A Gu Immortal flew along the edges of Northern Ice Plain. The aura of rank seven radiated from him, but it appeared somewhat weak, indicating that this Gu Immortal was suffering from injuries.
The Gu Immortal moved in winding paths, sometimes entering Northern Ice Plain and sometimes flying along its borders, as though following something.
"After passing through the grand tribulation, I suffered painful losses to the foundation of my immortal aperture, and my strength fell sharply because of my injuries… But who would have thought that such fortune would be hidden within that grand tribulation?"
The Gu Immortal's gaze was sharp. Although he was injured, the fire in his eyes burned fiercely.
His name was Chu Du, a rank seven Gu Immortal also widely known throughout Northern Plains as Domination Immortal, a legendary figure of Northern Plains!
He had been born into a poor family and was not of the Huang Jin bloodline. His beginnings had been humble, and even his aperture awakening happened by chance. Without a master or clansmen to assist him, he cultivated alone. He developed Strength Path, but its flaws offered him little benefit. Relying on his overwhelming talent, he independently created Strength Path Gu worms such as Ten Jin Strength Gu, Jun Strength Gu, and Ten Jun Strength Gu.
Using these Gu worms, he advanced step by step, and under everyone's shocked gazes, he transformed from a mortal into an immortal.
But that was not the end of his legend. After becoming a Gu Immortal, he returned to his roots and created the Human Jun Strength branch.
This small branch brought renewed vitality to Strength Path. It was as though life had returned to a dying tree, causing Strength Path to shine once again with a different brilliance.
After the decline of the Beast Strength branch and the Heaven and Earth Strength branch, everyone realized that Strength Path now possessed a new branch, Human Jun Strength Gu.
Through his efforts alone, he changed the future of Strength Path.
No one could deny his great achievement.
Now, nine out of ten Gu Masters in Northern Plains cultivated Strength Path as a secondary path, using the Human Jun Strength Gu branch.
Chu Du had passed through countless hardships and dangerous situations. With his genius and talent, he created opportunities and spread his name throughout the world. Even in the other four regions, the name Domination Immortal Chu Du was widely known.
After Chu Du passed through his second grand tribulation, he suffered tremendous losses that damaged the foundation of his immortal aperture. However, in the middle of that grand tribulation, he gained inspiration. Using this inspiration, Chu Du created a new immortal killer move.
The Path of Strength Leads to Wealth!
This killer move was mysterious even to Chu Du, and this was only the second time he had used it.
But he at least understood its general purpose. Whenever Chu Du traveled along a path, the killer move would create a premonition in his heart, guiding him toward a place where he might obtain fortune.
The fortune referred to here meant that he might find immortal materials, an Immortal Gu, an inheritance, or even a blessed land of which he could become the master.
Whatever Chu Du considered to be fortune, this killer move might guide him toward it.
"How strange. I have searched Northern Ice Plain dozens of times and never found anything worth mentioning in this frozen wasteland. The only noteworthy thing here is Reckless Savage's true meaning… Hmm?!"
"Is some Strength Path or Transformation Path Gu Master undergoing immortal ascension here and attracting Reckless Savage's true meaning?… Could this be the fortune it is referring to?"
Chu Du felt a trace of anticipation.
Although he knew a method to extract Reckless Savage's true meaning, his method was extremely crude. He had to nurture Strength Path Gu Masters and then have them undergo immortal ascension to obtain Reckless Savage's true meaning.
Even then, there was no guarantee that the quantity of Reckless Savage's true meaning would satisfy him. The amount of true meaning extracted depended on the strength of the calamities and tribulations. The stronger the calamity, the greater the amount of Reckless Savage's true meaning.
This method consumed enormous amounts of time and effort, and even the final results might be unsatisfactory. Even so, it was the only method Chu Du could think of.
"But if a Gu Master is undergoing immortal ascension here, surely they won't mind if I help them and obtain a few benefits for myself, right?"
Chu Du moved faster, following the premonition that grew stronger the deeper he traveled into Northern Ice Plain.
Inside Northern Ice Plain…
Hei Lou Lan floated in the middle of the black tribulation clouds, while Fang Yuan stood nearby.
Fairy Li Shan and Tai Bai Yun Sheng hid farther away from the two of them in case an emergency occurred.
