CHAPTER 756: CHAPTER 756: THE SOUL TRIBULATION

Noah’s expression darkened slightly as he leaned back into his seat, his fingers gently tapping the armrest of the chair.

He had told the old man—Elder Ming—not to take Ruo’er back to that place. Not to the Ming family.

But when he was in EverDawn City, Noah had quietly spread his soul sense through the spirit realm and had clearly sensed the location of the hidden Ming Family’s stronghold.

Neither Elder Ming nor Ruo’er was there.

Which could only mean one thing...

They hadn’t returned home.

They were somewhere else entirely.

Possibly on the move. Possibly hiding.

"Did Ruo’er go with him willingly?" Noah asked after a long silence, his eyes steady as he looked at Wu Ping.

The maid hesitated for a second, then gave a firm nod.

"Yes," she replied. "She agreed to go. I was there when he asked her. She didn’t hesitate."

Noah and Xin Yan both exchanged a glance, then nodded quietly.

That was all they needed to know.

They didn’t mind her choices. Ruo’er had the right to make her own path—as long as it was her choice and not forced upon her.

Noah let out a light breath and stood up.

"Good," he said simply. "Then that’s enough."

He turned to Wu Ping.

"Prepare rooms for the two women I brought with me. Let them rest."

"Yes, right away." Wu Ping bowed again with practiced grace.

She turned to leave, but before she walked out of the room, she glanced back one last time at Xin Yan and Noah, her eyes full of pride and something close to affection.

Then, with quiet footsteps, she left to prepare the rooms.

Meanwhile, Wu He was still sitting silently in the corner like a frozen rabbit, clearly overwhelmed by everything around him.

Yu Ming leaned close to Mo Ji and whispered playfully, "He’s cute, don’t you think?"

Mo Ji smirked and whispered back, "A little too cute. He might faint if we say hello."

They both stifled a giggle but were careful not to tease the boy too much.

Xin Yan stood up slowly, brushing the wrinkles from her robe and giving Noah a soft look.

"I’ll check the training grounds later," she said. "Make sure they’re still intact."

Noah nodded. "I’ll join you later. For now, I’ll rest for a bit."

And it was a lie.

They just wanted to get some alone time away from the girls and just used this excuse to get away subtly.

Before leaving, Noah glanced at Yu Ming and said, "Take all the rest you can and prepare for your tribulations. You can finally break through."

Yu Ming’s eyes lit up as soon as she heard Noah’s words. She nodded eagerly, her excitement barely contained.

"Yes! I can feel it... It’s almost there!"

Noah gave her a small smile. "Good. Then rest, and wait for it to come naturally."

With that, the group slowly split up. Time began to flow quietly within the sect. Days passed without disturbance. The mountaintop was peaceful, the quiet only broken by the rustling of leaves and the occasional chirping of birds.

But that peace didn’t last long.

One morning, while the air was still cool and the mist lingered across the mountain peaks, dark clouds began to gather above the training grounds of the Benevolent Guardian Sect.

Thick, oppressive.

The kind of darkness that made the skies groan.

Boom!

A flash of lightning tore through the clouds, casting jagged white light over the stone courtyard. The wind howled, swirling with raw, untamed power. Trees bent under the force, and the spirit energy in the air grew chaotic.

The mountain itself trembled faintly.

The heavens had made their declaration.

Yu Ming’s tribulation had arrived.

At the same time, far away, a massive spirit ship sailed smoothly through the skies—its golden sails glowing softly, casting an ethereal light across the clouds.

The ship was shaped like a grand sea vessel, but instead of riding waves, it floated effortlessly through the sky, surrounded by a soft aura of spiritual force.

On the deck, a group of cultivators stood gathered.

Leading them was Elder Shisan, the powerful Soul Formation expert of the sect. A graceful yet stern woman with sharp eyes and a sword-shaped mark on her forehead, she stood calmly at the front, her robes fluttering in the wind.

If Noah saw the mark on her forehead, he would have been surprised, as it was the mark of a sword intent absorbed in the body, the next step to achieve the sword heart that even he was not yet ready to take.

This mark not only signified her progress in the weapon, but it also meant that Shisan had let go of her knives and chose to train in a different weapon from scratch.

"Hmm?" Shisan seemed to have sensed something far away and narrowed her eyes.

The others looked as well.

In the direction of the sect, the sky had darkened unnaturally. Lightning cracked across the sky, and pressure filled the air, even from this distance.

Despite the distance, they could see the tribulation clouds gathering because they were high up in the sky, as were the clouds, beyond the reach of the sect’s array.

"Someone’s breaking through?" Tian Heng asked lazily, brushing imaginary dust off his ornate robe. His voice, which was proud and dripping with superiority at first, became docile and panicked.

"Don’t tell me Wu Ping is about to catch up to us. She is already a menace as she is; if she really manages to break through the fifth stage, she can beat us to a pulp..."

"No... That’s not her energy," Elder Shisan replied softly, her voice low and curious. "It’s not Wu He’s either."

She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again, startled.

"This... this energy... I’ve never felt anything like it before."

That single sentence sent a wave of silence across the group.

Even Tian Heng frowned, his arrogance slipping just a bit.

"What kind of tribulation would shake the sky like that...?"

"Did someone infiltrate the sect and take advantage of the energy-gathering arrays to break through?" Jiang Shi said coldly, her voice laced with quiet intensity. Her calm face held no emotion, but the killing intent behind her eyes was razor-sharp.