Seven bolts of thunder coalesced into balls of golden light. Their crackle quivered anyone gazing upon them.

Sun Jian, at this moment, couldn’t look any more valiant. He stood upon a cracked hill, hair and clothes fluttering with the raging wind, yet laughing all the same.

Three lights flashed, and all three bolts came down at the same time.

The sky seemed to blink in and out of darkness. Three seconds, three blinks later, an explosion rattled everyone’s ears. A dozen thousand tendrils of lightning surged around the arena, reaching the feet of the youngsters watching Sun Jian creak under the strike.

Still, Sun Jian grit his teeth and welcomed it with all his might. Legs trembling, he sunk further into the cracked hill. The shield smashed his arms into his chest and blood trickled down his mouth.

Still, again! Still his eyes didn’t waver for a single moment. The terrifying light within them showed a rare ruthlessness people couldn’t associate with his naive character. However, Fan Yueyin and Sun Zhongyan knew this child too well.

Who could become a quasi-master without great perseverance and hardship?

People who weren’t ruthless enough on themselves had no such hope to improve in cultivation!

Sun Jian was one such person. Even if he was tender to those around him, he was extremely ruthless to himself. Even if he suffered, he would welcome it with a big smile.

As his laughter echoed again, the remaining four bolts crashed down.

The hill shattered with him on top of it. Earth flew left and right, the debris cloud had no chance to spread before being pierced by tens of thousands of lightning tendrils. The terrifying sight made the audience's blood freeze.

Right after it the thunderclap arrived. Visible sound waves battered against ears, rupturing some unfortunate ones, and sent many reeling where they stood.

The shield slammed itself into his chest and Sun Jian coughed out a mouthful of blood. He fell into the crack carved by lightning and endured the constant burns of the tendrils. He landed at the bottom, only visible to the eyes of the others in the arena.

Blood poured out of his pores and nose, and his clothes fell in tatters around him. Scorched burn marks spread across both his arms and shoulders, painting him the figure of an asura. He panted and grit and sweated.

Even then, his gaze remained straight and his back stout. Forcing his arms up, the mysterious mist expanded thirty meters around him.

‘’One more!’’

He could still feel something missing. There was some force missing from the shield.

One hand pointed up, he made a hand seal and forced a part of the golden mist to shoot up in a light.

Dark clouds began swirling again, turning into a true eye of the storm. All around this area got ravaged by thunder and sharp winds, and many hills collapsed into pieces of green rubble. Qing Yan’s hill alone stood stout, though her legs couldn’t stop their trembling.

Raising her head, she cast a resolute look at Sun Jian. With a leap she walked towards another hill, picking up only what was essential to continue her work. Once she landed between Li Ao’s and Sun Jian’s position, she began working again.

This act of hers caused The Imperial Ancestor to mutter. ‘’That is also an obvious choice, but alas, it requires spirit.’’

His criticism was evident enough. Those related didn’t seem to act like they heard it.

A minute passed in relative peace, but each rumbling within the clouds grew ever more ridiculous. Then, a flash of gold passed by, and a thunderbolt formed.

Quickly, people began counting.

‘’One, two, three, four...eleven?’’

‘’Twelve—’’

‘’It is thirteen!’’

But it didn’t stop.

After forming thirteen golden thunderbolts, the clouds roared into the heavens and earth.

Thirteen balls of golden light revolved around each other, then shot into one single bolt with a terrifying aura. Bit by bit, a faint color began to emerge from its depths.

‘’That is...blue?’’

‘’Blue Thunder? Holy heavens!’’

‘’Sun Jian triggered a Heavenly Thunder!’’

Heavenly Thunder was no small deal.

Thunder itself had tiers to it, and one could only encounter higher tiers in tribulations.

Gold colored thunder was thunder in its natural state. It also appeared in Foundation Establishment tribulation for weaker cultivators.

Blue Thunder was also called Heavenly Thunder. One had a chance to encounter it in wild or broken spaces, but mostly it would appear in Violet Foundation tribulations—or Bronze Core Formation tribulations!

