Chapter 442 - 344: Lightning Tribulation, Breaking Through Hao Zhix, Surge in Power

Celestial Thunder rained down from the sky, while Fiery Flame scorched the earth—leaving Zhu Hu with nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

Endless Flame instantly coiled around Zhu Hu’s ankles and wrists, binding him up tight like a trussed pig.

With a single grab, Lin Chang’sheng yanked Zhu Hu into the ground with the overwhelming Power of Fiery Flame, engulfing him in fire in an instant.

"Ah—ah—"

From within the flames, Zhu Hu let out bloodcurdling, soul-rending screams. When the last of his Primordial Power finally drained away and he could no longer resist the flames, he was burned to nothing but a skeleton.

"The Hall Master is dead! The Hall Master is dead—"

A Black Tiger Hall leader cried out in shock. He had thought they’d wipe out Moon Worship Manor on this mission; never did he imagine they’d fail to kill a single person—and now the Hall Master himself, Zhu Hu, was dead.

Did that mean they would soon follow?

The army’s morale shattered. Now, all anyone could think of was escape—no one even considered fighting anymore.

As panic swept through the ranks, the Power of Fiery Flame and the awesome might of Celestial Thunder only intensified. In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, all thirty thousand Black Tiger Hall members had perished within the Grand Array.

This included the Hall Master Zhu Hu, Zhu Bao, other Void Refining powerhouses, and over a dozen Divinity Transformation Cultivators—none escaped.

"This..."

The aging Grand Elder of Moon Worship Manor was so stunned by the sight that he was left speechless.

To annihilate over thirty thousand Black Tiger Hall members with this array—and it only took a single incense stick’s time?

One could only imagine how terrifyingly powerful this array was.

While Lin Chang’sheng was wiping out the Black Tiger Hall, a breakthrough began bubbling within him, fueled by the magical power he’d absorbed from the thirty thousand cultivators.

RUMBLE——

The sky overhead darkened with thunderclouds, signaling the arrival of the Nine-Nine Celestial Tribulation.

When the crowd around Moon Worship Manor saw this, they were even more shocked beyond words.

Lin Chang’sheng is actually about to break through to the Void Refining Stage?

You should know—even the prodigies of our Immortal Realm struggle to reach Void Refining at Lin Chang’sheng’s age.

Only the most peerless geniuses have this kind of potential.

"He actually brought on the Lightning Tribulation?"

Even Lin Chang’sheng felt a little surprised. In cultivation, people said each breakthrough on the path to immortality became more and more heaven-defying, requiring one to withstand the test of Celestial Thunder.

If you make it through, your cultivation leaps forward.

Fail, and you die—body and soul destroyed.

"But why did Su Changkong go through a Celestial Tribulation when advancing to Divinity Transformation, but I only get it now when reaching Void Refining?"

As he thought about it, Lin Chang’sheng was puzzled once again.

Maybe it was because he had achieved Flawless Divinity Transformation, and thus skipped tribulation at that stage.

In the distance, Wine Sword Immortal, Cao De and the others saw Lin Chang’sheng about to face a Celestial Tribulation and were completely stunned.

"No way! Lin Chang’sheng actually broke through that bottleneck, and he’s about to advance to Void Refining Stage?"

Cao De was so shocked his jaw nearly hit the ground.

He himself hadn’t even reached Nascent Soul yet, and Lin Chang’sheng was already making a break for Void Refining?

That put two whole Great Realms between them—

He’d probably never catch up in this lifetime.

"Void Refining powerhouse before thirty—a legend if I’ve ever heard one!"

Even Wine Sword Immortal was awed. He was over four hundred years old, and had only made it to the Middle Stage of Nascent Soul, while Lin Chang’sheng, not yet thirty, was on the cusp of Void Refining. The gulf in their cultivation talent was simply immense.

"So this is the terrifying cultivation speed of a peerless prodigy?"

Zhuo Yijian could only sigh in wonder.

Once, they’d stayed together in the Spirit-Seizing Land; back then, their cultivation was evenly matched. Who’d have thought they’d end up in completely different worlds?

"From now on, we’ll probably never cross paths again!"

Yu Lingfei felt a wave of emotion in her heart. Lin Chang’sheng was like a flood dragon come to earth, destined to soar through the heavens—while she’d probably remain in some remote corner, never reaching such heights.

They were never meant to be parallel lines—only a single point of intersection, after which their paths would only diverge further and further.

Yu Lingfei even felt a pang of regret. Back then, Lin Chang’sheng had rescued her time and again, and she’d blown every chance she got.

Now, she no longer had the qualifications even to stand next to him.

"Brother Lin is making his breakthrough!"

Gao Ziyue’s eyes sparkled with joy.

