Chapter 353: Destruction and Life

"You idiot, who the hell do you think you’re fooling with these childish tricks?!" the main Elder mocked.

Suddenly, the Elder beside him trembled from head to toe, overcome by a sudden terror.

"Elder... look up!"

"What?"

He finally raised his eyes... and his expression collapsed into pure horror.

At some imperceptible moment, the entire sky had been swallowed by icy, ominous clouds. An expanse stretching thousands of kilometers above them twisted violently, transforming into an Apocalyptic Vortex.

The vortex was still taking shape, but countless flashes of light tore through the darkness, like glowing beasts swimming through the chaos.

At the same time, a terrifying pressure descended upon the land. Everyone present felt their hearts tremble. The exact center of that vortex was the very position where they stood.

"These... these aren’t ordinary Tribulation Clouds!!!"

Everyone turned toward Priam, completely catatonic. Only then did they notice the subtle yet imposing golden glow radiating from his body.

Priam smiled softly. He had only just begun channeling the Celestial Battle Armor for the first time in that world. In fact, before the energy had even finished forming it, the very laws of that universe had already reacted with blind fury.

That technique was the pinnacle of the Fist God’s Legacy from another world. In the world he lived in, such techniques were called Paragon Magic Arts. Whenever a new one with a high level of power was used in the Ur-World, it had to undergo a baptism of fire and receive the approval of the laws.

If the user died in the process, the next person bold enough to use it again would have to face everything all over again.

"It’s a Paragon Magic Art!" one of the Elders roared in utter desperation. "That’s impossible! I brought a high-level one from another world in the past... and my tribulation was still decades away!"

Another Elder nodded, rapidly turning pale.

"Just feel the pressure... 90% of the energy coming from the laws is focused on pure destruction! Only 10% is life energy!"

"This... really is a Celestial Punishment!" the main Elder cursed through gritted teeth.

"Oh, really?" Priam murmured. It was the first time he’d heard that term, and he was surprised by the revelation.

He looked toward the firmament and sensed that the "tribulation" he had faced in the past was identical to this one. In other words, he had already survived a Celestial Punishment once before.

But it wasn’t that much of a surprise. The Elemental Physique he had before, as Dandara knew, was possibly something she had brought from her world in the past.

In that special world, there were two entities capable of defeating all the Sovereigns of the Ur-World together on their own. Nothing that came from that place could possibly be normal.

As for the Fist God’s Legacy he had received, its very name already spoke of the invincible level that figure had reached in the past.

In short, the two Paragon Magic Arts Priam possessed were far beyond what was considered "high-level."

Involuntarily, all the Elders stared at Priam. The young man simply nodded in confirmation.

"Yes, it’s mine. Like the present?"

"SHIT! RUN!"

Finally, someone reacted and attempted to flee as far away as possible. The moment the destructive lightning descended, everyone within the perimeter would be implicated.

At that point, no one could simply refuse to defend themselves; they would have to use their own power. That would be considered interference, even if it was merely self-defense.

When a Celestial Punishment manifested, everything within its area of effect was dragged into the storm. The maximum level of power used initially depended on the target. Since Priam had still been very weak in the past, it hadn’t caused any major disturbance within the sect.

But if the person who interfered was stronger than the target, the laws would simply multiply the destructive power in an attempt to kill everyone.

Yes, *attempt* to kill them. A Celestial Punishment was a deadly trial, but it was still a trial.

Priam knew that the world’s laws moved two types of energy: Destruction and Life. The first was the deadly power that tested people; the second was the reward that nourished the bodies of those who survived.

Normally, a Tribulation maintained a balance of 50% destruction. The fact that this one possessed 90% destruction more than justified the absolute terror plastered across those Elders’ faces.

The strongest person there was the main Elder—a Level 6 Philosopher Sage. If everyone had to endure that at a level equivalent to his...

They would be completely fucked.

Priam showed no mercy whatsoever. He had chosen to unleash that punishment right there to wipe the city off the map, but also for another rather convenient reason.

"Too late," Priam laughed coldly.

His body pulsed, and the Celestial Battle Armor fully materialized, covering him from head to toe. This caused the clouds above to intensify even more violently.

At the same instant, he activated the Elemental Physique and the Yin Enchantment Power Rune.

An immense berserker aura tore through the skies, while the space around him shattered into dozens of spatial cracks. This was his absolute peak. Priam had no intention of holding anything back.

Originally, he had planned to deal with this calmly later on, finding a way to convert the power coming from the laws to his advantage.

However, in that rotten world, there were dozens of people and powers perfectly willing to act as his personal lightning rods.

Not even a second passed.

The black clouds swirling in the sky suddenly came to an abrupt halt.

**BOOOOM!**

With a deafening thunderclap, countless bolts of lightning rained down from the firmament. The pressure was so terrifying that the very air seemed to explode. Those trying to flee felt the space around them freeze, paralyzing them in place.

