Chapter 353 : Extreme Danger
After understanding Golden Peng's unspoken implication, Jiang Mo's brow twitched violently, and her entire tiger self felt unwell. She wanted to immediately warn her Senior Sister not to withstand the lightning so directly, but feared that speaking rashly might distract her instead.
After some hesitation, Jiang Mo decided to trust her Senior Sister and not comment on her choices.
But while she remained silent, the little tiger's anxiety needed an outlet, so she directed her frustration at the indifferent Golden Peng beside her: "Don't divine beasts usually protect their young? That's a Swan Goose, also a type of divine beast, so why do you seem to be just watching the show?"
Golden Peng was baffled by this accusation, but perhaps due to his long stay at the Buddha Sect, he had cultivated a good temperament from Buddhist teachings. He patiently explained: "We divine beasts are born of heaven and earth, but this Swan Goose came through atavism. She was originally of the demon race, and even if she survives the lightning tribulation and truly becomes a phoenix, she would still be considered the lowest tier among divine beasts."
In other words, Golden Peng looked down on the white bird's bloodline, and moreover, she wasn't yet one of their kind if she hadn't passed the tribulation. Additionally, Golden Peng hadn't forgotten that this was Buddha Sect territory, and this Swan Goose had appeared mysteriously and chose to undergo her lightning tribulation here!
What if she couldn't withstand it? What if she diverted disaster? What if she accidentally left some lightning behind... wouldn't the Buddha Sect suffer the consequences?!
Given these concerns, as the guardian divine beast of the Buddha Sect, it would be strange if Golden Peng had a favorable impression of the Swan Goose.
In her heart, Jiang Mo understood the conflict between them, but hearing Golden Peng's dismissive tone, she felt anger rising within her. She glared at him and retorted: "Born of heaven and earth? Were all those dragons and phoenixes in ancient times created by heaven and earth?"
They certainly weren't. In ancient times, the divine beast race was prosperous and reproduced among themselves—otherwise, how could such a large population have formed? Besides reproduction within their own kind, there were many who mixed bloodlines with other races. How else would creatures like Qiuniu, Yazi, and Chaofeng have come into being? And how would her Senior Sister's ancestors have appeared?
It wasn't until later, when the divine beast race declined and dragons and phoenixes broke through realm barriers and departed, that the saying "divine beasts are born of heaven and earth" arose—dragons and phoenixes leaving was an event tens of thousands of years ago. In fact, the divine beasts still present in the cultivation world today truly were born of heaven and earth, and thus received special favor.
Golden Peng was momentarily stumped but didn't argue with Jiang Mo: "Anyway, this Little Swan Goose is still of the demon race right now."
Jiang Mo was equally stumped and couldn't refute this: "..."
The topic ended there, and both turned their attention back to the white giant bird undergoing tribulation in the sky.
Logically, despite the distance between them, the two hadn't been avoiding anyone in their conversation, and with the Swan Goose's abilities, she should have been able to hear their words. Golden Peng's seemingly indifferent attitude actually didn't hide any malice. But the Swan Goose, having heard them, showed no reaction; she stubbornly continued to directly withstand the tribulation lightning, even using the heavenly lightning to temper herself.
Finally, she had also depleted the second lightning bolt, followed by the third, fourth, and fifth...
Truthfully, as events unfolded, even Golden Peng, who had been watching like a spectator, was surprised and abandoned his previous casual attitude to pay more attention—he had indeed recognized the Swan Goose's intention to use the heavenly lightning to temper her body, but he truly hadn't expected her to be so unyielding. Based on his understanding of the phoenix race's physique, he thought it would be impressive if she could withstand the third tribulation lightning, but she had forcefully endured five!
Golden Peng had excellent eyesight. Despite the great distance between them, he could clearly see that after withstanding five purple lightning bolts, the Swan Goose hadn't suffered severe damage. At least outwardly, her white feathers showed only slight traces of singeing and nothing more.
Is this really a phoenix? Doesn't she also have dragon bloodline? Her skin is so thick!
Golden Peng's eyes widened as he couldn't help but mutter inwardly, not realizing that his conjecture had hit upon some truth—although Yun Qingyue's bloodline was somewhat mixed, it had at least been purified through atavism. She naturally didn't have dragon bloodline. However, her luck was good; Jiang Mo had found a set of dragon bones in the Canglán Secret Realm and had given almost all of it to her, providing her with endless benefits.
It could be said that without those dragon bones, even if Yun Qingyue underwent atavism, she couldn't have directly reverted to the level of a Swan Goose. Moreover, having absorbed the spiritual energy from the dragon bones, her physical strength far exceeded others of her race, enabling today's feat of directly withstanding purple lightning for tempering.
Under Golden Peng's astonished gaze, the sixth lightning tribulation struck, and the Swan Goose once again looked up at the sky.
Perhaps provoked by the Swan Goose's unyielding resistance, this time the heavenly lightning showed a qualitative increase in strength, doubling in scale compared to the previous bolt, with intensity and power multiplied several times over. Even Golden Peng, observing from a distance, involuntarily stood straight, concern appearing in his expression.
Fortunately, the Swan Goose didn't directly withstand it this time. Seeing the lightning strike with its mighty force, she flapped her wings and counterattacked. White spiritual light like a swirling whirlwind formed from her wings, gathering more and more surrounding spiritual energy as it left her, until it collided with the tribulation lightning, its might no less than that of its opponent.
