Chapter 673: The Ritual of Becoming a God

At the end of his gaze was the tribulation cloud formed within the Red Mother's shedding. This cloud was not vast, and though it contained thunder, it wasn't particularly alarming. However, through a mysterious intuition, Xu Qing could sense a much larger tribulation cloud forming outside at that moment. What appeared inside the Red Mother's shedding was more of a phantom projection of the external tribulation cloud, drawn in by Xu Qing's cultivation.

Beside him, the Captain had a peculiar expression. "Junior Brother, I’ve lived so many lives, and this is the first time I've encountered a situation like this."

"You're inside the Red Mother's shedding, so when the Life Tribulation is judged, is it you or the Red Mother's shedding that will face it? If it’s the Red Mother's shedding, then the tribulation will undoubtedly be terrifying, but the Red Mother's shedding itself is equally terrifying. If it’s you, then with the Red Mother's shedding blocking the incoming tribulation, you’ll be completely unharmed, free from any calamity. The presence of this Red Mother's shedding will passively take the tribulation in your stead!"

"This is interesting. I've never seen anything like it, and deities with shed skin are extremely rare, especially when the shedding itself has no consciousness, only instinct."

Xu Qing's eyes also gleamed, lost in thought.

At this moment, outside, the sky churned with clouds. Even the crimson sky couldn't entirely prevent the Heavenly Dao's laws from descending, so soon, dark clouds pressed down, spreading over the sea of blood. The clouds collided, reverberating with rolling thunder. Each roar was deafening, shaking all directions, yet the lightning tribulation didn't descend immediately, as if it were still being judged.

After a long moment, the Life Tribulation's judgment was made.

Instantly, the tribulation clouds in the sky erupted. Amidst the booming sound, a bolt of heavenly lightning flashed forth, transforming into a thunder dragon that shot straight towards the Red Mother's shedding below. As the sound echoed, the lightning shattered upon the Red Mother's shedding, dissolving into countless arcs of electricity that scattered in all directions. The Red Mother's shedding remained completely unharmed.

Even as the thunder persisted and the heavenly tribulation continued bolt after bolt, the outcome remained unchanged. Due to a series of reasons, Xu Qing's Life Tribulation was unlike others. The first time, it was the dissipation of the Feng Hai County's luck. The second, laws crisscrossed and descended from the sky. The third, the Crown Prince used the desert as a substitute, bringing down an endless tribulation. The fourth time was even more terrifying, erupting at the God Slaying Platform, each time more astonishing than the last. Compared to the previous ones, this fifth time seemed rather ordinary.

This time, without the Crown Prince's help, the Life Tribulation couldn't judge Xu Qing as merged with the desert as it did in the third, thus preventing a terrifying tribulation from descending. Furthermore, Xu Qing no longer manifested the God Slaying Platform, which would have made the tribulation more terrifying. Therefore, this time, the judgment determined he was merely hiding inside the Red Mother's shedding, not integrated with it. Such a small lightning tribulation had no hope of shaking the Red Mother's shedding. Even if ninety-nine bolts of lightning tribulation had struck the Red Mother's shedding, the outcome would have been the same. The Red Mother's shedding glowed with brilliant electrical light, yet beneath that radiance, its surface didn't even show the slightest damage to its skin.

Soon, the Life Tribulation ended. The clouds in the sky dispersed, revealing a glow of rosy light – the light of destiny, signifying Xu Qing had completed his Life Tribulation. Everything had gone exceptionally smoothly.

However, inside the Red Mother's shedding, Xu Qing's brow furrowed, and a solemn expression appeared on his face. The Captain beside him also had a flickering, deep light in his eyes, staring intently at the Red Mother's shedding above.

"Something’s not right!"

Indeed, something was amiss. The external heavenly tribulation had clearly ended, and destiny's light had descended with the rosy glow. Yet, inside the Red Mother's shedding, the faint tribulation cloud that had manifested had not dispersed. Moreover, Xu Qing didn't feel the surge of cultivation power after overcoming a tribulation, as he had before. It was as if he hadn't undergone the tribulation at all. But the heavenly tribulation had indeed descended earlier and was consumed by the Red Mother's shedding!

The Captain suddenly spoke, his voice filled with surprise and doubt. "Junior Brother, something’s wrong with this. It’s uncanny. Let’s retreat back through the gate first!"

"Too late," Xu Qing said hoarsely, his face extremely grim. He felt that he had been locked onto; no matter where he went, he couldn't escape it. That locking sensation made Xu Qing feel as if he was being watched by a deity. At this moment, his body churned, the Purple Moon Divine Source erupted, and the divine finger of Ding 1-3-2 also trembled. All deity-related powers within him were being locked onto!

Almost at the exact moment his words left his mouth, the Red Mother's shedding, which enveloped the Bitter Life Mountain Range, suddenly began to writhe. As its skin, which formed the sky, churned, the tribulation cloud that had previously manifested also erupted. Divine might descended from the sky, merging into the tribulation cloud. Then, beneath this divine power, the tribulation cloud directly exploded, collapsing in all directions. A massive, blank golden stone stele actually emerged from the shattered tribulation cloud. This stele, a hundred zhang tall, thundered down towards Xu Qing. As it descended, the aura of a deity surged skyward, filling all beings on earth with terror, their minds roaring.

Xu Qing's expression changed, and the Captain's eyes widened, deeply moved. "This is a Divine Stele! Engraving your name on it with divine blood, experiencing the deaths of the Five Elements, then igniting divine fire and placing the stele into an ancient god’s body, allows you to seize a divinity and form your own divine rank!"

