Overdraw the future and become a peerless martial god

Chapter 161 The Thunder Against the Gods
At the summit of the Blood River in the sky, the wind and snow have ceased.

Amidst the surging crimson, the two malevolent spirits, resembling deities—"Bone-Burning Ape Lord" and "Weeping Rain Crimson Child"—stood atop the altar on the other shore, their figures suspended high beneath the sky, like two bloody fingers of fate firmly inserted between heaven and earth.

They stood with their eyes closed, as if waiting for the tide of blood to recede. At first glance, they looked like gods in deep meditation, motionless and silent.

However, if one observes it for too long, it can create a chilling illusion.

They are not "asleep," but rather they are "fighting."

It is not an external struggle, but rather a confrontation between one's inner consciousness and something indescribable.

The Blazing Bone Ape Marquis crossed his arms over his shoulders, his pale bone claws joined together in front of his chest, his five fingers like hooks, faintly shimmering with inky black flames.

That was his soul fire, which was outside the void, locked in a stalemate with an ancient sealing will.

His skull trembled slightly, as if a soul had once haunted his heart, wanting to defy fate and return to its rightful place; but that ghost was suppressed by him, inch by inch subdued within his bones, the flames rolling, like a god from the bottom of hell glaring angrily at his former master.

On the other side, the Weeping Rain Child stood quietly amidst the blood-red snow, holding the tattered umbrella.

He also closed his eyes, but the tears were still wet, and a faint glimmer of life seemed to still flicker in his dark eyes.

His lips twitched slightly as he murmured silent syllables.

That was his soul making its final severance from "his past self".

His body had been cut countless times; he had been a prince and a slave.

At this moment, those broken wills are vying for "control" from each other, and once the balance is lost, he will fall into the abyss of madness once again.

At this moment, although the two evil spirits did not make a move, they plunged the entire celestial realm into a terrifying oppression.

The river of blood, like a rift in the sky, stretched across the heavens, swirling silently, as if even the very laws of heaven were trembling with unease.

The surrounding world darkened, the sunlight was blocked, the air currents stagnated, and nothing dared to make a sound, except for the snowflakes, which stopped falling at this moment.

Time was briefly frozen by their "battle of consciousness".

“This isn’t about us.” Chu Ning’s gaze sharpened, and he said in a low voice to Dong’er, “They are resisting some kind of ‘return’.”

Dong'er froze, feeling a chill in her heart.

"Before they wake up..." Chu Ning looked up at the two towering figures above the blood river and murmured, "Complete the Qingli Divine Soul Transfer as soon as possible."

Chu Ning's senses sharpened like needles, and a warning sign suddenly arose.

The Crescent Moon Ice Soul in Dong'er's hand also trembled suddenly, and there seemed to be a strange murmur in the fox flame soul fire, which was being pulled and trembling by some kind of force.

In the eerie silence, on the other side of the blood river, a figure finally moved.

The priest, who had remained silent and motionless throughout, slowly stepped forward from the shadows.

That foot landed without making a sound in the snow, yet it seemed to sever the boundary between life and death.

Dong'er's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and she gripped the Shuoyue Ice Soul tightly with her other hand.

He was draped in a scarlet blood-red robe, with iron fragments hanging from the hem, like a soul that had been sacrificed but not yet buried.

He was extremely thin, with bony joints, as if his entire body consisted of nothing but a layer of dry skin covering his bones.

The most horrifying thing was the "beast bone face" on his face.

It was a white bone mask without a mouth, nose, forehead, or jaw, with only two black eyes, as deep as an unfathomable abyss of karmic fire.

Anyone who glances at it will feel their heart tremble, as if thousands of dead souls are whispering and weeping in those black holes.

Every step he took seemed to tread between the cracks of blood and bone, neither in the mortal world nor in the underworld, but rather walking in the "reverse direction of reincarnation."

“So he…” Dong’er murmured, her pupils shrinking sharply, “He is… he is the true core of the seven.”

She had read a forbidden passage in an ancient inscription from the fox clan:
"Those who bear the mark of reincarnation defy the path of life and death; their incantation is called 'Nine Revolutions,' and their bodies bear the seven luminaries but do not return to the void."

He was the most hidden yet most deadly of the seven—Tianquan Wenqu, the one who held the "Seal of Reincarnation".

"Chu Ning, be careful of this person!" Dong'er shouted loudly to Chu Ning.

At this moment, as the last priest approached, the scorched earth of the six priests who had been killed by Chu Ning in the Seven Luminaries Formation trembled slightly, their soul traces churned, and the blood river rippled with eerie gray light.

Above, a few remnants of the soul surfaced on the water, like a flickering candle at the bottom of an abyss, barely extinguished, echoing the "power of reincarnation" that seemed to be emerging from his footsteps.

He slowly raised his right hand, his knuckles twisted and cracked, and amidst the wind, snow and blood flames, something slowly emerged from his palm.

It was an ancient seal, its entire surface dark and shadowy.

The seal is nine inches tall and as black as iron. Nine crescent-shaped spiral patterns are engraved on its surface, each filled with ancient soul-inscribed characters, yet incomplete, as if each appearance of the seal is a sigh that devours a wisp of soul.

