The Elder’s Revelation and the Heavenly Tribulations

In the following days, the Meng family indeed ceased sending cultivators to Sishui Marsh, just as Su Hanxing had predicted. It seemed they had truly abandoned their pursuit of the True Dragon’s Aura.

As dawn broke, Chi Qiu emerged from her meditative state. She turned her head to the right, expecting to find Su Hanxing cultivating as usual, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Chi Qiu rose and stepped out of the damaged Green Tower. Its protective array had been shattered by one of Su Hanxing’s arrows, then struck again by Chi Qiu’s Flying Haze Sword Qi, leaving it now broken in two and toppled on the ground. Despite its ruined state, the tower still offered temporary shelter from the elements. For the past few days, both Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing had been cultivating within its broken walls.

As Chi Qiu emerged from the tower, she saw Su Hanxing speaking with an elder clad in a black star-patterned robe. Chi Qiu had encountered this robed elder before. During the martial arts tournament where she fought Su Hanxing, he had been seated in the front row of the audience. His demeanor was extraordinary, and his cultivation unfathomably deep, leaving a profound impression on her.

Could this be Su Hanxing’s master? Chi Qiu wondered.

“Little Chi, you’re awake? Come, come, let me introduce you. This is my master.” Seeing Chi Qiu step out of the Green Tower, Su Hanxing eagerly called her over.

Chi Qiu’s expression stiffened. As a rogue cultivator, the last people she wanted to deal with were sect elders of profound power. However, with no escape now, she could only steel herself and approach.

“Greetings, Senior. I am Chi Qiu…” Chi Qiu bowed slightly, offering a respectful salute.

“Hahahaha… there’s no need to be so formal. My name is Su He, and I am this boy’s master. You saved his life, so you may simply call me Elder Su.” The star-robed elder’s face was benevolent. With his gentle smile, Chi Qiu instantly felt as if bathed in a spring breeze, her inner tension imperceptibly easing.

“Elder Su.”

Chi Qiu looked up, addressing him as Elder Su as he had suggested. Su He stroked his beard, nodding in satisfaction.

“I watched your entire match with Hanxing from the stands. Though Hanxing ultimately defeated you through unconventional means, in my eyes, for a mere rogue cultivator like yourself to push him to such a state, it was already a great victory.” Su He began to walk slowly, his legs striding steadily, as Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing followed side by side behind him.

“I raised Hanxing myself. Along his cultivation path, the sect provided him with a hundred times the resources you had, yet he often found himself defeated by you.” A note of unreserved admiration filled Su He’s tone.

“It was entirely thanks to the power of my divine ability that I could resist. Without it, I wouldn’t have been able to withstand a single blow from him.” This was not false modesty from Chi Qiu, but a simple truth; the divine ability ‘Intertwined Gold’ provided an immense boost to cultivators below the Dharma Manifestation Realm.

‘Intertwined Gold’ was not merely a combat divine ability; it also served as a cultivation method, though it honed the physical body rather than true qi. Thus, back when Chi Qiu mastered ‘Intertwined Gold’, his cultivation realm became little more than a formality. At that time, he could contend with Heart Scripture Realm cultivators using only physical strength, without falling behind.

Once ‘Intertwined Gold’ was cultivated to its peak, the physical body alone could contend with God Concealing stage cultivators. Chi Qiu’s original body had extremely poor cultivation talent, and the method he practiced was merely a low-grade Human-tier technique. Therefore, Chi Qiu had long abandoned realm cultivation to focus solely on refining his physical body, which ultimately led to his former achievements.

“You possess a divine ability, but does Hanxing not? While divine abilities are powerful, mastery is paramount. Your command over your divine ability far surpasses Hanxing’s, and that is your true capability.” Su He shook his head, disagreeing with Chi Qiu’s assessment.

“That scoundrel Hanxing—it was bad enough that he defeated you with those unconventional means, but he also transformed your body into this state. Little Chi, your character is excellent, and you are naturally gifted for cultivation. If you wish to revert to a male body, simply say the word. Although your original body has long since turned to dust, finding another male body would not be difficult.” Su He suddenly turned, his gaze fixed piercingly on Chi Qiu.

