Chapter 166: Thunder Spirit Body

Xu Qing was surprised. He glanced at the Vajra Sect Patriarch, finding the sudden statement a little strange. "Are you sure?" Xu Qing asked slowly. He could feel that while the Patriarch's aura was much stronger than before, seemingly at a critical point, it was ultimately still unstable and didn't look like he was about to break through.

"I'm absolutely certain!" the Vajra Sect Patriarch quickly glanced at the shadow and exclaimed loudly. Xu Qing had never been a spirit artifact, so he didn't know what a spirit artifact's breakthrough state was like. Hearing the Patriarch's words, he pondered for a moment. Seeing Xu Qing's hesitation, the Vajra Sect Patriarch became nervous. He worried that Xu Qing would reject him in order to fully focus on caring for the shadow. At the same time, he recalled a plot from one of the countless ancient texts he had read. The story described how, after the protagonist refused his pet once, he inexplicably grew to like the feeling of refusal, and from then on, he refused everything. Consequently, his pet was eventually treated as food.

"Could it be that 'Demon Xu' had already started planning to devour me when he cultivated the Malevolent Fire Soul Devouring Scripture?" Although the Vajra Sect Patriarch was a cunning individual, he had a habit of being superstitious in life. Now, as a spirit artifact, constant fear had made him even more sensitive. He felt he was going to die, seeing it as a sign that Demon Xu intended to devour him. In his terror, he cried out before Xu Qing could even agree.

"Master, I can't hold back anymore! I'm coming!" Without waiting for a proper response, the Vajra Sect Patriarch's soul body erupted violently, forcing a breakthrough. His eyes turned red, and his mind became completely frantic. "I must break through before the shadow!" he roared inwardly. Amidst this eruption, spiritual light rose from the black iron rod, coalescing into a dark, cloud-like mass that rapidly formed within him. These masses constantly collided, and faint flashes of lightning traversed his entire body, causing the Vajra Sect Patriarch to let out agonizing screams that startled Xu Qing.

The cultivation method practiced by the Vajra Sect Patriarch was an incomplete text that could transform a person into a spirit artifact. The name of this technique, "Grand Yin Thunder Spirit Transformation," hinted at its extraordinary nature. Its origin was unknown, seemingly researched by a powerful ancient being based on thunder spirits. Upon achieving minor success in cultivation, one could transform into a Thunder Spirit Body. The first part of cultivating this technique required innate talent and was a process of accumulation. The second part demanded the resolve to "draw a blade and decide for oneself," transforming oneself into a soul body. Then, by utilizing the accumulated cultivation from the first part, one could erupt and become a spirit artifact, thereby beginning the third part: transforming into a Thunder Spirit Body. Once a Thunder Spirit Body was formed, it was considered minor success. However, this was only a Postnatal Thunder Spirit. Only upon reaching intermediate success could one transform into a Prenatal Thunder Spirit. The method for major success was not mentioned.

At this moment, the Vajra Sect Patriarch was desperately trying to break through and transform into a Postnatal Thunder Spirit. This process was extremely painful, requiring him to generate more lightning by colliding the cloud-like masses within his body. Ultimately, the lightning had to penetrate his soul body to attract heavenly thunder, which would then baptize his soul. Watching the Vajra Sect Patriarch scream in agony, Xu Qing took a breath. He completely shifted his gaze from the shadow, dedicating most of his attention to the Patriarch. The Patriarch's current state made Xu Qing feel a faint sense of unease. At the same time, he quickly weighed whether his iron rod would be damaged if the Vajra Sect Patriarch collapsed.

The Vajra Sect Patriarch's screams not only captured Xu Qing's attention but also caused the bubbles on the black pool, formed by the shadow, to pause before accelerating their emergence. Thus, amidst the frantic competition between the shadow and the Vajra Sect Patriarch, the cloud-like masses within the Patriarch's body grew denser, and their collisions became more intense.

Flashes of lightning slowly accumulated within his soul body, constantly moving and filling it completely. Just as the Vajra Sect Patriarch's body seemed on the verge of collapse, a bolt of lightning finally tore open an aperture and emerged from his crown. Instantly, a large amount of lightning surged out through this opening, encircling the Vajra Sect Patriarch's entire body. This caused his aura to rise rapidly, while his presence became astonishing. All of this brought a sense of relief to the Vajra Sect Patriarch. He felt he had endured so much, yet the thought of the upcoming baptism filled his heart with sorrow. He knew very well that the breakthrough process was extremely perilous, and one wrong move could lead to his complete annihilation. If he were still alive, he would have chosen to give up without hesitation.

This personality was also one of the reasons his cultivation apertures opened slowly. Throughout his life, there had been several opportunities to accelerate the opening of his apertures, but these required him to risk his life, so he had always gritted his teeth and backed down. This same hesitation surfaced now. But at that very moment, the roars and growls from within the black liquid formed by the shadow grew even more intense, and the pool itself began to swell! This swelling wasn't from mere bubbles; rather, a new entity was forming within the pool, struggling to rise. As it continuously formed upward, an aura surpassing the Qi Condensation stage spread from the pool.

