Chapter 42: The Final Bolt of Tribulation Lightning

The Southern Dao Sect's defensive grand array was restored once more.

With the power of Rong Shou, they had stubbornly withstood three bolts of Tribulation Lightning, but by the fourth, it had already descended halfway before they could brace for it.

Su Xi finished absorbing the scattered Thunder Origin Power and let out a satisfied burp, "Er Miao, Uncle-Master Yuan Yu's Ascension Tribulation is way too intense!"

Er Miao replied, "There are twenty-four bolts of lightning in an Ascension Tribulation. They become more formidable as they progress. Based on past experience, it is highly likely that the most powerful bolt will target the host."

"Was this mentioned in *Yuan Jun Zhuan* regarding Uncle-Master Yuan Yu?"

"Please wait a moment, Host; Er Miao needs to check if the relevant content is unlocked."

"Spending some points is fine too."

"Yes, Host." Soon, Er Miao had the answer, "Yuan Yu did not survive the heavenly tribulation; he died during the final Heart Demon Tribulation. It was precisely because of Yuan Yu's death that Master turned to demonic cultivation and eventually ascended to the Demon Realm. If the host can change Yuan Yu's fate, Master might not turn to the demonic path. As long as the original plot is altered, the host can obtain a reversal reward!"

"Looks like there's work to do!" Su Xi was suddenly full of motivation, "The final bolt of Tribulation Lightning, is it?"

"The host must still be careful; the lightning of an Ascension Tribulation is different from other realms."

"Got it." Su Xi's consciousness sank into her Origin Spirit Mansion.

The space here was always misty and hazy, making it impossible to feel where the boundaries were, as if it were void.

A golden Origin Spirit Golden Core hung in the center, dispelling the surrounding mist and reflecting a space of clarity and pure spirit.

The Thunder Origin Power she had just absorbed was circling the Origin Spirit Golden Core, along with a few wisps of Tribulation Lightning that were happily devouring the Thunder Origin Power.

Finally, there was the pitch-black Thunder Staff; ever since Master helped her refine it, it had moved itself from her dantian to her Origin Spirit Mansion.

At this moment, it was hanging at the very bottom, motionless.

Su Xi could sense its emotions.

Like now, she knew it was very hungry and wanted to eat that Thunder Origin Power, but it didn't dare to. Because it had snuck in here on its own, it appeared cautious and timid.

Su Xi's consciousness looked at the Thunder Staff and said, "If you want to eat, go ahead. I'm a bit stuffed right now anyway, so help me digest it."

The Thunder Staff circled Su Xi's consciousness twice before happily charging toward the Thunder Origin Power.

With its participation, that Thunder Origin Power was quickly swept clean.

Su Xi's consciousness emerged from the Origin Spirit Mansion, and seeing the Thunder Origin Power around her body wanting to enter, she accelerated her cultivation.

With the addition of the bottomless pit that was the Thunder Staff, Su Xi never experienced the feeling of being stuffed again.

As the heavenly tribulation grew increasingly intense, thunderous booms exploded by her ears, each one accompanied by the sound of the sect-protecting array shattering.

Su Xi looked at Yuan Yu in the sky, who seemed to have reached the end of his rope.

His once thick and smooth long black hair was now jagged and scorched from the lightning. Although his clothes looked simple, they were top-tier defensive artifacts, yet they had now become tattered. His exposed abdomen, originally covered in taut, lean muscle, was now a bloody mess.

"How many are left?" Su Xi asked Er Miao, her voice heavy.

Er Miao replied, "Three more."

As they spoke, a pillar of lightning as thick as two people embracing descended from the sky.

The defensive array that had just been raised collapsed the moment it touched the Tribulation Lightning. The lightning pillar, barely diminished, struck Yuan Yu completely.

Yuan Yu plummeted downward, smashing fiercely into the mountain peak below, literally obliterating the mountaintop!

