When they saw Jiang Zhaoxia fall to his knees, the hundreds of disciples watching all turned pale. Especially when the next heavenly thunder struck and Jiang Zhaoxia was still unable to stand, fear rose uncontrollably in their hearts.
Was Jiang Zhaoxia going to die beneath the heavenly tribulation?
Immediately afterward, they saw a figure appear out of thin air before Jiang Zhaoxia. With a lift of his hand and a sweep of his sleeve, he directly dispersed the heavenly thunder descending from above.
The Sect Master!
Everyone let out a long breath of relief, especially Zhang Yuchun, Li Dongyue, and the others. They had known that their senior brother would not stand idly by.
Li Qingqiu's intervention seemed to enrage the heavens even further. A golden thunderbolt, fiercer and more massive than all the previous ones combined, crashed down. Its momentum shook the heavens and the earth, as though the sky itself were collapsing.
Then everyone saw a sword qi a full 100 zhang long surge up from the Tribulation Platform, slicing across the sky and severing the golden thunder in an instant.
Shen Yue's pupils widened.
"What was that…?"
From that sword qi, he felt an overwhelming pressure. His own sword intent actually recoiled in fear.
Jiang Zhaoxia lay in Li Qingqiu's arms, watching as his senior brother used his fingers as a sword to unleash the sword qi of the Immortal Severing Three Swords. A smile appeared on his blood-streaked face.
"Senior brother… I knew it… your sword Dao comprehension is stronger than mine… stronger than anyone's…"
Jiang Zhaoxia spoke weakly.
Li Qingqiu did not reply. He was sensing an immensely powerful heavenly might.
It seemed that rashly interfering in another cultivator's tribulation would cause the heavenly tribulation to grow even more terrifying.
But for Jiang Zhaoxia's sake, he had to withstand it.
Boom—
Another thunderbolt crashed down, as if it meant to split Lixue Peak in half. Li Qingqiu struck upward with his palm. Terrifying vital energy formed a massive silver energy barrier that enveloped the entire mountaintop, its diameter exceeding 20 zhang.
To those observing the tribulation, the sight caused an uproar.
"What vast vital energy is this?"
"It hasn't been that many years since the Sect Master faced his own tribulation. How can his vital energy be so terrifying?"
"Even from this far away, I can feel how powerful the Sect Master's vital energy is."
"To contend against the heavens with human strength…"
As the disciples whispered among themselves, Xu Ning was equally stunned.
She was already at the first layer of the Awakening Spirit realm, yet in the face of such surging vital energy, she could not muster even the slightest will to resist.
'Just how high is Master's cultivation?'
An uncontrollable thought rose within her—she wanted to know her master's true realm.
Relying on the immense vital energy barrier, Li Qingqiu forcefully withstood two heavenly thunder strikes.
Neither of them broke through the barrier, nor did they even cause it to waver, making the barrier seem incomparably solid.
The heavenly might gradually dispersed.
Jiang Zhaoxia's tribulation came to an end. In the unseen depths, he sensed some form of insight. The pain in his body eased, and he slowly sat upright in meditation as heaven and earth spiritual energy surged toward him.
Li Qingqiu rose to his feet and looked up.
The thunderclouds in the sky dispersed, and beams of sunlight streamed down, bathing the two senior brothers in golden light.
Li Qingqiu's expression, however, was not pleasant. It was solemn.
He could not possibly help every disciple in the future to overcome their tribulation. Nor was it appropriate to have other sect powerhouses intervene in disciples' tribulations. The terror of meddling with heavenly tribulation had even made his heart tremble.
He could bear it for Jiang Zhaoxia, but others could not.
Still, since things had already happened, he would take them as they came. It would likely be difficult for 10 Awakening Spirit cultivators to emerge within 10 years. Helping such a small number of people through tribulation would not be troublesome for him.
Li Qingqiu glanced down at Jiang Zhaoxia once more, then vanished in a flash.
In the days that followed, the terror of heavenly tribulation became a topic of endless discussion among the disciples.
It turned out that not everyone could pass as easily as the Sect Master or Xu Ning. Even someone as strong as Jiang Zhaoxia had nearly lost his life.
For a time, the disciples began debating how to face heavenly tribulation.
Some said magical artifacts and formations must be prepared in advance. Others suggested stocking up on spirit energy pills—preferably even more efficient ones, if possible.
Their discussions made Li Qingqiu realize his own misunderstanding.
The three of them had been extraordinarily fierce. Ordinary cultivators preparing to face tribulation would certainly equip themselves with various methods; no one would rely purely on their physical body and spells to withstand it head-on.
But this, too, was a good thing. It left a deeper impression of heavenly tribulation on the disciples and stimulated their creativity.
Jiang Zhaoxia spent 5 days consolidating his cultivation. He immediately sought out Li Qingqiu to thank him for his assistance.
"Between you and me, do we need to speak of thanks?" Li Qingqiu said irritably.
Jiang Zhaoxia smiled and nodded, yet there was some unwillingness in his heart.
He had lost to Xu Ning.
And he had lost thoroughly.
Xu Ning's tribulation had been so effortless, while he had nearly died. The disciples of the sect would surely judge the gap between them.
This time, Jiang Zhaoxia accepted his defeat wholeheartedly. He could acknowledge it—but he would not stop. Xu Ning remained the target he intended to surpass.
There could only be one person as the sect's second strongest, and that would be him!
Taking this opportunity, Li Qingqiu expressed his concerns to Jiang Zhaoxia.
To the west lay the Azure Dragon Domain. To the north were the Demon and Monster Lands. To the south was the direction where fleeing cultivators once escaped. In the future, Qingxiao Sect would inevitably encounter other cultivation sects.
