Chapter 530 – Proving the Dao Through Force: The Ten Tribulations of Sainthood!
by spirapiraChapter 530 – Proving the Dao Through Force: The Ten Tribulations of Sainthood!
“Tsk tsk, this Lord of Avarice’s comprehension of the laws of causality is probably not far from the eighth realm…”
“This one must be the most deeply hidden among the Seven Deadly Sins, right?”
Su Xing weighed and compared things for a moment.
Although killing the Lord of the Talongs had taken him the longest,
clearly, the Tu’nah Chief God was far more troublesome.
During the first seven days of battle, before her karmic power was exhausted,
Su Xing had actually been unable to harm her in the slightest…
It was only because she had encountered a monster like Su Xingâwith overwhelming strength in every aspect, an inexhaustible supply of primordial energy, and the characteristic of One Force Breaks Ten Thousand Lawsâthat the Tu’nah Chief God’s laws of causality were broken!
Of course, the Tu’nah Chief God’s weakness was also quite obvious…
Her physical body was too weak!
Her physical body probably couldn’t even compare to the Lord of the Succubi that Su Xing had previously killed!
“Tsk tsk… but the Dao of Cause and Effect and Destiny is the most mysterious, with the most dangerous methods…”
“If this one had been on home turf with sufficient preparation, she would have been very hard to kill…”
Su Xing smacked his lips.
But fortunately, Su Xing had used the Death law to lure her, preventing the Lord of the Tu’nahs from exerting even half her full strength, allowing him to kill her with ease.
After killing the Tu’nah Chief God, the familiar vortex soon appeared nearby once again.
This wasn’t Su Xing’s first time seeing this vortex, and now he didn’t even bother with it.
He directly sealed away all of the Tu’nah Chief God’s godhood and divinity.
From within the vortex, a furious roar could faintly be heard:
“Human, you deserve to die!”
“Soon, very soon I will come find you personally…”
Su Xing’s expression was one of disdain after hearing this, and he paid it no mind.
What a joke!
If these Sovereigns could come to the Three Thousand Worlds so easily, the human race would have been annihilated long agoâwould they have waited until now?
Meanwhile, Qingyunzi beside him had obviously also heard the terrifying voice from within the vortex.
His heart jolted, and his expression turned somewhat grave as he said:
“Fellow Daoist Su… what was that voice just now?”
Su Xing waved his hand dismissively after hearing this, his face completely unconcerned:
“Oh, that? Just a Sovereign among the foreign races, more or less equivalent to a Saint among us humans…”
“But don’t worry, that one can’t come to our world anytime soon…”
“When it does come, who knows who’ll be the one feeling afraid!”
Su Xing’s relaxed expression made Qingyunzi secretly gulp.
Just what was the background of this Luotian Sect successor, and how great were his abilities?!
Qingyunzi had experienced it firsthand this time.
A chief god renowned for physical strength couldn’t even last half a year in Su Xing’s hands!
And that chief god who wielded karmic powerâone that even Qingyunzi found extremely troublesomeâhadn’t even lasted ten days…
Was this strength truly not that of a Saint from the legends?
Thinking of this, Qingyunzi couldn’t help but look at Su Xing with a hint of respect in his gaze.
It was more like the look one would give a “senior”!
This was how cultivators in the cultivation world wereâthose who have achieved mastery are the teachers!
Qingyunzi had always believed that in the Three Thousand Worlds, only the elusive Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master could definitively suppress him.
Yet now, he actually felt a deep sense of powerlessness from Su Xing!
After privately pondering for a moment, Qingyunzi muttered:
“With this old body of mine, I probably wouldn’t last more than a few days against Fellow Daoist Su…”
Though Qingyunzi was shocked, he understood that at such a critical juncture, the emergence of such a powerful figure was a great blessing for the human race!
Thinking that the two chief gods lurking in the Azure Origin Domain had also been slain, Qingyunzi let out a huge sigh of relief:
“Fellow Daoist Su’s actions will ensure tens of thousands of years of peace for our Azure Origin Domain!”
“We no longer need to worry about the threat of these foreign races!”
“Shall we return to the Azure Cloud Sect next?”
Su Xing glanced at Qingyunzi after hearing this and shook his head:
“It’s far too early for that! The foreign races’ power is stronger than you or I can imagine!”
“Killing a few chief gods isn’t enough to truly cripple them…”
“As for what comes next, there’s no time to rest!”
“I have a set of coordinates for a place called the Void Realm… I need to go there personally and wipe out every foreign race in it!”
“Besides that, I also have activity coordinates of various foreign races in the Azure Origin Domain… mostly those above deity level. I’ll leave those to you and the Human Alliance. That should be manageable, right?”
Su Xing naturally didn’t have the time to traverse every corner of the Azure Origin Domain hunting foreign races.
