Triggering the Mystic Immortal Tribulation!

Behind him, Zhao He and the others drew ever closer! They were less than a thousand zhang from Li Guanqi now. The black-armored guards fanned out, converging on Li Guanqi from all sides in an encircling pincer movement. Clink! A crisp sound chimed in his ears. A surge of joy rose in Li Guanqi's heart; the spiritual sense seal on the storage ring in his hand had finally been wiped away. Sweeping his divine sense inside, he at last found a yellowed, ancient jade slip tucked away in the deepest corner of the storage space. Several large characters were carved upon it: *Juque Heart Method!* Li Guanqi swept his divine sense across the slip, and its contents instantly flooded into his mind. His eyes half-closed as a shimmering spiritual light flickered between his brows. In an instant, a refreshing coolness flowed through his entire body. To Li Guanqi's surprise, the text did not seem obscure or difficult to decipher in the least. With just a single glance, he understood the profound, enigmatic incantations, grasping them at a remarkably deep level. A monstrous, peerless aptitude for comprehension—and it had only fully blossomed upon reaching the Immortal Realm. Li Guanqi murmured under his breath, "Is this why Grandfather urged me so vehemently to hide it?" Boom! Dozens of incoming attacks descended right on his heels! Snapped awake from that wondrous state, Li Guanqi spun around, raising Red Lotus and slashing furiously! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! The clash of metal against metal rang out in a flurry as dense as a downpour. The tremendous force rattled Li Guanqi, forcing him backward step by step. Zhao He's power was far greater than when they had clashed before, the immortal essence within him surging violently. By the looks of it, he had swallowed some kind of medicinal pill beforehand. Li Guanqi's eyes flickered, his gaze narrowing as he peered through the sword light at the enemies surrounding him. *They are dead set on slaying me!* He closed his eyes, gauging the strength flowing within his body. "Li Congxin! Won't you surrender and accept your capture?!" Zhao He roared, unleashing several consecutive attacks with a wave of his hand. Immortal essence surged within Li Guanqi as his aura climbed to the half-step Mystic Immortal realm, exuding an imposing might. Clang! Clang! Boom! "Surrender? Heh, you expect me to stretch out my neck and wait for the blade?" Riiip! A jolt went through Li Guanqi's heart as a bloody gash was torn open across his back. A black-armored guard's sword dripped with fresh blood, murderous intent burning in the only visible part of his face—his eyes. Li Guanqi twisted aside to dodge, whipping his sword around in a backhanded slash aimed straight at the guard's neck. Yet the guard reacted with astonishing speed. The moment Li Guanqi swung, the guard leaned aside, evading the strike. Li Guanqi flicked his wrist, dragging the blade across horizontally at even greater speed. Slash! The black-armored guard retreated explosively through the air, raising a hand to wipe the blood from his cheek, his eyes filled with utmost vigilance. In that split second just now, if not for his swift reflexes and the armor absorbing part of the force, he would have already lost his life. Only now did he truly understand why Zhao He had brought them all along. Yet before the arrogant Zhao He could speak, everyone looked up toward the heavens in sheer terror! Clouds suddenly gathered over what had been a clear, boundless sky, and dense, dark thunderheads blanketed the horizon. Gales howled, rain poured down in torrents, and heavenly thunder rumbled relentlessly. Li Guanqi's long hair whipped in the wind, his robes billowing violently. A faint, playful smirk played upon his lips. "Since you came, none of you are leaving." The moment his words fell, a horrified Zhao He felt an indescribably terrifying heavenly majesty descend! "Run! Run!" "He's breaking through to the Mystic Immortal realm!" "Run, it's the Immortal Induction Tribulation!" The guards scattered in terror, but how could Li Guanqi let them escape so easily? A barrier of lightning and fire spanning more than three hundred zhang crashed down from the sky! Boom! Countless giant lightning pythons lunged toward them. In an instant, the massive serpents coiled tightly, trapping several men in place with no way out. Li Guanqi softly recited the incantation of the Immortal Induction Record under his breath: *Chaos unfolds, the spirit source appears, extending the path of immortal ascent.