She grabbed his hand.

Javier Sinclair froze for a moment.

His eyes flickered to the Spirit Root on her head, then to her slightly flushed face.

’Ah, so that’s it!’

"So you do know how to be embarrassed. That’s a first." As he spoke, his fingers gently brushed over the leaves. "Your Spirit Root has grown two more leaves."

"It has?"

She took out a mirror and examined it closely. "Oh, you’re right." She glanced up at him. "Okay, you can move your hand now. This flower doesn’t need any pest control."

The corner of Javier Sinclair’s mouth twitched. "Pest control?" he couldn’t help but say. "You never fail to say the most astonishing things."

He retracted his hand as he spoke.

"I’m no match for you. You’re the one with the sharp tongue."

Seeing that he had pulled his hand back, Celeste Grant put away the mirror and said, "I need to retract my Spirit Root. I can’t let anyone see this, or I’ll be laughed to death. People might even think I’m a plant that cultivated into a human."

’I know I’m human. The parents of this world’s villainess were human, too. So I have no idea why this is happening.’

’Whatever, it’s not important anyway.’

’This is The Cultivation World. Anything can happen during Cultivation. I just have to face it calmly.’

Celeste Grant reined in her aura and retracted the Spirit Root from her head.

She noticed Javier Sinclair was still staring at her, a thoughtful look on his face.

She waved her hand in front of his face.

"Hey, what are you staring at?"

Javier Sinclair said, "I was just thinking that your Spirit Root blooms one flower at a time. The flowers must multiply as your Cultivation grows stronger."

Celeste Grant nodded.

"Something like that," she said. "Another one bloomed when I had my breakthrough in the Secret Realm. I have a feeling this won’t be the last. Maybe one will bloom with every breakthrough from now on."

Hearing this, Javier Sinclair instinctively pictured her with a head full of flowers.

He chuckled. "I must admit, I’m rather looking forward to seeing your head covered in blossoms. It would certainly be one of a kind."

Celeste Grant glared at him, making a playful eye-gouging gesture with two fingers.

"Why, thank you."

"By the way." Celeste Grant sized him up before asking, "What’s your Cultivation now, Exalted One?"

’The rules of this world were originally incomplete, but now the Heavenly Dao has fixed its flaws and perfected the cultivation system. The Cultivation Levels and Techniques have all been imperceptibly altered. So Javier Sinclair can’t still be at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage, can he?’

At this thought, she smiled faintly. "So, what is your Cultivation? Did you get demoted?"

Seeing the curious look on her face, Javier Sinclair said flatly, "My current Cultivation is the late Integration Realm."

Although he had previously broken through to the so-called Transcendance Tribulation Stage, he had never even faced a Heavenly Tribulation. Afterward, his Cultivation continued to rise, but the tribulation never arrived, which made him feel that something was amiss.

In other words, what he had once believed to be the Transcendance Tribulation Stage was not the real thing. According to the old system, cultivators in The Cultivation World could practice until they died and likely never ascend. The current system is the correct one.

So while his rank has dropped, his actual Cultivation is the same as it was before.

Just then,

Javier Sinclair felt Demonic Qi surge from his body as the sky roiled with wind and clouds. The weather changed in an instant.

’It’s here!’

Celeste Grant noticed it too.

"The sky is changing?"

She looked up at the sky.

Thunderclouds gathered and churned above, and the sky grew so dark it was as if night had fallen in an instant.

A crushing darkness now hung over Bloodfiend City, the entire scene heralding the arrival of a great demon.

Celeste Grant spoke.

"Is this a Heavenly Tribulation?" She turned to look at Javier Sinclair beside her. "Your Heavenly Tribulation?"

Javier Sinclair nodded slightly. "Yes. It’s the Heavenly Tribulations for breaking through from the Divinity Transformation Stage to the Void Refinement Realm and the Integration Realm, all rolled into one."

Now that the Heavenly Dao’s rules were fixed, he was the first one it decided to make an example of.

It was all or nothing—a double tribulation. The Heavenly Dao really knew how to flatter a guy. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

’My Cultivation surpassed the old limits. Is that my fault?’

’It’s all because this world’s rules were incomplete before. So even though my Cultivation already surpassed the proper stages, this Heavenly Tribulation still has to come and strike me down.’

Of course, the Heavenly Tribulation had to come. Without Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering, one’s physical strength can’t keep pace with their Cultivation’s progress. Not only that, but without it, one’s Cultivation can’t advance, and sooner or later, their body will explode.

Most importantly, only by undergoing the baptism of a Heavenly Tribulation could one gain the Heavenly Dao’s recognition. Otherwise, you could forget about ever cultivating to ascension. That’s why in The Cultivation World, the Heavenly Tribulation is a necessity.

High risk, high reward. It was as simple as that.

As they spoke, the sky grew even darker.

Thunderclouds now roiled above the entire Bloodfiend Den, crackling with lightning and booming with thunder. The sight was terrifying.

Even Celeste Grant could feel the immense pressure. At her current Cultivation, if that Heavenly Tribulation were to strike her, she’d likely be annihilated in an instant.

Seeing this, a worried expression appeared on Celeste Grant’s face, and her heart leaped into her throat.

Putting aside the fact that they were Taoist Companions, even if it were just for their son’s sake, she wanted Javier Sinclair to get through this safely and live.

"How can it be this strong? Can you handle it? Do you have enough Defense Treasures? I have more if you don’t. Quick, go to The Forbidden Land! It should be able to block some of the power."

Javier Sinclair placed his hand on her shoulder.

"My Cultivation has been rising for years without a single Heavenly Tribulation, yet I’ve reached the Integration Realm. This must include the tribulation from my breakthrough to the Void Refinement Realm. The two have been combined."

Celeste Grant: "..."

’This is so messed up.’

’They can even calculate it like that?’

’Being in The Cultivation World was a daily lesson in just how strange things could get.’

Javier Sinclair said, "Stand back in a moment. I’m going to face the tribulation."

Celeste Grant nodded. "Okay. Go, quickly."

"I’m off."

Javier Sinclair patted her on the head, and in the next instant, his figure was high in the sky.

In The Cultivation World, Heavenly Tribulations are targeted; they will not skip over the person facing the tribulation to attack others. However, the aftershocks of the Heavenly Thunder can cause widespread damage to the surroundings and harm cultivators with low Cultivation. Therefore, whenever someone sees a person undergoing a tribulation, they immediately retreat to a safe distance to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

Hovering high in the air, Javier Sinclair stared at the gathering thunderclouds.

’This Heavenly Tribulation is powerful.’

Glancing down below, he spoke calmly.

"Disciples of the Bloodfiend Den, hear my command! Activate the Defense Array!"

"Yes, Exalted One!"

At that same moment, Array markings lit up throughout the Bloodfiend Den. With the Den as its epicenter, the entire Bloodfiend City was enveloped in a Defense Barrier.

Only a sect as fabulously wealthy as theirs could afford to maintain a Defense Array that covered the entire Bloodfiend City. After all, keeping such an Array active consumed tens of thousands of Spirit Stones every single minute.

Therefore, it was normally only activated when a powerful enemy attacked. The other exception was a situation just like this one: when a top expert within the Sect faced a tribulation with no prior warning, the Defensive Array would be raised to protect the innocent.