CHAPTER 361: CHAPTER 361: THE LIGHTNING TRIBULATION BEGINS

"How many lightning bolts?" Ye Xuan asked because he didn’t think it was just one considering how flustered Chu Miao looked.

"Normally, it should be twenty-one bolts of lightning." Chu Hao replied, but this answer made the others take a sharp breath.

Twenty-one bolts of lightning!? A human could be fried by just one bolt and now they had to face twenty-one? Is that the price they had to pay for gaining so much power?

Before they could ask further questions, the clouds above rumbled with a deafening roar. The sky of the independent space darkened in a suffocating instant, like a curtain of black ink pouring down. The oppressive force of heaven and earth pressed onto everyone’s shoulders, making even breathing difficult.

But that crushing weight was focused on only one person. Chu Miao.

Crack!

A jagged line of purple lightning flashed across the clouds, lighting up the darkness with an ominous brilliance. The cultivators around Chu Miao staggered back instinctively, their hearts pounding. The aura of destruction locked onto her like a beast baring its fangs.

"Let’s move back further. The heavenly dao might mistake us for her helpers if we stay too close, which will only make her tribulation more impossible." Chu Hao said as he took the first step back and retreated about a hundred meters away.

The others followed suit and went to stand with him.

Ye Xuan clenched his fists, his eyes flickering with unease, but he forced himself to move back as well. He knew the truth of what Chu Hao had explained: interference meant certain death. The tribulation was hers alone to face.

Chu Miao looked up calmly. Her long hair fluttered in the violent winds, her white robes snapping like banners in a storm. Though her heart was thundering inside her chest, her eyes shone with determination.

She had a duty to protect humanity, especially her family and friends and only by becoming stronger could she do that. The tribulation she was about to face will allow her to become stronger.

If the heavens want to test me, then I will carve my path with my own hands. Even though she hadn’t experienced the same in her previous life, she had witnessed others break through to the golden core and even nascent soul.

She knew that it was a matter of life and death, but she also knew that this was the only way to become strong.

As this thought faded, the first bolt descended.

Boom!

The sound alone rattled the barrier they had set up, sending cracks spiderwebbing through its glowing lines.

A spear of lightning as thick as her thumb plunged straight onto Chu Miao. Her talismans flared in golden light, the first two crumbling instantly under the sheer force.

The third one barely held, reducing the destructive power enough that her armor absorbed the rest.

This was the first time Chu Miao had been struck by lightning and it was quite scary.

As the first bolt disappeared, Chu Miao stood up and took out her sword. It was a spiritual weapon she could use to resist the lightning tribulation with.

"First bolt..." Chu Hao whispered tensely. Everyone else clenched their fists nervously. They hoped that she could hold on. There were still twenty bolts to go after all.

But before relief could settle, the clouds above churned again. Chu Miao’s tribulation wasn’t going to stop at the ordinary twenty-one. The pressure increased, and the faint trace of heavenly will seemed to sneer down at her.

The second bolt struck before she had even fully stood up firmly.

Boom!

It looked like heavenly dao didn’t like her heaven-defying talent very much. This was what heavenly dao was like. If someone was too lucky and extraordinary, it seeks to destroy them.

Chu Miao had such talent that she might be the first immortal to ascend after thousands of years. It was determined to destroy her.

This time, the armor held but the talismans turned to ashes as they ignited.

Pain ripped through her body, her meridians screaming as they were simultaneously burned and reforged by the heavenly lightning. She gritted her teeth until blood seeped from her lips.

This was just the second bolt of lightning with still so many to go. Moreover, the second bolt was obviously thicker than the first one.

Things weren’t looking optimistic.

From a distance away, Chu Hao seemed to have thought of something when he saw the ferocity of the lightning bolts.

"It’s definitely going to be thirty-nine. With her talent, it definitely can’t be twenty-one." He was so worried he was like an ant on a hot pan, but he couldn’t help at all.

This feeling of powerlessness and helplessness was very uncomfortable.

The others gasped in disbelief. Thirty-nine bolts of heavenly lightning? That was no longer a test, it was a death sentence.

Ye Xuan’s eyes darkened, and for a moment, a shadow of madness flickered across his gaze.

But it seemed that Chu Miao had sensed it as amidst the storm, she turned her head slightly and looked in his direction.

Their eyes met. Hers were firm, resolute, and filled with determination.

When she saw the state he was in, she knew that he was uncomfortable, but she still stretched a small comforting smile as if to tell him not to worry. She would be fine.

Ye Xuan froze, then slowly released his grip on the blade he had unsheathed at some point. His chest tightened painfully, but he still didn’t move and stayed where he was.

The third bolt descended.

Boom!

This time, there were no talismans left to absorb the force. The lightning carved into Chu Miao’s body directly, scorching her veins, searing her skin.

Yet at the same time, deep within her dantian, the half-formed golden core trembled and greedily drew in the destructive energy.

The crystal stone within spun faster, purifying the chaotic lightning into condensed spiritual essence.

Her knees bent under the impact, blood surging to her throat. She coughed but steadied herself, planting her sword into the ground to keep upright.