Chapter 654: 328: The Creation and Evolution of the Tenth Level of Huashen
Although the Ascension Tribulation, meant to remove the Otherworldly Aura, was not as mortally perilous as the true Crossing Tribulation—with a nine-in-ten chance of death—it was still extremely dangerous. Many Ascenders relied on formations to weaken the Heavenly Tribulation and in the end were still severely injured, unable to heal in a short amount of time even if they managed to survive the Tribulation and gain some benefits.
Some cultivators, overconfident in their strength and not relying on formations to diminish the Tribulation, even suffered foundational damage, leading to halted progression in their cultivation levels, a cause for immense regret.
Soon, lightning flickered amidst the dark clouds, gathering into the first bolt of Heavenly Tribulation and striking directly down.
Lin Yi remained calm, for through the Eye of Emptiness, he had already sensed the strength of the first bolt and knew his body could withstand it. Nonetheless, to be on the safe side, a defensive shield still manifested around his body.
After weakening it for a moment, he released the shield, letting the thunder and lightning strike him directly. At the same time, he activated the Technique of Transforming Cloud into Wind, defending with the strength of Body Refinement and absorbing the power of the Heavenly Tribulation.
Seeing Lin Yi endure the Heavenly Tribulation with his physical body alone, the cultivators watching revealed expressions of astonishment. Even though this was far from a real Crossing Tribulation, the power of this Tribulation was still not something an average Body Refinement cultivator could endure.
Under the bombardment of the Tribulation, his physical strength’s defenses were continuously breached, the thunder and lightning infiltrating his body. Lin Yi consciously controlled the Wind Power within his body, allowing the lightning to follow a specific path to temper his physique.
Absorbing the power of the Heavenly Tribulation into the body was entirely different from perceiving and absorbing it.
The former worked only on the physical body, while the latter entered the Dantian within the body and could merge with the internal Thunder and Lightning Element.
Indeed, once the lightning entered his body, he found its destructive force was not as great as he imagined. With sufficient physical strength, it truly was the best substance for tempering the body.
Lin Yi, dressed in red garments, presented a startling vision as he endured the Heavenly Tribulation with his physical body.
The first bolt of Heavenly Tribulation passed as he tempered his body, and when it subsided, he was somewhat unsatisfied, craving more.
The second bolt proceeded in the same manner, weakened for a while before directly used to temper his body.
After some time, the third bolt descended, and Lin Yi still used the Eye of Emptiness to observe. He suddenly noticed that what he sensed from this bolt was entirely different from the previous two, filled with a destructive and violent aura.
If such thunder and lightning entered his body, it would not temper but would rather wreak havoc, destroying everything in its path.
He weakened the force of the Heavenly Tribulation with his own strength and passed through it safely.
When the fourth bolt came, carrying the same destructive and violent aura, Lin Yi couldn’t help but smile. This Heavenly Tribulation truly was a trial—he deduced that the previous bolts could temper the body, while the subsequent bolts required one to withstand on their own.
However, many cultivators undergoing Tribulation wished for all available means to be used. The earlier bolts, beneficial to the body, were completely blocked, and when the later, unavoidable bolts came, they had no choice but to endure the purely destructive force with their physical bodies.
The fifth bolt was the same; he weakened the force of the Heavenly Tribulation and defended with his protective shield.
After the fifth bolt, the dark clouds in the sky gradually dissipated, and a beam of light shone down. Lin Yi felt his body enveloped in warmth, that peculiar sense of being locked by the heavens disappeared.
Through the sense of the Eye of Emptiness, he perceived some traces of the Otherworldly Aura.
However, he had not changed his identity, so he did not know whether the Otherworldly Aura had been completely eradicated from his body or just from the identity of Invincible East.
Soon, the light faded, and the injuries caused by the Heavenly Tribulation during the tempering of his body completely healed. Moreover, the thunder and lightning that entered his body began slowly merging with it.
Lin Yi nodded to himself; his deduction was correct. The earlier bolts of the Tribulation were beneficial to the body, while the subsequent bolts carried a destructive aura and could not transform into a Healing Element inside the body as in White Painting’s Transformation Tribulation.
Otherwise, Ascenders would not suffer severe injuries during Tribulation. If too much violent lightning was endured in the last three bolts, then this single beam of light would probably not fully heal them.
After crossing the Heavenly Tribulation, he cupped his fists in gratitude to several Void Refinement Cultivators who had protected the law for him, then transformed into a beam of light and vanished from Tribulation Peak.
Many cultivators found nothing astonishing about Lin Yi’s Tribulation; the initial two bolts were likely just tests of physical Body Refinement strength. As the bolts grew stronger, he no longer resisted them with his physical body.
Back at his Cave Mansion, Lin Yi began contemplating his next plan—whether to continue crossing Tribulations to refine his body with various identities or to progress his cultivation to the Refining Void Realm.
After some reflection, he decided to first raise his cultivation levels to the Refining Void Realm before making further plans. At that point, the title of Path of Survivor would be upgraded, and his fate would undergo some changes. Based on these circumstances, he would formulate the next step of his cultivation plan.