Chapter 280 – Gold Talent, Acquired Dao Physique! [First Update, Please Vote!]

“Hmm? A gold talent… Acquired Dao Physique!”

Su Xing drew a deep breath, his heart filled with anticipation.

Could this Acquired Dao Physique be what he thought it was?

His eyes hurriedly scanned the talent description.

【Acquired Dao Physique】: Gold talent. You are a darling of the cultivation world, one favored by the Great Dao. Your speed of comprehending the Great Dao’s Origin Force is three times that of ordinary people. You can easily perceive origins and apply them…

After reading the explanation of the Acquired Dao Physique, Su Xing’s heart pounded wildly.

“I knew it! Accelerated Great Dao origin comprehension!”

“Doesn’t that mean… my Embryonic Spirit Domain can form even faster!?”

A Spirit Domain was, at its core, an advanced method of utilizing the Great Dao’s Origin Force.

Su Xing took a deep breath. If before he had only a seventy percent chance of ascending to the Human Immortal Realm, then with this talent’s help, his odds of solidifying nine types of Great Dao origins and passing the Spirit Domain Trial were above ninety percent!

And when the time came, his probability of surviving the Thunder Tribulation would also be above ninety percent!

“Tsk tsk… The key question now is, how much power does the Red Moon have left!”

Su Xing’s heart surged with anticipation.

As long as the Red Moon’s current strength didn’t exceed True Immortal, Su Xing had a ninety percent chance of shielding its perception!

With that thought, Su Xing turned his gaze to the simulation panel.

【In the spirit field grotto-heaven, you realized you were in a simulation.】

【You traded with Lu Yuanwu as agreed…】

【You began testing the feasibility of the spirit rice plan…】

【Working day and night, you channeled wood-attribute immortal power into the spirit rice in your spirit fields to accelerate its growth…】

【Under the effect of wood immortal power, the yield and quality of the spirit rice both improved dramatically.】

【In one day and one night, you ripened five hundred mu (33.35 ha) of spirit fields, harvesting a total of ten million jin (5,000,000 kg) of spirit rice.】

【Over the following ten days, you worked without rest, ripening spirit rice and harvesting one hundred million jin (50,000,000 kg)…】

【You traveled to the Luo Tian dungeon…】

【After leaving the Luo Tian dungeon, you stayed in the spirit field grotto-heaven to cultivate.】

【You took out the innate Fusang tree branch, wanting to test the effects of the Acquired Dao Physique.】

【The Acquired Dao Physique’s effects were astonishingly powerful — one day of comprehension equaled three days of your previous efforts…】

【One month later, you formally traded with Xia’s military.】

【With Jin Congxue and Grandpa Lu acting as intermediaries, you successfully obtained ten million Abyss Stones.】

【For a period afterward, you remained in the Capital City to monitor whether the spirit rice plan’s implementation posed any risks.】

【Fortunately, Jin Congxue’s secrecy protocols were excellent, and all moles within Xia’s military had been thoroughly purged, so the plan remained unexposed.】

【However, the Tarot Society also came under pressure from Great Xia’s government, who wanted Jin Congxue to hand over the dungeon location where the spirit rice was produced.】

【Fortunately, Jin Congxue had far-reaching connections, and it happened that Lu Yuanwu had been promoted, with authority in the military second only to the Human Emperor.】

【Thus, after Jin Congxue agreed to supply spirit rice exclusively to the government, the pressure was successfully eliminated…】

【You stayed in the Capital City for three months. After confirming no unexpected incidents occurred, you joined the Advent Cult.】

In the Real World, Su Xing breathed a long sigh of relief at what he saw, and said with some surprise:

“This Grandpa Lu is actually unexpectedly useful!”

“His influence within Xia’s military has risen even further… second only to the Human Emperor?”

Su Xing rubbed his chin, estimating that Grandpa Lu’s promotion was inseparable from himself.

It was likely because Lu Yuanwu had provided a large number of pills, further increasing his influence…

In essence, Xia’s military wanted to forge ties with Su Xing, this “senior expert”!

“Hmm… So it seems the crisis was resolved inadvertently…”

Su Xing nodded with satisfaction.

He wondered if he should give Lu Yuanwu a little something extra in the future — perhaps help him become a Legendary powerhouse?

That way, he could feel more at ease about Jin Congxue’s situation as well.

