by Dragon King
If it crashed down, no one could escape without a scratch! Everyone would be severely wounded while those with weak cultivation strength would die on the spot!
That was why Zhao Kuo refused to return to the altar when he saw the great power of the Heavenly Tribulation.
He knew that he couldn’t pass it and the Ninth Heaven Eighteen Lightning Tribulation was more powerful than the altar could withstand. He would rather die than enlisting help from the East Ocean Dragon Clan and harm the member!
“Everyone! Together!” Zhao Guang knew no strategy would work in the face of the ultimate power. He ordered everyone to get ready for the final blow.
The ten purple-robed elders, 12 golden-armored generals, and 12,000 silver-armored soldiers stood in their positions, and the others stood on the engravings and arrays of the altar while injecting their Nature Essence into them.
Both Zhao Guang and Zhao Hongyu squatted down, ready to unleash their full energy to fight with the Heavenly Tribulation!
Hao Ren didn’t back off. Although his cultivation strength was low, he kneeled and placed his hand onto the altar.
Boom! The Heavenly Lightning Bolt broke another core defense layer, and the surface of the altar began to crack!
Meanwhile, all the intricate engravings on the altar began to hum. Instantly, the warm and white light illuminated the whole sky.
With a booming noise, the Heavenly Lightning Bolt that was about 130,000 times more powerful than the first one destroyed the second last defense layer.
The final moment had come!
196 10,000-Cultivators Array Formation
The Heavenly Lightning Bolt with 13,000 times the power of the first one had broken the second last core defense layer of the array formation and was crashing toward the people on the altar.
Wood, fire, earth, metal, and water!
The Heavenly Lightning Bolt had broken the layers of wood, fire, earth, and metal. Only the last and most crucial water-elemental defense array formation was left.
The five elements created each other. Since the Heavenly Lightning Bolt had broken four of them, the core of the array formation was damaged.
Seeing the blue light shield beginning to shake, everyone gritted their teeth and transferred all their energy into the altar!
Hao Ren had thought that the power of the lightning would be cold in the pouring storm. However, when the Heavenly Lightning Bolt was above his head, he sensed the burning pressure from it through the last layer of the array formation.
Its temperature was as high as ten thousand degrees, hot enough to burn people into ashes instantly!
If it had not been for the protection of the water elemental defense array formation, all of them would have been burned into ashes!
Even the purple-robed elders couldn’t open their eyes at this dazzling Heavenly Lightning Bolt.
Zhao Yanzi squatted next to Hao Ren, tightly holding his arm.
Life or death, they were in it together!
The blue defense array formation shook violently; it could collapse at any moment!
Crack! Crack… The altar that was as big as several soccer fields began to crack all over and started to shake violently!
The Heavenly Lightning Bolt was crashing against the altar with tens of thousands of pounds of force!
If it weren’t for the Nature Essences that tens of thousands of cultivators injected into the altar, it would have been shattered into debris by the first wave of the strike.
Hao Ren put all of his Nature Essence into the altar and felt his arms go numb.
This was the power of the Heavenly Lightning Bolt!
It was not an ordinary Heavenly Lightning Bolt, but the Heavenly Tribulation from the Ninth Heaven!
Under the support of the Nature Essence from everyone present, the last layer of the blue defense array formation was humming and blinking, managing to withstand the 18th Heavenly Lightning Bolt.
Bang! Bang!
Occasionally, some soldiers were bounced off the altar by the power of the Heaven Tribulation as its power was spread onto the people on the altar.
The power of this final Heavenly Lightning Bolt was 13,000 times more powerful than the first Heavenly Lightning Bolt. If it were distributed evenly to each person, each of them would have to withstand the full power of the first Heavenly Lightning Bolt!
It was natural that the weaker cultivators couldn’t bear the pressure.
More importantly, not everyone could withstand the power of the lightning bolt that could break all five elements.
Pale-faced, the elders could barely manage it, but the soldiers were bounced off one by one!
The power of the final Heavenly Lightning Bolt above the blue array formation didn’t disappear. The power of this Heavenly Tribulation was awe-inspiring!
“Premier Xia, take Zi and Ren out of here!” Zhao Guang turned his head and shouted!