Watching the single bolt of Blue Thunder, Yun Fanghe and Jie Mentai shuddered. Their memories about this Heavenly Thunder wasn’t so fond—after all, it wasn’t just color that separated it from other kinds of thunder.

It could bypass certain amount of Qi! It was called Heavenly Thunder, because only heavens could forge it, and only heavens could resist it!

The pain from being struck wasn’t something any ordinary cultivator could imagine, let alone bear.

But there was another problem.

Sun Jian was neither at the thirteenth-level of Qi condensation, nor was a Foundation Establishment cultivator! It very well might be a single bolt, but its strength wasn’t so easily ignored.

His life depended on whether that shield of his could endure this terrifying attack!

Li Ao moved towards the center of the group when everyone had their attention stolen by the ridiculous sight. As he did, he noticed another group of golden thunder emerge within the dark clouds.

‘’An-another!?’’

‘’Two bolts of heavenly thunder!’’

‘’That is not the end—’’

Alongside the shouts of the contestants, two more bolts of Heavenly Thunder formed.

''This is madness! Is he really the same age as us?''

‘’Forget the age, Sun Jian is going to die at this rate!’’

Winds flapped the banners and hairs of those watching. A still silence descended at the arrival of the fourth, then fifth thunder.

Even Li Ao felt his blood freezing at the sight. He would be hard pressed to endure this many by himself, let alone Sun Jian.

‘Just what are you thinking, Sun Jian?’ His eyes flashed as Sun Jian’s laughing figure appeared in his vision. ‘What are you even making?’

Thing didn’t end.

Sixth, seventh, and eighth bolts of Heavenly Thunder arrived, and before anyone could exclaim the ninth came into being.

The clouds, as if frozen in time, halted in their motion. The spiral of descending dark clouds stopped, then started rotating clockwise around nine bolts of Heavenly Thunder.

Something boomed, and the soundwave flattened the immediate area where Sun Jian stood.

A red light escaped from the depths of the rumbling cloud.

‘’Fan Yueyin—’’ The Imperial Ancestor let out a shout. ‘’Why are your disciples so over the top! For heaven’s sake!’’

Fan Yueyin looked shocked herself. For the first time, people saw her jaw drop to the floor.

It took her a second to regain her bearings. ‘’Hell Thunder?’’

Hell Thunder was the third-grade of thunder. It was scarlet in color, could burn a man alive from two hundred meters away without landing, and had a chance to appear in all stages of Core Formation Tribulations—two major realms above Sun Jian’s current cultivation!

No one could make any sense of it anymore. Before, most of the master and grandmaster forgers here could understand the appearance of Heavenly Thunder.

Any Spiritual Tool could attract it, and the amount of attracted Heavenly Thunder decided the quality of a spiritual tool. Top notch among them could pull nine bolts of Heavenly Thunder.

But Hell Thunder was the territory of Heaven-grade tools!

‘’It is not heaven-grade.’’ Qin Tangshou said. For the first time, the old man didn’t seem to speak in a condescending tone. ‘’Heaven-grade tribulations form Hell Thunder right away, and their amount is never below three. Also, he called the clouds down himself, so even this is not a tribulation by itself, but a bout of tempering.’’

‘’Yet...it is about to gain awareness on its own.’’

Xin Xiayou nodded, face dark. ‘’He is skipping to the second-stage of Spiritual Tools right away.’’ Saying so, he cast a ridiculous glance at Fan Yueyin.

She was also a monster in her youth, becoming a grandmaster before 50 years old, so he could understand if one of her disciples could create miracles.

But two of them?

That wasn’t reasonable! It wasn’t reasonable at all!

Their thoughts didn’t matter to her, however.

Fan Yueyin cast a long glance at the Imperial Ancestor and cupped her hands.

‘’Sir.’’

‘’I will act if it is necessary.’’ He said with a sigh. His boundless divine sense covered the entire arena, ready to flare up in response. It also lessened the burden on the weaker among the audience and the contestants.

‘’I am not sure if this is a pity or a blessing. Either he will succeed and rise like a dragon, or fail and fall back into the stream.’’

‘’He is not one to be discouraged easily.’’ Sun Zhongyan put down his fan and watched on both his feet. ‘’My grandson is not weak of heart.’’