Its name is one of the most taboo sacrificial seals in the entire Blood Refining Hall:

"Nine Revolutions Profound Nether Seal"

Upon the appearance of this seal, countless fox spirits fell silent and stood at attention.

“That is…” Dong’er’s throat tightened, “the Reincarnation… Secret Seal.”

At this moment, Wenqu spoke in a low voice, which seemed to seep from the bottom of the ancient coffin, hollow and eerie:
"The broken body has not yet dissipated, the soul lamp is still warm, the blood river serves as the guide, and the bones are offered as the medium... then you can return to your place."

He stepped forward, the imprints glowing faintly, and the breath of incantation overflowing.

The Blood River rippled, and six altars that had sunk to the bottom of the water slowly rose to the surface. Six strands of blood rose from the altars, like fishing lines for souls, and slowly pierced the brows of the six charred corpses.

It was not language, but more like a blood pact, a spell that draws the soul, leading directly to the void.

The moment the altar of offering bones surfaced, the souls of the six sacrificers who had been personally killed by Chu Ning and burned by lightning slowly emerged from the river of blood, as if something was pulling them back to the mortal world from the bottom of hell.

Wenqu himself simply lowered his right palm.

A thin strand of blood, almost invisible to the naked eye, quietly fell from his fingertip, sinking into the snow, seeping into the earth's veins, and then... falling into the "root" of the Blood River Sacrifice Array—the Return to the Void Lock Point.

In an instant.

Deep within the River of Blood, the remains of six sacrificers, who should have been completely annihilated, seemed to be rekindled by the soul lamps of the underworld.

Those charred, broken, and burned bones and flesh, now struggling little by little beneath the scarlet water, slowly straightened up from the mire of death.

There were no incantations, no drumbeats, only the trembling of the soul fire reigniting in the silence.

Dong'er suddenly lost her voice, almost dropping her grip on the Crescent Moon Ice Soul:

"This is... 'Soul Lock Body Penetration'."

"Wenqu will use the soul pillar to insert their soul traces into the sacrificial lock, and then use himself as the central point to reincarnate them."

"Those six people... though dead, their natal artifacts were not destroyed, their soul imprints were not dispersed... and they all retained a wisp of their will in the River of Blood."

Chu Ning stared at Wen Qu's wrist as he raised his hand.

—Six of the nine marks have already appeared.

Each time he "returns to his rightful place," he takes on the "karmic burden" of a deceased person.

"How dare you—defy the cycle of reincarnation?"

Wenqu chuckled softly after hearing this, as if he had heard a long-awaited response:

"unbelievable?"

"I just... don't want to die."

"The fox clan refused my immortality back then, so today I will shatter the Soul Bridge and borrow the souls of the fox clan to achieve immortality."

“They thought the sacrifices were only for the gods… but with my nine cycles of reincarnation, I am the one who is reincarnated.”

"They return to the earth, but I return to God."

After saying that, the Xuanming Seal in his hand suddenly trembled.

The moment he finished speaking, the Xuanming Seal trembled slightly, and a circle of dark patterns spread out, extending along the earth's veins to the depths of the Blood River.

Subsequently, seven bone altars that were originally hidden underground slowly emerged in the center of the blood river, with seven mottled and dim soul pillars appearing on them.

The soul pillars are not physical objects, but rather they pierce straight out from the bottom of the Soul Bridge, which is the forbidden area of ​​the Gate of Return to the Void. They are originally symbols of a seal, used to lock the Void and prevent the souls of the dead from returning to the Void.

The first soul pillar pierced through the void, and a wisp of soul flame shot out from the ground, directly into a charred corpse.

The corpse opened its eyes.

But at this moment, under the influence of the Reincarnation Seal, the seven "thorns" were reversed into "locks" and began to perform a completely opposite mission.

Seven locks emerged from the rift in the Ruins of Return, landing one by one on the six corpses, forming a seven-in-one aura circulation array together with Wenqu.

Each soul lock was engulfed in a ghostly flame, ranging from emerald green, blood red, golden purple, and ghostly blue to deathly white, jet black, and gray silver.

That's not color, it's the radiance of karmic obstacles.

Because in order to bring them back to the mortal world, Wenqu must bear the cost of their deaths with his own flesh and blood.

He single-handedly bore the sins, curses, and sacrificial marks that the six priests had carried in their lifetimes, never flinching even when his bones were burned by lightning and fire.

—This is the power of "Tianquan·Wenqu".

He didn't give them a second chance at life, but rather used the cycle of reincarnation to give them back the right to exist.

As the rhythm of the Xuanming Seal accelerated, the Soul Lock emitted seven long cries, and the shattered bodies of the six people began to be reconstructed little by little.

Flesh and blood returned to their original positions, the incantation reappeared, and the magical artifact floated once more in his palm from the broken blade and shattered bones.

As Dong'er watched that scene, a chill ran from the soles of her feet to the tips of her hair.

"They...returned...not alive, nor ghosts."

Chu Ning's gaze remained fixed as he replied in a low voice:
"They are the 'reincarnated ones'—a man-made disaster that was given a second existence in order to sacrifice Qingli."

