Chapter 147: Chapter 147 Golden Core Ingested
Thump, thump, thump!
The courtyard door opened, revealing a hunched old Daoist, his aura at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.
His divine sense swept over Zhou Yi, ascertained he was a member of the human race, then retracted the magic artifact concealed in his sleeve and asked,
"This fellow Daoist seems unfamiliar?"
Zhou Yi replied, "I am Tang Xuan, just arrived from Cloud Continent and have rudely disturbed you."
The old Daoist chuckled, "I am Lu Lin, having only been here for ten years myself. In a foreign region, we should look after each other, my friend. Please come in and sit."
Lu Lin's courtyard was not large; at its center stood a ginkgo tree, under which there was a stone table and stone benches. The tabletop was carved with vertical and horizontal squares, with black and white Go pieces tangled on it, revealing that a game was half-finished.
"Yesterday, my match left half-undone when Xu Daoist received a message from his disciple and hurried back to tend to his Pill Furnace, agreeing to resume in a few days."
As Lu Lin spoke, he pinched a spell and applied his mana to seal the Go pieces, covering them with another stone layer, then took out Spiritual Wine and Spirit Fruits from his storage bag.
"There's no need for trouble."
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Zhou Yi pointed towards the eaves and said, "When I was cultivating on Little Dan Mountain, I became quite familiar with the architecture there. It has been over a hundred years since my last visit; I wonder how it is now?"
"My friend is also from Da Qian!"
Lu Lin's face showed joy, as human cultivators from the Demon Nation of a foreign region were rare, let alone meeting a fellow countryman: "Nowadays, Da Qian is extraordinary. It has swallowed up Great Yong to the north and incorporated Great Chu to the south. Before I left, they were attacking Jin State. With such mighty military force, Jin State's downfall is only a matter of time."
Zhou Yi's brows slightly frowned, "The Dan Ding Sect is just watching this?"
"The sect must have given tacit consent. The Chu State has lasted for a thousand years, and the Royal Family is a top-notch cultivating clan; its depth and resources are profound indeed."
Lu Lin clicked his tongue and continued, "And yet, while the front lines were still at war, a national guardian Real Person commanded Chu State's Imperial Clan to turn their coats and consent to serve as kings of another surname under Da Qian!"
Zhou Yi nodded slightly, then asked, "Why did the Dan Ding Sect choose Da Qian?"
"Rumor has it that the Imperial Clan produced someone with a Heavenly Spiritual Root who, after Foundation Establishment in their familial spiritual land, became a disciple of the True Sovereign Xuan Yuan. Now that Xuan Yuan has become the Sect Leader, being his direct disciple naturally elevates one's status."
Lu Lin said with envy, "The Li family has such a destiny; truly incomparable. Who could have thought that in just a few hundred years, a martial family founded by a mortal warrior could have the prospect of unifying the Cloud Continent!"
At these words, Zhou Yi's gaze flickered as he said, "When I was cultivating in Da Qian, I heard of the eight great cultivating families of Jiangnan, among them..."
"I am indeed the family head of the Lu family."
Lu Lin readily admitted, "Our ancestors had quite the grudge with the Li family. Even if they invited us, we would not dare to accept. It was just when Yun Dragon True Sovereign perished, fearing the Nascent Soul elders' infighting, I promptly fled to the vast mountains to evade the catastrophe."
Zhou Yi inquired, "Now that the right and the demonic factions have negotiated peace, why not return to have a look?"
"Negotiated peace? Haha!"
Lu Lin shook his head and said, "I don't know why the elder ancestor of the Dan Ding Sect can swallow this grievance, but I do know that the more you suppress hatred, the deeper it grows; it just needs a spark, and the whole Cloud Continent will explode!"
"I'm afraid it won't be just a spark."
Zhou Yi calculated the lifespan of a certain bomb, which was already over five hundred fifty years. Either he was dead or he had shattered his Golden Core to form a Nascent Soul.
Other True Sovereigns may be trapped by Heaven and Earth, perpetually stuck in the Golden Core Stage, but someone with such great destiny would not play by the rules. Having been quiet for hundreds of years, he either changed his name and kept a low profile, or he cultivated in a desperate situation; should he reappear, it would be momentous news.
Before he finished speaking,
a jade slip suddenly flew in and landed in Zhou Yi's hands.
Zhou Yi's divine sense swept over it, his expression turned bizarre, suspecting that he cultivated not the eagle transformation, but the crow's.
—Message from Greenwave Pond: The Supreme Pure Yang Demon Venerate of the Heavenly Demon Palace has been assassinated, killed by Daojun Xuan Xiao of the Dan Ding Sect. All Demon Kings must strictly order their subordinates not to clash with the human race.
"A Demon Venerate, in the end, couldn't live out his lifespan!"
Zhou Yi felt no ripple in his heart; as longevity increased, everything faded into indifference. Reflecting on people and events from the past seemed like something very distant.
With the death of Zhen Yang, the accord between righteous and demonic factions became worthless paper. What follows is the true battle between righteous and demonic forces.
