Chapter 991: Swallowing the Overlapping Power of Dual Tribulation of Thunderstorm?

"Faster!""Even faster!""Just a little faster!"

In the deep sea, the higher Xu Xiaoshou flew, the stronger the ominous premonition in his heart became. He didn't know what awaited him, but Xu Xiaoshou no longer ignored the powerful intuitive warning brought by his Perception.

"Shouye, are you still alive...?"

Finally, after a rapid journey, Xu Xiaoshou arrived at the first Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation site. The power of the tribulation overflowing in the seawater here was overwhelming; the visible nine-colored electric snakes writhed and coiled, asserting their dominant presence. Having experienced the aftermath of a thunder tribulation before, Xu Xiaoshou felt his scalp tingle and his body begin to go numb with just one glance.

However, to find someone, he had to get through this! From such a distance, and with the influence of the Heavenly Tribulation's power, it would be impossible for him to find the tribulation taker without venturing deeper into the center.

"I'll try!"

Gritting his teeth, Xu Xiaoshou plunged headfirst into the tribulation site, facing the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation.

From above, a streak of orange lightning struck directly at him. By the lightning's landing point, Xu Xiaoshou immediately pinpointed the tribulation taker's location, changed direction, and prepared to instantly move there. But as the lightning descended, it seemed to detect an outsider's presence, splitting into two. A portion of the tribulation, originally meant for the tribulation taker, blasted towards Xu Xiaoshou.

"Indeed, indiscriminate attack..." Xu Xiaoshou thought, *Big Mouth had indeed not lied.* At that moment, he wished that Xiao Kongdong had actually been advising him not to go to the tribulation site, thereby telling a white lie. However, reality told him there was no such possibility.

"Then let's do this!"

A Grandmaster in the Celestial Phenomenon Realm, facing the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation for Cutting Dao—Xu Xiaoshou had never underestimated it in the slightest. Seeing the lightning split and approach, he immediately pulled out the famous sword Yanmang and the ominous Four Swords from his Yuanfu.

"Raging Giant, activate!"

With a boom, a golden light exploded. One moment, he was a water ghost wearing a golden beast mask and wielding a false Sea-Controlling Divine Halberd; the next, he transformed into a towering golden giant, holding two swords.

"Break for me... open!"

The giant crossed his twin swords, slashing upward fiercely against the orange Heavenly Lightning, unleashing a cross-slash through the air.

"Clang—"

The divine lightning descended, and a deafening clang echoed in the deep sea. Then, the twin swords transformed into two streaks of light, one black and one red, and were flung sideways. The remaining divine lightning directly pierced the golden giant, whose eyes were scarlet and whose body radiated raw, bestial savagery.

"Ugh... ugh..."

Taking the divine lightning full in the face, Xu Xiaoshou felt the golden and scarlet hues instantly fade from his vision. A single lightning strike blasted him back to his original form on the spot; he couldn't even maintain the Raging Giant form. He stood trembling in mid-air like someone being punished, his teeth chattering, almost biting off his straight tongue.

"This... this... this... What in the hell, what kind of f-f-f-f***ing joke is this...? I... I can't even withstand one tribulation?"

Xu Xiaoshou, smelling of burnt flesh, was dazed by the lightning strike and couldn't recover for a long time. Even with all his passive abilities, this orange Heavenly Lightning strike tore his skin, causing him to be completely paralyzed and unable to move.

"Buzz!"

From afar, the Four Swords hummed with an anomaly, instantly conveying a disdainful thought, seemingly reproaching their new master for being so pathetic. Just one lightning tribulation, and it had struck him so hard he couldn't even hold his swords. What kind of ancient sword cultivator was this?

"Hush!"

Yanmang, in good spirits, flew back leisurely after being struck away. Not only did it not reproach him, but it also challenged the ominous Four Swords. Xu Xiaoshou overheard the conversation between the two swords:

"He's still young, give him some time to grow.""Trash.""Say that again, I dare you?""Trash!"

Clang—

Yanmang's blade trembled and shot directly towards the Four Swords. Not to be outdone, the Four Swords met the attack, and then the two swords clashed in the deep sea...

"Bang!"

A terrifying sonic boom shattered the deep-sea currents, and the rampant sword intent grazed his body, causing Xu Xiaoshou to suddenly jolt and regain control of his body.

What's going on? How do I feel like you've broken free of my control and become stronger?

Xu Xiaoshou's face flushed, and he roared. "Enough!" Aren't I embarrassed enough? Ominous Sword and Flame Sword couldn't even withstand one lightning tribulation, and then they started fighting among themselves—what kind of mess is this?! Are you two sick or something? Where did you learn such bad tempers, from Zang Ku?

With a squeeze of his hands, the two swords flew back into his palms. But the two blades immediately turned away from each other, as if twisting their heads, clearly not wanting to face each other. If he hadn't known them, Xu Xiaoshou might have thought he was holding two scimitars!