"We must prepare for the worst. If one day Qingxiao Sect is surrounded on all sides, I hope that four people will be able to stand out from within the sect, each guarding one direction. Xu Ning is one of them. You are another. I even hope you can do more—when each battlefield falls into stalemate, you can become the sword that tears through the crisis."
Li Qingqiu's words made Jiang Zhaoxia's blood surge with heat.
He had once again found the motivation to cultivate diligently.
He was determined to become one of the pillars of the sect.
"By the way, when Ancestor Su Xing tried to possess you, Chu Jing saw a flood dragon appear within your soul. You should look into that. Perhaps your soul still hides even greater power," Li Qingqiu suddenly recalled and said seriously.
In truth, he felt that even if he had not intervened, Jiang Zhaoxia might have endured it on his own. He simply had not dared to gamble.
He decided that from now on, he would grant Jiang Zhaoxia one opportunity each year to descend the mountain for training, to see whether the True Dragon of Fate within him could continue to exert its strength.
Jiang Zhaoxia nodded and committed the matter to memory.
The two chatted a while longer before Jiang Zhaoxia took his leave. He needed to return and rest properly.
Li Qingqiu resumed his cultivation. With one more Awakening Spirit realm powerhouse in the sect, his heart felt more at ease.
Facing the threat from the Demon and Monster Lands, his confidence was steadily increasing.
Qingxiao Sect was located in the southern part of Jiuzhou, with various provinces serving as buffer zones. If the Demon and Monster Lands proved too terrifying, they could withdraw swiftly.
Of course, unless absolutely necessary, Li Qingqiu did not wish to abandon the Taikun Mountain Range. Therefore, he needed to prepare in advance for the possibility of war against demons and monsters.
…
The matter of Jiang Zhaoxia's tribulation—its terrifying heavenly thunder—had frightened the disciples, but it ultimately produced a positive effect.
Within the Scripture Pavilion, more and more manuals related to formations began to appear. Contributing spells and cultivation techniques earned Dao Fate, so the disciples did not hoard their knowledge.
Many disciples would take time to discuss insights with close friends, creating spells together. When pilgrims ascended the mountain, they often saw disciples debating in the forest. Some literati even composed poems and verses about the sight, while others captured it with brush and ink.
The atmosphere of Qingxiao Sect fully embodied the bearing of the number one sect under heaven.
November arrived swiftly.
Li Qingqiu felt that this year had passed faster than any before. Perhaps it was because he had spent longer in closed-door cultivation, and nothing troublesome had occurred this year.
Yet just as the thought formed, trouble arrived.
Zhang Yuchun and Chu Jing came to Li Qingqiu's cave dwelling to report a major matter.
"Zhu Xian is dead?" Li Qingqiu asked with a frown.
Zhu Xian had been the warlord favored by Qingxiao Sect, the one meant to unify the realm. How could he be dead?
His first thought was Li Sifeng. Yet even if Li Sifeng harbored wolfish ambition, he would not be so ruthless. Li Qingqiu understood his junior brother well.
"He was stabbed to death by a general under his command. That general has already been imprisoned. Power in Cang Province is now controlled by Li Da of the Li clan. Li Da is Li Yang's second uncle," Zhang Yuchun said with a furrowed brow.
The incident infuriated him. He felt as though someone had slapped him in the face.
Li Qingqiu looked at him and asked, "The Li clan? What are they trying to do? Is this related to Sifeng?"
Zhang Yuchun drew a deep breath. "Sixth Junior Brother is currently in the northern barbarian lands. It should not be his scheme. That general has no connection to Sixth Junior Brother, nor is he closely tied to the Li clan—at least not on the surface. He claims he killed Zhu Xian because Zhu Xian murdered his father. Whether that is true remains unknown. Cang Province is now in turmoil. A powerful voice has emerged—the Li clan claims that only Sixth Junior Brother can inherit the mandate to rule."
Li Qingqiu frowned again upon hearing this.
He could not help but think of Pei Miao'er's Twin Dragon Empress fate. Was destiny exerting its force again?
"Zhu Xian had no children?" Li Qingqiu asked.
Zhang Yuchun replied, "His son and daughter were poisoned to death the year before last. After that, he swore that unless he unified the realm, he would never father children again."
"Who poisoned them?"
"A maidservant. She, too, had a blood feud with Zhu Xian…"
Even as Zhang Yuchun spoke, he found the matter suspicious. No matter how one looked at it, everything seemed like a carefully laid scheme, paving the road specifically for Li Sifeng.
Li Qingqiu's expression darkened as he fell into thought.
He did not oppose Li Sifeng contending for the realm, but he did not wish it to unfold in this manner. Once certain actions began, they would be repeated, and moral boundaries and principles would gradually erode.
Zhang Yuchun was also pondering what role Li Sifeng might be playing in all this.
Chu Jing suddenly spoke. "This matter was clearly orchestrated by the Li clan and has nothing to do with Li Sifeng. With his strength, if he wished to become emperor himself, he would not need to attach himself to Zhu Xian. The Li clan is clever—they have kept themselves clean. They chose to act while Li Sifeng was away so that no stain would fall upon him. No matter what, this benefits Li Sifeng and benefits Qingxiao Sect."
"I suspect their motive is to forge a closer bond with Qingxiao Sect. Everyone knows Li Sifeng's standing within the sect."
"My suggestion is to turn a blind eye—to act as though we know nothing and care nothing, and let the current carry us forward. The affairs of the realm should be decided by the realm itself. To speak bluntly, once Li Sifeng departed, if Zhu Xian could not withstand the Li clan, that in itself proves he lacked Heaven's mandate. If his throne had to rely on Li Sifeng to obtain it, then that throne belonged to Li Sifeng from the start."
These words eased Zhang Yuchun's frown. The reasoning made sense.