Chapter 995: Sacred Body Severing the Dao
This was a low mountain, without any remarkable scenery, only a few thatched huts. For the past three years, Ye Fan had spent most of his time living on this nameless little mountain.
In front of the thatched hut, a grapevine was lush and green, bearing clusters of green grapes. Beside it was a medicinal field, planted with some old herbs and spiritual plants, their fragrance assailing the nostrils.
In the distance was a pine forest. Little Pine, like a wild monkey, spent all day darting in and out, searching for pine cones, playing happily.
Zhang Qingyang had practiced asceticism for three years, spreading the Dao throughout the world. Ye Fan observed all of this, knowing that he had paid a great price. The most obvious proof was the change in the Primordial Qi Cauldron.
Now, this cauldron had become spiritual. At every moment, pure thought power flowed into the cauldron, strand by strand. Immortal rays shimmered, holy light steamed, transcendent and approaching the divine.
Heavenly Court had taken root and flourished in the world. Every day, the power of faith was imprinted into the cauldron. This was a sacred transformation, forging an immortal vessel.
"Crack"
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a torrential downpour. Ye Fan stood motionless by the window, gazing at the electric serpents within the clouds.
Little Pine peeled a Fire Phoenix Fruit, revealing its bright red, tender flesh. Fluttering his big eyes, he ingratiatingly offered it to Ye Fan and Zhang Qingyang.
"Crack!"
Silver electric serpents danced, writhing within the pitch-black clouds, tearing open the sky and emitting a trembling aura. For cultivators, this kind of weather was very dangerous.
"Qingyang, are you ready?" Ye Fan asked.
"Master, I am ready," the young Daoist Heavenly Master replied. In recent years, he had traveled everywhere spreading the Dao, but his cultivation had not fallen behind; he had advanced steadily. This was also related to Ye Fan's special care.
"Then go into the lightning. Open your body and mind to accept the baptism. Do not worry or fear. I will ensure you are safe," Ye Fan said softly.
Over the past few years, whenever there was a thunderstorm, Ye Fan would selectively act as a protector for a few of his disciples, allowing them to draw heavenly lightning to temper their bodies.
Various ancient teachings had secret methods. Generally speaking, it was considered good if a disciple of an ancient lineage could attract lightning once or twice. Any more would invite great calamity.
This was not a true heavenly tribulation. In the current era, no one could trigger one. However, through ancient methods, one could borrow lightning to refine the body, which was also a form of crossing tribulation. But it could easily lead to the annihilation of both body and soul, so most people dared not attempt it.
Over three years, several nominal disciples had crossed tribulation six or seven times, while Zhang Qingyang had done so as many as eleven times, and was now about to undergo his twelfth.
These individuals all possessed extraordinary bones. In the Big Dipper, they would be prodigies of their regions. Unfortunately, they were born in the wrong era. In this age of the decline of the Dao, they could not sense heavenly tribulation. Therefore, Ye Fan made them draw lightning to temper their bodies every year.
For ordinary people, twice was the limit. But they drew lightning to cross tribulation every year, and each time it was more intense, almost comparable to a true heavenly tribulation.
Over the years, their Dao conduct had advanced, each step taken very steadily. The foundation of the Dao had been pounded incredibly solid, exceptionally firm.
During this process, Ye Fan discovered something special. Zhang Qingyang, through his ascetic travels spreading the Dao, was connected to the cauldron and had also absorbed some faith power. He could face the tribulation much more calmly than others, which was why he had crossed tribulation the most times.
"Master, I am going up," Zhang Qingyang said to him.
He shot into the sky, meeting a bolt of lightning as he entered the dense clouds to begin crossing tribulation. Lightning from all directions converged, all striking his body.
In an instant, the electric light blazed intensely, silver serpents danced wildly. This place seemed to have erupted into battle. He fought within the boundless radiance, drawing lightning to temper his body.
"Indeed, it is several times stronger than before," Ye Fan murmured to himself.
When you draw lightning into your body for tempering, regardless of whether your cultivation has improved, it will be several times stronger than the last time. Heaven itself seemed to keep a record. Thus, even the most brilliant cultivators dared not ascend to the heavens every year.
