Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Chapter 797 Overcoming the Tribulation
A year passed quickly, and the three great cultivators still hadn't shown up.

Chen Yuan wasn't in a hurry. Zhang Xuancang had already made it clear that the whereabouts of Master Yuanting and Master Jiuyuan were uncertain, and he had left messages in their separate residences. It wasn't surprising that they hadn't come for several years.

However, it was somewhat unusual that when Master Zuiyun sent a message to Shen Jibai via talisman, Shen Jibai did not come to Xingzhu City.

Master Zuiyun was also quite puzzled by this, but once the talisman was activated, it turned into ashes and could no longer send messages to Shen Jibai. He could only wait patiently for a reply.

During this period, although Chen Yuan's cultivation level did not improve, after a Starlight Infusion, his internal injuries were completely healed and his strength returned to its peak.

Feeling his physical body, comparable to that of a mid-level demon general, and the vast ocean of true essence filling his dantian, Chen Yuan couldn't help but smile. But then he sighed softly, his expression becoming solemn.

With the blood of three true spirits, he was not afraid at all even if he faced Ao Cang.

However, he is now alone and isolated, and among the eight royal clans, apart from the Nightmare Crow, the Sky-Supporting Divine Turtle, and the Fiend Tiger, the other five royal clans all have demon generals in charge, supplemented by great formations, making it difficult for him to fight against them.

Furthermore, it is unknown whether Qin Wuyai and his companions have actually arrived in this realm.

Therefore, Chen Yuan was cautious and did not act rashly. He first met with Shen Jibai, Yuan Ting Zhenren, and Jiu Yuan Shangren.

Only a high-ranking cultivator has the prestige to rally human cultivators to search for the whereabouts of Qin Wuyai and his companions.

If the four of them also come to this realm, Chen Yuan will first join them to deal with the demon race and seek the opportunity to ascend to the upper realm.

If the four of them had not come to this realm, facing the eight major demon clans and five demon generals, Chen Yuan would not have been able to break the deadlock by force. He would have had to plan carefully and secretly investigate the location of the ascension passage.

However, the legend of the "Tai Xuan Realm" remains in this world, and the Kun fish clan also exists. Beneath the bottomless abyss, there is a mysterious blood bead containing the true blood of the Kunpeng, which is suspected to have been left by the Kun fish demon king.

All signs indicate that the spatial passage leads to this world.

Chen Yuan believed that unless Qin Wuyai and the other three had died in the spatial passage, they should have also arrived in this world.

Whether or not they know the end of this spatial passage is no longer important.

Chen Yuan must join forces with them to have a chance to ascend to the upper realm.

Thinking of this, Chen Yuan couldn't help but feel a sense of absurdity.

The middle-aged scholar offered the spatial passage to the Demon Burning Realm as a bargaining chip in exchange for his life, but Chen Yuan refused.

Now, despite all the difficulties he has faced, he still strives to ascend to the demon realm.

But he did not regret it. The middle-aged scholar had endured tens of thousands of years in the secret realm of the Yuling Sect and almost possessed his body.

The middle-aged scholar was so ruthless, and the spatial passage led to the Demon Burning Realm, whose situation was unclear. To make a deal with him would be like asking a tiger for its skin, and Chen Yuan would not take the risk.

Moreover, the middle-aged scholar controlled Chen Yuan's body to attack and kill Zhang Wushan, swallowing his nascent soul alive. If he didn't avenge this, how could he explain it to his friend?

……

Spring goes and autumn comes, another year has passed.

Ten months ago, Chen Yuan removed the spirit-gathering array in his cave, causing the concentration of spiritual energy to drop drastically, making it no different from that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator in Xingzhu City.

Master Zuiyun was greatly surprised and immediately went to his door to inquire about the matter.

Chen Yuan said, "Xingzhu City gathers thousands of cultivators from both cities, making its spiritual energy extremely precious."

"Chen is staying here as a guest, but he has monopolized a small spiritual vein, which is useless for cultivation and also delays the cultivation of others."

"Why not give up the spiritual energy? If even one person can improve their cultivation as a result, they can kill a few more demonic beasts."

Master Zuiyun was filled with respect and bowed deeply, his face full of shame: "How could I not know that this small spiritual vein is just a drop in the ocean for you, fellow Daoist?"

"If I do not do so, it would be a breach of hospitality. However, there are still many cultivators in the city who need spiritual energy to cultivate."

