Since ancient times, all ancient texts have recorded that ascended immortals undergo nine tribulations called the nine-fold thunder tribulation.
The thunder tribulation occurs once every thousand years, and its power increases exponentially each time, becoming more terrifying. From ancient times to the present, the ascended immortals who successfully passed the nine-fold thunder tribulation were few and far between, barely five people.
From this, one could imagine the hardships of the ascended immortal path. Of course, the heavenly dao is fair. It's said that those who succeed become ascended immortals are not ordinary immortals; they become the ruling great golden immortals of their realms.
At the moment when his soul entered this peculiar sensation, memories of ascended immortals from his past life flooded into Ding Yan's mind like a tide.
In Ding Yan's previous world, ascended immortals were the result of failed tribulations for cultivators. In this world, however, ascended immortals constituted a complete cultivation system. Ding Yan wasn't sure if this world had ascended immortals who underwent nine tribulations, and even if they did, he probably wouldn't have been able to encounter them. It was like the difference between a billionaire and a child holding two coins; they simply weren't on the same level.
"Nine heavens, nine tribulations..." Ding Yan suddenly had an inexplicable thought, sensing a connection between the two, but before he could contemplate further, a terrifying force descended from the sky and engulfed him.
Irresistible!
Startled, Ding Yan quickly realized that he was not in his true form but in a form of consciousness.
It was a murky gray, an endless expanse that couldn't be seen to the end.
Under the pull of that force, Ding Yan's consciousness continuously flew towards the other end.
"I recall reading in the records of ascended immortals from Lianhua Valley that every ascended immortal born communicates with the nine heavens in the void and has an opportunity to voyage the nine heavens. I initially thought it was a lie, but it turned out to be true."
After his soul returned to his body, Ding Yan didn't blindly run around after borrowing a body, but instead read many ancient texts about ascended immortals in Lianhua Valley. It was due to reading these texts that Ding Yan was able to reach the ascended immortal realm in a short period, bypassing many unnecessary detours.
The experiences of his predecessors were also a form of accumulation.
Nobody understood the importance of this accumulation better than Ding Yan.
After a considerable amount of time passed, Ding Yan's consciousness finally traversed the void and landed on the ground in the form of a body. The passage that had pulled him there twisted and disappeared.
It was a gray world, where misty clouds floated aimlessly. Looking up, a suppressive dome loomed overhead.
The nine heavens were a surreal existence where only the consciousness of ascended immortals could enter. Each ascended immortal was born with one opportunity to soar the nine heavens. The level they could enter during this opportunity was essentially indicative of their future potential.
Of course, Ding Yan did not know these news, and there was no record of them in the ancient books he had read. Only those who became scattered immortals would truly understand this principle.
"I wonder what is in the Nine Heavens?" Ding Yan speculated as he looked at the gray world.
Only by entering the Nine Heavens would one know.
At present, Ding Yan was still outside the Nine Heavens. Only after finding the entrance would he truly enter and roam the Nine Heavens.
...
While Ding Yan was searching for the entrance to the illusory Nine Heavens, about a hundred miles west of the mountain where he had crossed the Tribulation, a valley was also filled with purple thunder.
Under the purple thunder, a handsome young man sat cross-legged, undergoing the baptism of purple thunder.
Not far from the handsome young man, five scattered immortals sat there, their eyes fixed on the young man crossing the Tribulation.
Five scattered immortals!
The number of scattered immortals was extremely rare. In the entire northeastern region, the number of scattered immortals was less than a thousand. It was imaginable that the identity of this handsome young man was extraordinary.
"You don't think... this little guy failed in crossing the Tribulation, do you?" an old man who looked about sixty years old hesitated.
"Old Crow, shut your crow's mouth." Next to the old man, a black-clothed senior with raised eyebrows said expressionlessly.
"Old Turtle, who are you calling a crow!" the old man exclaimed angrily.
The black-clothed senior didn't even look at him and said, "A fire crow is also a type of crow."
The Fire Crow Daoist was the previous speaker, the old man.
"Nonsense, how could my fire crow be compared to a crow. Compared to that, your black tortoise swordsmanship is just a type of black tortoise." the Fire Crow Daoist said angrily.
"Alright, stop arguing. The little guy has already crossed the Worldly Transition Tribulation, and his consciousness has left his body." The elder with the Eight Trigrams sash in the middle interrupted.
"This little guy actually crossed the Worldly Transition Tribulation so quickly?" Another gray-robed elder, who had not spoken, said with a flicker in his eyes.
The elder wearing the Eight Trigrams sash nodded and said, "This little guy is a rare prodigy in cultivation in a thousand years. If he can't even cross the Worldly Transition Tribulation, I'm afraid there won't be a single scattered immortal in this world!"
Suddenly, a hunched old man on the other side said, "My Heavenly Eye is not something ordinary people can understand! Compared to the issue of crossing the Tribulation, what I am really concerned about is how many layers this kid can pass through! If he reaches the sixth layer, he can surpass Fuying Hai of the Skyscraping Sect..."
Fuying Hai, the top expert in the younger generation of the Skyscraping Sect.
It is said that he had already crossed the Worldly Transition Tribulation two years ago and was now close to the level of the first Thunder Tribulation. The contemporary Sect Master of the Skyscraping Sect had already stated that Fuying Hai would be the sect's next master after he retired.
The fact that an ordinary scattered immortal attracted such high attention from the Sect Master of the Skyscraping Sect naturally aroused many suspicions.
After all, the Skyscraping Sect was the largest sect in the northeastern region, with countless experts within. It was said that there were several scattered immortals who had crossed the Thunder Tribulation. In such a situation, the fact that Fuying Hai was set as a minor sect master made him particularly prominent.
Countless rumors spread for a time. Some said that Fuying Hai was the reincarnation of a mysterious expert, while others said that Fuying Hai was actually a Thunder Tribulation scattered immortal. There were even some who said that Fuying Hai was the illegitimate son of the Sect Master of the Skyscraping Sect, and so on.
In contrast to these outside rumors, those who truly knew the reason would sneer at them.
The reason that Fuying Hai was highly regarded by the Skyscraping Sect was because when he became a scattered immortal, his consciousness had crossed five layers!
The potential to reach the fifth layer!
This meant that this person would at least be able to cross the Thunder Tribulation to the fifth layer. Such potential was truly astounding and astonishing.
"The possibility of reaching the sixth layer is actually very slim. I just hope that this kid can pass the fifth layer. If his potential is not inferior to Fuying Hai, that's enough..." the elder wearing the Eight Trigrams sash shook his head.
The potential to reach the sixth layer is something that is extremely rare in a thousand years.
Even he, when he had crossed the Worldly Transition Tribulation, had only passed through three layers.
"This kid is starting to attempt to enter the Nine Heavens..." the Fire Crow Daoist said, and the gazes of several people all fell on the handsome young man.
The illusory Nine Heavens.
Having observed for a long time, Ding Yan finally found the method to enter the Nine Heavens.
The method to enter the Nine Heavens was different for each person, as Ding Yan had read in the ancient books.
Looking at the pitch-black vortex in front of him, Ding Yan did not hesitate in the slightest, stepping into it...