The Tribulation Lightning dispersed, and the dense Thunder Origin Power surged toward Su Xi's direction in a scramble.

Su Xi took the Thunder Staff directly out of her Origin Spirit Mansion, "No wasting!"

The Thunder Staff immediately charged toward the Thunder Origin Power; perhaps knowing that Su Xi was piggybacking on the tribulation, it absorbed it silently, without making a single sound of thunder.

Su Xi looked worriedly toward the place where Yuan Yu had fallen.

Yuan Yu struggled and flew up again, a phantom image appearing from his wounds to mend his broken body.

"This should be his avatar, but Master said that an avatar's power is at most half of the original body," Su Xi said to Er Miao.

"Two more to go; the host should also be prepared," Er Miao reminded her, its voice becoming solemn.

After the Thunder Staff finished absorbing the Thunder Origin Power scattered by the tribulation, it returned to Su Xi's side, as if a guard protecting her.

Su Xi glanced at it; it was still pitch-black, but it looked much more pleasing to the eye.

The Tribulation Lightning in the sky began to churn and surge rapidly, and a lightning pillar even more powerful than the last descended from the Tribulation Cloud.

Yuan Yu rose to meet the lightning pillar, his entire body erupting with powerful True Origin spiritual power, forming a Domain several meters in radius around him.

The Tribulation Lightning descended, and the defensive array that Rong Shou had just rebuilt with the strength of the entire sect shattered at a single touch.

Yuan Yu glanced in Rong Shou's direction, his eyes full of warmth and composure.

Rong Shou's expression, however, was terrifyingly cold.

Yuan Yu was completely engulfed by the lightning pillar, and after a breath that was both long and short, Yuan Yu fell once again!

This time, his Dao Body was even more miserable than before; not only was half his body struck away, leaving only one arm and one leg, but half his face had also been struck off.

Su Xi could not bear to watch.

But even so, Yuan Yu still struggled to stand up to welcome the final bolt of Tribulation Lightning.

Yuan Yu swallowed a whole bottle of Replenishing Origin Pill with one hand, and his remaining half of a Dao Body erupted with True Origin spiritual power once more as he soared into the air.

This time, every Dao cultivator watching the ceremony knew that Yuan Yu could not possibly withstand the final bolt of Tribulation Lightning, which was equivalent to the sum of all the previous power.

Rong Shou's dark, abyssal pupils looked toward Su Xi's direction... his hands clenched and unclenched, hiding a deep struggle.

But in the end, just as he was about to move, Hua Qing grabbed him tightly, "Sect Master, you cannot! If you go over now, the heavenly tribulation will also target you, and not only will you fail to help Uncle-Master Yuan Yu, but you will also trigger a Double Heavenly Punishment!"

Only low-level cultivators would not be targeted by the Ascension Tribulation. However, low-level cultivators also could not withstand the residual power of the lightning scattered by the tribulation.

A Dao Body like Su Xi's, capable of absorbing the heavenly tribulation's Thunder Origin Power, was, after all, extremely rare.

But even Su Xi had to use the Thunder Staff to help her absorb it in order to remain.

The final bolt took a little longer to brew.

Su Xi reached out toward the Thunder Staff, "Come here."

The Thunder Staff approached cautiously.

Su Xi grabbed it and smiled, "Well done! Go back and rest."

Su Xi stored the Thunder-Steel Mace inside her Origin Spirit Mansion, and as soon as it entered, it was entangled by the lightning threads of other Tribulation Lightning.

They sensed the pure Heavenly Tribulation Thunder Origin Power within the Thunder-Steel Mace.

The Thunder-Steel Mace released a portion of the stored Thunder Origin Power, feeding it to those lightning threads.

Su Xi gazed at the soul-stirring, pitch-black Tribulation Cloud in the sky, unable to suppress the palpitations in her heart.

Er Miao: 【Host, stay calm.】

Su Xi took a deep breath, 【Er Miao, help me prepare the mission Treasure Box.】