"Someone is crossing a tribulation again."
In the Netherworld's realm of reincarnation, an abyss of profound darkness, only the wheel of reincarnation emitted a light that lured ghosts, drawing the spirits wandering the underworld toward it one after another.
God King Xuanyu frowned slightly and addressed the other God Kings. "Have you noticed? The heavenly tribulation has been stirred once more. And what is more, it is in the Yuanshou world."
God King Xuanchen's voice rasped like an owl from the darkness on the other side of the reincarnation wheel. "I felt it. This tribulation is extraordinary. It, too, was summoned using the Heavenly Dao, not descending through the normal course of things."
"There is bound to be a monstrous fiend in the Yuanshou world!" God King Xuanxing bellowed like thunder. "The one versed in nineteen hundred Heavenly Dao runes has struck again. He seeks to cultivate artificial immortals in the mortal realm. His intentions deserve death!"
God King Xuanhao's lips twitched, but he remained silent.
Even after all these days, the Dao injury on his body was far from healed. He could barely sense the abnormal ripples of the Heavenly Dao from the Yuanshou world, so he could not readily interject.
The four God Kings focused their senses, while Xuanhao merely put on a show.
After a moment, looks of astonishment dawned on the God Kings' faces.
God King Xuanyu said, "I originally believed this tribulation would be weakened by seventy percent. Who would have thought its power is actually more than ten percent greater than the super heavenly tribulations of the past?"
God King Xuanchen ventured a guess. "Could it be that the rebel who manipulated the tribulation is trying to control it to purge his own enemies?"
The other God Kings nodded in agreement. God King Xuanqing remarked, "This is the bitter fruit of mortals seizing control of the Heavenly Dao. Only when placed in the grasp of just and selfless heavenly gods can the desires surging from wielding the Heavenly Dao be suppressed."
God King Xuanxing sighed with feeling. "Heavenly gods are selfless and able to resist the temptations of the Heavenly Dao. Mortals can only fall prey to lust for power, using the Heavenly Dao to grant life and inflict death, giving vent to their own desires. Well then, everyone, do we need to intervene?"
"Our proper business is more urgent. Pay him no mind."
***
The tribulation had already begun.
The vegetable farmer was seized with panic. Ever since stepping into the Ascension stage, he had relied on a special method to evade heavenly tribulations, preventing his calamity fortune from being sensed.
If his calamity fortune could not be sensed, tribulation clouds could not form; without tribulation clouds, there was no need to cross a tribulation.
Ever since the Heavenly Dao world was formed and the heavenly gods took charge of the Heavenly Dao, the might of heavenly tribulations had continuously escalated, driving Qi Refiners who could not overcome them to devise all manner of evasive methods.
Some severed their own cultivation, leaving their realms incomplete—such as severing their Divine Bridges—to escape the tribulation.
Others made deep studies of the Heavenly Dao and learned to draw tribulation-avoiding talismans. There were also tribulation-avoiding curses, which cursed oneself to remain flawed and imperfect, thus slipping past the tribulation's notice.
The vegetable farmer's method was the substitute death method.
First, one used an esoteric art to transfer one's own calamity onto another Qi Refiner. When that Qi Refiner crossed their tribulation, one's own calamity would be extinguished in the process. However, the Qi Refiner crossing the tribulation was certain to die, which was why it was called the substitute death method.
Back then, he had used this very method to bring about the demise of his dearest friend.
The substitute death method required one's words, deeds, and even thoughts to align perfectly with the substitute's. It also required their fortunes to be linked, and demanded that the other party willingly accept one's calamity.
The vegetable farmer had plotted against his close friend, opening his heart, thinking what his friend thought, and rushing to his friend's aid, bit by bit leading the man to accept the calamity until he became the scapegoat while the farmer himself survived.
Now, the substitute death method had been directly shattered by Xu Ying!
He could feel his calamity returning with a vengeance, far more powerful than before. He was doomed!
"I will not die here! Never!"
He sprang to his feet and charged toward Xu Ying before the tribulation's full fury could erupt.
If only he could slay Xu Ying first, perhaps he could disrupt the tribulation and cause it to disperse!
