Chapter 657 - 642: Refining Tribulation Thunder

The benefits the Tai Chi Diagram brought to the Ghost King were undeniable.

But the entry of the Nine-Nine Tribulation Thunder had truly scared him out of his wits.

Tribulation Thunder was terrifying enough on its own, but for a Soul Body Type creature like him, it was utterly fatal. The slightest touch meant instant death.

And what was sealed by the great tree inside the Tai Chi Diagram was the king of all Tribulation Thunders... the Nine-Nine Tribulation Thunder!

The destructive aura radiating from the Purple Tribulation Thunders alone was enough to make the Ghost King live in constant, mind-numbing terror, where every day felt like a year. And to make matters worse, there was even a Golden Tribulation Thunder among them...

Living alongside Tribulation Thunder, forget about Cultivation; he was lucky he hadn’t been scared to death already.

"Tsk!"

Shen Lang was in no mood to deal with the Ghost King. He reached out, grabbed him, and casually tossed him aside.

Inside the Tai Chi Diagram, a colossal tree reached for the heavens.

Nestled among its lush branches were spheres of Purple Tribulation Thunder, crackling with electricity and surging with energy. A destructive aura filled the entire space within the Tai Chi Diagram.

Shen Lang could clearly feel the tree consuming a tremendous amount of energy every single moment.

At this rate, the Spiritual Power that Xue Shiyin and the others had sent in earlier probably wouldn’t last more than a few days...

Shen Lang was now completely stuck between a rock and a hard place.

He had no other choice but to continuously supply the Tai Chi Diagram with energy.

Shen Lang focused his mind, and everything that had transpired within the Tai Chi Diagram immediately appeared in his thoughts.

’The power of the Purple Tribulation Thunders is being refined and devoured. Their destructive energy has already diminished quite a bit!’

To his pleasant surprise, Shen Lang discovered that the tightly enveloped Purple Tribulation Thunders had all changed to some degree. Their power was significantly weaker than it had been yesterday.

’Most of the Tai Chi Diagram’s power is being used to control the Golden Tribulation Thunder, so very little is left for the purple ones... But to deal with the Golden Tribulation Thunder, I have to devour all the purple ones first.’

’At the current speed, it will probably take half a year to completely refine and absorb a single Purple Tribulation Thunder... But after absorbing and refining one, the Tai Chi Diagram’s power will increase dramatically. The distributed power will then concentrate on the others, so the process should speed up considerably.’

’When the time comes, if I spend some time analyzing it, it might not be impossible for me to recreate the Nine-Nine Tribulation Thunder myself!’

’Hmph, the Nine-Nine Tribulation Thunder is no ordinary thing. Even if I have to wait a hundred or a thousand years, I can afford to wait!’

’As long as I can supply the Tai Chi Diagram with energy quickly enough, dealing with this Tribulation Thunder is just a matter of time!’

Gazing quietly at the colossal tree, Shen Lang’s foul mood had already improved significantly.

It hadn’t been long since the seed had sprouted and become a small sapling.

This colossal tree was just a form it had manifested to seal and refine the devoured Tribulation Thunder.

Its true form was actually only about a foot tall.

But as the Tai Chi Diagram grew, the small sapling would one day become a true world-spanning tree.

Standing at the edge of the colossal tree, Shen Lang caressed its trunk and said softly, "You are the core of the Tai Chi Diagram, the soul of this world. From now on, I will call you the World Tree."

As if swept by a gust of wind, the great tree began to sway violently, emitting a joyful wave of consciousness.

"Very good. You continue refining this Tribulation Thunder. Don’t worry about the energy; I will find a way to solve it."

After a glance at the Tribulation Thunders hanging from the branches like fruit, Shen Lang grabbed the Ghost King and left the Tai Chi Diagram together.

"I’m finally out! I’m finally out! I thought I was a goner..." the Ghost King howled.

Shen Lang gave the Ghost King a faint look, shook his head, and said, "What an idiot. You’re blessed with a great opportunity but don’t even know it."

"Danger and opportunity have always coexisted. When the World Tree restrained the Tribulation Thunder, although it was perilous, it was also the perfect time to comprehend the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth!"

"Tribulation Thunder is a manifestation of Rules, not ordinary lightning. The immense destructive energy it contains isn’t Thunder Power in the normal sense. It’s a combination of Rules and the Supreme Yang and Firmness of Thunder Power, just like Divine Demon Power..."

"Who among ordinary people would have the chance to get so close to Tribulation Thunder? And the most powerful Nine-Nine Tribulation Thunder at that? Who would have the opportunity to feel the purest Power of Rules within it?"

"Besides, you were in there for so long, did you not notice the benefits of my World Tree? It’s only a foot tall, yet it holds heaven and earth in its grasp! In all the time you spent hiding by that tree, did you really not gain anything?"

"If you want to come out, I won’t stop you. But if you miss this opportunity, don’t regret it later."

As Shen Lang spoke, he began to take out brilliant Spirit Stones from his Sumeru Ring one by one.

The Ghost King stared blankly at the large Spirit Stones on the ground, then looked at Shen Lang. The Ghost Fire flickering in his eyes suddenly flared to more than double its size. "Boss, I was wrong! Please put me back in! I’ll never dare again! I won’t come out until I break through to the verge of the King Martial Realm..."

The Ghost King had followed Shen Lang the longest and understood his temperament the best. He was also much smarter than Bone One and Bone Two.

Seeing Shen Lang’s impatient expression and thinking of the benefits he’d received inside the Tai Chi Diagram, the Ghost King finally made up his mind.

