Chapter 290: Chapter 268: Divine Tribulation_2
Ascending to the Divine Realm, you can’t take anything with you except divine items.
Li Cheng had considered that even the Fire Mysterious Realm, which used to be part of the Divine World, was not something he could take with him after it had been made into a device, as it was not a divine artifact.
Even those Enlightenment Divine Fruits were not allowed, for they were not purely divine fruits.
What he could take were only the Broken Tripod, as well as the White Tiger Essence Blood, Fell Dragon Grass, and those Divine Bones!
This was quite discomforting. Going to the Divine Realm would essentially mean starting from scratch.
For so many years, once he entered the Divine Realm, that would be when he was at his poorest.
Gu Sanqiu continued, “It’s not that you can’t take anything with you that matters; the significant point is that the Order of Heaven and Earth in the Divine Realm is 10,800 times that of the Immortal World. Even a Heaven God can only fly and cannot perform Immortal Spirit Steps, Divine Spirit Steps, Teleport, Instantaneous Movement, and the like.”
“Simply put, once you reach the Divine Realm, you would be like a Cultivator who has just completed their Foundation Establishment here. Would you say that’s troublesome?”
“Here, you are a big shot at the top of the pyramid!”
Listening to Gu Sanqiu, Li Cheng laughed, “So Brother Gu doesn’t want me to go to the Divine Realm but wants me to be his successor?”
Gu Sanqiu coughed lightly, “It’s just that the old brother can’t bear to part with you. Isn’t it good to be the big boss here? Why insist on going to the Divine Realm and becoming an ant?”
I believe you, a ghost. You old rascal, you’re up to no good.
He obviously wants to shed his responsibilities, yet he talks about being unable to let go.
If it had been before the time Li Cheng encountered the suppression of the Bone Clan by the Confucian Sect, he would have agreed without the need for persuasion from Gu Sanqiu.
However, the restrictions deep within his soul, if not resolved, might turn into his inner demons.
Moreover, after traversing through time for so many years, one can’t simply lie down and accept things as they are all the time.
When it’s time to strive, one must make the effort.
“Brother Gu, my mind is made up. As the successor of the Pill League, my plan is to start with Alchemy once I arrive in the Divine Realm. I hear that the recipes for Divine Pills are closely guarded secrets there, but our Pill League should have quite a few of them, right?”
Li Cheng looked at Gu Sanqiu with a half-smiling expression that made Gu Sanqiu uncomfortable.
Gu Sanqiu’s mouth twitched. Had all he said been in vain?
And now he had to share the ancient and long-standing Divine Pill recipes? Gu Sanqiu fell silent, pondering on how to continue persuading him because, after all, the only ones acknowledged by the Purple Talisman were him and Li Cheng. Since he didn’t want to be the Alliance Hierarch, he naturally had to find a way to make Li Cheng take that position.
“Brother Gu, I really have no intention of succeeding you. If you’re thinking of how to persuade me, wouldn’t it be better if I introduced someone else to you?” said Li Cheng with a smile.
Gu Sanqiu glanced at Li Cheng irritably, “Do you think just anybody can gain the Purple Talisman’s approval?”
“That remains to be seen. Grand Venerable Bai Jie’s daughter, my disciple Ling Xi, has extraordinary talent and mastery in Alchemy Dao. Her future achievements are sure to surpass both you and me, and she will likely gain the Purple Talisman’s approval.”
Li Cheng did not mention that Ling Xi was born with the Medicine Divine Body, but the Purple Talisman would surely recognize it. How could it not approve then?
After all, once that special physique fully matures, producing Divine Pills would just be a matter of lifting a finger.
Gu Sanqiu pondered, “If that is the case, then the old brother will let you off the hook.”
Having said that, Gu Sanqiu laughed. The daughter of the Grand Venerable Bai Jie—if she could become the Alliance Hierarch, the Pill League would then have the support of Grand Venerable Bai Jie.
“I’ll call her over so we can take her to the Pill Immortal Tower to try,” said Li Cheng.
“For this matter, let’s go and politely ask! After all, the grandmaster is present and we should seek his consent,” Gu Sanqiu got up to leave.
Soon, Li Cheng and Gu Sanqiu, accompanied by Ling Xi, left, with Grand Venerable Bai Jie following along.
Obviously, Grand Venerable Bai Jie was not opposed to Ling Xi trying to receive the Purple Talisman.
“Master, will you take the opportunity to travel along the Divine Path?” Ling Xi asked somewhat reluctantly inside the Space-Breaking Shuttle.
Li Cheng did not hide his intention, indeed, he had such plans.
Grand Venerable Bai Jie turned his gaze towards Li Cheng, “Brother Li, after you complete the Divine Path, you can then trigger the Divine Tribulation. The spot for your Tribulation Crossing should be kept secret, although I suggest you choose the Heavenly Mechanism Sect for your ascension to benefit from some of their fortunes.”
Li Cheng smiled. His plan was indeed to undergo Tribulation Crossing at the Three-way Abyss while the Heavenly Mechanism Sect was indeed the most suitable place for his ascension.
“Grandmaster, do you know what preparations are needed for the Divine Tribulation?” Li Cheng asked.