His strength remained formidable. He was a Qi Refiner from the transition between Shang and Zhou, having lived through the war that destroyed Shang and survived every Great Cleansing of Weixu.
Very few people of his generation had survived to this day, yet he had endured.
His prowess stood at the peak of the mortal world!
Behind him, six great cave-heavens emerged. In an instant, his magic power surged to the utmost limit. Moving like a streak of light, he summoned his golden carrying pole, which crashed downward from afar like a golden rainbow.
If he killed Xu Ying, he would have vastly more room to maneuver.
Killing Xu Ying would not only free him from the heavenly tribulation, but even if the Mud Pill ancestral method harbored a trap, no one would know where it lay once Xu Ying was dead. The trap would cease to be a trap, and everyone could cultivate it.
Fishermen and leek harvesters like them could cultivate it as well!
Killing Xu Ying might not solve all problems, but it would solve most of them!
Xu Ying stood where he was. Suddenly, the seven-colored divine tree manifested behind him, its auspicious light and ethereal mist drifting upward like supple boughs to meet the descending golden carrying pole.
He had not obtained the Jade Pool Nuo ancestor cave-heaven that governed the depth of primordial qi. In terms of cultivation base, he was naturally far inferior to the vegetable farmer. Moreover, when clashing with divine abilities against a magic treasure, the treasure naturally held the advantage.
Yet the Dao phenomenon of that seven-colored divine tree was simply astonishing, displaying the miraculous sight of stars orbiting around it. Even the immortal trees atop the divine mountain of Kunlun had never exhibited such breathtaking phenomena!
The vegetable farmer brought down his golden carrying pole, the golden rainbow shattering ribbon after ribbon of auspicious light as he pressed fiercely forward.
This old farmer's manner of combat differed from ordinary men. Typical Qi Refiners often summoned magic treasures to attack from afar—such as taking heads with flying swords, suppressing foes with cauldrons, or tolling bells to shake souls and Primordial Spirits.
Yet he gripped the golden carrying pole in his hands, wielding it as a heavy weapon in close-quarters combat, his fighting style utterly unadorned.
The golden carrying pole held few intricate variations in his hands. The Dao phenomena embedded within it were merely simple images of the sun, moon, mountains, rivers, dragons, and phoenixes. When brought down, it carried only a single word: heaviness! With incomparable weight, it crushed all, pulverized all, and leveled all!
Dwelling within the domain of the six immortals, his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground unfolded, making him charge forward like an immortal. In truth, even an immortal might not possess a cultivation base as profound as his!
Brilliant light radiated from Xu Ying's body as his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground expanded. A giant bronze peak, sword qi piercing heaven and earth, reversed qiankun, a divine furnace that refined the eight wildernesses and swallowed the sun and moon, a chaotic sea of stars—all of these phenomena surged forth at once.
The instant their Hidden Scenery latent transformation grounds collided, the golden carrying pole smashed through Xu Ying's hidden immortal realm. Like a golden bridge falling from the Immortal Realm, it crashed down toward the crown of Xu Ying's head.
The seven-colored divine tree behind Xu Ying erupted with light, its branches dancing as they met the golden carrying pole.
*Boom!*
As the vegetable farmer's blow landed, both of their Hidden Scenery latent transformation grounds burst apart. The lights of their respective hidden sceneries expanded in an explosive wave, pulverizing the surrounding space and forming a surging ring of earth, water, wind, and fire that ballooned rapidly outward.
Within that churning ring, billowing smoke and dust could be seen alongside surging water and fire. Water and fire were inherently incompatible, yet here they astonishingly merged together.
This showed that under this clash, the rules of the world's Dao methods had been broken: Great Dao laws that could not coexist were fused, while compatible laws turned antagonistic, resulting in distorted Great Dao principles.
Seeing that ring of earth, water, wind, and fire expanding rapidly and shredding the space in its path, Yan Kongcheng's expression shifted drastically. He cried out hurriedly, "Patriarch, unleash the immortal artifact to protect Mount Emei!"