"Drawing lightning to this point can also be considered a heavenly tribulation," Ye Fan nodded.
"Boom"
Between heaven and earth, the lightning became violent, even more intense. A silver sea of electricity descended, engulfing Zhang Qingyang, tearing apart the universe.
Ye Fan watched carefully, acting as a protector for his disciple, but did not lend a hand. Unless there was a danger of his body and soul being destroyed, he would never intervene.
Little Pine blinked his big eyes beside him, also staring at the clouds. Over the past few years, he had undergone several true heavenly tribulations. From initially crying loudly to now being calm, it was a considerable improvement.
He deeply understood the terror of heavenly tribulation—earth-shattering, vast and boundless. Especially the lightning that descended in this age of the decline of the Dao was beyond imagination. Every time he thought of it, he would shrink his head, using his little paw to cover his heart, feeling a lingering fear.
"Hmm, it's working again." Ye Fan stared at the sea of lightning. On Zhang Qingyang's body, strands of pure faith power offset the vast lightning, dissolving the lightning into his body without harming it.
At the most dangerous moments, this holy light could play an inexplicable role, truly mysterious and unfathomable, causing one's mind to wander and contemplate.
Half an hour later, after the final ninefold lightning had fallen, Zhang Qingyang's skin was split open, his bones nearly charred. But he had finally and arduously passed through it.
He descended, entered the thatched hut, his expression extremely excited. His physical body had become stronger, his magical power surged, and his primordial spirit had also grown somewhat.
"Very good." Ye Fan nodded. Before he himself severed the Dao and crossed tribulation, he had arranged some matters to prevent chaos in case something happened to him. He was in no hurry to ascend to the heavens.
In the following months, Ye Fan successively acted as a protector for several disciples, allowing them all to experience a baptism of heavenly tribulation, greatly advancing their Dao conduct.
"You must walk your own path. I cannot set a direction for you. You must experience more in crossing tribulation, enlightenment, and choice." Ye Fan patted Little Pine's head.
He did not want this little fellow to be confined to his own thinking, wanting him to break free. Unlike his other disciples, for whom he had arranged everything and pointed out a future direction, he did not do so for Little Pine.
A month later, Ye Fan ascended to the heavens and left alone, not allowing anyone to accompany him.
Little Pine was afraid, chasing after him all the way, crying loudly, wanting to give him the Little Stone Buddha to block the tribulation, but Ye Fan refused.
Zhang Qingyang even shouted loudly, telling Ye Fan to take all the faith power upon himself, saying it would achieve twice the result with half the effort, allowing him to safely sever the Dao and cross tribulation. The other disciples also called out.
Ye Fan did not look back. He poured out all the faith power from the cauldron, letting it cascade down like a vast waterfall, temporarily remaining on the low mountain.
This pure thought power would certainly be of great use, but now he did not want to rely on it. Since the path he had chosen was set—to reverse-cut the Dao—then he needed no external help.
Except for his Dao-proving vessel—the cauldron—he would not bring anything else with him to cross tribulation. This had been his choice from beginning to end, unchanged.
"Faith power... for now, the multitudes serve me. But in the future, who knows..." This was a vague concern of his, and therefore he did not borrow it.
Ye Fan ascended into the heavens, arriving in the outer realms, far from the mountains and rivers of the earth. He feared that once he crossed tribulation, it would destroy a magnificent landscape and split a continent.
No one understood better than him how terrifying his tribulation would be. Once it erupted, it would be devastating. Especially this time, it was different from the past. He himself had no idea what to expect.
Standing alone in the cold and dark universe, he felt a deathly silence. The vast pressure of Earth spread far and wide, as if a dormant ancient Heavenly Emperor was there.
"It is time. Let the tribulation begin." Ye Fan murmured.
He began to activate his Dao conduct, no longer suppressing his strength. He opened his body and mind, connecting with the universe and heaven and earth, issuing a will that transcended the Great Dao.
"Boom!"
Originally, there was nothing in the void of the universe. But in that instant, a vast ocean appeared—a divine sea formed entirely of lightning!
