Inside his purple palace.
The Yin-Yang Armor had long since been torn apart by the bifeng wind, but the jade Buddha shone with brilliant golden light, holding back the bifeng wind and fiercely protecting Qin Sang's origin soul. He could have allowed the bifeng wind in just as before, tempering his origin soul to reap the benefits.
Yet Qin Sang did not do so.
For one, once he formed his Nascent Soul, he should be able to cultivate the Fire Seed Golden Lotus, so he would not lack opportunities for tempering.
Second, Qin Sang had an ominous premonition: the lightning tribulation might undergo an anomaly!
Qin Sang's expression was gravely solemn. Ignoring the rampaging fury of the bifeng wind, he opened his eyes and gazed up into the firmament.
Yunyouzi was a fusion of human and demon souls.
Qin Sang was not; his situation was far closer to body possession.
Qin Sang remembered Yunyouzi mentioning that one had to survive this tribulation to gain the Heavenly Dao's acknowledgment.
Could it be that those who possessed bodies were reviled by the Heavenly Dao and intolerable to heaven and earth, branded as defying the natural order? Did the power of their first lightning tribulation surge drastically, forcing them to pass this trial?
If they failed to survive it, their body would perish and their Dao dissolve.
If they survived, it was tantamount to a rebirth, granting them the Heavenly Dao's acknowledgment.
Or was it that only anomalies like him and Yunyouzi had to go through this?
These thoughts flashed through Qin Sang's mind before being swiftly suppressed. Thinking too much now was useless; he had to exert every ounce of his strength to face the lightning tribulation!
*Whoosh!*
The bifeng wind grew stronger and stronger, yet it remained unable to shake the jade Buddha in the slightest. Finally, after raging for a time and reaching its peak, it dispersed in all directions.
Outside, the onlookers had also noticed the anomaly.
Recalling that a similar scene had occurred when Yunyouzi underwent his tribulation, Li Yufu felt an ominous premonition rise within his heart. He hurriedly flew to Bai's side, his face pale with panic.
"Senior..."
Bai shook his head, staring at the tribulation clouds without saying a word.
At last, the bifeng wind dissipated.
The tribulation clouds coalesced. Dark storm clouds transformed into true tribulation clouds, arcs of lightning slithering like flood dragons through the vapor. Countless flashes of lightning converged as the tribulation cloud expanded at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Gradually, the lightning within the tribulation cloud took on a cyan hue—the tribulation lightning had manifested!
Bai and Li Yufu stared unblinkingly at the center of the tribulation cloud, dreading that tragedy would repeat itself and golden light or other-colored lightning would appear. Fortunately, even as the cyan tribulation lightning filled the skies and the tribulation clouds fully formed, no anomaly appeared.
Li Yufu's heart was in his throat.
He could not even help wondering if Qin Sang shared an origin similar to Yunyouzi's; otherwise, why would their bond be so deep? Such friendship was exceedingly rare in the cultivation world.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness..."
Seeing that the tribulation cloud was of a single color, Li Yufu's tension eased slightly.
Bai said in a low voice, "Every person's tribulation is not entirely identical. Your Martial Uncle might have done something that caused an anomaly in the bifeng wind tribulation. Still, it is too early to tell how powerful the tribulation lightning will be..."
Before his words had fully faded—
*Crack!*
Thunder rumbled within the tribulation cloud, instantly brewing a bolt of tribulation lightning. The moment it appeared, it pierced through the void like a sharp sword and cleaved straight downward!
On the island, the defensive grand formation projected a luminous barrier.
The tribulation lightning crashed violently against the spirit formation. The barrier shuddered violently, neutralizing a portion of the strike's power before finally being torn open by the lightning.
At some point, Qin Sang had already summoned his ebony sword. At the sight, with a thought, the ebony sword split into dozens of sword lights that spiraled upward, shredding the remaining power of the tribulation lightning.
The barrier wavered a few times and knit back together.
Having witnessed the might of the heavenly tribulation when Yunyouzi underwent his tribulation, Qin Sang made a mental comparison and felt that the power of his tribulation lightning was not as terrifying as the dual-colored lightning; perhaps he had overthought things.
The tribulation cloud paused for not a single instant, raining down tribulation lightning like a deluge.
The ebony sword weaved and darted, proactively striking to shatter any lightning that penetrated the spirit formation.
The Heavenly Eye Butterfly also flew out from his qi sea and settled upon Qin Sang's shoulder.
