Chapter 30: Golden Core, First Battle Against Nascent Soul

Far away, cultivators battled, and you turned a blind eye, because the Heavenly Tribulation had not yet ended!

You held the Broken Sword, its blade pointed at the heavens!

It seemed to sense your fighting spirit, for the third Heavenly Lightning that had been brewing so long finally fell!

At this moment, your strength had already reached its peak state. All the spiritual power in your body gathered into the Broken Sword. With your current cultivation at the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment, you could only unleash one hundred-millionth of the Broken Sword’s might.

But this was enough!

Facing the Heavenly Lightning descending from the sky, you chose to attack rather than defend, charging into the clouds and once again unleashing the Startled Swan Sword Art.

Between life and death, your potential erupted in full. In this moment, your Startled Swan Sword Art stepped into the Perfected Realm!

Sword qi shot straight into the clouds, slamming viciously into the Heavenly Lightning.

Boom——————!

The two forces collided. This time, with your peak state and your Perfected Realm Startled Swan Sword Art, you crushed the power of the Heavenly Lightning head-on!

The third Heavenly Lightning was shattered by you. Seizing the momentum, you continued charging upward, your sword pointed at the Lightning Tribulation!

“I want to see exactly what’s inside this Lightning Tribulation.” You rushed into the Lightning Tribulation and vanished.

“Where is he?”

“Reporting to the Sect Master, he charged into the Lightning Tribulation!”

“Hiss! That madman dares to desecrate the Lightning Tribulation? He’s courting death!” The Azure Cloud Sect Master drew a sharp breath. Since ancient times, not a single Tribulation Crossing cultivator had ever dared to desecrate the Lightning Tribulation like this, because everyone who had done so ended up dead!

“Bastard, I haven’t even gotten his technique yet!” The Azure Cloud Sect Master ground his teeth, as if something had occurred to him.

Around them, every non-Azure Cloud Sect cultivator who had been watching the tribulation was already dead!

Unwilling to let everything be wasted just like this, the Azure Cloud Sect Master gazed up at the Heavenly Tribulation, waiting for a miracle to happen.

Within the tribulation clouds, the power of Heavenly Lightning filled every corner. To you, this uncondensed Heavenly Lightning power was a tremendous nourishing tonic.

You circulated the Heavenly Lightning Body-Refining Art, madly absorbing the Heavenly Lightning power within to refine your body.

Under your absorption, the fourth Heavenly Lightning could never fully condense. Yet your Heavenly Lightning Body-Refining Art broke through to the second layer, the Grandmaster Realm, letting you compare to a ninth-layer Golden Core cultivator!

With your strength increased once again, you rose and gazed above the tribulation clouds. You wanted to see exactly what was inside.

With a wave of your right hand, the Broken Sword appeared. A streak of startled swan sword qi slashed out, striking straight above the tribulation clouds!

The tribulation clouds were torn open, and through the gap you saw a scene.

Above the nine heavens, within the Southern Heavenly Gate, immortal qi drifted!

In the next second, an irresistible force struck you down to the mortal world!

Then, a golden light descended from the sky and entered your body.

In your dantian, a Golden Core slowly emerged, carved with five Heavenly Lightning marks.

You looked at the Golden Core within your body, shock filling your heart. “This is more than ten times larger than the Golden Core Xiao Fan had back then!”

You didn’t know what purpose those five Heavenly Lightning marks served, but you knew that big was definitely good!

The Heavenly Tribulation dispersed. Your Golden Core finished condensing, and your cultivation soared straight to the third layer of the Golden Core Realm!

This was the benefit brought by your powerful foundation.

“Hand over the secret art, and I’ll spare your life!” Before you could properly feel the might of your Golden Core, the Azure Cloud Sect cultivators acted, charging at you to kill.

“Just in time!” You raised the Broken Sword and met them head-on. You had been worrying about having no place to test your strength after the breakthrough, and now the Azure Cloud Sect had delivered itself.

The Perfected Realm Startled Swan Sword Art struck out with one sword, and the Azure Cloud Sect cultivators died on the spot. The Golden Core cultivators were directly struck into severe injury!