The best he could do was eliminate the concentrated groups and the top-tier powerhouses among the foreign racesâthat alone was already a tremendous contribution!
Qingyunzi took the jade slip from Su Xing, and after figuring out the coordinates and numbers of the foreign races within, he instinctively wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
How was this merely “some” foreign race deity locations?
This was clearly the entirety of the foreign races’ deployment across the Azure Origin Domain!
Thousands of coordinates… over a thousand foreign race beings at deity level and above, including their strength distribution and upcoming plansâall of it was in there!
Something that the human race of the Azure Origin Domain had failed to accomplish over hundreds of thousandsâeven millionsâof years, this Fellow Daoist Su before him had done in just a few years.
Amazement aside, Qingyunzi naturally wouldn’t hold things back. He nodded and said:
“The foreign race chief gods have been eliminated… Since there are no remaining threats from above, my Azure Cloud Sect will naturally go all out to hunt down these foreign races!”
“Within a few hundred years at most, we’ll restore peace to the Azure Origin Domain!”
Su Xing nodded slightly after hearing this, acknowledging Qingyunzi’s promise.
After killing the two foreign race chief gods, Su Xing didn’t idle about. Instead, he rushed to the Void Realm at the fastest speed possible.
Using the spatial Dao, Su Xing sealed off the entire Void Realm.
Within the Void Realm, whether they were first-tier or second-tier deities, none had any possibility of escape.
And so Su Xing locked the door and slaughtered them like dogs!
He spent seven days turning the Void Realm into a river of blood.
Every last foreign race being in the entire Void Realm died at Su Xing’s hands.
With this, eighty to ninety percent of the foreign race threat in the Azure Origin Domain was eliminated.
The remaining foreign race deities could no longer pose any real threat.
Only after completing all of this did Su Xing find the leisure to return to the spirit field grotto-heaven and begin planning his next steps.
…
Inside the spirit field grotto-heaven.
Su Xing took stock of the gains from his half year of slaughtering foreign races.
“Simulation opportunities have accumulated to 29… enough to push my strength close to that of a Saint!”
“And the blood essence from killing two chief gods and destroying the entire Azure Origin Domain’s foreign race presence is worth nearly 50,000 world origin…”
“Tsk tsk, with nearly 80,000 world origin on hand, that’s truly a massive fortune!”
When you’ve got grain in your hands, you’ve got peace in your heart.
Su Xing was in an excellent mood at this moment.
With this enormous sum of origin, Su Xing’s strength would climb even further!
Rather than rushing to boost his power immediately, Su Xing first contemplated his upcoming plans.
“Right now, among the Five Great Domains… the foreign races in the Azure Origin Domain and the Celestial Demon Domain have been largely wiped out…”
“But the foreign races’ forces are still formidable!”
“Especially beyond the domains… that foreign race Sovereign, along with even more chief gods, may be watching with predatory eyes!”
“Moreover, after losing several chief gods in succession… the foreign races will probably become alert…”
“So I must strike while the iron is hot and eliminate as many foreign race chief gods in the Five Great Domains as possible!”
“Then lead a force of human powerhouses to storm the Eighth Heaven!”
Su Xing’s plan was quite straightforward.
Since the foreign races beyond the domains couldn’t get in for now, he would first kill every foreign race being in the Five Great Domains and the Eighth Heaven!
Once they were all eliminated…
Then he could regroup and focus on dealing with the “Sovereigns” that might appear!
“In the next few years, there won’t be any rest… I’ll need to visit both the Eastern Domain and the Southern Barbarian Domain!”
Su Xing murmured.
“But before that, I need to continue raising my strength!”
Without the slightest hesitation, Su Xing initiated a new round of simulation.
ăSimulation #483 initiated. Remaining world origin: 81,762 points. Origin energy: 680,000 points. 28 simulation opportunities!ă
ăPlease select simulation mode: Simulate Future, Time Reversal, Comprehend Time.ă
“Simulate Future!”
Su Xing chanted silently.
…
Twenty-eight simulation opportunities. Nearly eighty thousand origin energy points.
Enough for Su Xing’s strength to take another massive leap forward!
In fact, Su Xing used fewer than ten simulations to raise both his Qi Refinement and Body Tempering cultivation to Great Firmament Golden Immortal Perfection and the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, Eighth Layer Perfection!
He had even comprehended numerous Great Dao laws, including Red Moon’s Death law and the Lord of the Talongs’ Devouring law!
After spending roughly half a day digesting the cultivation feedback from his consecutive breakthroughs, Su Xing sighed:
“My current strength… has essentially reached the absolute limit of cultivators in the Three Thousand Worlds!”
“If I want to advance as rapidly as before, it’s going to be difficult… I must break through the shackles!”
One step beyond Great Firmament Golden Immortal was the Saint realm!
