The illuminating sun rose at noon. It was as hot as a stove causing the air to feel distorted. The beasts around the tower were lying on the ground while white smoke puffed out of their nose as they sneezed.
A few disciples of both sexes from the Beastmaster Tower were riding their silver birds in the sky. They were all beastmasters as well.
"Two and a half years have passed. The competition for the pagoda's list became even fiercer. I heard it's not just hunting corpses anymore. Some disciples are ambushing the way path to rob others' corpse palaces."
"Yan Ziyu became number one for a second time with ten thousand points higher than the others."
"The Jin Dynasty has changed too much in these two years. A few more grand historical geniuses have arrived to shock the world."
"I heard Scholar Heaven Calculating is about to compile an Upper Historical and Lower Historical List with ten places each. The eight older geniuses are all on the upper list. As for the last two spots, our Princess Luofu and Yan Ziyu are prime candidates."
"I heard this leaked info before. The number-one ranker on the upper list is a mysterious person. Even the scholar doesn't know who he is and could only faintly sense his aura. He is around now, just not showing his face yet to the cultivation world though."
"The lower list has the new geniuses in this generation. If Princess Luofu can't get into the upper list, she'll probably be number one on the lower list."
"All of you are forgetting the two devils from the Feng Clan. The demon's son's current aptitude is matchless right now. Once he reaches Heaven's Mandate, he'll rise like a dragon surging in the ocean. And Little Demoness is only fourteen right now yet her cultivation is virtually the same as Yan Ziyu. These two are top candidates too for the upper list."
"I know that the scholar is also writing the Hegemon List. He stands on top of the Bell Tower every day to read the stars and momentum of the heaven and earth. I'm sure this list is about to come out."
"I heard the same thing. Rumor has it that the Jin Dynasty isn't the number one power. Some ancient lineages are above it…"
"It's better if you don't talk about this. People of our level shouldn't…" Ji Xinnu reminded.
These disciples didn't dare to speak any longer. The chaotic signs have emerged. Those who dare to run their mouth carelessly would encounter some unpleasantries on the second day.
While looking at the harsh sun, one of them was shocked and broke the silence: "Look over there, why is that group of black cloud coming over here? Is there a heretical intruder to our pagoda?"
Xinnu focused her gaze. Sure enough, billowing large clouds were coming over like a mighty army. Half of the sky was being filled.
A terrifying aura made their birds quiver and lost control. All of them were plunging towards the ground.
The earth wasn't calm either. Its crust was moving to the dismay of the crowd.
"Rumble!" The thick dark clouds filled the sky and blotted out the sun. The world turned black and one couldn't see their hand raised in front of them.
The instructors and High Instructors were the first to fly out on their strange beasts with a faint glow around them like Buddhas hovering in the sky.
One High Instructor took action and helped the Xinnu's group by lifting them back to the tower. They were afraid of the young ones being hurt by the Earth Tribulation.
"Such powerful energy from this Earth Tribulation, who the hell is it?" Even the four Vice Tower Lords were alarmed. They watched the scene on the higher floor.
All the beasts nearby felt unease. Some howled at the sky while others trembled in fear on the ground.
"Boom!" A flood of beasts rushed out from the 66th floor of the tower. Several thousand souls crossed through the sky like a galaxy with a majestic force.
A youth in white was leading the pack like a meteor in the night sky. All the souls behind him seemed to be part of his own soul and followed him with great speed.
The clouds and lava below gushed towards his direction.
One person alone has stirred the world itself.
"That's Feng Feiyun, the demon's son. After two years of training, look at the commotion now with his Earth Tribulation."
"That's the number one genius in the dynasty for you. No one can compare to this particular atmosphere from his tribulation."
"I should have known it was him."
"What is going on with all the beast souls behind him?"
The instructors and vice lords along with the older experts gave chase. They wanted to see the tribulation scene of the best genius in the dynasty.
Xinnu's misty eyes glared at the beasts in the horizon. 'Feiyun is getting even stronger, maybe he can really help us revenge. I didn't misjudge him.'
"Rumble!" The older cultivators at the many towers were stirred by Feiyun's momentum.
On one particular tower was an old man with fully white hair. He also gave chase with shock in his eyes.
Feiyun finally made it to a remote location at the boundary of the pagoda. He suddenly stopped and said: "We'll do it here."
The seniors didn't come closer. They understood that he has chosen the place.
The Divine King and the Martial Tower Lord personally came as well in order to protect him.
The aura of the tribulation grew even stronger. The earth quaked and split in many places. Hot waves rose from below.
With a determined gaze, Feiyun channeled and all of the souls flew back into his body and became one with his flesh. He plunged right into the soil.
"What the hell, am I seeing things?" Zhang Badao became slack-jawed and couldn't believe what he was seeing.
Everyone gasped in the vicinity and thought they were seeing things. Several thousand beast souls condensed into one body? This has exceeded the scope of their imagination.
Even the Divine King became serious.
This was simply too unbelievable!
"Boom!" The first lava wave came from the far north. Though it was still underground, its temperature made the ancient trees nearby dry up instantly.
The second wave came from the mountain like a fire dragon with an oppressive momentum. This was even stronger than other Earth Tribulations. It looked like the entire world was revolving around this process.
Feiyun were several hundred meters underground with the lava. Light shot out of his body like a thick mist and fought against the hot liquid.
The first wave was only one meter thick. The second was two and the third was three…
This was even scarier than regular fire. A red energy instantly melted the soil into a liquid even hotter than molten iron.
The sixth wave was six meters thick and came like a river. The seventh was naturally seven meters thick and has turned into a serpent. Feiyun shattered its head but the broken liquids came together instantly, wishing to devour him.
"Boom!" Feiyun destroyed the serpent's body and rushed out from the lava. The mist surrounding his body has been weakened by the lava.
"No wonder why it's so hard to surpass this Earth Tribulation and more than half of cultivators die here. The waves are increasingly stronger by several levels."
The eighth wave has appeared like an ocean of fire and wished to engulf him.
The ninth was next in line with an incomparable sharpness. The front was just like the tip of a sword with the length of several dozen miles.
"Geezer, you think how many waves Junior Brother can bring?" Despite being the Divine King's disciple, Zhang Badao never gave a damn and dared to call the Divine King a geezer.
The Divine King stared at the black clouds in the sky without answering.
"I think there will be twelve. From the ancient records, Nalan Hongtao brought about twelve waves during his Earth Tribulation. Who knows what it will look like? Since Senior Brother could defeat Hongtao, he should be able to call for twelve too." Badao elaborated.
A royal draconic aura suddenly erupted from the Divine King. He didn't seem like a feeble old man at all with his aura turning sharp. He glared at the sky and shouted: "They're finally here!"
A huge palm shattered the clouds and descended like a mountain towards the ground.
"Quite bold, daring to attack the pagoda's territory?!" Badao swung his black rod. It also grew larger to the size of a mountain and shattered that palm attack.
Some people didn't wish to see Feiyun surpassing his Earth Tribulation and mature. That's why they tried to eliminate him from several thousand miles away.
It was a half-step Giant attacking earlier. Of course, this was only a preliminary test. They didn't go all out just yet.
A watery expanse materialized in the sky with the aura of a Giant. A cauldron of the spirit treasure level flew out with its edge aiming for Feng Feiyun underground.
He was too much of a threat and made many feel uneasy. The Divine King could sense at least five Giants hiding nearby. They blocked out the heaven's eyes so there was no way of finding their exact location. [1]
1. I'm pretty hyped