It was as if Lin Chang’sheng’s breakthrough was her own.

RUMBLE——

As the thunderclouds reached their peak, the first bolt of lightning crashed down, piercing straight through the array to strike Lin Chang’sheng.

Lin Chang’sheng only felt his body go numb, as if electrified—then nothing else at all.

But that wasn’t because the power of Celestial Thunder was weak, but rather because Lin Chang’sheng himself possessed the Power of Celestial Thunder, making him partially immune.

And with the additional Divine Dragon Power, his body was incredibly resilient.

Still, the might of Celestial Thunder was nothing to scoff at. Where Lin Chang’sheng stood, the ground was blasted to pieces by the thunder, stones flying, the earth scorched black.

RUMBLE——

After the first bolt, the second and third crashed down in rapid succession.

Each thunderbolt tested Lin Chang’sheng’s true strength, but at the same time it was also a form of bone-deep cleansing.

Everything impure inside his body was forced out, expelled into the world outside.

His flesh, meridians, every bone and fiber underwent repeated tempering.

All of it became tougher and more resilient than ever.

The Nine-Nine Celestial Tribulation is the first—and fiercest—of all tribulations a cultivator faces on the immortal path: eighty-one bolts, each stronger than the last.

The success rate is around eighty percent.

Each time one pushes past a bottleneck, further tribulations follow, and the chance of surviving drops lower each time.

Rumor has it, the tribulation for achieving an Immortal Body has less than a ten percent chance of success—that’s how rare and precious an Immortal Body is.

Still, some treasures in the world can increase one’s odds of surviving a tribulation.

But for Lin Chang’sheng, achieving an Immortal Body is a path still far away.

First, focus on making it through this tribulation.

As thunderbolts kept raining down, the eightieth blast finally ended.

The Moon Worship Peak where Lin Chang’sheng stood was left in ruins—nothing like the paradise it had been before.

Lin Chang’sheng himself, aside from his robes being shredded by thunder, showed not a scratch on his body.

His physical toughness was simply astonishing.

If Lin Chang’sheng had really let loose the Divine Dragon Power, the thunderbolts falling on him would feel like tickles at most.

But then, the cleansing effect of the thunder would be lost.

So Lin Chang’sheng chose to take the thunder head-on, with just his mortal body.

RUMBLE——

The final bolt built up for a long, long time, until thunderclouds overhead formed a huge swirling vortex of lightning.

Multiple bolts of thunder twisted together, lashing down at the place where Lin Chang’sheng stood.

"Come on!"

Lin Chang’sheng wasn’t the least bit afraid—in fact, he was a little excited.

BOOM——

The mighty thunderbolt crashed onto Lin Chang’sheng’s body, flattening the entire Moon Worship Manor in an instant.

And yet, bathed in thunder, Lin Chang’sheng could feel the tribulation refining his flesh.

The final bolt packed more power than any of those before it.

Even Lin Chang’sheng knitted his brow at its force, sweat beading on his forehead. Clearly, this was no ordinary strike.

But as savage as it was, this last blow also gave Lin Chang’sheng immense benefits. The thunder shattered his bottleneck, sending his Primordial Power surging and catapulting him directly into the Void Refining Stage.

As the Primordial Power rushed through his body, Lin Chang’sheng felt his organs and Eight Extraordinary Meridians all became greatly enhanced.

His Sea of Consciousness now felt even more vast.

With its growth, Lin Chang’sheng realized that, inside his own Sea of Consciousness, he’d formed a third Primordial Spirit Dharma Body.

"Eighteen thousand miles of Divine Sense!"

Releasing his Divine Sense, Lin Chang’sheng found its reach had expanded to an overwhelming eighteen thousand miles.

An absolutely terrifying range—more than double that of an ordinary Void Refining cultivator.

[Lin Chang’sheng: 26/6850]

At the same time, Lin Chang’sheng checked his lifespan—it had just increased by over a thousand years.

If not for how often he’d used the Celestial Ghost Soul Devouring Technique, his lifespan would likely have long surpassed seven thousand years.

As the Celestial Thunder ceased and the clouds dispersed,

Lin Chang’sheng slowly opened his eyes and stood up.

At this moment, Moon Worship Peak had been reduced to rubble, ruins everywhere.

"Fellow Daoist, it was I who was blind. I never realized your talent, nor could I imagine you’d set up such a terrifying array. You’ve truly opened this old man’s eyes! Please—don’t hold my earlier ignorance against me!"

The Grand Elder of Moon Worship Manor rushed up to Lin Chang’sheng to apologize at once when he saw him get up.

For to offend Lin Chang’sheng now would surely mean doom for everyone at Moon Worship Manor.

This was definitely someone they could not afford to offend!