Chapter 2518 - 2518: Wendao Stone

Fat Jiao stood beneath the dark clouds, the lightning within them flickering faster and faster, indicating that the Heavenly Thunder was truly about to descend.

Wanyan Hongfeng sneered continuously, believing that Fat Jiao's decision to withstand the Heavenly Thunder was the worst mistake it could make.

The Heavenly Thunder was not something Fat Jiao could resist. If it chose to disappear, it could preserve a life. Taking on the Heavenly Thunder was purely suicidal, with no chance of survival. Hence, Wanyan Hongfeng was not worried, but rather had a theater-going mentality, wanting to see how Fat Jiao would be blasted to pieces by the Heavenly Thunder!

Down the mountain, Ye Qing and the others were unsure of the exact situation, but seeing the flickering lightning within the dark clouds, they knew things were bad. Especially since the dark clouds enveloped Fat Jiao head-on, it made them even more worried.

"Brother Jiao, move away!" Ye Qing shouted anxiously, feeling unsafe with Fat Jiao still flying in the air.

Fat Jiao glanced at Ye Qing and didn't move away, remaining steadfastly looking at the dark clouds. Its body slowly coiled together, clearly prepared to face an enemy. Its eyes were filled with vigilance, as if facing the most formidable opponent.

Finally, it seemed the dark clouds couldn't wait anymore. With a flash of lightning, a Heavenly Thunder as thick as an arm shot out from the dark clouds, heading straight for Fat Jiao.

"What the hell!" Wanyan Hongfeng couldn't help but curse: "Why is this Heavenly Thunder so thin? The last time it struck you, it was several meters thick, but this... this one's only the thickness of an arm? What's going on?"

As he spoke, the Heavenly Thunder had already struck Fat Jiao. Surrounding Fat Jiao, the Red Dragon bore the brunt of this Heavenly Thunder. Despite being struck, the Red Dragon clearly shrank somewhat, showing that the Heavenly Thunder had caused it significant injury. However, at least it had withstood this blow!

"How can this be?" The Five-Winged God also exclaimed, his voice full of astonishment and shock.

"You also think it's odd?" Wanyan Hongfeng said: "Is this really Heavenly Thunder?"

"Why is this Heavenly Thunder like this? Has the rule of Heavenly Retribution changed?" The Five-Winged God looked at Fat Jiao in astonishment and said: "The power of this Heavenly Thunder is much weaker than the last one that struck me. What's going on? Could it be that the rules of Heavenly Thunder have changed, adjusting the power of the Heavenly Thunder based on the strength of the one receiving Heavenly Retribution?"

"Could it really be so?" Wanyan Hongfeng gasped.

"It makes no sense! It wasn't like this before!" The Five-Winged God's voice was filled with bewilderment, evidently this situation greatly surprised him.

"This kind of Heavenly Thunder probably won't be able to kill this Jiao!" Wanyan Hongfeng said furiously: "No wonder it's not running. With this strength, it still has a chance at survival. Damn it, if this guy doesn't die, that's going to be troublesome!"

As they spoke, two more Heavenly Thunders fell. Though each Heavenly Thunder was more powerful than the last, compared to the previous Heavenly Thunder faced by the Five-Winged God, it was indeed too weak. Nonetheless, even so, the Red Dragon surrounding Fat Jiao shrank noticeably, indicating that Fat Jiao suffered considerable damage.

Down the mountain, Ye Qing and the others watched Fat Jiao in the sky with tension. They didn't understand the situation, but with the Heavenly Thunders continuously falling, their hearts were in suspense. This was Heavenly Thunder; its power certainly wouldn't be weak. Could Fat Jiao endure this ordeal?

With a booming sound, the fourth Heavenly Thunder fell, again striking the Red Dragon. This time, part of the Red Dragon's body was shattered, and Fat Jiao cried out in pain, indicating it had suffered substantial injuries.

"Good!" Wanyan Hongfeng rejoiced, seeing Fat Jiao injured. It seemed Fat Jiao might not withstand this Heavenly Thunder, which eased much of his previous worry. As long as the Heavenly Thunder could kill Fat Jiao, he still had a chance!

Ye Qing and the others turned pale, realizing this couldn't continue; Fat Jiao certainly wouldn't make it. Yet, they had no recourse. This was Heavenly Thunder; who could alter it? All they could do was wait anxiously below!

The fifth Heavenly Thunder soon descended, its mighty power shattering nearly a third of the Red Dragon. The Red Dragon now had multiple injuries, one claw was shattered, and its red glow significantly dimmed. Fat Jiao's situation was even worse; many of the scale armor pieces on its body were shattered, blood was flowing from everywhere, and fresh blood dripped continuously from its mouth, indicating considerable injury.

However, the Heavenly Thunder showed no signs of stopping. As soon as the fifth ended, the sixth Heavenly Thunder immediately followed. With a booming sound, it struck the Red Dragon head-on.

The heavenly thunders came down one stronger than the last, each one more powerful than the previous. When the sixth bolt descended, it completely shattered the Red Dragon, turning its crimson light into countless fragments before disappearing into oblivion. Fat Jiao was also gravely injured and plummeted from the sky, hitting the ground heavily. Its whole body was covered in wounds and bloodstains, with only a pair of small claws trembling continuously. Judging by its condition, if the seventh thunderbolt came down, it definitely wouldn't survive!

