Chapter 1359: This Is My Thunder Tribulation?

Despite being Saint 7-dan cultivators, Luo Xuanqing and the others seemed utterly insignificant before the lightning, which embodied the might of heaven and earth.

The dark clouds grew thicker, and the lightning bolts became increasingly massive. While the four were not yet in mortal danger, they were so disfigured by the electric shocks that they no longer resembled formidable experts. Instead, they appeared like wretched beggars, in an indescribable state of misery.

Since arriving at the Saint Son Temple, they had commanded respect and influence; never before had they endured such humiliation!

After enduring four consecutive strikes, Bi Hongyin could no longer hold back and spewed a mouthful of blood.

Among the four, she was the most wretched. Originally slender and as noble as a fairy, she now looked as dishevelled as a mythical beast. Without a close look, it was hard to tell she was even human.

"Why is it striking my formation plate?"

Gritting her teeth, she couldn't understand it for the life of her.

Such powerful lightning, why was it intent on destroying a small formation plate?

Would it only be satisfied after shattering it?

This item had cost a fortune to commission an 8-star high-tier formation master to forge. It was a unique piece; once destroyed, her strength would plummet by at least half!

"Luo Xuanqing, is the person we just trapped in the formation about to break through?"

A thought suddenly struck her, reminding her of something, and she couldn't help but look over.

The lightning had come quickly, and its power far exceeded that of an Exuviae Ordeal. She hadn't thought much of it then, but now that she could no longer endure it, a flash of insight made her realize something was amiss.

She had used her formation plate countless times without it ever being struck by lightning. The moment it trapped this young man, however, the lightning became relentless. Could it be that...

...that young man was too despicable?

"Breakthrough? That's unlikely," Luo Xuanqing replied. "When I was looking for him just now, I heard that he had only broken through from the peak of Nascent God realm to the early Exuviae realm yesterday, leaping two minor levels consecutively. How could he break through again in less than a day?"

Luo Xuanqing shook his head.

Although he hadn't been at the academy long, this fellow had already become a legend in both the elite and regular classes, with people discussing him everywhere.

According to what he heard, he broke through within ten breaths while fighting someone yesterday. After reaching his current strength, it should be impossible for him to make another rapid breakthrough so soon, right?

Cultivation is a process of accumulation. Not to mention him, even his younger sister progressed steadily, step by step. He had never heard of anyone breaking through one day and then again the very next.

"Yesterday?" Bi Hongyin paused, then also shook her head.

She had wondered if the person inside the formation caused it, but now it seemed unlikely.

"You suspect he's about to break through and attracted the lightning tribulation?" Luo Xuanqing couldn't help but ask, seeing her expression.

"Yes!" Bi Hongyin nodded directly.

"Even if he breaks through, it would be an Exuviae Ordeal; it shouldn't have such powerful lightning, right?"

Luo Xuanqing didn't believe it either.

"No matter what's happening, the lightning is getting stronger. If this continues, we might all die here. Bi Hongyin, you must abandon this formation plate!" The short man, also nearing his breaking point from the strikes, couldn't help but urge.

These lightning bolts were clearly only targeting the formation plate. If she abandoned it, their current problem should be solved.

It wasn't worth risking their lives for a single treasure.

"Abandon it? No!" Bi Hongyin retorted. "This is my foundation; I won't give it up even if it kills me!"

Clenching her fists, Bi Hongyin's eyes showed determination.

She had paid an immeasurable price for this item in the past, even nearly dying to acquire it. Give up now?

She was truly unwilling!

"As long as the plate exists, I exist; if the plate perishes, I perish!" With grim resolve, Bi Hongyin looked once more at the lightning gathering in the sky. Just as she was about to do something, she heard a violent roar right before her.

*Crack!*

Stronger than any lightning strike before, her body trembled. The formation plate hovering nearby developed cracks, followed by a crisp snap. It instantly split apart, shattering into two halves.

With her magical artifact destroyed, she spewed blood again. Her eyes turned red, and Bi Hongyin was on the verge of madness.

She had endured lightning strikes for so long, risking her life, without letting it suffer any damage. How could it still have shattered?

Just as she was wondering what had happened, the mist before her vanished, and a young man walked out from within. "Alright, the formation is broken," he said. "What happened to you all?"

Zhang Xuan had tried several times and found he couldn't attract the lightning tribulation. Realizing it might be the peculiarity of this formation, he thought for a moment and decided to use the most violent method to break the formation, destroying the formation plate in the process.

He had originally planned to emerge like a king and inform Luo Xuanqing that he had successfully broken the formation, hoping to gain his favor. He never expected to see several individuals who looked like charred lumps of coal.

After looking for a while, he finally recognized them: they were the very super-experts from before.

How did they turn into this state in the blink of an eye?

"You broke my formation plate?"

Bi Hongyin trembled.

"Mmm, this formation has too many flaws," Zhang Xuan said, nodding. "As I was breaking it, I found it quite simple, so I just went ahead and scrapped the formation plate too. That way, it's truly broken! So, how about it? I should have passed the assessment, right?"

They had used such a powerful formation the moment they met, disregarding his life or death, so he saw no need to be polite either.

Gaining his brother-in-law's approval was more important.

"You... I'll kill you!"

Her face flushed crimson, Bi Hongyin went mad.

