Thunderstorm Divine Art
[You take the initiative and attack with your sword mobilizing the Sword Law Seed. Your opponent enveloped his spear with lightning and battled with you. After a few bouts, you manage to defeat your opponent causing his body to scatter into nothingness. You receive a message that you passed the first trial.]
[The second trial begins with you facing two replicas of the same previous opponent but with cultivations at the Intermediate Stage of the Spiritual Realm. You defeat both of them at the cost of slight injuries.]
[The third trial consists of you facing the same opponent but this time, only one of them, in addition, this opponent is at the Advanced Stage of the Spiritual Realm having a Spear Law Seed. You battle using all your strength and finally manage to defeat him while suffering serious injuries. You receive a message from the thunder steel asking you if you desire to continue with the trials. You think for a moment and decide to play it safe. You choose to withdraw from the trials.]
[Then a blinding light suddenly emits in front of you and sucks your mind out of the thunderous plane. After adjusting to your senses, you open your eyes and find that your consciousness has returned back to your body. You search through your consciousness and find a lightning bead hovering quietly. You decide to check it later on. You get up from the platform and quickly head out of it while looking at the disappointed faces of other participants in this trial.]
[A few days after leaving the platform, you encounter many cultivators that try to loot what you have obtained in this cave world but you manage to kill them easily as most of them were at the Spiritual Realm. Your talent 'Stable Spiritual Energy Flow' has helped to adjust your state after battles quickly.]
[Year 25: At 41, a blinding white beam shoots from afar. You know that the cave world is about to close, so you decisively head in its direction. After many days of constant travel, you finally arrive at the exit of the cave world. You brace yourself and exit the cave world. Just when you arrive in the outside world, your senses catch a heavy smell of blood permeating through the air. You open your eyes to see many corpses on the ground and many cultivators battling against each other. Suddenly, a huge black palm emerges and traps you within it immobilizing you. You get pulled along with the palm toward an old man at the Nascent Soul Realm who demands you to hand over all of your loot from within the cave world otherwise he will kill you. You know that even if you comply with his orders, your only ending would be death. So you detonate yourself along with many bombs you previously refined causing serious injuries to the old man. You are dead.]
[Simulation Complete.]
[Evaluation: You were able to find the huge cave world of an Expert rich in resources and obtain many opportunities but were killed by cultivators waiting outside the cave world wanting to reap benefits effortlessly along with many others that entered with you.]
[Ding, Simulation ended. Generating rewards…. Please select one reward from the following options:]
- [Stable Spiritual Energy Flow (Green).]
- [Cultivation at the Initial Stage of the Spiritual Realm.]
- [Lightning Bead obtained from the trials.]
Ling Tian sat in his quiet chamber, the events of his latest simulation replaying in his mind. Despite managing to navigate the dangers of the cave realm and participating in the trials to obtain a reward, his journey was cut short by unscrupulous individuals who sought to effortlessly swallow and steal his benefits and rewards along with many others who had toiled through the trials, forcing Ling Tian into a desperate situation where he was left with no choice but to self-detonate.
On the other hand, it seems that the trials in the cave world were of high level. The memory of the trials lingered, particularly the opponents at the Spiritual Realm he faced who wielded Law Seeds—an extraordinary feat for anyone below the Nascent Soul Realm. Ling Tian realized the significance of encountering such powerful enemies. Only the most talented cultivators could form Law Seeds before reaching the Golden Core Realm. The fact that he, possessing the white talent 'Basic Sword Affinity,' had only managed to form a Sword Seed on the verge of death, highlighted the immense difficulty of this achievement.
Sighing, he moved on to review the simulation rewards. Among the options, one stood out: a lightning bead obtained as a reward from the trials. He selected it without hesitation. As soon as he made his choice, a small purple bead, flickering with lightning energy, materialized and drifted into his sea of consciousness, settling there peacefully.
Curious about it, Ling Tian injected Spiritual Energy into the bead. It exploded into countless purple characters, which floated around in his sea of consciousness before aligning themselves to form a scripture: the [Thunderstorm Divine Art].
This technique, a powerful lightning-element cultivation method, was designed to channel the primal forces of lightning to refine both body and soul. Ling Tian quickly skimmed through the scripture, noting its aggressive and explosive nature, allowing the cultivator to harness the raw, destructive power of lightning and use it to ascend through the cultivation realms. The [Thunderstorm Divine Art] promised rapid growth, but at a cost—it was much harder and more time-consuming to cultivate than other techniques. Nevertheless, the power it provided in each realm was unparalleled, making it a path of dominance and destruction. However, he only had access to the chapters till the Golden Core Chapter; the later chapters would require him to pass further trials.
Satisfied with his choice, Ling Tian reviewed the simulation records one last time, closed the system interface, and rose from his meditative state.
The next two weeks passed in a steady routine. His cultivation advanced slowly but surely, and he spent hours refining weapons, producing several Tier 1 and four Tier 2 weapons and giving them to his father to distribute them to the clan members. When he presented these to his father, he still couldn't forget the shock on his father's face. His father had praised him endlessly, calling him the star of the Ling Clan. Ling Tian couldn't help but blush at the memory.
Yet, his peaceful days were often interrupted by some troublemakers. Selling his weapons in the marketplace made him a target for many cultivators who thought they could extort him. But these troublemakers eventually met their demise meeting a fiery end, their bodies reduced to ashes. The city's patrol teams and guards were constantly on edge, puzzled by the mysterious disappearances.
To avoid drawing too much attention, Ling Tian sometimes traveled to neighboring cities to sell his weapons. During these travels, he discovered the underground ring—a place where cultivators fought while spectators placed their bets. Donning a mask, Ling Tian frequently participated in these battles, using them to hone his skills. The fights were dangerous, sometimes causing him serious injuries, but they were worth it. With each battle, he grew stronger, eventually condensing six Sword Intent Strands that hovered around his Sword Seed.
As the days went by, Ling Tian couldn't help but feel a deep sense of satisfaction. His progress was evident, not just in his cultivation but in his skills and strength.