His gaze returned to the simulation panel.

【After joining the Advent Cult, you began cultivating your Embryonic Spirit Domain.】

【With the Acquired Dao Physique’s help, your speed of comprehending Spirit Domains was more than three times faster than before!】

【Two years passed in this manner…】

【In the third year, you unexpectedly learned a piece of intelligence — the Advent Cult was preparing to move against and assassinate Jin Congxue!】

【Upon learning this news, you were momentarily stunned. After conducting a thorough investigation, you understood the reasons behind it.】

【Ever since the Advent Cult’s moles had been purged several years ago, their surveillance of Xia’s military had nearly ground to a halt.】

【But over these three years, the Advent Cult had continuously sent spies to infiltrate and had finally planted several agents.】

【These agents had also carried out a special mission: investigate why the number of low-ranked Class Users among the human race had surged within just a few short years.】

【Following the trail, they found the Tarot Society, and also learned that Jin Congxue was the Tarot Society’s behind-the-scenes boss.】

【Therefore, the Advent Cult decided to assassinate Jin Congxue!】

【Upon learning this, you immediately sought out Jin Congxue, but it was already too late…】

【Fortunately, the several talismans you had given Jin Congxue previously played a critical role — the two Martial Sovereign-stage assassins were both killed by Jin Congxue using the talismans!】

【After learning about this, you gave Jin Congxue several more talismans for self-defense…】

In the Real World, Su Xing frowned slightly at this.

“Sigh, as expected, the spirit rice plan still attracted unnecessary trouble…”

“Hundreds of millions of jin of spirit rice over a few years… that’s probably enough to increase the number of Silver-stage and Gold-stage Class Users in Great Xia by several million! Even the number of Master-stage Class Users would rise by several hundred thousand…”

“The impact was just too big!”

Su Xing made a rough estimate. The spirit rice that had been ripened with wood immortal power and improved in quality already counted as top-grade spirit rice, with excellent effects.

For Bronze-stage Class Users, consuming five or six jin (3 kg) would likely result in enormous improvements to their strength and physique within three months, making it no problem to complete the Silver advancement task.

For Silver-stage Class Users, consuming over ten jin (5 kg) of spirit rice would greatly boost their potential within half a year, making advancement to Gold-stage possible!

For Gold-stage Class Users, consuming a hundred jin (50 kg) over two to three years… advancing to Master-stage was also possible!

And Su Xing’s hundred million jin (50,000,000 kg) of spirit rice was enough to produce tens of millions of additional low-ranked Class Users in Great Xia within a few years…

It practically multiplied the rate at which low-ranked Class Users were born by several times!

These numbers had inevitably drawn the Advent Cult’s attention!

“But… the danger comes three years from now?”

Su Xing pondered thoughtfully.

Three years from now, who knew how powerful he would have become.

By then, these dangers should resolve themselves…

“Mm, looking at it this way, the problem isn’t too serious! This barely-a-risk risk is acceptable!”

Su Xing gave a slight nod and turned his eyes back to the simulation panel.

【After resolving Jin Congxue’s crisis, you returned to the Advent Cult and kept constant watch on news related to this matter…】

【The Advent Cult dispatched several batches of assassins one after another, all of whom you secretly eliminated without leaving a trace…】

【Three years passed in this manner.】

【That year, the leader of the Transhuman Faction decided to personally make a move and assassinate Jin Congxue!】

【But Jin Congxue deployed a seventh-tier talisman and successfully counter-killed the Transhuman Faction’s leader!】

【Subsequently, you turned misfortune into fortune and were promoted ahead of schedule to become the new Transhuman Faction leader.】

【Half a year later, Old Dog Dragon decided to personally attack and kill Jin Congxue…】

【But fortunately, the strand of divine consciousness you had left on Jin Congxue earlier activated, landing a devastating blow on Old Dog Dragon and leaving him severely wounded…】

【When Old Dog Dragon returned, you felt uneasy, worried he might report this matter to Blood Three.】

【So you used the spirit vein dragon as bait, deliberately engaged Old Dog Dragon in a magical duel, and “accidentally” slew him…】

【From this point on, you became the undisputed power holder of the Advent Cult on Earth. All cadre members were under your command.】

【After killing Old Dog Dragon, you felt considerably more at ease and continued cultivating daily, awaiting Blood Three’s arrival.】

