Chapter 537: Under the Heavenly Tribulation

The sound of rushing wind was in her ears; the world in her eyes became blurred, receding at an extreme speed.

This was the first time in Nie Susu's life she had experienced the feeling of flying in the sky.

It was not very pleasant.

There was none of the exhilaration of roaming the world she had imagined, only bewilderment, unease, and terror.

Following the instructions of her Big Brother Li, the Marquis of Jing'an, she had stayed properly in the cell and gone nowhere.

As a result, after waiting for a moment, she was suddenly taken away by the Big Brother Li she admired most, and taken directly out of the city.

After speeding through the air for over ten minutes, Li Fei finally descended with her, landing in a patch of jungle.

"Marquis Li, what is this for?"

Nie Susu looked at Li Fei's solemn expression and asked cautiously.

"That master of yours is likely one of the Three Evils. She used you to try and harm people. Now I have brought you out to avoid you remaining in the city and being used by others again."

Li Fei said as much.

"My master is one of the Three Evils?"

Nie Susu's face was full of bewilderment.

She had, of course, heard of the title of the Three Evils; "One Supreme, Three Evils, Five True Persons, Seven Martial Saints"—these titles she had heard since the first day she began practicing martial arts.

But that was only hearing of them.

To Nie Susu, these peak powerhouses were like the immortal figures in the storybooks she had read, all too far removed from her.

She had never thought that one day she would have any intersection with these figures.

However—

Nie Susu looked at Li Fei before her; if the other party really was that Marquis of Jing'an, then it didn't seem impossible that she had encountered one of the Three Evils?

"But Master, she..."

On one side was the master who had been as kind to her as a parent, on the other was the legend she admired most; Nie Susu's heart was in a state of chaos for a moment.

"You and I have no grievances, I would not go so far as to harm you."

Li Fei actually did not have time to explain too much to Nie Susu, but he was afraid the other party would run out at a critical moment and ruin things.

Although he did not know what connection this young girl had with Ning Qingman, he had already figured out that this trap set by Li Ming focused on attacking the heart!

And Nie Susu was clearly being treated by Li Ming as a key chess piece.

Therefore, Li Fei had to ensure Nie Susu's safety, while also ensuring the other party would not misunderstand him and Ning Qingman, thereby leaning toward Li Ming and being used by others, leading to some melodramatic plot unfolding.

This was the reason he had not taken coercive measures against Nie Susu.

"Tan City is very dangerous right now. I hope you can stay in this place for the time being and not run around, can you?"

Li Fei said to Nie Susu in a gentle tone.

At another time, if he had spoken to Nie Susu like this, Nie Susu would surely have been happy to death.

But now, the young girl's mind was full of—My master is one of the Three Evils?!

Hearing this sentence from Li Fei, she suddenly reacted:

"Marquis, do you mean to say that my master, one of the Three Evils, will make a move on Tan City? Will she hurt my family?"

She was already more inclined to believe Li Fei.

One reason was that Li Fei's past image had always been lofty, bright, and upright.

The second was that she really could not think of any reason for the dignified Marquis of Jing'an to deceive a young girl like her.

Even if the entire Nie family were expanded ten times over, placed before Li Fei, wouldn't it be something he could handle with a flick of his hand?

"Rest assured, that immortal sister of yours will fight against the evil, and will not let the other party's conspiracy succeed."

Li Fei comforted her, incidentally letting Nie Susu know Ning Qingman's identity as a good person.

"Immortal sister?"

A flash of that green-clad figure crossed Nie Susu's mind.

"Promise me, stay here for the time being, don't run around, can you?"

Li Fei looked into Nie Susu's eyes and asked again.

Nie Susu nodded gently.

Li Fei breathed a sigh of relief and raised his hand to set up a concealment array in the surroundings.

Although he was not skilled in arts, he was at least a top-tier True Person, so setting up an array casually was no problem.

Ning Qingman had said personally that Nie Susu was not tainted by any karma or fate, clearly having checked herself.

Li Fei had flown at full speed with Nie Susu for over ten minutes; this distance was far enough.

