Gan Xuehua immediately ran out of the mansion on Rites Peak and into a clearing. If she undertook the heavenly tribulation here, the Heavenly Dao would account for the formations around the mansion as aid, strengthening it to a terrifying degree. Once she found a clearing, she sat down in a lotus position and took out all her artifacts.
“I’ve miscalculated,” Gan Xuehua said with a bitter smile.
She never expected that just ingesting the Concealed Vitality Pill would induce her to advance her martial cultivation. However, thinking it over, it was also reasonable. The Concealed Vitality was a venerable-rank pill. Although its primary effect was to heal, it also had other marvelous effects, especially for those at a lower realm. And that was exactly what happened.
Gan Xuehua had no choice but to face the Acupoint Heavenly Tribulation unprepared. Thankfully, she was already a core formation master, so she didn’t have to worry too much. Unlike the Core Formation Heavenly Tribulation, the Acupoint Opening Tribulation had three phases: the wind tribulation, fire tribulation, and lightning tribulation.
Green strands manifested around Gan Xuehua’s body. The wind tribulation had started. The strands clumped together and formed countless tiny blades that lashed her body. It didn’t matter what kind of defensive artifact Gan Xuehua wore because the blades bypassed her defenses and attacked her body.
The Acupoint Opening Heavenly Tribulation was a test against the cultivator’s body. Any artifact in the Core Formation Realm was of no use, and cultivators shouldn’t avoid it either. Although the Acupoint Opening Tribulation was dangerous, it also represented a crucial step to strengthen and create the martial body.
Gan Xuehua bit her lips as she endured the countless lacerations on her body. Blood flowed onto the ground from the gaps in her dress. Her skin disappeared on some parts of body, revealing the flesh and bones underneath, but it quickly healed thanks to her true qi. The most excruciating part was the pain.
However, she didn’t resist and allowed it to continue. The more she withstood, the more benefits she would receive. Finally, the wind tribulation ended and her muscles and skin grew back. Had it not been for the blood puddle underneath her, no one would have thought the bloody scene before had occurred.
She only had a brief second of respite as the next phase of the Acupoint Opening Heavenly Tribulation, the fire tribulation, began.
Red flames condensed inside Gan Xuehua’s body. If the wind tribulation was testing her skin, muscle and tendons, then the fire tribulation tested her bones, marrows, and organs. Very soon, her skin turned red as a lobster from the intense heat, and sweat poured out of her pores. Her body shrank at a visible pace as body mass disappeared.
A day later, Gan Xuehua had become a shriveled husk. Her skin had turned dark, almost like a husk. Bones could be seen protruding from her skin. Compared to a mummy, there was not much difference.
Just as it seemed that Gan Xuehua had transformed into a corpse. green true qi shrouded her. Her dry skin cracked and flaked off, revealing tender white skin, and her body fleshed out. Gan Xuehua opened her eyes and a green light exuded from her pupils. “Now, it’s only the final lightning tribulation.”
The lightning tribulation determined the potential of her martial body. Like the wind and fire tribulations, the longer she persisted, the more benefits she would receive.
The first bolt of tribulation lightning struck Gan Xuehua, but she didn’t resist. Electricity coated her body, and her face twisted in pain. The sheer power of the lightning melted her skin and large portions of her hair burned away, but Gan Xuehua could feel a large amount of vitality entering each individual cell in her body.
Gan Xuehua barely recovered from her injuries, but before she had time to breathe, the second bolt of lightning came down. She gritted her teeth and used her body to endure it, using her true qi to recover. She could already guarantee that most body transformation acolytes would not be able to receive the full benefits of the Acupoint Heavenly Tribulation unless they became a Core Formation Master first.
After the second bolt finished, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth bolt descended.
‘I can’t resist anymore,’ Gan Xuehua thought. She would have to use her techniques to divert the seventh bolt of tribulation lightning, but she felt unwilling. If her body couldn’t withstand all nine strikes of tribulation lightning, she would not be able to form the perfect martial body, limiting her future potential.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up. Didn’t she swallow a Concealed Vitality Pill? Since it caused her current problem, it should fix it as well.
