"It's actually an innate thunder rune!" Xia Chen was shocked to see the pillar supporting the sky.
So-called innate runes are runes nurtured by nature, and cultivators cannot depict them.
This pillar had a diameter of ten thousand miles, reaching straight into the clouds with no end in sight. On the pillar, endless runes converged into giant dragon patterns. On the pillar holding up the sky, continuous thunder flowed down like flowing water, radiating violent power.
Beneath the Sky-Supporting Pillar lies a massive thunder sea stretching billions of miles. The thunder at the edges is relatively calm, while the thunder deep inside boils. At the core area, where the Sky-Supporting Pillar stands, endless giant beasts roll and roar within the thunder.
"Thud, thud... all
the assassins from Jiuyou Hall approached the Thunder Pool, without hesitation, and jumped straight into the forbidden zone. They were like a group of emotionless machines, doing whatever they were told.
"Oh no..."
When Guo Ran jumped in, he immediately felt the power of thunder pierce his body like steel needles, causing him to cry out in surprise.
Long Chen and Xia Chen were so angry they almost wanted to hit him. Everyone else came in silently, but his voice sounded so abrupt.
Fortunately, no one paid him any attention. Everyone kept a certain distance and began to slowly swim toward the center of the thunder pool.
Although everyone wore masks, Guo Ran could still feel the murderous looks from Xia Chen and Long Chen, so he quickly shut his mouth.
Long Chen entered the Thunder Pool and found that the power around it was not violent. Its power invaded a person's body and soul, tempering their essence, energy, and spirit.
This thunder is the Thunder of the Nine Heavens, reminiscent of the heavenly tribulation, except that within this thunder there is no violent will of destruction. No wonder that Realm King said this Thunder Pool is something even the Nine Nether Hall envies—it truly is a supreme treasure.
After entering the Thunder Pool, Xia Chen's body trembled slightly. His physical body was not strong, even weaker than Guo Ran's, but he knew this was a rare opportunity. This was the best chance to boost his spirit, energy, and spirit. Gritting his teeth, he swam deeper into the Thunder Pool with the others.
"Aren't assassins' bodies not very strong? Why are they so strong? Xia Chen saw these assassins pressing forward, feeling he was starting to feel overwhelmed, but they kept moving forward.
"The assassins of the Nine Nether Hall are different. They specialize in assassination techniques, which requires extremely high physical strength and flexibility. Therefore, their physical bodies are much stronger than those of ordinary cultivators.
Try to hold on for now. When you reach your limit, I'll have Lei Ling'er help you. The thunder power here doesn't contain the will of destruction. You can take this opportunity to temper your souls, which will be a huge benefit for you."
Didn't you say your spiritual power still has flaws? You can use the thunder power here now to make your spiritual power flawless. Long Chen transmitted to them.
Guo Ran and Xia Chen nodded. Guo Ran now had a strong physical body, but his soul power was weak, especially in terms of willpower, where he was inferior to ordinary experts.
As for Xia Chen, his willpower was stronger than Guo Ran's, but his physical body was much weaker than Guo Ran's. So the intensity of the Thunder Pool Baptism was about the same for the two—it all depended on who could last first.
To avoid revealing their true colors, they had to approach the core area at the same speed as these people.
As they ventured deeper into the Thunder Pool, their bodies ached more and more. At the same time, terrifying rumbling began to echo deep within their souls, followed by frequent strange phenomena before their eyes.
Both of them knew that the phenomenon before them was just an illusion, a phenomenon triggered by the power of thunder during the cleansing of the soul, revealing certain scenes from their memories.
There are nightmares from childhood, terrifying scenes seen as adults—some sad, some joyful, some terrified—all appear before my eyes.
The two of them resisted the illusion's interference while keeping an eye on those around them, while actively absorbing the power of the thunder. Soon, their breathing grew rapid and slowed.
But the two began to give out, and the others showed signs of struggling too. Their speed slowed down, though they still desperately tried to get closer to the central area.
The Thunder Pool was too vast. Everyone desperately swam toward the center, but they were still in the outer circle, still quite a distance from the middle circle, let alone the core area.
Long Chen felt nothing at all. The thunder power here was like tickling him, while Lei Ling'er had already transformed into billions of thunder dragons, silently swimming toward the core area.
Long Chen stood in the thunder pool, extending his divine sense to observe the surroundings. Previously, Xia Chen had already checked that there was no grand array to monitor here, which allowed Long Chen to let Lei Ling'er so openly devour the power of thunder.
"Boss, I can't hold on much longer." Guo Ran, that coward, had already started giving up after just one hour.
"Xia Chen never said he couldn't hold on. Can you at least have some shame?" Besides, with so many people in the room, if you're the only one who can't hold on, wouldn't that be exposed? Long Chen said irritably.
"Didn't you say there was a way?" Guo Ran said.
"I have a method. When you reach your limit and are in a state of self-protection, I will have Lei Ling'er continue to absorb the power of thunder to cleanse your entire body.
If you're not at your limit, how am I supposed to help? Long Chen said somewhat speechlessly. This guy was way too lazy. He just said one sentence, and this guy was counted on.
Long Chen couldn't be bothered with Guo Ran. Usually, such a baptism lasted more than three days, and once a person reached their limit, they would lose consciousness.
When losing consciousness, the power of thunder was still washing over his entire body. At this stage, absorption was unconscious, and that was the most important part.
"Lei Ling'er, slow down. We have plenty of time, so don't exaggerate, or you'll get exposed." Long Chen transmitted a message to Lei Ling'er.
Only three hours had passed before Lei Ling'er started targeting the thunder beasts in the core area, but Long Chen quickly stopped her.
The main issue is that the true principle of the Thunder Pool still hasn't been fully understood. If Lei Ling'er starts devouring these thunder beasts and causes some problems that alarm the old fellow here, that would be a real problem.
It should be known that his main goal was the Star-Viewing Mirror on Jiuyou Island. If something went wrong here and he ultimately couldn't enter the trial, it would be a disaster.
This time, they were lucky to catch the trial and could directly access the Star-Viewing Sky Mirror. If discovered and the opponent became cautious, it would be extremely difficult to destroy it.
The Star-Viewing Heavenly Mirror was a matter of life and death for countless Nine Star heirs, so he had to be careful and told Lei Ling'er to act slowly.
Long Chen told Lei Ling'er to first assimilate the thunder runes in the pool, imprinting all the thunder runes into her own mark, making them part of her body before studying the thunder beasts.
A day later, everyone fell into a coma. Long Chen pretended to be just like everyone else, quietly lying on the Thunder Pool.
Suddenly, in the void above the thunder pool, two figures appeared. When he saw one of them, even with Long Chen's courage, he almost cried out.