Unless the two evils hiding in the dark gave up their schemes against Ning Qingman and tracked them all the way here personally, it should be difficult to discover where Nie Susu was.

When Li Fei took Nie Susu out of the city, he first used 【No Distance】 to move a distance without leaving a trace, then used Sword State: Shadowless and Formless to fly while hidden for a distance, and finally flew at full speed at low altitude with her.

Doing this could ensure that even if the two evils had subordinates, unless they were Grandmasters or top-tier True Persons skilled in tracking and breaking concealment, it would be difficult to track him.

Now, as long as Nie Susu stayed honestly in this array and didn't run around, she shouldn't fall into the hands of the evils again.

"The effect of this array can last for three hours. If I haven't come to find you after three hours, you go all the way to the provincial capital and hand this to the person in charge of the Blue Patrol Pavilion in Dongping Province."

Li Fei handed Nie Susu a token; the front was engraved with the two characters 'Blue Patrol', and the back had the character 'Li'.

This was his token as the Pavilion Master of the Blue Patrol Pavilion.

He had left a message on the token using arts.

Nie Susu took the token with a bewildered face.

Seeing Li Fei about to turn and leave, she suddenly gave a start and hurriedly shouted:

"Marquis!"

Li Fei turned to look at her.

Nie Susu gripped the token tightly with both hands and asked with an expectant face:

"Will you go to help the immortal sister defeat the evils together?"

Tan City.

The firmament tore open like silk, creating a crack. Ning Qingman looked up at the ink-colored tribulation clouds condensing above her head.

Deep within the clouds, dark golden lightning rolled; a fierce and baleful aura spread across the sky and earth, as if a peerless fierce beast were about to break free from its cage!

This was the Heavenly Tribulation, the 'positrons' attracted by the 'negatrons' carried by the Old Ancestor of the Underworld.

The other party's Underworld Palace contained hundreds of thousands of vengeful spirits, and the power of heaven and earth that most restrained vengeful spirits was lightning, so the first Heavenly Tribulation attracted was the Lei Guang Tribulation.

Besides this, the Old Ancestor of the Underworld's cultivation art was primarily cold and baleful, so it was also possible to attract a Fire Tribulation.

His natal magic treasure, the Underworld Palace, suppressed the primordial spirit and established reincarnation through illusion, so it was also possible to attract a Heart-Mind Tribulation!

These were things Ning Qingman had already known beforehand.

Back at that village, she had actually seen a Heavenly Tribulation once.

It was just that that time was only an attempt by the Old Ancestor of the Underworld, only attaching vengeful spirits to several hundred people in the village, so the Heavenly Tribulation triggered was very weak.

But now, with tens of thousands of people in Tan City as carriers, under the intentional manipulation of the Old Ancestor of the Underworld, the gathered Heavenly Tribulation was more than a hundred times stronger than that time!

Just looking at the might of the first layer of Lei Guang Tribulation, it was already approaching the peak level!

If Ning Qingman did not make a move, this Lei Guang Tribulation would be dispersed among the tens of thousands of people in Tan City.

And if she wanted to withstand the Heavenly Tribulation, she had to block it actively before the power of the Heavenly Tribulation dispersed.

This was the reason she had told Li Fei to leave quickly.

In this battle, she needed to deal with the attacks of two other peak powerhouses while withstanding the attack of one peak powerhouse!

Even if her killing power was peerless and she was confident of certain victory against any one of the Three Evils.

But one against three was another level entirely.

In terms of killing power, Ning Qingman was even stronger than Wen Ren Zheng, who currently sat firmly as the world's second!

But in terms of defense, she was not as good as Wen Ren Zheng.

In terms of saving her life, she was not as good as Qin Mingli and Li Ming.

In terms of variety of methods, she was not as good as the Heavenly King of Suppressing the River.

So today, this trap was truly a nine-deaths-and-one-life situation for her!

But she was already accustomed to using her own sword to gamble for a slim chance.

Once an orphan girl of the Ning family, today she had become a Sword Immortal!

Her drawing her sword would save more than just Nie Susu's life.

