Cheat Cultivator's Ascension - Chapter 489 - 489: Disappearing Tribulation
As if to respond to the provocation of the cultivator that seems intent on challenging the heaven’s authority, the clouds start turning darker from gray to black, the lightning raging within the black clouds as if transforming into something more than normal lightning, something that worries even the young man’s mother now.
A worry not unfounded, as within moments of the clouds turning into pitch black, the normally azure lightning starts alternating into a crimson shade of red before returning into the profound azure once more, this process repeating multiple times, each cycle faster than the last, almost as if two distinct colors and property of the heavenly lighting intends to merge themselves into one being.
And merge together they did as the occasional flash of light from the clouds turned into a mysterious shade of purple, the light circling across the outer rim of the tribulation clouds almost as if a dragon swimming the water, the trail it leaves behind creating sparks that jumps beyond the clouds and land on nearby surface of the sea, steam rising from its surface with each strike.
Seeing this, Su Xiaotian’s smile grows even more, his mind filled with nothing but a single thought right now, a thought that is reflected in his eyes as his gaze locks upon the cloud floating above him.
Desire, greed, perhaps way beneath the kind of desire that his eyes have whenever his gaze locks upon one of the ladies who he loves and loves him back, but an extremely strong desire nonetheless, something born from the realization that he previously had.
‘The solid and pure nature of spirit qi in the Infinite Qi Dimension sure helps in building an absurd level of foundation, but if I want to get even stronger than right now, even an infinite amount of qi won’t be enough’ he thought to himself as image of the reason, or rather, reasons to why he wants to push himself on his cultivation flashes in his mind, first, a tragic yet ever-so-vivid image of his family, both his grandmothers and mother fading out of existence, a memory of a past he swore to never let happen again.
This tragic tale is gradually replaced with a way better one, though, one where these three ladies of severe importance to him were smiling, not helplessly but happily, the threat of death can never be farther away from them, and with them, other companions that he had found along the way.
‘I just hope it would yield me better results than breaking through inside the Infinite Qi Dimension…’ he thought to himself before he paused, a smile appearing upon his face as he thought of yet another absurd matter that if known outside, will not only make him an object of even greater terror than he is right now, but also an object of admiration for the daring, as well as the insane.
‘Why not get the best of both worlds when I can?’ he asked to himself as plans starts forming within his mind, and with this plan, the Primordial Nihility Transcendent Qi within him starts surging as it covers the entirety of his body, the temporal rules flowing from the Replica of the River of Time that is now one with his body surging outwards almost as if to reinforce the Transcendent Qi, an extra layer of protection to what he is about to do.
With the power of the tribulation seemingly reaching its peak, the heavens let out its thunderous roar, a single flash of light illuminating the shadow cast upon by the darkest of cloud, a single moment that turned the previous darkness of the place back to one that appears to be showered by daylight, before the lightning flash fades and everything returns to darkness once again.
And now, just right beneath the clouds, the tempestuous winds stop all of a sudden as if to give way for the tribulation of lightning about to descend, the circling mass of punishment now revealed in all of its glory, its figure chaotic and void of form, yet appearing like a grand, majestic dragon of pure energy all the same.
As if finding the reason for its creation, the being that it should punish, the lightning tribulation stopped circling around, stopped moving for a moment, before a roaring sound came out of it. A moment later, its figure descended from the heavens above, intent on striking the immortal-like young man with a speed different from normal lightning.
With each meter it traverses, it almost looks like it is drawing every single bit of ambient spirit qi towards itself, the slow descent making it bigger than it was moments ago, as if a snowball rolling down a massive mountain, gaining more and more mass the more it rolls.
Moving in the opposite direction yet at almost the same speed as this calamitous lighting, Su Xiaotian intends to meet the tribulation head-on, considering the damage it might do to the island if he lets it land.
That wasn’t the sole reason for his decision, though, as what pushed him just as much was the fact that he couldn’t wait for the descent of this monstrosity any longer, his body urging him to partake in this feast as soon as he could, making him unable to hold himself back.
Moments passed, and the previous massive gap between the immortal-like young man and the heavenly tribulation intending to bar his path towards the next realm of cultivation was gradually closed, from kilometers turning into nothing but mere meters, the two opposing forces feeling the great challenge in front of them, prompting both to hold nothing back to achieve their will.
For the heavenly lightning, the tribulation, this will is to eradicate the reason for its creation, to destroy the immortal-like young man, or if it can’t, at least to prevent its target from entering the next realm of cultivation.
For the immortal-like young man, said will is to utilize this natural phenomenon to bring his strength to an even higher level, the desire to improve pushing him to defy the heavens itself and devour the tribulation in front of him in its entirety.
Meanwhile, watching the immortal-like young man ascending towards the skies, meeting the heavenly tribulation head on, his companions and lovers watching from the largest World Tree, including his mother, whose worry was practically nonexistent at the start of his tribulation, couldn’t help but reveal a face filled with concern as he continues his breakthrough to the Soul Formation Realm.
Wanting to close their eyes but unable to due to the sheer desire to know whether Su Xiaotian will be alright clashing with the heavenly tribulation in such fashion, the ladies watched with heavy hearts as their beloved came into contact with the thing that causes most cultivators to painfully choose to remain at the peak of a certain realm rather than ascending to the next.
And whether they want to or not, the immortal-like young man comes into direct contact with the lightning capable of destroying anything under the heavens, their hearts beating loudly as they watched their man’s body drowning beneath the heavenly tribulation for a moment, before it disappears altogether, shocking them to their core, their eyes wide open from the disbelief.
Now reflected in their eyes as the pitch-black clouds dispersed is Su Xiaotian, his body riddled with superficial wounds and scratches, and from his very being, an overwhelming pressure leaking out, sending shivers down their spine even with the great distance separating them from his immortal-like figure.
