Chapter Ninety-Six: Heavenly Tribulation Is Nothing More Than Being Struck by Lightning

Red crystal fragments scattered across the ground, while a veil of blood mist spread through the forest.

Lin Xiaofeng barked, "Do you want to stay here and die? Move!"

Only then did Su Fan come to himself, remembering his own suspicion: the old man in red was about to arrive.

The three of them immediately followed Lin Xiaofeng and raced at full speed toward the edge of the dense woods. In the blink of an eye, silence settled over the forest once more.

A moment later, a crimson figure appeared where Red Orchid had vanished. He wore luxurious robes, his spiritual power profound, his face cold and stern.

The master of Celestial Origin Sect, the old man in red, seemed born for just such an appearance. He remained silent for a long while before letting out a sigh and murmuring, "So he failed again. His life truly is stubborn."

With that, he sighed once more, formed a hand seal, and crimson light shrouded his body as he vanished from the woods.

Long after the old man in red had gone, the elder in purple appeared without a sound. He cast a deep glance toward the place where the old man had disappeared, a strange smile touching his lips.

The elder in purple tapped his storage pouch, and a small banner appeared in his hand. With a gentle shake, bits of red crystal slowly emerged from the place where Red Orchid's body had collapsed.

Then the elder in purple raised a hand and seized at the air. A transparent nascent soul appeared.

The nascent soul faintly showed a delicate face; it was clearly a beauty, though at present she was extremely weak, as if in a state of deep sleep.

The elder in purple gave a soft chuckle, spat out a mouthful of blood, and sent it toward the crystal. At once the crystal's crimson glow faded, a purple radiance emerged, and in no time the crystal began to melt.

Once all the crystal had liquefied, the elder in purple began kneading the molten mass as though shaping clay, molding it into a human figure.

He was still shaping it according to the woman's nascent soul.

His skill was poor. The figure he made was grotesque and ugly, and even the elder in purple could only smile bitterly in resignation.

Still, he slapped the woman's nascent soul and forced it into the crystal-made body.

The soul seemed to enter with great difficulty, not because the crystal body was too small or ill-suited to a nascent soul, but because the soul's red light and the crystal's purple radiance were utterly incompatible, refusing to mingle.

The elder in purple smiled and sighed. "After all these thousands of years, you are still this stubborn. So be it, then. In a few more days, all this discomfort will vanish."

As he spoke, he flicked out streams of purple mist that enveloped the nascent soul. The soul seemed to suffer terribly, its contorted expression ruining the beauty of her face.

Even the elder in purple felt a little unable to bear it. He slowed the flow of purple mist and kept saying, "If you are to blame anyone, blame your master. He is the one who made you this way, one moment Red Kite, the next Red Orchid. I am trying to save you, so you had better behave."

The nascent soul seemed to understand his words. It nodded faintly and shut its eyes tightly.

No one knew how long they had flown, nor how many meals from days earlier they had burned away in the process.

Lin Xiaofeng had already stopped and was shouting, "I'm hungry. I'm not running anymore, not running anymore..."

Qin Yu stared, then hurriedly said, "If the sect master really catches up to us, what are we supposed to do?"

Lin Xiaofeng frowned. "All three of you are disciples of Celestial Gate, and each of you has a formidable master. What are you afraid of? Could the old man in red really kill you?"

Xiao Lin gave a contemptuous smile. "He's only afraid the sect master will see him together with the people from Corpse Valley."

Lin Xiaofeng said angrily, "What's wrong with Corpse Valley? Thousands of years ago, before Celestial Origin Sect even existed, Corpse Valley was a sacred land."

As he spoke, Lin Xiaofeng glared at Qin Yu, then turned his head away in disdain.

Qin Yu felt deeply awkward hearing the two of them. The Green lineage had always practiced swordsmanship, and swordsmen naturally carried their own pride.

That was why the elder in green taught his disciples not to grow close to cunning or wicked people. Among all the sects they had heard of, the most infamous one was Corpse Valley.

So Xiao Lin's words were not wrong. Xiao Lin belonged to the Blue lineage, and the elder in blue focused on cultivating techniques, carrying a certain air of darkness himself. Naturally, Xiao Lin cared little for such distinctions.

As for Su Fan, he had no notion of righteousness or wickedness at all. If you meant to harm him, then even if you were the master of a famous sect like Celestial Origin Sect, you were vile and evil. If you treated him well, then even if you were the chief figure of Corpse Valley, you were a good person in his eyes.

Thus Qin Yu's position was extremely awkward. Yet he was an intelligent man, and after spending many days with Xiao Lin, he was no longer so bound by rigid conventions.

Qin Yu brushed away the look of worry on his face and replaced it with a smile. "How could Wine Master be some kind of wicked person..."

It was only a probing remark, because he was afraid that if this Wine Gentleman truly leaned even a little toward the dark side, what he said would be most inappropriate.

The Wine Gentleman's expression did not change, but he said quietly, "What's wrong with wickedness? I simply like those who are evil, and I don't like those sanctimonious hypocrites..."

Faced with someone who seemed no more than a child, he himself still had to rack his brains to win that person's favor. It left Qin Yu, the pride of the Green lineage, feeling a little bitter.

Qin Yu put away his ingratiating smile, glanced at Lin Xiaofeng, and said unhappily, "Whether you like it or not, I am who I am. I do not need to curry favor with anyone."

After saying that, Qin Yu turned to leave. This was not pettiness, but rather the belief that those who walk different paths cannot plan together. For cultivators, that was a matter of faith, a sign of respect for the other and acknowledgment of both parties' convictions.

But Lin Xiaofeng was, after all, a senior. Su Fan also felt that Qin Yu was being a little inappropriate. Xiao Lin was straightforward by nature, so he raised his voice and said, "Wine Master, isn't that a bit improper? He has already..."

Xiao Lin's words were cut off halfway. He had seen Lin Xiaofeng drift lightly forward to Qin Yu and block his way, wearing a smile unlike any he had ever shown before.

That smile was like the joy of a devoted lover of music finding a kindred spirit, like a swift horse meeting the master who truly understood it, like a peculiar scholar finding a student he adored.

Qin Yu froze, staring at Lin Xiaofeng in confusion, unable to speak.

Lin Xiaofeng smiled blankly for a long time before saying, "That's right. It isn't whether you are wicked or not. It is whether you dare."

Su Fan asked in puzzlement, "Whether you dare?"

Lin Xiaofeng laughed. "Whether you dare to cultivate immortality."

Su Fan said, "Cultivating immortality requires daring too?"

Lin Xiaofeng said with satisfaction, "Of course. Cultivators must bear tremendous risks, such as heavenly tribulation."

Su Fan asked curiously, "Heavenly tribulation? Do you mean a calamity sent down by the heavens?"

Lin Xiaofeng laughed. "In simple terms, it means getting struck by lightning."

Su Fan only grew more confused and asked quickly, "Struck by lightning?"

Lin Xiaofeng said anxiously, "Why are you so stupid?" But then he thought it over and realized he had not explained it clearly himself, so he grinned and continued, "Cultivators are, by nature, battling against the heavens, seizing the creation of heaven and earth, stealing yin and yang from the cosmos."

"Once that happens, the heavens naturally grow displeased and send down disasters to punish the cultivators."