"I am in a dilemma. I have done my best, and this is all I can do. I am still worried that you might be dissatisfied."

"I never expected you to be so noble and virtuous, caring for the cultivators in the city, without the slightest hint of arrogance."

"I am deeply ashamed for judging you with the mind of a petty person."

Chen Yuan reached out and helped up Master Zuiyun, saying solemnly, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need for such formalities. I, Chen, have also come from the Qi Refining Realm and know how difficult cultivation is. It was just a small favor, nothing to mention."

He spoke with great sincerity, but Master Zuiyun did not believe him and instead held him in even higher esteem.

Over the course of two years, he often sat down to discuss Daoist principles with Chen Yuan and Zhang Xuancang. He already knew that this fellow Daoist Chen was a body cultivator, and he had heard Zhang Xuancang recount his process of slaying three demon generals and Xing Qianyue countless times.

With such a powerful physical body, surpassing even that of royal demon generals, how could he possibly lack cultivation resources?

This was clearly Chen Daoyou's way of showing consideration for Xingzhu City's lack of spiritual energy and offering words of comfort in order to cover up his own rudeness.

Thinking of this, Master Zuiyun felt even more ashamed.

After he took his leave, Chen Yuan refined the demon cores of She Mo, Ao Lin, and Lang Mou into twenty-seven level-eight demon essence pills, and then went out of the city to tour the nearby mountains and rivers.

The three great cultivators could appear at any time, so he couldn't leave Xingzhu City. In his spare time from alchemy, he simply indulged in the mountains and rivers, living a carefree and leisurely life with a broad and open mind.

On this day, Chen Yuan was meditating and regulating his breathing in his cave when a strange energy suddenly came from his right wrist, waking him from his meditation.

He opened his eyes and looked down, only to see that the blood jade bracelet on his wrist, formed from a small red snake, was now shimmering slightly red.

The previously hidden demonic aura slowly began to emanate, revealing a powerful vitality.

Suddenly, the blood jade bracelet trembled slightly, and two crystal-clear black pearls appeared on its surface.

The small red snake opened its eyes, slowly raised its head, looked at Chen Yuan with admiration, and flicked out its pink tongue, making a soft hissing sound.

Chen Yuan smiled slightly, raised his left hand, and gently stroked the head of the small red snake. It was warm and delicate, yet had a slight coolness to it.

The small red snake raised its head and rubbed it against Chen Yuan's palm, flicking its tongue faster and swaying its small tail gently, seemingly enjoying itself immensely.

Chen Yuan's smile deepened, but at that moment, the crimson snake's demonic aura suddenly intensified, its energy fluctuated erratically, and its body trembled incessantly.

Boom!

A thunderous roar echoed into the cave, causing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to suddenly become restless.

Chen Yuan's expression changed slightly. He placed the small red snake in his left palm, got up, and walked out of the cave.

Rumble!
The sky suddenly darkened, and leaden-gray clouds surged in from the horizon, like ink splashed across the sky, burying the clear blue expanse.

Lightning flashed faintly deep within the cloud vortex, flickering on and off.

A series of muffled thunderclaps swept across the distance, like the low roar of a giant beast, causing the mountains surrounding Xingzhu City to tremble slightly.

Ordinary people in the city hurriedly scattered to seek shelter from the rain, gathered up the clothes that had been drying outside, and vendors cursed the weather under their breath as they set up tarpaulins to cover the goods that sustained their livelihoods.

Ordinary people cannot sense the sudden surge of spiritual energy in the world, but it cannot be hidden from cultivators.

Those cultivators who were meditating in their caves rushed out, and upon seeing the change in the celestial phenomena, their anger froze on their faces, their eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty.

The small red snake straightened its body, its two jet-black eyes looking at the sky, slowly shrinking towards the center.

Chen Yuan's face darkened, and he mounted his escape light, flying towards the outside of Xingzhu City.

He had just ascended into the sky when Master Zuiyun and Zhang Xuancang flew over together. Master Zuiyun called out loudly, "Fellow Daoist Chen, the celestial phenomena have suddenly changed. It seems a demonic beast in the city is summoning a tribulation of lightning. Please join me in searching... uh?"

His voice was hurried, but halfway through his sentence, he saw the small red snake in Chen Yuan's palm, his eyes widened, and he froze.