【In the ninth year, you successfully incorporated the Essence of Speed into your Embryonic Spirit Domain!】

【At this point, your Embryonic Spirit Domain had incorporated six types of Great Dao origins — wood, fire, lightning, speed, force, and space — with three remaining: sword, cause-and-effect, and destiny.】

【In the tenth year, Blood Three arrived on Earth and learned of Old Dog Dragon’s death.】

【Fortunately, Old Dog Dragon had not yet reported the spirit rice matter… Blood Three was unaware of it.】

【You presented the spirit vein dragon and deployed your Self-Help Guru talent for persuasion, successfully earning Blood Three’s trust and obtaining the transit pass…】

【After Blood Three departed, you remained on Earth to cultivate in peace.】

Su Xing let out a long breath at the simulation text before him.

“Phew… Fortunately, as long as Blood Three is kept in the dark, everything is fine!”

“Currently, the only two uncertain factors on Earth are Blood Three and the Red Moon!”

“Both of them currently possess the power to kill me…”

But fortunately, as Su Xing’s cultivation realm grew higher in the future, he would gradually reveal his cards, rising from beneath the water to the surface…

His gaze returned to the simulation panel.

【Ten years passed in this manner.】

【In the twentieth year, you made a trip to the Beast Taming World to eliminate hidden threats…】

【In the twenty-fifth year, you successfully incorporated the Sword Spirit Domain into your Embryonic Spirit Domain…】

【As the number of Great Dao origins and attributes within the Spirit Domain grew, fusion became increasingly difficult…】

【In the twenty-eighth year, the Double-Pupiled Demon Saint descended, and you repeated your previous strategy…】

【In the thirty-third year, the Demon Saint detected something amiss and retreated to Demon-Sealing Pass.】

【After the Demon Saint left, you were in no rush to withdraw. Instead, you remained at Demon-Sealing Pass… wanting to see what enemies would come next.】

【You stayed at Demon-Sealing Pass to stand guard, cultivating your Embryonic Spirit Domain daily, attempting to incorporate Cause and Effect Origin into it.】

【Nine years passed in this manner…】

【Over these nine years, though you failed to successfully incorporate Cause and Effect Origin, your mastery of it improved significantly, and your application of the power of cause and effect became far more refined.】

【In the forty-second year, one day you cast a divination and calculated that within one month, a calamity would befall Demon-Sealing Pass.】

【So you expended lifespan to perform a detailed divination and discovered this calamity was only a minor tribulation, not unavoidable.】

【You surmised this was because the alien deity descending upon Demon-Sealing Pass was weaker than you…】

【Sure enough, one month later, a deity with twin horns on its head and a body as large as a mountain descended outside Demon-Sealing Pass.】

【The moment this alien deity appeared, all humans within Demon-Sealing Pass fell into despair.】

【But you could see that this alien deity possessed only Lesser Divine Power, roughly equivalent to a mid-stage Human Immortal Realm cultivator.】

【So you unleashed fourteen hundred sword auras and successfully slew it!】

【At the same time, you also learned of this alien deity’s divine domain — it was related to blood!】

【Unfortunately, the Origin Forces you had mastered were far removed from this divinity and divine domain, making it impossible to devour…】

【After slaying this alien deity, you continued to guard Demon-Sealing Pass.】

【Soon, eight years passed…】

【In the fiftieth year, you divined that a calamity would befall Demon-Sealing Pass, and if you remained, you too would face a death tribulation!】

【You knew that the alien races would launch an even fiercer offensive, one that even you could not withstand…】

【So you no longer lingered on Earth and instead headed to the Slaughter Battlefield, walking toward the Red Moon…】

【The Red Moon sensed your presence. This time, presenting the transit pass was useless, as you had already been identified as an Advent Cult traitor…】

【But this had no effect on you. You slew the Slaughter Apostles and passed through the otherworld space.】

【You traversed the world passage and arrived in the northern part of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.】

【After arriving in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, the first thing you did was visit the Celestial Secrets Pavilion to sell and purchase intelligence.】

【You learned that at this time, no red-eyed aliens had yet appeared on the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm’s front lines, which meant the Red Moon’s resurrection had been delayed!】

【At the same time, however, the situation in the Hundred Thousand Mountains was not optimistic. Even the Tiger Immortal had been slain this year… Of the thirty-six Demon Kings, very few remained.】

【You sold intelligence related to the Red Moon, Qingyunzi, and the Advent Cult. Based on your estimates, the Red Moon’s awakening would be delayed by ten years, to around the sixtieth year…】

【Because you had sold the intelligence relatively late, its value had dropped significantly this time, though you still earned a considerable number of spirit stones.】

Su Xing raised an eyebrow at this.

