Chapter 216: Chapter 171: The 9th Profound Thunder, Don’t Be Afraid, Xiao Jiang

The seventh bolt of Profound Thunder slammed viciously into the ceremonial crown, leaving it teetering before it fell powerlessly and seemed to shatter.

But he had, in the end, endured it.

The plump young woman couldn’t bear to watch and turned her head away.

’In such a desperate state, there’s no way Young Master Jiang can survive the eighth and ninth bolts of Profound Thunder!’

"Young Monarch Jiang..."

Seated on the Jade Platform, Lady Xuan’nv tried to raise her hand, but the four great sun-wheel pillars held her fast.

Through the dense layers of Tai Yang dharma seals, she seemed to hear Xiaoqiao’s choked sobs from outside the hall. She sighed helplessly.

’That silly girl.’

A baleful aura appeared between Lady Xuan’nv’s brows. She had once sworn that she would rather die and have her Dao perish in a single night than serve the Emperor of the Tai Yang.

The Thunder Core had now come knocking, seeking to execute the Shao Yang. How could she stomach this insult!

Her slender, jade-like hand slowly reached out, even as the majestic light of the Tai Yang erupted wantonly, searing her Dharma Body—as white and brilliant as frost—with excruciating pain.

Suddenly, a stretch of bright moonlight shielded Jiang Yi.

Threads of cool intent coursed through his entire body.

He raised his head in surprise. He had expected to endure this bolt of Profound Thunder head-on.

As long as he had half a breath left, as long as he could draw in that wisp of Shao Yang’s golden essence.

With the nourishment of the nascent phenomenon, he wouldn’t die.

"Thank you, My Lady."

Jiang Yi’s voice was hoarse, no longer clear, but his figure remained tall and straight.

The eighth bolt of Profound Thunder tore through the bright moonlight, splitting his physical body nearly in two from shoulder to waist, as if cleaved by a blade.

Thankfully, with the help of the Tai Yin’s clear radiance, he was able to catch his breath.

Heaven and Earth fell silent.

Even the Ancient Gate manifested by the Thunder Core seemed to pause for a moment.

From ancient times to the present, there had never been a case of a Qi Cultivation Cultivator who hadn’t even condensed their Innate Qi withstanding nine bolts of Profound Thunder.

"’A single thought of not dying, a single breath remaining... where does he get this confidence? Is he so certain he won’t be blasted to death by the Profound Thunder? Even now, his Dao heart remains unshakably firm?’"

This question came from True Monarch Yingyuan Sijie of White Jade City. Through the Thunder Core’s gate, his gaze could pierce the boundless void and glimpse a portion of the scene in Fengdu.

The purple-robed Daoist had seen far too many Cultivators die under thunderous punishment.

Even Foundation Establishment True Masters with complete Life Essences couldn’t help but lose control of their Dao hearts when their tribulations arrived, giving rise to infinite terror and ultimately faltering.

But this successor to the Shao Yang showed not the slightest sign of wavering from beginning to end.

As firm as ever, steadfast and unmoving!

’Could he... truly be a second Yu Shenxiu?’

A faint trace of doubt rose in True Monarch Yingyuan Sijie’s heart. He turned slightly to look toward the higher reaches of White Jade City.

’Is Senior Brother Ji also paying attention to the re-emergence of the Shao Yang?’

"However, when the ninth bolt of Profound Thunder descends, his death is certain."

True Monarch Yingyuan Sijie stood with his hands behind his back. He had never paid so much attention to a mere Qi Cultivation Lower Cultivator before. In the past, it would have been a casual glance, but this time he was examining him in rare detail.

"He has courage, a firm heart, and ability. A pity he chose the wrong path. If he had entered the Immortal Dao, he would not have lacked the opportunity for Foundation Establishment and Dao Entry.

"The Profound Thunder administers heaven’s judgment upon the Dao. If the heavens want you dead, how can you not die?"

...

...

’The final bolt of thunder... can I still take it?’

Jiang Yi’s physical body was completely shattered. If not for that one breath holding on, he would have died long ago.

"Don’t be afraid, Xiao Jiang."

True Master Xuanmiao, who had remained hidden and curled up the entire time, carefully hugged Jiang Yi.

The calico cat was already soaked in crimson-gold blood, its fluffy fur matted down, its ears drooping.

Its round, amber eyes gazed at the young man. ’If I hadn’t chosen Xiao Jiang as the successor to the Shao Yang, to receive my former master’s Dao Inheritance...’

’...would Xiao Jiang have lived a more peaceful life?’

"Heh."

Jiang Yi inhaled slowly. Each breath felt like a knife scraping his organs, an excruciating pain, but he was still smiling.