Chi Qiu froze at his words, never having imagined Su He would offer to help her regain her male body.

“This… Master, Little Chi is currently…” Su Hanxing was equally stunned. He began to speak, a hint of panic in his voice, unsure of what he wanted to say.

“What are you interjecting for? Are you trying to make decisions for Little Chi?” Su He’s eyes narrowed slightly, a sharp glint appearing as he looked at Su Hanxing.

“I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare…” Su Hanxing instantly deflated, repeatedly denying any such intention.

After a moment of thought, Chi Qiu clasped her hands and bowed to Su He. “Thank you for your kind offer, Elder Su, but to me, being male or female makes no difference. Furthermore, I have already cultivated to the Heart Scripture Realm, and I truly have no desire to restart my cultivation. I wouldn’t wish to trouble you further.”

Whether Chi Qiu truly cared about her gender was a question even she couldn’t answer. However, one thing she was certain of was her profound attachment to her cultivation. If she were to switch bodies again, would she still possess such formidable cultivation talent? Her divine ability ‘Blooming Life’ had already consumed its first three petals on its inheritance token; could she even cultivate it anew? Chi Qiu dared not gamble. She was not a disciple of a major sect like Su Hanxing; she had no room for error.

Hearing Chi Qiu’s refusal, Su He nodded with considerable satisfaction. “Indeed, your Dao heart is resolute. It seems Hanxing’s words were not exaggerated.”

In Su He’s view, to survive in this world of cultivators, only the enhancement of one’s own strength was the true path. If one relied solely on background, even Su Hanxing, as the foremost disciple of the Tianyan Sect, had been ambushed and nearly killed by the Meng family.

“It’s a pity that my Tianyan Sect excels only in divination and is not adept at combat. Otherwise, I would certainly invite Little Chi to join us.” Su He spread his hands in a gesture of regret.

“Thank you for your high regard, Elder Su. However, this junior’s nature is unruly and undisciplined; joining a sect would only cause trouble.” Chi Qiu naturally paid little mind to Su He’s overtly polite words. Coupled with Su Hanxing’s earlier revelations about how major families arranged marriages for female God Concealing stage cultivators, she felt even more apprehensive.

“Hahahahahaha…” Su He offered a faint smile, saying nothing further.

The three continued walking for about half an hour, leaving Chi Qiu utterly bewildered, uncertain of their destination.

“The Yinglong Tomb is set to open in three days. We’ll follow the Stream of Gorges into the core region first.” Su He suddenly stopped, pointing into the distance. Before them lay a vast river, the Stream of Gorges.

“It opens in only three days?” Su Hanxing’s face registered shock.

“I performed a divination before coming here; the timing is correct. Let’s get on the bridge.” Su He swept his hand. Instantly, starlight descended from the heavens, forming a bridge of starlight beneath their feet, its other end stretching directly over the Stream of Gorges.

Chi Qiu followed Su Hanxing onto the starlight bridge. Her vision blurred for a moment, and by the time she regained her focus, she found herself suspended above the Stream of Gorges.

What an enigmatic method of travel, truly akin to ‘shrinking the earth into an inch’.

Though Chi Qiu felt a surge of wonder, her expression remained calm. She composed herself, then, recalling Su He’s earlier mention of entering the core region, she couldn’t help but ask, “Elder Su, I’ve heard that the core region harbors great demons and even ancient gods and devils above the Dharma Manifestation Realm. Will our entry this time pose any danger?”

Earlier, in the great demon’s cave, Su Hanxing had informed Chi Qiu that the core region of Sishui Marsh was home to beings who had surpassed the Dharma Manifestation Realm. Now, for the three of them to swagger into this core region so openly, it naturally caused her great concern. She tilted her head to look at Su Hanxing, noticing his equally solemn expression.

