A month had passed by in the blink of an eye. Today was the day Damian set for his breakthrough. The moon hung high in the sky, illuminating the valley with its veiled light. Damian was at the top of a small hill a few miles outside the city. Two dozen Golden Core cultivators from the Violet Sky Clan stood guard at the foot of the hill. Their duty, was to stop anything that may disturb Damian’s breakthrough to the tenth layer.

During the last month, Damian made his foundation as vast as possible. He knew he could overcome this trial. His fears lay in the unknown of the future. Was he too hasty during his past breakthroughs? perhaps at some point in the path toward immortality, his hastiness would cut his path short? up to what realm would he be able to climb? Such questions assailed Damian’s mind during the past months.

During his time at the library. He read biographies of strong cultivators that throughout thousands of years thought their foundation to be strong and sturdy. Only to find at some point in time that at some point, a breakthrough was rushed. A small crack along their foundation passed unexpectedly. Making their advancement to the next realm near impossible.

That’s why Damian decided to set a goal for himself to breakthrough. Those were the stories of those cultivators, not his own. Whatever challenge appeared in his path, he would overcome it. And even if he was unable to overcome it, he would have at least given his all. That was enough for him. The spark of desire that had begun to burn that day at the cave was still present in his heart. He desired to grow stronger, not only to protect his family or the city but for himself.

For that reason, he could not doubt his path. He could feel he was prepared. Today he will breakthrough to the tenth layer of the Golden Core realm.

Damian wore a simple pair of white shirt and trousers. He sat in a meditative position. Around him several incense sticks burned, forming a circle. The Qi in the surrounding area flowed toward the top of the hill.

Damian accumulated Qi on guiding it toward his core. Compressed the Qi around his core and made it form part of his core. Soon his Core was filled to the brim with Qi, no more Qi could be added to it.

In the sky around the hill, a giant, thick black cloud formed. The cloud rumbled with lightning. Damian felt it. Soon his tribulation will begin.

After a few cycles of cultivation, Damian Golden Core finally gave in. His Core expanding and surging with purer greater Qi. Damian had to stand. He knew the lighting would soon fall. The Cultivators at the foot of the hill were awed and terrorized by the might of the tribulation cloud.

Damian summoned his sword and three talismans from his storage bag. The first bolt of lightning fell from the sky. Damian trowed one talisman and slashed it in half with his sword, activating its effect.

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Three thousand jade swords formed around him. Swords darted toward the incoming lightning bolt, illuminating the sky in a contrasting green shade. The swords collided against the bolt in a relentless assault. Hundred of swords broke as the lightning bolt hurled its way to Damian.

When the lightning bolt was upon Damian, he moved his sword in a slashing motion, severing the lightning bolt in half. A small part of the heavenly Qi of the lightning bolt entered Damian’s body, reforming both his Qi and his body. The amount of heavenly Qi that entered his body was minuscule, yet the pain it inflicted on him was tremendous. Damian’s face contorted from the pain. The pain was greater than in the previous tribulations. However, the quantity of heavenly Qi that entered his body was also greater.

The cloud in the sky churned. Almost as if it became angry that Damian was not smitten by its lightning bolt. A second lightning bolt descended. Damian this time activated two talismans in quick succession. The first one created a thirty-meter golden palm. The Golden palm was an almost exact copy of Damian’s. The second one created another three thousand jade swords.

Both attacks hurled toward the incoming lightning bolt. The Golden palm collided from the front against the lightning bolt, while the thousands of swords assaulted it from the sides. The lightning bolt was bit by bit weakened by Damian’s attacks.

At the time the lightning bolt reached Damian, it was only a shadow of its former self. Damian pierced his sword toward the incoming attack. The collision pushed down Damian planting him in the ground, cracks spread at his feet in a web pattern.

Damian stood his ground withstanding the remnants of the lightning bolt. From the lightning bolt, more heavenly Qi entered his body.

Seven more lightning bolts descended from the sky with the intention of either smiting him or reforming his body to new heights. Each new lightning bolt was stronger than the previous one.

By the time Damian’s tribulation ended. The sun had risen on the horizon. Damian was battered, blood and burns adorned his tattered body and clothes. However, Damian felt more alive than ever, his body, flesh, blood, Qi, and senses elevated to new heights.

Damian’s tribulation had been quite eye-catching. The existence of the tenth layer in the realms of cultivation would have to be revealed by the Violet Sky Clan to the other three Great Clans. Of course, the Lambert Clan already knew of this, and some of its most prominent members in the older and younger generation had undergone the tenth layer.

The other two clans were mad that no one informed them beforehand, but they realized it was already too late for their generation. However, the young ones could use it to become stronger. The clans also agreed to not shed light on the existence of the tenth layer to the common citizen. After all, they all were interested in remaining the overlords not only in this city but of this territory.

Damian spent a week meditating on that hill in order to consolidate his cultivation. During that time, the Cultivators guarding him rotated in shifts of day and night.

When Damian returned to the clan, his closest family held a small feast. The following day. Damian went to the library to write his experience and insights into the tenth layer of the Golden Core realm. The returned members of the clan wrote their experiences and insights into cultivation in a small book kept in the library. this book was called the “Journey of the Violet Sky Clan into Cultivation”