Inside the Primordial Wood Astral Forest, dark clouds rolled as a sky full of lightning and rain was drawn toward a central vortex, as if pulled by something. An hour had passed since Wu Tianjun leapt into the tribulation cloud, yet the cloud showed no signs of dissipating; he was still undergoing his tribulation. More accurately, he was still absorbing the lightning tribulation! Wu Zixian was right—crossing the tribulation was easy for him now. His current difficulty had been resolved; the Dao rhyme that had previously immobilized him had been neutralized by the Dao rhyme generated by his Taiji diagram. Who knew what he would encounter in the future!
"As expected, it isn't much stronger than the previous tribulation. I wonder how much I can get from absorbing it." Wu Tianjun looked around. Countless drops of lightning tribulation liquid floated about. With a wave of his hand, he opened the minor Demon Realm and collected a significant amount of it. "Not even forty thousand drops..." Wu Tianjun said with some disappointment. From reviewing the memories of that Primordial Demon, he had realized one thing: no matter how powerful he was, he was still just one person. A fierce tiger, strong as it might be, would still suffer when fighting a pack of wolves. Wu Tianjun wanted to build a faction; only then would he not have to face his enemies alone. To build a faction, he needed a vast amount of resources. He wanted to personally nurture his own forces, as only they would be truly loyal to him. Lightning tribulation liquid was a supreme treasure of heaven and earth that would be of immense help in cultivating his forces, which was why he needed so much of it. "Sigh... the more I have, the more I feel I lack," Wu Tianjun sighed.
Another hour passed, and the lightning tribulation gradually dispersed. Wu Tianjun, hovering in midair, slowly descended. The lightning rain he had absorbed this time was mostly used to elevate the realm of his Divine Veins. Consequently, he had broken through to the late-stage First Order of the Divine Realm. An unknown Dao rhyme permeated the air around him. Though it seemed completely harmless, the surrounding space constantly rippled as if it were about to shatter. To shatter space required at least a Divine Lord-level power!
Although Wu Tianjun had successfully absorbed the tribulation and broken through, he showed no signs of stopping. His eyes remained tightly shut, and that mysterious Dao rhyme vibrated even more intensely. Wu Zixian and the others stopped more than ten miles away and looked toward Wu Tianjun. Guessing that he was currently comprehending the Dao, they did not disturb him and merely watched from a distance.
"What kind of Dao rhyme is that? It looks weak, yet it terrifies me. What kind of power is that?" a Sacred God asked in horror, staring at Wu Tianjun.
"I don't know! This is the first time I've seen this kind of Dao rhyme. It is far more powerful than other types of energy," Mo Lian said solemnly. His minor world was complete, and his World Force was incredibly strong, yet compared to the power of that Dao rhyme, it still felt weak—as if he would instantly melt if he drew too close.
"I'm afraid that Dao rhyme has already surpassed the Sacred Ancestor level..." Wu Zixian sighed. He believed that even his father, an peerless powerhouse, did not possess this kind of Dao rhyme power. Their master was becoming more and more mysterious.
"Late-stage First Order of the Divine Realm...!" Jiang Yu said in disbelief after sensing his aura.
"Just breaking through, yet he's already directly at the late-stage First Order of the Divine Realm..." Chi Danzi said, looking at the sky. "Is this guy even going to let the rest of us live?"
"He absorbed so much lightning rain; I thought he would break through to Divine Lord," Wu Zixian said, utterly speechless.
"Do you remember what Master said... lightning tribulation liquid!" a Sacred God said, his eyes lighting up as if he had just realized something.
"That's right! He said there would be more when he underwent his tribulation, but he wasn't talking about this Divine Tribulation," said a Half-step Holy Ancestor who had only recently broken through.
"It's possible! If even the Lightning Rain tribulation doesn't yield tribulation fluid, I really don't know what kind of tribulation would," Wu Zixuan said solemnly. The Lightning Rain was a type of tribulation for cultivators; since the Middle Ancient Era, no one had ever survived it, and as for whether anyone had in the Remote Antiquity, he did not know.
"He has undergone the Lightning Rain before..." Ma Lian looked up at the sky, at a loss for words. He himself had faced lightning tribulations since the Heavenly Elixir Realm, which his clan elders attributed to his extraordinary meridian opening. But this master of his... was probably struck by lightning the moment he was born! He thought, gritting his teeth.
"Mhm! That's right! Not many people know about the Lightning Rain tribulation, yet he was so certain he would face it. It seems he has undergone the Lightning Rain at least once before," Jiang Yu said in a soft voice, her tone laced with fear.
While this group was discussing here, another group of people more than fifty thousand miles away was also talking.
"The lightning tribulation has stopped; the tribulation clouds have vanished," a third-stage Divine Realm cultivator said.
"It's not that simple! The lightning tribulation has dispersed, but that oppressive pressure still lingers. It seems the one who underwent the tribulation hasn't left yet," another fourth-stage Divine Realm cultivator said solemnly.
"Do you get the feeling that this person undergoing the Lightning Rain is just like the one from over a month ago? There was also a massive vortex at the center of his Lightning Rain," a first-stage Divine Realm cultivator said.
"Oh? Could fellow Daoist explain further?" a second-stage Divine Realm cultivator asked.
"You don't know! Over a month ago, a peerless monstrous talent underwent a tribulation. He hadn't even reached the Divine Realm, yet his breakthrough tribulation was the Lightning Rain. Back then, we didn't dare get close, so we didn't know who he was, but we can be certain he wasn't in the Divine Realm yet! Today, there is Lightning Rain again. Both times, before the Lightning Rain could fully descend, a massive vortex appeared at the center of the tribulation clouds, and then the tribulation ended. How incredibly similar!" the first-stage Divine Realm cultivator recounted, shaken.
