Chapter 212: Triumph Over Thunder

Lan An remained unaware that Heavenly Secret Palace had mistaken him for a Child of the Heavenly Dao. The Immortal aura enveloping his body had already led to the demise of a Peak Refining Void elder. Now, entwined with Little Lion, their bodies were drenched in blood, ravaged by the seventh thunderbolt. Their bones lay exposed, the flesh on their backs obliterated. Lan An lacked the strength to resist further, sustained only by the relentless work of Nirvana Spirit Water and Heaven-Devouring Wood, which kept their bodies barely functional.

Little Lion's voice trembled, her mind clouded. "Master, I want you."

Her once-vibrant, wild beauty was marred by peeled skin, her robust allure faded. Lan An, panting heavily, had shielded her from most of the thunderbolts with Nirvana Spirit Water. Seeing her pale, cracked lips, his heart twisted in pain. He leaned down, pressing a deep, fervent kiss to her mouth.

A soft moan escaped her as her trembling body responded, welcoming his probing tongue. Their kiss, defiant amidst the storm of thunderbolts, seemed to mock the Eye of the Heavenly Dao, stoking its cold fury.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Thunder converged, forming a sky-piercing bolt with power surpassing a Peak Refining Void attack.

Lan An's eyes glinted with foresight. "After this strike, if I survive, the Tri-Colored Thunder Tribulation comes next."

He noted the tri-colored bolts still looming above, their presence disdainful of a mere Peak Nascent Soul like him. Little Lion shivered, the bolt's condensed might radiating the aura of death.

"How do we block this one?" she whispered, her voice quaking.

Lan An's gaze hardened, and he roared, "Come on!"

Boom! The bolt tore through space, aiming for his head. At the critical moment, his storage ring flashed, revealing an item. Boom! Boom! Boom! The ocean trembled, tsunamis surging as countless sea creatures bowed, as if greeting their emperor. A deep blue zither appeared, its translucent strings shimmering with radiant light. Etched on its body was an intricate carving of seven vast oceans, teeming with minute sea creatures bowing before a vague mermaid figure the Seven Seas Mysterious Zither.

Though its grade was unknown and he was not its master, Lan An wagered on its defensive power. "I trust you!" he bellowed, raising the zither against the bolt.

Clang! A deep blue light flared, blocking the ferocious thunderbolt.

Lan An spat blood, his arms nearly shattered by the recoil, but he laughed wildly. "I did it!"

The zither, a mysterious treasure of the Mermaid Clan, had saved his life. Yet its light flickered, shaking violently as it tried to escape. Not its master, Lan An had drained its power by using it to block a tribulation. Panicked, he stored it away, knowing it was meant for Hai Ling Long. Forcing it further would be unwise, as treasures shone brightest with their true owners.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The Tri-Colored Thunder Tribulation loomed above, the Eye of the Heavenly Dao's cold fury unleashed.

Lan An gazed at Little Lion, stroking her singed hair, both now bald from the lightning. "Lioness, together."

Her eyes softened, clinging to him. "Yes, like Sister Su Mai… let's mate."

Her hand caressed his scorched, erect member, the sensation both painful and thrilling. Amidst the lightning sea, Lan An sat cross-legged, his hands kneading her full breasts. Little Lion parted her singed lower lips, positioning herself atop him.

A mutual groan of satisfaction echoed as they joined. The pain of her first time was drowned by the tribulation's agony, leaving only boundless joy at becoming his woman.

"Move, my love," she moaned, too weak to act despite her position.

"Wait. This is our decisive moment," Lan An replied, savoring her tightness, his tongue tracing her bloodied back, tasting iron.

Little Lion buried her face in his charred chest, licking his gruesome wounds like a kitten serving her master. Their bodies merged, awaiting the cosmic force.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The Tri-Colored Thunder Tribulation prepared to descend. Lan An crushed a talisman, its mystical energy flowing into him and through their union into Little Lion.

She gasped, her eyes wide. "Master, my soul… it's miraculous."

"Soul-Protecting Talisman," Lan An explained, a grin spreading across his face. "It preserves our souls for fifteen seconds, making them indestructible."