Following his gaze, Zhang Xuancang saw a small, red snake with intense demonic energy that undulated violently, and exclaimed, "Was it this little snake that summoned the lightning tribulation?"

Chen Yuan nodded, his expression slightly solemn: "Fellow Daoists, please do not worry. I need to help it overcome its tribulation, so I will go ahead first."

Master Zuiyun and Zhang Xuancang immediately agreed. Chen Yuan wasted no more time and flew away in his escape light towards Xingzhu City.

And through the Blood Seal of the Soul, he soothed the little red snake, delaying the arrival of the tribulation lightning.

However, the little red snake did not count its dormant period. It hatched very recently and is extremely young. Its intelligence is only comparable to that of a human child. Its awakening and summoning of the lightning tribulation were both instinctive. It did not know how to delay the lightning tribulation at all.

Fortunately, it deeply admired Chen Yuan and had a connection through the blood-binding bond of the soul, allowing it to vaguely sense Chen Yuan's intentions. It immediately restrained its aura, which slightly slowed down the arrival of the tribulation lightning.

In just a few dozen breaths, Chen Yuan escaped over a hundred miles and arrived at a desolate and deserted place, far from Xingzhu City, with no mortal villages around.

The crimson snake could no longer suppress its energy. As the dark clouds gathered, it was targeted by this world, and the tribulation of lightning was inevitable.

Chen Yuan stopped and looked up. Layers of dark clouds piled up, swallowing up all the light of day, like a giant black hand pressing heavily down on the earth.

Deep within the calamity clouds, lightning bolts, like dragons, twisted and exploded, illuminating the churning cloud vortex.

The wind howled, swirling withered branches and pebbles in the low sky, causing countless plants to bend and break.

The might of Heaven is like a prison, and all things bow down.

The small red snake gazed at the descending black clouds, its two black eyes transforming into vertical pupils, exuding majesty.

It lowered its head and rubbed against Chen Yuan's palm, then soared into the air, its small body growing larger in the wind, transforming into a giant python thirty feet long. With a roar, it coiled up like a small mountain.

Its scales, like burning crimson flames, reflected a dazzling red light under the illumination of lightning. Its pair of black vertical pupils faintly gleamed with golden light, coldly staring at the tribulation clouds above.

This is the true form of the Candle Serpent. Its previous cute three-inch-long appearance was only because the little red snake wanted to get close to Chen Yuan, so it intentionally shrank its body.

Suddenly, the slowly churning dark clouds paused, the gale froze, and the world solidified.

Boom!

The first bolt of lightning crashed down, shattering the silence, and headed straight for the Candle Serpent.

This was a silver bolt of lightning powerful enough to shatter mountains, tearing through the sky with dazzling brilliance.

Chen Yuan's pupils contracted. This heavenly lightning was not as powerful as the lightning tribulation he experienced when he formed his nascent soul. It had about 70% of the power of the lightning.

However, at that time he possessed the blood of two true spirits, while Zhushe only had the bloodline of Zhujiuyin, yet the power of the lightning tribulation was almost equal to his.

Moreover, although the Candle Serpent has accumulated a great deal of demonic power and is able to summon lightning tribulations, it is because it has absorbed a rich spatial power in the void.

It had only been a few years since it hatched, and had never fought with other demonic beasts or cultivators, possessing no combat experience whatsoever.

They had no time to cultivate their innate supernatural abilities, possessing cultivation but unaware of their true strength.

A hint of worry flashed in Chen Yuan's eyes, but he did not immediately intervene.

Whether one is a cultivator or a demon beast, undergoing tribulation is of paramount importance.

Only by relying entirely on one's own strength to successfully overcome tribulation can one's foundation for the Dao be more solid, and one's path to the Dao be longer in the future.

As the master of the Candle Serpent and a Nascent Soul cultivator, Chen Yuan could withstand the heavenly lightning and help it overcome its tribulation.

However, this would affect the future potential of the Candle Serpent, and Chen Yuan would not easily take action unless absolutely necessary.

Faced with the thunder descending from the sky, the Candle Serpent hissed and its body soared into the air like a crimson ribbon, neither dodging nor avoiding, but charging straight at it.

Chen Yuan's expression turned solemn, and a silver glint appeared in his eyes. A long, drawn-out mooing sound of a cow could be faintly heard behind him.

