chapter 182 - Crossing the Tribulation
"Help me block Lu Ye!
"I must cross the tribulation—after I succeed, I’ll kill him!"
Jiang Die shouted loudly.
Because of Lu Ye's earlier declaration about "settling accounts,"
all the forces that had participated in the hunt for him
had long since become like frightened birds startled by the mere twang of a bowstring.
Now, hearing Jiang Die say this—
what choice did they have?
It wasn’t that they didn’t know how strong Lu Ye was.
It was because they knew how strong he was
that they could only place all their hope on Jiang Die.
"Wang Clan, obey! Thousand Strikes Formation!"
When Lu Ye arrived at the Wang Clan,
their cultivators had already formed a grand battle formation.
Everyone’s aura connected, moving as one,
as they roared and charged toward Lu Ye.
Lu Ye raised an eyebrow.
He naturally had no intention of indulging them.
Kill!
Wang Canghai was already dead—
what threat could these remnants of the Wang Clan possibly pose?
Suddenly, a massive bell descended, trying to suppress Lu Ye.
That bell radiated the aura of a Dao Treasure.
Though it was a Postcelestial Dao Treasure,
it was obviously something sent down from the Third Heaven.
Sending off the dead?
DONG!
The giant bell was smashed flying by a single punch.
Screams erupted in waves.
Kill, kill, kill!
The Thousand Strikes Formation managed to stall Lu Ye for more than half a stick of incense’s time.
But the price the Wang Clan paid was equally tragic.
Lu Ye's injuries steadily healed during the battle.
After finishing off the formation,
he continued charging after Jiang Die.
He knew—
killing these people wasted time.
But the enemy’s goal was precisely to delay him.
Even if he wanted to bypass them, he couldn’t.
Because his tracking method now
relied on following the trail Jiang Die left behind.
Those stronger direct-positioning techniques—
while powerful—
were also easier to block or erase.
Jiang Die had learned far too many anti-tracking methods from him.
Thus, he could only pursue {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} in this slower, cruder—but reliable—way.
Leaving the Wang Clan—
The Banner of the Human Emperor gently churned out black mist.
It had taken quite a beating earlier against Jiang Die.
Lu Ye couldn't help but feel a bit helpless.
Was it because the Banner was too weak?
Or because he himself was too strong?
Alright—
truthfully, it was because he was too strong.
Even so, a mere imitation like Jiang Die
had still managed to batter the Banner that badly.
Still—
in this battle, the Banner had served its purpose—
helping Lu Ye stall for time.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had enough breathing room
to unleash his explosive strikes.
He truly hadn’t expected Jiang Die
to have stolen this much from him.
The Yin-Yang Devouring Dao Gu—
it really was terrifying.
Qingtian Sect!
Same as with the Wang Clan—
they threw the lives of their entire sect
just to delay him.
Even though masses of their people would die—
it was still better than total annihilation later.
Lu Ye could feel it—
the distance between him and Jiang Die was slowly widening.
He was thinking hard—
analyzing.
He could only roughly sense the distance.
And now—
it had stretched nearly three thousand li.
After slaughtering everyone blocking the way,
Lu Ye continued his pursuit.
Four thousand li!
Qianyue Sect intercepts.
Another brutal battle—
heads rolled, blood drenched the earth.
To prevent Lu Ye from recovering through battle,
these blocking cultivators didn’t even bring their storage rings with them.
BOOM!
Masses of shattered flesh and broken limbs exploded outward.
Lu Ye soared into the sky,
turning into a blazing rainbow as he pressed the pursuit.
Six thousand li!
The distance was getting larger and larger.
A sharp glint flashed in Lu Ye’s eyes.
He understood now—
Jiang Die wanted to cross her tribulation.
Crossing a tribulation needed time.
Lu Ye wanted to see—
just how many people would dare sacrifice themselves for her!
Meanwhile—
the Heaven’s Secret Mirror
was broadcasting their chase across the world.
