# Chapter 1189: Terrifying Thunderfire
For hundreds of miles in every direction, the entire area was covered by the thunder tribulation. Each bolt of lightning was like a massive dragon, shuttling through the thunderclouds.
On the ground, within this primeval jungle, all birds and beasts were terrified, frantically fleeing. Some weaker barbarian beasts lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to move, simply waiting for death.
The energy contained within the lightning was truly terrifying. It melted an entire mountain, turning it into magma that devoured the flowers, trees, and plants of the primeval forest.
"Boom."
The second bolt of lightning descended, once again piercing through Zhang Ruochen's body.
Within Zhang Ruochen's meridians, blood vessels, and saint channels, violent lightning surged wildly, traveling through every structural tissue in his body.
This process was nothing less than a repeated tempering of the physical body. Although painful, it brought incomparable benefits.
Why did one need to pass through three quasi-saint tribulations to become a saint?
Precisely because, during those three quasi-saint tribulations, cultivators could obtain boundless benefits, causing their life characteristics to undergo a transformation, surpassing mortals, and achieving sainthood on the spot.
Danger and opportunity coexisted.
When the third bolt of lightning descended, the lightning within Zhang Ruochen's body increased even further. His meridians, blood vessels, and saint channels felt as if they would burst open, making it extremely difficult to channel such terrifying Heavenly Dao might.
A loud roar escaped Zhang Ruochen's mouth.
"Whoosh—"
All one hundred and forty-three apertures across his body opened wide. The lightning, as if finding an outlet, surged out wildly.
From a distance, it appeared as if Zhang Ruochen's body had one hundred and forty-three holes, each one emitting a bolt of lightning with earth-shaking rumbling sounds.
The power of the lightning passed through the apertures, also tempering them in the process.
The apertures, already sanctified, became even more sacred, their stored energy growing fuller and more plump.
After enduring eighteen bolts of lightning in a row, Zhang Ruochen's physical body could no longer fully withstand the strain, and some fine cracks began to appear.
However, his body's self-healing ability was very strong, and those cracks quickly closed up again.
After enduring another nine bolts of lightning, Zhang Ruochen's self-healing ability could no longer keep up with the tearing force of the lightning. Dense cracks covered his skin, turning it into a bloody mess.
When the thirty-fourth bolt of lightning fell, Zhang Ruochen's skin all over his body split apart. His body fell to the ground, splashing into the magma with a "plop," sinking to the bottom.
After enduring the power of the earlier tribulation lightning, this entire jungle had transformed into a lake of magma, with waves of scorching heat, billowing black smoke, and dense lightning patterns flowing across the magma's surface.
The thunder tribulation was not over. It continued to strike down, penetrating the magma, hitting Zhang Ruochen's body, as if it would not stop until he was dead.
The lightning grew fiercer with each strike, each one stronger than the last.
Only thirty-four bolts of tribulation lightning had passed, yet Zhang Ruochen's physical body was already struggling to endure. With more and even stronger bolts to come, it was uncertain whether he could survive.
Demon Ran Princess felt a chill in her heart, thinking to herself, "I underestimated this kid before. He actually endured thirty-four bolts of tribulation lightning and still hasn't died."
Based on her speculation, even with her current cultivation, without using a sacred artifact to block, enduring thirty-four bolts of tribulation lightning would likely leave her severely injured and near death.
In other words, the physical body of a first-tribulation quasi-saint was actually stronger than hers, an upper-realm saint.
"Are body cultivators all this monstrous? I wonder just how powerful that kid Gu Linfeng will become after achieving sainthood through the body?"
However, Demon Ran Princess did not believe Gu Linfeng had a chance to cultivate to the point of becoming a saint through the body. After all, he probably could not even pass the current thunder tribulation.
"This guy, if he could keep a low profile, with his talent, he might actually have a chance to become a dominant figure in the future. But his character has flaws. Even with great talent, he's very likely to die young." Deep down, Demon Ran Princess still looked down on Gu Linfeng.
In her eyes, the young figure who truly made her feel wary and admire was the Heir of Time and Space she had encountered in the Azure Dragon Ruins Realm.
That was a truly astonishing talent, not only unmatched in natural gifts but also with an unshakable inner resolve, immune to any temptation.
In his presence, even though Demon Ran Princess had greater cultivation, she still felt a sense of powerlessness.
More than ten more bolts of lightning fell. Demon Ran Princess could no longer sense Gu Linfeng's life force, making her wonder if he had already been reduced to ashes.
Yet, the tribulation lightning did not stop, continuing to fall into the magma lake, indicating that Gu Linfeng was still alive.
"How many more strikes can he endure?"
This thought crossed Demon Ran Princess's mind.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged at the bottom of the magma lake, surrounded by boiling liquid hotter than flames.
He gritted his teeth, persevering with effort, a defiant look in his eyes. Even the tribulation lightning condensed by heaven and earth could not make him yield.
Inside his body, the Devouring Saint Flower was howling.
"I can't take it anymore! I can't hold on! Zhang Ruochen, give me a sacred source immediately. I need to fuse my virtual body and real body and break through to sainthood. Otherwise, your thunder tribulation will strike me dead!"