Amidst the wind and snow, the soul locks like chains, the Void Cave opens, and the seven luminaries of the Big Dipper return to their places.

The sacrifice—is far from over.

The first soul pillar quietly lit up, like a star falling to earth, and a thin, cold silver light appeared afterward.

It was a "Soul-Stripping Golden Hook" that had long been shattered by Chu Ning's Thunder Fiend—now it was slowly swirling from the depths of the Blood River, carrying the shattered soul's cry, like an old object returning from the Netherworld.

The golden hook reassembled, its tip flashing with a crimson light, and then suddenly fell into the chest of a shattered female corpse.

The next instant, Tian Shu·Dong Ming slowly opened his eyes.

Those were a pair of pale, eyelash-less heavenly eyes. The eyes did not contain the scenes of the mortal world, but rather the overlapping illusions of the three thousand minor worlds. The past, present, and future converged like ripples on water, flashing suddenly in her gaze.

She can observe the changes within twelve breaths, know the line between death and life.

The second soul lock suddenly bloomed, like a blooming red lotus breaking through the blood pool.

The remaining ashes were completely burned away, and an extremely intense anger condensed and took shape in the flames.

It was a man kneeling in the fire, his body covered in cracks, with flames constantly surging from beneath the skin of his chest, as if fiery bones were growing from his wounds.

He slowly raised his head, his eyes flashing with a red light like karmic fire.

—Tianxuan Xuange, master of the Wrathful Vajra Body.

His path originates from Asura.

The more they fought, the stronger they became; the more wounded they were, the stronger they grew. When their fighting spirit soared, even the gods could not quell their flames.

The third soul pillar slowly rose from the bottom of the blood river, accompanied by a tooth-grinding sound of flesh and bone being torn apart, and a huge, empty maw was brought out.

Its mouth had no teeth or tongue, yet it chewed incessantly, as if it were so greedy as to devour even the void itself.

Tianji·Lucun Manifestation

He has no gender, nor a mouth, only a "throat of returning to nothingness," which devours all things and transforms spiritual energy, yet he is perpetually hungry. His law is devouring and never being satisfied.

……

One after another, the corpses came back to life, and their souls returned to their places.

After their resurrection, their cultivation level not only jumped directly from the lower seventh rank to the upper seventh rank, but each person's cultivation method also changed according to the needs of the formation.

At this moment, the Nine Revolutions Profound Nether Seal in the palm of Tianquan Wenqu, who was at the very center, was trembling violently.

He chanted a spell in a low voice:
"With the wheel of fate as my lamp, the river of blood as my boat, and the bones I offer as my anchor, I use the axis of the six realms to summon back the seven luminaries."

With each person resurrected, a deep crack appeared on the Xuanming Seal. By the time the sixth one was completed, the seal was nearly shattered, its light patterns dissipated, and it became almost transparent, as if it was only on its last breath.

But he remained calm.

"We—return to our positions."

With a thunderous roar, Wenqu plunged the last Soul Lock deep into the ice. In an instant, the seven pillars of the Soul Bridge resonated, and the sky trembled.

The seventh soul lock did not link the corpse, but rather—locked himself in.

He was no longer the caster, but the core of the formation itself.

From this moment on, he is Tianquan Wenqu, and also the key to the Seven Luminaries Sacrifice Array.

"Tian Shu, Dong Ming."

"Tianxuan, Xuange."

"Tianji, Lucun".

"Tianquan, Wenqu".

"Yuheng, Lianzhen".

"Kaiyang, Wuqu".

“Yao Guang, Po Jun”.

The seven stars have returned to their positions, and the hidden radiance has appeared in the world.

The seven figures stood suspended above the blood river, like the Big Dipper hanging upside down. The sacrificial array served as the plate, and the Soul Bridge as the axis. Each of them corresponded to the seven pillars of the Soul Bridge, forming an ancient and solemn sealing and sacrificial technique.

At that moment, the tide of blood surged back, and a "blood eye" slowly opened above the altar.

That is—the blood-red eyes offered to the gods.

The fox spirits wailed, the fox flames twisted, the energy of heaven and earth changed drastically, the balance of life and death began to be disrupted, and the gate of reincarnation of all spirits was slightly distorted, as if a crack had been torn open.

—The dead return, and the blood sacrifice continues.

This is a blasphemy against divine authority and a tearing apart of the Void.

—This is also the true prelude to the “path of offering to the gods”.

Amidst the thunder and snow, Chu Ning's gaze trembled, while the Thunder Bone roared behind him.

He finally realized that the real opponent was not the seven priests, but the entire law of heaven and earth, which had begun to tilt within the Seven Luminaries Sacrifice Array.

He will not only slay his enemies.

Rather, it is fate itself.

Blood churned, the Seven Luminaries Offering God Array was complete, and heaven and earth were sealed by a giant seal.

Chu Ning stood at the end of the Soul Bridge, his lightning armor mottled, his aura like a dying flame in the wind, yet his figure remained unmoved.

He did not respond to Dong'er's call, but calmly scanned the center of the sacrificial array, focusing on Tianquan Wenqu and the shaky Xuanming Seal.

