Golden light blazed across the sky, and Evan Lin’s four bodies unleashed Divine Cleave at the exact same moment. This was his strongest attack yet—space itself shook violently, as if on the verge of being torn apart.
Meanwhile, the middle-aged man in the clouds swept his arm, casting an invisible barrier that blanketed the heavens. "Senior brother, whether you survive Heaven’s Punishment is up to you now. The only help I can offer is hiding your tribulation from God Realm experts. If anyone finds out you’re enduring such a monstrous God-Tribulation, disaster will follow."
Evan was completely unaware of all this. His strike scattered more than half of the golden lightning, but some still crashed down, instantly swallowing him.
Just then, Yvonne Xuan and the others arrived, witnessing Evan surrounded by golden lightning. Their faces went deathly pale—no one could possibly survive lightning of this caliber. Despair gripped them all.
Tears streamed down their faces as they watched the scene in the sky, silent except for one hope: that Evan could endure it. They’d trade their own lives for his survival if they could.
As the golden lightning enveloped his body, Evan was stunned. He knew exactly how powerful his attack was, yet it still couldn’t scatter the golden bolt completely. An agony like nothing he’d ever felt tore through him.
It was as if his body no longer belonged to him, as if he was being ripped apart. He lost control and plummeted from the sky.
"Am I really going to die? Why don’t I feel any regret?" The thought flashed through Evan’s mind.
Bang! Evan’s body crashed onto Skyflight Terrace. Luckily, he didn’t shatter into pieces, but his flesh was a mangled mess—muscles and organs exposed, his whole body charred black like he’d been roasted alive.
Evan couldn’t move at all—only his divine sense remained. Checking his injuries, he realized there wasn’t a single intact spot left, not even on his face.
"Evan! Evan! Boss!" Not far from Skyflight Terrace, Yvonne Xuan and the others saw Evan’s condition and couldn’t help shouting his name, even wanting to rush onto the terrace to check on him.
But reason stopped them. As soon as you step onto Skyflight Terrace with enough cultivation to ascend, your own tribulation will instantly descend. None of them were ready, and after witnessing the horror of Heaven’s Punishment, their confidence in ascending had collapsed.
Yvonne forced herself to calm down. She knew Evan’s resilience better than anyone—if his body remained, he wouldn’t die. Even though he was gravely injured, he would recover.
"Don’t worry about him, everyone. Evan’s condition is terrible, but he’s survived this lightning bolt. The real question is whether he can make it through the next one!" Yvonne said.
"Look, the golden tribulation clouds in the sky are fading. That means Evan’s God-Tribulation is finally over—the massive golden bolt was the last one," Fairy Lynn said.
Seeing Evan survive the God-Tribulation filled everyone with joy. Evan himself lay motionless on Skyflight Terrace, but it was only thanks to the power of God’s Blood that he’d endured the final lightning bolt. When the golden lightning surrounded him, the radiance of God’s Blood offset most of its force.
Otherwise, with the gold element’s unstoppable power, he would have been obliterated. Once again, he saw the true strength of God’s Blood. Once he reached the God Realm, he swore to awaken his bloodline and fulfill his mission.
Inside his body, the wood element frantically repaired his shredded flesh. Suddenly, a seven-colored auspicious light appeared in the sky, and Evan’s body was lifted from Skyflight Terrace. He still couldn’t move, but he could speak.
He was well aware of Yvonne and the others’ arrival. As he ascended, he shouted, "I’ll wait for you all in the God Realm! Remember three things: First, you must find heaven-defying treasures before facing your tribulation. Second, change your appearance and hide your names. If fate allows, we’ll meet again. Third, never reveal your true identities in the God Realm—never!"
As his voice faded, Evan’s body was wrapped in auspicious light and slowly vanished from everyone’s sight. His words burned into each person’s heart—they would ascend when the time was right.
Only after ascending to the God Realm did Evan realize he’d made a truly stupid mistake: he’d forgotten to leave any God Stones from the Coiling-Dragon Ring for everyone. In the God Realm, you can’t do anything without God Stones—they’re just like Immortal Stones in the Immortal Realm.
He remembered how miserable he’d been mining for Immortal Stones in the caverns, and instantly regretted it. But what’s done is done; he could only hope they’d find their own fortune.
Now Evan found himself beside a massive pool. His appearance was utterly ruined—charred black and unrecognizable—so no one could possibly identify him. He still lay motionless by the pool’s edge.
The God Realm’s Ascension Pool was much like its Immortal Realm counterpart, both guarded by wardens. There were two here, both Heavenly God-rank. Seeing Evan arrive, both were surprised—it was their first time seeing someone so mangled by tribulation lightning yet still ascend.
"Brother Wang, look at that kid—he took a tribulation bolt like that and still managed to ascend. His luck is insane!" one warden said.
"Little Zhao, let’s toss him into the Ascension Pool. That’s our job. If he survived such a disaster and made it here, we should give him a chance. Maybe he’ll turn out to be a genius. If God-King Skyazure takes a liking to him, we might catch some glory ourselves," said the older warden, Brother Wang.
With a casual wave, Little Zhao sent Evan’s limp body flying into the Ascension Pool, splashing water everywhere.
The moment Evan hit the Ascension Pool, his mind cleared. He felt the pool’s terrifying energy—exactly what he needed most right now.
His body instinctively absorbed it, circulating the power through his meridians. As time passed, he drew in more and more, and his Chaos Immortal Force was gradually replaced by this new energy…