In this critical moment, the Heavenly Lightning Bolt could crash down at any moment, and everyone under it would probably die!
After all, it was against the natural law for them to help Zhao Kuo withstand the Heavenly Tribulation.
“Yes! Your Majesty!” Pale-faced and exhausted, Premier Xia stood up and hurried toward Hao Ren and Zhao Yanzi.
“Dad! I won’t go!” Zhao Yanzi yelled.
“Behave!” Zhao Guang raised his hand and pushed her aside without touching her.
Premier Xia hurried over and helped Zhao Yanzi up. “Princess, please go with me!”
He looked at Hao Ren who was still injecting his Nature Essence into the altar and said, “Fuma, please go with me. Leave it to His Majesty!”
Seeing all the generals and elders who were still supporting the altar with pale faces and the soldiers who kept coming back onto the altar after being bounced off, Hao Ren shook his head and said, “No, I won’t go! You take Zi with you!”
“Your Majesty, please retreat!” Suddenly, Lu Qing raised his head and shouted at Zhao Guang on the high platform.
Others seconded his plea, shouting, “Your Majesty! Please retreat! Your Majesty! Please retreat!”
“No, I won’t!” Zhao Guang placed his hands that were covered by the green energy back on the altar. “I will fight with you!”
Zhao Kuo, with blood all over him, took several deep breaths before struggling to stand on his feet. “Brother! Let me go out and die with the Heaven Tribulation!”
If Zhao Kuo were wiped out by the Heavenly Lightning Bolt, the entire Heavenly Tribulation would end, and the other people wouldn’t die with him.
His brother was on one side, and tens of thousands of the elite cultivators of East Ocean were on the other. Zhao Guang was in a dilemma.
“We are willing to block the Heavenly Tribulation for Third Lord!” the twelve generals in golden armors suddenly shouted together.
“We are willing to block the Heavenly Tribulation for Third Lord!” the 12,000 soldiers also shouted, and their voices repeatedly echoed in the altar!
The stunning scene set everyone’s heart on fire!
Zhao Kuo was the Supreme Commander in the East Ocean Dragon Palace. The generals and the soldiers had been fighting alongside!
“Ok! We will face life and death together!” pressing against the bloody wounds on his chest with one of his hands, Zhao Kuo stood up and placed his other bloody hand on the altar.
The blue array formation was instantly covered in a red mist!
He was putting his dragon blood and vital essences into the array formation!
Even after being struck by 17 Heavenly Lightning Bolts, Zhao Kuo still possessed some Nature Essence.
The array formation that was on the verge of collapsing was strengthened by what he did, and it began to push back against the last Heavenly Lightning Bolt!
The morale was greatly boosted!
With blood-red eyes, Zhao Kuo continued to inject his blood into the altar!
The engravings on the milky white altar began to turn pink!
The array formation abov
e the altar hummed louder, releasing dazzling blue light and blocking the white Heavenly Lightning Bolt.
Zhao Yanzi took the opportunity to run back to Hao Ren before placing her small hands onto the altar.
Without her Dragon Core, she still possessed a tiny but of Nature Essence. Moved by what he saw, Hao Ren circulated his Light Splitting Sword Shadow Scroll to its limit, feeling like his weak remaining power was being absorbed bit by bit by the engravings of the altar.
This Heavenly Lightning Bolt with 13,000 times the power of the first one was in a tough battle against the array formation consisted of the power of more than ten thousand cultivators!
It was a long and hard moment!
Everyone gritted their teeth, not daring to relax a little bit!
Boom!
The deadlock lasted for a long while before the Heavenly Lightning Bolt exploded in the air abruptly!
Seconds later, the blue array formation also shattered into pieces!
A huge crack also appeared in the middle of the altar, turning it into two parts!
Only the elders and generals were able to stand; the 12,000 soldiers all fell to the ground.
This battle exhausted all of their Nature Essence. If their enemies launched a sudden attack, they would all die!
Of course, they had chosen a spot in the deep sea and kept the location a secret; no enemy would come and attack them!
Boom! As if the Heaven was resentful of the defeat, after the 18 Heavenly Lightning Bolts, another small lightning bolt was released by the clouds!
