Chapter 4: Chapter 3: Tribulation Essence

Xi Tianyi shivered, not from fear, but from pleasure. The lightning arced around his body, covering him with a golden glow and making Tianyi seem like a lightning spirit that had descended upon the mortal realm.

Walking further in, Tianyi frowned as he discovered himself unable to proceed any further, even with his released Foundation Establishment Realm cultivation. He stretched his hand outward as if catching raindrops. ‘This lightning is very strange, not formed from nature. It seems to contain a tiny trace of the power of tribulation,’ he thought.

As the lightning struck his body, he felt all the pores on his body open, absorbing the lightning that covered him. Flashing yellow qi that seemed more like lightning began to circulate through Tianyi’s body. As tyrannical as the lightning was, his body was even more so, as it forced the sharp and jagged bolts to become spiritual qi, smooth and flowing like water through his meridians before entering his dantian.

Just as it seemed that the lightning qi would quietly settle in his spiritual sea, it ran amok. “Refining the essence of tribulation isn’t that easy after all, no matter how weak,” Tianyi said, as he sat on the ground in a lotus position. He closed his eyes, fully concentrating on refining the essence of tribulation.

First, the chaotic lightning qi that had been agitated by the tribulation essence within was broken apart into two clumps, one real and one illusory. Having been split at its foundation, the overall amount of power was the same, but the effect was less than half as effective. Then, the two disintegrated into a primordial cloud, at some points wanting to destroy everything, and other times seemingly all benevolent and all-encompassing. Tianyi then absorbed this cloud into his spiritual sea, robbing the tribulation essence, like the universe of its stars.

At the end of the day, tribulation essence was something born out of the Heavenly Dao that governed all realms, and Tianyi was still just a mere Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator. Sweat trickled down Tianyi’s forehead as he controlled his spiritual sense to refine the essence while the spiritual qi in his body held it down. It was an excruciatingly long process, but by the end, the first segment of Tianyi’s spiritual pillars had fully formed, and it exuded a slight pressure unique to tribulation lightning.

If there were any other cultivators who saw this, they would have absolutely gawked in disbelief. Even if Tianyi had the heavenly lightning spiritual root, the success of his actions could not be attributed so simply. Still, luckily for Tianyi, there were no experts nearby, or he might have been kidnapped for research. Whether or not they could survive attempting to kidnap the son of the Sword Empress was another matter altogether.

When Tianyi opened his eyes, he saw numerous lightning attributed beasts closing in upon him. “These beasts, are they spawned from the lightning remnants?” Tianyi muttered to himself. As for why they didn’t attack him during his refinement, it was probably because of the lingering tribulation essence that was running rampant. Now that the essence had been absorbed and hidden, it was no longer pressuring them, bestowing them the courage to encroach upon him.

Tianyi slapped his head. “I should have been more careful! If these beasts really did attack and I had split my attention, that would have been bad.”  After warning himself, Tianyi leisurely unsheathed the sword on his waist, looking rather valiant for his age while awaiting the lightning beasts to come forward.

The first one that charged forward was met with the tip of Tianyi's sword. Just from a single touch, the beast’s body shattered, dispersing into lightning and dropping a golden gem onto the ground. Tianyi’s eyes shone with interest, but now was not the time to count his rewards. All the lightning beasts charged forward from all sides towards the lone human as if on a signal.

Wherever Tianyi’s sword passed, the beasts erupted like balloons, and left behind a lone gem. Although Tianyi was fatigued by the earlier exertion, he had enough strength to destroy these lightning beasts, that were below the Foundation Establishment Realm. Even though over ten had died, the beasts still charged forward with no fear of death, as if greed had consumed them.

‘Are they aiming for my lightning spiritual rein?’ Tianyi questioned himself. Although it was a bit troublesome, Tianyi was still happy to comply, using these beasts that kept attacking to hone the Heartless Sword Art. As time passed, Tianyi’s sword strikes became more refined, and what used to take him three slashes, now only took one.

Before long, he had soon slain all the lightning beasts, leaving behind an assortment of golden gems that surrounded Tianyi in a circle, all of them within the range of Tianyi’s sword. With a wave of his hand and some qi, he stored all but one of those gems into his shrinking pouch at his waist. He had brought it out during the journey due to Elder Shan's urging.

