A wisp of violet radiance shot up into the firmament, directly challenging the tempestuous winds and driving rain.
The entire cloud-strewn sky roared with thunder. This violent force began to spread into every corner of this realm.
It was visible: the sky not far off was collapsing, and the lands already fractured were now splitting further apart, disintegrating into more shards.
Zong Shou felt his breath nearly choked in his chest as he watched all this unfold.
“If this Heavenly Tribulation continues, this world might not survive seven days before total annihilation. And as for my Master, though her strength is steadily mounting, she hasn't secured an absolute victory yet—”
After a moment of focused thought, Zong Shou retrieved the other three Immortal Treasures he had seized earlier.
They were a rope, a shield, and a small purplish-gold hammer. Zong Shou paid no mind to whether Lin Xuanshuang could use them; he hurled all three treasures, along with various magical artifacts, towards the eye of the Yang Formation.
Having done this, he had no strength left to spare for the situation opposite him.
He merely cast a strange look at the Nameless Sword before him.
He hadn't intended to use the Nameless Sword to aid the formation at all. Yet, the sword had spontaneously flown out of his sleeve to join the fray.
And at this moment, it was working with surprising vigor.
Shaking his head slightly in mild confusion, Zong Shou drew his thoughts inward, resisting the tribulation force embedded within the raindrops.
Initially, the struggle felt incredibly arduous. But just as Zong Shou managed to adapt, beginning to engage the tribulation force within his body—sparring and countering, attempting to expel the force—
The intensity of the Heavenly Tribulation suddenly surged again.
This pattern repeated several times. Zong Shou was stretched thin, constantly struggling to keep up. He poured all his might into mobilizing his Dharma Aspect Primordial Spirit and the Golden Core in his Sea of Qi, desperately defending himself.
Yet, several times, the tribulation force nearly pierced through to the very root of his Dao foundation.
“This is agony. How long must I endure this? How much longer until it stops?”
As time dragged on, Zong Shou felt his focus growing increasingly fatigued.
Several times he was tempted to summon the Phantom Heart Mirror, to leverage the power of the Immortal Artifact against this overwhelming tribulation force.
But several times he held back, instead bringing forth only the seventy-nine Star Dao Seeds and the Ten Absolutes Dao Annihilation Sword Formation to circle around him.
At critical moments, they could serve as aids, preventing him from being caught entirely off guard.
Relying on external aids to survive a Heavenly Tribulation—this was unprecedented for him, a genuine first.
But this rain was simply too tyrannical and powerful, exceeding his inherent capabilities.
He could only find bitter amusement in his predicament, thinking helplessly.
If he could survive this tribulation safely, his Dao foundation, which had become slightly unstable and volatile due to stepping into the Immortal Realm too early, should finally settle down completely.
Within this tribulation, he could actually sense much of the profound Great Dao of Heaven and Earth—truths he could not grasp before—from the inverted laws within the tribulation force.
It could temper his body and forge his soul. Furthermore, should he ever face a tribulation of the Ultimate Realm in the future, today’s ordeal could serve as an early experience.
There were countless benefits, certainly, but there was one prerequisite: he had to survive until the Heavenly Tribulation finally ceased—
This was equivalent to risking his life for the reward.
With a helpless sigh, Zong Shou’s thoughts gradually dimmed, as if sinking into slumber, entirely losing himself to the moment.
However, his true energy and spiritual consciousness remained fully engaged within his body, maintaining the standoff and alternating attacks and defenses against the tribulation forces.
Immersed in a state of celestial induction, he felt that even the insights gained during his passage through the Crimson Flame Divine Tribulation could not compare to what he was experiencing now.
He didn't know how long passed. Just as Zong Shou believed the downpour would be endless and relentless,
A sound a hundred times louder than a thunderclap suddenly rang out beside his ear, nearly shattering his eardrums completely.
He opened his eyes and saw a vast violet light piercing into the sky,
Completely tearing the thunderclouds apart!
The torrential rain instantly seized up and receded.
Zong Shou felt a flash of joy, clearly noticing that the raindrops falling on him no longer caused the unbearable agony they once did.
The tribulation force contained within them had weakened by at least a colossal thirty percent!
This suddenly eased the burden on him, who had been struggling just to cope.
He could now effortlessly suppress and expel the inverted laws from his body.
However, his physical state was a scene of utter devastation. All nine cycles of his meridians were shattered; all his muscles, tendons, and bones were damaged.
Aside from his skeleton remaining relatively intact, there wasn't a single piece of decent flesh anywhere else.
Blood streamed from his seven apertures; his appearance was tragic and utterly wretched.
In his entire life, he had never faced a peril greater than this moment.
He was weakened to an unprecedented degree, feeling at this instant that even a three-year-old child thrusting a sword at him, he would lack the strength to resist.
He pulled out a handful of spiritual elixirs from his pouch and swallowed them all at once, relying on the medicinal power to mend his injuries and regulate his vital channels.
Having barely stabilized the life force within him, Zong Shou impatiently turned his attention back to the eye of the opposite Yin Formation,
Not to check if Lin Xuanshuang had successfully resurrected, but to see if the power of the tribulation lightning had dissipated and if his own life could be secured.
Tribulations of Heaven and Earth often occurred in several waves. Only after one subsided would the next arrive.