Inside the Tai Chi Diagram, he had previously absorbed an untold amount of pure Spiritual Power, and his Cultivation had increased dramatically.

And by staying near that seed, the Ghost King’s comprehension of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth had already surpassed that of most Xuanwu Realm Ninth Heaven experts.

His comprehension of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth might not show any obvious benefits or power right now...

But once his Cultivation broke through to the King Martial Realm, all of this would undergo a qualitative transformation and sublimation!

At that time, among Soul Body Ghost Cultivators of the same rank, if the Ghost King claimed to be second, absolutely no one would dare claim to be first!

Moreover, while the dozens of Tribulation Thunders were a bit frightening, they had long since stabilized. Their Refinement by the World Tree was only a matter of time, so there was hardly any real danger anymore.

Understanding Shen Lang’s meaning, the Ghost King shamelessly ran over again. "Boss, please, do me a favor and let me go back! This old ghost really won’t cause any more trouble, I promise!"

Shen Lang shot him a cold glare, then reached out and pulled him back into the Tai Chi Diagram.

Once the Ghost King was back in the Tai Chi Diagram, Shen Lang turned his attention to the several hundred Spirit Stones before him.

These Spirit Stones contained a pure, unfathomably vast Spiritual Power. They were the very same "Top Grade Spirit Stones" he had swindled when helping Lan Mengling set up a formation.

These Top Grade Spirit Stones were more than twice the size of ordinary ones, and the Spiritual Power they contained was a hundred times that of a High Grade Spirit Stone!

A Spirit Meridian a hundred miles long could produce no more than a thousand Top Grade Spirit Stones, which showed just how precious they were.

Back then, when Lan Mengling was being hunted by the War God Hall’s "Asura King" Zi You and "Naluo King" Reincarnation Marquis, Shen Lang had offered to help her set up a sealing Barrier in her moment of crisis, using it as a pretext to ask her for Spirit Stones.

Unexpectedly, Lan Mengling had given him three thousand High Grade Spirit Stones right off the bat, followed by another two thousand Top Grade Spirit Stones.

After deducting the few hundred High Grade Spirit Stones used for the Barrier, the rest had all ended up in Shen Lang’s pocket.

Now, they were coming in handy.

Shen Lang spread the fingers of his right hand and made a grasping motion over the pile of Spirit Stones on the ground.

A vortex emerged from his palm, instantly sweeping up the entire pile of Spirit Stones from the ground.

Two hundred Top Grade Spirit Stones—what a terrifying amount of Spiritual Power did they contain?

However, the Tai Chi Diagram had now grown so strong that its power had reached an unbelievable level.

The massive vortex manifested by the Tai Chi Diagram seemed capable of devouring heaven and earth. The moment it enveloped the pile of Spirit Stones, it began to draw out the pure, surging Spiritual Qi like a rainbow drinking water, which then flowed like a great river into the Tai Chi Diagram!

As soon as this immense Spiritual Qi was absorbed into the Tai Chi Diagram, it immediately converged on the World Tree and was completely absorbed by it.

Then, a small portion of the devoured and refined Spiritual Power was released from the Tai Chi Diagram and integrated into Shen Lang’s Nascent Soul.

This process required almost no conscious control from Shen Lang, as if it had become an instinct for the World Tree. It saved him a lot of trouble.

The Spiritual Power refined by the Tai Chi Diagram flowed like a gentle stream into Shen Lang’s Nascent Soul. From there, it spread through his meridians, beginning to merge with his flesh, organs, and bones.

Shen Lang’s body began to glow with a brilliant light. His face became as clear as jade, and his skin shimmered with iridescent light.

At that moment, Shen Lang extended his left hand, palm facing up.

WHOOSH!

A jet of Vermilion Bird Divine Fire erupted from his palm, and the temperature in the entire hall suddenly soared!

The next moment, the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire shot back into Shen Lang’s body like a bolt of lightning, splitting into hundreds of tiny flames that coursed through his meridians.

Shen Lang was now multitasking three ways: frantically absorbing the terrifying Spiritual Qi from the Top Grade Spirit Stones into the Tai Chi Diagram;

using the pure Spiritual Power flowing out of the Tai Chi Diagram to strengthen his Nascent Soul and nourish his meridians, flesh, and bones;

and simultaneously driving the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire to temper his meridians and forge his bones and flesh!

One must never be careless in Cultivation. A single misstep could lead to Qi deviation and eternal damnation.

Yet Shen Lang often did such "distracted" things!

Time slowly passed...

Five hours later, the batch of Top Grade Spirit Stones on the ground had lost all their Spiritual Qi, turning into gray rocks.

Back in Celestial Phoenix City, although the Tai Chi Diagram had already shown its power, it had still taken an hour or so to absorb a Low Grade Spirit Stone.

Now, the Tai Chi Diagram’s power had advanced by leaps and bounds, a world of difference from what it had been.

With a flick of his wrist, Shen Lang took out another pile of Spirit Stones, continuing to absorb their Spiritual Qi while frantically using the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire for Body Forging.

Suddenly, Shen Lang’s movements to absorb the Spiritual Qi faltered, and he stopped.

The hundreds of streams of Vermilion Bird Divine Fire within his body also converged in an instant and retreated into the Tai Chi Diagram.

The next moment, Duanmu Xie’s voice came from outside the hall. "My lord, Shangguan Feiyue and the others are here."

"Those old fellows were probably scared half to death by the Celestial Demon Soul earlier. After waiting outside for a few hours, they couldn’t hold back and wanted to come ask what happened, I suppose?" A slight smile touched the corner of Shen Lang’s mouth as he said, "Let them in."