Tianyi held the last gem, admiring the pure gold color that resembled flicking lightning. Tianyi walked back, while he observed the gem in his hand. Although he had used the lightning beasts earlier to train his sword skills, being endlessly assaulted wasn’t a good feeling.

‘Hmmm, this is lightning attribute qi. But there’s no essence of tribulation within. It would make sense as they seemed to be born from the remnants of lightning, but rather than beasts, they seem more like shades than anything. Although I had already thought of this earlier when they refused to approach me when I still had tribulation essence in my dantian, this is still disappointing.’ As Tianyi thought this, the gem in his hand shattered, having all its energy absorbed. Tianyi did not bring another one out as he strolled towards where he came from.

Tianyi looked at the sky, at least where the sky should have been, since the whole area was covered in mist, but judging by the amount of light passing through, ‘I should have spent at least a few hours in the Lightning Sea, right?’ He could never tell, even as a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator, and easily lost track of time when he started cultivating.

Tianyi smiled when he saw Lanyue, who had a face full of worry, and glanced at the Core Formation Realm elder next to her. “Big sister, Elder Kun.”

The Fleeting Mist Sect elder finally released a sigh of relief at seeing Tianyi come back out unharmed, although Elder Shan just laughed it off and said nothing would happen. If something were to truly happen, the one who would take the blame would be their Fleeting Mist Sect. Not even a hundred of them could survive the Buzhou Immortal Sect’s wrath.

However, unlike Elder Kun, Pan Lanyue was still rather angry as her eyes glared at Tianyi. “Little Brother Tianyi! Do you know how dangerous the Lightning Sea is!? You may have come out unharmed this time, next time you might be crippled, or even lose your life!”

Tianyi looked at Lanyue, revealing a sheepish smile as he hid his lower face behind the fan that Sect Master Yun had gifted him. “Big Sister, the Lightning Sea is rather good. I like it a lot. It’s beneficial for my cultivation. I might return inside later.”

“Beneficial for your cultivation?” Pan Lanyue finally sensed something different as she looked deeply at Tianyi. “Eighth stage of the Qi Gathering Realm!?”

Elder Kun, who finally noticed the difference, was also somewhat speechless. “Eighth stage... a ten-year-old at the eighth stage of the Qi Gathering Realm.” In all the history of the Fleeting Mist Sect, the youngest person to achieve the Foundation Establishment Realm was already in their thirties. But judging by the speed of the youth before him, he had a chance to reach it before reaching twenty. Elder Kun could only sigh in admiration and helplessness. With such talents, it was no wonder the hegemon of the Heaven Continent could reign supreme eternally.

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Lanyue herself was already an exception, also having a chance to reach the Foundation Establishment in her twenties, but she had been meticulously groomed and even used all sorts of resources and naturally formed treasures given by the Sect Master. If Elder Kun were to know that Tianyi was already in the Foundation Establishment Realm, who knows what sort of faces he would make.

As for Lanyue, she did not have the same disbelief in her eyes. The way she saw it, she herself reached the tenth stage of Qi Gathering Realm at a young age, so for Tianyi to be more outstanding, it would not cause as deep a shock. The only thought that crossed her mind was ‘As expected of a disciple of the Buzhou Immortal Sect.’

And so, Tianyi, under the disbelieving gazes of the Fleeting Mist Sect members, continually entered the Lightning Sea over the course of the next weeks. He would sometimes even disappear for several days at a time, causing the Fleeting Mist Sect disciples to gossip on what exactly Tianyi was doing. The combination of a disciple from the Buzhou Immortal Sect and the mysterious Lightning Sea caused their inquisitive hearts to be set ablaze.

In this manner, three months later, when Tianyi once again exited the Lightning Sea, the gazes of the disciples who once had openly gawked at him were no longer apparent, as they had long gotten used to the sight. Even the gossiping nature had diminished. Perhaps those weaker outer disciples, who had finally managed to attain a chance to cultivate in the mist, would still be shocked at this point.