If the tribulation force within the rainwater was merely the first wave—
Zong Shou truly dared not imagine what fate awaited him next.
Annihilation? Soul scattered to nothingness?
Even invoking the Phantom Heart Mirror, he feared he might not survive.
And even if he endured, the figure on the other side might not hold up either—
The two of them were now locked together, grasshoppers tied to the same line.
If one perished, the fate of the other would inevitably be gruesome beyond measure.
Holding his breath, Zong Shou watched the sky, like a man awaiting a final verdict.
To his immense relief, after the violet light ripped open the dark clouds, they could not reform.
When the clouds parted, the rain scattered. Just as abruptly as it began, it vanished just as suddenly.
No new tribulation force generated in the surroundings. It seemed they had passed safely.
“Is this the tribulation of the Ultimate Realm? This is the first time I have witnessed it firsthand. Truly fortunate!”
Lu Wubing’s voice echoed softly from nearby, carrying a tone of admiration.
This man now stood tall. His face was still ashen white, clearly having expended a significant amount of vital energy earlier.
He looked towards the location of True Person Xuanshuang with an incredulous gaze.
“The aftershocks of the tribulation force alone caused this newly formed Middle Thousand World to collapse. No wonder these Supreme Beings of Eternal Life seek out uninhabited worlds before reaching the Ultimate Realm, to avoid karmic entanglement. Yet, a place teeming with vitality is necessary to provide what they need for their passage. Judging by True Person Xuanshuang’s condition, I wonder if she has merely repaired her physical body, or if she has completely passed through the myriad tribulations and achieved the status of an Ultimate Realm Holy Venerable—”
Zong Shou, hearing this, allowed a slight sneer to touch the corner of his mouth. Fortunate, my foot.
This Lu Wubing likely had no idea how perilous the recent moments had been, that he himself was just like him.
However, Zong Shou was equally curious about the final part of the statement.
He shot upward, flashing across the space until he reached the vicinity of the Yang Formation’s eye.
This area was still sealed off by an invisible power; Zong Shou could not enter, nor could he see the situation inside.
But after waiting for a moment, the formidable force gradually dissipated.
Slowly, a hazy silhouette materialized before his eyes.
“It worked!”
Just by seeing the figure standing in the formation’s core, Zong Shou knew that, at the very least, he had enabled True Person Xuanshuang to reshape her physical form today.
Then he felt something was amiss; the person inside seemed too short.
Not only short, but her frame was also exceedingly slender.
No, rather than describing her as short and thin, it was more accurate to say the person opposite him looked like a little girl—
When the power completely vanished, the haze pervading the area dispersed without a trace.
He saw a young girl with an exquisitely delicate and beautiful face standing gracefully within the eye of the Yang Formation.
Her features looked as if carved by the most masterful sculptor, her contours beautiful, perfectly proportioned, almost flawless. Her skin was as white and smooth as fine porcelain, soft as silk.
The crucial detail was her apparent age: she looked no older than twelve, perhaps even more tender than Shi Ruolan.
At that moment, she opened her eyes, gazing blankly ahead.
“Xi Zi—”
As her pupils gradually focused on Zong Shou, the girl frowned slightly, then immediately cast her gaze toward the distance, at the Nameless Sword.
Her expression froze, then shifted into one of clear, disappointed realization.
Only then did she shift her attention to Zong Shou, the spirit pets guarding him, and the gathering of Jing Yin and Lu Wubing, before finally fixing her gaze back upon Zong Shou.
“Who are you? Are you a junior disciple of my Cang Sheng Dao?”
Zong Shou’s mind was still preoccupied with the appearance of the dispersed Sanren Xuanshuang, wondering if she shared the bloodline of the Snow Lion of the Palm. How can she look so much like a child?
He recalled that when True Person Xuanshuang underwent her tribulation, she already possessed over three thousand years of lifespan.
This state implied either a trait derived from her bloodline or that she had stabilized her form at a very early age.
Then he remembered that True Person Xuanshuang was reportedly Xi Zi’s lawfully wedded wife?
Legend held that Xuanshuang’s three sisters were all deeply devoted to Xi Zi, yet Xi Zi’s Master had chosen this particular one.
In other words, that Master of Xi Zi had a rather unconventional preference in this regard.
He felt a pang of pity for himself: Is my own Master truly just such a little thing?
He wondered if she had successfully taken that final step.
While these miscellaneous thoughts churned in his head, Zong Shou’s face became solemn.
Like a righteous scholar of the Dao, his expression was grave, his gaze focused as he bowed deeply in greeting.
“Disciple Zong Shou pays respects to Master Xuanshuang!”
“Disciple? Master?”
Lin Xuanshuang seemed equally stunned. After a moment, she recovered her senses.
However, she stared coldly at Zong Shou, sensing that this person claiming to be her disciple had been contemplating something unfavorable just moments before.
“I recall I did not accept any disciples before my tribulation. Xi Zi’s formal disciples number only six.”
Zong Shou remained composed and explained calmly, “About ten years ago, I was brought into the Cang Sheng Dao by Wei Xu. My senior brother accepted me on behalf of the Master, enrolling me under your lineage—I am a second-generation direct inheritor—”
Lin Xuanshuang finally understood, then frowned, deep in thought.