"Damn, that's a bit scary..."

Ignoring the spat between the two swords, Xu Xiaoshou finally recovered from the lingering fear of having survived the tribulation. The Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation was too strong! Even with all his passive abilities, and with the Ominous Sword and Flame Sword acting as the first layer of defense, blocking most of the damage, the remaining impact on his body still caused such terrifying harm.

Look! Xu Xiaoshou looked down at his injuries and realized that, without noticing, his wounds had already healed. He paused for a moment. How terrible! It had already bled and scabbed over! This was a very serious injury since his passive abilities reached the Sovereign level, almost blasting away his flesh and blood! A single lightning tribulation descended, and he was in such a state. In the deep sea, with the forbidden spell barrier present, how could those Cutting Dao practitioners withstand over nine hundred lightning tribulations?

Xu Xiaoshou grew uneasy. In Shouye's condition, let alone nine hundred lightning tribulations, even nine consecutive ones would probably kill him!

"What can he fight with? With willpower? With a full heart of passion? With this thunder tribulation, even hot blood would be blasted cold on the spot!"

After regaining his mobility, Xu Xiaoshou didn't delay, taking a Step to the Heavens, moving towards the true tribulation taker's location. The thunder tribulation's range was vast, and the distance between them was great, but with Shrinking the Ground to an Inch, Xu Xiaoshou reached the target location in just a few steps.

"Shouye?"

His steps halted. Taking advantage of the tribulation's lull for preparation, Xu Xiaoshou, holding twin swords, looked towards the decaying figure. But with just one glance, his next words caught in his throat, unable to escape. In his eyes, only terror and unconcealed horror remained.

Beneath the deep sea, time seemed to slow. The buzzing sound of electricity reverberating around them only highlighted the profound silence. The tribulation taker slowly turned their head...

It was a terrifying sight, because what turned was truly just a skull! Xu Xiaoshou couldn't see the tribulation taker's lower body; he could only see the back of what appeared to be more than half of a red and white skull, which had turned its direction, as if facing away from him. But with that movement, the half-neck connected to the skull and the left arm, so tattered that only bone and sparse flesh remained, instantly broke off!

A shiver ran through Xu Xiaoshou as he felt the tribulation's power coursing through his flesh; goosebumps appeared all over his body. This wasn't a tribulation site at all! A horror movie couldn't be worse!

"You... help, help... me..."

A voice so hoarse it was barely human, manifesting as vague content through spiritual energy reverberating the seawater, reached Xu Xiaoshou's ears. Xu Xiaoshou exhaled deeply. Clearly, this person was not Shouye, and he was beyond saving.

"Boom!"

Another golden lightning tribulation struck down, splitting into two. Xu Xiaoshou heavily closed his eyes, his whole body erupting in golden light, transforming once again into the Raging Giant. This time, he went all out, activating "Explosive Stance," "Delayed Realm Field," and "Great Appetite." He then held his twin swords above his head, but didn't dare to strike out again.

With a "Bang," a sound echoed. As the lightning tribulation descended, it was first swallowed in a huge gulp by the millstone-sized Taotie beast head. The surging energy almost made Xu Xiaoshou explode. Fortunately, pain then followed... The golden lightning tribulation once again blasted away the tightly held twin swords, weakening it once; then it passed through the "Delayed Realm Field," weakening it again; finally, as it pierced through his entire body, the Taotie beast head forcibly swallowed another gulp, weakening it a third time...

Even after so many weakenings, the lightning tribulation still engulfed the golden giant's body!

"Ugh... ugh..."

Xu Xiaoshou was again blasted, his teeth chattering and his knees trembling. But with "Great Appetite" converting the energy, he quickly recovered.

It was over... Everything returned to tranquility. The surrounding tribulation power also began to dissipate. Because Xu Xiaoshou had endured, the Cutting Dao tribulation taker, who was left with only half an arm and half a skull, did not survive. Even with his eyes closed, Perception still conveyed the scene of imminent death. Under the Golden Crane Divine Lightning, the tribulation taker's skull was shattered, and he died on the spot. And without the repulsive force of spiritual energy, the deep-sea pressure swept over, pulverizing his scattered bone fragments into dust.

"No bones left..." Xu Xiaoshou had never understood that idiom so profoundly. But in stark contrast to his own brilliant state, where he forcibly withstood a lightning tribulation, this truly tragic tribulation taker was perhaps a true reflection of all those who underwent Cutting Dao in the deep sea.

"I'm sorry..." Xu Xiaoshou felt sorrowful, with the grief of seeing another's misfortune reflect his own. He opened his mouth to say something, feeling that letting the tribulation taker witness his various abilities resisting the Heavenly Tribulation at the end might have only deepened their despair. But after a long pause, Xu Xiaoshou ultimately couldn't utter a single word of explanation. Because the person was already dead.

