Chapter 172
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Chapter 172: Mountain River Pill Furnace! Ascending to Heaven Calamity
The valley was unique.
From a distance, Zhang Yang was surprised to find that the valley resembled a giant pill furnace.
Upon closer inspection, he noticed traces of Forbidden Law Patterns hidden deep within the crevices of the mountain walls—precisely where the black lightning lingered.
Judging from the overall scene, a legendary supreme pill refining technique surfaced in his mind.
"Mountain River Pill Refining Technique!"
Zhang Yang was astonished.
He had once thought the Mountain River Pill Refining Technique was merely a legend. Later, Xue Feishuang and Yuluan explicitly told him that their palace master in the Green Sparrow Palace was sworn siblings with a powerful alchemist who had mastered some basics of this technique. However, that alchemist never stayed in the Green Sparrow Palace; instead, he wandered the world in search of the complete technique and eventually disappeared.
The Mountain River Pill Refining Technique had originated before the Eternal Night—an unparalleled method left behind by immortals.
This method used the earth and mountains as the pill furnace, the Immortal Crow Fire beneath the ground as the alchemical fire, and the gathered Essence of Heaven and Earth as its foundation. With the power of mountain and river energy as the furnace’s strength—further enhanced by supreme secret techniques to activate it—once completed, it was said to be capable of concocting immortal pills.
Surprisingly, this place was a Mountain River Pill Furnace, unique to the Mountain River Pill Refining Technique.
Zhang Yang leaped into the valley, landing before a crack in the rock. Carefully, he examined the traces of the Forbidden Law Patterns.
Then, he reached out and peeled away the outer layer, revealing a small, intact portion underneath.
"It doesn’t seem very old."
"These outer layers appear to have been sealed deliberately—to prevent others from noticing."
"It must be due to the dispersal of the heavenly tribulations. Some of its power must have fused with the Mountain River Pill Refining Technique, allowing it to manifest here."
Curious, he dug through the outer layers where the black lightning lingered, exposing more Forbidden Law Patterns.
Then, he focused on sensing, listening, and observing while reinforcing his perception with his Nine Extremes True Essence.
As the wind blew, it stirred the black lightning and activated the Forbidden Law Patterns, producing a low, resounding Dragon’s Roar.
"Is this refining a dragon pill?"
"This place belongs to the Burial Dragon Forbidden Ground… It’s said that True Dragons were buried here before the Eternal Night. Did that powerful alchemist choose this location to awaken the Mountain River Pill Refining Technique because he found traces of dragon blood?"
Zhang Yang was deeply intrigued.
He pondered for a moment. If he compiled this information and shared it with the alchemists in the Vast Forest, it could significantly enhance their pill refining abilities.
A powerful pill refining technique would provide the Vast Forest with enough leverage to contend with other forces in the Southern Region.
After a long period of observation and analysis, he finally grasped what he could from this place.
Satisfied, he settled down, preparing to undergo his tribulation.
"This place can absorb black lightning… If I undergo tribulation here, will this valley react to the lightning tribulation?"
"If it truly activates… Never mind, there’s no need to indulge in such hopes; it’s not very realistic."
He took a deep breath, maintaining a calm mindset.
He sat down where he was.
This time, he did not need Spirit Stones; his Nine Extremes True Essence was already immensely full, ready for a breakthrough with just a thought.
All he needed now was to adjust his mindset and stabilize his state to their optimal condition.
Then, he triggered the Ascending to Heaven Calamity!
Boom~~
Almost the moment he finished adjusting and attempted to break through, a thunderous roar echoed across the clear sky.
Immediately, a bolt of black lightning, ten meters thick, descended at incredible speed, like a long-suppressed black python, furiously crashing down toward him.
Zhang Yang had learned from Lou Pingfan that the first Ascending to Heaven calamity had been blocked by the Daybreak Phoenix Ruins. As a result, the next tribulation would undoubtedly be stronger than usual.
However, he had not expected this calamity to carry such an overwhelming sense of brutality, killing intent, and urgency.
It felt as if heaven itself was aware.
It seemed as though the heavens had been watching him, waiting for him to step forward.
The sky was still clear, yet a bolt of black lightning had struck without a single cloud in sight—one could only imagine how urgent this was.
Prepared for the ordeal, Zhang Yang was no longer worried, anxious, or uneasy as he had been before. Instead, he felt calm, his bloodline awakening as his killing intent surged. Anger boiled within him, like an ancient resentment, a deep hatred toward the heavens themselves.
"Roar!"
He let out a long howl and surged upward, charging straight toward the ten-meter-wide black lightning.
Boom!
His ten divine powers roared, radiating golden light, thunder, fire, and freezing cold, spreading over thirty meters. This power far surpassed that of his first lightning tribulation.
With a single strike, he shattered the black lightning.
Boom!
The black lightning erupted.
