338: The terrifying ninth tribulation lightning

Time seemed to lose its meaning within this massive Heavenly Tribulation.

No one knew how much time had passed, but the tribulation clouds in the sky grew increasingly thick, pressing down overhead like something solid.

The layers of clouds churned more violently as multicolored lightning gathered within, faintly forming a massive lightning pool. Within the pool's depths, countless bolts of lightning darted like dragons and snakes, emitting a suffocating pressure.

A pressure more terrifying than any before it spread out, causing the yellow sands of the entire Death Desert to stop flowing. Even the air seemed frozen, leaving only the rumbling of the churning tribulation clouds echoing throughout heaven and earth.

He looked up, his pupils suddenly constricting.

In the center of that lightning pool, a chaotic-colored light was condensing. He could clearly feel that this time, the lightning was enough to threaten his life!

"I can't just sit here and wait for death!"

Situ Jun took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. With a thought, a virtual panel that only he could see appeared before his eyes.

His mind quickly scanned the virtual screen, finally stopping on an ancient bronze shield.

This bronze shield was named the "Mountain Suppressing Shield." It was a High Grade Treasure Artifact, its surface covered in profound runes. It possessed an innate protective Divine Ability—Mountain Suppression—which could borrow the power of heaven and earth to form an illusory mountain and block powerful attacks.

"Exchange!"

As Situ Jun's thought fell, his long-accumulated heavenly luck value vanished instantly. A golden light flew out from the System Mall and landed in his hand.

The Mountain Suppressing Shield felt icy to the touch. The runes on its surface pulsed as if alive, emitting an aura as heavy as a mountain.

Simultaneously, his left hand quickly formed hand seals. One by one, golden Formation runes flew from his fingertips and landed on the sand dune beneath his feet.

The runes spread rapidly, enveloping the entire sand dune and forming a massive Formation.

This was an ancient defensive Formation he had previously obtained from a System lottery—the Nine Heavens Spirit Gathering Array.

Although this array could not directly block attacks, it could forcibly gather Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to provide a Cultivator with a continuous supply of spiritual power, making it the perfect choice for a battle of attrition.

As soon as the Mountain Suppressing Shield was summoned, it swelled to several meters in size before Situ Jun. The runes on the shield's surface flowed like living things, emitting an aura as heavy as a mountain, as if it could withstand the charge of ten thousand horses.

Below, the Nine Heavens Spirit Gathering Array also suddenly accelerated. The thin Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi was forcibly pulled into visible currents, surging into his body like a hundred rivers returning to the sea. This barely replenished the spiritual power he had exhausted from tanking the eighth Lightning Tribulation, causing his aura to become full once more.

"Boom—!"

At that moment, the tribulation clouds above the heavens completely boiled over!

Multicolored lightning collided and fused violently within the clouds, finally transforming into a chaotic-colored lightning pillar thirty zhang in diameter!

The lightning pillar was pitch black yet faintly shimmered with multicolored light. Within the pillar, not only did the Five Elements Origin power surge wildly, but countless tiny Divine Chains of Order were also entwined. It was like an inescapable net woven by the Heavenly Dao, emitting an absolute will of "obey and live, rebel and die."

"Nirvana Divine Lightning!"

Situ Jun's voice carried a hint of trembling.

He had once seen records of this kind of lightning in ancient texts—Nirvana Divine Lightning was a Heavenly Tribulation of the Void Refining Stage.

Now, it had appeared in a Soul Transformation Stage Heavenly Tribulation. As the final and most terrifying stage of the Soul Transformation period, it contained the power of nirvana and Rebirth. Once struck, unless one possessed Heaven-Defying Magic Treasures or Divine Abilities, death was certain!

The chaotic lightning pillar, carrying a world-destroying momentum, crashed down toward Situ Jun!

Situ Jun's pupils constricted. The Dragon-Phoenix Grand Derivation True Scripture within his body operated to its limit, and the hundreds of acupoints throughout his body opened wide. Golden spiritual power burned fiercely like fire, enveloping him in a layer of dazzling light.

His left hand pressed firmly against the back of the Mountain Suppressing Shield, completely linking his spiritual power with the shield's runes. His right hand formed a profound hand seal, ready to burn his Essence Blood at any moment.

This was a life-saving technique common among Cultivators in the cultivation world known as the "Blood Burning Art." If even the Mountain Suppressing Shield and the Nine Heavens Spirit Gathering Array could not withstand the attack, he could only seek a slim chance of survival by burning his Essence Blood.

"Mountain Suppression!"

With Situ Jun's low shout, the runes on the Mountain Suppressing Shield suddenly lit up, and an illusory phantom of a mountain appeared on the shield's surface.

The mountain was towering and majestic, as if it could support the heavens. The phantom connected with the desert beneath his feet, appearing as if it wanted to turn the entire Death Desert into the mountain's Foundation to withstand the impact of the Nirvana Divine Lightning.

But in the next second, the chaotic lightning pillar crashed heavily onto the shield's surface!

"Crack—!"

A piercing sound of shattering instantly echoed across the desert, as if heaven and earth themselves were splitting apart at that moment.

The mountain phantom on the Mountain Suppressing Shield shattered like glass, its fragments instantly annihilated within the lightning.

The runes on the shield's surface dimmed at a visible rate, and fine cracks spread from the point of contact, covering the entire shield like a spiderweb.

Situ Jun felt an unstoppable force surge into his body through his arm. His internal organs felt as if they had been struck by a heavy hammer. A sweet taste filled his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of Essence Blood onto the shield.

The Essence Blood landed on the runes, but instead of helping, it accelerated their dimming.

"No! I can't block it!"

Situ Jun steeled his heart, a look of resolve flashing in his eyes.

He violently detonated the Mountain Suppressing Shield—rather than letting the shield be destroyed by the Lightning Tribulation, it was better to detonate it proactively and use the power of the explosion to weaken the tribulation's might!

"Boom—!"

A deafening roar spread across the entire Death Desert, more violent than any previous collision.

Multicolored lightning exploded instantly, forming a massive energy storm. The surrounding yellow sand was swept up tens of thousands of zhang high, forming a sand pillar that pierced the clouds. Even distant sand dunes were blown away by the storm, revealing the stones beneath.

Situ Jun's figure was sent flying by the energy storm. The golden protective light on his body shattered inch by inch, blood continuously seeped from the corners of his mouth, and his bones made a cringing "crack-crack" sound, as if they would break at any moment.

"Spirit Gathering Array! Operate at full power!"

Situ Jun endured the intense pain and roared in his heart.

The Nine Heavens Spirit Gathering Array below erupted with brilliant golden light, forcibly pulling in the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi from a hundred miles around. It flowed into his body like trickling streams, supporting his protective light so it wouldn't be crushed by the lightning.

But the power of the Nirvana Divine Lightning far exceeded his imagination. The Nine Heavens Spirit Gathering Array lasted only a moment before its runes shattered inch by inch in the lightning. Its core was directly annihilated by the lightning's power, and it could no longer supply Situ Jun with spiritual power.

In that brief half-breath of time, a sharp light flared in Situ Jun's eyes.

He suddenly erupted with all his remaining spiritual and physical power. As if vanishing, he instantly entered the space pearl.

The chaotic lightning pillar grazed his shoulder as it fell. Although it didn't hit him directly, the aftershock still slammed him heavily into a mountain inside the pearl.

"Pfft—!"

He spat out another mouthful of blood, his vision darkening in waves, and the spiritual power in his body was in complete disarray.