Everyone was astonished since this small lightning bolt struck directly toward Zhao Guang, Zhao Kuo, and Zhao Hongyu!
The Heaven was punishing them for blocking and interfering with the Heavenly Tribulation!
“Light Splitting Sword Shadow Scroll, absorb!” Hao Ren who stood near them suddenly lifted his hands subconsciously.
197 Seven-Colored Snow Lotus
As if it heard Hao Ren’s summon, the Heavenly Lightning Bolt flew toward his palm!
Five-elemental sword energies could be combined into hundun sword energies that possessed hundun lightning power. The ultimate form of hundun lightning power was Tiangang!
The Heavenly Lightning Bolt in the Heavenly Tribulation was Tiangang!
This small Heavenly Lightning Bolt entered Hao Ren’s body and traveled through his 108 acupoints before settling down in his Dragon Core.
Hao Ren exhaled deeply, and even the air he just exhaled was mingled with some lightning power.
Zhao Guang and Zhao Hongyu gasped while Zhao Yanzi who was by his side also widened her eyes, forgetting to cry.
Pu… Under the stimulation of the Heavenly Lightning Bolt, six openings in his Dragon Core were unlocked!
Colorful lights engulfed Hao Ren’s body as he jumped from Kan-level to Li-level! Li-level needed ten openings, and Hao Ren had 13 now!
The Light Splitting Sword Shadow Scroll was Lightning Cultivation. Hao Ren’s theory of absorbing the lightning power of the Heavenly Tribulation with his technique was proved right!
For cultivators, the Lightning Tribulation was dangerous and painful. But to Hao Ren, it was a piece of cake! He was even spared from the pain caused by the level up when he advanced using the lightning power.
“Aw…” Suddenly, Zhao Kuo spat out a big mouthful of blood!
“Third Uncle!” Zhao Yanzi, who had been staring at Hao Ren in astonishment, turned around and rushed toward Zhao Kuo.
The almighty Zhao Kuo finally lost his balance and fell to the ground.
By now, the altar was ruined, and the cold wind blew onto them. Zhao Kuo in his torn robe was covered in blood.
Regardless of his blood and sweat, Zhao Yanzi threw herself into his arms and burst into tears.
“Third Uncle can’t make it this time. I’m content with the fact that I will die in one piece.” Zhao Kuo, an unrivaled cultivator in the mortal world for hundreds of years, now looked defeated. He touched Zhao Yanzi’s head gently and said, “Zi, you must take care of yourself.”
“Third Uncle, you won’t die!” Zhao Yanzi cried in his arms.
“Kid, come here!” Zhao Kuo glared at Hao Ren with his bloody eyes and shouted at him.
Hao Ren walked over and stood before him.
“From now on, you have to take care of Zi for me. I know that you are not a bad guy; the only problem you have is that you are hanging around too many girls. Well, I have only one-twentieth of my power left. I’ll transfer it to you.” He reached out to grab Hao Ren’s arm.
Slap! Before Hao Ren could react, Zhao Guang slapped off Zhao Kuo’s arm. “Brother, what are you doing?”
“With my remaining strength, I can only live for several hours. I will transfer it to him and help him get stronger!” Zhao Kuo lifted his head and said.
Zhao Hongyu sighed and pinched her nose to hold back her tears. She had always scolded him for being rude, but she knew that he was just quick-tempered and was not malicious at all.
“My meridians are broken, my Dragon Core is damaged, and my reputation as the No.1 Cultivator is gone. I will transfer my remaining power to this kid so that he could protect Zi better. It’s my final gift to Zi as her uncle!” Zhao Kuo continued after seeing Zhao Guang still standing between him and Hao Ren.
“Save your breath!” With a cold face, Zhao Guang turned to look at Premier Xia and said, “Don’t stand there in a daze! Go and ask little Daoist Zhen to come here!”
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Premier Xia turned immediately and dived into the sea after forming an energy sphere around him.
“Where is Xingyue?” Zhao Kuo looked around and asked. Although Zhao Kuo was still sitting down, he looked a lot better than a few seconds ago; perhaps it was due to terminal lucidity.
A beautiful female cultivator in her thirties walked over and looked at Zhao Kuo with a frown. Out of the ten purple-robed elders on the altar, she was the only female.