The carapace of the Nine-Life Black Tortoise covered Qin Sang's body, serving as his final line of defense to block the stray threads of lightning.
Qin Sang tried sending out the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, letting it seize the opportunity to devour the lightning threads in hopes of enhancing its abilities; the tribulation lightning suffered no anomaly because of this.
The grand heritage of the Witch Clan was indeed extraordinary; his natal insect gu was truly one with him, not deemed an external helper by the Heavenly Dao.
Seeing this, Qin Sang nodded inwardly and focused wholly on weathering the lightning tribulation.
*Rumble, rumble...*
Peals of thunder rolled in ceaseless waves. Qin Sang could hear nothing else, his vision entirely filled with piercing cyan lightning.
Wave after wave of tribulation lightning struck down, each more terrifying than the last, leaving the spirit formation's barrier tottering on the brink of collapse.
Initially, the sword lights manifested by the ebony sword were barely enough to manage, but by now Qin Sang had swallowed medicinal pills to replenish his true essence and was forced to unleash his sword formation against the lightning.
*Crack!*
Yet another bolt of tribulation lightning.
The tribulation cloud remained just as thick and oppressive, with no end in sight.
Qin Sang's face darkened. He pinched an incantation, and the sword formation abruptly erupted with pillars of light that soared into the sky, surging upward against the descending lightning!
*Boom!*
At last, the defensive spirit formation reached its limits and could hold no longer. Its restriction implements turned to ash one after another.
At the same time, the tribulation lightning broke through the obstruction of the sword formation and, carrying its lingering might, plummeted toward the crown of Qin Sang's head. With a cold snort, Qin Sang instantly unleashed the divine ability of the Heavenly Demon Transformation. Flapping his wings, he rocketed upward and threw a devastating punch.
In an instant, thousands of fist shadows exploded forth.
"Break!"
With a thunderous shout, the tribulation lightning shattered.
The void lit up as bright as day. In midair, a figure materialized, bathed in lightning.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment. With cyan light suffusing his fists, Qin Sang had actually pulverized the tribulation lightning!
Yet the tribulation cloud had no interest in admiring his prowess; more lightning struck in relentless succession.
Relying on his formidable physique and the sword formation, Qin Sang dispersed bolt after bolt of tribulation lightning. Like a demon god, he was knocked down time and again, only to charge back toward the tribulation cloud with unyielding persistence, wrestling against the heavenly tribulation without an ounce of surrender.
By this point, Qin Sang finally realized what was wrong.
Though his heavenly tribulation was not a dual-colored one, the number of lightning strikes he had endured already exceeded what Yunyouzi had faced, and it was still far from over.
Solemn-faced, Qin Sang took advantage of a gap between lightning strikes to swallow another pill and hold the line. The Heavenly Eye Butterfly also unleashed its divine abilities, aiding its master through the ordeal.
Each bolt was stronger than the last, only to be crushed again and again by Qin Sang.
*Rumble, rumble...*
The thunder within the cloud roared like the wrath of heaven itself, enraged by this tenacious insect.
Just then, the swirling tribulation cloud ground to a halt. A dense surge of cyan light erupted, and all the lightning power coalesced into a single bolt, venting outward in one final roar.
"The final strike!"
Seeing the massive pillar of lightning flash toward him, Qin Sang felt his heart tighten. To err on the side of caution, he swallowed a Wuhuan Pill and flicked his fingers; twelve demonic banners leaped from the ground, instantly forming a formation.
The Nine Nether Demonic Fire blazed furiously, creating a barrier above Qin Sang.
In the next breath, the tribulation lightning clashed against the demonic flame!
*Hiss, sizzle...*
The two forces collided and canceled each other out, but the demonic flame gave way first, torn apart by the tribulation lightning.
The remaining might was still not to be underestimated. Qin Sang roared, pushing the Heavenly Demon Transformation to its utmost limit. Veins bulged across his entire body, his bones popping with explosive force as he struck fiercely against the lightning!
*Bang!*
Dust and smoke billowed in all directions, and an entire layer of the mountain peak was sheared away. Qin Sang, charred black from head to toe, rolled to his feet.
With the inner demon tribulation still to follow, he paid no heed to his injuries and hurriedly sat cross-legged to focus his spirit.
To his surprise, no inner demons seemed to appear.
Everything was normal.
Qin Sang could clearly sense Li Yufu and the others flying hurriedly in his direction, leaving him somewhat at a loss.
Chapter 1154