Chapter 1108: Consecutive Visits

"What, Junior Brother Lu Yang is now at the Tribulation Transcendence stage?"

"Isn't the limit of the Void Refinement stage the Integration stage?"

"I don't know."

The Dao Seeking Sect disciples became agitated again. Even Ao Ling, Jiang Lianyi, and others looked extremely surprised; they had never encountered such a situation even during their Void Refinement stage.

Immortal Ying Tian was uncharacteristically silent for a moment. Ever since he met this kid Lu Yang, he always encountered unexpected things, just like the Immortal Fairy who was impossible to predict. Indeed, he was truly from the Immortal lineage.

Immortal Ying Tian carefully sensed Lu Yang's cultivation stage; it was indeed the Tribulation Transcendence stage.

"Heavenly Venerable?" Lu Yang looked at Immortal Ying Tian expectantly. He wasn't trying to cause trouble; he genuinely wanted to understand what was happening.

Immortal Ying Tian pondered for a moment, then spoke unhurriedly, as if Lu Yang's situation had long been within his expectations. "As the saying goes, 'every peck and every sip is predetermined.' You have surpassed your predecessors, transcending three impossible Heavenly Tribulations, and accomplished an unprecedented feat. Only then were you able to break through the limits of the Void Refinement stage. This situation is a divine opportunity I bestow upon you on behalf of the heavens."

Lu Yang mentally translated for Immortal Ying Tian: The Heavenly Tribulation was too powerful, creating a new phenomenon. This was close to Lu Yang's guess, especially since Old Meng had also reached the Tribulation Transcendence stage just now, although he quickly fell back down.

Although it was a new situation, it was a good thing. According to ancient legends, the sages who created the Void Refinement stage originally intended for cultivators to adapt to subsequent stages in advance, thereby creating this new realm. Being able to experience the power of the Tribulation Transcendence stage while still in the Void Refinement stage meant that cultivation would be twice as effective when they truly reached the Tribulation Transcendence stage.

"Did you hear what Immortal Venerable Ying Tian said? Our two junior brothers have gained immortal opportunities!" Passing an immortal's test, an immortal appearing, and gaining an immortal opportunity — these would be glorious tales passed down for centuries in any era.

"Is that really so?" Yun Zhi raised an eyebrow. When she faced the Heaven Thunder Tribulation during her own transcendence, she had felt that the Void Refinement stage still had further potential to be explored. Unfortunately, she couldn't control the lightning tribulation and couldn't prove her hypothesis. This time, the changes in Junior Brother and Meng Senior Brother confirmed her idea.

"Xiao Yangzi, see? Didn't I tell you, the harder the lightning strikes, the greater the reward!" Lu Yang had successfully transcended the tribulation and undergone new changes. The Immortal Fairy seemed even happier than Lu Yang himself.

Gazing at the bouncing Immortal Fairy, and then at Qing He standing silently beside them, Lu Yang showed a strange expression. "Fairy, you don't look like you just woke up at all." It made sense; with such a huge commotion from his tribulation, the Fairy would have woken up even if she were in hibernation. How could she still be asleep? So, Qing He blocking him outside the imperial palace was actually the Fairy's intention? Lu Yang's heart tightened. As the saying goes, "accompanying a monarch is like accompanying a tiger." Was His Majesty's move intended to sow discord between himself, a loyal official, and the treacherous court historian, thus balancing court relations? Was this the art of imperial manipulation?

Noticing Xiao Yangzi's unusual gaze, as if her little secret had been exposed, the Immortal Fairy smiled sheepishly. She knew the principle that greater tribulation intensity brought greater rewards. However, seeing Xiao Yangzi enduring the Heavenly Tribulation, looking so pitiful, she couldn't bear to let him suffer so much. Fearing that she would soften if Xiao Yangzi came running for help, she had Qing He intervene.

Qing He stood silently with her hands clasped in front of her, like a statue, thinking nothing. As an immortal descended upon the world, one could not appear for too long. Immortals must always maintain an aura of mystery and reduce their time interacting with mortals. As for Immortal Ying Tian, who proposed this theory, he naturally had to uphold his own principles.

"Your achievements today are but a small step on the path of cultivation. Do not take your practice lightly."

"I cannot interfere too much with mortal affairs. You must make your own way."

"Yes!" Lu Yang and the other person shouted in unison.

A clear breeze appeared from below, billowing Immortal Ying Tian's dragon robe. The golden dragons on the robe blinked, moved across the fabric, then flew out of the robe, growing with the wind, transforming into a ten-thousand-foot divine dragon, drawing gasps of astonishment from the crowd. Everyone felt the faint pressure emanating from the divine dragon, which was not intentional but rather too immense to be fully controlled, leaking out just a tiny bit. Even this slight pressure gave everyone a sense of ancientness, as if from a primeval era.

The divine dragon lowered its proud head. Only one person in the world could make it bow: its master, Immortal Ying Tian. Immortal Ying Tian stepped onto the dragon's head, rode it away, and vanished into the sky.

As Immortal Ying Tian disappeared, the dark clouds finally dispersed, revealing the long-awaited sunlight, which warmed everyone. "Elder Brother Ying Tian's entrances and exits are different every time," Ao Ling said, both amused and exasperated. This divine dragon hadn't been seen before; perhaps it was newly refined just recently.

"It's finally over!" Lu Yang grimaced. Transcending a tribulation was truly not easy; the pain was real. Although the heavenly dew could heal injuries, neither of them had fully recovered. They were wounded from head to toe, inside and out, and moving even slightly caused immense pain. They would need at least a month of quiet recuperation.

"Old Meng, see? I didn't lie to you, did I? The greater the power of the tribulation, the greater the reward. I did all this for your own good."

"Get lost! Clearly, you didn't anticipate this change at all!" Meng Jingzhou wasn't falling for it.

As great heroes who had made history, the two were surrounded by Dao Seeking Sect disciples and escorted to their respective beds to recover peacefully.

"Xiao Yangzi, I have something to do and will be leaving for a bit," the Immortal Fairy said.

"Ah, oh." Lu Yang didn't think much of it and simply acknowledged her.

"Master, are you done with your business here?" Jing Hong noticed that her master's smile had been continuous since his return, even more exaggerated than when he left. Since becoming his disciple, Jing Hong had never seen her master smile like this. News traveled at a certain speed; the events at the Dao Seeking Sect had not yet reached the Moonfall Immortal Palace.

"That felt good." Considering that constant smiling wasn't conducive to maintaining a dignified image, Immortal Ying Tian turned his back to Jing Hong, appearing profound and unfathomable. Making an appearance under the gaze of thousands, announcing his return to the world, and then departing on a dragon amidst the admiring stares — this series of actions made him feel as if he had returned to the glorious ancient times when he commanded the winds and clouds. After holding back for three hundred thousand years, he had finally recaptured that feeling.

From behind Immortal Ying Tian came Jing Hong's surprised voice: "Oh, Senior Immortal, why are you here?"

"Little girl, please leave for a moment."

"Oh."

"Ying Tian, who told you to strike so hard?!" The Immortal Fairy angrily confronted Immortal Ying Tian.

Immortal Ying Tian turned around, looking at the Immortal Fairy as if he had seen a ghost: "You agreed when I said I was going to strike harder, didn't you?"

"What if I did?"

"Are you being reasonable... hey, hey, don't self-destruct yet..."

Boom—

After a violent explosion, the Immortal Fairy vanished without a trace, leaving only a dazed Immortal Ying Tian.

Suddenly, space distorted, and another guest visited Immortal Ying Tian. "Goodness, Daoist Friend Yun Zhi, why are you attacking without even a greeting...?"