Chapter 2860: Nascent Soul Realm Meng Bai!
Chapter 2860: Nascent Soul Realm Meng Bai!
The morning of Meng Bai's breakthrough arrived with surprising serenity.
The skies above the Green Lotus Temple were unusually clear, as if nature itself had paused to watch.
Monk Hushu had cordoned off the central courtyard for the occasion, erecting several protective formations in case the tribulation grew unstable. Several monks and even elders stood at a distance, their expressions composed but eyes alert.
Meng Bai sat cross-legged on the Tribulation Attenuation Platform, his breathing steady, his mind calm. His black and blue robes fluttered lightly with the breeze, and behind him, his spear was planted upright like a silent sentinel.
Lin Mu stood nearby, arms crossed, observing with a thoughtful expression.
"He's ready," he said.
Monk Hushu nodded. "Let's begin."
A faint pulse of energy rippled from Meng Bai's dantian as he started circulating his cultivation technique. Slowly, the core within him began to vibrate, glowing with golden light.
This was it—the transition from Core Condensation to Nascent Soul.
Within moments, clouds began to gather above the temple.
Dark, heavy clouds rolled in unnaturally fast, spinning into a massive vortex that crackled with silver lightning. The entire area fell under a shadow, broken only by the glow of spiritual formations and the soft illumination from Meng Bai's body.
A single bolt of lightning struck down.
CRACK-BOOM!
It smashed into the attenuation platform, spreading harmlessly across the array. Meng Bai didn't even flinch.
The second bolt came faster. The third, even faster.
Still, Meng Bai remained unmoved, his focus absolute. His body absorbed the lightning strikes like they were nothing more than rain.
"It's stable," an elder muttered. "Looks like a textbook Heavenly Tribulation—"
He stopped mid-sentence as the clouds suddenly expanded.
The pressure in the air tripled in a heartbeat.
The sky above cracked open in an unnatural pattern, revealing not just a lightning storm, but a downpour of metallic black raindrops, each one gleaming with threads of spiritual energy.
Lin Mu's eyes narrowed.
"Variant tribulation," he said. "It's the Shredding Rain Heavenly Tribulation." They had somewhat expected that Meng Bai might not have a normal Heavenly Tribulation.
After all the number of resources that were poured into Meng Bai might put several immortal sects to shame.
Monk Hushu exhaled sharply. "Rare and far more dangerous. That's no ordinary lightning rain—it'll target his meridians, dantian, and spiritual sea all at once."
Despite the grim announcement, Lin Mu showed no concern. "He'll manage."
The first drops hit the platform.
TSSSSSS
Steam rose where the drops landed. The rain didn't fall like normal water. It cut. Tiny blade-like streaks of tribulation energy whirled with each drop, trying to slice through Meng Bai's protective qi.
A faint hum rose from within Meng Bai's body.
Ding.
A transparent barrier formed around him, a spiraling layer of water and force generated from within his core.
The rain struck it and dispersed harmlessly.
Then came the wind.
A gust howled down, carrying hundreds of lightning-threaded droplets, but Meng Bai raised his hands, his fingers forming a spear seal.
From his back, his spear moved.
It floated up, then rotated slowly in the air before stabbing into the sky.
A loud BOOM rang out—not from a strike, but from the resonance of intent.
'Water Spear Style: Flowing Piercer.' Meng Bai lightly muttered.
The rain paused.
For an instant, even the tribulation hesitated.
Then it struck harder, unleashing a downpour of slicing arcs that lit up the entire courtyard.
And Meng Bai stood.
He rose to his feet, aura swirling around him like a coiled dragon waking from slumber.
The barrier of qi and water surrounding him surged, rippling in time with the strikes.
Each drop of shredding rain that reached him was dissolved, deflected, or absorbed.
His Core, glowing like a miniature star, began to form inside his dantian—flickering between blue and gold, as hundreds of fine cracks formed on it.
CRACK!
A final bolt of violet lightning descended with brutal speed.
Meng Bai raised his hand.
He didn't dodge.
He didn't defend.
He caught it.
The lightning crackled across his arm, then dispersed harmlessly into the air like scattered fireflies.
Silence.
The clouds trembled once more… then began to dissolve, the vortex unwinding, the rain ceasing.
The sun broke through moments later, its golden rays shining on the now-glowing platform.
SHATTER
Meng Bai's Core shattered, as a blinding light exploded from it. A tiny infant was revealed from it that had Meng Bai's feature, looking just like he did when he was just a baby.
He had reached the Infant Soul Stage of the Nascent Soul Realm!
Meng Bai stood in the center, eyes closed, breathing calm, his aura entirely different.
More refined.
More powerful.
He had done it.
Nascent Soul realm—achieved.
"Flawless breakthrough," one of the elders whispered.
"Not a single internal injury," another added in awe. "Even the rare variant tribulation couldn't leave a scratch."
Ashy, Xiao Yin, and Xiao Yang floated beside Lin Mu, their expressions ranging from impressed to delighted.
"Junior brother Meng Bai is now way tougher!" Ashy chirped.
"Indeed. I suppose we can play a little harder now," Xiao Yin muttered with a sly smile.
Lin Mu raised a brow. "No you won't."
The three looked away innocently.
Meng Bai opened his eyes. His gaze was sharper, his body radiating a quiet strength.
He smiled as he saw Lin Mu.
"Master… I did it."
Lin Mu nodded. "You did. And now your true path of cultivation begins."
Meng Bai stepped off the platform, his body moving with newfound fluidity. His spiritual presence was restrained but unmistakably vast.
He bowed deeply. "Thank you for your guidance."
Lin Mu placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't thank me. This is your own effort. But now—" he glanced up at the sky, "—we'll have to prepare for the next stage."
"Dao Shell Realm?" Meng Bai asked eagerly.
"Yes. And from now on… things will only get harder."
Meng Bai smiled, undeterred.
"I'm ready."
He didn't care if he was just at the infant soul stage and had three more stages to overcome before reaching the Dao Shell realm. To him, it was just inevitable.