Chapter Two: Heavenly Tribulation

Within Dragon Overlord’s domain, beneath the cliff wall on the western side, a row of caves lay side by side, and the foremost cave was Cold Second’s dwelling. At that moment, Cold Second was pacing back and forth inside the cave. They had returned to Dragon Overlord three days earlier, and those three days had been the most vexing of his entire life. With the vast stronghold of Dragon Overlord left without Rain Blaze, every matter had to be decided by him. He had to steady the hearts of the people while also sending men to search for Rain Blaze.

For a leader of Dragon Overlord, these tasks were not much; what truly gave him a headache was Azure Spirit. This young lady could not be struck, nor could she be scolded. If she had obediently waited for news of Rain Blaze, that would have been one thing, but she was the restless sort, and every few days she would make a scene, demanding to go out and search for him. Several bandits had already been injured by her hand. Thankfully, mindful that they were all Rain Blaze’s subordinates, she had held back somewhat; otherwise Cold Second truly did not know what to do.

“Cold Second!”

A figure rushed swiftly into Cold Second’s dwelling.

Hearing that voice, Cold Second immediately turned from his pacing and went to meet him. “Little Six, any news of Rain Overlord?”

The newcomer was Zhao Six. In three quick strides he reached Cold Second’s side and said with a helpless expression, “I searched everywhere nearby, but there’s still no news. Still, this trip wasn’t a complete loss. At the very least, I learned one thing. The people under Golden Might are searching for a youth in a red robe, and from the description, it’s clearly Rain Overlord. Since Golden Might’s men are looking for him, it means Rain Overlord isn’t dead. At the very least, he escaped from their hands. So I’ve decided to make a trip to Sunset Mountain. Rain Overlord is very likely near Sunset Mountain right now.”

“Mm.” Cold Second nodded. He also agreed with Zhao Six’s judgment. “Little Six, be careful on your way to Sunset Mountain. At a time like this, Golden Might’s people may also be nearby…”

Before the words search had even finished turning in his mouth, Lu Kai, ragged and disheveled, burst in in a hurry. “Cold Second, I can’t hold that shrew back any longer! You know I’m tongue-tied and bad with words. If I stay with her for one more day, I’m done for sure! You should go yourself…”

Without waiting for Cold Second’s response, he plopped straight down onto the ground, and as if exhausted, shut his eyes.

“Alas…” Looking at the wounds on Lu Kai’s body, Cold Second sighed helplessly. He knew it had not been wise to send Lu Kai to stop Azure Spirit, but everyone in Dragon Overlord was busy right now, and Lu Kai was the most idle one of them all, so naturally this honorable task had fallen to him. He had not expected that Lu Kai would actually run back.

“Little Six, this won’t do either. I think it would be better if I let the lady go with you,” Cold Second said after a moment’s thought.

“This…” Zhao Six hesitated. Azure Spirit was Rain Blaze’s woman. If anything happened on the road, he truly would have no way to explain it to Rain Blaze. But Azure Spirit’s strength was indeed formidable, and with her help they might really be able to find Rain Blaze. After considering it, he finally nodded. “All right!”

“Let’s go!” Cold Second said at once upon seeing Zhao Six agree. The two walked out of the cave side by side.

“Get out of my way. If you don’t move, don’t blame me for being rude…”

“Ah!” “Ah!” …

Zhao Six had only just reached the entrance to Dragon Overlord when he heard Azure Spirit’s voice, followed by cries of agony. He frowned. “Was bringing her really the right choice?”

“Lady, please stop at once…” Still speaking, Cold Second had already arrived beside Azure Spirit. “Lady, we have absolutely no intention of stopping you. We only needed to make arrangements. Look, Little Six has returned. This time, Little Six will take you with him to search for Rain Overlord!”

As he spoke, Cold Second helped up the bandit who had been knocked to the ground. Fortunately, Azure Spirit had shown some restraint in her strikes.

“Hmph!” Azure Spirit snorted coldly. She had already been angry upon seeing Cold Second, who had knocked her unconscious before. She had been about to make a move when she heard his later words, and could only force down her fury.

“Lady, let’s go,” Zhao Six said as he stepped forward, then led several of his men as Azure Spirit left Dragon Overlord.

At the southern end of Sunset Mountain, Zhao Six and his group of ten were searching without pause. Suddenly, the sky echoed with rolling thunder. Zhao Six and the others could not help looking upward, only to see clusters of dark clouds gathering not far ahead. Zhao Six had never seen such black clouds before, and for a moment he simply stared blankly.

“It’s heavenly tribulation!” Azure Spirit said instinctively. She had experienced such dark clouds when she was establishing her foundation, though the tribulation she had faced then did not seem nearly this dense. Her heart suddenly tightened. Could it be that Big Brother Lei is undergoing tribulation?

“Heavenly tribulation?” Zhao Six was unfamiliar with the term, but no matter how he looked at those black clouds, they seemed dangerous. He was about to order a detour when Azure Spirit had already rushed ahead. Instinctively, he shouted after her, “Lady, it’s dangerous…”

“Big Brother Lei may be up ahead!” Azure Spirit called back without turning her head. At this moment, her mind was filled entirely with Lei Yan. Seeing the heavenly tribulation, she assumed Lei Yan was the one undergoing it, and so she rushed forward without the slightest hesitation. This time, however, she had truly guessed correctly: Lei Yan was indeed beneath those dark clouds.

The black clouds overhead exerted tremendous pressure on Lei Yan, forcing him to circulate his internal force in resistance. Yet the moment it moved through his body, it lost control. A powerful suction was slowly drawing his internal force outward, and the source of that pull was precisely those clouds. Lei Yan was stunned. He had never encountered anything like this. Desperately, he tried to guide his internal force back to his dantian. After quite a while, he finally managed to draw the scattered force back into his dantian.

Just after pulling the force back in, Lei Yan abruptly scooped up the flower demon, leaped out of the pit, and ran for his life. Those strange black clouds had actually stirred a trace of fear in his heart, and so he decided to avoid them. Yet strangely enough, the clouds seemed to bear him some grudge, always drifting above his head.

“Hm? Azure Spirit!” Running at full speed, Lei Yan suddenly spotted Azure Spirit not far away and shouted, “Spirit, get away from here!”

Azure Spirit also saw Lei Yan and waved as she called out, “Big Brother Lei, that is heavenly tribulation! No matter where you run, it will follow you!”

“Heavenly tribulation?” Lei Yan abruptly stopped. He had long since heard of heavenly tribulation, but that was a matter for cultivators. He was only an innate martial artist, so how could he possibly be undergoing tribulation? Seeing Azure Spirit arrive beside him, he asked, “Spirit, what exactly is going on with this heavenly tribulation?”

“Big Brother Lei!” Azure Spirit did not answer. The moment she reached his side, she threw herself into his arms, wrapping him tightly with both hands as though if she loosened her grip even a little, he would vanish. Feeling her affection, Lei Yan gently patted her back. “Am I not fine?”

“Mm.” Tears glistened in Azure Spirit’s eyes as she gave a soft answer, then sniffled lightly and said, “Big Brother Lei, you must have taken a Foundation Establishment Pill, haven’t you?” Seeing him nod, she continued, “Actually, there are many kinds of heavenly tribulation, but I only know this one. This kind is called the Foundation Establishment Tribulation. After its baptism, your internal force will be transformed into true essence. You only need to release your internal force outward, and it will naturally attract the heavenly tribulation in the sky. But you must be careful. The power of heavenly tribulation is no joke. If you are even a little careless, you could lose your life!”