Naturally, the power of heavenly lightning couldn't be easily countered or neutralized. The tribulation lightning was only entangled by the spiritual whirlwind for a few moments before directly penetrating through. However, those with keen eyes could see that the lightning emerging from the whirlwind had clearly been weakened.
The Swan Goose naturally noticed this too, and with a few more flaps of her beautiful wings, several more whirlwinds surged forth.
The tribulation lightning couldn't change course and was helplessly entangled and weakened several more times. By the time it reached the Swan Goose, its power was not much stronger than the previous lightning bolt. Having been struck several times already, the Swan Goose wasn't intimidated and once again withstood this tribulation lightning. However, the intensity of the lightning was still different; this time, the beautiful white bird was struck so hard that her feathers exploded outward, finally showing some dishevelment.
But her disheveled state lasted only a moment. The Swan Goose quickly smoothed her feathers, raised her head to the sky, and let out a cry—light and melodious, it penetrated directly into the heart...
༻༺❀༻✧⋆｡°✩☽༓☾✩°｡⋆✧༺❀༻༺
Her Senior Sister's strength far exceeded Jiang Mo's expectations. If at first she had been worried because of Golden Peng's words, after seeing her Senior Sister repeatedly withstand the heavenly lightning, her anxious heart gradually eased.
She even had the mind to think of other things, like regretting not having a retention stone to capture an image when her Senior Sister's feathers exploded...
Just as this thought crossed her mind, Jiang Mo suddenly noticed that Golden Peng beside her was holding a retention stone, enthusiastically recording the sky. Her eye twitched immediately, and she demanded: "What are you doing?"
Her Senior Sister's embarrassing moments—she could record them as mementos, but others couldn't—the little tiger was just that protective and unreasonable!
Golden Peng hadn't noticed her thoughts and earnestly explained: "I want to record this and review it later to see what's different about this Little Swan Goose. How is her skin so thick that she can withstand so many purple lightning bolts!"
Hearing the description "thick-skinned," Jiang Mo secretly ground her teeth. If she weren't concerned that his cultivation was higher than hers and she might not win in a fight, she would have snatched the retention stone on the spot! But even though she couldn't take it, she still said with a dark face: "This doesn't seem right. Being so disheveled under the lightning tribulation, if you record this and she's unhappy about it, wouldn't you be forcing her against her will?"
The people of the Buddha Sect maintained high moral standards, and Golden Peng, having been influenced by the Buddha Sect for hundreds of years, was no exception. Hearing this, he indeed showed some hesitation, but his curiosity ultimately prevailed: "Then I'll just ask the person herself later."
Jiang Mo opened her mouth but couldn't say more. She nudged Golden Peng and asked: "Do you have an extra retention stone?"
Golden Peng gave her a strange look, and despite her thick tiger skin, she felt uncomfortable under his gaze. In the end, Jiang Mo had to silently withdraw her hand, pretending nothing had happened, and Golden Peng didn't give her a retention stone.
While the two whispered to each other, two more purple lightning bolts fell from the sky, each stronger than the last. Perhaps because the previous tribulation lightning had been easily weakened by the Swan Goose, this time the lightning split as it fell. The seventh tribulation lightning divided into three, which the Swan Goose barely managed to overcome. The eighth tribulation lightning was even more extreme, splitting into a lightning storm that covered a vast area without diminishing in power.
Fortunately, Yun Qingyue had spent these years training in the outside world, gaining broad knowledge and experience, and had countermeasures for various forms of tribulation lightning. Though difficult, she still endured even as a large area of her feathers were burned.
After the eighth tribulation lightning, the once beautiful white phoenix had completely lost her former glory, with countless feathers struck off her body, falling like snow.
Watching from below, Jiang Mo felt immense heartache. Seeing that only the final lightning bolt remained, she almost wanted to rush up and take her place. But no matter how impulsive she felt, reason told her it wasn't possible; besides needlessly suffering herself, she would also implicate her Senior Sister.
She could only steady herself and say to Golden Peng in an artificially lighthearted tone: "You said this lightning tribulation was formidable and she couldn't pass it, but look, there's only one tribulation lightning left, isn't there?"
Golden Peng wasn't annoyed but didn't speak either, only frowning as he looked at the tribulation clouds above—lightning rolled within the clouds, still brewing, as the final tribulation lightning had yet to fall.
In truth, Golden Peng's earlier words weren't wrong. Although the Swan Goose had passed through the previous lightning bolts relatively easily, with injuries that could only be considered superficial, the most dangerous was precisely this final bolt. Not to mention that the Swan Goose had already endured eight tribulation lightnings and must have exhausted much energy; even at her peak, she might not be able to withstand this one!
Golden Peng's vigilance gave Jiang Mo a sense of foreboding. She pressed her lips tightly together and said nothing more, likewise turning her gaze to the sky.
This time, the tribulation clouds brewed particularly long. After about half an hour, even the Swan Goose in midair had taken the opportunity to regulate her breath and adjust her condition to be optimal. Finally, the ninth and final tribulation lightning arrived at last.
The lightning dancing in the tribulation clouds suddenly stilled, and then a thunderbolt fell from the clouds—the lightning was only as thick as a wrist, even thinner than the first tribulation lightning, yet it caused everyone present to hold their breath momentarily. For this tribulation lightning was no longer purple, but pure black, carrying a devastating might as it struck fiercely.
Even those who had never seen black lightning before could sense the extreme danger from this single bolt!