"Jiao!" Ye Qing exclaimed in shock, rushing towards Fat Jiao. However, he was not close to Fat Jiao, and with his speed, he couldn't reach it in time.

With a loud roar, the seventh heavenly thunder finally descended, howling towards Fat Jiao.

Ye Qing halted, his mouth agape as he stared at Fat Jiao. He knew that the seventh heavenly thunder was beyond what Fat Jiao could endure. Was Fat Jiao really going to die here like this? Having just successfully transformed into a dragon, was it really going to be struck down by heavenly thunder? This was too unjust!

Fat Jiao struggled to lift its claw, waving it futilely in the air, yet it lacked any strength to resist. As the heavenly thunder swiftly approached and was about to strike Fat Jiao, a sudden Qing Mang shone from a distant horizon, illuminating the entire sky.

The Qing Mang arrived abruptly, and at the moment it appeared, a loud crash came from a distant cave. Following this, a giant stone burst from the cave, flying directly above Fat Jiao. All of this happened in the blink of an eye. Before the seventh heavenly thunder could land on Fat Jiao, the giant stone had already rushed forth, perfectly blocking Fat Jiao.

The seventh heavenly thunder struck the stone with a resounding explosion. A profound silence enveloped the scene as everyone held their breath, focusing on Fat Jiao's location, eager to see if Fat Jiao had survived.

The dust kicked up by the heavenly thunder slowly settled, and at last, the crowd could see clearly what had transpired. The giant stone still hovered in the air. Fat Jiao lay beneath it, unharmed, without even the slightest injury!

"This..." Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief, having anticipated Fat Jiao's death. Who could have imagined that something like this would happen? Fat Jiao had actually survived!

"What is this thing?" Wanyan Hongfeng asked in a trembling voice. This giant stone that suddenly appeared had actually blocked the heavenly thunder. How was this possible? The power of heavenly thunder was so terrifying, it should have been able to penetrate the stone. How did it get blocked?

"This... this is the power of the Taoist Sect..." the Five-Winged God said in a deep voice, glancing at the distant Qing Mang and solemnly adding, "A master of the Taoist Sect is helping it!"

Wanyan Hongfeng also saw the distant Qing Mang, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice, "The number one master of the Taoist Sect nowadays is that Wuji. Wuji's strength is not even comparable to this Jiao, so how could he possibly aid this Jiao?"

The Five-Winged God remained silent. The power of the distant Qing Mang also instilled a bit of fear in his heart. He was well aware that, at least in his current state, he could not possibly compete against the Qing Mang!

Down the mountain, Ye Qing recognized the giant stone and blurted out, "The Wendao Stone?"

Ye Qing had seen this stone before; it was the Wendao Stone hidden inside the cave. It was said that Ancestor Chen Tuan had left it there, and he used to cultivate on this Wendao Stone. Inside it was the Karmic Dao left by Ancestor Chen Tuan. When Ye Qing came to the Wendao Stone, he obtained the Karmic Dao within and learned the Innate Nine Diagrams left by Ancestor Chen Tuan, so he was quite familiar with the Wendao Stone.

Ye Qing initially thought that after obtaining the Karmic Dao, the Wendao Stone had become just an ordinary stone. Unexpectedly, the Wendao Stone still had such functionality, flying out from the cave to protect Fat Jiao and even withstand heavenly thunder. What secrets does this Wendao Stone hold?

As everyone was shocked, the eighth heavenly thunder descended. Yet, it was still blocked by the Wendao Stone, and then the ninth heavenly thunder followed, unable to penetrate the Wendao Stone either.

After nine heavenly thunders, the clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, returning the sky to its original clarity. Everyone stared in awe at the scene; had the Heavenly Retribution passed just like that?

The crowd wasn't well-versed in Heavenly Retribution, but they all knew one thing: it couldn't be avoided. When Heavenly Retribution was provoked, one either mysteriously disappeared or met an untimely death. But what was this? After the nine heavenly thunders, the clouds dissipated, and the Heavenly Retribution seemingly ended? Fat Jiao hadn't died, nor disappeared; did that mean it had survived the Heavenly Retribution? Was there truly a third option under Heavenly Retribution?

Everyone was filled with astonishment, except for Wanyan Hongfeng and the Five-Winged God, who were the most aware at the mountain. Heavenly Retribution is not completely indefensible; if you can endure those nine heavenly thunders, then everything is fine. But the crux of the problem is, how many can withstand those nine heavenly thunders?

Fat Jiao's strength was undeniable, unparalleled among its peers. Yet, even six heavenly thunders nearly crippled it, demonstrating how terrifyingly powerful the heavenly thunders were. If not for Mount Wendao shielding Fat Jiao at the critical moment, Fat Jiao would have likely been completely shattered under the heavenly thunders.

If even Fat Jiao was like this, let alone others. Under the heavenly thunders, others might not even withstand a single thunderbolt, let alone nine. A person capable of withstanding nine heavenly thunders practically doesn't exist, so people had no idea such a way to endure Heavenly Retribution existed!