Hei Lou Lan threw Lesser Family Qi Gu into the tribulation clouds. When the Gu worms reached their limit, she retrieved them. However, during the process, some of the Gu worms exploded because of the backlash from heaven and earth qi.
The heaven and earth qi stored inside those Gu worms was released and returned to the tribulation clouds.
"This method is inefficient. Lesser Family Qi Gu is merely a mortal Gu. Even with hundreds of them, Hei Lou Lan can only slightly influence the strength of the heavenly tribulation."
Fang Yuan observed from the side.
As time passed, the heaven and earth qi inevitably grew denser and was about to form the earthly calamity and heavenly tribulation.
As the wind continued howling, Hei Lou Lan's black hair danced in the air while snow struck her face. Clothes made from Gu worms were far more durable than ordinary clothing, so her clothes were not torn apart by the violent storm.
Fang Yuan used several investigative mortal killer moves to examine the earthly calamity and heavenly tribulation. In the middle of the clouds, a purple chime formed, moving slowly while producing a sound.
Fang Yuan was about to move and attack the purple chime when he suddenly froze and raised his head toward the clouds again.
Beside the first purple chime, a second and third purple chime formed. Three purple chimes appeared at the same time, causing Fang Yuan's expression to change for an instant.
The heavenly tribulation had already formed!
Howl! Howl! Howl!
As the noise grew louder and sharper, it merged with the wind and spread over three hundred li!
A feeling of despair emerged in Fang Yuan's heart, and he felt his blood flowing backward because of the ringing.
Fang Yuan snorted loudly and charged toward the black tribulation clouds. His immortal zombie body transformed into a golden comet.
Immortal Killer Move—Strength Path Giant Hand!
Eight giant hands, each the size of a hill, appeared beside Fang Yuan. The hands were golden and extraordinarily detailed, appearing almost alive as currents of qi flowed through them. The giant Strength Path hands pulsed with terrifying power capable of shattering mountains.
The Strength Path hands stretched out before Fang Yuan and grabbed the curtain of black clouds, tearing it apart and exposing the chimes. Three more Strength Path hands shot forward and crushed the chimes beneath their overwhelming power.
The chimes were not powerful. On the contrary, they were fragile and shattered immediately.
Below, Hei Lou Lan spat out blood because of the heart-exploding demonic sound.
It did not last long. In the next moment, the tribulation cloud trembled as heaven qi gathered to form another purple chime.
Fang Yuan laughed coldly and extended his icy zombie hand toward the chime. His frozen fingers closed around it and crushed it, causing blood to leak from the corners of his mouth.
"This heavenly tribulation is three times stronger than in my previous life. Does Heaven's Will want to test me?… Hahaha, it will take more than an earthly calamity and heavenly tribulation to accomplish that."
Fang Yuan laughed inwardly.
His gaze swept across the surrounding space, pausing everywhere for a moment before he looked forward again.
In the sky, heaven qi gathered to form even more purple chimes, but in the next instant, the giant Strength Path hands easily crushed them.
These giant Strength Path hands were completely different from those in Fang Yuan's previous life. This killer move used Qi Strength Immortal Gu, Group Strength Immortal Gu, and All-Out Effort Immortal Gu. Combined with Fang Yuan's Strength Path foundation, their power and speed were far greater.
Fang Yuan successfully suppressed the heavenly tribulation, but he did not lower his guard. He divided his attention between the purple chimes and Hei Lou Lan.
Fang Yuan looked down at Hei Lou Lan.
Her breathing was calm, her eyes were closed, and her expression was firm. She sat cross-legged in the air without moving, while traces of dried blood remained on her beautiful, pale face.
However, she had already recovered. She possessed the Great Strength True Martial Physique, which had the strongest recovery ability among the Ten Extreme Physiques.
Her hands never stopped moving. She released Lesser Family Qi Gu while retrieving those that were already full.
It was clear that Hei Lou Lan did not possess many Lesser Family Qi Gu. After all, this was an ancient Qi Path Gu worm, and most of its refinement materials had already gone extinct.
Even though Hei Lou Lan had been given a great deal of time to prepare, she still did not possess many of these Gu worms.
Fang Yuan withdrew his gaze. At this moment, he heard the sound of crying.
This meant that the heavenly tribulation had begun to transform.