181: Chapter 181 Chu Feng's Breakthrough

Xuanming stared intently at the desiccated corpses floating on the Blood River.

His Divine Sense swept out, probing deep beneath the sand dunes.

Immediately, his eyes lit up.

'Little Six, use your Blood River to take in all these corpses!'

Chu Feng was taken aback, but he didn't ask why. He turned and charged towards the army of armored corpses.

Facing the seemingly endless tide of corpses amidst the swirling yellow sand alone, he showed no fear.

A bloody hue spread beneath his feet, extending far into the distance.

The Blood River churned, no longer shattering the corpses but embracing the entire army like a nurturing mother river, taking them all in.

As more and more corpses were absorbed, Chu Feng clearly began to run low on magical power.

Before Chu Feng could take a Medicinal Pill to recover, a small green figure floated above his head, channeling Life Qi and wood energy into him.

Chu Feng refused, 'Don't! It's too wasteful.'

Little Wood didn't listen; it dared not cut corners on its master's command.

Chu Feng looked back and saw his sworn brothers following closely behind him, their eyes fixed on him with undisguised concern.

A warm feeling rose in his heart, dispersing much of the heavy, self-blaming gloom he had been carrying.

Turning back to face the armored corpses, a flash of red light passed through Chu Feng's eyes.

The Blood River, which had already reached its limit, expanded again by several miles.

Ye Fan and the others frowned deeply. 'This won't do. If Big Brother Chu Feng continues like this, not even Little Wood will be able to save his Foundation.'

Xiao Tian stepped forward to intervene. At worst, they could just wait outside Mingsha Ridge for the demonic cultivator the old man wanted. There was no need to take such risks.

'Don't disturb him.' Xuanming's gaze was flippant, but his tone was uncharacteristically serious.

Chen Xuanfeng pulled Xiao Tian back, staring at Xuanming. 'Reason?'

Xuanming kept his eyes fixed on Chu Feng ahead. 'He blames himself for his brother's death and has developed a Heart Demon. If we don't let him exhaust himself protecting us, that Heart Demon won't be dispelled. It will become a major obstacle on his future Cultivation path.'

Chen Xuanfeng and the others fell silent.

Xiao Tian's brow furrowed tightly. 'A Heart Demon? How could Big Brother Chu Feng... It's not his fault at all. It's just fate playing tricks. Who could have known Bai Ji was...' He was our brother!

Chen Xuanfeng grumbled, 'I think the one most to blame is our dad, sowing his seeds everywhere and not even recognizing them himself.'

Xuanming nodded in strong agreement, then spread his hands. 'We know that, but Chu Feng just can't let it go.'

Everyone fell silent, forced to watch helplessly as Chu Feng held the front line alone.

Again and again, he pushed past his limits, expanding the Blood River, swallowing armored corpse after armored corpse.

At the edges of the Blood River, the bloody hue grew dim, flickering in and out of visibility.

Chu Feng was now running purely on willpower, acting entirely on instinct.

Within the Blood River, the crouching blood soul shadows slowly began to surface.

The Wind Beast Blood Soul Shadow violently opened its maw and let out a piercing roar.

The protective barrier Chen Xuanfeng had formed with Sword Qi lasted only half a breath before shattering completely.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!...*

Chen Xuanfeng was forced back several steps, while the others were sent tumbling through the air!

Jin Fugui, with his physically weakest constitution, remained completely unmoved by the Wind Beast's gale, thanks to the top-tier fourth-grade Magical Artifact wheelchair his parents had poured their all into crafting for him.

Chen Xuanfeng spat out a mouthful of sand. His eyes instinctively swept the area, and seeing no one had noticed, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Brushing the yellow sand from his robes as if nothing had happened, Chen Xuanfeng flashed to a position in front of Jin Fugui.

He struck a pose as if one man could hold off ten thousand.

'Big Brother Jin!' Xiao Tian's urgent voice rang out from behind.

'All is well. I'm here!' Chen Xuanfeng's voice was low and steady.

He sent a warning nudge with his Divine Sense towards Jin Fugui.

Jin Fugui smiled without speaking.

Seeing Chen Xuanfeng standing guard before Jin Fugui, Xiao Tian and the others collectively sighed in relief.

Xuanming alerted them, 'Look, quickly.'

Following Xuanming's cue, they looked.