Without waiting for his prompt, Qiao Zizhong had already summoned Mount Emei's immortal artifact, the Ten Thousand Daos Flag.
Myriad Great Daos burst from the banner, ray upon ray, shielding the peaks of Mount Emei.
This treasure was a genuine immortal artifact left behind by Mount Emei's Supreme Patriarch who had ascended to the Immortal Realm, more than sufficient to withstand the shockwaves.
The vegetable farmer paid it no heed. With his golden carrying pole parried by Xu Ying, he swung it once more, battering down from every angle—high, low, left, and right.
His golden carrying pole was incomparably heavy. In close combat, it allowed him to unleash the power of his physical body and Primordial Spirit to the utter limit. At such a distance, his magic power, divine consciousness, primordial qi, heart power, and yin-yang qi suffered no dissipation whatsoever!
The golden carrying pole's might appeared far less dazzling than divine ability Dao phenomena, but it had already reached the realm of returning to truth. All sorts of Dao phenomena were concealed within the pole, their power erupting only when striking a solid object or encountering an opponent's divine ability!
In the next instant, the seven-colored divine tree was shattered by the golden carrying pole. At that very moment, behind the vegetable farmer, four great cave-heavens—Mud Pill, Bubbling Spring, Jade Capital, and Crimson Palace—suddenly spun and flew off in all directions into the sky like four drifting autumn leaves!
Though the vegetable farmer had shattered the seven-colored divine tree and pressed before Xu Ying, his physical body, Primordial Spirit, yin-yang qi, and heart power were simultaneously depleted to a severe degree. Only his magic power and divine consciousness remained at their peak!
His golden carrying pole struck Xu Ying's head, causing Xu Ying to stagger and his forehead to bleed.
The vegetable farmer's heart sank. This strike should have sent raging power directly into Xu Ying's body, crushing everything like dry weeds, battering his physical form to pieces, and grinding both his Realm of Xiyi and Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground into dust!
Yet this blow had merely split Xu Ying's forehead.
Without the four cave-heavens of Mud Pill, Bubbling Spring, Jade Capital, and Crimson Palace, his strength had been drastically diminished.
Xu Ying reached out. A ray of sword light descended from his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground into his hand, parrying the golden carrying pole.
The two stood in midair, locked in close combat. Xu Ying's swordsmanship had long surpassed the Sword Dao Return to Truth Art obtained from the Sword Sect. The sword technique he executed was named Sword Leveling the Unlevel—a single sword to level all the world's injustices—and it had already achieved the state of returning to truth.
The vegetable farmer brandished his golden carrying pole, striking high, low, left, and right, never straying from Xu Ying's head, but every strike was fended off by the sword light.
Suddenly, with a sharp hiss, Xu Ying's sword qi pierced past his golden carrying pole and left a cut across his chest, neither too shallow nor too deep.
The vegetable farmer was shaken. Then came another hiss as a second streak of sword light thrust in, piercing the exact same wound!
Without a second thought, he feinted and turned to flee. Tossing the golden carrying pole out, it transformed into a golden rainbow spanning a hundred li. Standing at the other end of the pole, the vegetable farmer had already appeared a hundred li away. Even with Xu Ying's peerless divine abilities, he could not catch up in time.
To have survived until this day, he naturally possessed extraordinary life-saving methods.
Yet at that very moment, the sky turned blindingly bright. A column of lightning several li thick plummeted from the heavens, crashing straight down upon the crown of the vegetable farmer's head at the far end of the rainbow bridge.
Before the vegetable farmer could even utter a groan, he tumbled headlong from the bridge.
Another bolt of heavenly thunder crashed down from the sky, blasting toward the spot where he fell.
His heavenly tribulation had begun!
Struck by the heavenly thunder, the vegetable farmer miraculously did not die. He staggered to his feet. A second bolt descended, resembling the Lord of Heaven from myth wielding a sword, thrusting straight down toward his head.
"Even Old Man Heaven cannot take me!"