“There’s no need to worry. Humans and demonic beasts are different. These cultivation realms were all categorized by the Daqi Emperor from the perspective of cultivators. For instance, while both might be in the Dharma Manifestation Realm, human cultivators can condense a Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation, causing their combat power to surge by more than tenfold. Demonic beasts, however, can only transform into human form; they cannot condense a Dharma Manifestation and are simply no match for human cultivators.” Seeing their worried expressions, Su He chuckled softly.

“Those few ancient gods and devils near the Yinglong Tomb are indeed troublesome. As for heavenly tribulations… hmph, they merely scraped through the first tribulation; it can hardly be called ‘passing’ heavenly tribulations.” While Su He harbored some apprehension towards the ancient beings in the core region, it wasn’t fear.

“Master, are there more than just one heavenly tribulation?” Su Hanxing couldn’t help but ask.

“Naturally. Such secrets would typically only be revealed to you once you reached the Dharma Manifestation Realm, but since the topic has arisen, I shall tell you now.” Su He summoned a magnificent chariot, gesturing for them to board.

The chariot was immensely spacious, a hundred zhang long and twenty zhang wide. Its sudden appearance over the Stream of Gorges, like a vast building laid on its side, truly startled Chi Qiu.

The three boarded the chariot and entered its lavish cabin. The floor was covered with the pelts of great demons, while the walls were adorned with various jade and jewels. The ceiling featured a celestial star map composed of tens of thousands of light points, illuminating the entire interior.

“Beyond the Dharma Manifestation Realm lies the Calamity Tribulation Realm. This realm is exceedingly perilous, so much so that a significant number of cultivators dare not set foot in it. One must understand, who among those capable of forming a Dharma Manifestation is not someone of exceptional character and extraordinary talent? If even they wouldn’t rashly venture into this realm, one can imagine its dangers.”

Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing sat side by side opposite Su He. Leaning back on a long bench, Su He slowly began his explanation.

“There are a total of three heavenly tribulations, which we call one calamity, one trial, and one tribulation. The first calamity is known as the Calamity of Fiery Incineration. During this tribulation, an extraordinary celestial fire descends. This fire disregards true qi, fears no Dharma Manifestations, and is born solely to incinerate the body of the one undergoing tribulation. If the tribulation-taker endures eighty-one days of divine fire consuming their flesh, they are considered to have passed this first tribulation.”

Su He spoke slowly, yet the content of his words made Chi Qiu’s hair stand on end. Eighty-one days of divine fire consuming one’s body, impossible to resist with true qi—how could such a method of tribulation not inspire terror?

“The second trial is the Trial of Drowning. During this trial, abyssal water surges forth from the earth. This water also disregards true qi and Dharma Manifestations, and the physical body cannot touch it. The abyssal water will flood into the divine soul, submerging it and continuously corroding it. At this point, the tribulation-taker is as vulnerable as a mortal, unable to resist. Their divine soul is repeatedly shattered by the abyssal water, only for them to rely on sheer willpower to reforge it. After eighty-one such days, the second trial is overcome.”

Hiss—

The sound of Su Hanxing sharply inhaling cold air reached Chi Qiu’s ears. This second trial was even more terrifying than the first; having one’s divine soul shattered was virtually indistinguishable from death.

“Hahahahahaha… frightened?” Seeing Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing with furrowed brows, Su He asked cheerfully.

Su Hanxing hesitated, while Chi Qiu nodded decisively. “Truly terrifying. Utterly terrifying.”

“Master, what about the third tribulation?” Su Hanxing composed himself and asked again.

“The third tribulation… only one person within the Daqi realm is believed to have passed it. No one knows the specific details, but it is rumored to be a lightning tribulation.” Su He shook his head.

“Someone actually passed all three tribulations? Who could be so powerful?” Chi Qiu was utterly astonished to hear that someone within the Daqi realm had survived all three.

“Who else could it be? Naturally, it’s the sovereign of the Daqi realm, His Majesty the Daqi Emperor.” Su He chuckled.