“As expected, the destruction of Demon-Sealing Pass is directly tied to the Red Moon’s resurrection!”

“It’s just a pity that this trip to the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm came a bit late — some outcomes can’t be changed…”

“But extending the time before the Red Moon descends is the biggest gain!”

Su Xing nodded slightly. This simulation was merely a small test run — perhaps it could push the simulation time past the hundred-year mark…

“From here on, I should devote all my efforts to comprehending the Embryonic Spirit Domain!”

“And while I’m at it, I need to find out the whereabouts of the Primordial Martial Pill…”

With that thought, Su Xing turned his gaze to the simulation panel.

【After leaving the Celestial Secrets Pavilion’s intelligence office, you visited the shops in White Emperor City.】

【Just as you had anticipated, the Primordial Martial Pill was merely an ordinary pill in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm.】

【A single Primordial Martial Pill cost only thirty to fifty spirit stones, and even a supreme-grade Primordial Martial Pill was priced at no more than a hundred low-grade spirit stones.】

【You swept through dozens of pill shops in White Emperor City, purchasing a hundred thousand Primordial Martial Pills at a price of seventy low-grade spirit stones per supreme-grade pill, spending a mere seven million low-grade spirit stones in total.】

【The shopkeepers in the city, though curious why a Tribulation Crossing stage cultivator needed so many low-grade pills, were not about to turn away business.】

【After purchasing all the Primordial Martial Pill stock, you signed agreements with these shops for an additional four hundred thousand supreme-grade Primordial Martial Pills to be delivered over the next ten years.】

【For this, you paid a deposit of five million low-grade spirit stones…】

Su Xing nodded slightly at this.

“As expected, the Primordial Martial Pill is just a pill meant for Primordial Martial Realm cultivators… Its target users are equivalent to Nascent Soul stage cultivators. In the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, that’s the bottom of the cultivation chain…”

In the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, spirit stones and spiritual energy were actually relatively scarce as well.

Especially for those low-level cultivators — so-called “Nascent Soul ancestors” — being able to produce a few thousand low-grade spirit stones was already considered wealthy.

For precisely this reason, Primordial Martial Pills were destined to be inexpensive…

“The problem of bulk-purchasing Primordial Martial Pills is solved. Now the question is, how much energy does it cost to bring out a single Primordial Martial Pill?”

Su Xing felt a twinge of anticipation.

His gaze returned to the simulation panel.

【This year, you left White Emperor City. Deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, you carved out an underground cave dwelling and set up a Xuanyuan Breath-Concealing Formation, shielding yourself from karmic detection.】

【Over the next ten years, you continued to comprehend the power of cause and effect, striving to form a Spirit Domain embryonic form.】

【Just like that, ten years passed!】

【Year sixty. You successfully emerged from seclusion. Your Spirit Domain embryonic form gained an additional cause-and-effect attribute, giving you eight types of Great Dao Origin Force…】

【After emerging, you immediately headed to White Emperor City to fulfill your appointment.】

【During these ten years, the number of cultivators in White Emperor City had decreased considerably, but fortunately you successfully obtained the four hundred thousand Primordial Martial Pills.】

【You then visited the Celestial Secrets Pavilion intelligence bureau to purchase frontline intelligence.】

【Sure enough, just as you had predicted, red-eyed aliens had begun appearing on the frontlines a year ago. You suspected the Red Moon was gradually awakening…】

【You also inquired about the two Heavenly Immortal realm great demons and discovered that they had not yet been killed by ambush at this point.】

【So you sold intelligence — that within ten years, the alien race would launch a surprise attack targeting the Heavenly Immortal realm great demons…】

【This intelligence earned you a considerable number of spirit stones.】

【At the same time, you also learned that the Advent Cult’s strongholds had been besieged by righteous cultivators.】

【However, the intelligence had arrived somewhat late this time, missing the optimal window for the siege. The righteous cultivators’ strength was far diminished from before, allowing the Advent Cult to escape multiple times…】

