fifth form

Chapter 3661 Lightning and Tribulation

The abilities gained through spiritual practice are something to aspire to, and normal spiritual practice can also make people feel powerful and bring them mental and physical well-being.

No one likes any kind of torturous or abnormal spiritual practice, and Zhang Xuezhou is no exception.

His cultivation on the back side of the Lingxiao Secret Land was very tedious. Even though he carried enough pills and his body contained enough spiritual crystals to nourish it, the progress of the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique was very ideal. After a long time, the stinging sensation in his body almost numbed him.

"We've reached the eight-zhang golden body stage. Once we push it to the nine-zhang golden body stage, we'll be done and finished!"

The colossal body condensed by the Heavenly Law Technique grew from seven zhang to eight zhang. Zhang Xuezhou had lost count of how many times he had been struck by lightning, and he could no longer tell how much time had passed.

The lightning generated by the interaction between the Lingxiao Secret Realm and the Kunlun Secret Realm still exists, making this indeed a place where lightning has long gathered.

Zhang Xuezhou felt that he needed to rest after cultivating to the Nine-Zhang Golden Body level, as he found it difficult to cultivate to the level of the Jade Emperor in one go.

Moreover, he consumes his pills very quickly. He has already used up nearly half of the 120 Life Creation Pills he obtained from the Jade Emperor. With this kind of cultivation method, it is impossible for him to reach the Ten-Zhang Golden Body.

The spiritual crystals transformed by the Bigu Technique were also being consumed step by step. Zhang Xuezhou felt that his eight-zhang golden body was entirely built up by resources, and the effect of external stimulation from lightning was actually quite ordinary.

This kind of cultivation is no different from the one he helped Wang Li quickly master the Xuanjia Fighting Technique. Both involve rapidly beating Wang Li to push the cultivation technique to take shape, and as long as he can recover, he will have successfully cultivated it.

"There's a reason why only the Jade Emperor in the Three Realms can cultivate the Twelve-Foot Golden Body Technique. If it were anyone else, they would either be struck by lightning and die, suffer serious injuries that would be difficult to heal, or exhaust their resources and still fail to cultivate it. Only the Jade Emperor can persist for so long!"

Zhang Xuezhou muttered something to himself, then lowered his head amidst the swirling lightning bolts, relying on the massive body constructed from the Heavenly Law to withstand the vast amount of lightning.

"Are you mistaking lightning for a heavenly tribulation?"

Only when the golden body loosened again and a sound came again did Zhang Xuezhou put down his right hand, which had been woodenly stuffing the pill.

He shook his head, and the effect of the lightning avoidance spell returned to his body. The dense lightning within a hundred feet around him instantly lost its target and returned to being free-flowing lightning.

Amidst the lightning, the Jade Emperor descended from the sky.

"You actually managed to achieve the Nine-Zhang Golden Body?"

The Jade Emperor looked at this oddball in front of him.

He has repeatedly mentioned that he has gone through 1,750 kalpas to cultivate the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique, and each kalpa was a heavenly tribulation. He has never said that he was struck by lightning.

If one could achieve a twelve-zhang golden body simply by being struck by lightning, the Celestial Court has the Thunder God and Lightning Goddess, who specialize in cultivating thunder and lightning arts. By having these two continuously cast spells, one can continuously release lightning for cultivation.

Many cultivators in the Celestial Court were unaware of what was happening behind the Lingxiao Secret Realm, but this did not include the Jade Emperor, who possessed both clairvoyance and super hearing.

If the Celestial Court hadn't been holding the Grand Assembly of Ten Thousand Immortals specifically to target the two Western religious leaders, the Jade Emperor felt he would have already rushed over to watch the spectacle.

He was genuinely worried that Zhang Xuezhou would be struck by lightning and killed, never expecting that the other party could achieve a nine-zhang golden body in these five days.

“My method of body refinement is not practiced in this way,” the Jade Emperor said. “What I bathe in is the tribulation of lightning. This power of lightning contains destruction, but it also carries a sense of new life. Only by enduring destruction and absorbing new life can the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique be advanced step by step!”

"Ah~ Aren't they all just rubbish?"