But the next moment, the Candle Serpent paused, then opened its mouth wide towards the heavenly thunder.

The raging thunder suddenly slowed down, seemingly frozen in mid-air, as the Candle Serpent twisted its body and moved aside.

The lightning bolt veered through the air, relentlessly pursuing the Candle Serpent, but its speed was too slow, and the Candle Serpent narrowly evaded it.

Three breaths later, the speed of the lightning returned to normal, but it had already brushed past the Candle Serpent and could no longer turn back. It landed on a hundred-zhang mountain peak and exploded with a bang.

Lightning scattered, weaving into a destructive torrent. The mountainside collapsed with a deafening roar, and the mountaintop vanished instantly, turning into tiny specks of dust.

Chen Yuan was stunned. The Candle Serpent simply opened its mouth and froze the heavenly thunder. What kind of supernatural power was this?
He slowly lowered his hand, and the silver light in his eyes gradually faded.

The Candle Serpent stood tall, head held high, gazing at the sky. The Heavenly Tribulation seemed to be enraged, and the second and third bolts of lightning struck down in succession, tearing the sky apart. The thunder echoed, each bolt more violent than the last.

The Candle Serpent remained unfazed and opened its mouth wide once more. The two bolts of heavenly lightning suddenly slowed down, as if frozen, and were avoided by it.

The thunderbolt changed course halfway, still trying to catch up with the candle snake, but it was too slow and was left behind before it could catch up.

After the Candle Serpent crossed the heavenly lightning, the two bolts of lightning suddenly gave up the chase and fell straight to the ground.

This time, Chen Yuan finally saw clearly that when the Candle Serpent opened its mouth, the air in front of it was slightly distorted, as if it was exhaling two invisible breaths, which is why the heavenly lightning was suddenly frozen.

The candle snake's method of evading the heavenly lightning only fueled the heavenly tribulation's fury.

The sky was filled with swirling clouds, forming a vortex a hundred feet in size. The third, fourth, and fifth bolts of heavenly lightning followed one after another, determined to take the life of the Candle Serpent.

A hint of fear finally appeared in the eyes of the Candle Serpent. No matter how strong it was, it was still just a young snake that had recently hatched and had been dormant for several years. Faced with the power of heaven and earth, it still felt a sense of fear.

Chen Yuan sensed the fear in its heart through the Divine Soul Blood Restriction and immediately sent it a message of comfort and encouragement.

The Candle Serpent's spirits lifted, and it charged forward again, opening its maw wide. The air in front of it visibly distorted, and the three bolts of heavenly lightning slowed down, allowing the Candle Serpent to narrowly avoid them.

Thunder ripped the earth apart, and rocks turned to dust in the blinding white light. Within a radius of a thousand feet, vegetation turned to ash, and crimson flames rose from the scorched earth.

When the lightning dissipated, all that could be seen was a scorched ravine dozens of feet deep, with molten rock flowing along its edges, like a hideous wound.

The Candle Serpent's energy fluctuated slightly, and its crimson scales appeared somewhat dull, as if the continuous use of this supernatural power had left it quite exhausted.

The swirling clouds in the sky suddenly paused, then trembled violently, and the seventh, eighth, and ninth bolts of lightning crashed down.

The dazzling silver light illuminated the dim sky, and the thunder roared, as if it would turn this world into dust!
The bloodthirstiness deep within the Candle Serpent's bloodline was fully unleashed by the Heavenly Tribulation, causing its vertical pupils to turn a pale gold color, exuding majesty.

With a long neigh, it felt no fear left, and with its body lithe, it raised its head and went to meet the attack.

Just as it was about to collide with the heavenly lightning, the Candle Serpent opened its mouth wide, and the air in front of it flowed like water. The seventh and eighth bolts of heavenly lightning that were about to strike slowed down and were avoided by the Candle Serpent.

However, the ninth bolt of heavenly lightning remained unaffected and struck directly at the Candle Serpent.

Chen Yuan felt a chill run down his spine, and his eyes flashed with silver light, transforming into a pair of silver eyes. The image of the Kui Niu appeared behind him.

The Kui Niu True Spirit Palm possesses the power of thunder, capable of neutralizing even tribulation lightning.

He raised his hand and formed a hand seal. The Kui Niu Dharma Image behind him roared to the sky and spat out a beam of azure lightning, which went against the current and met the ninth heavenly lightning.

(End of this chapter)