Chapter 304: Opportunity in the Tribulation

The fifth bolt of Thunder Tribulation descended.

Chen Luo’s aura grew increasingly formidable. Around his Golden Core, shimmering, crystal-clear droplets of Core Qi materialized. This liquefaction of Core Qi was a hallmark of Core Formation cultivators. After reaching this stage, Immortal Cultivators inhaled Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, extracting its essence to refine their bodies. However, Core Formation cultivators no longer measured their advancement by the quantity of spiritual energy they possessed.

The four realms of the Core Formation Stage were most clearly distinguished by the form of their Core Condensation:

• Point: Early Core Formation, where spiritual energy manifested as a single point.
• Lake: Mid Core Formation, where the point expanded into a lake-like form.
• River: Late Core Formation, where the lake flowed into a river.
• Sea: Perfected Core Formation, where the river broadened into a sea, enveloping the Golden Core and granting qualification to challenge the Nascent Soul Realm.

The quantity of Core Qi directly determined a Core Formation cultivator’s strength. Nearly ninety percent of Core Formation cultivators in the Southern Heaven Domain remained stuck in the Early Core Formation stage, stagnating after their initial breakthrough. Until death, their spiritual energy remained as a mere point.

Chen Luo had now reached this stage, and upon his breakthrough, he had immediately gathered seven shimmering, crystalline points of spiritual energy.

“Excellent!”

With his Golden Core formed, Chen Luo’s senses had sharpened significantly. He discarded the shattered Spirit Umbrella and retrieved a Soul Banner. He had originally planned to refine this banner alongside his other Soul Banner, but the current situation demanded immediate action.

With a flick of his wrist, the Soul Banner unfurled, transforming into a celestial canopy to block the descending Tribulation Lightning.

Rumble…

The thunderclouds above churned violently, unleashing dozens of lightning tendrils that snaked downward. Chen Luo manipulated the Soul Banner to resist the onslaught, while the Demonic Heart Ancestor’s brain seized the opportunity to siphon off the Tribulation Qi. Unlike the previous four waves of the Thunder Tribulation, the fifth marked a drastic shift. The lightning’s power became savagely intensified, tearing through his body with terrifying force and making it exponentially harder to refine.

The most troublesome aspect was its destructive power.

The Soul Banner held for only a moment before fissures appeared, its fabric shredded by the writhing lightning tendrils. These living strands of energy spread through the holes like invasive vines. The tribulation clouds raged even fiercer, unleashing a deafening barrage as over twenty lightning tendrils descended simultaneously.

Ascend! Opportunity awaits above!

The Mummified Brain, which had been assisting Chen Luo in tempering his body, suddenly transmitted this thought. It sensed a great opportunity hidden deep within the tribulation clouds—a chance that, if missed, would be bitterly regretted. Though the Mummified Brain lacked memories, its primal instincts remained the strongest of any brain.

Chen Luo’s eyes flickered with determination. Gritting his teeth, he soared upward into the heart of the Tribulation Lightning. With so many Tribulation Transcendence Magic Artifacts prepared by Patriarch Gu He, it would be a waste not to gamble on this chance.

As Chen Luo ascended, the pressure increased exponentially, causing the Soul Banner to disintegrate at an accelerated rate.

Boom!

The Soul Banner finally buckled under the strain, shattering after enduring for only a moment longer. Yet only half the power of the fifth Heavenly Thunder had been expended. From this point onward, the Thunder Tribulation’s intensity escalated dramatically. It was unclear whether this was due to Chen Luo’s breakthrough to the Core Formation Stage or if this phase of the First Nine Thunder Tribulation was inherently this perilous.

With no time to ponder, Chen Luo reached into his remaining three Magic Artifacts and grabbed a mirror.

A Nascent Soul Magic Artifact!