"Lightning Rain... Isn't that only supposed to occur after surpassing the Divine Realm? It's an absolute-kill lightning tribulation," a Divine Realm cultivator said in a trembling voice. If he were to face the Lightning Rain, there was no way he would survive.
"The world of such monstrous talents is beyond our comprehension. If what you say is true, I'm afraid even those monstrous talents of the starry sky cannot compare to him! Perhaps only that deceased, peerless Demon Lord could be compared to him," a fifth-stage Divine Realm cultivator said, looking in the direction where Yu Tianjun had undergone his tribulation.
"Haha, not necessarily. That peerless Demon Lord may be dead, but that doesn't mean there is no one to compare to him. Over a year ago, news spread from the Yaoyuan Mountain Range that a mysterious youth had survived the Lightning Rain. A Holy Ancestor powerhouse confirmed that he hadn't even reached the Holy Ancestor Realm yet. However, even that Holy Ancestor didn't dare enter the Lightning Rain, so he didn't know who the youth was, hehe," another fifth-stage Divine Realm cultivator said, letting out a strange laugh. It was unclear whether he was mocking these ill-informed people or looking down on that Holy Ancestor.
"Lightning Rain..." The Divine Realm cultivators present gasped. How many years had it been since such a monstrous talent had appeared in the world?
Nearly two hours after the tribulation ended, the Dao rhyme surrounding Yu Tianjun finally stopped expanding after reaching a radius of over three zhang. He then opened his eyes, exhaled a breath of white mist, and looked up at the sky, suddenly bursting into laughter.
"Bwahahaha...!!! Well done, Primordial Beings." Wu Tianjun laughed heartily, then muttered to himself. Some things shouldn't be known by anyone—or at least, not by too many people right now. For a long time, he had wondered why he, as a descendant of the Primordial Beings, did not possess their inherited memories. But upon breaking through to the Divine Realm, he finally understood. From the moment of their inception, Primordial Beings possessed a cultivation level equivalent to the Divine Realm. Thus, to inherit their memories, one also had to reach the Divine Realm. Previously, he only had his Demonic Veins reach the Divine Realm, which was incomplete, so he could not receive the inheritance. Now that his overall cultivation had reached the Divine Realm, he had received the inheritance, though it was still incomplete. It seemed his bloodline was not pure enough!
The Primordial Being he inherited from was named Rong, of the Chaos Realm!
Beyond the Saint Ancestor Realm were the Void Realm and the Chaos Realm!
The great war of the Primordial Beings was fought to gain greater power, absorbing each other's Dao Rhyme and physical bodies to strengthen themselves.
The strongest Primordial Being was Huang. The great war of the Primordial Beings ended at the close of the Great Desolate Era, only to resume in the Primeval Era when the various Primeval races joined forces to annihilate the Primordial Beings. The Primeval Era collapsed, space shattered, and countless powerhouses of the various races fell, falling into deep slumber or seclusion. The Primordial Beings were almost all killed or severely wounded; they entered reincarnation one after another and then destroyed reincarnation itself, swearing that upon their rebirth, they would exterminate the various races—who were, in fact, their own descendants. The last Primordial Being to enter reincarnation was Rong!
The eight ultimate forces of the starry sky: Life, Death, Destiny, Heavenly Punishment, Destruction, Reincarnation, Myriad Phenomena, and Space-Time. Mastering any one of these ultimate forces represented achieving the Chaos Realm, the pinnacle of the starry sky!
The Dao Rhyme that had restrained him from moving during the heavenly tribulation was the force of Heavenly Punishment. The Dao Rhyme swirling around him that formed the Taiji diagram was the force of Reincarnation!
He inherited Rong's innate talent, which was to fuse and assimilate any kind of energy!
Wu Tianjun's inheritance was incomplete and highly fragmented. He could only piece together this much information, but for now, it was enough. Once his bloodline advanced further in the future, he would learn more!
Wu Zixian and the others saw Wu Tianjun suddenly burst into laughter after finishing his tribulation and waking from his enlightenment. Not knowing what was wrong with him, they only approached when they saw him standing there alone, lost in thought.
"Master! Are you alright?" Mo Lian approached and asked softly. Now that Wu Tianjun had retracted that Dao Rhyme, they felt much more at ease.
"You weren't... startled by the lightning and rain, were you?" one of the Saint Gods muttered, at a loss for words.
"What did you expect to happen to me? Speak up, and this young master will show you!" Wu Tianjun grinned, baring his white teeth as he looked at the powerhouses. They were all middle-aged men, except for two women in their late twenties: Jiang Yu and another named Wang Qianqian.
"Uh! We were just worried!" Mo Lian said, startled. Having witnessed Wu Tianjun's methods, they were utterly shocked. Coupled with that terrifying Dao Rhyme that had frightened them out of their wits, they were now completely loyal to him! Once this man fully grew, who in the world could possibly compete with him?
"Master! Shouldn't you... change your clothes?" Jiang Yu giggled as she looked at Wu Tianjun, acting like a girl next door, which nearly made the jaws of the other powerhouses drop.
"What are you laughing at?! Don't you see how poor I am? I don't even have a change of clothes. Is it really that fun for a bunch of old bastards to point and stare at a little kid?" Wu Tianjun said through gritted teeth.
His appearance right now was pathetic enough, with only a single loincloth covering little Tianjun.