She had just declared that as long as the plate existed, she existed, yet in the blink of an eye, the other party had reduced it to fragments. The immense rage almost drove her insane.

Raising her palm, just as she was about to slap him dead, she heard a violent roar. The lightning in the sky had gathered its power again and struck down.

*Crack!*

Her hair stood on end again, and white smoke billowed from her entire body.

Although the lightning tribulation belonged to Zhang Xuan, her interference with the lightning was equivalent to defying heavenly might. She had completely enraged it, and it seemed it wouldn't stop until she was struck dead.

"Is she also undergoing a tribulation?"

Only then did Zhang Xuan realize that dark clouds filled the sky, and countless lightning bolts twisted like giant dragons, ready to strike down at any moment.

"Wait, no," he thought, "this lightning seems to be related to me."

After sensing it, Zhang Xuan was stunned.

Although the lightning was only targeting Bi Hongyin, whenever he released the power within his body, the lightning would become even more volatile.

"So, my lightning tribulation didn't get simpler," he realized, "it was blocked by them and never even entered the formation. How infuriating!"

His face flushed, Zhang Xuan became extremely angry.

No wonder, inside the formation, he waited and waited but it never came; it turned out this fellow had blocked it.

Lightning tribulations cannot be evaded, nor can others take their place. Otherwise, disciples from large families could simply have their elders help them resist, and they wouldn't have to worry or be afraid.

It's fine that others can't help resist, but more importantly, once someone intervenes, the tribulation will become increasingly fierce, until it strikes the tribulation-taker dead.

This was precisely why no one dared to intervene when Hall Master Xing underwent his lightning tribulation.

Now his own lightning tribulation was being interfered with by Bi Hongyin, making it so massive that even Saint 7-dan cultivators could barely withstand it. How could he possibly contend with it?

If he were to go there, he'd be struck dead on the spot.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Zhang Xuan's teeth even began to itch with fury.

It's not your lightning tribulation, why interfere?!

Now look what happened. The lightning was accumulating more and more, and sooner or later, she wouldn't be able to bear it. After striking her dead, it would definitely come for him next.

What was he supposed to do?

This was utterly unfair!

Zhang Xuan felt like crying.

*Boom!*

Depressed to the point of explosion, he looked up at the sky. Just one glance, and he involuntarily shivered.

The magnificence of this lightning tribulation was many times more powerful than the previous Conferred Saint Tribulation. The one from yesterday in front of the mountain gate didn't even possess one-tenth of its might.

In other words, if he were to undergo the tribulation now, the difficulty would have increased tenfold compared to before.

Even if he had reached the peak of the Exuviae realm from its early stage, facing a tenfold lightning tribulation would be impossible to overcome.

"But my lightning tribulation can only be resolved by me," he fretted. "I can't evade it. If I let her continue interfering, it'll be even more impossible to pass."

Zhang Xuan was burning with anxiety.

This Bi Hongyin was too unreliable. If it wasn't her lightning tribulation, why attract it?

Now look at the trouble she'd caused!

"Right," he thought, "can I see the flaws in this lightning tribulation?"

Filled with anxiety, he knew that with his current strength, if he ran over to confront it, he definitely wouldn't be able to withstand even a single strike and would be instantly struck dead. Unable to bear it any longer, he quietly called out in his mind.

Since it was a lightning tribulation, and lightning tribulations were part of the Heavenly Dao, he should be able to see its flaws, right?

*Whoosh!*

With a flicker, a book appeared before his eyes.

He hastily flipped it open.

"Huh? Why is it blank?"

There was no content on the book; it was completely blank.

"It seems it's the same as before," he realized, "the Library of Heaven's Path cannot generate books about matters closely related to me."

Soon, Zhang Xuan understood.

He had tested this before. Matters intimately related to him could not form books. The lightning tribulation in the sky was his Exuviae Ordeal; if a flaw appeared, it would mean there were no more difficulties in his cultivation, which would be cheating.

"Eye of Insight!"

Knowing the Library of Heaven's Path was unreliable at this moment, he could only rely on himself. The patterns in his eyes writhed, and he looked at the lightning in the sky once more.

At this moment, the dark clouds covered an area of several dozen li. Massive lightning bolts, over ten meters thick, writhed within them like giant dragons.

Each one possessed power comparable to a Saint 7-dan cultivator. If they struck down, Luo Xuanqing and the others would all be injured.

"Indeed, my current strength cannot withstand this," he thought.

He clenched his fists.

Analyzing with the Eye of Insight, although his strength had significantly improved, it was still absolutely impossible for him to contend with such powerful lightning.

"I can only do as I did yesterday and charge into it."

A glint appeared in his eyes.

Undergoing tribulation by charging into the lightning clouds seemed the most dangerous, but having experienced it himself, he knew it was far easier than passively enduring strikes from below.

This was because from below, the concentrated attacks accumulated great momentum and were most powerful. But by charging into the clouds, the power couldn't gather, making it considerably weaker.

Of course, only he thought this way. For anyone else, entering the clouds, where lightning surrounded them, would be like a frog in slowly boiling water; even without concentrated strikes, they would still be electrocuted to death.

But with his Heaven's Path zhenqi, his physical body and soul would quickly recover even if injured. What was the most terrifying maneuver in others' eyes was, for him, the simplest.