As Li Yan's left palm simultaneously contended with the lightning tribulation, a loud sizzling sound erupted.
The moment he threw his punch, the five fingers of his left hand clenched inward. His hand was utterly minuscule compared to the massive pillar of lightning.
But with that clench, the colossal column of light let out a mournful cry and shattered inch by inch, dissolving into specks of starlight…
In the air, Wei Zhongran and Mo Qing weren't overly surprised by Li Yan's ability to easily resolve two heavenly tribulations.
The Nascent Soul Heavenly Tribulation consisted of eighty-one strikes, divided into six stages: the Thunderbolt Tribulation, the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation, the Rain Tribulation, the Wind Tribulation, the Red Cloud Tribulation, and the Inner Demon Tribulation.
The first six stages each had thirteen attacks, each more ferocious than the last. Their manifestation was also erratic; sometimes a single bolt would descend, other times several would arrive at once, but never more than three simultaneously. "One begets two, two begets three, and three beget all things." This was the principle at play, a rule of the Heavenly Dao.
The seventh and final stage consisted of only three tribulations, the "Heaven and Earth Tribulation" that made all Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivators' faces pale with dread.
If not even one in ten cultivators could pass the first six stages, then those who could overcome the final "Heaven and Earth Tribulation" were as rare as a phoenix feather.
Therefore, it was entirely within their expectations that Li Yan could handle the first few tribulations with ease. If he struggled with even these, then there would be basically no hope left.
However, some of the Golden Core cultivators in the distance were shaken to their core. Their Divine Sense, observing from a great distance around the tribulation, could feel waves of terrifying power. Most of these cultivators had not yet formed their Golden Cores when Wei Zhongran underwent his Nascent Soul Formation decades ago, or they had been away from the sect. This was their first time witnessing another's Nascent Soul Formation.
'The might of this Heavenly Tribulation is so astonishing. When my own tribulation arrives, will I be able to face it with such ease?'
This thought arose simultaneously in the minds of Wang Tian and the others. Wang Tian and Zuo Shengyan were two of those who had formed their Golden Cores after Wei Zhongran's tribulation.
Now, Li Yan was transcending the tribulation with his physical body alone, without yet using any Immortal Arts to trigger phenomena. They dared not send their Divine Sense into the heart of the tribulation, so they couldn't see how Li Yan was handling it. However, they could certainly judge the speed at which the tribulations arrived and dissipated.
The heavenly tribulations descended with incredible speed, causing the very ground of the Malevolent Spirit Sect to tremble incessantly.
Mo Qing and Wei Zhongran separated, stationing themselves in two different directions and extending their Divine Sense for thousands of li, sensing for any powerful cultivators approaching the Malevolent Spirit Sect.
Fortunately, this was the foundation of the Malevolent Spirit Sect. Cultivators who knew of this place would deliberately make a detour when passing by to avoid any misunderstandings.
But Wei Zhongran and Mo Qing didn't dare to be the least bit careless. Such incidents were not unheard of in other sects. Seven thousand years ago, when the Great Elder of the "Eight-Armed Sect" was transcending his tribulation to form a Nascent Soul, he was caught off guard and gravely wounded by a Golden Core Rogue Cultivator who had appeared out of nowhere. This caused the elder, who was said to have had a thirty percent chance of success, to perish on the spot, dying directly under the Heavenly Tribulation. The assailant escaped without a trace. The "Eight-Armed Sect," which could have been promoted to a first-rate Immortal Sect, not only lost its strongest elder but also suffered a sharp decline in its overall strength. Eventually, it faded from a second-rate sect into obscurity.
Under the Heavenly Tribulation, Li Yan naturally couldn't hold back any of his strength. Next, he faced both the Thunderbolt Tribulation and the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation without even using any Magical Treasures. He only supplemented his magical power twice by gripping a Mid-grade Spirit Stone in one hand, and he barely even moved from his spot.