The aura was very strong, reaching the Foundation Establishment stage in the next instant, but it didn't stop there; it continued to intensify. This sudden burst indicated that the shadow was clearly at a critical point in its breakthrough, capable of succeeding at any moment. This made the Vajra Sect Patriarch's expression turn savage. He glared fiercely at the black liquid formed by the shadow, then his eyes turned bloodshot, revealing a desperate frenzy. He let out a roar: "Lightning, come!"

As his words echoed, the sky outside suddenly thundered. Dark clouds rapidly spread across the firmament, continuously accumulating. A massive bolt of lightning, crackling and zig-zagging in a distorted 'Z' shape, roared down towards the island. The lightning struck the ground, pierced through the soil, seeped deep into the mine pit, and appeared directly above the Vajra Sect Patriarch's head, descending fiercely upon him.

In an instant, the Vajra Sect Patriarch's body trembled. A vast amount of external lightning surged into him, wildly flashing and coursing, merging with the lightning he himself emitted. These bolts then continuously converged, growing in number and intensity, becoming more and more astonishing. Inside this maelstrom, the Vajra Sect Patriarch's screams grew even more piercing, and his body began to turn transparent, as if on the verge of collapsing and dispersing. Even the black pool formed by the shadow was startled by this sight, but soon the figure within it struggled more intensely, surging upward, clearly also desperately trying to complete its breakthrough as quickly as possible. Xu Qing was moved.

He looked at the shadow, then at the Vajra Sect Patriarch, a strange expression in his eyes, but he said nothing. Time passed quickly; a quarter of an hour went by. As the Vajra Sect Patriarch's screams grew more agonizing, the thunder outside his body finally completed its convergence. Finally, with a low roar from the Patriarch, all the lightning surged fiercely into his body through his crown.

As the lightning poured in, the Vajra Sect Patriarch's body trembled. His physique was visibly being transformed by the lightning; his entire soul body was affected and restructured. Gradually, after all the lightning had been completely absorbed by the Vajra Sect Patriarch, he abruptly looked towards the nearby black iron rod. He opened his mouth and swallowed it. The black iron rod instantly appeared within him, and countless bolts of lightning immediately struck it.

This scene was one of forging the black iron rod, using his body as the furnace, the lightning of heaven and earth as the hammer, and his soul body as the fire. As the lightning continuously struck, the Vajra Sect Patriarch trembled more violently. With each strike, the black iron rod was refined a bit more, gaining an additional lightning rune, and the Vajra Sect Patriarch would also shiver.

He roared and screamed in agony, but he did not give up. The lightning continued to strike, ten times, twenty times, thirty times, forty times... The black iron rod became even darker, its sharpness surpassing anything before. The lightning runes on it shone intensely, and even Xu Qing found the light dazzling. Finally, after the forty-ninth lightning strike, the Vajra Sect Patriarch reached his limit. He had to spit out the black iron rod, and then his body abruptly burrowed into it. The next instant, all forty-nine runes on the black iron rod glowed, and an aura that surpassed Qi Condensation, and was even formidable among Foundation Establishment cultivators, erupted. Within this explosion, the figure of the Vajra Sect Patriarch emerged inside the black iron rod. This time, his body had undergone a significant transformation.

Although his appearance remained the same, his entire body now shimmered with countless bolts of lightning that continuously swirled around him, creating an astonishing presence. His body was semi-transparent, as if he had transformed into an entity of pure lightning. These lightning bolts caused him no harm; they seemed to be a part of his body. An incredibly wild aura spread from the Vajra Sect Patriarch, making Xu Qing feel as though he was facing a cultivator of the "Life Fire" realm.

Xu Qing could also clearly sense an even more terrifying fluctuation within the lightning runes on the black iron rod. Evidently, this was not the artifact's battle form. It was conceivable that once it unleashed its full power, it might even be able to contend with two "Life Fire" cultivators. This was due to the Vajra Sect Patriarch already being at the Foundation Establishment stage, combined with the profound connection to his cultivation method. When these factors superimposed, they resulted in this earth-shattering breakthrough, a culmination of vast accumulation!

"Finally, I haven't failed Master's expectations, this humble one..." The Vajra Sect Patriarch felt his newfound power and was deeply emotional, feeling how difficult his journey had been. However, he didn't forget that his soul was still bound to Xu Qing, so he wouldn't get carried away. He was about to utter some loyal words that Xu Qing would appreciate. But at that very moment, the black pool formed by the shadow seemed to be stimulated to an unprecedented degree. It erupted violently, and the entity within it finally broke free. The shadow's appearance also underwent a drastic transformation!

It was no longer its previous form. Instead, it had transformed into the shape of a large tree on the ground. Before Xu Qing and the Vajra Sect Patriarch, this tree-shaped shadow rapidly branched out and unfurled its leaves, gradually growing numerous fruit-like forms. Then, all these fruits split open, revealing hundreds of densely packed red eyes within! All these eyes now opened, glaring fiercely at Xu Qing. A surge of ferocity erupted from its multitude of eyes.

Concurrently, a gaping maw filled with sharp teeth appeared on its tree trunk, emitting an eerie sound that Xu Qing seemed to have heard somewhere before: "Kaka, kakaka, kaka..." This sound was like teeth grinding.