He was a Golden Core Master. What exactly was he capable of?
Some people hiding in high-rise buildings couldn't help but take out their phones, pointing them at the figure in the sky that no longer resembled a human. The scorching glow of electrical currents gradually rose, finally merging with the twilight sky!
RUMBLE!
Rolling thunder echoed through the heavens! Like a devastating ultimate ability that had been charging for ages, or a legendary Forbidden Curse, massive bolts of lightning crashed down from the clouds!
One bolt, two bolts, ten bolts...
Although not as terrifyingly dense as a Thunder Tribulation, seeing them scattered across the entire city from afar remained a breathtaking, awe-inspiring sight.
For the Cultivators and soldiers struggling against the rioters below, the shock in their hearts was unparalleled.
It was precise. Exceptionally precise.
As if the heavens themselves were punishing these people, the lightning from the sky struck every single rioter with pinpoint accuracy. Without even time to scream, they collapsed stiffly to the ground, their skin charred to charcoal as crimson blood slowly seeped out. Yet, others standing mere inches away were left completely unharmed!
Even those in the Divine Thought Stage met the same fate. Under such overwhelming might, their superficial Divine Thoughts were completely powerless to block the strikes for even a fraction of a second.
Taking over the entire battlefield with the power of one person—this was the work of a true god!
People tilted their heads back, gazing up at the figure in the sky, their eyes filled with reverence and... longing! This was the allure of Cultivation. He was not a god by birth, but a mortal who had relied on himself to become a deity step by step.
Even Miao Yun, who was rushing back and forth between various battlefields, couldn't help but stop in her tracks. Her eyes were filled with amazement. She wondered, "Could Fellow Cultivator Thunder's Divine Thought already be powerful enough to cover the entire city? And to actually draw down lightning from the heavens... how did he do it?"
Miao Yun gently bit her lip. Beneath her amazement lay a deep sense of inner conflict. She had countless questions about Cultivation that she wanted to ask, but she was worried Shen Yun might make other demands. What a headache. She only wanted to cultivate together, not sleep together...
What this youngest Golden Core Master didn't know was that, at this very moment, Shen Yun himself was just as stunned. From his perspective, he could viscerally experience exactly what Xiao Jiu was doing.
The city shrouded in darkness below was like a manipulated chessboard, and Xiao Jiu was the chess player. She could effortlessly erase any piece on the board at her absolute whim. And she seemed completely at ease doing so.
"How did you do that?" Shen Yun asked, unknowingly voicing Miao Yun's most pressing question.
"By receiving optical and electromagnetic signal waves, establishing an identification algorithm, and then guiding the thunderclouds through targeted Spiritual Power induction... It just took a little time to build the algorithm because I had to collect the criminals' data," Xiao Jiu tried her best to explain in terms Shen Yun could understand. She finally added, "Actually, this is nothing special. They mainly exposed themselves, which saved me a lot of trouble."
Shen Yun was speechless. At this moment, he had nothing left to say but to silently applaud her brilliance out of pure respect.
He finally realized a profound truth. As a smartphone that had attained Enlightenment, the kind of absolute advantage Xiao Jiu possessed over human Cultivators was utterly staggering! Extending that logic further, what if the object of his Enlightenment was a tank, a fighter jet, an aircraft carrier... or even taking it a step further... a nuclear bomb?
A nuclear bomb capable of Cultivation? He drew in a sharp breath. His cheat ability really was outrageously overpowered!
After Xiao Jiu's forceful intervention, the battle essentially concluded in a mere ten seconds. The few who managed to duck into buildings to avoid the lightning strikes were swiftly executed by the Cultivation combat squads.
That awe-inspiring scene on the battlefield was faithfully recorded and broadcasted by major media outlets, spreading like wildfire across the global internet. On China's largest media platform, one netizen's comment rapidly gained traction.
"He Anhe wanted to let us know who the true king of this era is.
"Now—
"We finally know!"
He Anhe had vainly attempted to use this crisis to incite public dissatisfaction and stir up the ambitions and desires of Cultivators. But in the end, it achieved the exact opposite effect.
Even some equally arrogant Cultivators who had wanted to establish their own dictatorial factions and treat the law as a joke found their blood running cold as they sat in front of their screens. Watching that Thunder God-like figure and the scorching lightning, they felt as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over their heads.
They realized that until they formed a Golden Core, they would remain nothing more than mortals! This realization surged into the hearts of all Cultivators around the world. The gap after surviving a Celestial Tribulation was the insurmountable chasm between a god and a mortal.
Meanwhile, military advisors from nations across the globe began conducting emergency analyses of the footage, desperately trying to find a way to counter a Golden Core expert on the battlefield. However, everyone knew this was merely self-comfort. The countless superhero movies they had produced had already mirrored the immense impact a Golden Core expert could have in modern warfare. No one would be foolish enough to deploy a Golden Core expert in a head-on clash against an armored division. If a war broke out, they would become an absolute nightmare for rear-echelon personnel.
The world's precarious pre-existing notions and consensus were completely shredded once again by Shen Yun, this Thunder Master, just a single day after the Heavenly Dao had been reshaped.
Some asked themselves in bewilderment, "Will the future of science truly be replaced by the future of Cultivation? Are centuries of technological advantage truly no match for thousands of years of ancient heritage?"
If Shen Yun knew of their bewilderment and doubts at this moment, he would definitely throw his hands up and shout that Xiao Jiu was the future! In fact, he really did shout it—but only in his heart, directly to Xiao Jiu.
"No matter how amazing Xiao Jiu is, she's still Master's Xiao Jiu." Her voice was still so sugary sweet that it made his mind sway.
He wondered, "When will I finally be able to eat her?"
Shen Yun felt helpless and forcefully suppressed his wandering thoughts. He could eat her anytime he wanted. But the real problem was whether he could physically withstand it. According to Xiao Jiu's explanation, the first stage of Cultivation seemed to be simply tempering the physical body and then Gathering Spiritual Power. This was a foundational phase that required time to polish. He absolutely couldn't afford to be reckless in the early game.
"Master," Xiao Jiu said, seemingly seeing through his thoughts and timely shifting to business. "I couldn't find He Anhe. Although the signal wave scan covers a large area, its precision is a bit lacking."
"Is that so?" Shen Yun narrowed his eyes slightly. Had he fled?
It made sense for him to flee. Since the man had intentionally incited such massive chaos, he was definitely planning an escape. However, the entirety of East City was currently surrounded by the military, and no one was allowed to leave. If he made even the slightest commotion, Xiao Jiu would instantly detect it, and resolving the issue would just take a few more bolts of lightning.
Considering his massive contribution in resolving this crisis, he wondered if he could ask the government for a fighter jet. Even if they refused a jet, asking for a tank without any loaded shells shouldn't be too much, right?
So... how exactly does one cultivate romantic feelings with a tank?
Shen Yun was already pondering his post-battle plans.