When the twenty-seventh tribulation struck down, the third stage, the "Rain Tribulation," descended. The ink-black clouds had formed thirteen concentric rings above Little Bamboo Peak.
Each ring rapidly condensed a single raindrop, but it didn't fall. Instead, they converged from the surrounding clouds toward the smallest, central ring. Each raindrop was the size of an adult's fist and shimmered with a purple light.
Amidst the churning clouds, one raindrop suddenly let out a dong sound, as if squeezed out of the dark clouds, and smashed down vertically toward Li Yan's head. As it fell, the raindrop trailed a long, purple tail of light, reaching the top of Li Yan's head in a flash.
Li Yan had, of course, long studied the Nascent Soul Heavenly Tribulation. He knew that each of these raindrops contained the power to corrode an entire mountain peak in a matter of breaths, much like some of his own Fragmented Poisons.
'Let's see if you can corrode my physical body, or if I will devour your power.'
Li Yan roared in his heart. When the first raindrop fell, he had already risen to his feet. He still didn't summon a Magical Treasure. Instead, he raised a hand, pointing two fingers like a sword, and jabbed viciously at the descending raindrop!
At the same time, the tips of his fingers swirled with black qi. The black qi transformed into a ghost face, its lips curled upwards in a slight smile, as if mocking the world. But the long, narrow eyes on the face held no emotion, appearing cold and ruthless. The entire face was exceptionally bizarre.
The moment the ghost face appeared, it blurred, becoming like a thin mask, and flew up to cover the surface of the raindrop.
However, Li Yan's expression changed instantly. Although he had made ample preparations, he hadn't expected this fist-sized raindrop to be as heavy as a mountain. The ghost face covering it was torn open in an instant, and the exposed half of the raindrop smashed heavily onto his fingers.
Caught off guard, Li Yan's entire arm sank downwards, and his body was pulled forward into a slant.
With a cold snort, Li Yan forcefully engaged his waist, and his entire arm swelled, becoming a size larger. Only then was he able to support the raindrop with his fingertips.
'This raindrop weighs at least several hundred thousand jin. Indeed, everyone's tribulation is different!'
In the texts Li Yan had read, some said the raindrops in the Rain Tribulation might be imbued with other forces; a single drop could grind a mountain to dust. Others said it was bone-chillingly cold, like the water of a ten-thousand-year-old nether spring. Still others claimed that the moment a raindrop touched the skin, it would feel like boiling volcano lava…
Li Yan's thoughts raced. But before he could fully appreciate the power of this raindrop, a sharp pain shot through his fingers. He quickly activated his Divine Will. The ghost face, already torn and exposing forty percent of the raindrop's base, suddenly flared with a brilliant black light. It squirmed violently and rapidly, like an octopus devouring its food, and quickly swallowed the exposed part of the raindrop. As the black light flickered rapidly, the mask had already grown several inches thicker.
Waves of intense pain washed over him. When Li Yan focused his gaze on his fingertips again, he saw no blood, but two stark white finger bones were exposed. Moreover, a purple vapor was continuously consuming the blood that was trying to well up!
'My luck is truly great. I actually encountered a tribulation attack that contains two types of power at once!'
Li Yan felt a little dejected. That such a thing would happen to him. Even with the toughness of his physical body, the moment his skin touched the raindロップ, it melted away like ice in the scorching sun.
Black light surged from Li Yan's fingers once more. Puffs of purple smoke rose, only to be quickly devoured by the black light. Underneath the black light, specks of silver light flashed on his injured fingers, and the lost flesh and blood began to recover at a speed visible to the naked eye...
A few dozen breaths later, Zhao Min and the others in the distance could only see raindrops falling one after another. The astonishing scene of Li Yan shattering the lightning was gone, replaced by an eerie silence.
This made Zhao Min extremely anxious. The "Heart-Entangling Twin Gu" in her body, though not dead, had become restless. She looked up at Wei Zhongran and Mo Qing, who were hovering in the sky. Their expressions were not too grave, so Zhao Min could only suppress her anxiety.
