Therefore, after much thought, he decided to wait a little longer.
Besides, the great tribulation had only just ended, and most of the evil filth accumulated in the Primal Spirit Realm had been cleansed; even if some remained, it would not impede the worldâs development.
So, in this situation, even if Li Zhirui purified all the remaining evil filth, it wouldnât count as any great merit, and the Heavenly Dao would naturally grant little merit in return.
"Sigh!"
At this thought, he couldnât help but sigh; some things were just wishful thinking on his partâhow could events always go as he wanted?
Thankfully, Li Zhirui was not in any hurry. Since his realm could no longer advance, he could simply take pills to increase his own mana.
As for why he didnât absorb natureâs spiritual energy? That was also to lessen the karmic debt he owed.
...
The flower blooms in two places, each bares its branch.
When the stable era, decades after the great tribulation, had passed, the Western Continent erupted in war once again!
But this time, the Demonic Tao didnât strike at the Sea Clan; after all, the Sea Clan was far too troublesome and formidable. For now, all they could do was lay out layers of checkpoints and defensive lines, blocking the Sea Clan from seizing any more territory.
The Demonic Taoâs sights fell on the Ghost Clan, who took advantage amidst the chaos but were ignored by all other factions!
Were it not for their peculiar origin, the Ghost Clanâs power and numbers would not be enough to earn them a place alongside Immortal Demon and other factions.
Yet, such a faction, overlooked by all, even deemed not worth paying any attention to, managed to seize a sizable territory in the West Continent, just as the Demonic Tao could not muster extra strength.
Now that the Demonic Tao had regained some strength, they wasted no time in expelling the Ghost Clanâotherwise, it would be too disgraceful.
But no one expected, the Demonic Tao would embarrass themselves even more!
"Ghost Clan inside, listen up! Surrender now and save your lives, or face utter destruction!" One demon cultivator took a step forward, shouting loudly, trying to pressure the Ghost Clan.
But the Ghost Clan remained unmoved, only waiting in battle formation for the demon cultivators to attack.
"Since you are so stubborn, donât blame me for being ruthless!"
With that, he signaled his demon cultivators to launch their assault, determined to capture the defensive stronghold as soon as possible.
Rumbleââ
In that instant, all kinds of spirit lights flashed, divine powers with frightening force crashed into the Ghost Clanâs defensive structures, stirring up clouds of dustâyet causing little real damage.
No one knew where the Ghost Clan had learned it, but their defensive buildings were remarkably sturdy. And with their desperate resistance, they managed to block the Demonic Taoâs repeated attacks!
Judging by the scene, the Demonic Tao would have to pay a steep price, or else there really was no way to reclaim this land!
Once word spread, not only did many clueless factions mock the demon cultivators, but some factions began to reassess the Ghost Clanâs strength.
Even Li Zhirui, upon hearing about this later and carefully reviewing the intelligence, couldnât help but sigh: "Looks like the Ghost Clan has quietly grown in places no one noticed!"
Perhaps for now, their power could not compare to the likes of Immortal Tao, Demonic Tao, or Divine Path; but it was impossible to sweep them away quickly now.
Mount Wanxian, inside Jiang Fengwuâs closed-door cultivation cave mansion.
At this moment, Jiang Fengwuâs cultivation had reached the peak of Earth Immortal, just a hairâs breadth from breaking through to Heavenly Immortal!
Though it looked as if she might cross the threshold at any moment and attain the Heavenly Immortalâs dignity, this barrier had troubled her for nearly a thousand years.
It could be said her luck was poorâjust when she finally showed signs of breaking through, the great tribulation suddenly erupted!
The Tribulation Evil Energy quickly swept the world, making it entirely unsuitable for cultivation, and naturally, Jiang Fengwuâs opportunity to break through vanished.
Logically, she should have chosen to exit seclusion, settle her karma, and wait until the tribulation ended. Then, with the world clear and the Laws manifest, it might have been a great chance to break the chains and invite the Heavenly Tribulation.
But she did not; instead, she chose the same method as Li Zhirui, using merit to resolve karma, thus eliminating the need to exit seclusion.
During the decades of the great tribulation, unable to cultivate and comprehend the Laws, Jiang Fengwu began preparing for the imminent Thunder Tribulationâfor example, she personally started refining array flags and array plates from scratch.
Although she could use Void Array, its strength still fell short of traditional formations, and advance preparations were always prudent.
Thus, Jiang Fengwu stayed in her cave mansion, refining the Great Array, and also summarized her own Array Tao.
If anything unforeseen happened, at least her inheritance would be preserved.
When the great tribulation passed, she seized the opportunity, wholly focused on comprehending the Laws and striving for her breakthrough.
Finally!
After an untold number of hundred-year stretches of effort, Jiang Fengwu stepped across the final boundary.
Rumbleââ
On this day, over Mount Wanxian, lightning flashed and thunder roared, dark clouds churned, Tribulation Clouds quickly gathered, expanding ever further.
It was a long while before the expansion ceased.
"This is..."
Seeing such enormous clouds, one clansman exclaimed, overwhelmed with excitement and fear: "Heavenly Immortal Realm Thunder Tribulation!"
Without him saying so, as everyone calmed down, they all realized what was happening.
An old ancestor of their clan was about to attempt a breakthrough to the Heavenly Immortal Realm!
This was the clanâs first Heavenly Immortal Thunder Tribulation since the great tribulation, after so many years.
At this moment, Jiang Fengwu slowly emerged from her cave mansion, stepping onto an open ground, as if waiting for something.
A thunderous boom, as if awakening the whole worldâand right after came a massive Tribulation Thunder.
"The tribulation has just begun, and the thunder is already so fierce? Or has the Heavenly Dao quietly increased the power of the Thunder Tribulation?"
All the clansmen were shaken by this first bolt, some even felt despair, thinking that if the first Tribulation Thunder was this strong, those that followed would surely be even more terrifyingâperhaps ending in unspeakable tragedy...
Thankfully, Jiang Fengwu was not so easily defeated!
No matter how fierce the Tribulation Thunder, she still fended it off with seeming ease, without using the formations she had refined herself, only layering Void Arrays one after another to barely withstand it.
The Thunder Tribulation gave her no respiteâin just a few breaths, the second bolt shot toward her at incredible speed.
Clang!
A brilliant golden defensive array appeared faster still before Jiang Fengwu and absorbed the Tribulation Thunder directly.