Chapter 1041: The Inner Demon Tribulation

When he regained his senses, he found that his surroundings had completely transformed.

"This is... the Inner Demon Tribulation?"

Upon realizing what it was, Li Qing sneered coldly, remaining unperturbed by the demonic obstacle.

His divine soul was incredibly powerful. Even when engulfed by the demonic obstacle, he could still maintain his self-awareness and avoid losing himself.

Furthermore, throughout his cultivation journey, Li Qing had never had any flaws in his state of mind. Even Heavenly Demons would have found it difficult to exploit any weakness.

Within this demonic obstacle, Li Qing held fast to his original heart. He watched coldly as scene after scene of illusory images appeared, treating them all as fleeting clouds and passing smoke.

"This Inner Demon Tribulation is nothing more than this. It's not even as troublesome as the one I faced during my Nascent Soul Formation."

Having cultivated the Soul Refinement Scripture, his divine soul far surpassed that of cultivators at the same level. Now, after advancing to the Void Refinement Realm, his divine soul had strengthened significantly once more. Thus, this sudden demonic obstacle merely surprised him slightly but had no major impact.

Scenes flashed across his sea of consciousness. After enduring this inner demon tribulation, Li Qing felt a lingering sense of satisfaction, as if he had just reviewed his entire cultivation journey once more.

"Jie jie jie... What a steadfast human cultivator you are! Today, I shall devour your divine soul!"

All the phantasmal images shattered instantly. A Heavenly Demon phantom materialized before Li Qing and charged directly at him.

Within this demonic obstacle, Li Qing was unable to use his mana. He could rely solely on his divine soul.

Seeing the Heavenly Demon phantom appear so abruptly, Li Qing raised an eyebrow and then lifted his hand.

With a single thought, the Divine Invasion Spear manifested in his palm.

He thrust it toward the charging Heavenly Demon phantom, the spear's momentum utterly astonishing.

Boom!

In an instant, the Heavenly Demon phantom was completely destroyed. As the spear's light radiated outward, the illusory heart demon landscape slowly dissipated.

Only when Li Qing's consciousness returned to his physical body did he slowly open his eyes.

A sliver of clear light flashed through his pupils. He had emerged unscathed from the inner demon tribulation—a trial that was notoriously difficult for ordinary cultivators to overcome.

The long night was drawing to a close, and a streak of scarlet dawn began to stain the eastern horizon like fire.

Not a single trace of thundercloud remained in the sky. The Heavenly Tribulation had finally concluded.

From this moment on, Li Qing was a true Void Refinement cultivator!

He looked down at his body. The patches of skin, charred black by the lightning, gradually peeled away, revealing the snow-white, delicate skin of a newborn.

"So this is the Void Refinement Realm. No wonder it's said that one can attain immortality in the world. The world in the eyes of such a powerful being has changed once again."

In Li Qing's vision, the world had indeed transformed.

Earlier, after advancing to the Divine Transformation Realm, he had been able to directly perceive the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth, thus gaining the preliminary ability to manipulate it.

Now, in the Void Refinement Realm, the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth appeared even clearer in his sight. Furthermore, he could see faint, peculiar substances drifting freely between heaven and earth.

"Is this the longevity substance?"

Li Qing attempted to draw a wisp of the longevity substance into his body. The primordial qi he had lost during the tribulation crossing was significantly restored.

Beyond that, the string of numbers that had previously represented his lifespan had completely frozen, no longer changing.

This meant he had attained immortality. As long as he did not perish in a Great Heavenly Tribulation or suffer an unexpected calamity, he could live forever, watching the world's fortunes rise and fall.

Let time fly by; I shall remain unchanged.

This was the best description of the Void Refinement Realm—truly achieving eternal life and enduring vision.

Yet even so, he could not relax. After reaching the Void Refinement Realm, he would face a Great Heavenly Tribulation every three thousand years.

The first few tribulations might not be too taxing, but as time passed, their power would grow increasingly terrifying. If his cultivation didn't make substantial progress, he would eventually perish in one.

"In the end, I still can't be completely free and carefree. But this is still quite good."

With that, he took some spirit liquid from his storage bag to replenish his mana and primordial qi, recovering from the recent Great Heavenly Tribulation.

"Hahaha, congratulations, Brother Wuji! You've successfully advanced to the Void Refinement Realm. You'll now live forever, no longer plagued by the fear of your lifespan running out."

In Yujing City of the Great Yu Kingdom, the only person who could call him by his Daoist name so casually was Xia Wushuang.

He still wore a black blindfold, his entire demeanor unrestrained and uninhibited, exuding an air of wild abandon.

Li Qing nodded with a smile and said, "Fellow Daoist Xia, your cultivation is truly remarkable. To reach the Peak of the Divine Transformation Stage in just over a decade is impressive. This Li admires you."

He clearly remembered that before this, Xia Wushuang was only at the mid-Divine Transformation realm. He hadn't expected Xia to reach the Peak of the Divine Transformation Stage in the blink of an eye.

Such a cultivation speed was exceptionally fast, far beyond what ordinary Divine Transformation cultivators could achieve.

However, Xia Wushuang merely rolled his eyes and said, "I've sold most of that Monkey Wine. You have no idea how popular this precious liquid, which strengthens a newborn's foundation, is in Yujing City!"

"I traded that Monkey Wine for many medicinal pills used by Divine Transformation cultivators. That's how I reached this realm."

"Unfortunately, the Void Refinement Realm is still far off. Not like you, Brother Limitless, who advanced so effortlessly in just over a decade."

"By the way, shouldn't I be addressing you as Senior Limitless now?"

In the cultivation world, a single major realm of difference in cultivation could crush a person. Calling someone "Senior" was truly the appropriate thing to do.

To this, Li Qing joked, "Why don't you give it a try and call me that?"

Xia Wushuang, however, stretched and said, "Forget it then. Calling you 'Senior' is just too formal. I'll still call you Brother Limitless."

"Right, you've been in life-or-death seclusion for the past few years. I assume you don't know about the major events that have happened in the Great Yu Kingdom during this time?"

Hearing this, Li Qing was slightly taken aback before nodding. "The Great Yu Kingdom is so prosperous; what major events could possibly have happened?"

"Heh heh, you have no idea. Nine years ago, in a certain wilderness outside the borders of the Great Yu Kingdom, the Xuantian Divine Palace appeared and vanished in an instant."

"Ahem, the Xuantian Divine Palace descended upon the Azure Profound Continent thirteen years ago. Over the years, its location has been constantly shifting. The Xuantian Divine Treasure inside is said to be incredibly impressive, possibly even hiding a Great Ascension Opportunity!"

"In short, everyone across the entire Azure Profound Continent has started collecting Black Iron Tokens. These are the essential items needed to enter the Xuantian Divine Palace."

"..."