Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan Chapter 1919: 1428: Outlier (Part 2)
Previously on Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan...
Li Zhixuan quickly composed her overflowing feelings and facial cues, readying herself with poise and serenity for the impending Tribulation Thunder.
The sixth bolt of Tribulation Thunder remained immensely forceful, yet it lacked any unusual traits. Although it appeared challenging, she breathed a sigh of relief.
This differed from the earlier Tribulation Thunders that brought surprising extra impacts, which had left Li Zhixuan feeling quite awkward.
A bolt like this, purely intense without other influences, would at worst drain more mana, sparing her the trouble of guarding against further assaults and harm.
“Only three Tribulation Thunders left!”
Xiaoqing whispered under her breath, then glanced over and inquired, “Jiu, do you believe Zhixuan can make it through this tribulation?”
Li Zhirui thought it over briefly before choosing honesty, replying, “I don’t know.”
He truly wished for Li Zhixuan's triumph, both for his own sentiments and the clan's advantages; her victory over the Thunder Tribulation and advancement to Heavenly Immortal would bring immense delight and prosperity.
However, given her position as an ‘anomaly,’ the Heavenly Dao would scrutinize her intensely, and the remaining three Tribulation Thunders were bound to escalate in ferocity!
Against all anticipations, the once ferocious Tribulation Thunder halted sharply after the seventh bolt.
The falling thunder didn't weaken in might right then; instead, it was quite standard, just a bit more potent than the last.
Nevertheless, this particular Tribulation Thunder caused Li Zhirui and Li Zhixuan's countenances to shift dramatically.
“Jiu, what’s wrong?” Xiaoqing questioned, confused.
“The Heavenly Dao wants to doom Zhixuan!”
Li Zhirui's features grew somber as he declared gravely, “From the pattern of the first six Tribulation Thunders, it's clear the seventh's strength falls way short!”
So why did it manifest at merely that level?
“The Heavenly Dao pulled the Spiritual Energy out of the seventh Tribulation Thunder, channeling it into the eighth or ninth to amplify their might even further!”
“Why is the Heavenly Dao singling out Zhixuan like this? She doesn't carry that kind of heavy Karmic Force.”
“Sigh! She's cultivated in the Void for years and acquired a couple of exceptional treasures.” He refused to delve into Li Zhixuan’s origins with others.
Li Zhixuan also grasped the severity of this peril. Though she had meant to dispatch the present thunder swiftly, she switched tactics right away to drag it out and erode it gradually, thus securing extra time for recovery.
Even with that, she merely gained under an hour, and despite her utmost efforts in refining Elixir, she restored only around thirty to forty percent of her mana.
At present, her mana lingered at under sixty percent!
In such a condition, confronting the final two Tribulation Thunders loomed like an oppressive peak. Without her unyielding resolve, she could have crumbled already.
All at once, the world grew hushed!
Myriad beings, down to the tiniest bugs, detected an overwhelming danger nearing, huddling in their burrows and trembling in terror, too afraid to utter a peep.
Even the ever-present soft winds stilled, plunging the surroundings into an uncanny quiet.
Lightning snarled like raging Flood Dragons amid the sea of clouds, ceaselessly drawing in Spiritual Energy to bolster its power.
As the Tribulation Thunder plummeted, brilliant flashes tore through the swirling Tribulation Clouds, carrying overwhelming force straight at her.
Li Zhixuan's face turned profoundly serious and resolute; triumph was almost in reach, and she refused to falter now.
With the Tribulation Thunder crashing down, her damaged sword stirred, unleashing wave after wave of Sword Qi nonstop, her inner mana surging away and plummeting below twenty percent in moments!
Thankfully, she had deployed every technique against this thunder, and if endurance failed, replenishment could follow later.
To observers, the formidable Tribulation Thunder got tangled by Li Zhixuan, as Sword Qi after Sword Qi rose to meet it, fighting to preserve her strength longer.