In just a moment, Ye Fan was buried within it, accepting the interrogation and punishment of the myriad heavens. Electric bolts as thick as rivers and seas struck his body, one after another.
This was a magnificent scene. If someone could trace it down and show it to the world, it would surely shake the ages and terrify all cultivators.
This kind of heavenly tribulation was unprecedented in its terror. Any single tribulation light far surpassed another person's entire great heavenly tribulation. It was only when these thousands upon thousands of tribulation lights converged that they formed the first wave of lightning that struck Ye Fan.
This was a doomsday punishment, a great annihilation. No one could withstand it. It was vast and boundless. A single wisp of electric light would be enough to destroy a heaven-blessed genius.
Yet Ye Fan bathed within it, his hair disheveled, alone against this vast heavenly tribulation. He bared his strong physique, using the lightning as water to wash his physical body and primordial spirit.
This was a great cataclysm. Even the void of the universe was split open, revealing terrifying black abysses. Only a single point of light remained unchanged at the center. Ye Fan's bronze-colored physique shimmered with treasure light, accepting the lightning's strike and baptism.
Boundless and endless, without edges or limits. It seemed as if the heavenly tribulations of thousands and tens of thousands of years were all concentrated on him alone. The lightning of past and present merged, tempering his body.
Every inch of his skin was dazzling. Every pore was spewing electric light. Within his brow, a small golden figure stepped out, opened its mouth, and inhaled a heavenly river. The endless sea of lightning was all swallowed into its mouth, terrifying and boundless.
On this day, Ye Fan did not tell the Daoist sects of the Central Land or the Western traditions that he would sever the Dao. No one knew. He wanted to pass through it peacefully.
But at this moment, all cultivators sensed that something must have happened in the outer realms. Their hearts were filled with fear and unease, as if a great disaster was imminent, as if doomsday had arrived. It was like a sharp sword hanging over their heads, like a great mountain pressing down on their hearts.
This was an aura of world-destruction, making those of the same path tremble. As long as one cultivated the Dao, they would inevitably sense it. Everyone was terrified, gazing in horror towards the outer realms.
However, no one could see anything. It was too far away. No one understood the situation, unable to deduce what was happening.
Because this kind of tribulation was unprecedented. They could not have heard of it, let alone witness it.
"Boom!"
The first sea of lightning receded. Strange and bizarre lightning appeared in the void. There was the Fuxi Dragon Stele, the Nuwa Dao Stone... each one mysterious beyond measure.
This was even more terrifying. Some lightning was identical to ancestral artifacts, violent and boundless, descending with the power to shatter an ancient star!
These were the traces of the Great Dao between heaven and earth, representing the Heavenly Dao of antiquity. Each time they struck down, they were world-shaking, capable of destroying an entire realm.
Ye Fan wanted to reverse-cut the existing Dao, to break free, to transcend the Great Dao. Naturally, he had to endure the impact and crushing of various ancient holy paths.
"Boom"
In the void of the universe, the blazing electric light destroyed the world. Amidst the human-shaped lightning and ancestral artifacts, one could vaguely see ancient stars being destroyed, historical scenes replaying.
Infinite and immeasurable lightning struck his body. Ye Fan resisted alone, his black hair disheveled, his bronze physique shimmering with treasure light. Even if his bones were broken and his tendons snapped, he could quickly repair them.
The small golden figure stood before his brow, looking down upon the world. Like his physical body, it did not yield, accepting the baptism and tempering of ten thousand zhang of lightning.
The cauldron, forged from Primordial Mother Qi, accepted the reforging of the sea of lightning, enduring the hammering of lightning identical to ancestral artifacts. It remained indestructible, becoming increasingly solid and eternal.
Ye Fan was within the boundless tribulation light. Every inch of his physique shimmered, bathing in the endless thunder and lightning, tempering his indestructible Sacred Body, baptizing his golden primordial spirit, and forging his Dao-proving cauldron through a thousand hammers and a hundred refinements.
Although he could withstand it for now, he dared not relax in the slightest. The true great tribulation was yet to come.
Severing the Dao! Calling for a protector, *** upward, sever the Dao for ***, please cast a vote. Many thanks.