"Soul Lock Seven Luminaries, Bone Altar Hides Eyes, Return to Ruins as the Bottom... Your formation is not just about offering souls, but about summoning gods." He whispered, his fingertips tracing the air, lightning energy flowing through his meridians, but his voice grew softer and softer, and even his own lightning energy began to stagnate.

The Thunder Armor was already more than half shattered, and the Thunder Fiend was like a torn piece of cloth, struggling back and forth between the Qi Sea and the Soul Platform.

He felt that he was approaching his limit.

Faced with the "God Offering Array" composed of seven high-ranking priests, all of whom were nearly seventh-grade, and with the combined suppression of celestial phenomena, array domains, and the power of the Void, he had no other options left.

He subconsciously sank into his sea of ​​consciousness.

—"Swallowing the Abyss".

However, the sound seemed to fall into an abyss, completely silent.

He called out again:

"Swallowing Abyss! I know you can hear me. I don't ask for your help, I only ask for a little bit of your strength... even if it's just a poisonous sting."

Still, there was no response.

That terrifying being that slumbered behind the Nether Throat, which once devoured a divine soul in one gulp, seemed to have completely fallen into slumber, perhaps sealed away, or perhaps watching.

"...You still don't believe me."

Chu Ning closed his eyes, his sea of ​​consciousness was as dark as night, with only the tiny spark of lightning on his spiritual platform still burning with an undying flame.

What's even more frustrating is that they can't even repay the price of the Primordial Chaos Divine Token, and they can no longer advance their cultivation techniques.

He has exhausted his chips for the "future," and his "present" is also running out.

He was almost empty.

A burning pain in my chest, numbness in my bones, and the resonance of my thunderous bones seemed to have exhausted itself.

He could clearly sense that his soul wheel was being sealed off inch by inch by the inverted soul lock.

This is an unsolvable dilemma.

But Chu Ning did not fall. He still stood at the end of the Soul Bridge, his gaze passing over the Blood River, looking at the seven figures standing separately, and took a deep breath.

He was reminiscing.

He never believed in a dead end.

From the very first day of his cultivation, he walked the sharpest "thunder path".

At that time, he was just an ordinary person who had not yet reached the rank of a certain level, yet he dared to try to cultivate the "Thunderclap Blade Technique," drawing heavenly lightning to temper his body, using his own physique to withstand the shock of the blade technique, and using his bones and blood as refined steel to forge the thunderous aura.

He stood naked atop the mountain, draped in coarse cloth, a rusty knife stuck in his back. Each bolt of lightning struck him directly, his flesh cracking and his bones creaking, but he could only grit his teeth and endure.

A hundred thunderclaps in a day, a thousand lightning bolts in a night.

With a ringing in his ears and his chest heaving like a bursting windbag, he fainted and regained consciousness several times in the thunderstorm, yet in that sea of ​​lightning, he etched the "Thunderclap Blade Technique" into his bones with every move.

"Pain is the truth, tearing is the way; once you get through it, you'll have your own blade."

These are the words he said to himself.

Back then, there was no one to guide him, no one to protect him. But he always remembered that when a lightning strike was unleashed, the blade's energy hadn't even left its sheath, yet it shattered a three-zhang-long ice wall.

It was at that moment that he comprehended the first move of the Thunderclap Saber Technique.

He once forcibly fused with the cold of frost in a cave on Eagle's Beak Cliff, forcefully injecting the power of millennia of extreme cold into his meridians, turning lightning into frost and sharpness, thus learning "Frost Lightning".

Later, at the Qingyun Arena in Qingzhou Prefecture, he was devoured by the Yin Thunder of the Heavenly Thunder Sect. On the verge of life and death, he practiced the "Yin Thunder Heavenly Scripture" in reverse, using his own soul as a guide to forcefully resonate with the Yin Thunder and comprehend the mysteries of "Yin Thunder".

He even comprehended the "Heart Thunder" technique from the most extreme destruction when Prince Duan annihilated the Heavenly Thunder Sect—that was the deepest insight he gained on his life's journey with thunder.
"Thunder is not just about destruction; thunder also has a will."

Each time he advanced, it wasn't through elixirs or gifts from his ancestors, but through his own blood and bones, through the pain of repeated tempering, using lightning and fire to break through his limits.

"I never win by leveraging external forces."

"I relied on myself—step by step—to walk the path that was struck by lightning."

He opened his eyes, his gaze becoming increasingly clear, and golden light slowly ignited within his heart.

—No longer calling upon the Abyss, no longer yearning for divine commands, no longer waiting for the future.

Now, he has to make this cut himself.

“If the gods do not respond to me, then I will break the divine sacrifice.”

As the wind and snow rose again, and the thunderous intent surged like a shooting star, he gently raised the Snow-Breaking Blade in his hand, his eyes like frost, his steps like mountains, and with one step, he stepped into the Starry Sacrifice Plate.

Before the lightning arrived, my heart was already ablaze with flames.

That's what he's accumulated along the way.

Lightning Mark. Lightning Fiend. Lightning Bone. Lightning Heart.