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‘’It is not a matter of heart, but will.’’ The Imperial Ancestor said. However, his eyes twinkled a moment later, and he cast a glance at both Li Ao and Qing Yan.

‘What a bond.’

The clouds halted again, and everyone held their breaths.

‘’Another one won’t come, will it?’’

‘’That—’’

Jie Mentai kicked the two boys in front of her. ‘’Don’t go around mouthing bullshit! What will you do if it happens?’’

The clouds churned again, and the single bolt of Hell Thunder condensed into a pillar of light. It crackled, roared, and caused everything below to burst into flames. Imperial Ancestor’s Divine Sense turned tangible before the eyes of the audience, and everyone saw it get shredded by its aura.

‘’This...’’ Li Ao calmed his breathing. A moment later, he closed his eyes, and his cultivation started to show signs of instability.

By then the clouds became a gaping maw in the sky. Alongside the red thunder, they began to fall down, and Sun Jian, at the center of all this attention, showed a wry smile.

‘’I didn’t ask you to be this fierce—’’ He pat the shield in front of him. ‘’Buddy, you have to protect me good this time.’’

‘’Prove me you can protect him as well!’’

A soft chime echoed in his ears.

Laughing, Sun Jian started running up the hole he was in. His legs kicked dirt and earth.

His figure turned into a single ray of light as he began ascending in a perfect vertical path. The clouds above roared in response, and the thunder exploded forth.

One man ascended and one strike attempted to crash him down.

Roaring against the sky, Sun Jian pushed the shield ahead of him. He leaped out of the hole in a heroic manner, his figure flashing, and the shield in his hands started absorbing the golden mist around him in a rapid manner.

Fifty meters of mist trailed him and formed a shield around his body. Green and gold twinkled.

The thunder arrived.

It struck him right in the center.

The point of impact blinked with gold and red, and exploded into a ring of Spiritual Qi.

The single wave destroyed the immediate hundred meters around him. Hurricanes sprouted from them, hurling the molten rocks and earth around the arena.

The thunderclap echoed right after and deafened Sun Jian’s ears. Blood poured out of his seven orifices, and his figure seemed to be stuck in the air, unable to move.

Sensing his predicament, Fan Yueyin turned restless. ‘’Sir!’’

‘’Watch.’’

Sun Jian coughed out mouthfuls of blood—his body sent out disgusting cracking sounds. Her face pale, Fan Yueyin attempted to move.

Right then, a shout echoed within the arena.

‘’Senior brother, let me steal your thunder!’’

Li Ao’s figure lit up within the crowd, covered in red flames. His Blood and Qi circulated within his body in a wild manner. Each revolution sent a boom echoing around him, and the profound aura caused those around to turn pale.

Jie Mentai, Su Jingpei, and others raged. ‘’What are you doing, you maniac!?’’

‘’Are you trying to attract that thing here!?’’

‘’How clever of you all!’’ Li Ao smiled like a devil. ‘’Let’s go through it together! It will be a bonding experience!’’

With his words, his Spiritual Qi seemed to surpass a limiter. The aura around him expanded to a hundred meters, covering almost all of the crowd, and caused them to stay still for a few seconds.

No one was exempt from this, even Jie Mentai and Yun Fanghe. The former screamed and attempted to move away, clawing her way, but Li Ao held her from the nape and pulled her back.

‘’Let us all be good friends now!’’

Even as he said so, Li Ao exerted immense control on his cultivation base. The small aura of a Foundation Establishment cultivator escaped from his body.

Suddenly, the red thunder boiled where it clashed with Sun Jian.

Li Ao retraced it immediately, and suffered a backlash. Blood trickled out of his mouth, his Spiritual Qi went into disarray, and his blood boiled. His realm fell back from the peak of Thirteenth-level of Qi Condensation to the peak of Twelfth-level of Qi Condensation.

Yet, he still succeeded.

The red thunder seemed too hungry for the previous aura. In a blink, it tore a quarter of its main body and shot straight towards the raging crowd, causing everyone to turn red from anger.

‘’Xu Liao, you are dead!?’’

