Chapter 166 - 145: It’s Out, Lightning Attribute Gene Ability

Chapter 166: Chapter 145: It’s Out, Lightning Attribute Gene Ability

"Be careful," Xiao Mingyue told Ji Zhixing.

Although she hadn’t experienced it herself, Xu Cheng’s sorry state was enough to tell her that the thundercloud would not be easy to deal with.

"Yeah!" Xu Cheng chimed in from the side. "That thundercloud is fierce. As soon as you step beneath it, it’ll lock onto you and strike.

"It won’t even be you chasing it anymore—it’ll be chasing you!

"Wherever you run, it’ll follow, and its speed will be much faster than it is now!"

"Don’t worry," Ji Zhixing nodded, a flicker of anticipation in his eyes.

He had been waiting for this day for a long time. Ever since he first heard the evolutionary information regarding the genes of the mutated Five-Colored Willow tree, he had been searching for an opportunity to comprehend a lightning-attribute genetic ability. Xu Cheng’s Purple Thunder-Attracting Technique was useful, but it still fell a bit short. However, the dark cloud Thunder Pool right before his eyes was an entirely different story.

Ji Zhixing took a deep breath, sped up, and chased after the thundercloud ahead. Seeing this, Xiao Mingyue and the others followed closely behind, maintaining a safe distance.

The thundercloud wasn’t moving fast, so Ji Zhixing quickly caught up to it. Without hesitation, he paused briefly before dashing directly beneath it.

RUMBLE!

The moment he stepped under the thundercloud, the dark mass overhead seemed to come alive. The originally slow-drifting cloud came to an abrupt halt, then shifted deliberately, floating with pinpoint accuracy until it hovered right above him. Within the dark clouds, countless streaks of electricity began to converge. Purple lightning darted through the cloud layer, emitting a dense series of CRACKLES, as if brewing something massive.

"I wonder how long Ji Zhixing can hold out." Standing far away, Xu Cheng touched his hair, which was standing on end, still feeling a lingering fear.

Normally, after being struck by lightning, a person’s hair would immediately die off and turn to ash. But he was different. He naturally wielded the power of lightning and possessed a lightning-attribute genetic ability within him. Because of this, his hair survived the strike, merely becoming somewhat charred and curly.

"Is that lightning really that powerful?" Jiang Qingqian asked from the side, her eyes fixed intently on Ji Zhixing beneath the distant thundercloud.

"You’ll see in a moment," Xu Cheng shook his head, offering no further explanation. Some things were better witnessed firsthand than described with words.

BOOM!

Right then, a muffled boom echoed from the thundercloud.

The next second, a streak of purple-gold lightning struck down from the clouds, hurtling straight toward the top of Ji Zhixing’s head. The bolt was as thick as an arm, radiating a blinding, piercing purple-gold light and carrying an aura of apocalyptic destruction. Wherever the lightning passed, the air was ionized, letting out a sharp HISS.

Awe-struck, Ji Zhixing hurriedly focused his mind, pushing the Five-Colored Spiritual Light and his petrified armor to their absolute limits. The five-colored light swirled across the surface of his body, while the grayish-white petrified armor encased him entirely, wrapping him in layer upon layer of defense.

Yet, he didn’t dare take the thunderbolt head-on with his skull.

Even though he had the Azure Sky Divine Wood as a safety net to ensure he wouldn’t truly die, getting struck in the head by lightning was a sensation he had no desire to experience. Seeing the thunderbolt descend, he quickly raised his right hand, splaying his palm to shield the top of his head.

CRASH!

The purple-gold thunderbolt slammed into his palm, producing a deafening boom.

The Five-Colored Spiritual Light on Ji Zhixing’s body flickered violently. The five hues of light swirled frantically, attempting to absorb and convert the incoming Thunder Power. But the force of the strike was too overwhelming; the Five-Colored Spiritual Light held on for merely a split second before a large portion of it was shattered. The lightning continued its descent, blasting against the grayish-white petrified armor.

CRACK!

Cobweb-like fractures appeared on the armor. The electricity snaked its way through the cracks, striking the skin of his palm.

"Hiss!"

Ji Zhixing inhaled sharply. An intense pain shot from his palm, spreading up his arm and coursing through his entire body. His skin was scorched black, the flesh split open, and the electricity even seeped into his bone marrow, sending a deep, paralyzing itch straight to his core.

"What terrifying power!"

Taking a deep breath, Ji Zhixing hastily mobilized his Genetic Source Power to reform the scattered Five-Colored Spiritual Light and mend the cracks in his petrified armor. At the same time, his super regeneration ability kicked in, causing the charred wounds on his palm to heal at a visible rate.

But before he could fully recover, a roar echoed from the thundercloud overhead once more.

BOOM!

Another streak of purple-gold lightning crashed down, striking with deadly precision against his partially healed palm.

"Come on!" Ji Zhixing clenched his jaw, forcefully enduring the strike.

Then came the third bolt, the fourth, the fifth...

One after another, purple-gold thunderbolts rained down from the thundercloud like a torrential downpour, bombarding him entirely. With every strike, the Five-Colored Spiritual Light was largely dispersed, and new fractures marred his petrified armor. His palm, his arm, his shoulders—wherever the lightning landed, the skin was blackened and charred, the wounds overlapping in gruesome layers.

Yet, Ji Zhixing didn’t move an inch.

His feet seemed to have taken root in the soil. The Root of the Earth ability continuously drew strength from the ground, replenishing his Genetic Source Power. Meanwhile, his super regeneration ability rapidly mended the injuries covering his body.

"Will this really work?"

Outside the thundercloud, Jiang Qingqian stared at the scene, her mouth agape and her eyes filled with shock. To her, those purple-gold thunderbolts were nothing short of terrifying. Each one was as thick as an arm, radiating a blinding light. If even a single bolt landed on her, she suspected she would be instantly teleported back to the Dead Wood Regeneration Forest.