"No!"

Cries of pure despair erupted from every direction. Unable to withstand the merciless fury of the lightning, all the Mage Masters exploded instantly.

Those bolts possessed a catastrophic power that people at their level could never hope to withstand. A single tremor in the heavens exterminated thousands.

Priam watched the massacre with utter indifference.

Innocents? There was no such concept here.

They all belonged to that rotten sect, benefiting from the hidden alliance with the Sorcerers. On top of that, the planet wasn’t blessed solely through natural means. Any sect member who lived there for some time would realize that something was deeply wrong.

That was precisely why the Heavenly River Valley Sect prohibited outsiders from entering or staying there.

You only needed eyes and a brain to notice the truth. If everyone continued staying there, it was because they had become accomplices. No one could claim innocence while enjoying the bloodstained privileges that came at the expense of the people of the Southern Region.

**BOOOOM!**

Only the Sages were capable of raising defenses against it.

However... 90% pure Destruction energy was no joke.

Even the Philosopher Sages could only resist by pushing their strength to its absolute limit. Priam had truly been merciless, leaving them no route of escape.

Everyone activated their powers, summoning thick barriers of Creation Essence. However, the moment the lightning collided with their defenses, the shields shattered, causing them to violently spit blood.

No one was surprised by that. After all, the Celestial Punishment had been adjusted based on the main Elder’s level—not Priam’s.

Their Creation Essence still allowed them to absorb the first few bolts, saving their lives by a hair.

Unfortunately, the lightning continued descending in an endless storm, falling like drops of rain.

**BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOOM!**

The barrage of lightning seemed endless. As a result, dozens of Sages were forced to spit blood again and again.

They continuously summoned barriers of light, burning every last drop of Creation Essence in a desperate attempt to survive. Watching dozens of high-level experts vomit blood in unison was a grotesque yet impressive spectacle.

Their bodies instinctively tried to retreat, but the gravitational force and spatial blockade of the thunder kept them frozen in place. Their only option was to resist through sheer brute force.

Even the main Elder began to falter, his expression twisted after absorbing multiple direct impacts.

Amid that hell of lightning, only Priam remained unharmed, watching the scene with a hint of perplexity.

’Why doesn’t this lightning storm seem as strong as the previous one?’

Although the attack was objectively more devastating and had been scaled to the level of a Philosopher Sage, when the lightning struck Priam’s body, he barely felt the impact.

Could his current level really be even more abnormal than he had imagined?

The combination of the Celestial Battle Armor, the Elemental Physique, and the Power Rune had raised Priam’s resistance, defense, and offensive power to a level he himself had yet to fully measure.

He had genuinely believed that his power was merely far above average... until that day.

Seeing Priam standing there calmly without a single scratch nearly drove the Elders insane with rage.

Finally, one of the Elders was a fraction of a second too slow when raising his barrier—and was instantly reduced to a bloody mist by a concentrated bolt of lightning.

The fatal weakness of everyone who wasn’t part of the Physical class lay in their physical bodies. That was why the Sorcerers were considered stronger: on average, they were far more physically resilient and could fight in many different ways.

The death of that Elder triggered absolute panic. When they looked toward the sky, there wasn’t the slightest sign that the clouds were going to dissipate.

"AHHHH!"

Piercing screams tore through the air as the Elders fell one after another. The main Elder’s heart froze at the sight of the massacre.

"Priam! Even if I have to burn in hell, you’ll go down first!" the main Elder roared, releasing all his energy in a burst.

"DIE!"

A blade materialized in his hand, and he swung it with blind fury toward Priam.

The weapon was covered in pulsing runes that emanated a suffocating pressure. Priam didn’t dare block the attack head-on and threw his body to the side at the last millisecond.

The blade cut through the air, missing its target.

The main Elder’s eyes widened as he roared, "How can you still move under this pressure?!"

Obviously, he had only dared to attack because he was certain Priam wouldn’t be able to move. All the Elders were practically frozen in place, and even he could only move with tremendous effort. But... reality was far more terrifying.

**BOOOOM!**

Before he could react, a colossal bolt of lightning struck directly down onto his head, instantly reducing him to a bloody mist.

"?"

Priam was genuinely stunned.

A Philosopher Sage... had just died like that, out of nowhere?

He could barely believe what he had witnessed. A figure of that caliber had been crushed like an ant beneath the power of Destruction. Yet... Priam himself didn’t feel anything particularly unbearable, despite being an entire rank below him.

Priam celebrated inwardly.

’Looks like this time everything is going to...’

**RUMBLE!!!**

Suddenly, a much deeper and heavier rumble echoed from the top of the firmament. A truly boundless aura descended, pinning Priam’s body in place.

The expression on his face changed instantly.