‘’You retarded maniac, do you want to kill us!?’’

‘’Let me go! Let me go! Let me go!’’

Li Ao let go of Jie Mentai and shot to the front of the group.

‘’If you don’t want to die, then block it!’’

With that, Scarlet Path appeared under his feet. The wingless fire dragons roared towards the incoming thunder and encased themselves in bronze armor.

Having no choice, and seeing no interference from the judge, the group of young men and women could only act in despair.

Yun Fanghe appeared beside him and made a hand seal, all the while laughing. Her green aura condened into a six-fold shield like a turtle's shell. Jie Mentai appeared to her right, invisible Qi pulsing out of her hands. Pu Shu came to Li Ao’s left, then Ren Shuren to the rightmost side, and in a moment a few dozen youths employed all their magical techniques to resist this quarter of a bolt of Hell Thunder.

Loud explosions rocked the earth.

Dozens of magical and martial arts met with Hell Thunder and another wave of spiritual Qi ravaged the surroundings. Many coughed out blood and took steps back, Li Ao included. Yun Fanghe managed to remain on her feet for a moment, then fell on her knees and somehow ended up slamming on Jie Mentai’s back.

The girl had tears in her eyes. ‘’You—why is everyone so intent on bullying me!?’’

Away from them, the impact sent tremors running through the entire arena, and Sun Jian let out a single gasp in relief.

Yet, his pressure was still heavy.

Despite that, his eyes glowed bright. Finding some strength returning to him, Sun Jian let himself crash onto the ground. With his legs having some foundation, he drew more power from them and pushed up.

His figure got buried under the constant roars of thunder, not given a moment’s rest again. He appeared within the shower of light, bloodied, knees bent, but standing. Every part of his trembled in agony.

‘’Senior brother, share some with me as well!’’

Another shout rose, and everyone noticed Qing Yan standing atop a single, broken hill among all the rubble. She had a small disk in her hand, just enough to fit her palm, which had no color nor use in its appearance.

It seemed like a normal lump of iron.

On the high-seats, Fan Yueyin, Qin Tangshou, and Xin Xiayou’s expressions changed.

‘’Is this girl also mental?’’

‘’Isn’t that a formation base? Why would she even forge it for a competition?’’

Formation bases could be used as catalysts for Grand Formations. They were easy to produce, but hard to perfect. In such a competition, it wouldn’t let her reach any good ranking among her peers.

Fan Yueyin’s eyes, however, showed a different kind of light. The Imperial Ancestor noticed what she looked at as well.

The surface of the formation base seemed to be changing ever so slightly, making its texture almost unreadable. The change happened because of Qing Yan’s constant pouring of Qi.

‘’Your disciples are too extreme.’’

Sun Zhongyan laughed. ‘’They take after her.’’

Below, hearing Qing Yan's shout, Sun Jian showed another wry smile.

‘’Be a good junior sister!’’

‘’Junior sister?’’ She sneered. ‘’I said I would be your senior sister if you slipped up!’’

With that, she took three steps forward. Arms clenched, each muscle beautifully forming, she hurled the disk into the bolt of raining thunder.

A streak of light trailed after it and in a second went inside the scarlet destruction. At the moment it came into contact with it, Hell Thunder seemed to bubble again. It began pouring inside the formation base at a rapid pace.

It was as thick as an arm at the beginning. With Li Ao’s interference, it shrunk to the size of a forearm. As the shield absorbed it with its tempering, the Hell Thunder became as large as an adult’s fist. It seemed to shrink even further with her attempt.

Before the disk could get overwhelmed, she made a hand seal. The disk trembled within Hell Thunder, then shot out of its influence.

She ran after the disk and caught it in the air, grunting from the terrifying force within it.

With a hand seal, the texture on it changed, and the power seemed to hide itself within another dimension. Right after it, she flung it back, and began running circles around Sun Jian.

‘’One of them used a false breakthrough to attract the thunder, and the other is using a formation base to absorb it as fuel.’’ The Imperial Ancestor sighed. ‘’What a great spirit!’’

‘’They take after her—’’

‘’Old Sun!’’