Li Cheng himself had never undergone any Immortal Tribulation, unlike Mu Xingzhi and Grand Venerable Bai Jie, who faced tribulations as often as they ate and drank.
“I’m aware of this, Junior Brother—there are three types of Divine Tribulation: Body Destruction Tribulation, Heart Refinement Tribulation, and Soul Crossing Tribulation, each consisting of twenty-seven beams, culminating in a total of eighty-one beams. Each Tribulation is said to possess the power to destroy heavens and obliterate earth,”
Gu Sanqiu stared at Li Cheng. “But there’s no need to worry, your strength is formidable, you just need to see the Divine Tribulation as a great opportunity to refine your body, heart, and soul,”
Grand Venerable Bai Jie looked at Gu Sanqiu with some amazement and nodded slightly. “Indeed, the Divine Tribulation is nothing to fear—it’s the lack of courage to face it that’s truly frightening, the fear of defeat before the battle has even begun,”
“For Master, the Divine Tribulation is merely an excellent opportunity for cultivation. In the past, Master often achieved Enlightenment amidst the Tribulation Thunder,” Ling Xi said with a smile.
That was just the Pill Tribulation, which couldn’t even compare to the Tribulation of becoming immortal, let alone the Divine Tribulation.
Li Cheng admitted that he didn’t dare to seek Enlightenment during the Divine Tribulation—that would be courting death!
At that time, he would certainly give it his all when facing the Tribulation.
Half a day later, in front of the Pill Immortal Tower, Ling Xi emerged, a purple charm hovering above her head.
“I told you so!” Li Cheng nodded in satisfaction. How many people in this world could possess a Medicine Divine Body? How could such a monstrous talent, born for the way of Alchemy, not obtain a purple charm?
Gu Sanqiu handed a Jade Slip to Li Cheng with an excited expression, “Inside here are the Divine Pill Recipes that the Pill God Alliance has collected over several eras, amounting to thousands. Read them and destroy it immediately!” After Li Cheng finished reading, the Jade Slip destroyed itself.
With these Pill Recipes, once in the Divine Realm, he would have an additional method at his disposal.
“Pill Recipes and Formations are closely guarded secrets in the Divine Realm, you must not divulge them,” Gu Sanqiu warned again.
Li Cheng nodded. “It’s time for me to take leave, Grand Venerable, Brother Gu,
I’ll see you again in a few days!”
“We’ll be waiting for your good news!” Both men responded with a smile.
Li Cheng teleported out and headed to the Three-way Abyss again.
This time, without Jiang Zhipan accompanying him, Li Cheng studied the Skyreaching Pillar for a moment before activating it and entering the Three-way Abyss.
Nowadays, although the Three-way Abyss was still shrouded in darkness, it had gained a bit more vitality, as well as an increase in nature’s spiritual energy. Having returned from the Divine Path and the Order of Heaven and Earth being restored, this place was on its way to revival.
In a space stretching hundreds of billions of miles, only the Floating Peak remained. Given time, this peak was sure to become a Holy Land for cultivation.
Arriving at the base of the Divine Path, Li Cheng stepped onto it. Based on his previous speed, in one month, he would be able to complete the condensation of the Divine Patterns. By then, the Immortal Infant would transform into the Divine Child, ready to beckon the Divine Tribulation.
One month later, Li Cheng had already reached the top of the Divine Path. In that moment, he could feel as if there was an invisible barrier pressing down on him, as though simply by releasing his power, he could tear through this barrier.
Tens of billions of miles away from the Divine Path, Li Cheng stopped, released his power at a hunch, and instantly, the invisible barrier shattered. High above, a terrifying presence emerged abruptly!
The Divine Tribulation began to gather!
In a world enveloped in darkness, streaks of lightning suddenly appeared, tearing apart the gloom.
Li Cheng looked up and with the help of the lightning, could see the sky covered by dense clouds, with an incredibly huge vortex appearing directly above.
The lightning danced within the vortex, and gradually, the original silver bolts began to shift toward purple. The vast oppressive force grew stronger, as if it could demolish heaven and earth.
Boom!
Suddenly, the purple lightning converged, forming a bolt over a zhang in diameter, and in a flash, engulfed Li Cheng!
Li Cheng was already well-prepared, fully operating the Chaos Yuan Heavenly Scripture. Yet, under the attack of the first bolt of Tribulation Thunder, he suddenly became weak and found it difficult to operate his cultivation technique!
“Lifespan!”
Li Cheng’s eyes slightly narrowed, realizing that this strike of Tribulation Thunder carried the force of Time, slicing away a million years of his lifespan!
Such a loss of lifespan didn’t concern him, but the slash to lifespan was followed by a momentary wealmess, which was troubling!
During this weakened state, the lightning directly entered Li Cheng’s body, its tumultuous power rampaging within, causing severe pain all over his body, and many of his veins even started showing cracks from the explosive force.
Fortunately, the bolt of Tribulation Thunder quickly dissipated, and the injuries within his body swiftly healed.
Li Cheng frowned as he looked towards the vortex; this was only the first bolt, and it had already injured him. Could he withstand the increasingly powerful subsequent bolts of Tribulation Thunder?
Yes!
Li Cheng gritted his teeth, giving himself a firm answer.
In an instant, a majestic fighting spirit surged within him. He stepped into the air and walked towards the vortex.