Chapter 340 - 302: Crossing the Tribulation, Opportunity

Chapter 340: Chapter 302: Crossing the Tribulation, Opportunity

Unlike the breakthrough to the Three Flowers Realm, the Thunder Tribulation for reaching the Dao Fruit Realm has an additional component: the Divine Power Thunder Tribulation.

After overcoming the Divine Power Thunder Tribulation, one must also endure the Heart Demon Tribulation.

Only by overcoming the Divine Power Thunder Tribulation can one hope to master Divine Techniques.

The Heart Demon Tribulation, however, is even more critical. It is an essential step in forming a Dao Fruit.

In the Cultivation Realm, there are certain Magic Skills that allow a Cultivator to avoid the Heart Demon Tribulation.

However, the consequence of doing so is the inability to form a Dao Fruit.

In more modern terms, the Heart Demon Tribulation carries the "pollen" needed for the Divine Tree Flower to bear fruit.

Skipping the Heart Demon Tribulation means forever losing the opportunity to form a Dao Fruit.

As for enduring the Heart Demon Tribulation, there aren’t many techniques to speak of.

Jiang Zuo had discussed this with Tantai Feixue long ago. According to her...

Firstly, success in the Heart Demon Tribulation depends on the cultivator’s Divine Sense. Those with a powerful Divine Sense naturally have a much greater chance of passing it.

But that isn’t to say a powerful Divine Sense guarantees one can overcome the Heart Demon Tribulation.

This is because the Heart Demon one encounters during the Heart Demon Tribulation is different for every person.

If one is unlucky and encounters a powerful Heart Demon, failure is highly likely.

Failing the Heart Demon Tribulation could mean death in severe cases. In milder cases, one’s Cultivation and Divine Sense would be greatly damaged, requiring even more time to recover through Cultivation.

’My Thunder Tribulation is bound to be very different from the one Tantai Feixue faced, so I shouldn’t rely too much on her experience.’

’But as for the Heart Demon Tribulation...’

’According to Tantai Feixue, her Divine Sense was completely separated from her physical body and forced into an unfamiliar Heart Demon World.’

’That’s why during the tribulation, someone must guard my physical body. Otherwise, if an enemy were to find out and attack, I could be killed without even knowing what happened.’

’Dying because your physical body was destroyed during the Heart Demon Tribulation is nothing new in the Cultivation Realm.’

Jiang Zuo mused.

He planned to find a remote location to undergo his tribulation, but to be on the safe side, he still needed someone to stand guard.

The only one who could be entrusted with this important task was his Puppet Body.

Jiang Zuo wasn’t in a hurry to begin his tribulation. He first sent his Puppet Body out to find a suitable location.

This wasn’t a random search, however. Jiang Zuo already had several potential locations in mind and simply sent the Puppet Body to investigate them firsthand to see which was most suitable.

At the Black Tortoise Dao Sect, the Puppet Body, under Jiang Zuo’s control, once again emerged from its cultivation cave and quietly left the sect.

"Master, Junior Brother has gone out again."

On Taihao Peak, Yu Ying watched Jiang Zuo’s receding figure and, after a moment of silence, reported it to Luo Taidong.

The cultivation level Jiang Zuo displayed within the Black Tortoise Dao Sect hadn’t shown any improvement in nearly a hundred years.

"Let him be. Perhaps he’s trying to figure things out on his own. Just don’t let his whereabouts be leaked."

Luo Taidong sighed.

Over the years, he had faintly sensed that there was something unusual about Jiang Zuo’s actions, as if he were secretly busy with some task.

But Jiang Zuo never spoke of it, so after some discussion, Luo Taidong and Yu Ying decided not to press him about it.

「Three more years passed in the blink of an eye.」

Jiang Zuo’s Cultivation had reached a state of flawless Perfection. He could begin his tribulation whenever he wished.

His Puppet Body had already found a suitable location for the tribulation.

The Bitter Sea Desert, also known as the Ancient Battlefield Ruins.

The Bitter Sea Desert was located in the northeastern part of the Ancestral Continent.

Perhaps because it bordered the Mortal Territory, its Spiritual Qi was extremely thin, despite being outside the Heaven and Earth Sealing Spirit Array.

If that weren’t enough, it was rumored that terrifying Great Powers had once battled there in ancient times, scarring the entire land with massive fissures.

These fissures had turned the land into a desert where only a few select plants could grow.

Moreover, the environment was extremely harsh, frequently plagued by overwhelming gales.

The gales would kick up endless yellow sand, making it difficult for even Cultivators to survive in the desert.

However, the primary reason the Bitter Sea Desert was virtually uninhabited was its scarce Spiritual Qi.

Scarce Spiritual Qi meant no cultivation resources could be produced, and even those with Spirit Roots would find their Cultivation progressing at a snail’s pace.

Combined with the harsh environment, living there was like living in an endless sea of bitterness.

As the long years passed, the desert became all but uninhabited.

It was the perfect place for Jiang Zuo to undergo his tribulation.

After settling on the location for his tribulation, Jiang Zuo briefly mentioned it to Tantai Feixue and then quietly departed.

Tantai Feixue knew Jiang Zuo was likely going to face his tribulation, but since he hadn’t asked for her help, she wasn’t about to impose.

「Six months later.」

Dressed in azure robes, Jiang Zuo walked into the Bitter Sea Desert.

The initial stretch of the Bitter Sea Desert consisted of endless sand dunes.

Soon, however, the dunes began to thin out, replaced by hard-packed earth scored with enormous gullies.

The gullies crisscrossed the landscape, clearly not a natural formation. They did indeed resemble the scars left behind by a clash between Great Powers.

Legend had it that when the name "Ancient Battlefield Ruins" first spread, it attracted countless Cultivators to hunt for treasure.

Unfortunately, no one had ever heard of anyone finding any world-shaking treasures.

Eventually, people stopped wasting their time coming here.

Hardly anyone mentioned the name "Ancient Battlefield Ruins" anymore.

Nowadays, people who spoke of this place almost exclusively called it the Bitter Sea Desert.

After passing through the region of gullies, massive, sky-piercing pillars came into view ahead.

Upon closer inspection, however, they weren’t pillars at all, but a series of towering cliffs.

These cliffs were hundreds of meters tall, and they were too numerous to count.

Movement became difficult here, even for a Cultivator.

Strong gales would whip up at random times each day, carrying large amounts of sand as they swept out from between the towering cliffs.