Boom! The Tri-Colored Thunderbolt struck. Before Little Lion's stunned eyes, Lan An opened his mouth, swallowing it. Boom! His head exploded, the White Moon Soul-Seizing Eye flickering dimly. The bolt ravaged his body from neck to chest, reducing it to ash. Reaching his dantian, four great cauldrons halted its destruction, attempting to suppress it. His soul remained intact.

Little Lion's soul screamed, "Master!"

Her upper body was obliterated by the bolt's residual force, only her soul preserved by the talisman. Their lower bodies, still joined, endured as the cauldrons restrained the bolt. Flame Heart Cauldron's three Anomalous Flames and Soul-Warming Lotus bolstered their soul power, extending the talisman's effect.

Lan An's soul activated the Immortal Derivation Scripture, frantically refining the bolt's energy. A tiny, two-leafed herb emerged from the system space the Body-Reconstructing Herb, capable of rebuilding a body with a single drop of blood. His golden soul consumed it, its medicinal power spreading, reconstructing their bodies from the abdomen upward flesh, bones, and organs forming visibly.

Boom! Another Tri-Colored Thunderbolt descended. Lan An, anticipating this, directed the remaining Immortal aura to clash with it, part of his plan: protect their souls with the talisman, suppress the bolt with the cauldrons, refine it via dual cultivation with Little Lion, and rebuild their bodies with the herb. If he formed the Thunder Cauldron, he'd fear no tribulation. The bolt's pure, heavenly energy was ideal for cauldron formation, unlike tainted external energies.

Boom! The Immortal aura shattered the bolt.

The system's voice rang out, "Seal complete."

Lan An's face paled. "Why now?"

Their bodies were restored to their necks, the Thunder Cauldron forming but incomplete, and the Immortal aura fading. The Eye, unrelenting, formed three Tri-Colored Thunderbolts. Lan An prepared to unseal the system again.

Thousands of miles away, Ji Ya clutched her chest, sensing Lan An's peril through their life-death bond. The Spirit Realm Pearl trembled in her hand, its grade unknown. Biting her lip, she released it.

Whoosh! It shot toward Lan An with blinding speed.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Three Tri-Colored Thunderbolts condensed, their might world-destroying. Lan An gritted his teeth, ready to unseal the system.

Jin Ni shouted, "Wait, young master!"

The Spirit Realm Pearl, sentient and sensing its master's danger, arrived and spat out the Soul-Stabilizing Coffin, which blocked the bolt. Boom! The coffin held, unharmed.

Lan An, shocked yet thrilled, cursed his oversight. Even Treasure Pavilion couldn't open the coffin, making it perfect for defense. The pearl then released the Acceleration Array Disk, expanding beneath them, speeding time tenfold with ample spirit stones.

"We're saved!" Lan An cried, their reconstruction and cauldron formation accelerating.

Boom! Boom! Two more Tri-Colored Thunderbolts, each fused from three, struck coldly. Boom! Boom! The coffin shook, falling into the sea, reaching its limit.

"Not good," Lan An muttered, fearing its contents' destruction.

Another bolt descended, but the Giant Clan's Stone Tablet, inscribed with Eight Gates Escape Armor, blocked it, standing resolute.

Jin Ni estimated, "Its material is extraordinary but can withstand five strikes at most."

Lan An clenched his jaw as the disk accelerated their recovery.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The critical moment arrived. Their heads fully reformed, the White Moon Soul-Seizing Eye returning. The herb's power depleted.

Clang! The tablet cracked after five strikes.

"Still not enough," Lan An growled, ready to sacrifice the tablet.

Boom! Another bolt was blocked by the Heaven-Splitting Gauntlets, a top True-grade treasure from Giant Tyrant Heaven, meant for his master. The gauntlets cracked, sinking into the sea.

Lan An laughed wildly, overwhelmed by gratitude. The Spirit Realm Pearl, Soul-Stabilizing Coffin, Stone Tablet, gauntlets, and Acceleration Array Disk had saved him. With the disk's effect, a Tri-Colored Thunder Cauldron formed in his dantian, its energy cycling through their joined bodies, their auras soaring divinely.