“Spring thunder is thunder, which can nourish the growth of all things, and winter thunder is also thunder, but winter thunder brings withering,” the Jade Emperor said. “Thunder tribulation is completely different from this floating thunder. Speaking of which, I am really curious about why you were able to activate the Golden Body Technique. Under normal circumstances, you could not have succeeded in cultivation. No matter how many thunderbolts you took or how many Life Creation Pills you ate, it would be useless!”

"This method of cultivation won't work. I've always felt that it's pure torture, and that normal people couldn't cultivate like this. I never thought it would really be unacceptable!"

"So you've succeeded?" The Jade Emperor was somewhat worried that Zhang Xuezhou would be struck by lightning and killed, since the other party was involved with Donghua.

They played chess for a long time, but none of them dared to fight head-on. Even Lingbao Tianzun only tested his sword and did not kill Zhunti, let alone attack Donghua.

The Jade Emperor genuinely hoped that Zhang Xuezhou would take the lead. The Ten Thousand Immortals Assembly would last for a long time, and he thought it would be difficult for Zhang Xuezhou to persevere. However, he did not expect that Zhang Xuezhou would succeed in his cultivation.

He had a lot to say before he came, but now he is more concerned about why Zhang Xuezhou was able to succeed in his cultivation.

In the Jade Emperor's view, it was impossible to succeed in cultivation by using ordinary lightning.

"No, I can't continue this kind of cultivation. If it weren't for the pills you gave me, I wouldn't be able to afford to squander them at all!" Zhang Xuezhou said.

"Really relying on my few pills?" the Jade Emperor asked.

“Since you were able to find your way here, you must have seen that I only took the Life-Creating Pill while cultivating,” Zhang Xuezhou said.

"That's impossible!"

The Jade Emperor looked Zhang Xuezhou up and down, and then touched Zhang Xuezhou's body.

Zhang Xuezhou's nine-zhang golden body was not as good as his twelve-zhang golden body, but the other party did indeed possess a physical body that could truly withstand lightning.

The Jade Emperor felt that cultivation should not be like this, but the other party had succeeded.

"The Three Realms Tribulation originates from a special lightning-attracting pool in the void. This lightning-attracting pool was created by Houtu and can only be activated by the demon race. Each lightning tribulation has the effect of transforming the physical body. Surviving the tribulation is like being reborn," the Jade Emperor said. "Only this kind of void lightning tribulation can promote the cultivation of the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique!"

"There's lightning in the void?" Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously.

"There is no thunder in the void. What truly grants creation is the Thunder-Attracting Pool. It is said to be a transcendent object in the world, granting extraordinary creation, and even capable of creating cultivators in batches," the Jade Emperor said.

"Is it only the lightning in that pool that can activate the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique?" Zhang Xuezhou asked doubtfully.

“That’s true,” the Jade Emperor said. “So I’m very curious about what exactly you changed when you revised the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, which led to your attainment of the Golden Body!”

“I didn’t change anything; I followed your instructions exactly,” Zhang Xuezhou said. “But I have practiced cloud magic, possess demonic power, and have survived a heavenly tribulation. Could this have enabled me to advance in my cultivation?”

"You possess demonic power? And you even survived a tribulation of lightning?"

The Jade Emperor was taken aback.

If Zhang Xuezhou says that, then he really has no way of judging.

The Jade Emperor always managed to catch up with the great demons' tribulations by riding on their thunderbolts. If he arrived quickly, he could catch up; if he arrived slowly, he would miss it.

He experienced many tribulations, but none of them were truly his own.

As the ruler of the Celestial Court who overthrew the Demon Heavenly Court, it was impossible for the Jade Emperor to implant demonic power into his own body.

This is not just a matter of ideology, but also involves life and death. If he did this, the Jade Emperor felt that he would be punished by Hongjun with a decree. When the Three Pure Ones carried out the decree, they would not only remove him from his position in the Celestial Court, but also beat him half to death and throw him into the Heavenly Prison, or even beat him to death.

"Then you are really lucky!"

The Jade Emperor pondered this over and over, and he felt that Zhang Xuezhou had simply gotten lucky, which allowed him to use ordinary lightning to advance the cultivation of the Twelve-Zhang Golden Body Technique.