As expected, although much of it dissipated upon impact, some of its energy flowed into the valley’s pill furnace, shattering parts of the mountainside and revealing more Forbidden Law Patterns. The black lightning combined with the patterns, showing signs of activating their latent power.
The first strike had merely been the beginning.
The second bolt followed swiftly.
Dark clouds finally emerged, dimming the sky, as rolling thunder echoed in the distance. Lightning flashed wildly, while wind, rain, and hail swept across the land in a violent storm.
This time, the lightning bolt was a staggering thirty meters thick, and Zhang Yang could feel the surge of chaotic emotions within it.
Yet again, he charged forward.
Boom!
The second bolt was shattered as well, but this time, the impact sent Zhang Yang crashing to the ground.
The moment his feet touched the earth, the sky became completely obscured. Black clouds churned over a hundred miles, roaring with endless black lightning, writhing like a swarm of furious pythons.
The third, fourth, and fifth bolts struck in rapid succession.
The three consecutive strikes almost merged into one, forming an even more terrifying force.
Without hesitation, Zhang Yang took out the Thousand Wolves Pillar and leaped into the air once more.
The Three Steps of Mountains and Rivers allowed him to treat the sky as if it were solid ground. With three steps, he soared high, unleashing a series of consecutive strikes.
The storm raged, rain and hail crashing down like a tidal wave, mixed with the shattered remnants of black lightning. The violent energy tore at the Mountain River Pill Furnace, triggering the Forbidden Law Patterns to emit a faint glow, teetering on the edge of activation.
Zhang Yang plummeted to the ground but managed to remain standing. Though his clothes were tattered, his body covered in wounds, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, his blood energy surged fiercely. His chest heaved, but his grip on the Thousand Wolves Pillar remained unwavering.
As before, the pain and injury only served to awaken his bloodline further, intensifying his killing intent. His hair flew wildly, and a mysterious light flickered in his eyes—an ancient, primal force rising from the depths of his lineage.
His blood energy seeped from his pores.
His strength, body, and fighting spirit continued to rise, fully stimulated by his bloodline.
The sixth strike of the Six Realms calamity descended.
This time, it was thunder—yet, at the same time, not thunder.
The black lightning twisted and condensed, taking the shape of a massive square seal, exuding a ferocious aura, as though a terrifying beast lay dormant within.
The enormous seal crashed down with lethal force!
Unlike the previous strikes, this time, Zhang Yang could not rise to meet it. The oppressive might of the lightning tribulation pinned him down, pressing upon him like an immovable mountain.
With no other option, he planted his feet firmly on the ground and swung the Thousand Wolves Pillar in defiance.
Crack!
The lightning tribulation’s massive seal shattered once more.
Zhang Yang let out a muffled groan, staggering backward ten steps. The sheer force crushed the earth beneath him, revealing even denser and more intricate Forbidden Law Patterns.
The shattered fragments of the lightning seal rained down in a torrent of black lightning, which seeped into the exposed patterns.
At that moment—
The entire Mountain River Pill Furnace began to reveal itself.
Countless Forbidden Law Patterns glowed, pulsating with life as they stirred from dormancy.
Zhang Yang coughed up a mouthful of blood but remained unfazed. Instead, he roared into the storm—
"Again!"
The second Ascending to Heaven calamity far surpassed the first.
Yet, the reason Zhang Yang had not suffered severe injuries was simple—within the Daybreak Phoenix Ruins, he had forcefully pushed through his realm, breaking the shackles at the ninth level of the Touching Heaven Realm.
This had caused his Nine Extremes True Essence to grow threefold, leading to a dramatic increase in his combat power.
He clenched his fists. His body was covered in wounds, but his spirit remained unbroken.
He looked up at the sky, his gaze unwavering.
"Old Lou said the destined three calamities come with nine consecutive strikes each time."
"Now, six strikes have passed, and three remain."
Zhang Yang took a deep breath.
He knew that starting from the sixth strike, a distinct change had occurred—the power of the tribulation had qualitatively improved.
The seventh strike followed closely.
It took the form of a lightning spear.
The rolling dark clouds in the sky suddenly parted.
A black lightning spear, a hundred meters long, emerged. Its surface crackled with violent thunder and exuded an overwhelming killing intent, as if heaven itself had been enraged.
The lightning spear, carrying the immense power of thunder, surged down from the sky like a vanguard leading an army into battle.
Zhang Yang howled madly. His hair, instead of falling, flew upwards, defying gravity as a radiant golden light surged from his body. Gripping the Thousand Wolves Pillar, he hurled it forward with tremendous force.
If there was any technique involved, it was this—throw it enough times, and it became a technique.
The Thousand Wolves Pillar, infused with his ten divine powers, met the incoming attack head-on.
His body burned with violent bloodlust, his killing intent and fighting spirit surging wildly. With a powerful stomp, he unleashed the Three Steps of Mountains and Rivers, once again charging into the sky.
