Jiang Chen's brows twitched uncontrollably, a weight pressing down on his chest, making it difficult to even breathe.
Thunder rumbled above, sending shivers down his spine. The sense of danger lingering in his heart suddenly intensified a hundredfold.
Lightning—the purest form of yang energy—was the ultimate bane of undead creatures like zombies. Even those who had cultivated for a thousand years rarely survived a heavenly tribulation.
Although Jiang Chen didn't see himself as an ordinary zombie, he still treated this impending trial as a life-or-death threat.
In cultivation novels, tribulation-crossing cultivators would usually have powerful artifacts or formations to defend themselves. Yet here he was, armed with nothing but his body.
Thankfully, he was deep within this remote, uninhabited mountain forest—otherwise, this strange phenomenon might have attracted a flood of onlookers.
The tribulation cloud above Jiang Chen's head wasn't massive, only covering the peak of the mountain, but in the clear, cloudless sky, it appeared ominously unnatural.
Dark clouds swirled with thunder, and Jiang Chen's heart beat violently in anticipation. He knew the moment was about to arrive.
At last, the clouds seemed to have brewed enough energy. A bolt of lightning, as thick as an arm, shot down directly toward Jiang Chen, piercing through his crown and surging into his body.
He didn't know how many bolts he would have to endure or how long this would last. That's why he chose not to activate his first soul skill right away—after all, he knew that each subsequent strike would be stronger than the last.
Even before the lightning touched him, Jiang Chen could feel his scalp tingling, his hair standing on end.
The moment the bolt struck, his cultivation method, Heavenly Corpse Transformation, halted abruptly. His body stiffened as if he were a real corpse. Originally sitting cross-legged, his legs kicked out violently, and he collapsed flat on his back.
His pitch-black eyes bulged wide, his entire body wrapped in crackling electricity, convulsing at an alarming frequency.
Pain—excruciating, soul-searing pain!
Jiang Chen felt as though his flesh and bones were being ground apart on a massive millstone, crushed bit by bit.
The moment the lightning surged into his body, his soul power shattered instantly, scattered as if meeting its natural nemesis.
That single lightning strike lasted only a few minutes, but to Jiang Chen, it felt like a torturous eternity. Had it not been for the endurance built during his previous soul ring absorption, he would have passed out already.
Eventually, the lightning dispersed. The pain gradually faded, replaced by a tingling, itchy numbness.
Jiang Chen sat up, his body trembling with lingering fear. The pain had far exceeded what he endured during soul ring absorption—and that was just the first bolt.
Above him, the tribulation cloud remained, still churning and gathering energy. A second strike was imminent, and his heart sank.
He had no idea how many bolts remained, only that each would be more terrifying than the last.
His clothes were now torn and charred, hair singed and frazzled, exuding a strong scent of burning flesh.
Checking himself over, he let out a small sigh of relief—no limbs missing, at least.
But when he turned his focus inward, he was stunned. While his internal organs hadn't been damaged, his soul power had already dropped by a full third.
"Damn it, that was just the first one?! And I'm already almost out of soul power?!"
Although his soul power had dispersed during the strike, it had acted as a buffer, shielding his body from the lightning. Without it, the pain and damage would have been several times worse.
Up above, the cloud's thunderous energy surged once again. The second strike was coming.
Jiang Chen frantically circulated his cultivation technique, trying to recover as much soul power as possible.
Minutes later, with a deafening boom, the second bolt crashed down.
This time, without hesitation, Jiang Chen activated his first soul skill—Zombie God Armor. In an instant, the gleaming armor enveloped his entire body.
One bolt of lightning had already cost him a third of his soul power. Not using his soul skill now would have been sheer stupidity.
To his surprise, the lightning strike was mostly absorbed by the armor. It actually worked—it could block lightning!
However, not completely. Bolts of electricity still seeped through the gaps in the armor, entering through his eyes, nose, and mouth.
The searing pain returned, but it was noticeably less intense than the first time.
The armor had successfully blocked most of the energy. Unlike the first strike, this time the lightning didn't flood directly into his body.
Now, it was as if a thick dam had been erected outside his body, and only a trickle of water—through a few openings—was getting through.
The lightning raged on outside, but the pressure on Jiang Chen had been significantly reduced.
Inside, the lightning surged through his meridians. Like when he had absorbed his soul ring, it was refining his body again, purging more hidden impurities.
After several minutes, the lightning finally realized it couldn't break through. It began to dissipate.
Just then, a mysterious force within Jiang Chen's body activated—an internal suction pulling the remaining lightning in.
Jiang Chen froze for a moment, then quickly turned his focus inward. To his astonishment, the lightning was being drawn into his inner core, merging with the golden half within it.
The first bolt of lightning had rampaged through his body, and he hadn't paid attention to where it had gone. But this second time, he saw it clearly with his own eyes.
Jiang Chen couldn't help but feel irritated.
He'd been struck by lightning—twice—enduring agonizing torment, while that dormant golden lightning within him had done absolutely nothing to help. Only after the ordeal was over did it lazily absorb the leftover lightning, as if it were enjoying a feast.
It felt like someone swooping in to claim the spoils of his hard-fought victory—and Jiang Chen couldn't help but feel annoyed.
But what could he do? All he could do was silently grumble in frustration.
The third wave of thunder began brewing above once more. Jiang Chen hurried to restore his depleted soul power.
After enduring the second bolt, less than a third of his soul power remained.
Roughly ten minutes passed before the third bolt came crashing down.
Though his armor still blocked the majority of it, the force was significantly stronger than the last. Even with protection, the pain was excruciating.
Then came the fourth strike.
The fifth.
The sixth…
With each successive bolt, the power of the lightning became increasingly terrifying. Even the tiniest trace that seeped into his body caused Jiang Chen's limbs to convulse uncontrollably. The sensation was indescribable.
And yet—despite the agony—he began to notice something strange: a part of him was beginning to enjoy it.
Especially in the moments right after the lightning ended—there was a faint, almost addictive sense of relief and release.
"Am I… developing a masochistic tendency or something?" Jiang Chen thought with a bitter, amused smile.
When the seventh bolt finally faded, his soul power had been completely drained—down to the very last trace.
Yet the tribulation cloud in the sky remained, showing no signs of dissipating. Jiang Chen's heart grew heavier with dread.
As if fate had a cruel sense of timing, just as he was trying to recover his energy, the protective armor around his body suddenly vanished.
His entire form was now exposed, vulnerable to the elements.
"Damn it, I'm done for…" Despair gripped him like a vice.
And just as panic began to rise in his chest, the eighth bolt of lightning descended from the heavens with a thunderous roar—merciless and unstoppable.
…