He did not understand what all of this was truly for!
Lightning surged through his body, its searing aura of soul annihilation making him tremble uncontrollably.
The swiftness and destructiveness of the lightning were clearly perceived as it tore through him.
At the same time, he gained a new understanding of the heavenly tribulation for breaking through realms.
The heavenly tribulation's lightning was not merely meant to obliterate those who defied heaven to cultivate toward immortality.
It was also a test for those defying heaven, a mirror held up to a cultivator's heart!
Tempered by the baptism of lightning, a cultivator could better perceive the deepest desires and obsessions within their soul.
This was why many cultivators no longer felt fear after the first bolt of tribulation lightning struck.
Because the dread they held before facing the tribulation would, through the baptism of that first bolt, transform into the strength to fight back with everything they had!
As for those whose hearts succumbed to fear and dared not face the tribulation lightning, most of them perished.
Even if some survived by sheer luck, their future achievements would be severely limited.
Once Li Guanqi attained this sliver of enlightenment, his speed through the sea of lightning quickened slightly.
Yet even so, it was still not enough...
Gradually, Li Guanqi could barely hold on.
More and more lightning cascaded over him, each strike growing increasingly terrifying in power!
Suddenly!
Endless lightning engulfed Li Guanqi, shattering his consciousness in an instant.
*Pfft!*
Li Guanqi snapped his eyes open, spewing a mouthful of fresh blood as his body recoiled violently several hundred zhang!
Yet his eyes remained bright, devoid of the slightest discouragement.
He exhaled a turbid breath, forcibly suppressing the surging blood in his chest.
An immense, terrifying pressure abruptly erupted from his body.
The half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm!
He finally understood what the half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm truly meant...
"So only those who touch the barrier of laws can be called half-step Tribulation Transcendence.
"Yet... that final boundless sea of lightning, what does it truly take to control the laws?"
This time, Li Guanqi chose not to ask the sword spirit.
He wanted to rely on his own strength to cultivate step by step.
Perhaps the sword spirit was the best teacher, and an answer for her would merely be a sentence or two.
Yet Li Guanqi did not want to rely on the sword spirit for everything.
Such a habit might seem harmless in the short term, but as time passed, he could very well lose his ability to think independently!
When that day came, no matter how great his talent, losing his independent thought would reduce him to nothing more than an ordinary mortal!
Watching Li Guanqi lost in thought, the sword spirit in the distance understood his reasoning.
The corners of her lips curved upward slightly. This time, she did not guide him, leaving him to ponder on his own.
Li Guanqi consolidated his foundation in the half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm, yet he did not reach out to touch that barrier again.
No matter how many times he rehearsed it in his mind, he would inevitably be swallowed by that monstrous sea of lightning, leaving him no chance of success...
Perhaps that was why so many powerhouses remained stuck before the threshold.
Seeing this, the sword spirit said nothing. Each attempt Li Guanqi made to break through still brought him immense benefits.
Slowly opening his eyes, Li Guanqi felt his body brimming with strength.
Compared to when he had stepped out of the Seventh Domain, the difference was night and day!
Now, Li Guanqi truly understood what it felt like to hold overwhelming superiority in strength!
Only then did he notice the phantom of the Nirvana Pagoda beside him.
In the distance, the sword spirit looked slightly pale. Seeing Li Guanqi awaken, she dispersed the pagoda's projection.
Pengluo separated from the merged state, its cheeks sunken and dark circles beneath its eyes...
At the center of the thunder pool, only half of the lightning spiritual liquid remained.
With a wave of Li Guanqi's hand, he collected all of the remaining spiritual liquid.
As for the remaining lightning energy along the outer perimeter, he had Jiuxiao absorb it all.
Even after manifesting its true form, Jiuxiao could only absorb two-thirds before being forced into a deep slumber.
Shriveled and emaciated, Pengluo threw caution to the wind and absorbed what it could, its body shuddering from the electric shocks the entire time.
The sword spirit smiled faintly. As her figure began to dissipate, she spoke:
"Do not try to simulate it in your mind. Experience it firsthand."
With that, her form dissolved into flecks of spiritual light and vanished.
Li Guanqi lowered his head and murmured, "Experience it firsthand?"
Yet the moment he recalled the agony of lightning piercing through his soul, he could not help but shudder.
Even so, he gritted his teeth, preparing to enter secluded cultivation again after returning to the Seventh Domain!
He glanced back toward the distant void, in the direction of his sect.
This time, however, he had no plans to return there.
The Great Xia Sword Sect was now the undisputed premier sect of the Great Xia Domain.
Moreover, it was supported by his Guanyun Pavilion, whose merchant guild spanned the Six Domains.
With Guanyun Pavilion and Baibao Pavilion collaborating and growing together, both had achieved remarkable progress.
Those close to him had received abundant cultivation resources, their cultivation progressing by leaps and bounds.
Turning to look at Pengluo, Li Guanqi frowned and asked, "How long have I been in seclusion this time?"
Pengluo calculated the time conversion of the Nirvana Pagoda, counting on its fingers before answering, "Almost a year."
Li Guanqi paused, momentarily stunned. Which meant...
In the outside world, nearly three months had passed?
A bitter smile touched his lips.
He had often heard that for cultivators, a single seclusion could pass like a century in the blink of an eye.
He had always felt that such seclusions were far too distant from him.
Yet immersed in cultivation and enlightenment, he had not sensed the passage of time at all.
To think that in what felt like a fleeting moment, nearly a year had already gone by.
Though only a little over two months had passed outside, he had genuinely cultivated for nearly ten months.
Letting out a sigh, Li Guanqi exhaled a turbid breath and said softly, "Let's go. It's time for us to head back."
With that, Li Guanqi's figure blurred, and he appeared a hundred li away!
Coming to a stop, Li Guanqi stared in astonishment!
"How... am I so fast?!"
Pengluo emerged from the void and said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "Of course you are.
"Master, your physical body is now comparable to that of a Tribulation Transcendence realm body tempering martial artist.
"Tearing through space is nothing to you now.
"Besides... did you think the half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm was that simple?
"You are already standing before the barrier of laws. Just the power leaking from that crack is enough to elevate your current strength to an entirely new level.
"Your affinity with space, your application of lightning energy, and your fundamental power have all received tremendous boosts."
Li Guanqi frowned upon hearing this. "Back then, Chan Kongzi was also in the half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm. Why didn't he experience such changes?"
Pengluo shrugged and said frankly, "Because he hadn't torn open the barrier... he had merely touched its presence.
"Whereas you, my dear master, have already ripped a tear right through it..."
Recalling the auras of the Seven Generals in his mind, Li Guanqi murmured, "No wonder Senior Long Hou's aura felt somewhat different from the others!"
Chapter 1275