Every scar, every lightning strike, is now—his testimony to breaking through the formation.

The wind and snow raged, the sky was dim, and the lightning flashed like silk threads, as if weeping.

Dong'er tightly protected Shuoyue Bingpo with both hands, her tears still wet, but suddenly she looked up.

She saw—that familiar figure, step by step, heading towards the center of the "Seven Luminaries Sacrifice Array".

His back was tall and heavy, his armor cracked and his skin charred beneath the torn sleeve, yet he still moved forward silently, like a blade across the heavens and earth, refusing to retreat.

"Chu Ning!" Dong'er shouted suddenly, "What are you doing? Don't do anything foolish! Come back!!"

Her voice pierced through thunder and tore through wind and snow, trembling almost out of control.

But that figure didn't turn around.

He simply raised his right arm slowly—the prosthetic limb constructed from lightning, its surface shimmering with lightning patterns and glowing with a fiery purple light, like the bones of a broken star.

"Click."

The Thunder Fiend Prosthetic Limb broke off silently at the shoulder blade, and lightning scattered like shattered frost and snow.

In the next instant, it transformed into a bolt of lightning, drawing a perfect arc in the air as it hurtled away, heading straight for Dong'er.

"Shh!"

The air vibrated violently at that moment.

Dong'er instinctively reached out to catch it, but was surprised to find that the broken prosthetic limb suddenly exploded the moment it approached her body, turning into a hemispherical lightning shield, like a lightning spirit shield, enveloping her and Shuoyue Bingpo together.

Thunderous energy swirled around her, like the lingering will of a war god, using its last strength to build an indestructible barrier for her.

Dong'er stood there, stunned, her lips slightly parted, but she couldn't utter a single word.

The man, however, did not turn around.

The wind and snow lashed against his battered shoulders and back, crackling with lightning patterns and swirling with magical arrays. He left behind only a low, unwavering statement:

"Don't move." "Continue guiding the soul."

The voice was calm, yet as heavy as the will of heaven and earth, striking Dong'er's heart like a thunderbolt.

Her knees went weak and she almost collapsed to the ground, but her hands instinctively raised the Ice Soul high in front of her chest again.

Tears fell silently, splashing into the icy depths.

"You're crazy..." she whispered tremulously, but in the end she didn't call him back.

The soul fire began to gather once more.

The myriad souls in the world sensed that the guidance of the Holy Goddess's soul had been activated once again. Like a tide, they emerged from all directions of the snowfield, wandering, converging, and returning, all surging into the Shuoyue Ice Soul.

At that moment, Chu Ning raised his left hand and slowly opened his palm.

His arms were as hard as cast iron, and a tiny bolt of lightning spun like a dragon in his palm.

As the soul fire resonated once more, Chu Ning's mind returned to oneness, and a barely perceptible seed of lightning slowly materialized in his sea of ​​consciousness—it was the "Thunder Heart Core," a condensation of the five thunders after they were unified.

He held it in his palm, and the surrounding atmosphere began to change drastically.

The ball of lightning spun, crackling with lightning.

"Zizzi-"

The surrounding wind and snow swirled back, as if drawn by an invisible force, and the thunderous breath swept across the heavens and earth like a hurricane.

The ball of lightning was initially the size of a palm, then quickly shrank to the size of a thumb, and then shrank smaller and smaller, while the lightning became more and more intense—as if the voltage of the entire sky was concentrated in this one point.

The air trembled, the snow curtain began to peel away, and a vacuum seemed to form all around, with no wind and no sound, except for the core of the lightning ball, which burned like a star in his palm.

Dong'er looked up and saw that figure, like a thunder god, standing against the heavens, surrounded by lightning flames.

That lightning ball was not only the core of "killing intent," but also the core of his "all-or-nothing" strategy, which he compressed all his lightning power, all his fighting spirit, and all the meaning of "living."

He wasn't going to risk his life.

He wanted to use his life as a lamp to draw the gods to burn the heavens.

Dong'er must survive and bring Qingli back.

Her eyes were blurred with tears, but she did not look away. She gripped the Ice Soul tightly in her hand, and the Soul Bridge remained as stable as ever.

At this moment, it seemed as if only two people remained in the world.

One is the Thunder and Fire God of War, who goes against the grain.

One is a beacon guiding the soul, quietly remaining in place.

They remained silent, separated by the sacrificial altar.

But within that Thunder Fiend Armor, one sentence still echoed:

"I told you, with me here, I won't let you get hurt."

Then, the lightning cores on Chu Ning's left and right palms slowly rose into the air.

It does not pierce the enemy, nor attack the Seven Luminaries Sacrifice, nor destroy the sacrificial eye, nor annihilate evil spirits—it merely hovers in the high center of the sky, shining with a solitary, eerie five-colored light, like a soul stripped of its worldly ties, awaiting judgment.

Chu Ning stood between heaven and earth, looking up at the ball of lightning and fire.

Blood surged beneath his feet, the seven luminaries roared on either side, and soul fire fluctuated violently behind him.

But he remained unmoved.

"call out--!"

