As Xuanhe Zhenren unleashed his frenzied blood sacrifice, the killing intent that had built up in the sky over the course of three thousand years finally poured down.
The sky, stretching for a thousand miles, was no longer black, but instead a highly concentrated, almost blackish-purple 'annihilation lightning'. Each bolt was as thick as a mountain and accompanied by a deafening roar that tore through the laws of nature, instantly turning the ruins of Thousand Lakes City white.
[System Warning: Detection of the highest level of energy release in the current plane.' Lightning Pressure Monitoring: 10,000,000 Pa.
[Functional warning: The host's carbonisation rate is estimated at 99.9%; switching to 'Return to Void' mode.
The first wave of lightning struck and the earth instantly collapsed.
Xiao Wuchen's eyes turned a pure white and crackled with arcs of annihilating lightning. He was no longer the target of the thunder; he was its master.
Iron Cavalry Advancement: Thunderous Heavy Armour.
"All troops, receive the lightning!"
Xiao Wuchen transformed the immense, indigestible lightning energy within his body through the network of wills, stabilising it as the "Rhythm of Lightning" and distributing it precisely across the three thousand iron cavalry along the chains of his will.
At that moment, the three thousand Netherworld Iron Cavalry roared in unison with heaven-shattering fury. Their dragon-scale armour, forged by lightning and fire to a dark gold hue that shimmers with lightning, and their chainsaw-like, embroidered spring blades crackle with tangible purple lightning. Every inch of their armour emanated a destructive aura powerful enough to terrify the soul.
On Lingxiao Peak, Xuanhe Zhenren stared intently at the illusory array, but the imagined annihilation did not materialise. As the lightning and fire gradually subsided, a despairing silhouette remained.
The smoke and dust cleared to reveal Thousand Lakes City as a colossal crater.
At the bottom of the crater, Xiao Wuchen slowly raised his head. His armour had now completely transformed; it was no longer rigid metal, but was covered in a layer of pulsating lightning magma. With each flap of his hundred-foot-long black wings, a shower of lightning filled the sky.
"Xuanhe." Xiao Wuchen's voice was no longer hoarse; it resonated with the might of heaven. "Is this your last resort?"
He gently raised his hand and a wisp of purple lightning condensed at his fingertips.
'Now it's my turn.'
In the sea of lightning, the mournful cries of humanity vanished, replaced by the sharp, crackling sounds of metal being repeatedly forged.
Xiao Wuchen felt his consciousness expanding infinitely. As the "Annihilation Heavenly Lightning" violently dismantled his old body, which was made of black iron, it completely liquefied. However, the Nine Revolutions Resurrection Sand hidden at its core was now revealing its true power as a 'sacred artefact of the Immortal Realm'. Like a gravitational singularity, it forcibly stitched together the raging lightning, the liquefied iron and Xiao Wuchen's indomitable will.
System log: Logic reorganization detected.
Evolution Path: Mortal Body (Destroyed) → Living Furnace (Fusion) → Annihilation Lightning Body (Current State).
Synchronisation rate: 90%. Host has obtained temporary access to operate 'Thunder Sovereignty'.
'Great Qian warriors, borrow the might of Heaven and reshape your golden bodies!'
Xiao Wuchen let out a long roar like a dragon's cry. Rather than passively enduring the attack, he used his position as the 'centre of the sea of lightning' to disperse this energy capable of destroying entire planes through his network of wills.
In the giant crater of Thousand Lakes City, the three thousand Netherworld Iron Cavalry simultaneously rose from their knees.
Each warrior's armour was struck by a bolt of purple lightning extending from Xiao Wuchen's body. Rather than turning them to ash, the lightning carbonised and crystallised their fragile Netherworld Corrosion Mother Roots along the gaps in their bones.
Their eyes no longer held ghostly green soul fire, but pure purple plasma — a symbol of judgement.
Under the influence of the electromagnetic field, the three thousand iron cavalrymen slowly rose into the air. Amidst the clanging of armour, the faint rumble of thunder could be heard.
On Lingxiao Peak, the sect leaders stared in disbelief.
'He's... he's devouring the might of heaven?' The Spirit Orb in Xuanhe Zhenren's hand gave off an ear-splitting cracking sound.
He had thought the 'Nine Heavens Demon-Slaying Formation' would be the final blow, but he hadn't expected it to become the biggest stepping stone in Xiao Wuchen's evolutionary journey. Xiao Wuchen was now stepping into the void, treading on rolling thunderclouds.