Gan Xuehua didn’t use any techniques to weaken the seventh bolt of tribulation lightning. Like the previous six times, she resisted with just her body. Her face paled and blood spurted from her mouth. Even her heart seemed to stop beating for a second, but just as she thought she overestimated herself, a warm sensation flowed from her dantian.
The effects of the Concealed Vitality Pill revealed itself at this moment, but before Gan Xuehua could be happy, the heavenly tribulation roared, as if in anger. Before the seventh bolt of tribulation lightning disappeared, the eighth bolt descended!
“AAAAAAHHHHH!” Gan Xuehua couldn’t contain the pain and yelled. However, she quickly bit the inside of her gum. No matter what, she had to endure the pain and focus on surviving. As she endeavored to do so, she didn’t even know that the ninth bolt had descended.
After what seemed like an eternity, the pain faded. Gan Xuehua felt lightheaded, almost floaty, like she had just awoken from a deep sleep. However, if she could not maintain her clarity, she would not be able to form a perfect martial body despite withstanding the wind, fire, and lightning tribulations.
At this time, she felt something sharp stab her mind, forcing her awake. ‘Not good!’
Gan Xuehua didn’t know where the pain came from, but she quickly focused on forming her martial body. After withstanding the heavenly tribulation, a gentle energy appeared in her body, healing her. However, the energy wasn’t just for healing, but it also facilitated the creation of her martial body.
The skin turned transparent like glass, while her muscles and organs transformed into crystals, and her bones transformed into diamonds. Gan Xuehua resembled the most beautiful sculpture, pure and unsullied. This was the Life-Death Martial Body. Although it was only at its initial stage, as long as Gan Xuehua absorbed all sorts of medicine and poison, her acupoints would unlock.
Slowly, her body returned to normal. No, not normal. Gan Xuehua had become even more enchanting than before, despite the rags on her body. Still, she frowned. ‘Who took action and woke me up at the critical moment? Was it Ultimate Young Master, Spider Idol, or Yan Nie?’
Tianyi clicked his tongue. ’I didn’t expect Gan Xuehua to immediately start her Acupoint Opening Heavenly Tribulation. According to my understanding of her, she shouldn’t be someone so impulsive. Did something happen that I was unaware of?’
“Is something wrong?” Xia Meng asked.
Tianyi turned toward Xia Meng and his mother, who also looked over. “No, it’s nothing.”
He turned back to the stage. It had been a few days since Gan Xuehua began her Acupoint Opening Heavenly Tribulation, and the Young Heavens Tournament wouldn’t stop just for her. However, without her, Tianyi lost all interest in the grandmaster division of the tournament.
Although there was an incident on the first day of the grandmaster division that piqued his interest. It didn’t have anything to do with the actual tournament, but a participant—specifically someone from the Gan Dynasty. Even if Tianyi had only met him once when he was still a core formation master at the Three Heavens Connection Meeting, he left an everlasting impression.
Tianyi was, of course, talking about the Esteemed Sage Ascendant Soul Venerable sent by the Wise Nascent Trigram Immortal of the Nine Great Heavens, Gan Linyou. Even if he didn’t remember anything else, the unnecessarily long Daoist title was more than enough.
When Gan Linyou stepped onto the stage, he didn’t even look at his opponent. Instead, he stared straight at Tianyi and threw down the gauntlet, shocking everyone. Silence had descended on the venue, not because the audience was stunned by Gan Linyou’s bravery, but his stupidity.
You’re just a little grandmaster. Who gave you the courage to challenge an immortal emperor? Hell, even challenging a true immortal would be impossible.
Naturally, Gan Linyou didn’t stay in the arena for long. Not because Tianyi took action, but the Gan Emperor forcibly dragged him back and sealed him. After that, he apologized profusely to Tianyi. To which Tianyi just waved his hand and said it was nothing. He always knew that Gan Linyou had brain problems.
