Chapter 521 - 514: Congratulations, True Monarch
Chapter 521: Chapter 514: Congratulations, True Monarch
For the physical body, the Celestial Fire Tribulation was more beneficial than harmful.
The same could not be said for one’s Divine Sense, Nascent Soul, and spirit.
Of course, the Celestial Fire Tribulation was a trial, but also a stepping stone.
If a cultivator endured it, their Nascent Soul and Divine Sense would become fully corporeal, and their spirit would grow more stable.
Failure to endure it meant having one’s Nascent Soul and spirit burned until they were fragmented.
A Cultivator who knew they were outmatched could also flee in advance or use powerful Arrays to cleverly evade the trial. The Celestial Fire Tribulation would not give chase.
However, the corporealization of their Nascent Soul and Divine Sense would forever remain incomplete. Though they could still be considered a Divinity Transformation Cultivator, they would be among the weakest of their rank, with no hope of further advancement.
Moreover, any attempt to flee or evade the tribulation had to be made before the ninth round.
The first eight rounds of Celestial Fire descended from the heavens in a magnificent, overwhelming torrent.
But the final, ninth round, consisting of two hundred fifty-six wisps of Celestial Fire, ignited from the soles of the Cultivator’s feet. It was impossible to hide from and impossible to evade. To fail was to die.
Many would-be Divinity Transformation Cultivators exhausted their techniques and potential by the sixth or seventh round of the Celestial Fire Tribulation. They had no choice but to flee, and no matter how unwilling, they had to accept their fate as a bottom-tier Divinity Transformation Cultivator. After all, it was better to be alive than dead.
In Zhao Shan’s eyes, however, this "Master Sui Xiao" had passed through the first three rounds of the Celestial Fire Tribulation with ease. He hadn’t used a single Treasure or any Divine Abilities. His potential was clearly immense, and his chances of completing the tribulation to become a true Divinity Transformation True Monarch were very high.
’I have to trust the Kai Ping Ancestor’s judgment,’ she thought. ’If he said Master Sui Xiao’s chances of success were over seventy percent, then they must be.’
Du Youqian didn’t expend much effort on the subsequent fourth and fifth rounds of the Celestial Fire Tribulation either, taking the flames head-on with his physical body.
Under the searing Celestial Fire, parts of his body were continuously destroyed and regenerated, growing ever more resilient.
For the sixth round of the Celestial Fire Tribulation, thirty-two wisps of Celestial Fire drifted down from the sky.
A grave expression appeared on Du Youqian’s face. Jinhuan flew out, slashing toward the Celestial Fire.
It was impossible to extinguish the Celestial Fire, of course, but even a slight delay would lessen the pressure on Du Youqian.
Furthermore, the Celestial Fire also had a tempering effect on Treasures.
But the exposure couldn’t be for too long. A Tier Four Treasure wouldn’t last even for a single breath; any longer and it would be damaged.
Jinhuan was recalled after only a few slashes, and Du Youqian began to toss out his other frequently used Treasures to be tempered one by one.
He passed the sixth round of the Celestial Fire Tribulation smoothly, followed by the seventh, and then the eighth...
It became increasingly difficult for Du Youqian, but he remained standing proudly in the air.
The ninth round of the Celestial Fire Tribulation had arrived!
In that instant, two hundred fifty-six wisps of Celestial Fire erupted from beneath Du Youqian’s feet, but they didn’t immediately burn into his body.
As the Celestial Fire neared the soles of his feet, it seemed to encounter an invisible resistance, holding it at bay.
Du Youqian’s expression remained serene, but in truth, he was already under immense strain.
Inch and Mile only held for two breaths before he activated the Body Freedom Divine Ability.
Compared to his other Divine Abilities—like Copper Skin Iron Bones, Inch and Mile, or Little Wukong’s Three Heads and Six Arms—Body Freedom consumed relatively little energy.
But "little" was a relative term.
Moreover, when facing High Tier powers, the energy consumption of Body Freedom would multiply.
Against a Nascent Soul Master, Du Youqian could maintain Body Freedom for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn.
Against a Divinity Transformation True Monarch, it would only last for ten breaths.
And against the Celestial Fire Tribulation, Body Freedom failed after only a few breaths.
The Celestial Fire finally seeped into Du Youqian’s body.
Du Youqian’s body was already riddled with wounds. As the Celestial Fire burned him, he began to turn to ash, starting from the soles of his feet. A gust of wind scattered the ashes, annihilating him completely.