The lightning core shot upwards, like a star falling against the heavens, hovering directly above the Seven Luminaries Array, its five-colored lightning breath churning in the clouds like a storm.

For a moment, the world stood still.

His expression was extremely calm, his eyes like a lake reflecting thunder, reflecting the five cracks in his heart at that moment.

The Golden Crow represents rage, and his determination to slay millions of enemies atop the Great Wall, a lone army that refuses to retreat.

The black serpent represents resentment, the hatred of his blood relatives whose remains were nowhere to be found, and the unanswered prayers he offered before the mourning hall.

Snow Fox represents sorrow, the despair of Qing Li's fading beauty and the gradual extinguishing of her soul flame.

Soul Lion is Nian, the spirit that repeatedly stood in front of others to protect all living beings and their sense of belonging.

Nightmare Tiger, is fear, the whisper that echoes in his heart every sleepless night:
"Are you really sure you can handle this?"

—The five phantoms slowly emerged from the thunder core, swirling and roaring, like gods and ghosts, their five thoughts intertwined, forming his entire being.

At that moment, he made the most extreme decision:
He used his body as a cauldron, forged by the combined forces of the five thunderbolts, to temper his body into the ultimate form of thunder.

Dong'er suddenly looked up and saw his back with his left hand raised high. In that instant, she almost thought he was going to tear the sky apart.

"Chu Ning!! What are you doing?!"

Her voice was torn apart by the wind and snow, filled with terror, sobs, and an uncontrollable tremor.

She stood frozen in place, tears blurring her vision. She watched that figure walk step by step into the depths of the storm, lightning bolts scorching the icy plain beneath his feet, each step leaving a mark, each step a resounding echo.

She was too weak to shout anything more and could only force herself to swallow her tears.

But Chu Ning did not turn around.

"Has he gone mad?" Tianquan Wenqu exclaimed in shock.

The seven priests and the shadow of the fox spirit all subconsciously looked up at the slowly unfolding lightning core.

—And at that very moment.

"boom!"

The lightning core in the sky exploded.

The golden crow swooped down, its wings flapping, and lightning streaked across the sky like a torrent of fire.

The black serpent roared angrily, and dark lightning descended from the sky, penetrating Chu Ning's sea of ​​consciousness.

The snow fox howled mournfully, frost covered the land for miles, and its very soul was frozen solid.

The Soul Lion roared, the Heavenly Heart trembled, and the Thunder Drums pounded like hammers, shaking the Consciousness Platform.

The Nightmare Tiger roared, the void collapsed, as if a calamity had descended upon the world, peering into his soul.

Five thunderbolts struck simultaneously, directly hitting Chu Ning's body.

In that instant, heaven and earth almost collapsed.

The Seven Luminaries' priests were all horrified, halting their attacks and turning to look at the figure pierced by lightning.

"He...he wasn't attacking us..."

He is... attacking himself!

Wenqu's eyes widened in shock, and his throat trembled slightly: "Five thunderbolts striking the body simultaneously? That's not a divine body—that's a tribulation that burns the soul!"

Blood surged, and wisps of cursed runes emerged from the earth's veins. Even the two evil spirits in the sky slightly tilted their heads and opened their eyes.

They are observing and waiting.

After the lightning struck, the world seemed to freeze in time.

The snow stopped in mid-air.

It didn't dissipate, but rather stagnate. Each piece remained still in the wind, neither drifting nor falling, as if frozen in place by some force, becoming an upside-down painting.

The roar of the Blood River suddenly subsided, leaving only viscous, asphalt-like bubbles that slowly rose from the surface, twisting and then slowly bursting amidst the red waves.

The soul fires that had been surging like a tide now hovered in the air like a flock of startled birds, no longer daring to approach the figure scorched by the lightning.

The wind has calmed down.

Tianquan Wenqu stared blankly ahead, his bony fingers trembling slightly.

The Seven Luminaries Priests beside them subconsciously stopped their spells at that moment. For the first time, they realized that the lightning bolt contained not only power, but also something like a denial from the very origin of the world.

They denied their sacrifices.

Deny their power.

They even deny the significance of their existence in this world.

Chu Ning knelt in the snow, his left arm charred black and mangled. He looked up at the lightning core hanging high in the sky, where five-colored lightning intertwined, like the roar of five beasts or the turning of an ancient god.

But he did not make a move.

He just stared at it quietly and intently.

At this moment, he didn't think about "whether I can succeed" or "how much blood I have left." Not even "Qingli" or "Soulfire" flashed through his mind.

He was simply bewildered, as if a corner of the world had been torn apart, and he was the one falling into the rift.

At this moment, lightning and fire pierced through his body, tearing his meridians inch by inch, and every bone was collapsing and being rebuilt. His soul was as if it had been struck by five giant bells, and it was almost completely destroyed.

Thunder and fire descended from the sky, mercilessly tearing through every inch of his flesh and blood.

With meridians severed, periosteum ruptured, and soul feeling as if skinned and bones torn apart, every breath and every second was an excruciating ordeal.

But he did not fall.

No wailing.

He simply closed his eyes.

—Use your soul to receive this heavenly thunder.

Beyond the pain lies tranquility.

