Chapter 159
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Chapter 159: Crossing the Tribulation
Divine Thunder fell from the storm cloud, violently striking the Divine Feather Vulture King’s back.
Boom!
Thunder roared as electric sparks lit the sky.
Feathers on the Vulture King’s back shattered into fragments that scattered through the air.
Yet the beast’s assault didn’t slow—it kept charging forward relentlessly.
This surprised Ye Yun. Though Divine Thunder Annihilation possessed immense power, it only stripped some feathers without altering the creature’s attack path.
Ye Yun’s brow twitched, but his eyes showed no fear. He launched the purple light shadow toward the Vulture King’s head while leaping upward with renewed speed.
Clang!
The Purple Shadow Sword struck the bald crown of the Vulture King’s head, producing sparks but failing to pierce its skin.
The beast paused briefly before resuming its charge. Even with Ye Yun’s strong physique, those razor-sharp claws and beak would prove fatal if they connected.
At the critical moment, Ye Yun’s ascending body suddenly accelerated, transforming into a fleeting remnant shadow that narrowly evaded the attack.
Swift Phoenix Feather!
This medium-grade spiritual weapon served only to enhance agility and speed, making it easy to refine. Ye Yun had casually fused with it upon reaching the first level of Qi refining, requiring almost no effort.
Now this overlooked tool proved invaluable—boosting Ye Yun’s speed by twenty percent allowed his last-moment escape from the enraged beast.
Delight surged through Ye Yun. The Swift Phoenix Feather’s effect surpassed expectations, granting him swallow-like lightness and seamless aerial maneuvers.
Pivoting impossibly mid-air, Ye Yun recalled the Purple Shadow Sword to his palm and thrust it skyward again.
The lingering storm cloud thickened anew, thunder rumbling ominously.
Without hesitation, Ye Yun unleashed three Divine Thunder Annihilations in quick succession. The attacks merged effortlessly into the cloud, where three Divine Thunders flickered among the lightning.
All Thunder Spirit Qi drained from Ye Yun’s body, leaving him powerless to strike again.
Yet joy overwhelmed him—this accidental move had revealed an advanced form of Divine Thunder Annihilation. Would the three thunders combine into a single devastating blast, or strike consecutively to overwhelm foes?
Having missed its target, the Divine Feather Vulture King beat its wings and wheeled toward Ye Yun, eyes blazing with rage.
Suddenly, the beast glanced upward. Its fury turned to sheer terror.
Hoooonk!
The Vulture King’s panicked cry echoed as it stared between Ye Yun and the storm cloud, desperation replacing its earlier ferocity.
Puzzled, Ye Yun followed its gaze—then froze in shock.
The storm cloud containing three Divine Thunders had swollen to multiple times its original size. The gathered thunders had vanished completely.
Instead of dispersing, the cloud grew darker and heavier, ink-black with flickering lightning and continuous thunder.
"How?" Ye Yun whispered, unable to comprehend.
Electric snakes writhed within the cloud, yet no trace remained of his three Divine Thunders—as if devoured entirely.
Boom!
A violet lightning bolt suddenly tore through the sky, mercilessly striking the Divine Feather Vulture King.
The Divine Feather Vulture King emitted a low cry brimming with immense fury and resentment.
Lightning struck instantly, allowing no time for adjustment, crashing precisely onto its back.
Crack!
A shower of feathers exploded outward, scattering fragments across the sky.
A single lightning strike had stripped nearly all feathers from the Divine Feather Vulture King, exposing its bald flesh.
This divine thunder’s power surpassed Ye Yun’s Divine Thunder Annihilation by at least tenfold.
"Now this is true Divine Thunder Annihilation. If the Thundercloud Lightning Sword’s third form possessed such might, it would truly qualify as a Celestial Technique," Ye Yun murmured, awestruck. Never had he imagined divine thunder could wield such force – this far exceeded anything the sword technique’s third form should produce.
This was the primordial law’s power, the very essence of heavenly will.
Ye Yun now realized the storm cloud above represented the heavenly tribulation for the Divine Feather Vulture King’s transformation into a spirit beast.
Whether this tribulation arrived naturally or was triggered prematurely by Ye Yun’s three Divine Thunder Annihilation strikes remained unclear.
Having endured the first heavenly strike, the Vulture King glared venomously at Ye Yun while monitoring the lightning-charged storm cloud.
Its gaze now carried intensified emotions – wrath, bitterness, and something indefinable.
Ye Yun sensed human-like complexity in that stare. Did surviving a tribulation enhance its intelligence?
"Fascinating," Ye Yun remarked coolly, hands clasped behind his back.
Yu Minghong and Duan Chenfeng approached gingerly, their shattered right shoulders mending through medicinal pills.
"Brother Ye, what’s happening to the Vulture King?"
"Little Yu, you claim Great Qin heritage yet lack basic perception? This beast undergoes tribulation! We should strike while it’s vulnerable!"
Ye Yun raised a restraining hand. "Foolishness. This tribulation’s power dwarfs my Divine Thunder Annihilation. A single stray spark would annihilate you."
"Merely suggesting," Duan Chenfeng shrugged, then winced as pain lanced through his injuries.
Yu Minghong pressed, "What’s our course?"
"We wait," Ye Yun declared. "Whether it survives or falls, the beast will be weakened. Post-tribulation transformation brings vulnerability; failure means obliteration. We act when the moment ripens."
"You grow more devious daily! What schemes brew in that mind?" Duan Chenfeng’s laughter turned into pained hissing.
Yu Minghong studied Ye Yun with veiled speculation.
Boom!
The second heavenly strike hammered the Vulture King into stone terrain, cratering the earth.
"Did it perish?"
The trio exchanged stunned glances. Such destructive force surpassed all comprehension.
Whoosh!
Stone shards erupted as the featherless Vulture King burst from the pit, its bald appearance deflating any majesty and provoking involuntary snickers.
Yet its physical resilience astonished them. Ye Yun admitted his own body couldn’t endure two such strikes without mortal wounds.
Boom!
The third strike came – a child’s arm-thick lightning bolt containing mountain-razing power focused entirely on the Vulture King.
Crack!
The beast’s flesh split like pottery, bloody webs spreading across its form. Agony filled its eyes – another strike would shatter it completely.
Standing ten zhang away, the trio gaped. How could any creature withstand such concentrated fury?
"Two more strikes will finish it," Ye Yun calculated softly.
"Seize the ninth-level pinnacle beast core when it falls!" Duan Chenfeng urged, eyeing the bleeding creature hungrily.
"Exercise caution, Brother Ye," Yu Minghong warned. "This tribulation’s fury remains undiminished."
"Patience," Ye Yun advised. "We move when the storm breaks."
"Since when did recklessness give way to caution? Tribulation fire reduces all to ash – core included," Duan Chenfeng countered.
Boom!
The final strike descended – purple lightning thick as a man’s calf, descending with deliberate slowness while gathering power.
This was the ultimate trial. Success meant ascension to supreme spirit beast status.
The Vulture King’s eyes reflected utter despair. This force surpassed all resistance.
Ye Yun sighed regretfully.
Then a rasping voice echoed in his mind:
"Aid my survival… and I pledge eternal servitude."
