Chapter 127: The Fusion of Good and Evil

By the shores of the East Sea, amidst a thousand miles of desolate, rugged mountains, Qing Xu gazed up at the two colossal storm clouds high above in the vast sky. His expression was relaxed and composed as he watched the opposing clouds repel each other, their power gradually neutralizing, bringing him immense joy.

The twin tempestuous clouds—embodying the celestial trials of good and evil—each spanned nearly a hundred miles and had reached the formidable level of the Forty-Nine Heavens Immortal Tribulation. Now, as they clashed and pushed against each other, they merged into an irregular, two-hundred-mile-wide, pitch-black storm cloud. As their powers canceled out, the cloud gradually shrank, and the overwhelming celestial force that once covered the land diminished significantly.

From a cloud of one hundred ninety miles, to one hundred eighty, then one hundred seventy miles in size...

Before long, under Qing Xu’s watchful gaze, the two great clouds of good and evil shrank to half their original size. Combined, they barely spanned a hundred miles, radiating an aura comparable to a typical Forty-Nine Heavens Immortal Tribulation. At this moment, his anxious heart finally calmed. Such a mere Forty-Nine Heavens Tribulation was hardly worth his concern; with a few defensive spiritual treasures at his disposal, surviving it would be effortless.

“Such incredible luck! This Heavenly Tribulation is practically a walk in the park for me!” Qing Xu beamed with excitement.

But just as he was reveling in his fortune, a sudden, dramatic change took place. The good and evil tribulation clouds, seemingly unable to resolve their rivalry, erupted into fierce rage, crashing and entwining violently. The turbulent storm whipped through thousands of miles, stirring raging winds capable of tearing apart mountains and shattering stones. Simultaneously, a terrifying celestial force descended like a mountain crashing down upon Qing Xu, wrenching his internal organs askew, causing his blood to surge wildly and his magical energy to spiral out of control...

“What on earth is happening?” Qing Xu was shocked beyond words, feeling the immense force pressing down upon him. This power emanated from the Heavenly Tribulation, yet it had somehow reached the level of the Sixty-Nine Heavens Immortal Tribulation—and it showed no sign of stopping, relentlessly advancing toward the Ninety-Nine Heavens Immortal Tribulation.

Everything had unfolded with blinding speed, like a flash of lightning. By the time Qing Xu fully registered what was happening, the celestial force bearing down on him had more than doubled, far surpassing even the Sixty-Nine Heavens Tribulation.

The step from Earth Immortal Realm to Heavenly Immortal Realm inevitably came with a heavenly tribulation. For eight or nine out of ten primordial beings in this vast world, this was unavoidable. Only a rare few—such as the Witch Clan, the Buddhist Sect, and certain deities—might bypass this trial. Even those treading the demonic path must face this baptism of tribulation. It was an indispensable rite of passage.

Though perilous beyond measure, the Heavenly Tribulation was not without merit. Everything has two sides, and this was no exception. Those who failed would be utterly destroyed, their divine forms extinguished, their true souls annihilated. But those who passed through would attain profound clarity of mind and nature, shed worldly dust, and achieve a significant elevation in their cultivation and understanding. This alone was enough to drive countless cultivators to pursue it relentlessly. After all, the path of cultivation was arduous beyond words. Many geniuses spent endless years meditating on the mysteries of heaven and earth, only to see no progress in their cultivation. Moreover, the Heavenly Tribulation could refine spiritual energy and transform the body’s constitution. In short, its benefits were manifold.

For cultivators, the most crucial aspect was always the depth of their cultivation realm. Other traits—robust bodies, abundant magical energy, unfathomable divine powers, or profound immortal techniques—were mere auxiliaries. True enlightenment and mastery came from profound cultivation.

Magical energy was like water; cultivation realm was the vessel. The size and quality of the vessel determined how much water it could hold. Yet this was not absolute. Although cultivation influenced magical energy, other methods could break through limitations. One was to compress the spiritual energy to improve its quality without increasing quantity. Another was to first strengthen the body to hold more energy. However, the latter had drawbacks: if the magical energy exceeded the cultivation realm, returning to raise the realm would become exponentially more difficult. Compared to the first method, this was far less efficient.

As Qing Xu’s heart throbbed with tension and apprehension, the two dark storm clouds gradually fused. More than that, the radiance they emitted began to change. Originally, the golden light of virtue and the gloomy black aura of karma were sharply distinct, unwilling to mingle, locked in endless struggle. Now, the two colors intertwined, forming a three-dimensional, void-like Taiji diagram.

This immense Taiji symbol stretched for thousands of miles, rotating with the center of the merging tribulation cloud. After eighty-one turns in the natural direction, it reversed, moving counter to its previous rotation. The yin and yang fish of the symbol slowly fused during these shifts. At its very center, the black storm cloud gradually transformed into a gray, misty chaotic hue. Thunder, lightning, scalding rock torrents, and hurricane blades all vanished, replaced by a myriad of golden-black thunder dragons roaring fiercely.

One golden-black thunder dragon... two... three...

As the number of thunder dragons increased, the gray chaotic storm cloud’s power surged dramatically. Within moments, the evolution was complete. Now, eighty-one golden-black thunder dragons swirled within the cloud, their destructive aura rolling like a tide across the heavens and earth, sapping all resistance. It was as if the tribulation cloud itself was the arbiter of judgment, and all one could do was await the verdict.

