The Corruption Dragon God: Lust System Chapter 549 - Astral Body Realm

Upon awakening, Long Qingyi sensed a vitality surging through him like never before, his features glowing

with vigor as he glanced at his status panel.

Following that intense night of passion, his lust points had surged back to nearly one and a half quadrillion.

The price for boosting his cultivation now stood at 350 trillion, a figure that failed to intimidate him anymore.

Lust points overflowed in abundance for him now.

Gently, he slipped from the arms of the stunning women and exited the mental realm.

With no further business among the fox folk, he soared toward the distant skyline, seeking a remote and tranquil spot.

After all, this breakthrough might summon a heavenly tribulation upon him.

Qingyi refused to gamble with such danger.

"Talk about tempting fate..." His gaze lifted skyward.

The heavens stretched blue and serene, yet clouds of ominous black thunder swiftly engulfed the expanse overhead.

"Hah... Things were starting to drag anyway!" Qingyi clutched the Heaven-Defying Thunder Sword firmly, selecting the option to ascend to the third stage of the ancient emperor realm.

Shutting his eyes, he steadied his aura, his mighty spiritual root requiring just an instant to forge a sturdy base for the impending surge.

What others labored over for millennia, he accomplished in a mere heartbeat. His prodigious gifts transcended mortal bounds.

[Qingyi... do you grasp the essence of the astral body realm?]

Ruxue's voice resounded in his thoughts, right before he initiated the next advancement.

"Huh? What exactly are you getting at?" Qingyi's expression twisted in bewilderment.

[It's far beyond mere bodily reformation; it's the power to endure in the cosmic void, amidst utter emptiness beyond the skies.] Ruxue explained, then fell silent, leaving him to uncover the rest through experience.

The striking youth let out a breath, activating the enhancements for both cultivation and mana control simultaneously.

A searing agony engulfed his frame, though he scarcely noticed, his stare locked on the turbulent skies.

"Bring it... You wouldn't dare flee like some spineless fool." Qingyi sneered mockingly, his tone laced with lethal edge as his lips twisted upward.

"This wait is tedious..."

The skies answered with a booming rumble rippling across the dark clouds, focusing into one spot right overhead. [This marks an extermination heavenly tribulation. Stay vigilant.]

Qingyi gave a nod, squeezing his sword harder while battling the torment of the breakthrough, as his skeleton, flesh, and hide reformed.

Each bit of Qi coursing within him acted like countless fine glass shards ripping through his meridians, clashing with the breakthrough's effort to contain it all.

That represented the deadliest aspect of a tribulation amid advancement. Even shifting his Qi might prove lethal.

"Come at me!" Qingyi bellowed, launching himself upward, the earth shattering to powder under his push, his form shattering the sound barrier in one instant.

The howling wind assaulting his ears helped mask the anguish of channeling Qi, crimson trails leaking from his eyes.

At last, as he slashed with the Heaven-Defying Thunder Sword, the celestial wrath descended.

One streak of thunder, yet its might surpassed any trial Qingyi had ever endured.

The atmosphere boiled where blade clashed with bolt, his thunder defying the heavens' own.

[Avoid clashing directly with the tribulation while breaking through, you fool! Pull back and divert its force!] Ruxue cried out in alarm.

Why squander so much Qi and mana? He required every ounce for the ascension!

"Don't look down on me!" Qingyi spat blood, his gaze unwavering as he drove forward once more, invoking his bloodline manifestation.

For a fleeting instant, opposition held, then it shattered amid the dragon's thunderous cry from Qingyi's back, the heavens quaking under his might.

Qingyi's keen sword edge split the tribulation's lightning apart, his own surge piercing upward to smite the storm's core.

The surroundings fractured, ancient laws wavering momentarily before realigning, desperately mending the rift in space.

"Hah..." He exhaled, drawing back his Qi, observing the tempest fade as sunlight scorched his ashen, gore-streaked skin. A shift had occurred... something profound.

Staring oddly at his hand, he raised his head and drew in a deep breath, fixing on the sun.

It felt as though... he perceived it truly.

Beyond mere warmth or glow. Deeper still.

[Breakthrough achieved! Third stage of the ancient emperor realm -> first stage of the astral body realm.]

"Ruxue... you mentioned enduring in a vacuum... do you mean outer space?" He inquired.

[Eh? What are you-] Ruxue's words cut off as Qingyi rocketed skyward in a burst of velocity.

[Hold on, what in the world? Argh... that fool...] Ruxue grumbled, knowing resistance was futile.

He pressed on relentlessly, accelerating further as the air grew sparse around him, chill seeping in gradually.

Gazing downward, Qingyi admired the flawless arc of the immortal realm below.

"Why isn't it receding further?" He muttered, clenching his jaw and pushing his pace harder.

Fivefold sonic speed, tenfold, twenty, thirty.

He cranked his velocity to its peak, yet it fell short.

The landscape ceased its retreat, while the starry expanse loomed tantalizingly near, eternally out of reach.

"Curiosity sated now?" Ruxue materialized at his side. "At least heal up a bit, you moron—do you realize how anxious I got?" Qingyi halted briefly, then encircled her waist with his arms.

"Eww... you're covered in grime..." Ruxue protested, yet she melted into the blood drenching Qingyi.

"Now we're both a mess." He grinned, claiming her lips, their forms intertwining high above all, mere moments from the stars.