“I promised that I would pass the Heavenly Tribulation, but I failed,” Zhao Kuo said to her softly.
“Don’t talk now. You need your rest,” this female cultivator named Xingyue said gently.
“You’ve always been fierce towards me, but I know that you are thinking for me. I can’t control my big mouth, and my Heavenly Tribulation got this powerful. It is a punishment for neglecting the cultivation of personality and temperament,” Zhao Kuo said with a bitter smile.
The smile didn’t look good on his ugly face, but Hao Ren’s heart ached, especially after he saw Zhao Yanzi’s heart-wrenching sob.
Xingyue was silent. Zhao Kuo was the No.1 Cultivator of East Ocean, and she was the No.1 Female Cultivator of East Ocean. Although Zhao Kuo was more powerful than her, he was very obedient in front of her; he would immediately shut up after she glanced at him.
After bickering with him for 200 years, she expected that Zhao Kuo would ascend into the enviable Heaven Dragon Realm. She had never imagined that it would end like this.
No one had expected that the Heavenly Tribulation would be the mighty Ninth Heaven 18 Lightning Tribulation. When the first lightning bolt struck, her heart sank.
Faced with such a powerful Heavenly Tribulation, Zhao Kuo had a clearer understanding of the situation than her. However, no one could stop the Heavenly Tribulation once it was activated. The only thing that he could do was to fight to his death!
Under Xingyue’s watch, he didn’t want to lose like a coward; he wanted to die a hero!
Everyone was silent.
The only sound was Zhao Yanzi’s sobbing.
Hao Ren didn’t know that this No.1 Female Cultivator of East Ocean was, in fact, Su Han’s master.
Hua! The sound of water splashing broke the silence.
Premier Xia and little Daoist Zhen arrived at Zhao Guang’s side.
“Little Daoist Zhen, my brother failed the Heavenly Tribulation. I must rely on you to save his life,” Zhao Guang bowed to him respectfully and said.
The haughty little Daoist Zhen glanced
at Zhao Kuo who was on the ground and said, “Broken meridians, damaged Dragon Core. I’m afraid that even the Daluo Golden Immortal wouldn’t even be able to save him.”
Everyone’s heart sank at his answer.
As if he had expected it, Zhao Kuo laughed carelessly, “Anyway, I have no regret in my life since I battled with the most powerful Heavenly Tribulation! Hao Ren! Kid! Come over here, and I’ll transfer my remaining power to you!”
Hao Ren didn’t move since he didn’t want Zhao Kuo to die after transferring him his power. However, he didn’t dare to refuse him outright, knowing that Zhao Kuo would cuss at him for that.
“What’s the hurry?!” Seeing Zhao Kuo’s anger, little Daoist Zhen touched his chin, trying to look older and more experienced before continuing, “I’m not finished yet. I can’t save him if I don’t have Nature Treasures. However, I probably could save his life with the help from one item.”
“What’s that?” Instead of getting mad at little Daoist Zhen for keeping them in suspense, Zhao Guang was pleased with his words and asked.
“Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses from the Sky Mountain in the Northwest,” little Daoist Zhen said slowly.
“Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses?” Hao Ren’s heart lurched since these lotuses were the most fitting Mystic Crystals for his five-elemental cultivation technique according to the Lu sisters.
“Ok. I’ll go look for them immediately!” Zhao Guang said.
“Why is your family so rash!” little Daoist Zhen gave him a dirty look and said, “I’m not finished yet!”
“Please go on.” Zhao Guang held his temper in check and bowed slightly towards the little Daoist Zhen to show his respect.
“The Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses need to be over 1,000 years old, and I need six pieces. However, the older lotuses are mostly located in the depth of the karst caves. The deeper you go into the cave, the stronger the repulsion to the Nature Essence. In other words, only a cultivator who is below Zhen-level could go and pick the Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses,” little Daoist Zhen said slowly while nodding his head.
“Below Zhen-level…” They looked around, and their gazes rested on Hao Ren.
“However, the process of collecting Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses will be quite dangerous. If one is a lot weaker than Zhen-level, it would be difficult to get them. All in all, it’s not an easy task to get these 1,000-year Seven-Colored Snow Lotuses,” little Daoist Zhen continued.