"Cat Master, meeting you in that ruined temple in the Sanhe District was the greatest Opportunity of my life of Cultivation. I don’t have the slightest regret.

"As a Lower Cultivator, I’ve eaten every kind of bitterness and suffered so much. If I didn’t seek Yin and Yang, if I didn’t aim to become a True Monarch, wouldn’t this journey have been for nothing?"

The aftershocks of the eighth bolt of Profound Thunder gradually dissipated. After a moment of silence, the Ancient Gate began to brew an even more terrifying and vast Qi Mechanism!

"Xiao Jiang, don’t be afraid."

True Master Xuanmiao spoke in a low voice, his whiskers trembling incessantly.

This increasingly plump and timid calico cat suddenly leaped from Jiang Yi’s arms, pressed itself against his back, and directly faced the impending ninth bolt of Profound Thunder.

"This True Master will protect you!"

Jiang Yi had not expected True Master Xuanmiao to do this. He struggled to turn around, wanting to pull the cat back into his arms.

’Even though Cat Master is a Foundation Establishment True Master, his Primordial Gate and Inner Mansion are sealed! There’s no way he can block the ninth bolt of Profound Thunder!’

"Don’t worry, Xiao Jiang."

True Master Xuanmiao looked up at the Ancient Gate.

"This True Master cannot divine the heavens’ secrets, nor can I wield my Divine Techniques! A mere bolt of thunder... what can it do to me!"

RUMBLE—

A bolt of Profound Thunder, more violent than the previous eight combined, descended. Dragons and serpents of electricity intertwined amidst a dazzling, fierce light, falling mercilessly upon True Master Xuanmiao.

A gust of wind swept past Jiang Yi’s hair. His body, nearly split in two, lunged forward, but the lightning was faster. Like a spear thrown by the Celestial Lord, it pierced straight through the soft little cat.

A spray of warmth splashed across his face, and a low voice entered his ears, still saying the same words:

"Xiao Jiang, don’t be afraid."

The next moment, Jiang Yi clutched the cat, which felt as if it would shatter at the slightest touch, and stared deathly still at the magnificent, fierce bolt of lightning that was once again crashing down on him!

A monstrous killing intent, its origin unknown, surged and enveloped his firm Dao heart, so chilling it made his skin crawl.

It wasn’t a simple desire for slaughter, but a kind of deep-seated hatred!

Hatred for the Daoist Lineages that devoured Lower Cultivators, hatred for the Upper Cultivators who wasted talent, hatred for his own meager Cultivation...

His steadfast and unmoving Dao heart finally broke at the last moment, completely flooded by a torrent of hatred like a raging wave!

The Profound City Central Palace was lit up brightly. The profound Qi Mechanism was thrown into chaos. The ninth bolt of Profound Thunder slowly pressed down like a ferocious beast opening its bloody maw, about to swallow Jiang Yi whole.

VWOOM!

The Inversion Slaying Sword, held in Qiao Yu’s hands, finally twitched.

With a sudden flash, the great void split apart.

The boundless, dusky world seemed to be sliced open by a thin line. The ninth bolt of Profound Thunder was actually blasted apart!

The Slaying Sword, freed from its black sheath, transformed into an incomparably sharp, dark, cold light, slaying the lightning dragons and serpents and extinguishing the thunderous glare!

CLANG! The sword’s tip plunged into the golden-bricked floor of the Profound City Central Palace. Its hilt quivered, humming incessantly.

Jiang Yi’s nearly shattered body rose to its feet, bit by bit.

A hand, soaked through with crimson-gold blood, reached out and gently gripped the Inversion Slaying Sword, which had been silent for a hundred thousand years.

’So you were forged to turn heaven and earth upside down, to overturn Yin and Yang!’

The Celestial Book had shown that there would be a sliver of a chance for survival.

Now, it had finally been revealed.

’Only by facing nine deaths can one hope to live. If I hadn’t been struck by the Profound Thunder, if Cat Master hadn’t sacrificed himself to save me, this sliver of a chance would never have appeared.’

Jiang Yi stood leaning on the sword. He tightened his five fingers and laboriously pulled it free. Exhausted of all strength, he could only drag it behind him as he stepped out of the hall.

Once the ninth bolt of Profound Thunder had struck, the Ancient Gate slowly rose into the sky, as if about to dissipate.

Looking utterly wretched, like a shattered porcelain doll, Jiang Yi raised the Slaying Sword with both hands.

The monstrous killing intent, the profound hatred—all of it coalesced into a single sentence:

"I invite the True Monarch to test my sword."