Su Chengyu could distinctly feel the horrifying power contained within the thunderbolt falling from the sky, a force that was beyond human capacity to bear.
Su Chengyu channeled his overwhelming mana, and the Dragon Slayer Sword unleashed a torrent of sword radiance, striking the falling thunderbolt.
Under the divine might of the thunderbolt, Su Chengyu’s sword radiance held it at bay for a moment before dissipating. He circulated all his mana throughout his body, forming a protective shield.
After the thunderbolt shattered the protective shield, its power was consumed significantly before it eventually fell upon Su Chengyu.
He was clothed in the armor of the True Dragon Reverse Scale and the inner armor gifted by Ye Qingci. The power of the thunderbolt was mostly blocked, leaving only about one-tenth of its original power.
Su Chengyu channeled the spell, refining the power within the thunderbolt. As it crackled and popped around him, the power of the thunderbolt refined his physical body and internal organs.
The pure and domineering force of the thunderbolt was both a test and a blessing for cultivators. If one could withstand the thunder tribulation, they would immensely benefit.
The thunderbolt refining the body was an excellent cultivation method, albeit extremely dangerous. A slight misstep could lead to total annihilation under the thunderbolt.
"Just as expected, the power of this first thunderbolt is quite average."
Even without the True Dragon Reverse Scale, he could withstand the first thunderbolt on his own strength.
The tribulation clouds swirled in the sky, gestating the second thunderbolt.
This thunderbolt was particularly dangerous for Su Chengyu. Not only did its power increase exponentially, but it also contained a spiritual attack that refined the Dao Heart.
If his Dao Heart was unstable, he would be ensnared by numerous illusions, losing all resistance under the thunderbolt. With the collapse of his Dao Heart, he would die and his path to cultivation would be lost.
A crack appeared in the tribulation clouds, and with a rumbling sound, a red thunderbolt descended.
Su Chengyu concentrated entirely on maintaining the stability of his Dao Heart. Following his previous approach, he used the Dragon Slayer Sword to trigger the sword radiance, mitigating some of the thunderbolt’s might, before using his protective body aura to resist.
When his protective aura shattered, the thunderbolt struck him. The armor of the True Dragon Reverse Scale shone brightly in defiance of the divine might of the thunderbolt, and all Su Chengyu felt was a booming sound in his head. His consciousness instantly entered the Domain of Consciousness.
Within the Domain of Consciousness, thunderbolts rolled and descended, striking the mountains and rivers, causing the earth to tremble and rocks to fall. Within the rivers, the waters churned and exploded.
Then, the scene before his eyes changed. Su Xiaoxiao appeared, being captured and violently battered by evildoers.
"Brother, save me! Please save me!" Tears streamed down Su Xiaoxiao’s face as she cried out pitifully, extending her hand towards Su Chengyu.
The scene unfolding before him felt horrifyingly real. This was the event Su Chengyu feared the most. Despite a shred of rationality persisting, telling him that this was an illusion, that it wasn’t real.
But as his Dao Heart wavered, that sliver of rationality was quickly engulfed. Su Chengyu’s eyes were filled with raw fury as he charged to rescue Su Xiaoxiao.
"Don’t harm Xiaoxiao!"
Su Chengyu rushed over, but many people surged towards him from all directions, barring his path. He grasped the Dragon Slayer Sword, his sword qi running rampant, cutting a swath of destruction. His sword qi swept across like a reaper’s scythe mowing down grass, heads flying and blood splattered.
"Brother... Brother, save me."
The persistent pleas for help from Su Xiaoxiao echoed in his ears, driving Su Chengyu to the brink of madness. But the swarm of people around him continually multiplied. No matter how many he killed, there was always more!
At that moment, another illusion appeared. It was Lin Chuxue, standing amidst a crowd, covered in blood.
"Chengyu, save me, I don’t want to die."
A throng of people surged towards Lin Chuxue, brandishing their blades and slashing at her, eliciting horrifying screams.
Su Chengyu’s eyes were bloodshot. His sister was being disgraced, the woman he loved was in a life-threatening situation, surrounded and assaulted. This sent him spiraling into madness.
However, the illusion had not yet ended. In another direction, the figure of Li Yuancang emerged. Li Yuancang was also besieged and fighting desperately.
"Good brother, come help me," Li Yuancang called out to Su Chengyu.
With these three major illusions, Su Chengyu’s Dao Heart was on the verge of collapse. Within his Domain of Consciousness, mountains collapsed, rivers reversed, the sun and moon in the sky turned crimson. As though doomsday was upon him, the Domain of Consciousness was on the brink of destruction.
Su Chengyu was now in the most dangerous stage. If he could not awaken from the illusions and maintain his fundamental self, his Dao Heart would collapse. Once the Domain of Consciousness was destroyed, his demise was certain.
Su Chengyu was deeply ensnared in the illusions, his rampant killing stirred up boundless hostility. The pleas for help from Su Xiaoxiao, the screams of Lin Chuxue, and the calls of Li Yuancang echoed continuously in his ears, driving Su Chengyu further into madness.
In the midst of his ruthless killing, he himself was also gravely wounded. His body was covered in wounds, and he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.
Su Chengyu in reality was covered by the red lightning, motionless, unable to resist, vomiting blood.
The doomsday scene in the Domain of Consciousness was intensifying. Mountains continued to collapse, blocking the rivers and resulting in flooding. The raging flood waters were rampant.
His entire Domain of Consciousness was on the brink of collapse. Even cracks began to appear in the sky. Once these cracks fully formed, his Domain of Consciousness would completely disintegrate.
At this moment, Su Chengyu was hanging on by a thread. If things continued this way, death was certain.
At this point, Su Chengyu was bleeding from every orifice, and his Dao Heart was on the verge of collapsing completely.
In the illusion, Su Chengyu fought until he was exhausted, collapsing into a pool of blood.
"Brother, save me, save me!" Su Xiaoxiao’s pitiful cries still echoed in his ears.
He struggled to rise, only to see Lin Chuxue also collapsed in a pool of blood, stretching out a hand towards him as she was on the brink of death. Li Yuancang’s head had been severed by a single strike.
Su Chengyu roared furiously, his eyes filled with rage as he struggled to rise from the pool of blood but found he no longer had the strength.
"Xiaoxiao! Chu Xue! Yuan Cang!"
Su Chengyu crawled in the pool of blood, barely clinging to life. At that moment, the faces of several enemies appeared before him.
Han Qian Jun had seized hold of Xu Nanzhi and laughed ominously. Feng Huaqiang was rampaging and slaughtering wantonly in his home, as Fang Qing and Zeng Yifan fell one after the other into the pool of blood.
Without the strength to resist the inner demons, the illusions would only become more real and complicated.
Gu Ying was fleeing with Gu Xiao Shuang, but they were caught by Feng Jing. Feng Jing grasped Gu Xiao Shuang’s neck and lifted her up.
"Godfather... Godfather..."
"Don’t! Please don’t!"
With a helpless cry, Su Chengyu drummed his hands against the ground. Everything was the thing that Su Chengyu feared the most in his heart. The Heart Demon Tribulation aimed to use a person’s deepest fears, utterly crushing the soul and shattering the Dao Heart.