【You silently committed all this intelligence to memory, then returned to your hidden cave dwelling, preparing to comprehend the final Destiny Origin in one stroke!】

【Soon, five years passed.】

【Year sixty-five. As the number of Great Dao origins within your Spirit Domain embryonic form reached eight, you increasingly felt the difficulty of fusing Origin Forces.】

【By your estimation, you could accommodate at most nine types of Great Dao origins before reaching your limit.】

【You didn’t know how much longer the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm could hold out, so you cultivated even harder…】

【Under the effects of the Acquired Dao Physique, your mastery over the Spirit Domain steadily improved.】

【The years flew by. Just like that, another fifteen years passed…】

【Simulation year eighty. You successfully incorporated Destiny Origin into your Spirit Domain embryonic form as well!】

【At this point, your Spirit Domain embryonic form finally possessed nine types of Great Dao origins, reaching its limit.】

【Only one final step remained — solidifying the Spirit Domain embryonic form.】

【This solidification of the Spirit Domain took you three years.】

【Year eighty-three. The Spirit Domain Trial was broken through. Until Tribulation Transcendence and ascension… only one step remained!】

【But you did not rush to undergo the tribulation. Instead, you made a trip to White Emperor City to gather intelligence on the current state of the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm.】

【Compared to previous timelines, the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm’s situation was considerably better this time.】

【The main reason was that the red-eyed aliens had appeared later, so the frontline cultivators’ fighting strength was more abundant.】

【But even so, the frontlines remained at an absolute disadvantage, and the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm was still gradually marching toward destruction.】

【After confirming the intelligence, you returned to the depths of the Hundred Thousand Mountains to prepare for the tribulation…】

【You accumulated a full month of Great Wisdom talent enhancement, then consumed a Spirit Awakening Pill…】

In the Real World, Su Xing’s heart stirred when he saw this. He silently chanted:

“Activate immersive simulation, duration thirty days!”

【Ding…】

Su Xing’s vision shifted and transformed, and he appeared within the simulated world.

“Can’t waste the opportunity from the Spirit Awakening Pill… This simulation, I’ll focus on comprehending Protective Sword Aura!”

Su Xing had planned this in advance. Taking advantage of the massive boost to comprehension, he began studying Protective Sword Aura.

Thanks to the Acquired Dao Physique, Su Xing’s comprehension speed for all Great Dao Origin Forces was tripled.

And the Great Dao of the Sword was among them!

By day ten of the immersive simulation, Su Xing’s Protective Sword Aura count had already reached one thousand four hundred and sixty!

By day twenty, the total sword auras reached one thousand five hundred and thirty!

By day thirty, the sword aura count broke through one thousand six hundred!

The immersive simulation ended, and Su Xing’s consciousness returned to reality.

“Tsk tsk… The Acquired Dao Physique truly lives up to its reputation!”

“Combined with an innate sword body… the effects stack. My one month of bitter cultivation is worth more than a hundred years for an ordinary sword cultivator!”

Su Xing nodded with satisfaction. One thousand six hundred Protective Sword Auras — that was essentially his current limit.

With Protective Sword Aura alone, Su Xing could even threaten Earthly Immortal realm cultivators!

“One thousand six hundred Protective Sword Auras. My chances of surviving the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation have increased yet again!”

The corner of Su Xing’s mouth curled upward as his gaze turned to the simulation panel.

【After comprehending one thousand six hundred Protective Sword Auras, you adjusted your aura and condition to peak state, quietly awaiting the arrival of the tribulation…】

【Just like that, two years passed.】

【Year eighty-five. One day, you cast a divination. The hexagram showed great fortune.】

【So you hesitated no longer, preparing to break through to the Tribulation Crossing stage in one stroke!】

【With previous experience to draw on, you smoothly raised your immortal power to its zenith in just one month’s time.】

【Then, drawing the Great Dao of Fire into your body, you moved to call down the Thunder Tribulation in one fell swoop!】

【Above the peak where you stood in the Hundred Thousand Mountains, dark clouds blanketed the sky for ten thousand li (5,000 km), and faint rumbles of thunder echoed from the heavens…】

