly took shape, each the size of a longan, perfectly round, gleaming with golden light, and faintly marked with nine cloud patterns.
They floated beneath the Dao Bell, giving off vast, pure energy fluctuations. "The Nine Yang Body-Tempering Pills are complete."
A satisfied look appeared on Li Qingshan's face. With a wave of his hand, he collected the three golden pills in a jade bottle.
These pills contained Solar True Force and a trace of heavenly lightning's Dao resonance, making them immensely beneficial for stabilizing his Four Extremes Realm cultivation and further tempering his body.
He immediately swallowed one and sat cross-legged with his eyes closed again.
Once in his stomach, the pill transformed into a torrent that was both scorching and gentle, flowing through his limbs and bones, nourishing the newly born Four Extremes Secret Realm and consolidating his Dao foundation.
Looking inward with his divine sense, he could see the four Dao patterns deep within the bones of his limbs, each like a little golden dragon.
Nourished by the pill's power, they grew clearer and more solid, swimming slowly.
With every breath they drew and released, they exchanged worldly essence Qi with the outside world in a mysterious manner, and his cultivation steadily rose.