Thunder and fire transformed into countless illusions, surging from the depths of the sea of ​​consciousness, as if the tide of time were flowing backward.

He saw himself.

The self who fell and rose again and again on the Great Wall, the days and nights when he was electrocuted and coughed up blood but still gritted his teeth and refused to back down, the moments when his bones were broken but he still held the knife.

The golden crow's thunder scorched his shoulder, yet in the fire he saw himself wielding a sword to slay his enemy, his back to him proud and aloof.

At that moment, he understood that "anger" is not violence, but "moving forward even when there is nowhere left to retreat."

The lightning of the Xuan Snake was icy cold, like a swallowing abyss.

He coughed up blood from his soul, but also recalled the lingering dream of his father's body still warm and the altar devoid of incense.

He never forgives the indifference of fate, but he also never allows it to define him.

He understood that "resentment" was not weakness, but the power of "non-acceptance".

The thunder of the snow fox was gentle yet painful. It was the moment when Qing Li died, the instant he failed to grasp her fingertips.

He wanted to cry, but couldn't.

In his illusion, he embraced her soul, only to watch her turn into mist in his arms time and time again.

He finally realized that "wounds" are not signs of weakness, but rather the courage to love deeply even when the damage is irreversible.

The Soul Lion roared, and the wind and snow swirled. His sea of ​​consciousness seemed to split into several pieces, each representing one of the people he had protected along the way: the beggar in the cold city, the village protector in the forest, the disciples of his sect... He shielded them from axes, halberds, thunder, and fire, yet he never regretted it.

He finally saw that "thought" was not a concern, but a determination to "take responsibility".

Finally, there's the Nightmare Tiger.

That deep voice echoed in my ears again and again:

"Can you handle it?"

He was asked the question again and again, and remained silent each time. Until he finally nodded slightly.

"I... can handle it."

This is not confidence, nor arrogance, but the stubbornness and determination of someone who has traveled too far alone and carried too much burden.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew by.

Chu Ning took a light breath. The wind carried the scents of thunder, snow, blood, and the faint glow of souls.

A light gradually appeared in his eyes.

He realized that he was not a blank slate.

That moment of silence was not a loss of control—it was a reorganization after being tempered.

The thunder has not yet ceased; the heart has not yet sank to its death.

The heavens have not yet fallen, nor has he.

At this moment, his aura underwent a sudden qualitative change.

His bones trembled slightly, his meridians throbbed with thunder, and the chaotic thunder heart in his sea of ​​consciousness was slowly rotating. Five-colored thunder energy gathered into his body like a tide, and each stream of thunder was reshaping his origin.

Unexpectedly, Chu Ning's extremely dangerous method was actually the tempering of the Thunder Body's essence.

Above his sea of ​​consciousness, a ball of lightning suddenly solidified, with five bolts of lightning intertwined and swirling around his spiritual platform, as if the core of heaven and earth were being reforged within his body.

He seemed to have become "thunder" himself.

Lei was no longer his tool, nor his weapon.

Lei, that's him.

It was the voice of his anger, the echo of his resentment, and the belief that allowed him to rise again after being knocked down countless times.

His body is no longer just a body, but a vessel that carries "thoughts", "hatred", "hurt", "anger" and "fear".

The five-colored lightning transformed within his body, melting into one.

Thunderous Body - Great Completion.

Dong'er looked at him, her whole body trembling slightly, not because of the battle situation, but because Chu Ning's change was too frightening.

"He...he actually forged his body with Five Thunderbolts!"

She watched in disbelief as Chu Ning's shoulder armor peeled away inch by inch, the lightning patterns coiling around his entire body like snakes, reconstructing beneath his skin along the muscle lines and blood vessels.

His bones were breaking inch by inch, but were being tempered, repaired, and reborn by the Five Thunders. Imperceptible phantoms of thunder souls appeared around his body, their five colors converging and resonating like drums.

"As rumored, Lei Ji Dao Jun is indeed insane." Wen Qu's expression finally changed.

He stared at Chu Ning's changing aura, let out a low snort, his tone revealing a hint of suppressed jealousy:

"The Thunder Body is born for battle. Legend has it that it takes three tribulations to temper one realm, and ordinary people can hardly advance even after a hundred years..."

"But he dared to use the Five Thunderbolts to enter his body; he was playing with his life."

"Anyone with a Thunder Body who tries to forcibly refine a Thunder Core below the fifth rank will have their five senses shattered and their Qi Sea burned. Only by... focusing their mind and soul can they achieve the unification of the Five Thunders."

His gaze was fixed on the "Thunder Heart" on Chu Ning's chest, where thunder souls surged and thunder and fire echoed.

On the other side of the Blood River, the Seven Luminaries' Sacrificers fell silent.

For the first time, they saw the prototype of "Thunder Lord" in this white-haired, homosexual man.

The fascia on the exoskeleton was wrapped in layers of lightning, and the muscles were like woven lightning brocade. Every inch was a miracle of reconstruction after being broken.

He slowly opened his eyes.

Within sight, the heavens and earth were still boiling, the killing intent of the seven luminaries pressed down like a mountain, and evil spirits looked down upon the earth.