* *Stars guide, the cosmos turns, will stirs the changes of the nine heavens.* Rumble! Gales howled, thunder roared, and arcs of lightning danced between the churning clouds. *Five elements blend, samsara is born, unifying to form the immortal body.* *Mind like water, mirroring truth, quietly observing all things anew.* *The void swallows the solid, heaven and earth taken in, qi brims as the body finds ease.* *Tempered by lightning and fire, the soul stands firm, fearlessly braving the tribulation.* The boundless heavenly majesty was countless times more terrifying than Li Guanqi's ascension tribulation! His face paled slightly; he had never felt such horrifying worldly pressure before. The force of the thunder seemed as though it would tear him apart. *Leaping through space-time, concealed in void, vanishing into formlessness.* *Harmonizing with the Immortal Dao, turning adversity to affinity, ascending into the Mystic Heavens.* As the final verse of the Immortal Induction Record fell, the tribulation thunderclouds in the firmament already spanned an area of a thousand zhang! Zhao He struggled frantically and managed to tear free of the lightning pythons' coils. When he tried to step in and help the others, it was already too late. The remaining men were completely pinned down by the immense heavenly majesty, unable to budge an inch. After all, they were only late-stage Ascension Realm cultivators; hoping to break free of a Mystic Immortal heavenly tribulation's restraint was nothing short of a pipe dream. At this moment, only that earlier black-armored guard had managed to escape. He stood outside the tribulation's range, shoulder to shoulder with Zhao He. Beneath the shattered armor, the resolute face of a middle-aged man was exposed. A line of blood ran down his cheek. He stared icily at the youth standing suspended in midair. With grave eyes, he asked in a low, heavy voice, "Just where did this fellow come from? Which Spirit Realm is he a Realm Lord of?" Zhao He narrowed his eyes and transmitted his voice in a whisper, "I don't know... But judging by his strength, he is very likely from the Youhuang Realm that the higher-ups spoke of! Only cultivators from the Youhuang Realm could possibly ascend to the Immortal Realm with such formidable power. Most cultivators from other Spirit Realms choose to ascend shortly after breaking through to the Mahayana Realm. Only in the Youhuang Realm are there so many Tribulation Transcendence and Ascension Realm cultivators!" With that, Zhao He turned to look at the man beside him and said in a grave voice, "Fu Yi, send a message to the Grand Commander. Tell him we have found a suspected ascendant from the Youhuang Realm!" Fu Yi frowned. "He's merely someone newly stepping into the Mystic Immortal realm. Is that really worth alarming the Grand Commander and having them return?" Zhao He cast a chilly glance at him. Reaching out, he pressed his fingers against the scorched wound on Fu Yi's face, his voice biting and cold. "Tell me... if he truly breaks through to the Mystic Immortal realm, how many moves do you think he'd need to kill you? Furthermore... since when do my orders carry no weight?" Zhao He's fingertips dug into Fu Yi's flesh like sharp blades! A piercing pain tore through him, and cold sweat broke out across Fu Yi's forehead. Though he looked down on Zhao He, there was no denying that Zhao He's status and rank were indeed higher than his own! Fu Yi's face paled, and he hastily dropped to one knee in salute. "This subordinate understands..." With that, Fu Yi retrieved a jade slip to transmit the message. Zhao He stared icily at Li Guanqi beneath the firmament. "Hmph, reckless fool. You don't honestly think a heavenly tribulation in the Immortal Realm is of the same caliber as one in a Spirit Realm, do you?" At that moment, immortal essence surged around Li Guanqi, unleashing rampant, violent power without restraint! His mind was immersed in an exquisitely profound state. In this instant, he felt as though he had become a speck of spiritual light born of heaven and earth. And the boundless heavenly majesty was now scrutinizing him, waiting to acknowledge him as one of the Immortal Realm's own. The trial before him was this very Mystic Immortal Tribulation!