With one sword strike, the Azure Cloud Sect cultivators were nearly wiped out.

“A bunch of trash. It seems I must act personally.” The Azure Cloud Sect Master instantly appeared before you, releasing the pressure of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Your great Golden Core emerged within your body, helping you resist the pressure of the Nascent Soul cultivator.

“Oh? Interesting, Fellow Daoist… would you be willing to join my Azure Cloud Sect?” The Azure Cloud Sect Master looked at your great Golden Core, immediately withdrew his pressure, and extended an olive branch.

“As long as you join my Azure Cloud Sect, you will be the Vice Sect Master. The sect’s cultivation resources will be yours to use freely!” The Azure Cloud Sect Master paused, then added, “Of course, you’ll also need to hand over that secret art that can instantly heal injuries.”

You looked at the greed in the Azure Cloud Sect Master’s eyes, tightened your grip on the Broken Sword, and without any nonsense, directly swung a Startled Swan Sword Art at him!

“Hmph, refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!” The Azure Cloud Sect Master sensed your Startled Swan Sword Art and immediately cast aside his contempt, taking out the Soul-Refining Banner and waving it.

An invisible shockwave surged into your mind. With your Golden Core cultivation, your divine sense was instantly severely wounded, and the Broken Sword in your hand involuntarily halted.

“Hmph!” The Azure Cloud Sect Master let out a cold laugh, and while your divine sense reeled from the injury, he swung a palm strike over.

At this critical moment, a surge of energy poured from your Golden Core, stabilizing your divine sense and waking you from the daze.

Facing the Nascent Soul cultivator’s attack, you struck with one sword!

Boom————!

The massive shockwave sent you flying back over a hundred meters, while the Azure Cloud Sect Master was forced back ten steps.

The Azure Cloud Sect Master looked at his right palm, where a huge wound gaped. Shock filled his heart. “I, a dignified Nascent Soul cultivator, was actually wounded by a cultivator who just entered the Golden Core Realm!”

The Azure Cloud Sect Master looked at you, killing intent practically spilling from his eyes. “If I don’t kill you today, my Azure Cloud Sect will have endless trouble in the future!” With that, he once again took out the Soul-Refining Banner.

You were somewhat wary of this kind of artifact that specialized in attacking divine sense, so you hurriedly unleashed a palm technique descending from the heavens, striking at the Azure Cloud Sect Master in relentless succession.

To end the battle quickly, you began circulating the Art of Burning Longevity, burning sixty years of your lifespan as the price to raise your cultivation to the ninth layer of the Golden Core Realm!

Facing you at the ninth layer of the Golden Core Realm, the Azure Cloud Sect Master did not dare be careless. He hurriedly put away the Soul-Refining Banner to defend.

Seizing this chance, your left hand struck out with a palm while your right hand held the Broken Sword, and you charged forward once again!

The two sides exchanged blow for blow, battling three hundred rounds. The mere aftershocks of the battle killed the severely wounded Golden Core cultivators of the Azure Cloud Sect.

The more the Azure Cloud Sect Master fought, the more alarmed he became. Sensing the indestructible Broken Sword, a hint of retreat sprouted in his heart.

Just as the Azure Cloud Sect Master wanted to retreat, you seized that sliver of opportunity and successfully closed in on him.

Then, you used the offensive techniques within the Heavenly Lightning Body-Refining Art and engaged the Azure Cloud Sect Master in close-quarters combat.

In terms of spiritual power, the Azure Cloud Sect Master was superior, but when it came to physical combat, he could only be crushed!

Your left hand formed the Heavenly Lightning Fist, smashing into the Azure Cloud Sect Master’s back with one punch, while your right hand’s Throat-Shattering Lock clamped directly onto his neck, leaving him no way to escape.

“AH!!!” At this moment, the Azure Cloud Sect Master felt as though his back was about to break, and he couldn’t even catch his breath through his throat.

You gave him no chance to breathe. Gripping the Azure Cloud Sect Master’s shoulders, you forcefully tore him in half!

With a swoosh, a Nascent Soul flew out from the Azure Cloud Sect Master’s body, fleeing into the distance.

You tossed the corpse aside and took out the Broken Sword to give chase!