Among the artifacts Patriarch Gu He had provided, three were of Nascent Soul grade: a bronze mirror, an ancient cauldron, and a chessboard. The chessboard, undeniably the most precious, bore a gash from Gu He’s Great Void Sword. Yet its very nature as a national treasure of a Millennial Ancient Kingdom made it anything but ordinary.

The moment the bronze mirror materialized, its surface shimmered with a radiant glow. The coiling thunderbolts recoiled from its surface, swirling around Chen Luo in protective rings. With the mirror’s protection, no matter how tightly the thunderbolts coiled, none could touch his body.

Seizing the opportunity, Chen Luo leaped into the heart of the tribulation clouds.

For ordinary Immortal Cultivators undergoing Tribulation Transcendence, each step was as precarious as walking on thin ice. Anyone witnessing Chen Luo’s reckless plunge into the tribulation clouds would surely deem him insane.

But Chen Luo had no time for such concerns. Upon entering the tribulation clouds, he discovered a hidden realm within—a chaotic space composed entirely of the Heavenly Tribulation itself, teeming with turbulent Tribulation Qi. His daring act only intensified the Thunder Tribulation’s fury. Dense chains of Heavenly Thunder erupted from the walls of the tribulation clouds, coiling toward him like vengeful serpents.

If these chains ensnared him, he would undoubtedly be reduced to tribulation ash in an instant; even the Demon Bone Array Sigil Art couldn’t withstand such an onslaught.

“Where’s the opportunity?” Chen Luo muttered, bracing the Bronze Mirror before him. Sensing the growing danger, he also retrieved the Ancient Cauldron. Positioning the two Nascent Soul Magic Artifacts above and below him, he created a translucent golden barrier that enveloped him. Thanks to his External Brain, he could wield each artifact to its absolute limit, channeling their full power with a mastery surpassing even cultivators who had spent a lifetime refining such treasures.

Under the sweep of his Divine Sense, the entire Tribulation Cloud Space was a chaotic maelstrom of flickering lightning and seething killing intent. Even the Demonic Heart Ancestor’s brain struggled to discern any direction in this turbulent environment.

“Left, ahead,” the Mummified Brain pinpointed the location with unerring accuracy.

Chen Luo swiftly flew toward the indicated direction, using his Bronze Mirror to deflect a bolt of lightning. Amidst the chaotic heart of the tribulation clouds, he discovered a colossal rift, thirty meters wide. The gash, embedded within the fabric of the tribulation clouds, resembled a knife slash on a swollen fabric pouch, with great swathes of tribulation clouds billowing forth from the opening.

“The Upper Realm!” the Demonic Heart Ancestor’s brain flared to life the moment he saw the rift.

“The Immortal Realm!!” the remaining hundred-plus External Brains, including that of the Immortal Sect Leader, simultaneously voiced the same thought. Even Chen Luo couldn’t resist the urge to plunge through. If he could bypass the Southern Heaven Domain and ascend directly to the Immortal Realm—achieving immortality in just three days before returning to settle old scores—wouldn’t that be infinitely more expedient?

“Fragment of the Void Realm. Retrieve it immediately!”

“Three breaths,” the Mummified Brain issued two urgent commands in quick succession, halting Chen Luo’s forward momentum mid-stride.

A Fragment of the Void Realm?

Not the Immortal Realm?

Chen Luo suddenly realized that all the brains he had collected, except for the Demonic Heart Ancestor and the Mummified Brain, were native to the Southern Heaven Domain. The Mummified Brain was particularly mysterious, residing within a star-like Ancient Tomb. To this day, Chen Luo had no idea what its cultivation realm had been in life. The Demonic Heart Ancestor, on the other hand, was clearly a cultivator from the Upper Realm. According to records from the Qiong Hua Sect, the Demonic Heart Ancestor had fallen to this realm three thousand years ago, along with Ten Thousand Demon Mountain and various scattered fragments.

From the moment these two Upper Realm brains had seen the rift, they had never mentioned the term “Immortal Realm.” This implied that the legendary Immortal Realm of the lower realms was vastly different from their understanding.

