As for the terrifying skill Luna mentioned, Evan Chu wasn’t sure what it was, but he was certain it had something to do with the power of lightning. For now, though, the most important thing was figuring out how to withstand this terrifying Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder.
Evan stared at the red lightning swelling in the sky, his heart pounding with tension. If Luna hadn’t told him he’d already forged the Thunder Spirit Body, he honestly wouldn’t have had the guts to stand here. One strike from this Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder could easily wipe him out, body and soul.
Meanwhile, at another spot in the Thunder Pool, the black figure was even more anxious. Staring up at the red lightning overhead, he muttered, “No way, is lightning this powerful even possible? If this comes down, won’t the Thunder Pool be destroyed on the spot? In ten thousand years, nothing like this has ever happened, but the moment this kid shows up, it does. Is this lightning somehow tied to him?”
Seeing the red lightning, he immediately gave up on searching for Evan Chu and spun around, fleeing toward the edge of the Thunder Pool as fast as he could, desperately hoping to dodge the strike.
Strangely enough, ever since that red lightning appeared overhead, the surrounding lightning power had clearly weakened. Now, his speed was more than twice as fast as before, letting him escape even quicker.
Evan stared up at the red lightning, full of both anxiety and anticipation. He was nervous because he had no idea what kind of damage this Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder would inflict, but he was also eager—hoping that if he survived, he’d gain some terrifying new attack power. He’d had a taste of what lightning attacks could do back when the Violet Thunder Fox struck him.
Of course, the Violet Thunder Fox’s lightning attacks couldn’t even compare to the weakest lightning here in the Thunder Pool. But Evan was sure that once he returned to the Azure Tide Ruins, she’d definitely break through to a new level.
Since Luna said he’d already forged the Thunder Spirit Body, the Thunder Spirit Pearl wasn’t much use to him anymore. If he gifted her the Thunder Spirit Pearl, and she absorbed the lightning power inside, she’d undergo a complete transformation—maybe even break through several realms at once.
It was a beautiful thought, but right now the situation couldn’t be ignored. The red lightning overhead was swelling larger and larger, its world-shattering majesty pressing down so hard that even Evan’s heaven-defying defense couldn’t keep him standing. The suffocating pressure was getting worse by the second.
Just then, the red lightning overhead stirred—or rather, the clouds around it began to churn. Black clouds rolled and boiled, giving the whole sky the feeling of an oncoming storm, and a wave of terror swept through the air.
Suddenly, the red lightning in the sky struck down. But this first bolt wasn’t all that powerful—when it hit Evan, he barely felt a thing.
“This is Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder? That’s way too weak!” Evan muttered. But when he looked up, he saw the red lightning still flickering in the clouds, as if the bolt that just struck wasn’t the real deal.
“Just enjoy it, Evan. Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder almost never appears—usually only experts crossing the God-tribulation ever encounter it. There are up to nine bolts, each one stronger than the last, but most of the time only five or six actually strike before it fades. Who knows how many you’ll get this time, so be prepared,” Luna said.
Evan’s heart raced with anxiety. Luna’s words filled him with dread—Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder was supposed to appear only during God-tribulation, and now it was coming for him. He couldn’t tell if this was a blessing or a curse, but at this point, there was nowhere to run. Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder always finds its target, and right now, Evan was that target.
A moment later, a white bolt of lightning tore through the sky, much larger than the first. The thunderclap was deafening, and the bolt hit Evan squarely, knocking him to the ground. Still, it didn’t actually hurt him.
“That’s some serious lightning—this is only the second bolt. I wonder what the next ones will be like,” Evan muttered to himself.
No sooner had he spoken than another bolt struck—this time yellow, and even thicker than the last. It hit Evan dead-on, blasting him dozens of meters away and leaving him covered in dust, looking pretty ragged.
This one actually stung a bit, but the pain faded quickly. That’s the power of the Thunder Spirit Body—if Evan hadn’t been refined by the Five-Element God Thunder, he’d probably be half-dead by now.
At that moment, the Savage Earth Dragon poked its head out of the soil, thunder rumbling through the whole valley. Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder had blanketed a radius of hundreds of li, meaning anything within that range could be a target.
“This lightning is way too terrifying. Did Golden Dragon Lord trigger it? Please, Golden Dragon Lord, don’t let anything happen to you—I’m still hoping to return to the Dragon Shrine with you,” the Savage Earth Dragon fretted.
The black figure had now reached the edge of the Thunder Pool, staring at the clouds and the massive red lightning overhead. “Just who is this kid, anyway? How could he possibly draw out lightning this strong? No matter how tough you are, getting hit by something like that means total annihilation.”
Meanwhile, Evan hurriedly activated Earthshift, covering himself in layers of earth and stone for defense—hoping it would at least dull the pain a little. Another bolt of lightning crashed down from the sky, this one green and even thicker than the last. "Boom!" It struck Evan and sent him flying.
A spray of pale-gold blood burst from Evan’s mouth—he was clearly injured this time, and not lightly.
Climbing out of the crater, Evan cursed, “Four bolts already—if the fifth one lands, it might just take my little life! What kind of sick joke is this? Who knows how many bolts this damned Nine-Heaven Divine Thunder will throw at me. Looks like I’m hanging by a thread today.”
Unbeknownst to him, up in the clouds a figure wrapped in a glowing sphere watched from above. “Senior brother, I’m doing this for your own good. I know you can handle the last three bolts—then your Thunder Spirit Body will reach its peak,” he said.
If Luna saw the glowing sphere above the clouds, she’d be shocked—maybe even unable to believe it. That kind of phenomenon only appears after breaking through the void. And what he said was even more startling; Evan’s true identity was something she’d never imagined.
Then the red lightning struck again—this time, it was blue. Even though Evan was ready, he was blasted hundreds of meters away, smashing a deep crater into the ground and coughing up another mouthful of reverse blood. He lay there for ages, unable to get up…