Chapter 159: The Celestial Immortal Returns

Boom... The final bolt of the ninety-nine heavenly tribulations crashed down. It was a white flash of lightning, brimming with a sacred and noble majesty. Bereft of any violent and tyrannical aura, it possessed only a graceful and grandiose dignity as it swept down toward the earth below like a crushing millstone.

Yuntian narrowed his eyes slightly at the approaching heavenly lightning and hurriedly urged the dark red celestial sword in his grip to its absolute limit. That blood-refined divine weapon celestial sword, which Yuntian had named the Kunwu Sword, erupted with a fierce, hazy bloody sword light. Carrying the terrifying might of spatial suppression, it met the white heavenly lightning head-on. In an instant, the surrounding space seemed to twist and warp, and the violent thunder and lightning energy completely submerged Yuntian.

A moment later, after all the lightning energy had dissipated, the vortex of lightning in mid-air vanished into thin air. Simultaneously, a bolt of electric light materialized out of nowhere, striking Yuntian's body. Immediately following that, an aura of celestial immortality began to emanate from his form.

"Hah..." Yuntian had just exhaled a breath of relief when his consciousness suddenly grew slightly hazy. Coming to his senses, he unexpectedly found himself within the Xia Clan tribe. At the same time, Yuntian witnessed the scene of Yun Xiao, the son of the Yun Clan patriarch, stepping on Xia Yunhu's chest and plunging a sword down into Xia Yunhu...

Atop the mountain peak, more than half a month had passed in the blink of an eye. Yuntian, who had been sitting quietly and motionlessly in meditation, finally trembled at the brow and opened his eyes. "The Tribulation of the Inner Demon—truly formidable! However, my Tribulation of the Inner Demon shouldn't be considered all that strong. Coupled with the fact that my heart-force has already reached the mortal realm tier, this kind of inner demon tribulation holds not even a shred of might against me."

Had he not wished to experience and observe the inner demon tribulation thoroughly, Yuntian would have snapped out of it much earlier.

"Yuntian!" A tearful and joyous voice rang out. Turning his head, Yuntian saw Qingfang standing not far away, her eyes somewhat red and swollen as she looked at him. Yet, between Qingfang and him, it was as if an invisible spatial barrier separated them. Although they were only separated by a few zhang, Qingfang was utterly unable to draw any closer to him.

Almost simultaneously, celestial music resounded, auspicious clouds descended from the heavens, and golden lotuses welled up from the earth. A terrifying pressure descended, and surging forces of heaven and earth converged, gathering entirely upon Yuntian's body. The heaven and earth spontaneously began to transform this second avatar of Yuntian's primordial spirit.

Yuntian clearly sensed that under the assistance of the external forces of heaven and earth and the formless heavenly Dao, all the power within his body was beginning to converge. His divine soul completely fused with the golden lotus primordial spirit, and even his entire Purple Prefecture space began to merge with the golden lotus primordial spirit, alongside the One-Qi Water Bead.

Pop... Upon the lotus seedpod of the golden lotus growing on the back of the tortoise-snake primordial spirit, a golden lotus seed was nurtured. This was the golden elixir, the single most important entity for celestial immortals, true immortals, and even Great Monads.

When this golden elixir flew upward, the Purple Prefecture space, the One-Qi Water Bead, and everything else vanished. Even the physical body of Yuntian's second avatar underwent a profound metamorphosis, transforming into a Celestial Immortal Body—a physical form constituted entirely of celestial immortal magic power.

The golden elixir within his body possessed even more unimaginable power, having fused all forms of energy together. This perfectly integrated golden elixir had also seamlessly merged his true spirit and divine soul, leaving them no longer distinct from one another. The interior of the golden elixir even contained its own spatial dimension housing vast quantities of celestial immortal magic power, while drawing in the primordial qi of heaven and earth, and even capable of storing magic treasures within itself.

"Having become a celestial immortal, I long ago condensed the five elements within my chest and could easily become a true immortal. However, wanting to ascend to a true immortal requires absorbing a vast, boundless ocean of primordial qi. The primordial qi within this Fallen Dust Realm is insufficient to support my breakthrough. Better not to rush; I will make the breakthrough after leaving this place," Yuntian thought to himself. With a single thought, the distorted and sealed space around him returned to normal.

Feeling the oppressive obstruction vanish, Qingfang let out a cry of pleasant surprise and hurriedly rushed forward, flinging herself into Yuntian's embrace. "Yuntian, you scared me to death! What on earth happened just now? Why did lightning strike you? And what about afterward..."

"Haha... Qingfang, didn't you once ask me what it takes to become a truly long-lived, immortal deity? Now I can tell you: as long as one survives the Celestial Immortal Tribulation, one achieves the status of a celestial immortal and gains eternal life. As for me, I was just undergoing the Celestial Immortal Tribulation," Yuntian laughed heartily. "Now, I am a truly untethered and transcendent celestial immortal."