Tianyi happily fanned himself, his mood exceptional. He had constructed the second segment of his spiritual pillars, and his was progressing faster than he expected. He licked his lips, wondering how long he could use the Lightning Sea for. Tianyi couldn’t hope for Elder Shan to accompany him each time just so he could use the Lightning Sea in the Fleeting Mist Sect. Luckily, it seems that Elder Shan would stay at least a few more months.

“Little Brother.”

Tianyi smiled as he saw Lanyue approach him. Out of all the disciples Tianyi interacted with, Lanyue was the only one he maintained constant contact with. Out of all the disciples who interacted with him, Pan Lanyue was closest to him in physical age, and had no fear towards him. Perhaps the older disciples understood what would happen if he was displeased with them, so they acted servile in front of Tianyi. “Yes, Big Sister?”

“I’m going to visit my royal father before going to Jinyang City. Do you want to come?” Lanyue asked.

Tianyi’s eyes shined. Since arriving in this world, he had only lived in the Buzhou Immortal Sect, never leaving. And in the Fleeting Mist Sect, it was far incomparable to the Buzhou Immortal Sect. Had it not been for the Lightning Sea, Tianyi would already have thoughts of wanting to return. The allure of seeing the outside world was indeed considerable for Tianyi. “Let me ask Elder Shan.”

Elder Shan naturally had hesitations, as he had to aid his friend Sect Master Yun and couldn’t leave to protect Tianyi. But Tianyi assured him that with the defensive treasure his mother provided him, even if he was knocked out, a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator wouldn’t be able to harm him. With this reassurance, Elder Shan relented.

With a smile, Tianyi followed Pan Lanyue and a group of Fleeting Mist disciples down the mountain. They naturally did not walk on foot, and instead rode upon a white crane with black-tipped wings led by Elder Peng.

“Little brother Tianyi, Elder Peng is one half of the KunPeng duo, along with Elder Kun,” Lanyue explained as she saw Tianyi observe the elder of the Fleeting Mist Sect. “When working together with Elder Kun, the KunPeng Duo is said to be able to rival a nascent soul grandmaster.”

“...that’s impressive,” Tianyi finally said. In fact, Tianyi was wondering why Elder Peng was accompanying Pan Lanyue to the royal capital and Jinyang City. The Fleeting Mist Sect was known as the overlord of the surrounding area, including the Pan Kingdom. If they really wanted to protect Pan Lanyue, they would only need to send a Foundation Establishment Realm elder. Of course, it could be that the sect was overly invested in Pan Lanyue’s safety.

But Tianyi thought there was a deeper meaning but… ‘Well, not like it had anything to do with me.’ With those thoughts, Tianyi merrily followed along.

The Pan Kingdom could be said to be a rather prosperous country, having numerous Qi Gathering Realm cultivators. Tianyi even detected some formations protecting the larger estates but, without any time to explore, Tianyi was led into the castle in the center.

Inside, he saw two people waiting, both men. One had speckled hair and was wearing a crown on his head. He was Pan Feng, the current king of the Pan Kingdom, and next to him stood a younger man who bore a similar appearance. Pan Lanri looked to be in his early thirties, and emitted the qi that resembled the vast ocean, a hallmark of a Spiritual Pillar Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator.

Lanyue introduced Tianyi to them, but Tianyi only returned words that were dictated by manners, which made him seem distant and unapproachable. Lanyue could only helplessly watch this. The reason Tianyi treated her well was because of the relationship between their elders. Lanyue suspected that, without this layer of relationship, Tianyi would not even glance at her. She had even seen outer disciples of her sect acting arrogant to weaker forces in the Pan Kingdom. Nothing needed to be mentioned of a disciple from Buzhou Immortal Sect. Conversing could already be said to be giving them face.

What she didn't know, was that Tianyi's natural response to meeting strangers was becoming cold and distant. The reason he could act intimately with Sect Master Yun was because he was Elder Shan's bosom friend. And Pan Lanyue was young, so the mentally adult Tianyi treated her like a cute kid.

After spending the night, the group quickly departed from the royal capital towards Jinyang.

Compared to the Crimson Winged Eagle, the white crane they rode was far inferior, but this allowed Tianyi to observe the happenings below, such as the fight between beasts, cultivators against beasts, and even cultivators against cultivators.

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