At first, the strategy worked well; it slowed the descending thunder and allowed a chance to regain her energy, gearing up for a sharper counter to the ultimate bolt.
Soon enough, the eighth Tribulation Thunder was fully exhausted.
“Only one last Tribulation Thunder left!”
Li Zhixuan rose to her feet, her gaze alight with hope, as if picturing the wonderful days ahead once she overcame the tribulation.
To avoid any mishaps, she produced a vital Spirit Pill for preservation, swallowing it to flood her depleted Dantian with a raging surge of Spiritual Energy.
Deeming it insufficient, she gripped another via her Mana, poised to crush it between her teeth and surge back a vast quantity of Mana if required.
Regarding the Tribulation Thunder, the vast Tribulation Clouds spanning scores of miles overhead boiled and twisted, siphoning every bit of Spiritual Energy for the decisive blow aimed at obliterating Li Zhixuan!
Thunder Light blazed fiercely, thundering across the heavens.
The final Tribulation Thunder, amid the stunned stares of all, hurtled at Li Zhixuan with incredible velocity.
The bolt's pace was swift, yet her sword moved swifter still, sending forth frenzied Sword Qi after Sword Qi in wild abandon.
Her Dantian, brimming with Spiritual Energy moments ago, emptied out after mere breaths, reduced to a hollow void.
Clenching her jaw, a torrent of wild Spiritual Energy erupted inside her once more, chaotic and rampaging, barely reined into the Dantian and held in check for the time being.
“Boom—rumble—”
Resembling a stampede of a thousand steeds, the clamor resounded without end, shattering the array of Sword Qi Li Zhixuan had loosed earlier, barreling toward her defenseless form.
Yet her stored Mana had been primed all along. A three-meter-long Sword Qi erupted from Li Zhixuan’s grasp, clashing head-on with the Tribulation Thunder.
Rumbling!
The Sword Qi cut keenly, the Tribulation Thunder ruled tyrannically, and their clash erupted in a deafening blast and horrifying shockwave that rippled outward everywhere.
At the same time, the blinding, brilliant glow dazzled all eyes, veiling Li Zhixuan's desperate battle for survival.
As for the shockwave, it barely troubled Li Zhirui, Da Qing, and the rest, presenting minimal danger. But to the weaker clansmen, it tested their limits and sparked real peril.
Thus, he chose not to interfere in protecting them, aiming for them to draw some benefit from the ordeal.
All it required was vigilance for those on the verge of breaking, then aiding to ease their burden.
This straightforward method also evaluated the clan's overall prowess.
Yet these matters weren't central; Li Zhirui delegated oversight to Li Xiuyuan while fixating on Li Zhixuan's plight.
“Huff huff huff—”
Once the Thunder Light faded, Li Zhixuan knelt bloodied on the earth. Without her labored breaths, her motionless figure could pass for lifeless.
“Succeeded!”
A thunderous cheer exploded forth, sound waves surging and echoing across over a hundred miles.
“Don’t get complacent, there’s still the Heart Demon Tribulation!” Li Zhirui called out, urging Li Zhixuan not to lower her defenses post the grueling Tribulation Thunder, to avoid the Heart Demon exploiting any lapse.
Luckily, she sidestepped that beginner's error. Against the Heart Demon, Li Zhixuan upheld a Dao Heart as unyielding as iron-forged blade, rejecting every lure it offered.
In the end, it fell to a Sword of Soul.
The whole ordeal lasted barely fifteen minutes.
With that, Li Zhixuan triumphed over her Heavenly Immortal Tribulation!
The thick Tribulation Clouds morphed into a torrent of pure Spiritual Energy, restoring her inner losses and aiding her cultivation leap.
As the Tribulation Clouds scattered and cheers were set to ring out, everyone realized Li Zhixuan had vanished!
Upon approaching, they saw she had slumped from exhaustion into the crater scarred by the Tribulation Thunder after her success.