The Devouring Saint Flower was already quite powerful, one of the most ferocious plant species, stronger than many ancient remnant species. Yet, it could not withstand Zhang Ruochen's second thunder tribulation.
With every bolt of tribulation lightning, it wailed in agony.
Zhang Ruochen did not immediately take out a sacred source and give it to the Devouring Saint Flower.
Because he believed the Devouring Saint Flower had not yet reached its limit and could continue to endure.
Its urgent desire to obtain the sacred source was likely to seize the opportunity to break through to the saint realm and, while Zhang Ruochen was at his weakest right after the tribulation, devour him, its host.
"Boom."
"Boom, rumble..."
...
Another nine bolts of tribulation lightning fell, and the Devouring Saint Flower continued to wail.
Finally, its spiritual power fluctuations grew weaker and weaker, and it transmitted a message to Zhang Ruochen, saying, "I've really reached my limit. If you don't give me a sacred source now, I'll have to absorb your power to impact the saint realm. Then we'll both die together."
Zhang Ruochen could indeed sense that the Devouring Saint Flower was already extremely weak, on the verge of perishing.
If, at this critical moment, it recklessly absorbed his power, it would be extremely dangerous for him.
"Stop shouting. I'll give you a sacred source."
Still maintaining his cross-legged posture, Zhang Ruochen's space ring on his finger released a radiant sacred source.
The sacred source passed through the Divine Martial Mark on Zhang Ruochen's brow and entered his Qi Sea.
At the same time, from the position of his spine, a verdant green vine slowly grew, thickening continuously amidst the lightning.
The roots of the Devouring Saint Flower entered Zhang Ruochen's Qi Sea, wrapping around the sacred source, absorbing its essence, converting it into nutrients to help fuse its real body and virtual body.
By now, sixty-three bolts of lightning had fallen, leaving only nine more.
Zhang Ruochen endured immense pain. His physical body was further shattered, and only his firm will allowed him to persist until now.
There was no denying that his thunder tribulation far surpassed that of other quasi-saints.
Not to mention quasi-saints—even if a lower-realm saint or middle-realm saint were in his place, they would surely die, unable to withstand it.
"It seems I underestimated the power of the thunder tribulation. I should have accumulated more before attempting it, so the tribulation wouldn't be this dangerous."
The tribulation lightning continued to fall, shattering Zhang Ruochen's physical body again and again. The dragon souls and elephant souls in his arms manifested, emitting dragon roars and elephant trumpets.
The dragon souls and elephant souls, tempered by the thunder tribulation, seemed to grow stronger as well.
All the divine marks on Zhang Ruochen's body emerged—some on his feet, some on his arms, some on his head. It was precisely because of the empowerment of these many divine marks that his physical body could condense again and again.
Otherwise, even if he had already sanctified one hundred and forty-three apertures, he would likely have been torn apart.
The sixty-seventh bolt of tribulation lightning.
The sixty-eighth bolt.
...
The seventieth bolt.
The seventy-first bolt.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to pass his second quasi-saint tribulation, the Devouring Saint Flower let out a cold, sharp laugh. "Finally stepping into the saint realm! Zhang Ruochen, now I, this saint, will devour you, your host, seize your body, and take your sacred path!"
The roots of the Devouring Saint Flower grew rapidly, attaching themselves to the walls of Zhang Ruochen's Qi Sea, treating him as nourishment, trying to suck and devour him.
For Zhang Ruochen, this was undoubtedly a heavy blow.
After all, even before breaking through to the saint realm, the Devouring Saint Flower was already quite powerful, far surpassing lower-realm saints. Now that it had fused its real body and virtual body and broken through to the saint realm, how powerful would it become?
Moreover, Zhang Ruochen had suffered severe injuries during the tribulation and was at his weakest.
With this shift in power, Zhang Ruochen was naturally at a disadvantage.
Zhang Ruochen immediately mobilized his sacred Qi, injecting it into the Cosmic Divine Wood Map, preparing to summon the Blood Moon Ghost King or the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree to suppress the Devouring Saint Flower.
In his current state, this was his only option.
But just then, the seventy-second bolt of tribulation lightning fell.
"Boom!"
The Devouring Saint Flower let out a scream, and a crisp cracking sound came from its body.
The final bolt of tribulation lightning was the most powerful, its might terrifying and boundless.
However, the Devouring Saint Flower had been too impatient. The thunder tribulation had not yet fully ended when it tried to suck and devour Zhang Ruochen. As a result, the tribulation lightning detected its aura first, and the vast majority of the lightning struck it, with only a small portion hitting Zhang Ruochen.
It must be noted that the Devouring Saint Flower had only just fused its real body and virtual body, and the fusion was still very unstable.
After enduring this strike, its real body and virtual body began to separate, and the virtual body became tattered, nearly collapsing.
Wailing in pain, the Devouring Saint Flower begged Zhang Ruochen, "Master, please find me a sacred soul to replace my virtual body. Otherwise, I will never be able to reach the saint realm in the future."
...