Chapter 1382: The Dao Heaven Tribulation

“What is happening… Am I about to return to the void and merge into this world?”

“I never expected that, from the moment I embarked on the path of immortality, I would be cautious and meticulous, daring not a moment of slack, only to find that in the end, I could not escape this tribulation…”

“In that case, compared to those cultivators who perished early on their journey for various reasons, I have merely added a few more years…”

“Wan’er, I’m sorry…”

“If there is a next life… it would be better to be an ordinary mortal in the mundane world. Though fated not to attain longevity, one could enjoy family bliss—why envy the immortals?”

Han Li’s thoughts were chaotic, tinged with helplessness and sorrow.

At that moment, streaks of golden light rippled through the surrounding void—strands of time law force—converging toward his body with incredible speed, yet the world around him still moved at an agonizingly slow pace.

The strands of golden light transformed into five golden torrents, merging into his body.

Han Li was all too familiar with these five streams of time law force—they came from the Great Five Elements Nirvana World Art, which he had painstakingly cultivated for years.

What was lost was regained. The time law force within his body rapidly swelled once more, and his five senses were restored.

The five streams of time law force churned wildly within him, like raging winds and towering waves, cleansing his entire being.

The incantation of the Great Five Elements Nirvana World Art flowed through his mind, granting him an unprecedented depth of understanding of this technique.

Han Li felt his body become light and ethereal. With a thunderous roar, a sea of golden light appeared before his eyes, as if he had pushed open a great door and stepped into an entirely new realm.

Time law force surged in endlessly, and the time within his body quickly returned to its previous level. But the time law force converging from the void did not stop; instead, it grew even more abundant.

Five thick beams of golden light surged like angry waves, pouring into every limb and bone.

The world’s primal qi also rushed in, flooding his body.

Countless granulations sprouted from Han Li’s shattered body. His wounds healed rapidly, and soon he was fully restored.

A dazzling golden light erupted from him, and an aura of terrifying power, several times greater than before, burst forth. Tidal waves of golden light spread outward.

Almost the entire spiritual qi of the Middle Earth Immortal Realm fluctuated and churned wildly.

The flow of time in the surrounding world stirred and suddenly returned to normal.

The Wheel of Reincarnation Lord, the Demon Lord, and Gu Huo Jin stared in astonishment at the dramatic transformation of Han Li, their expressions shifting.

From their perspective, this series of events had occurred in the blink of an eye. Han Li, who had been on the verge of death, had instantly transformed to his current state.

A flicker of excitement appeared in the eyes of the Wheel of Reincarnation Lord and the Demon Lord.

Although the circumstances of Han Li’s change were strange, the aura he now emitted was not unfamiliar to them—it was the sign of advancing to Dao Ancestor.

Han Li’s advancement to Dao Ancestor at this critical moment gave them a better chance against Gu Huo Jin.

“Something’s not right. Gu Huo Jin is still here. How could Fellow Daoist Han advance to the position of Time Dao Ancestor?” the Demon Lord asked in surprise after his initial excitement.

“By merging with the chaos force and attempting to break through the Heavenly Dao, Gu Huo Jin has effectively abandoned his position as Time Dao Ancestor, allowing Fellow Daoist Han to advance smoothly. I suspect even Gu Huo Jin did not foresee this. It is the will of heaven,” the Wheel of Reincarnation Lord said, his eyes shifting as realization dawned.

The Demon Lord nodded vigorously upon hearing this.

Gu Huo Jin stared at Han Li, his face dark and his eyes flickering with murderous intent, as if he wanted to act.

“Don’t even think about it!” With a blur of figures, the Wheel of Reincarnation Lord and the Demon Lord positioned themselves between Gu Huo Jin and Han Li.

Gu Huo Jin frowned. Though his power had greatly increased by merging with the chaos vortex, it came with the drawback of being unable to move, which was quite inconvenient.

At the same time, the once bright sky suddenly darkened. Large patches of gray-black clouds appeared out of nowhere, accumulating rapidly until they filled the entire sky, exuding a heavy, oppressive pressure.

This pressure was as lofty as the heavens and as weighty as the earth, vast and irresistible.

“The Dao Heaven Tribulation!” The Wheel of Reincarnation Lord and the Demon Lord looked at this scene with concern, but also a hint of joy.

The Dao Heaven Tribulation is a heavenly tribulation that must be endured when advancing to Dao Ancestor. It is no small matter, and one misstep could lead to perishing within it.

But with the arrival of the Dao Heaven Tribulation, the area around Han Li became a forbidden zone. Any outsider who entered would be struck by the tribulation, making it impossible even for Gu Huo Jin to approach.

“The Dao Heaven Tribulation comes quickly, but time law is the supreme law, and the might of the Dao Heaven Tribulation far exceeds that of other ordinary laws. Back then, I prepared for a long time and barely survived with a stroke of luck. You are advancing so abruptly—I don’t believe you can survive it,” Gu Huo Jin said with a cold snort, his expression seeming to calm somewhat, no longer as frenzied as before.

By now, the sky above had turned completely pitch black, casting the world below into darkness. In the silence, a sense of grim determination permeated the air.

A loud crackling sound erupted!

The dark clouds in the sky began to churn, forming a massive vortex aimed directly at Han Li below.

Han Li looked up at the sky, his expression calm.