"If that fellow truly is the Son of Destiny, whether it is due to his temperament or the inevitable trend of times, his actions must align with a certain development of the Heavenly Dao!"
"The Nascent Soul ancestors wished to end the war, yet the heavens wouldn't allow it..."
Driven by the qi of Heaven and Earth, Zhou Yi's heart surged, and on a whim, he took out a divination cylinder.
He gently shook it; the divination slip on the stone table glowed and materialized into words.
Heavenly Timing!
Zhou Yi showed a pleased expression and gave a cupped fist salute, "I have urgent matters to attend to; we shall talk more in a few days."
Having said that, he turned into a tri-colored streak of light and vanished in an instant.
Lu Lin, sensing the incredible speed of the fleeing light, couldn't help but be astounded. Such speed possibly exceeded that of a true immortal, and he couldn't help but wonder to himself.
"Could it be that some senior has come to the mountains to avoid their tribulation?"
A moment later.
A terrifying breath descended from the heavens. Billowing dark clouds materialized out of thin air, and the thunderous roar was unceasing.
Lu Lin soared into the sky, his eyes widened in shock as he looked toward Cloud Piercing Peak.
"Heavenly Tribulation!"
At the same time.
In the city, dozens of lights rose, whether they were real people riding fleeing lights, or great demons riding demonic winds. Usually, everyone cultivated in seclusion within the city, enjoying themselves, but now they finally couldn't help but reveal their forms.
"I wonder which one of the Five Saints it could be?"
A great demon of the tiger tribe said, "If it's the Black Tiger Demon King, then I will join his forces and become a patrolling general."
Not far away, a Foundation Establishment real person, skillful in casting secret techniques, observed the thunderclouds and shook his head.
"The Tiger King corresponds to water, but the thunderclouds above are of five colors, indicating it must be a demon king with complete mastery over the five elements."
The tiger demon exclaimed in surprise, "You, a Daoist, seem to know a great deal. Come to my door tomorrow, and we shall have a good discussion."
The Daoist didn't refuse, instead, he took out a wine gourd. As soon as he opened it, the fragrance spilled forth, making the tiger demon drool with desire.
"Aren't you, Tiger friend, concerned about impropriety?"
"It's too late to worry about impropriety now. I've grown accustomed to wine and meat; to go back to my cave and subsist on blood and raw flesh would be suffering more miserable than death itself!"
The tiger demon looked up at the thunderclouds and muttered, "I truly hope this one succeeds in their tribulation. With two demon kings in the Heavenly Demon Palace, even Greenwave Pond wouldn't dare to put up too much of a struggle."
"Immeasurable Heavenly Honored One"
Real people and great demons in the sky all nodded, their eyes filled with anticipation.
...
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The tribulation clouds gathered for a moment, storing up enough power before a bolt of lightning as thick as a bucket struck down with a thunderous roar.
The Formation and Prohibition at the top of Cloud Piercing Peak shone, as dozens of Formation Flags formed into a compound formation, continuously dissipating the power of the Heavenly Tribulation.
Zhou Yi sat cross-legged at the center of the formation. With the experience of the Yellow Ox's tribulation ahead of him, he was not worried about the Heavenly Tribulation breaking through the formation. He devoted one part of his spirit to replenishing the Formation Flags and the remaining nine parts to condensing the mana within his Dantian.
The mana continued to compress, gradually changing from a viscous liquid state, slowly solidifying.
"Pseudo-Core realm!"
Zhou Yi had anticipated this stage, as seven hundred years of cultivation foundation made the condensing of the Pseudo-Core a simple task.
His Divine Sense controlled the Pseudo-Core to continue solidifying, slowly transforming towards the True Core. During this process, the Pseudo-Core repeatedly expanded and pushed back. Every expansion not only struck against his Divine Sense but also placed enormous strain on his physical body.
If his Divine Sense lost control, or his body couldn't withstand it, the result would be the explosion of the core and death.
Zhou Yi's expression was calm, his Divine Sense easily suppressed the expansion and rebound of the Pseudo-Core, while his body, as formidable as a Demon King's, didn't even tremble.
At the same time.
The Lesser Forty-Nine Heavenly Tribulation continued to descend, the thunder resounding for nearly half an hour, shattering hundreds of layers of formations before finally beginning to dissipate.
A ray of five-colored divine light passed through the prohibition, enveloping Zhou Yi within.
"Gift of Heaven and Earth!"
Zhou Yi offered no resistance. The originally extremely condensed Pseudo-Core, under the divine light's cleansing, turned into gold.
Heaven and Earth's Spiritual Energy poured into the Golden Core, his mana growing rapidly, and a terrifying aura enveloped the entire peak.
After a long while.
Zhou Yi finally contained his aura, reverted to the image of a youth with golden wings on his back, and let out a triumphant howl as he felt the mighty mana within his body.
From the south came two voices. Looking up, he saw the Yellow Ox and Qing Song standing on the clouds, congratulating him from a distance with a bow.
"Congratulations, Daoist friend, on successfully transcending the tribulation!"