And one step beyond the Great Shaman Body Forging Art was the ninth layer! True physical sainthood!
Su Xing already had a clear direction for advancing both the Great Shaman Body Forging Art and his Qi Refinement cultivation…
“From the eighth layer to the ninth layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art… it’s essentially about transforming the virtual into the real!”
“The so-called transformation of virtual into real means truly making the Primordial Energy Tree within one’s body form its own small world… requiring countless years of cultivation!”
“The reason the Celestial Demon General couldn’t take that final step boiled down to one thing… not enough years of cultivation!”
Among the ancient Wu Clan, those who could reach the level of physical sainthood had all cultivated for hundreds of millions of years!
Even the Ancestral Shamans were no exception…
And the Celestial Demon General, though brilliantly talented, had only been cultivating for just over ten million years… far too short!
Furthermore, the current world lacked the ancient treasures that could strengthen the physical body.
Even the Celestial Demon General couldn’t make bricks without straw, and was forever stuck at Peak of the eighth layer.
But for Su Xing, things were different!
“Physical sainthood… the ninth layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art simply requires enough time!”
“And for me, a single simulation is equivalent to a million years of cultivation… plus I have the Celestial Primordial Tree…”
“A few dozen simulations might be all it takes!”
“It’s proving one’s Dao to become a Saint that will take more effort!”
Su Xing narrowed his eyes. Compared to achieving physical sainthood through the ninth layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art,
reaching the Saint realm in terms of Qi Refinement cultivation was undoubtedly more difficult.
First, Su Xing had to obtain a wisp of Primordial Purple Qi!
Second… he had to pass the Ten Tribulations of Sainthood!
To achieve Sainthood, there were currently two known methods!
The first was Severing the Three Corpses to achieve sainthood!
Qingyunzi had done exactly that!
But severing the Three Corpses to achieve sainthood was undoubtedly weaker by three-tenths.
One would have the form of a Saint, but not the Intent of a Saint!
The alternative was proving one’s Dao through force to become a Saint!
Su Xing took a deep breathâthis was his goal.
And to prove one’s Dao through force required passing… the Ten Tribulations of Sainthood!
The so-called Ten Tribulations of Sainthood were: the Tribulation of Primal Unity; the Tribulation of Two Principles; the Tribulation of Three Powers; the Tribulation of Four Symbols; the Tribulation of Five Elements; the Tribulation of Six Harmonies; the Tribulation of Seven Stars; the Tribulation of Eight Trigrams; the Tribulation of Nine Palaces; and the Tribulation of the Infinite.
Only by passing all ten tribulations could one prove their Dao and become a Saint!
The so-called Tribulation of Primal Unity was essentially surviving one Great Tribulation:
Thirty years make one generation, twelve generations make one cycle, thirty cycles make one epoch, twelve epochs make one cosmic cycle.
One cosmic cycle was 129,600 years.
This didn’t mean one had to live for 129,600 years to pass this tribulation.
Rather, every cosmic cycle, a tribulation would appear between heaven and earth.
There were great tribulations, minor tribulations, and also Great Tribulations!
Among them, minor tribulations were the easiest to overcome…
While Great Tribulations were the most difficult!
The Great Tribulations that Su Xing knew of numbered five!
The first was the Pangu era, when the Dao split heaven and earth apart, after which the Saints mended the skyâthat was one Great Tribulation!
The second was the great war between the Dragon-Phoenix Demon Court.
The third was the conflict between the Wu Clan and the Demon Tribe.
The fourth tribulation was the calamity of the Luotian Sect battling the foreign races in the ancient era.
The fifth tribulation was the one Su Xing was currently experiencingâthe tribulation of the foreign races!
“The Great Tribulation isn’t easy for ordinary Great Firmament Golden Immortals… but for me, I can pass the first Great Tribulation within a simulation! It’s nothing more than participating in that Great Tribulation and surviving… I’m ninety-nine percent certain!”
Su Xing murmured.
He had participated in the Great Tribulation of the Dao shattering heaven and earth and the Saints mending the sky in previous simulations.
It was just that at the time, Su Xing’s cultivation hadn’t yet reached the level required to pass the ten tribulations, so he couldn’t complete the first Great Tribulation.
“The Tribulation of Two Principles is the tribulation of yin and yang… meaning walking once between life and deathâsurvive, and you pass!”
“As long as I master the Great Dao of Life, the Great Dao of Death… plus the Yin-Yang Great Dao, this tribulation won’t be difficult to overcome!”
“As for the Tribulation of Three Powers…”
Su Xing chuckled lightly and shook his head.
The so-called Three Powers referred to heaven, earth, and humanity!
To pass this tribulation, one needed to unite body with heaven and earth, reaching the state of Unity of Heaven and Man.
And for Su Xing, who possessed a Spirit Domain, this was far too easy!