Because their speeds were too extreme,
and their paths unpredictable,
the images flickered and cut out frequently.
Still—
none of that dulled the urgency and tension
gripping every cultivator who watched.
BOOM!
A thunderous roar echoed.
Jiang Die's figure streaked across the sky over a city.
Countless cultivators looked up—
watching that black shadow vanish into the horizon.
BOOM!
Moments later,
an even more terrifying sound
sliced through the same spot.
The pursuit continued.
Because of this Great Pursuit,
the entire Second Heaven had fallen into unprecedented turmoil.
Everyone was fixated—
watching to see how this battle would end.
Yet no matter whether Jiang Die won or Lu Ye won—
the overall strength of the Second Heaven
had already shriveled to a ridiculous degree.
The distance between them kept widening.
So many sects were willing to die for Jiang Die?
Honestly—
Lu Ye was a little impressed.
If this went on,
she might really have enough time
to cross her tribulation.
Suddenly—
Jiang Die’s figure stopped.
Stopped?
Seconds ticked by.
Lu Ye naturally used this opportunity
to close the distance at full speed.
After a brief pause—
Jiang Die resumed her flight.
Not long after,
Lu Ye arrived at the place where she had paused.
He saw—
piles of corpses.
And countless cultivators standing, heads bowed in silence.
"The Shenfeng Sect—
"offended the Dao Friend's divine might.
"Today, we atone sincerely.
"One hundred seventy-seven Shenfeng Sect elites have fallen
"to delay Jiang Die for but a moment.
"We hope Dao Friend will forgive our past sins."
Lu Ye didn’t stop.
He swept past them—
only a single word drifting back with the wind:
"Good."
After two more rounds of sect barricades,
Lu Ye calculated—
he had encountered resistance from seventeen different forces already.
Now—
only one last force remained.
The Eternal Teachings Sect.
Lu Ye’s figure vanished.
The Eternal Teachings Sect possessed
the Second Heaven’s rank two expert—
Shentu Xing.
Ahead—
massive thunderclouds roiled.
Clearly—
Jiang Die had already begun crossing her tribulation.
Lu Ye charged straight toward the gathering storm.
Ahead—
over a hundred cultivators waited.
Each radiated powerful auras.
Each held a golden ring—
a matching Dao Treasure.
The Eternal Teachings Sect didn’t want to die for Jiang Die.
But honestly—
it seemed like Jiang Die was the only one
who had even the slightest chance of killing Lu Ye.
Even Shentu Xing didn't know
what the hell this world had become.
One guy—
after crossing tribulation—
refused to ascend.
Then when he finally did,
he was already at the Earth Immortal Realm.
An Earth Immortal killing Celestial Gods
like slaughtering pigs!
And now—
an Earth Immortal at first layer strength
had somehow exploded to Celestial God fifth layer?
It was too ridiculous.
This whole world had gone crazy.
"Dao Friend, stop!"
Shentu Xing shouted.
His voice was like thunder.
But—
Lu Ye’s figure vanished.
Vanished?
Huh?
Shentu Xing’s face changed.
He frantically searched with divine arts.
Nothing?
No trace?
Impossible!
Lu Ye had used his Shadowless Divine Art—
merging into the void like a fish in water.
He raced toward Jiang Die
with shocking speed.
Honestly, even Lu Ye found it funny.
Who decided that just because someone blocked the road,
he had to stop and fight?
Stereotypes!
Before—
he fought because he wanted to fight.
Now—
if he just wanted to break through—
who could stop him?
The golden rings these Eternal Teachings cultivators held—
obviously a full set Dao Treasure—
would indeed be troublesome.
But—
Jiang Die was already crossing tribulation.
Her location was crystal clear.
Would Lu Ye really waste time fighting here?
"Not good! Quickly! Protect Jiang Die’s tribulation!"
But it was too late.
Lu Ye’s figure had already reached the edge of the lightning tribulation.
He gazed up—at the faintly golden thunder descending from the sky—and a madness ignited in his eyes.