His eyebrows and beard bristled with rage. He summoned his Primordial Spirit and pointed at the sky, cursing furiously, "I, Cang Yuelou, have been a mighty hero all my life! Were it not for this goddamned heavenly tribulation, I would have ascended to the Immortal Realm long ago! Why would I need to be trapped in the lower realm, barely clinging to life like an ant?!"
He hurled the golden carrying pole into the air, turning it into a hundred-li golden rainbow. His Primordial Spirit swung this rainbow bridge, aiming not at the heavenly thunder, but smashing directly toward the tribulation clouds in the sky, shouting fiercely, "I will smash you to pieces, you unjust Heaven!"
*Rumble!*
The heavenly tribulation crashed down, striking his Primordial Spirit, while a slender streak of lightning landed on his forehead.
The head of his Primordial Spirit nearly burst apart, blooming like a blossom and splitting into many petals.
The vegetable farmer's forehead was also struck, yet unlike his Primordial Spirit, it did not shatter. Instead, a hairline fracture appeared at the crown of his skull like the trace of a sword mark, as though a Lord of Heaven had truly thrust a sword into his crown.
His Primordial Spirit struggled to pull itself back together. The golden carrying pole he had hurled slammed into the thousand-li tribulation clouds, parting them, but the clouds immediately rolled back together, completely undamaged.
Heaven seemed genuinely enraged. Slender arcs of lightning darted out from the clouds, striking the golden carrying pole one after another, sending electric sparks flying across its surface.
Under the relentless lightning strikes, the golden carrying pole's power steadily waned, and many of its imprints and Dao phenomena were blasted to pieces.
The vegetable farmer roared, soaring into the sky alongside his Primordial Spirit to charge at the heavenly tribulation. "Heaven treats the world unfairly, forcing even the most brilliant geniuses to eat people in the mortal realm! I will fight Heaven to the end!"
His Primordial Spirit grasped the golden carrying pole amidst the lightning. The pole had already been scorched red-hot by the thunder, melting as molten gold and bronze poured from it in streams.
A bolt of heavenly thunder detonated across the sky, colliding with the vegetable farmer's ascending figure.
Atop Mount Emei, Yan Kongcheng, Chu Xiangxiang, Yuan Qi, and the others shielded their eyes against the piercing lightning.
In the instant the thunder exploded, they caught a glimpse of blood bursting amidst the lightning, with shredded flesh dancing through the electrical glare.
Qiao Zizhong's hand trembled involuntarily. He swiftly clenched his fist, thinking silently, *Our era has passed.*
A boundless desolation rose within him, mingled with a sense of release. He thought, *A new era is likely coming. Although ascension is still impossible, and although the heavenly tribulation remains hard to overcome, it is filled with new hope.*
*Crack!*
Another colossal bolt of heavenly thunder crashed down, striking midair.
Yan Kongcheng, Chu Xiangxiang, and the others strained to look. Amidst the tribulation, even more flesh and blood disintegrated. Through the glare of the lightning, they could vaguely see a figure falling and a Primordial Spirit shattering into pieces.
The power of this super heavenly tribulation was far more terrifying than the super heavenly tribulations of old. Even though its might had increased by only ten percent, even without any increase, it was far beyond what the vegetable farmer could match.
He stood no chance of crossing this heavenly tribulation!
*Boom!*
Yet another bolt of thunder fell. Amidst the lightning, the vegetable farmer's Primordial Spirit turned to flying ash, and his body plummeted.
The golden carrying pole was also melted by the lightning strikes, pouring downward like a waterfall of molten gold and copper.
He seemed to have one breath left, but another bolt of heavenly thunder caught up with him, blasting his body.
His corpse burst apart, turning into a fireball that plunged downward.
Xu Ying withdrew his gaze and turned to walk back toward Yan Kongcheng and the others. Behind him in the sky, the swirling tribulation clouds rapidly faded from pitch-black and heavy to faint wisps.
By the time he stepped back onto Mount Emei, sunlight poured through the parting tribulation clouds, stained with radiant color, stretching ten thousand li in brilliant morning glow.
The peaks of Mount Emei bathed in the rosy light, resembling an immortal realm.
*A new era has truly arrived,* Qiao Zizhong thought silently.
Chapter 306