Even in the midst of their comments, anyone could see that there was no more danger to be had. Bit by bit, Sun Jian’s shield and Qing Yan’s strange disk absorbed the Hell Thunder. In fifteen minutes, the clouds lost their magnificence.

They no longer revolved or rumbled, and the setting sun’s orange lights started to break through its cover. Under them, on the ravaged arena, Sun Jian let out one final shout.

His trembling figure swatted at the sky. The single thread of Hell Thunder turned into a streak of light and went inside the shield.

A second later, the surface of the shield began to glow scarlet. Looking all around, people noticed its peculiar three-colored surface.

Apart from its golden surface and green handle, the shield had thousands of tiny lines going around it in random patterns. At its center was a small dent where the scarlet aura escaped. Like a maw, it seemed fierce, almost demonic.

Laughing, Sun Jian pointed at the heavens.

Watching him tremble and raise the shield, everyone felt their hearts move.

This was what it meant to be a forger!

How many could endure such a terrifying strike, even with the help of their juniors?

Who had the determination to pull through the pain and intense suffering, then emerge as a Master Forger?

This young man was what many aspired to be, young and old, and the admiring gazes gathered on him en masse.

Someone clapped in the audience, then others joined. The applause began to rise towards the skies.

‘’Hahaha! Not bad! Not bad at all!’’

His laugh caused it to halt, then all eyes turned blood-shot.

An old man pointed at him. ‘’What do you mean not bad, you little shit!’’

‘’What is not bad about it!?’’

‘’Do you even have a conscience!?’’

His off-hand remark caused countless forgers to turn green from anger. If a Spiritual Tool was not bad, what was their product? Trash? Dog food?

A few continued applauding him, but hostile gazes shut them up quick enough.

Li Ao and Qing Yan approached their senior confused senior brother.

‘’What is wrong with these people? Are they constipated?’’

Li Ao glared at Sun Jian and covered his mouth.

‘’Do you want to get us killed?’’

‘’Bwut Whwut Dwhid I dwho whwrong?’’

Qing Yan rubbed her temples. ‘’Just keep quiet for a moment, senior brother.’’

Sun Jian nodded, then collapsed on the floor.

‘’You okay?’’

Sun Jian laughed at his face. ''I am fine—no big deal!''

Saying so, he pulled his hand out of the shield’s handle.

He pushed it into Li Ao’s chest.

‘’Here, for you!’’

Li Ao stared at Sun Jian’s twinkling eyes.

There was traces of dried blood around them, and his nose kept running with blood. His hair, ears, cheeks were all burnt, and the few hairs of stubble he grew over the months turned to nothing.

His shoulders were visibly dislocated; his ribs, fingers, forearm broken, parts of skin shredded, and legs were most likely cracked until they bore no weight.

His aura still bore a trace of Hell Thunder, which restricted his cultivation base and scorched his meridians.

Despite all that, he could still smile and declare a gift to his face with no trouble.

Li Ao let out a sigh and pulled him up on his shoulder. ‘’Let’s talk about that later. Senior sister?’’

As if reading his thoughts, Qing Yan put away the shield and strange disk, and got under Sun Jian’s other shoulder. Before they could move, the judge appeared above them alongside dozens of other shadows.

‘’Don’t move.’’

He raised them to the sky, where Su Jingpei sent all of them a furious glare. Now the trio stood at the center of the group of furious youths groaning and moaning in pain.

All contestants suffered injuries to some extent, and most began blaming Li Ao in the sky. Curses flew all around, and when someone managed to strike his chest, others turned restless as well.

Constricted by the judge’s invisible Qi hand, he couldn’t move away from the kicks and punches of these people.

‘’Hey, don’t hit so hard!’’

‘’Aren’t we all comrades who suffered together!?’’

‘’We all should be harmonious! We are all peers—stop yanking my hair!’’

‘’Which bastard smacked my head—NO, don’t touch my balls!’’

Once his wails vanished alongside the curses, the high seats turned absolutely still.

‘’Well...’’ a noble spoke out. ‘’How do we decide the rankings?’’

The Imperial Ancestor’s stiff smile fell.

A drop of blood trickled down his mouth.