They saw that the number of armored corpses in the Blood River had greatly diminished.

Xiao Tian's expression changed slightly. 'Where did those corpses go? Did they return to Mingsha Ridge? Then wouldn't that mean...' All of Big Brother Chu Feng's effort was for nothing?

Xuanming shook his head, his gaze locked on Chu Feng's Blood River.

'The vanished corpses didn't return to Mingsha Ridge. They were pulverized by the Wind Beast's attack and merged into the Blood River.'

'Huh?' What was going on now?

Xuanming watched the gradually solidifying, armor-bearing Wind Beast Blood Soul Shadow, unable to suppress the excitement in his voice.

'It's the Wind Beast Blood Soul Shadow. It's absorbing those corpses to solidify and strengthen itself!'

Chen Xuanfeng and the others observed carefully and noticed a constant flow of Blood River Qi pouring into the Wind Beast Blood Soul Shadow.

As time passed, the Wind Beast Blood Soul Shadow's body was no longer composed entirely of blood and water; they could even see flesh, scales, and armor forming!

'This... this is...'

'Big Brother Chu Feng's aura... it's so powerful!' Xiao Tian couldn't help but exclaim.

Only then did everyone shift their gaze from the blood soul shadow to Chu Feng himself.

'Is he... about to Breakthrough?' Chen Xuanfeng raised an eyebrow, his feelings somewhat complex.

Among the sons Cultivating their father's Cultivation Technique, he would no longer be the only one at the Golden Core stage.

Tribulation clouds gathered.

Xiao Tian suppressed the eager trembling of his body.

He really, *really* wanted to charge into those tribulation clouds and unleash his skills!

*Rumble...*

A Lightning Tribulation as thick as a bucket slammed down.

Chu Feng stood beneath the tribulation clouds, making no move to defend himself, allowing the lightning to strike his body.

The Blood River churned violently.

The terrifying power of the tribulation lightning was distributed throughout the Blood River. The blood soul shadows within shrieked and hissed before dissolving into nothingness.

Many of the corpses were charred to cinders by the lightning, turning into tiny black granules as the Blood River rolled.

The blood soul shadows reformed, and the black granules actually adhered to them, making the newly formed shadows seem as if they had grown real flesh and blood.

*BOOM!*

The second bolt of lightning struck.

Chu Feng still showed no reaction or defense.

'This won't do. The power of this Lightning Tribulation is too weak. It's completely insufficient to allow Chu Feng, who has pushed past his limits, to transform and achieve Core Formation.'

Xuanming's words left everyone utterly stunned.

Chen Xuanfeng was skeptical. 'Failing a Breakthrough even after surviving the Lightning Tribulation? I've never heard of such a thing.'

Xuanming chuckled lightly, showing no mercy. 'That's because your knowledge is shallow.'

Chen Xuanfeng wasn't angered. Thinking of those from the Hidden Sword Immortal Sect, he knew his own path of Immortal Cultivation hadn't taken him very far yet.

'So what should we do?' Chen Xuanfeng asked humbly.

Xuanming was somewhat surprised. This guy seemed quite proud; why was he showing no reaction to the mockery?

Little did he know, Chen Xuanfeng regarded him as an elder brother. In the eyes of the Manifestation True Lord, being lectured by an elder brother was only proper.

If an outsider tried mocking him, regardless of whether they had a point, they'd taste his sword first!

Xuanming set aside his strange thoughts and looked towards Xiao Tian, who was restraining himself.

'Little Eighth Brother, no need to hold back. Go! Double the power of the Lightning Tribulation.'

Xiao Tian was shocked and doubtful. 'This...'

'Trust me!' Xuanming's sudden seriousness was a stark contrast to his previous frivolity, making him convincing.

Xiao Tian gritted his teeth. 'Alright! I'll go!'

He transformed into a bolt of lightning and shot up into the tribulation clouds in the sky.

The tribulation clouds seemed to freeze for an instant.

The next moment.

*RUMBLE...*

The tribulation clouds instantly expanded several times over.

A Lightning Tribulation as thick as a millstone slammed down with terrifying force!

*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!—*

The entire area covered by the Blood River turned into a domain of lightning. Or rather, the entirety of Mingsha Ridge became one.

A shrill, feminine shriek erupted from beneath the ground.

'Ah!'

The sound, however, was cut off in the very next instant, its presence vanishing completely.