Third Heaven.
Jiang Die began her first lecture.
It was obvious she was in a mood, so she picked a divine ability to teach—Breath-Gathering Art (Nàxī Shù).
A breathing technique to assist in cultivation—useful at best, optional at worst.
When the Jiang Clan disciples who had come specially to attend heard what this technique actually did, they nearly spat on her on the spot.
What the hell is this crap?
Still, the Jiang Clan made no comment.
Because this was a long-term commitment—not something to be finished in one or two sessions.
Lectures were scheduled every three days.
In the second one, she taught a divine ability called Exposure Art, which allowed one to convert true essence into an intensely bright light.
She said intensely bright, but in practice, the most it could do was slightly interfere with another’s line of sight.
And so, time passed, second by second.
In the blink of an eye, a year had gone by.
Over a hundred divine abilities taught—without a single repetition.
Though Jiang Die had copied some of Lu Ye’s divine abilities, she hadn’t duplicated them all.
After sharing more than a hundred different divine techniques, Jiang Die began racking her brains for ones that weren’t particularly useful—but still useful enough.
Another year passed.
Time flowed like a fleeting shadow.
Another hundred-plus divine abilities were taught.
The divine techniques she had taught now spanned virtually every category—like stars scattered across the sky.
Some people couldn’t master even one of them in an entire lifetime.
But this Jiang Die could explain any one of them with absolute clarity, just like that.
Gradually, the Jiang Clan’s attitude toward Jiang Die began to shift.
Some people started treating her with reverence. Others were baffled. Beneath still others’ gazes surged tidal waves of hidden shock.
Too terrifying.
How could a single person possibly be familiar with this many divine abilities?
And judging from Jiang Die’s state, she hadn’t even hit her limit. She handled every lecture with ease, and what’s more—her cultivation was progressing rapidly.
Jiang Dingtian sat in his study, leisurely flipping through the copied manuals of divine techniques.
Even as the Jiang Clan Patriarch, with all his experience, some of the abilities still made his eyes light up. A few even struck him as absurd—yet clearly usable.
How could something this outrageous even work?
Jiang Die... just what secrets are you hiding?
He was close to reaching his limit.
That day, Jiang Die—as usual—walked toward the Lecture Hall.
She already knew what divine ability she would be teaching today.
The Lunar Divine Sword.
What’s that? You don’t have Lunar Force so you can’t use it?
What does that have to do with her? She’s here to teach, not to make sure you learn.
In truth, she was already preparing to leave the Jiang Clan.
But she hadn’t made up her mind to do it yet.
If she rebelled, the Jiang Clan would absolutely hunt her down.
But if she didn’t escape, then what?
Her cultivation speed here wasn’t much faster—because the resources the Jiang Clan provided her were clearly restricted.
Just one step away from the Lecture Hall—
Suddenly, a swath of black cloth came crashing down on her from above.
Whoever it was—they were powerful. Absolutely above the Karma Realm.
Even though Jiang Die reacted fast and tried to dodge, it was already too late.
The black cloth enveloped her completely.
“Who dares act so brazenly in my Jiang Clan?!”
An angry roar rang out.
That was the last sound Jiang Die heard.
Meanwhile, the storm brewing outside had nothing to do with Lu Ye.
He remained focused on cultivation.
Unknowingly, he had already stepped into the 11th Layer of the Heavenly God Realm.
Just a bit more grinding...
The Scent of the Dao on his body wasn’t particularly strong yet, since that scent was tied closely to the strength of his physical body.
The stronger the body, the stronger the Scent of the Dao.
The Nine Tribulations Undying Body he cultivated had now reached three and a half tribulations.
Once he formally broke through the Fourth Tribulation, his physical body would see another major boost.
After another half year of cultivation—
Lu Ye had reached the 11th Layer of the Heavenly God Realm. The true essence inside him surged like a tide, shimmering with a faint luster.
The Heavenly God Realm already granted one the power to grasp stars.
To put it simply—he could now seize smaller celestial bodies.
If Lu Ye chose to strike, shattering a planet with one punch would be no problem.
It was time.
Time to transcend the tribulation.
This was actually Lu Ye’s normal cultivation pace. From First Heaven to Second Heaven, he had stayed in the latter for less than four years in total.
In that time, he had gone from 1st Layer Earth Immortal to 11th Layer Heavenly God in one go.
He had basically pioneered a new speedrun record for cultivators.
Lu Ye decided there was no need to linger in Second Heaven anymore.
At his current level, Second Heaven no longer offered any meaningful opportunities—unless he decided to go full slaughter mode, purge the realm, and collect loot.
But what would be the point?
Ascend.
“System, give me a boost!”
Lu Ye spoke.
And right then—his physical body cracked for the first time.
“Ding! You got it, extra powerful!”
In the blink of an eye, black clouds surged across the sky. One after another, the storm clouds gathered, expanded, and spread.
A storm wind howled across the heavens.
The aura of the tribulation pressed down like the weight of a thousand tons, churning through the void with suffocating pressure.
The tribulation clouds kept expanding.
In a flash, they covered a thousand li.
Then three thousand.
Then five thousand.
In the end, the clouds blanketed an area ten thousand li wide—such a vast tribulation cloud it shook all of Second Heaven’s cultivators.
“What the hell is this? Who’s drawing such a monstrous tribulation cloud?! Are they insane?”
“Who’s transcending? Who has power like this?”
“Could it be... Lu Ye?”
“Impossible! No way! He hasn’t even been in Second Heaven that long!”
“But who else could possibly trigger a ten-thousand-li tribulation cloud?!”
“Come on, let’s go check it out!”
Just as the tribulation cloud reached ten thousand li, it suddenly compressed, violently.
And along with that compression came a terrifying influx of spiritual energy.
The host had already spoken.
And when it came to smiting the host, Shen Xitong wasn’t one to hold back.
Maximum power engaged.
Whatever it took to satisfy the host!
The ten-thousand-li tribulation cloud kept shrinking, and shrinking.
In the end, it shrank to only a hundred li in diameter—smaller than when Shangguan Huanling underwent her tribulation.
But not a single person thought Lu Ye’s power was weak.
Why?
Because overhead, the tribulation cloud had condensed into a terrifying vortex—and from within its spinning center came golden lightning.
Golden lightning—
Pure gold, right from the start. Not even a sliver of silver mixed in.
All one could say was: the system really was giving it all it had.
In the far distance, the powerful cultivators of Second Heaven felt their scalps go numb.
“This bastard’s ascending again?” muttered Liu Changfeng, scratching his head in disbelief.
Yes, he had also just succeeded in tribulation.
Back before Lu Ye annihilated the coalition of alien races, Liu Changfeng had already broken through into the Tribulation Realm.
Later, as the Grand Dao Sect rose to the top of First Heaven’s hierarchy and resources poured in, Liu Changfeng had played a major role in the transformation. Naturally, he’d received great rewards.
Not long ago, he too had passed his tribulation and ascended to Second Heaven.
He’d come looking for Lu Ye—but hadn’t found a trace.
And now, finally, he saw him—only to see Lu Ye already [N O V E L I G H T] in the middle of transcending and ascending again.
What the hell kind of cultivation speed is this...?!