He looked down at the scorched earth, the result of the loss of its spiritual veins and the lightning strikes.
Suddenly, his right hand clenched, and the originally jet-black demonic sword, 'Rootless', tempered by lightning and fire, lengthened and widened. Ultimately, it transformed into the two-metre-long 'Great Qian·Return to the Void Horse-Slaying Saber', its blade flashing with eerie purple lightning.
'Xuanhe, watch closely.'
Xiao Wuchen swung the saber in his right hand, aiming at the sea of lightning behind him.
At that moment, the raging thunder from the heavens froze eerily. Then, as if receiving a king's command, the entire sea of lightning surged upwards and converged on Xiao Wuchen's blade, transforming into a crescent moon powerful enough to cleave the sky.
'For the past three thousand years, what you owe me, I will slowly collect, blade by blade...'
Xiao Wuchen (Thunderous Form): His physical strength has reached the 'half-step Mahayana' realm, and he has a natural ability to penetrate and destroy lightning-based defensive formations.
Thunderous Dragon Riders: They have gained ranged lightning burst attack capabilities, and their charge speed has increased tenfold under electromagnetic accelerat
After the final bolt of lightning was swallowed by the black hole in Xiao Wuchen's chest, the previously light-filled world instantly plunged into darkness. Then, a killing intent more violent and chilling than the lightning itself spread outwards from Xiao Wuchen, shattering the clouds within a hundred miles.
[System log: thunderous qi reconstruction complete.]
[Function Unlocked: Displacement Skill – Thunder Flash Gained.]
[Current Synchronisation Rate: 92% (Stable State)]
At that moment, Xiao Wuchen was wearing armour flowing with liquid purple lightning. With each breath he took, tiny arcs of electricity crackled in the void.
'This demon has grown powerful; we must not let him leave Thousand Lakes City!'
In the void, three Immortal Alliance Enforcement Elders clad in silver Daoist robes tore through space. They were the Immortal Alliance's sharpest weapon for dealing with 'world-destroying' disasters and were all at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. Together, they summoned a quasi-immortal artefact called the 'Binding God Net', attempting to seal Xiao Wuchen before his reconstruction was complete.
'Bind!' A vast silver net descended, its surface entwined with the golden light of laws that bind souls.
A faint white light flickered beneath Xiao Wuchen's helmet as he uttered two words: 'Lightning Flash.'
"Lightning Flash!"
"Sizzle—"
Only a blinding purple afterimage remained in the air as Xiao Wuchen, who had been at the centre of the Binding Net, vanished instantly. The next second, he appeared like a ghost behind the enforcement elder at the centre.
The elder didn't have time to activate his protective aura before Xiao Wuchen's lightning-covered gauntlets pierced his back easily, his five fingers gripping the struggling primordial spirit like steel hooks.
'The laws of the Immortal Alliance are too slow for lightning.'
Xiao Wuchen's deep voice echoed in the elder's ear. He suddenly exerted force with his fingers and terrifying, annihilating lightning poured from his fingertips.
'Bang!' The Nascent Soul, at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, shattered like glass under this grip, turning into countless shimmering fragments that were absorbed by the black hole in Xiao Wuchen's chest.
The remaining two elders were terrified and retreated frantically. They had never witnessed such a fighting style before: no magical clashes or testing with spiritual treasures, just extreme speed and pure slaughter.
Xiao Wuchen flicked away the remaining bloodstains on his gauntlets; the blood had evaporated in the purple lightning before it could reach the ground.
The three thousand Thunder Dragon Riders behind him were now in formation. Each rider was like a bolt of lightning, ready to strike. They no longer needed their horses to run on the ground; instead, they hovered behind Xiao Wuchen on the pulsating electric field in the void. Together, they formed a death line interwoven with purple light and black shadow.
'Leng Wuxue.' Xiao Wuchen held his two-metre-long Returning Void Horse-Slaying Saber upside down.
'Your subordinate is here!'
Follow me to Lingxiao Peak. The banner of hypocrisy that they planted on this land three thousand years ago will be uprooted by me personally today."
Xiao Wuchen swung his blade, slicing open a spatial rift a thousand feet wide in the void. The Lingxiao Sacred Realm, shrouded in spiritual energy, could be vaguely seen on the other side of the rift.