"I'm sorry." He sincerely lowered his head in silent mourning, gripping his twin swords tightly. "If I had the ability, I might truly have been able to save you..." But no matter what he said, how could he save someone who, after their tribulation, was reduced to just a skull?

"Whoosh!"

With a long sigh, Xu Xiaoshou chose to forget, not allowing his emotions to dwindle in the face of the stranger's tragic death. Because at this moment, a more important person was waiting for him.

"Shouye, you must hold on!"

Having witnessed firsthand how a Cutting Dao practitioner could die under the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation, Xu Xiaoshou became even more impatient. The forbidden spell barrier inflicted too much damage on Spirit Refiners. In this deep sea, let alone surviving the entire Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation, even just one tribulation, or one hundred and eight lightning strikes, could cause instant death.

Looking back upwards, Xu Xiaoshou made up his mind to continue his journey. With this experience of venturing into the tribulation center, he knew how much his Sovereign physique, or rather his passive abilities, could help him in the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation. As long as the strikes weren't continuous, he probably wouldn't be killed by the lightning tribulation. Of course, the intensity and frequency of the lightning tribulation were closely related to each Cutting Dao practitioner's foundation. The stronger the foundation, the fiercer the lightning tribulation. Xu Xiaoshou knew that what he was currently experiencing was only the early stage of the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation. In the middle and late stages of the lightning tribulation, the lightning strikes wouldn't even pause for preparation or buffering, let alone any delay. And with hundreds of lightning strikes continuously blasting down, even a Great Void practitioner would have to kneel, let alone a Cutting Dao practitioner under the forbidden spell barrier.

"Buzz!"

Just as he was about to step upwards, his spiritual ocean surged, and a comfortable sensation permeated his body. Xu Xiaoshou's face stiffened. He looked into his spiritual ocean in disbelief, discovering that he... had broken through! Celestial Phenomenon Realm, late stage!

Just now, a lightning strike; "Great Appetite" swallowed two gulps, and the pure, overflowing energy transformed during injury recovery, finally perfectly merging into his spiritual ocean. In addition to his continuous cultivation of the Sovereign-level "Breathing Technique" these past days, and previously, when he encountered Jin Zu, the repeated intake and expulsion of spiritual energy—all these factors allowed him to naturally break through the bottleneck of the late-stage Celestial Phenomenon Realm, after only a short time since reaching the early and middle stages.

"That's too fast, isn't it?" Xu Xiaoshou couldn't help but smile wryly. After becoming a Grandmaster, he hadn't intentionally slept, nor did he often have time to sleep and cultivate. As for heavenly treasures, he didn't consume them as frequently as he did when he was Innate, such as the Complete Illumination Origin Seed or the Three-Day Frozen Tribulation. Yet the Sovereign-level "Breathing Technique" remained powerful, pushing his cultivation realm up several times in such a short period.

"My spiritual ocean is incredibly vast. Logically, I shouldn't have broken through to the late-stage Celestial Phenomenon Realm so quickly. Hmm, it must have been those two gulps of the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation just now... The power of the lightning tribulation is too strong. This is meant for Cutting Dao practitioners' baptism, yet I, a mere Grandmaster, actually managed to sneak in two gulps of pure tribulation power. And 'Great Appetite' can indeed convert any wild power into my spiritual energy... This was, one might say, the crucial catalyst that pushed me over the edge?"

Shaking his head, Xu Xiaoshou no longer sighed, stepping upwards. A realm breakthrough was a minor matter. Currently, a greater matter awaited him.

However... The Grandmaster realm was indeed too weak against the various formidable enemies in the deep sea right now. He hadn't known before that "Great Appetite" consuming lightning tribulations could also help his cultivation. Now that he knew, and since Cutting Dao practitioners needed someone to help them share the tribulation power...

"Then I'll do a good deed! Not for myself, but just for these poor souls."

Upwards... Constantly upwards... With experience, Xu Xiaoshou no longer feared these early-stage Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulations. Whenever he encountered a lightning tribulation, he would charge in, swallow a few gulps to stabilize his realm, and after confirming it wasn't Shouye, he would briefly impart a breath of life energy to the other person, then say "Take care" and turn to leave.

Once, twice... Four times, five times... Finally, after experiencing seven or eight Cutting Dao tribulations, Xu Xiaoshou, according to his memory, arrived at what should have been the first Cutting Dao tribulation zone. He recalled that this location seemed to be directly beneath Shouye's landing point, making the likelihood of it being the correct target very high.

"Step to the Heavens!"

Outside the lightning tribulation, Xu Xiaoshou, holding twin swords, once again charged into the tribulation zone, but felt something unusual in his heart. *Why are there two layers of tribulation power overlapping in this place?*