In the sky, Mo Qing clicked his tongue softly, his eyes flashing with a brilliant light. "The way your disciple is handling the Rain Tribulation is truly astonishing. This must be his famed Fragmented Poison Body. It truly lives up to its name as one of our sect's three supreme poison bodies, to even be able to deal with the dreaded Heavenly Tribulation. Back when Zhu Luan and Mo Gu formed their Nascent Souls, I had only just succeeded in my own Golden Core Formation and couldn't see how they dealt with their tribulations. I wonder if their poison bodies also had an effect against the Heavenly Tribulation!"
He whispered softly, his words clearly filled with envy. When he had undergone his own Nascent Soul Tribulation, he had been covered in wounds and had nearly perished. Seeing how easily Li Yan was handling the first few dozen tribulations naturally filled him with lament.
Wei Zhongran nodded in agreement. Ninety percent of their own tribulations had been endured through sheer force. Even though Wei Zhongran possessed dual Dantians, it only meant his magical power was profound. Thus, before their Nascent Soul Formation, they had all spent their time searching for various treasures that could counter the Heavenly Tribulation. Sometimes, uncertain of a treasure's effects, they didn't dare to spend an exorbitant price on it. This made them rack their brains over the tribulation. Before a breakthrough, they longed to face the tribulation; once they had the insight, they feared it. This was the mentality of all Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivators.
At this moment, Li Yan below had just passed the Rain Tribulation. The thirteen raindrops had vanished. His appearance was also somewhat wretched, though in the eyes of Wei Zhongran and Mo Qing, it was nothing.
There were several large holes in Li Yan's Spirit Treasure-grade robes. Although there were no bloodstains, a lingering smell of burnt flesh hung in the air around him. Through the holes in his clothes, mangled flesh could be seen.
His Fragmented Poison Body could only dissolve the corrosive power within the raindrops, but he had to rely on his own strength to eliminate and disintegrate their immense weight. Each drop consumed a large amount of his magical and physical power.
Especially after Li Yan had dealt with the first three raindrops with relative ease, his method seemed to enrage the Heavenly Tribulation, which then sent down two or three drops at a time. The speed was even faster, forming a continuous stream of rain.
Although Li Yan's body was enveloped in black light, he was caught off guard by the continuous arrival of so many raindrops. In an instant, his Fragmented Poison was breached. His protective spirit shield couldn't block a single strike from the raindrops. While parrying, Li Yan was still sent flying over a thousand zhang away, and the entire mountaintop cracked inch by inch.
No matter where Li Yan hid, the tribulation would follow. He could only dodge ceaselessly while smashing these raindrops one by one with brute force. Each raindrop required four full-power strikes from Li Yan to be forcibly dispersed.
After reaching the Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm and having his body solidified by the "Wood Essence Radiance" of the Giant Wood Clan, a single full-power punch from Li Yan could now create cracks in space. Even an initial-stage Nascent Soul cultivator wouldn't dare to receive it head-on with just their physical body. But to deal with each raindrop, Li Yan had to use his full strength for every strike, causing his stamina to plummet.
Just as Li Yan had dispersed the thirteen raindrops, several high-grade Spirit Stones appeared in his hand, and his chest heaved violently. And just as he was absorbing the spiritual energy, the howling wind in the sky, which had been present all along, suddenly stopped.
Instantly, a profound silence fell upon everyone's ears. But it was precisely this silence that made everyone feel the imminent storm.
A clear, resonant zeng! rang out, as if a peerless saber was being unsheathed between heaven and earth.
Li Yan quickly looked up. Amidst the dark clouds above, the tip of a grayish-white blade emerged. As the blade's body appeared, the surrounding dark clouds were swept into a churning pillar of clouds that reached the heavens, rotating rapidly around the blade. A faint, sharp whistle emanated from its edge.
'Wind Tribulation!'
Li Yan's expression turned solemn as he gathered his strength and waited!