It would also save the version of herself that once lived in the shadows.

Boom—

Another muffled thunderclap resounded through heaven and earth, and the dark golden lightning became more and more condensed.

Ning Qingman smiled nonchalantly and ascended to the sky in one step.

Her iron sword had been left at Mount Tiansha. When Li Fei was recasting the Ghost-Slaying Blade at the Iron Heart Tower, he had asked her if she needed a sword forged.

She had refused.

Unless holding a legendary level-nine divine weapon, for a Sword Immortal who possessed the 【Sword Dissolution】 Dao rule, whether it was a divine weapon or an ordinary iron sword, there was no difference in her hands.

Ning Qingman beckoned with one hand, and the dark golden lightning in the tribulation clouds was actually pulled down a section by her from the sky, transforming into a long sword, which she held in her hand!

She had explained to Li Fei that the so-called 'Heavenly Tribulation' was merely a gathering of the power of heaven and earth, not truly possessing any Great Dao will.

So in her eyes, this 'Heavenly Tribulation' was nothing more than a large mass of highly condensed heaven and earth Qi, completing an eruption in a predetermined way under the influence of Great Dao rules.

Even if its power essence could reach the peak level, to Ning Qingman, this was just a 'foolish peak' that only knew how to fight by instinct.

It had the appearance but did not understand change.

Relying on 【Sword Dissolution】, Ning Qingman completed the 'dismemberment' of the Lei Guang Tribulation above her head at the first moment—

Taking the power of the Heavenly Tribulation to transform into a three-foot green blade!

If today's opponent was only a 'mere' Heavenly Tribulation, Ning Qingman would at most expend some effort and would not be under any pressure.

But for humans, the most dangerous thing is always one's own kind.

Just as the lightning sword formed in her hand, a cold and baleful aura came from all directions, transforming into an invisible abyss, intending to swallow Ning Qingman!

With Ning Qingman actively withstanding the Heavenly Tribulation, the Old Ancestor of the Underworld could make his move calmly.

"The Sword Immortal is truly righteous; this old man admires you!"

He praised loudly, secretly delighted in his heart.

It was really calculated correctly by Li Ming!

Ning Qingman did not speak, the lightning sword in her hand sweeping across.

The dazzling sword light tore through the darkness, leaving a long trail in the air.

The cold abyss collapsed as a result, the baleful aura like a shattered sea tide, transforming into hundreds of millions of water droplets splashing everywhere.

Boom!!!

The tribulation clouds surged, and a thick golden lightning bolt descended from the sky.

Ning Qingman took the power of the Heavenly Tribulation to transform into a long sword, which was actively attracting the Heavenly Tribulation; under the traction of Qi, this golden lightning bolt had a clear target.

At the same time the thunder fell, a streak of golden sword light also transformed into thunder, rushing from bottom to top, counter-attacking the Lei Guang Tribulation!

Woo—

A sound like a ghost wailing from hell suddenly filled Ning Qingman's heart and mind; a deep black hole appeared behind her, like the opened gate of hell.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!

The sound of a great river rushing drowned out the ghost wailing, and a dark blue river surged out from the hole, sweeping toward Ning Qingman.

In this river, countless arms danced wildly, and countless figures floated and sank.

This was the Underworld River!

The Old Ancestor of the Underworld had sacrificed the most fundamental and powerful force within his natal magic treasure, the Underworld Palace, as soon as he made a move!

At the same time, the heaven and earth Qi within the scope of Tan City changed suddenly, and an eye of a storm appeared in the air.

The vast and mighty heaven and earth Qi gathered toward it crazily, concentrating!

A pair of iron fists blasted out from the storm, and the space where Ning Qingman was located caved in and collapsed as a result!

No probing, no slow consumption.

At the moment the first layer of Lei Guang Tribulation fell, Li Ming and the Old Ancestor of the Underworld chose to attack Ning Qingman with all their might!

Both of them knew very well that from the moment Ning Qingman chose to actively attract the Lei Guang Tribulation, she had placed her own life on the edge of a blade.