【And right at that moment, you faced the Three Questions of the Heavenly Dao!】

【The Heavenly Question: What immortality do you cultivate?】

【Your answer: I seek the orthodox celestial rank — to cross the six trials of Immortal Transformation, draw the Great Dao into my body, and achieve the Human Immortal Realm!】

【…】

【Three questions in succession, each striking the very depths of the soul!】

【And after the Three Questions of the Heavenly Dao, the Thunder Tribulation in the sky began to converge!】

【You took a deep breath and, in your full glory, prepared to face the incoming Thunder Tribulation…】

【The first wave of Thunder Tribulation struck down. You weathered it with your physical body alone, passing through unscathed!】

【Immediately after, the second bolt of tribulation fell. After only a brief pause to catch your breath, you successfully tanked it with your body.】

【The third bolt of tribulation fell. After enduring it, a single bead of sweat rolled down your forehead.】

【By now, many living creatures within the Hundred Thousand Mountains had been drawn to the Thunder Tribulation.】

【For the fourth bolt, you changed strategy. You endured it with Protective Hardened Qi, without deploying your sword auras…】

【For the fifth bolt, you unleashed Spirit Burst at the tribulation, dissipating most of its power, and passed through safely.】

【…】

【As the Thunder Tribulation continued, the surrounding demon cultivators and human cultivators all wore expressions of horror.】

【Because the Six-Nine Thunder Tribulation was about to descend!】

【And in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, someone capable of triggering the Six-Nine Thunder Tribulation was a once-in-ten-thousand-years occurrence!】

【The Six-Nine Thunder Tribulation — the mark of Golden Immortal potential!】

【Amid the astonished cries of the cultivators, you slashed out a sword beam ten thousand zhang (33.3 km) long, reducing the Six-Nine Thunder Tribulation’s power by a third.】

【The remaining force of the tribulation was further reduced by your Protective Hardened Qi. By the time it reached your physical body, it could no longer pose a threat.】

【You felt only slight pain in your body as you weathered the Six-Nine Thunder Tribulation!】

【Within ten thousand li (5,000 km), every watching cultivator marveled at your overwhelming prowess.】

【Many cultivators wanted to approach and congratulate you on your successful ascension to immortality…】

【Of course, the main purpose was to befriend a future great cultivator!】

【But their expressions immediately changed…】

【Because the Thunder Tribulation in the sky showed no signs of dissipating whatsoever…】

【The Seven-Nine Thunder Tribulation was coming!】

In the Real World, the corner of Su Xing’s mouth curved upward slightly as he quipped:

“Tch, cultivators of the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm… Looking like they’ve never seen the world!”

“But compared to before, this tribulation is at least far more composed!”

During his first tribulation, Su Xing hadn’t held back his strength, wasting stamina needlessly and failing to plan properly for the later stages of the Thunder Tribulation.

But now, knowing he would face the Nine-Nine Thunder Tribulation, he naturally conserved his strength, saving his trump cards for the very end!

“This time I’ve fused nine Spirit Domains, and my physical strength is double what it was before… I have a decent chance of passing even the Nine-Nine Thunder Tribulation!”

Su Xing thought as much, his gaze turning to the simulation panel.

【High above, dark clouds gathered as a terrifying Thunder Tribulation descended from the Nine Heavens, striking directly at your physical body…】

【You took a deep breath and unleashed another Five Elements Immortal Burst. At the same time, sword in your left hand, you swung out a sword beam ten thousand zhang (33.3 km) long!】

【Within the Immortal Burst, you had fused some Wood-Fire Great Dao origins, drastically amplifying its power…】

【A vortex of immortal power and a sweeping blade of sword light struck toward the Seven-Nine Thunder Tribulation one after the other!】

【Under the successive resistance of both attacks, the Seven-Nine Thunder Tribulation’s power was already reduced by more than half…】

【When the tribulation pierced through your Protective Hardened Qi and struck your physical body, you suffered only light injuries.】

【You took a handful of Healing Pills. You felt the wood-element origin rapidly repairing your physical body, and combined with the Cockroach talent, your injuries healed swiftly…】

【But you didn’t relax your guard in the slightest, because the next two bolts of tribulation were the true challenge!】

【Amid the astonished cries of the cultivators, the Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation descended…】

【Facing the Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation, even you dared not take it lightly!】

【You took a deep breath. In this moment, you played every trump card you had!】

【Your Spirit Domain embryonic form unfurled in an instant. Nine types of Great Dao origins transformed into motes of starlight, orbiting around you…】

