Emperor's Reckoning

The ominous feeling came toward the cultivators under the moon. There was an abundance feeling of dread looming in their minds before the clot of clouds started to gather despite Lyon's overwhelming presence. 

"This is?!" thought Jin as he looked above before letting out a heavy snort from his nostrils. He knew very well what the raising goosebumps on his arms meant. The wind suddenly turned wild but he casually put his arms on the back as he let his hair fluttered against it. His eyes had turned sharp from the slight astonishment of what her daughter currently inciting. 

"Priscila, get out of there, it's going to be dangerous," said Jin with a calm tone.

Priscila immediately took a glance at her husband. She sensed no aloof tone in his words nor his expressions. With those sharp eyes that looking at her, she couldn't help but nod. However, her body turned hesitant the moment she glanced to the side, to the beautiful woman with auburn hair. She made a harsh swallow of her gulping down her nervousness before her hand reached out to her daughter's.

Cecile slightly raised both of her eyebrows as she looked at her concerning mother. She could feel the worry inside her mother from the pressure that was holding her hand. Her succulent lips pointed upward to a smile before Priscila felt a stranger's hand on her waist that was pulling her back.

Jin had to come and pulled her away from their daughter for her sake. Heaven's tribulation was nothing sort of miracle, it's a horrendous test that could kill even the cultivator. Those who won against it will have a breakthrough and strengthened their meridians to a new height, but those who survived alone, might break some bones or even permanently deformed their meridians.

"Thank you, mother, father," muttered Cecile before the impending atmosphere finally jolted through as all the other cultivators had their hearts skipped a beat. 

"Lyon! I'm not stopping at one! I'm going all ten!" shouted Cecile before she sat at the center of the grand lotus flower.

"W... What?" exclaimed Jin as he couldn't believe what she was saying. The amount of mana to absorb to ascend ten levels at once was astronomical depending on the quality and the speed rate.  However, what was ominous was the accumulation of ten heavens' tribulation if she managed to do so. Not only her but the surroundings would be dragged along as collateral. 

"I expect nothing less," said Lyon warmly with a smile.

Cecile grinned before the torrent of mana enveloped her entire figure as the gleaming black glow of the sword tattoo on her nape illuminated forward.

Kyoko's instinct kicked in as the natural beast inside her warned her safety by spiking nine of her tails upward. Her eyes glance at the surrounding before looking down and realized (Savior, you... you still using your magic to sustain all of us from falling to the sea all this while?). She noticed with her red-eye a thin line of connection between the magic brands to his figure. (No, wait a minute... he is actually absorbing mana as well at the same time?!).

After getting Priscila from the source of heaven's tribulation he took a glance at his son-in-law who did the opposite of what he did.

"Son! Are you going to handle it alone?" asked Jin as he was preparing to help at any given nod. Though she is his daughter, he knew what a man must do when time demanded them so, after all, that's how he got Priscila in the first place. 

"Yeah, after all, she trusted me," smirked Lyon as he didn't turn his glance when he answered that question.

"Heh, take care of her," muttered Jin as he kept a hold of his struggling wife.

"JIN! LET GO OF ME!"

"Nah... just watch."

Priscila furrowed her eyebrows before she kept berating him, "What are you talking about?! Remember when you had that heaven's tribulation? Half of that world was wasted!"

Luke immediately furrowed his eyebrows even with the strong wind generating a force that fluttered all of their clothes against them. (He succeeded in breaking through to Ascending God realm?!) Luke couldn't help but making a hard swallow as he looked at his brother-in-law. 

"One..." muttered Lyon.

"Two..." he muttered once more.

"Three..." 

With every increment of the number, the atmosphere turned to clench more and more before the first blinding flash of light followed by a loud defining thunder approached exploded out between the clouds. They almost had their heart jumped out the moment they heard that loud bang, all of them except him.

The certain dominance that he exuded despite being the closest to the ominous clouds above was unreal. The man seemed to be unfazed even if the world in front of him was facing apocalyptic destruction. Nothing in his eyes could make him flinch, not even the thunderous lightning that kept on going continuously.

"Four..."

Lyon calmly muttered the word as his eyes didn't even glance against the approaching tribulation. His gaze was only filled with the beautiful woman of auburn hair. His beautiful wife was currently cultivating with ease on the center of the hovering lotus. There were no worries on her face despite the looming danger that she was inciting for herself and others. There was nothing but confidence as even her breathing could be seen serene. 

"Five..."

Lyon smiled before he shook his head toward his wife, "You kept on breaking through and delayed heaven tribulations of each level just at the right moment it's about to descend down."

"Gahahaha! She is playing against heaven themselves now hahaha! Never thought you could bully them this way," laughed Sun.

"Six..."

Jin was gulping down his saliva as he still holding his wife from going there frantically. His head slightly shook as he grinned, "What kind of beautiful monster did I save in my balls..."

"Really?! REALLY?!" reprimanded Priscila. She couldn't believe his vulgar words would come out instead of being worry for his daughter.

"Seven..."

Lyon was counting them without fear as the density of mana gradually spiked upward before all the experts in the vicinity twitched their eyebrows before glancing up to the sky. There was fear and disbelief in their faces as they watched the very source of their cultivation power manifest spirally in the sky.

"Eight..."

Their hearts thumped as the spiraling mana slightly convulsed before being enveloped by the black clouds.

"Nine..." Lyon's smirk turned into a grin but his gaze still didn't leave his wife. He slightly brought his chin up before everyone that was standing in front of the rainbow magic brand started to move away from the spot. 

"That monster, he is going to face that by himself?!" exclaimed Tusak as his position was subjected by the power of the magic brand on the bottom of his feet.

"There is nothing that we can do, that young man is in their own class, not even I can even touch his hair," said the old master as he shook his head.

"I'm sorry Lyon, but I will watch this prowess of yours, the extent of your potential!" exclaimed Yunesia before she whistled her pet and giant wings immediately flapped one time before hovering under the magic brand that she was standing on. Her purple lips pointed upward before she jumped out of the magic brand and landed on the back of the giant bird. 

"Be brave my dear, if things went badly, full speed at retreating got it?" muttered Yunesia before it replied with a screech.

Yunesia's vision suddenly swayed as the bird was slightly pushed down before bouncing back up and regained her position. Her eyebrows were twitching as she knew without turning around who was brave enough to suddenly sat behind her.

"You know, you have your own wings," muttered Yunesia.

"I'm here to keep an eye on you," answered Lumina.

"Sure, but don't let this become a habit, I might rub on some nasty ointment the next time you do so," answered Yunesia sarcastically. (Even right now, your eyes were set on Lyon the whole time).

Lumina didn't catch any of her words as her focus laid on Lyon alone.

"Tch,... wait a minute, who are you?" Yunesia finally glanced over with one of her eyebrows raised.

"....."

There was no response.

"Oh.. you're the one at the time...." murmured Yunesia as she remembered the brazen muscular man choked this woman right in the middle of the banquet before Lyon torched him into ash, along with the island that stood parallelly across. 

(What is this? Lyon's harem express or something?) 

"Ten..."

Yunesia, Lumina, and Luna immediately furrowed their eyebrows after he muttered the word. 

Lyon opened his arms before slightly stretching his neck with a crack. He closed his eyes before those golden shimmers appeared as he opened them once more.. Four banners on his back fluttered along with his long headdress before, under everyone's eyes, he leaped toward the thick black convulsing with a smirk on his face.