Next, it would depend on how the two evils turned their advantage into a victory.

The lightning sword in Ning Qingman's hand had already been thrown out, facing the falling Lei Guang Tribulation.

She turned around, using her hand as a sword, her sword finger piercing toward the surging Underworld River, cutting it open from the middle, and then rushing forward.

She did not retreat but advanced, actively penetrating deep into the Underworld River!

Bang—

The water of the Underworld River exploded, stirring up hundred-foot waves; the water surface caved downward, revealing the green-clad figure within.

The Qi storm followed closely, the space collapsed as a result, and an empty hole appeared in the Underworld River.

Ning Qingman struck with another sword, taking advantage of the collapsed space before it had completely closed, piercing through the Underworld River once again!

Three thousand strands of black hair flew in the gale, and the Underworld River was already behind her.

Sword Qi crisscrossed, and the Qi storm dissipated as a result.

The figure in green robes held a sword across the heavens and earth, possessing an indescribable air of a sword immortal!

In the first round of confrontation, Ning Qingman managed to barely cope by exploiting the differing motives of Li Ming and the Ancestor of the Nether River.

Li Ming wanted her dead, while the Ancestor of the Nether River hoped she would endure the heavenly tribulation a few more times before dying.

Therefore, she immediately adopted a stance of mutual destruction, charging with all her might toward the depths of the Nether River, making a show of intending to destroy the Nether King Palace!

The Ancestor of the Nether River immediately chose to retract the Nether River and defend with all his strength, which gave Ning Qingman the chance to catch her breath and deal with Li Ming's attack.

This round of confrontation was completed in an instant; Ning Qingman successfully performed a sword dance on the tip of a blade and retreated unscathed!

Li Ming, who appeared a thousand meters away, remained expressionless and indifferent to this.

The lightning tribulation was not just one strike, and the heavenly tribulation was not just one layer.

He still had plenty of opportunities!

The ink-colored tribulation clouds in the sky became increasingly thick, and as the power of heaven and earth gathered, quantitative changes led to qualitative ones, further enhancing the might of the lightning.

The power of the heavenly tribulation had officially reached its peak level!

The ink-colored tribulation clouds churned, and the might of heaven and earth was soul-stirring.

The vast Nether River flowed, and hundreds of thousands of vengeful spirits wailed in agony.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth turned into a storm, and space twisted and shook under the iron fist.

In the entire Tancheng, tens of thousands of commoners were at a loss and shivering under this apocalyptic scene!

Between heaven and earth, a figure in green robes stood holding a sword, long hair dancing in the wind.

Ever since the Ning family was wiped out, she had grown accustomed to facing everything alone, with no one left to rely on.

Although Wen Xuexian had saved her, it was more out of consideration for her own cultivation, and she could not truly shield her from the wind and rain.

But it did not matter.

One person and one sword were enough.

That figure in green robes between heaven and earth lonely raised the long sword in her hand, preparing to welcome the second lightning tribulation.

Just like many years ago, when she lonely raised her sword to face those ferocious enemies.

Boom—

The golden lightning was like a mountain and sea, like an angry dragon, descending with a roar!

Ning Qingman prepared to meet it, to face another test of life and death.

The next instant, a golden figure blocked the space between heaven and earth.

Blocking between the lightning tribulation and her!

Crack—

The thunder struck the figure wearing golden battle armor.

Layer upon layer of mountain and river phantoms shattered one after another, and the shouts of hundreds of millions of commoners were drowned out by the thunder.

Two golden, shimmering characters appeared, extremely eye-catching in the dim heaven and earth—

Jing'an!

This sudden turn of events caught all three peak experts off guard.

Ning Qingman was the most surprised; she looked up at Li Fei, who had returned:

"Why?"

You clearly have a bright future and clearly shoulder the heavy responsibilities of the nation; why return to risk your life for people and matters that are not important?

Li Fei lowered his head to meet Ning Qingman's gaze and smiled:

"In this life, one always has to do a few stupid things."

Ning Qingman was stunned; these were the words she had said to Li Fei before.

"Idiot!"