But he was unusually calm.

"So... true strength is not about overpowering others, but about being able to face yourself."

"I am not God's chosen one."

"I'm just an ordinary person who has persevered through thick and thin."

"But even mortals..."

"I too—can pierce through the veil of your false gods."

He took a step forward, and the lightning energy was as sharp as a blade, causing the soul fire to surge backward.

—The Five Thunders of Heaven, born from Nirvana.

Chu Ning has truly completed the tempering of his lightning body.

Without relying on external forces or external resources, relying solely on oneself.

At this moment, he truly had the capital to contend with the Seven Luminaries, the qualification to fight against divine authority, and the power to bring Qingli back to his side.

The heavens and earth still roared.

But at the center of that lightning, the wind and snow had stopped.

Chu Ning stood amidst the lingering echoes of the Five Thunder Waterfall's collapse, his body covered in scorch marks, with lightning and fire coursing through his bone membranes, as if a slumbering thunder beast lurked beneath every inch of his skin.

His breathing was very light, as if he had just died.

Can take a breath.

"Click."

That was the sound of Thunder Bone cracking, but it wasn't destruction; rather, it was... rebirth.

Deep within the bone marrow, streaks of lightning emerged from within, like vines breaking free of their shells, spreading upwards along the meridians.

Deep within Chu Ning's Qi Sea, the Spirit Pool, which had been nearly dried up by the pressure, suddenly erupted with a new surge of true essence under the surging power of thunder and evil.

The thunder core above the spiritual platform is no longer just a container for storing power, but a source of thunder that actively radiates throughout the body and resonates with heaven and earth.

His consciousness rose from within, and a strange yet profound echo appeared above his aura.

That was the resonance range of the Thunder Soul after the four paths of Thunder Bone, Thunder Tendon, Thunder Skin, and Thunder Heart were synchronized.

Chu Ning's cultivation aura finally slowly crossed the long-standing gate of life and death under the pressure of lightning and amidst the thunder and fire.

Above the seventh rank, the sixth rank has already been reached.

This was not achieved through divine medicine or magical artifacts, but rather by using his own body as a cauldron, the Five Thunders as medicine, and the land of death as a sacrifice, to forge his body and soul with the power of one person, forcibly crossing the boundary.

The wind and snow rose again, and the thunder roared like waves.

Chu Ning slowly raised his head, took a step forward, and lightning instantly shattered the sky, cracking the ground three inches deep. His voice was as deep as the pulse of thunder, reverberating from the ground into the enemy's chest.

"Anyone below the sixth rank will fall under my blade." He murmured, and thunderous sounds followed his words, causing the Soul Bridge to tremble and the spell array to quiver slightly.

At this moment, even Dong'er suddenly raised her head.

There were no more flaws or lightning marks on his body; instead, he was covered by an extremely sharp yet restrained lightning pattern.

Those thunder patterns, like engraved marks carved into his bones, wound their way from his shoulder blades, back, and sternum all the way to the broken sleeve on his right arm, as if they had forged a thunderous oath within his body.

The expression of the Seven Luminaries Ritualists in the distance suddenly changed.

"……impossible!"

"He actually withstood the Five Thunder Punishments and... he even advanced to the next rank?!"

"Is this a gift from the gods...? No, this is not divine power, this is not something that any ritualistic practice can achieve!"

Tianxuan Xuange suddenly stepped forward, his body writhing with crimson flames of fury, his fighting spirit soaring as he attempted to press Chu Ning once more.

But at that moment, Chu Ning slowly raised his eyes.

His right eye shone with a purple flame, lightning patterns appeared between his brows, and a sinister smile crept across his lips.
"God? The 'god' you speak of is an evil god formed by devouring soul fire, trampling on living beings, and distorting the void."

"And I, I honed myself inch by inch with a single thought, a knife, and a thunderous heart."

His voice was as calm as the wind after a rainstorm.

The next moment.

His figure suddenly disappeared.

"call out--!"

The space exploded, and a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, instantly piercing through the triple sealing domain and entering the center of the altar.

Tian Shu·Dong Ming's pupils contracted:
"too fast!"

"He's more than twice as fast as before!"

The moment Chu Ning broke through to the sixth grade of the lower level of the Thunder Extreme Body, he not only received the blessing of the Thunder Origin, but also more than doubled his Thunder Aura, and completely broke the reaction limit of a mortal body to the speed of lightning.

A bolt of lightning struck, causing tremors in the soul's sea.

With the next cut, the broken snow reopened.

That blade of light, like a crack in the sky, fell from above Tianquan Wenqu's head.

Wenqu roared, and the Xuanming Seal forcibly spun, attempting to recall the Seven Luminaries to protect it in unison.

But just as the blade was about to strike, he suddenly felt a jolt in his heart:
That wasn't the "Breaking Formation" sword.

Rather, it was to kill the "source" of this formation.

"You...you really intend to sever my very essence?"

Chu Ning's voice boomed like thunder:

"What you are offering is your soul."

"I slay a god."

"This strike is to settle accounts for the countless soul flames that you refined and sacrificed."

(End of this chapter)