【Empowered by the Sword Spirit Domain, your sword intent surged dramatically. You swung out your mightiest sword strike!】

【With that single slash, the overwhelming Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation lost three-tenths of its momentum…】

【Immediately after, the Wood-Fire Spirit Domain unfurled. Your strongest Qi Refinement supernatural art — Five Elements Immortal Burst — fired at full power!】

【The Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation’s power weakened by another three-tenths…】

【The Spatial Spirit Domain unfurled, forming layers of invisible barriers around you.】

【The Lightning Spirit Domain unfurled, absorbing part of the Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation’s power…】

【After layer upon layer of reduction, the Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation’s power was less than half of its full strength.】

【But even so, you still weren’t at ease…】

【You burned a century of lifespan, invoking the power of cause and effect to forcibly reduce the probability of the Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation killing you, further weakening the tribulation’s power…】

【At last, you activated your Protective Hardened Qi and made your final stand!】

【BOOM! The Eight-Nine Thunder Tribulation finally crashed down, piercing through your Protective Hardened Qi and striking your physical body directly.】

【But fortunately, the tribulation’s power had been reduced too greatly. You felt endless, searing agony wash over you, but the tribulation could neither crush your will nor bring you down.】

【Unkillable Cockroach, Ancient Shaman Physique — multiple talents activated within your body, while wood-element Origin Force rapidly restored your vitality.】

【You gritted your teeth and downed a handful of Healing Pills, enduring the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation!】

In the Real World, Su Xing let out a long breath of relief upon seeing this.

“Phew… Finally, the hardest part — the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation — is over. The Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation shouldn’t be a problem!”

The corner of Su Xing’s mouth curled upward slightly.

He still had two absolute trump cards that hadn’t been used in this simulation!

One thousand six hundred Protective Sword Auras…

And the gold talent, No Martial Virtue!

Su Xing rubbed his chin, a meaningful smile spreading across his face.

“The No Martial Virtue talent’s target… was never specified to be a human or living creature!”

【No Martial Virtue】: Gold talent. This talent can only be used once per simulation. When facing an elder older than you, you may use a “sneak attack,” doubling the damage of your first strike.

This was the conclusion Su Xing had reached after much deliberation!

No Martial Virtue, despite being a gold talent, had a full three restrictions!

It could only be used once per simulation…

The target had to be an elder… and it had to be in a sneak attack state!

“The Nine-Nine Thunder Tribulation… should be part of the Heavenly Dao’s tribulation, right? It definitely counts as an elder!”

“Since it’s an elder… then No Martial Virtue will absolutely work!”

“The only tricky part is the sneak attack condition…”

Su Xing already had an idea. His gaze turned to the simulation panel.

【When the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation fell, every cultivator watching within ten thousand li (5,000 km) wore expressions of pity.】

【In their eyes, for someone at the Tribulation Crossing stage to withstand the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation was simply beyond comprehension…】

【After all, that was an attack comparable to an Earthly Immortal realm cultivator. How could a Tribulation Crossing cultivator possibly block it?】

【But when they saw your figure still standing tall and straight amid the fading lightning after the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation, every last one of them fell silent…】

【In that moment, only one thought arose in their minds: The Lesser Azure Cloud Realm was about to witness the birth of a true monstrous prodigy!】

【…】

【And when they saw that the celestial phenomena above the Nine Heavens had still not vanished after the Eight-Nine Heavenly Tribulation, everyone was stunned.】

【Expressions of terror appeared on their faces. Cursing about “one despised by heaven,” they fled the area as fast as they could…】

【At the center of the tribulation, only you remained — standing proudly atop the blackened mountain peak, your piercing gaze fixed on the Thunder Tribulation above the Nine Heavens.】

【The Nine-Nine Thunder Tribulation! It was still gathering…】

【But you had no intention of waiting!】

【While the tribulation was still building — you took a deep breath. Sword intent surged from every fiber of your being, carrying with it all one thousand six hundred Protective Sword Auras, soaring into the Nine Heavens!】

【The moment you swung that sword, the No Martial Virtue talent activated simultaneously!】

【This single strike carried all of your hope… cleaving straight toward the Nine-Nine Thunder Tribulation, and toward the Heavenly Dao of this realm!】

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