Zhao Shan stared, dumbfounded, her delicate mouth falling slightly agape.
’He’s gone? Just like that?’
’He failed?’
Her Divine Sense had already taken over the Array Core. She prepared to activate the Grand Array to prevent the Celestial Fire Tribulation from spreading and incinerating the other Low Tier Cultivators.
Du Youqian had made enduring a few wisps of Celestial Fire look simple, but if Core Formation or even weaker Cultivators were to encounter it, dozens or even hundreds of them would be incinerated in an instant.
"Do not be hasty." The Kai Ping Ancestor’s voice sounded directly in Zhao Shan’s mind.
Only then did Zhao Shan notice that behind the drifting ash, Du Youqian’s feet and then his thighs were reappearing.
Aided by the Grand Array, Zhao Shan observed the scene in greater detail and had a sudden realization.
It turned out that Du Youqian had used a Death Replacement Treasure that was nearly Tier Five. What had just been burned to ash wasn’t his feet, but the Treasure itself.
Du Youqian had instead used the Celestial Fire for Body Forging, further refining his physical body to a higher level.
However, the two hundred fifty-six wisps of Celestial Fire were still burning inside him. The trial was not yet over.
Zhao Shan had experience observing an ancestor’s tribulation and knew how long this final round of Celestial Fire would last.
The one she had observed was Yu Shang True Monarch’s. He had borrowed several Tier Five Treasures from the Zhao Royal Family’s collection and had ultimately stalled for time by sacrificing two of them, paying a steep price for his success.
’Those were worth twelve million Spiritual Jade!’
The cost had been staggering.
’What trump card does this Sui Xiao Cultivator have left?’
’He still has to hold on for several more breaths. How is he going to manage that?’
Just then, a pure white Jade Ruler materialized. Its Tier Five aura put Zhao Shan at ease.
’I knew Master Sui Xiao was no ordinary person!’
The Jade Ruler enveloped him from above, using its Tier Five power to halt the spread of the Celestial Fire within his body.
But Zhao Shan soon saw that Master Sui Xiao hadn’t fully refined the Jade Ruler. After only a few breaths, cracks began to appear on its pure white surface.
Furthermore, the Jade Ruler wasn’t a Treasure suited for dealing with the Celestial Fire Tribulation.
Du Youqian quickly retracted the Jade Ruler to prevent its complete destruction.
Three breaths left.
Zhao Shan was panting softly, her beautiful eyes filled with tension.
Yet Du Youqian remained motionless. His body pulsed with a soaring red glow, and a look of agony crossed his face, but he didn’t produce any other Treasures. He was just taking it head-on.
’He can’t take it! If he has any other tricks, he has to use them now!’ A bitter taste filled Zhao Shan’s mouth. She felt that Du Youqian had underestimated the power of the Celestial Fire Tribulation.
A breath later, Du Youqian’s feet were the first to turn to ash.
This time, they were truly gone—it wasn’t the effect of a Death Replacement Treasure.
Then his legs, and then it spread to his waist.
The physical destruction was one thing, but with his body ruined to this extent, she feared Master Sui Xiao’s Nascent Soul and Divine Sense must be half-destroyed as well!
’Sigh... he failed!’
Zhao Shan lamented inwardly, pained by the sight.
’Not only has he failed, but he’s doomed to perish here, his very spirit scattered to the winds.’
’This Master Sui Xiao was still insufficiently prepared. If he had just one more Tier Five Treasure designed specifically for the Celestial Fire Tribulation, he could have passed it safely.’
’One step from heaven, one step from hell.’
Just as Zhao Shan’s eyes filled with regret and she prepared to activate the Grand Array to extinguish the remaining Celestial Fire, she saw Du Youqian’s legs and feet grow back.
Though his Dharma Robe was damaged, the skin it revealed was fair and smooth, as tender as a newborn’s.
Zhao Shan’s spirits soared.
Although she didn’t know what technique Master Sui Xiao had used, he had clearly pulled through.
Another breath passed. The red glow on Master Sui Xiao’s body faded, and the Celestial Fire Tribulation was finally over.
The world had one more Divinity Transformation True Monarch!
"Congratulations, fellow Daoist!" Kai Ping True Monarch called out his congratulations from a distance.
"Congratulations, True Monarch!" Zhao Shan added, also from afar.
Du Youqian nodded in their direction before immediately returning to his private chamber. He began to regulate his breathing, slowly recovering from his injuries and stabilizing his new Realm.