“Ninety-nine... Ninety-nine Heavens Immortal Tribulation? What kind of cosmic joke is this? Damn it, such a grand trial that hasn’t even existed since ancient times has fallen upon me!” Qing Xu stared dumbfounded at the vast gray chaotic storm cloud looming hundreds of miles overhead, his heart sinking into despair.

Typically, when an Earth Immortal ascends to the Heavenly Immortal realm, only the Forty-Nine or Sixty-Nine Heavens Tribulations are encountered. The Ninety-Nine Tribulation has always been a theoretical legend, never witnessed by anyone. He had even heard from the Primordial Heavenly Venerable that the conditions for the Ninety-Nine Heavenly Tribulation were exceedingly harsh, and it was firmly believed that such a tribulation would not manifest beneath the heavenly dao. Now, having “won” the lottery of fate, Qing Xu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

The golden-black thunder dragons combined the advantages of both the Merit and Karma Heavenly Tribulations, amplifying their power severalfold. Meanwhile, the shortcomings of each were reduced significantly. Most importantly, these dragons were no mere lightning beings—they encompassed the elements of wind, fire, earth, metal, and wood as well, leaving no elemental weaknesses. Furthermore, when attacking a living being, they would adjust their elemental nature to exploit the target’s specific vulnerabilities, maximizing the tribulation’s power. Unlike the single-element Merit or Karma Tribulations, which wasted half their strength due to elemental incompatibilities, this fusion was terrifyingly efficient.

Qing Xu never imagined the situation would escalate so drastically. What had seemed like a favorable opportunity for the clouds to annihilate each other now turned into a terrifying fusion of virtue and karma—two great heavenly tribulations representing good and evil merged into one. The gray chaotic tribulation cloud was beyond his comprehension.

Chaos—something that should not even exist within this primal world—had suddenly appeared, and it was sanctioned by the heavenly dao. This was truly a miraculous occurrence.

Receiving subtle transmissions from the heavenly dao, Qing Xu became fully aware of his predicament. Now, it was a matter of survival: either he would pass this Ninety-Nine Chaotic Heavenly Tribulation, or be utterly annihilated—no room for luck.

The danger was immense, but so too were the rewards.

The information from the heavenly dao revealed that if he could survive this chaotic tribulation, not only would his body and magical energy be refined to unimaginable levels, but his cultivation realm would leap forward dramatically.

Within Purple Cloud Palace, the Dao Ancestor Hong Jun once said that there were three thousand orthodox methods to attain the saintly dao, forty-eight thousand heretical paths, and countless minor ones. Yet all could be summarized into three categories: first, attaining the dao through sheer force; second, attaining the dao by severing the “Three Corpses” within; and third, attaining the dao through merit.

The second method—cutting away the “Three Corpses”—involved severing one’s inherent good, evil, and attachments, entrusting them to innate spiritual treasures. Only then could one achieve clarity of mind, free from interference, harmonizing the seven emotions and six desires, and perfectly controlling emotions, thus avoiding misfortune and comprehending the profound workings of creation and life.

Qing Xu never expected that the fused Ninety-Nine Chaotic Heavenly Tribulation, combining good and evil, could assist cultivators in reaching their true hearts and mastering the thoughts of good and evil. In some respects, it represented the initial step toward severing those good and evil thoughts. The benefits were immeasurable.

“Never imagined the Ninety-Nine Tribulation would be so potent. To think that even at the Heavenly Immortal realm, one could begin to sever the good and evil thoughts of the ‘Three Corpses’ method. It’s truly unbelievable. If I survive this tribulation, who knows how far my cultivation will soar! And my future understanding of creation and improvement in cultivation will surely be doubled!” Qing Xu was exhilarated. Such a phenomenon sounded almost mythical, and he finally understood why the heavenly dao strictly controlled the Ninety-Nine Tribulation—it was an act of defiance against the heavens themselves. Compared to this, the physical transformation Ninety-Nine Tribulation was insignificant.

Yet with great benefit came great danger. Now, without his Xuanhuang clone nearby, Qing Xu could only rely on his humble peak Earth Immortal cultivation and his spiritual treasures to face the Ninety-Nine Tribulation. For most cultivators, this would have been a death sentence. But Qing Xu was an anomaly. Beyond his Jade Void Dao method, he possessed several innate spiritual treasures, a secret enfeoffment system locked away in reserve, and the azure and crimson thunder energies. Whether these would suffice to weather the Ninety-Nine Chaotic Heavenly Tribulation was uncertain.

Crash! Rumble!

Thunder roared and shook the heavens and earth. At the first blast, a thousand miles of space seemed to turn into a vacuum; all things froze, winds ceased, and energies congealed. At the second blast, a storm of spiritual energy swept across thousands of miles of the bordering seas, stirring waves that rose like mountains. Countless living beings and aquatic creatures perished.

Boom!

At the third thunderclap, the first golden-black thunder dragon slammed down, tail up and head down, aimed squarely at the celestial spirit point atop Qing Xu’s head. The terrifying celestial force locked onto him, leaving no chance of escape—even to the ends of the earth.

This first golden-black thunder dragon was as thick as a forearm, its fierce dragon face vivid and lifelike, as if a true living creature. Every scale, hair, fang, claw, eye, ear, and nostril bore the authenticity of a real dragon. The spirit within its eyes seemed alive.

“Impressive. Even just the first thunder dragon exerts immense pressure. I wonder if I can survive all eighty-one.” Qing Xu felt the heavy weight settling in his mind. With eighty-one dragons in total, each growing stronger, his confidence wavered.

From this glimpse, the terrifying might of the tribulation was clear. Qing Xu had no illusions about the difficulty of this trial ahead.