Li Ming narrowed his eyes and cursed in his heart.

Li Fei's return would not make him and the Ancestor of the Nether River retreat.

"Old ghost, follow the plan."

Li Ming transmitted his voice to the Ancestor of the Nether River.

The next instant, the space behind Li Fei tore open, and the vast Nether River surged out from within!

"Careful—"

Li Fei's mind suffered an impact at the first moment; boundless vengeful spirits surged into his mental world, intending to turn his consciousness into nether soil!

Li Fei's expression remained unchanged as he utilized 【No Distance】 to dodge the incoming divine ability.

Seeing this, Ning Qingman breathed a sigh of relief, while the Ancestor of the Nether River, hiding in the shadows, was filled with suspicion.

"This brat is strange!"

He immediately transmitted his voice to Li Ming.

According to his plan with Li Ming, if Li Fei were to intervene in this battle, he would use his techniques to temporarily control Li Fei.

For a peak expert of the True One Realm like him, life-and-death combat might not be as good as a Martial Saint, but his methods were diverse and his tricks were certainly hard to guard against.

His natal magic treasure, the Nether King Palace, already had a bonus for illusions, so the Ancestor of the Nether River had plenty of techniques to control his opponent!

He had thought that dealing with a junior who had not yet reached the peak would be easy.

Yet, Li Fei's mind was not affected by his techniques in the slightest?

Even if Ning Qingman had been hit by that technique just now, she would have been affected to some extent.

How could Li Fei do it?

"Old ghost, stop playing your mother's tricks!"

Li Ming cursed angrily.

He simply did not believe that the Ancestor of the Nether River could not control Li Fei.

He had controlled him the moment he made a move back then!

A flash of brilliance cut through the sky, coming head-on.

Ning Qingman took the initiative to kill Li Ming!

Li Fei had returned, and she could only choose to trust him.

Otherwise, having to be distracted to save people while under the siege of the heavenly tribulation and two peak experts, both she and Li Fei would only die faster!

Boom—

At the same time, the third lightning tribulation fell.

Li Fei once again utilized 【No Distance】, taking the initiative to block in front of the lightning tribulation.

The 【Jing'an】 divine ability was activated, national power was added, and it turned into layers of barriers in front of him.

Splash—

As the thunder shattered the mountain and river phantoms and landed on the battle armor, a Nether River enveloped Li Fei.

In an instant, Li Fei's mind became dazed, as if falling into the nether soil—

Crying in his mother's arms during infancy, playing around with Li Tianyu when he was young, listening to lectures in middle school, following Hao Yi to practice martial arts in the Martial Academy...

In an instant, all the memories of Li Fei's current life reappeared in his mind like a revolving lantern.

He seemed to have relived his life all over again, and then there was forgetting—

Forgetting why he had come, forgetting why he was traveling with Ning Qingman, forgetting how he had broken through his realm, forgetting how he had fought on the Bai Feng Plain...

Finally, forgetting who he was!

Dao Rule—【Forget River】!

Li Fei stood blankly in the air, letting the thunder shatter his battle armor, letting the vengeful spirits in the Nether River pull at him, letting the water of the Nether River corrode him, and letting the cold evil energy impact him.

By the time he came to his senses, the third lightning tribulation had already ended.

"What a terrifying Dao Rule!"

Li Fei was secretly shocked.

Techniques belong to Yin, and the Ten Thousand Blood Bead belongs to Yang, so he could use the Ten Thousand Blood Bead to resist purely mind-targeting techniques, regardless of whether they caused him damage or not.

But just now, the Ancestor of the Nether River had directly used a Dao Rule on him.

This level of power had already transcended the classification of Yin and Yang, and the Ten Thousand Blood Bead could not transfer non-damaging special effects.

Li Fei had almost completely forgotten himself just now!

Fortunately, although he had temporarily forgotten himself, the Ten Thousand Blood Bead had not forgotten to transfer the damage for him.

So he was still alive.

And—

The Ten Thousand Blood Bead had upgraded again.

Seeking monthly tickets.

(End of chapter)