"This is a type of Divine Tribulation ritual, called 'Rebirth Burying God'!" The Captain’s breathing quickened; with his knowledge, he immediately identified its essence.

"No, wait, the power is different, much, much smaller. I know! This is the Red Mother's shedding’s instinct! When the Red Mother was not yet a deity, her obsession was to become one. To ensure success, she must have practiced the ritual many times through simulation. This obsession then deeply merged into this shedding. After it was severed, even though the Red Mother ignited divine fire in the Blazing Heaven and became a deity, the obsession within this shedding still remains. If anyone else had undergone their tribulation here, it wouldn’t have happened like this, but you are different!"

"You possess the power of the Purple Moon, which shares the same origin as the Red Mother, and you are currently within her shedding. Therefore, the allure of your Life Tribulation instinctively triggered this shedding to practice the Divine Tribulation ritual! This is an opportunity! Although it’s not a true Divine Tribulation and won't involve igniting divine fire, for you, this is an unknown stroke of fortune!"

"Junior Brother, this is your fifth tribulation!" As the Captain spoke, the golden stone stele thundered down.

Before Xu Qing, a golden light erupted, transforming into a sea of radiance that illuminated everything.

"No matter what kind of fortune it is, this tribulation must be endured," Xu Qing said, looking at the stele with determination in his eyes. The Red Mother's shedding had consumed his Life Tribulation, and now his cultivation was neither complete nor incomplete. Therefore, regardless of any potential fortune, he had to face this tribulation!

"This tribulation is special, Junior Brother. Listen to my instructions. First step: use your own divine blood to write your name on the stone stele!" the Captain said solemnly and quickly.

Xu Qing nodded. Under the stunned gaze of all beings present, he swayed and rushed towards the stele. Reaching it, he raised his right hand, and a large quantity of fresh blood gushed out. Using his palm as a brush and blood as ink, he made a sudden stroke on the hundred-zhang stele, inscribing the first stroke of his name.

As this stroke landed, the stele rumbled, and Xu Qing's body trembled violently. As blood surged uncontrollably within him, his breathing hitched, but he circulated his cultivation and continued writing. After three strokes, Xu Qing shivered, feeling his life force withering. A sense of weakness spread throughout his body, and large drops of water appeared out of nowhere, covering his entire body and continuously flowing. The water drops carried a foul odor, like corpse fluid, and Xu Qing was melting.

"This is the Five Elements Tribulation, Junior Brother! Remember not to lose yourself; walk out of it!" the Captain anxiously urged.

Just as Xu Qing was about to respond, in the next instant, his body collapsed, becoming a completely wet corpse, severely decomposed, to the point where even his appearance was indistinguishable. Only the continuously dripping corpse fluid floated in mid-air, preserving Xu Qing's appearance from before his death in its reflection on the water's surface. This was the Drowning Corpse of the Five Elements.

"Junior Brother, from death to life, walk out!" the Captain spoke in a low voice.

The expressions of the people on the ground also changed, one by one. Ling’er was especially anxious, but they couldn't help; everything depended on Xu Qing himself. Fortunately, soon, Xu Qing in the reflection opened his eyes, first with confusion, then with clarity. In his perception, it felt as though endless eons had passed, and he had experienced countless drownings across many lifetimes. The process of death was incredibly real; he struggled again and again, maintaining his consciousness, until he finally awoke.

After a moment, Xu Qing stood up, actually stepping out of the reflective water, moving inch by inch until he was clear of the surface, his corpse lying beside him. Standing beneath the stele, Xu Qing looked at the Red Mother's shedding in the sky, then at his own corpse, and suddenly a realization dawned upon him. "Is this my shedding? Can this ritual allow one to form a shedding?"

After a moment of silence, Xu Qing withdrew his gaze, raised his hand, and continued writing his name on the stone stele. The fourth stroke, the fifth stroke, the sixth stroke. The instant the sixth stroke landed, Xu Qing coughed up blood. A wound appeared out of thin air on his abdomen, as if a pair of invisible hands had forcibly pulled it open, exposing his abdominal cavity. His internal organs were disappearing, as if scooped out, quickly vanishing entirely. The immense pain that followed made Xu Qing's body tremble. He had to sit down, bending at the waist from the agony, as if in prayer. This was the Excavated Corpse of the Five Elements.

But soon, a phantom figure emerged from this excavated corpse, walking out and reforming into Xu Qing. He, too, had experienced countless deaths like this. At this moment, his consciousness was somewhat blurred, but he still raised his trembling hand and continued writing.

The seventh stroke, the eighth stroke, the ninth stroke—a red vine appeared out of thin air, wrapping around Xu Qing’s neck, then coiling around his entire body. The vines were covered in sharp thorns that deeply pierced his flesh. Gradually, the vines tightened with increasing force, slowly constricting, until Xu Qing fell motionless. This was the Strangled Corpse of the Five Elements.

As the strangled corpse bowed its head, after a moment, an overlapping shadow appeared on it. Xu Qing emerged like a soul, leaving the dead body behind, and stood before the stone stele.

Xu Qing's expression became confused again. After a long pause, he turned his head to look at the Drowned Corpse, Excavated Corpse, and Strangled Corpse beside him. He remembered a suspended pavilion deep within the Ghost Cave beneath the Grand Beginning Pillars of Separation and Darkness. Inside the pavilion, a woman sang, and at each of the pavilion’s five corners, five corpses sat cross-legged. "So, while she was suppressing the deities, she was also attempting to become one herself."