Su Xing’s own Spirit Domain was itself a world!
“As for the Tribulation of Four Symbols… that’s lesser yang, greater yang, lesser yin, greater yin!”
“In other words, it corresponds to the four seasonsâspring, summer, autumn, winter… comprehending the qi of the four seasons!”
“And with my Zhengyi Breath Absorption Art plus the Time Dao… passing this tribulation won’t be difficult either!”
After a pause, Su Xing continued:
“As for the Tribulation of Five Elementsâmetal, wood, water, fire, earth… the Five Elements are the foundation of the world, the origin from which all life is born!”
“If one can comprehend the law of life from within the Five Elements Dao, this tribulation can be passed!”
Su Xing recalled the information in his mind.
As long as he attended the Dao Hearing Assembly, comprehending yin and yang, life and death from the Five Elements wouldn’t be difficult!
Su Xing had already mastered the Yin-Yang Great Dao…
The Great Dao of Death could be comprehended through the Death law left behind by Red Moon…
As for the Great Dao of Life, the “Dao” within the Ninth Heaven would possess it.
Su Xing only needed to use the Primordial Purple Qi to deepen his comprehension!
“As for the Tribulation of Six Harmonies… the six harmonies refer to the pairings of the twelve earthly branches…”
“Namely zi, chou, yin, mao, chen… corresponding to the twenty-four hours…”
“The Tribulation of Six Harmonies is actually a faint brushing against the Time Dao! Though… it’s merely scratching the surface of the Time Dao!”
Su Xing pondered for a moment. The Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master’s alleged ability to glimpse the future and time probably meant he had passed the Tribulation of Six Harmonies.
And had gained something from this tribulation.
But for Su Xing… having already comprehended the Time Dao, this tribulation crumbled on its own!
“As for the Tribulation of Seven Stars… the so-called seven stars refer to Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, Tianquan, Yuheng, Kaiyang, and Yaoguangâcorresponding to the grand revolution of the celestial sphere!”
“This is also the Dao of Cause and Effect and Destinyâthe seven most important stars in the Celestial Stellar Art!”
“With my current comprehension of the Dao of Cause and Effect and Destiny and these laws, passing this tribulation won’t be hard!”
“Even the Tribulation of Eight Trigrams, which involves understanding birth, aging, sickness, death, past and future… can be calmly overcome!”
After contemplating for a long while, Su Xing looked back and suddenly realized something.
Of the so-called Ten Tribulations of Sainthood, he had already silently passed seven or eight of them.
All he needed to do was experience them once more!
At this moment, Su Xing truly understood what it meant to have deep foundations!
“Tsk tsk, so this is the advantage of having a strong foundation!”
“If I hadn’t painstakingly refined my realm, built a robust foundation, and mastered all manner of supernatural arts… these Ten Tribulations of Sainthood probably wouldn’t be so easy to pass, would they?”
“Besides those eight tribulations, only the Tribulation of Nine Palaces and the Tribulation of the Infinite remain!”
Su Xing took a deep breath, his eyes glinting.
The Tribulation of Nine Palaces and the Tribulation of the Infinite were the most difficult!
The so-called Tribulation of Nine Palaces consisted of the Qian Palace, Kan Palace, Gen Palace, Zhen Palace, Central Palace, Xun Palace, Li Palace, Kun Palace, and Dui Palace…
It sounded mystical, but in essence it was using the method of the Nine Palaces to glimpse destiny, karma, and even time and space!
On a small scale, this tribulation required comprehending the principles of “feng shui”; on a grand scale, it required understanding the principles of the world and perceiving the transformations of the universe!
“Only this Tribulation of Nine Palaces seems to present some difficulty…”
“But it’s not a major problem. If push comes to shove, I’ll use the Primordial Purple Qi to attend the Dao Hearing Assembly… that should let me pass it smoothly!”
Of the Ten Tribulations of Sainthood, nine were definite!
The only remaining one was the Tribulation of the Infinite!
The so-called Infinite was the fusion of all nine tribulations into one!
Ancient cultivators regarded nine as the supreme number. Once the nine tribulations were passed, they became infinite!
It was the baptism of the Great Firmament body with boundless mightâthe nine tribulations merging into oneâultimately achieving Sainthood.
Reaching a state of near-immortality and indestructibility!
“This so-called Tribulation of the Infinite… can only be overcome with the complete Heavenly Dao and the Primordial Purple Qi!”
Su Xing murmured.
“Proving the Dao through forceâthe Ten Tribulations of Sainthood!”
“As of now, I have a clear path for all of them!”
“Since that’s the case, I can continue simulating…”
“I still have over ten simulation opportunities left… setting aside everything else, passing the first eight tribulations shouldn’t be too much of a problem, right?”
With that thought, Su Xing hesitated no longer and chanted silently:
“Begin simulation!”