Tribulation energy rolled across the skies in a vast, surging tide.
In the Fourth Heaven, there were five realms of cultivationâbecause this heaven was the broadest in territory and the most densely populated.
They were: the Sky-Piercing Realm, the God-Piercing Realm, the Domain Realm, the Samsara Realm, and the Heaven-Earth Realm.
Reaching the Heaven-Earth Realm meant one had become a true titan.
And judging from the way the tribulation energy was boiling now, it was clearly a divine punishment at the level of the Heaven-Earth Realm.
Lu Ye was already pissed.
But there was nothing he could do.
Boom!
A single thunderclap resounded.
Countless lightning bolts appearedâeach with power equivalent to the Sky-Piercing Realm?
Huh?
Before Lu Ye could even react, tens of thousandsâno, an uncountable number of lightning bolts carrying Sky-Piercing-level force rained down upon him.
The air boiled with energy.
Wait, this wasnât right...
Boom boom boom...
A deluge of lightning swept across the land.
Hurricanes howled. The ground caved in.
Mountains crumbled. Rivers evaporated.
The whole world had turned into an apocalyptic wasteland.
Lu Ye stood in the sea of lightning. The so-called Sky-Piercing-level tribulation bolts merely tingledâmade him feel a bit itchy and numb.
He couldnât help but chuckle bitterly.
Well then. Looks like the Heavenly Dao had finally learned its lesson. Feeling more at ease, he sat down cross-legged and began refining his Nine Tribulations Indestructible Body.
Defend against it?
Why bother?
Sure, there were countless tribulation bolts with Sky-Piercing strengthâbut individually, they couldnât even break through his defenses.
If these bolts had instead been fused into a single concentrated thunder pillar, Lu Ye would've surely been vaporized.
But dispersed like this? He couldnât get obliterated even if he wanted to.
All he could do was make use of this massive energy to temper his body.
His half-shattered flesh began to regenerate.
His body absorbed the tribulation energy continuously. His flesh roared as it rapidly toughened, and the divine scent of his path began to spread wider and wider.
In his mind, face after face emerged.
These were all the people who had ambushed him at the ascension point.
No doubt, they were still chasing after him.
They just hadnât caught up yet, since heâd escaped too quickly with his Heavenly Demon Blood Evacuation.
But heâd settle the score with every one of them.
If youâre blinded by greed, then prepare to pay the price.
If they hadnât blocked him, maybe Anli couldâve been stopped... though, to be fair, she probably still wouldâve ascended.
Didnât matter.
Lu Ye decidedâthey were to blame either way!
The second wave of tribulation fell.
The energy grew denser.
This time, each bolt had the strength of second-layer Sky-Piercing Realm, utterly terrifying.
Lu Ye nearly burst out laughing from how itchy it was.
His shattered body finished repairing.
His physique, having just reached the fifth tier of the Nine Tribulations Indestructible Body, now surged toward the sixth.
His entire body resonated with booming force.
After two waves, the tribulation clouds in the sky began to dissipate.
âHey! Donât run! Give me one more real good one!â Lu Ye shouted at the sky.
The tribulation clouds, which had been fading, condensed their final power.
Boom!
A mass of lightning crashed downâall the bolts merged into one and slammed into Lu Yeâs body.
His freshly restored body was blown apart again. The scent of his Dao flooded outward in wild waves.
How many times was this now?
Fifth?
Sixth?
Lu Ye didnât have time to count. He immediately began reconstructing his body and drawing in the surrounding tribulation energy.
A new body emerged.
His skin now gleamed like crystal, his black hair cascading like a waterfall. Though his face remained the same, it now carried a more radiant and heroic aura.
In one word: handsome.
Lu Ye felt clear-headed and powerful. His explosive physique churned with strengthâespecially in his arms, which had grown terrifyingly strong.
Though he was still only newly entered the Sky-Piercing Realm, he couldnât even imagine what would happen to someone who took one of his punches now.
âDing ding ding! Host, were you scared earlier?â
The system rang cheerilyâclearly delighted.
âCome out in Shen Xitongâs form,â Lu Ye said calmly. âI need a word with you.â
âDing. Nice try. Youâre definitely trying to beat me up. Iâm not coming out!â
The system was no fool. No way was it going to show up just to get smacked around by this psycho of a host.
âI swear I wonât hit you. Just come out.â
âDing-ding-ding-ding-dingââ
Lu Ye sighed and â NĐŸvĐ”lÎčght â (Read the full story) shook his head.
Fine. Stay hidden for now. But sooner or later, you will show yourself.
Weâll see if you can still âding ding dingâ when that happens.
Boom!
A deafening sonic boom shook the air as high-speed movement tore through space.
Lu Ye sensed itâpowerful figures were fast approaching.
He raised a brow. Good!
Just in time to test out his newly enhanced physique.
Heavenâs Might Fist!
With a roar, Lu Ye burst into blazing light, his entire body shining as he slammed a punch at the fastest of the approaching giants.
That punchâ
âBoom!â
A titan of the Heaven-Earth Realm struck back with a palm, shaking the heavens themselves.
Lu Yeâs punch was shattered instantly.
â...Sorry for bothering you.â
Lu Ye didnât hesitate. He turned into a streak of red light and vanished.
The gap was too big.
He could take on God-Piercing and Domain Realm enemies at Sky-Piercing level. Maybe even barely contest a Samsara Realm foe.
But Heaven-Earth Realm?
Not a chance.
If he couldnât win, heâd just run.
And as long as he could escape, he won.
But this time, he wasnât just being chased from behind. Across the vast Fourth Heaven, countless peopleâblinded by greedâwere hunting him from all directions.
Still, Lu Ye had too many escape methods.
At first, his pursuers still held onto rational thought. But even from far off, they caught the scent of the path he cultivated.
That scentâit completely overwhelmed them.
Their eyes turned red, like crazed rabbits. All rationality vanished.
Their bodies, their souls, their very Daos all cried out in unison:
Eat Lu Ye!
Eat Lu Ye!
Eat Lu Ye!
Lu Ye kept accelerating. He didnât just use Heavenly Demon Blood Evacuationâhe added the Dao of Wind, Dao of Space, Dao of Light, and Dao of Speed!
Even the void warped around him under the sheer force of his movement.
Heaven and earth blurred into a straight line.
Eventually, he left all his pursuers behind.
But he couldnât keep running forever.
He had to stop eventually.
There had to be another way.
...Wait. Maybe there was.
Every major sect had a powerful Sect Protection Array. Werenât those the perfect sanctuaries?
Even if one sect got blown up, heâd just head to the next.
If they smashed through the second, heâd use a third.
Lu Yeâs eyes gleamed brighter and brighter.
Perfect. Thatâs exactly what heâd do!