Having ‘died’ once before, he had unknowingly come to understand some things, and his heart felt much more at ease.

Within the vortex, countless pitch-black lightning bolts raced and darted, appearing terrifying. At the center of the vortex was a black hole, emitting a deep, profound light, leading to an unknown destination.

As the black lightning flashed, a thunderous roar echoed. A terrifying pressure, many times greater than before, emanated from the vortex. The surrounding void trembled violently and twisted completely.

Han Li’s body trembled slightly under this pressure but quickly steadied itself.

A gray light flickered deep within the vortex, and countless dense gray clouds flew out, blanketing the sky as they descended toward Han Li.

He had seen this kind of gray cloud before—when the Crab Daoist had advanced to Dao Ancestor and undergone the Dao Heaven Tribulation.

But the amount of gray cloud during the Crab Daoist’s tribulation was less than a tenth of what he faced now.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of Han Li’s mouth.

Back when he witnessed the Crab Daoist’s tribulation, he had fainted from the pressure as soon as the gray clouds appeared. Now, as he underwent the tribulation himself, the pressure from these gray clouds was still great, but it was nothing to him.

A dark light flickered in his eyes, and he soon discerned the true nature of the gray clouds—they were actually formed from countless extremely fine gray lightning bolts.

Though those lightning bolts were fine, the power they contained was terrifying, and they carried strands of eerie force that could stir up inner demons.

A gleam of light flashed in Han Li’s eyes. He let out a low shout and, facing the sky full of gray clouds, punched into the void.

Tens of thousands of golden rays burst from his fist, like a blazing sun suddenly rising.

Streaks of golden light pierced into the gray clouds, easily tearing them apart.

The vast gray clouds trembled violently, riddled with holes, and then, like snow meeting fire, they completely collapsed and dissipated.

What could mere lightning force do to Han Li? As for the power of inner demons, Han Li had cleanly severed his three corpses and overcome the three heart tribulations. The inner demons within him had long been refined away—he was impervious to all evil!

Seeing Han Li overcome the first great tribulation so easily, the Wheel of Reincarnation Lord and the Demon Lord were overjoyed.

“Hmph! The first tribulation is just an appetizer. The truly difficult part is yet to come,” Gu Huo Jin sneered.

As Gu Huo Jin’s words fell, the tribulation clouds in the sky churned violently again, and the pitch-black clouds suddenly turned blood-red.

Thick, blood-red lightning bolts rolled within the tribulation clouds, interweaving to vaguely form the shape of a blood-red lotus, radiating a terrifying power that could destroy heaven and earth.

“Red Lotus Divine Thunder!” Han Li’s brow twitched.

The Red Lotus Divine Thunder is one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Thunders, ranking very high, on par with the Capital Heaven Divine Thunder, and its power is extremely fearsome.

Its main function is not to destroy the physical body but to annihilate the soul, hence it is also known as the Soul-Destroying Divine Thunder.

Moreover, the Red Lotus Divine Thunder in the sky also contained the force of heavenly tribulation, making it far more powerful than ordinary Red Lotus Heavenly Thunder.

Before he could think further, a thunderous roar sounded. The Red Lotus Divine Thunder within the tribulation clouds finally gathered, coalescing into a mountain-sized red lotus that descended toward Han Li.

Without a trace of fear, Han Li opened his mouth and spat.

A golden orb flew out from his hand, hovering above his head. With a quick spin, the orb dispersed, transforming into a massive golden shield.

The shield was extremely crystalline, resembling diamond. Countless runes danced upon it, and at its center appeared a square, unshakable tower pattern, giving the entire shield an indestructible feel.

This was the defensive divine ability of the Truth Sect, the Supreme Space Dharma Shield, renowned alongside the Imperishable Golden Cloud.

With a thunderous crash, the Red Lotus Divine Thunder struck the Supreme Space Dharma Shield.

The shield trembled incessantly, emitting creaking sounds. The runes and patterns on it blurred.

But the Supreme Space Dharma Shield showed no signs of breaking, hovering steadily above Han Li’s head, resisting the wildly flashing Red Lotus Divine Thunder and preventing it from falling.

The Red Lotus Divine Thunder indeed failed to shatter the shield, but suddenly, the red lotus above trembled, and a translucent red lotus phantom separated from it, penetrating the Supreme Space Dharma Shield and shooting toward Han Li with incredible speed.

Han Li was not surprised. He formed hand seals, and a complex mark appeared on his brow. The mark, as solid as crystal, radiated outward, forming layers of crystalline ripples that enveloped his entire body.

Boom!

The phantom red lotus struck the crystalline ripples on his body. Though the ripples trembled violently, they firmly withstood the attack of the phantom red lotus.

After a full quarter of an hour, the red lotus phantom finally shattered with a bang and disappeared, while Han Li remained unscathed under the protection of the crystalline ripples.

The Wheel of Reincarnation Lord and the others, watching from afar, had varied expressions.

But before the three could say anything, the tribulation clouds in the sky changed again, suddenly turning golden.

Countless enormous golden thunder dragons roared and tumbled within the clouds, producing earth-shattering peals of thunder, as if they would shake the very heavens and earth to collapse.

The golden lightning emitted an intensely powerful time law force, filled with a violent, destructive aura, quite similar to the lightning-shaped time law force Gu Huo Jin had previously displayed.