However, Chen Luo had no time for such ponderings now; the three-breath window allowed for no such luxury. He channeled his magical energy entirely according to the Mummified Brain’s instinctive methods.

In a flash, he darted forward, thrusting his hand into the rift and seizing something within.

The space beyond the rift was incredibly viscous, like a pool of tar, making movement agonizingly difficult. Blistering heat and chaotic lightning crackled within, rapidly charring Chen Luo’s arm to a crisp. As his fingers closed, he felt something solid in his palm.

A scorching heat clung to his hand as he withdrew it with lightning speed.

Within three breaths, the fissure sealed shut as soon as Chen Luo withdrew his hand.

The Mummified Brain seemed to perceive what lay beyond the rift. As its hand reached in, it locked onto the exact object it sought.

A simple reach and grab, executed with effortless precision.

Only then did Chen Luo have a moment to examine what the Mummified Brain had retrieved.

It was a translucent bone, its surface etched with lightning-like patterns. These patterns pulsed as if alive, surging frantically across his charred palm and burrowing inward. Within moments, they had etched an entirely new sigil onto his heart. The bone’s energy completely merged into his body, while the remaining mass crumbled into dust and vanished without a trace.

The second Bone Pattern of the Demon Bone Array Sigil Art had been forged!

This cultivation technique, originally pioneered by the Pig Demon Zhu Chungan, had yielded only a single Bone Pattern since Chen Luo began learning it. It wasn’t for lack of effort; the technique was notoriously selective, rejecting ordinary Bone Patterns outright. Even the patterns Zhu Chungan himself had chosen when developing the art proved incompatible.

Aside from the initial Bone Pattern, all other slots remained empty. Chen Luo had even tasked the Body Cultivation genius within his External Brain to diligently cultivate the Demon Bone Array Sigil Art. Yet no matter how hard they trained, they could only manifest that single pattern. He had previously assumed it was due to insufficient accumulation of cultivation energy, but now it was clear: the quality of the Bone Patterns simply wasn’t up to par.

As the second Bone Pattern integrated, Chen Luo’s body crackled with explosive energy. Lightning surged through his veins, transforming his Dharma Body at an astonishing rate.

Boom!

The surrounding tribulation clouds finally coalesced, reaching their peak. The sixth bolt of Tribulation Lightning merged directly with the still-lingering fifth, striking Chen Luo with overwhelming force. The combined power of the two Heavenly Thunders blasted him out of the tribulation clouds, shattering the Bronze Mirror and Small Cauldron that had been guarding him. The Heavenly Thunder within the clouds was inexhaustible, unleashing devastating power beyond imagination.

Chen Luo plummeted from the clouds, landing headfirst in the valley below with a thunderous impact that carved a deep crater into the earth. The remaining Heavenly Thunder rained down like a relentless barrage, striking his back, spine, limbs, and brain. The dense lightning storm pummeled him dozens of times before gradually dissipating.

Black smoke billowed from Chen Luo’s charred body within the crater.

As the power of the sixth Thunder Tribulation faded, he stirred. He grabbed a chunk of scorched earth beside him, his charred hand clutching it tightly. The black scabs on his burned arm began to flake off, revealing the newly regenerated skin beneath.

“Hahaha! The Demon Bone Array Sigil Art—truly a tremendous opportunity!” Chen Luo roared with laughter as he stood up. The black scabs crumbled away faster and faster, and an untamed, primal aura reminiscent of a great Demon emanated from his body.

Soon, the seventh and eighth Heavenly Tribulations descended in succession.

The later stages of the First Nine Heavenly Tribulation brought increasingly powerful bolts of Tribulation Lightning. But having absorbed the second Demon Bone Pattern, Chen Luo’s physical body had undergone an astonishing transformation, becoming monstrously resilient. He now caught the lightning bolts barehanded, without relying on any Magic Artifacts.

“Can’t let any of this go to waste.”