Aside from that, Tianyi didn’t pay attention. Instead, he surfed the Xiyinet with his immortal sense. Other people might need to use the Xiyi Talisman, Tianyi could directly interact with it using his immortal sense. After all, he could be considered the Xiyinet in a way.
‘Oh? When did Daoyi post a new video?’ Tianyi thought. He clicked it open and saw Daoyi sitting at the center playing a zither and singing. Around her, the cultivators of Flower Peak danced around her like backup dancers and singers. There was even a true immortal acting as the lead singer. Once in a while, the tone would change and so would the setting. At one point, it was a pasture full of floating cherry blossoms. At other times, it was a field of snow and ice, chilling to the heart.
Tianyi checked the likes and viewers, and his lips couldn’t help but twitch. He heard that the fairies of Flower Peak produced these videos to attract more awareness for female cultivators, but over seventy percent of the viewers were males, and those that gave Xiyi coins were ninety percent males. Did they stray from their purpose, or did they just want to farm Xiyi coins?
After all, you had to pay Xiyi coins in order to use the Concept Enlightenment Hall in Cultivation Online.
Of course, it could also just be Daoyi playing a prank, but Tianyi didn’t think Daoyi would do that.
Tianyi inwardly sighed. Xia Meng and the other decision makers made a rule that only members of the Immortal Court could enter Cultivation Online. Not even members of the Cultivator Alliance could join. In fact, the Cultivator Alliance had just become an external branch of the Immortal Court. Every once in a while, excellent members of the Cultivator Alliance would join the Immortal Court. No longer could anyone directly join the Immortal Court.
Even the scions of true immortal elders had to join the Cultivator Alliance first. In a way, those that managed to join the Immortal Court before the rule was made were quite lucky.
Tianyi couldn’t help but think about his two disciples, Ming Xingyun and Jinshu. Ming Xingyun had become a world merging venerable. Her sister, Ming Yayun, had barely become a grandmaster thanks to many pills and resources. Had Ming Xingyun used those resources on herself, she might have already become a saint, but he didn’t begrudge his disciple’s actions.
As for Jinshu, he was still in the Pathfinding Immortal Realm. Tianyi didn’t take back the Fire Element Morpher, so he was still comprehending the Law of Fire within it. In a few hundred years, Tianyi might have an immortal monarch disciple. Most masters would be lucky to teach another true immortal, but he actually taught an immortal monarch.
Tianyi felt very good about himself. He even had the thought of accepting more disciples, but none of the cultivators in his inner universe attracted his interest. Instead, he preferred people with main character templates, but alas, how could someone like that appear in the Immortal Court?
They’d had to be from a backwater region at the edge of the continent. Tianyi regretted the rule that non-members of the Immortal Court couldn’t use Cultivation Online. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. What if he set up some inheritance sites in the lower world and placed the Xiyi talismans as prizes?
He could accept them as nominal disciples, and they would be able to enter Cultivation Online without being a member of the Immortal Court. With his influence, it would be no problem for them to become members of the Cultivator Alliance before officially becoming members of the Immortal Court.
Before Tianyi knew it, the Young Heavens Tournament had ended. He only stayed for the closing ceremony and immediately left. Not long after, the entourage from all forces left the Immortal Court. After they left, the floating island at the center of Trinity Continent vanished from their senses. Without permission, no one could find the Immortal Court.
“Hmm?” Tianyi looked up from the Xiyi Talisman in his hand. Surfing the Xiyinet with his immortal sense was undoubtedly more convenient, but holding something in the hand was more comfortable for him.
Daoyi glanced at him from across the table. “What’s wrong?”
“The first person that succeeded in crossing the Immortal Ascension Heavenly Tribulation since I’ve started upgrading the Huang Realm has appeared. I’m going to take a look,” Tianyi said as his figure vanished.
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