"A celestial immortal?" Qingfang stared wide-eyed at Yuntian, her expression shifting and her gaze flickering restlessly. "The Celestial Immortal Tribulation? Such a terrifying celestial immortal tribulation? So becoming a celestial immortal is that difficult? Then what happens if one fails to survive the celestial immortal tribulation? Will one die?"

Yuntian gently shook his head and replied, "If one switches to cultivating as a loose immortal, one won't die immediately. However, no matter how formidable a loose immortal is, amidst the increasingly ferocious Three Disasters and Nine Tribulations, they will eventually perish, unable to survive past a million years. Without becoming a celestial immortal, it is ultimately difficult to achieve true transcendence and absolute freedom."

"Qingfang, don't overthink it. You have only just opened your Purple Prefecture and merely laid the foundation for the immortal Dao. For you, even wanting to become a Primordial Spirit cultivator or a Void-Returning Earth Immortal is no easy feat, let alone a celestial immortal, which is far too distant," Yuntian said, looking down at her before raising his gaze to the distant horizon. "This world is far too small. Outside, there is a much vaster realm of heaven and earth. Out there, even my current level of cultivation cannot truly be considered among the supreme powerhouses. I came here precisely to temper my Dao heart and undergo the tribulation to become an immortal. Now that my task is successfully completed, it is time for me to leave."

"Leave?" Hearing this, Qingfang's heart tightened, and her lovely eyes looked at Yuntian with reluctance. "Yuntian, must you leave in such a hurry?"

Turning his gaze back to Qingfang, Yuntian reached out to stroke her soft, flowing hair. "Qingfang, after all, I cannot possibly remain forever in this pocket world. Besides, even if you become a Purple Prefecture cultivator, if your cultivation fails to advance and break through further, you will ultimately possess only a lifespan of five hundred years."

"Yuntian, before you leave, give me one last time! Leave me a memory, won't you?" Qingfang looked at Yuntian expectantly, her beautiful eyes shimmering with red.

Sighing inwardly, Yuntian said no more, simply reaching out to wrap his arms tightly around Qingfang, pulling her into his embrace.

A few days later, within a karst cave, Yuntian—clad in black robes—turned back to glance at the smooth stone platform where Qingfang lay sleeping peacefully, a satisfied smile resting upon her face. With a single thought, he directly employed the Greater Teleportation technique to depart from this pocket world. This parting might well mean they would never meet again for all eternity.

...

In the Eastern China Great World, the high-altitude space tore open, and Yuntian stepped forth from the rift. The very next moment, utilizing a Greater Teleportation, he arrived directly within the Manor of the Eastern China Emperor.

Because Yuntian had long since refined the command talisman of the grand array within the Eastern China Emperor's Manor, he was able to use Greater Teleportation to enter the manor directly without triggering the array's might to launch an attack against him.

"Hmm?" Inside the manor, Lü Dongbin, who was sitting cross-legged in a pavilion meditating and comprehending the mysteries of the Yang Heavenly Dao, seemed to perceive something. He abruptly snapped open his eyes, a look of joyful surprise crossing his face as he instantly vanished. The next instant, he had arrived at Yuntian's residence, his burning gaze fixed upon Yuntian as he burst into hearty laughter. "Haha... Excellent, Yuntian! You truly did not disappoint your master; you survived the tribulation and became a celestial immortal!"

"This disciple pays respects to Master! That I was able to survive the Celestial Immortal Tribulation by sheer luck is entirely thanks to Master's meticulous guidance and teachings bestowed upon me prior to this," Yuntian saluted respectfully.

Lü Dongbin waved his hand with a smile and said, "Ahem! No need to flatter your master! That you could successfully survive the tribulation and become a celestial immortal is entirely due to your own ability. You are a reincarnated immortal, and truth be told, I was somewhat worried beforehand, fearing your celestial immortal tribulation might be overly formidable... By the way, how many bolts of lightning was your celestial immortal tribulation?"

"The ninety-nine heavenly tribulations!" Yuntian's calm reply caused Lü Dongbin to instantly widen his eyes. "The ninety-nine heavenly tribulations? Good disciple, what manner of astonishing fortuitous encounters have you experienced to actually summon such a terrifying thunder tribulation?"

Recovering himself a moment later, Lü Dongbin shook his head and laughed, "Very well, everyone has their secrets. Since you don't wish to speak of it, your master won't compel you. Right, you comprehended the Great Dao of Qiankun long ago; why haven't you broken through in a single bound to become a Pure Yang True Immortal?"

"This disciple only just survived the celestial immortal tribulation a few days ago and hasn't had the time to..." Before Yuntian could finish his sentence, Lü Dongbin impatiently cut in, "Breaking through to a Pure Yang True Immortal is simple; it merely requires absorbing a boundless ocean of primordial qi. I happen to possess some Pure Yang Immortal Pills here, meant for Pure Yang True Immortals to recover their magic power. Allowing you to rapidly reach the realm of a Pure Yang True Immortal will be an absolute breeze!"