"What? Where?" Fang Xiaoyu asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.
"Only when the time is ripe," Old Fang replied with a mysterious smile.
"Yes, when the time comes, when the winds and clouds rise, I will transform into a divine dragon and soar into the heavens."
"What are you two talking about?"
Fang Xiaoyu was annoyed. Her father and husband were in perfect sync, as if sharing a spiritual understanding, while she couldn't decipher their enigmatic words. She felt like an outsider.
What were these two men discussing?
However, Fang Xiaoyu soon fell silent, for she saw...
Wan Lei's aura grew more and more immense. Throughout the heavens and earth, fierce winds howled, dark clouds swirled, and the entire realm's energy became violent and excited, centered around Wan Lei. The winds and clouds shifted, and all laws bowed in reverence.
Qing Feng and Tao Dian were stunned. At this moment, Wan Lei was no longer the jovial, wisecracking young man they knew, but possessed the aura of a paramount leader, his words becoming law, and the heavens obeying.
Old Fang smiled as he observed Wan Lei's burgeoning aura.
"It's not enough. Let me add more fuel to the fire."
"Fifty thousand years ago, Emperor Lei cleared the universe with overwhelming force, establishing the Thunder Emperor Palace. After his ascension, our Thunder Wind Realm, led by the Thunder Emperor Palace, saw the nine great families enfeoffed in the Central Region, solidifying the pattern of the Ten Great Powers.
"And after today, our Thunder Wind Realm will return to the era of Emperor Lei's presence and re-establish the pattern of the Ten Great Powers."
"The Ten Great Powers?"
Wan Lei sneered.
"When Emperor Lei was alive, his word was law, and who dared defy him?
"Now, the Liu family colludes with external forces, which will surely lead to widespread devastation. The world will be reshuffled, and at that time, there will be no mention of the 'Great Powers.'
"I will make this Thunder Wind Realm prostrate at Emperor Lei's feet once more, and all beings in the world will revere Emperor Lei!"
The firmament tilted, winds and clouds surged anew, and the laws of the universe flowed like a mighty river.
The dark clouds in the sky condensed, forming a ring that, upon closer inspection, resembled an imperial crown.
The imperial crown, forged from the will of the universe, represented the realm's recognition of the emperor, true destiny, and the hearts of all people.
However, the crown materialized for only a fleeting moment before dissipating into the wind.
"It is still too early. Only when you truly achieve immortal merits and save the people from dire straits will the will of the universe fully condense the imperial crown."
"I know. This imperial crown is not what I crave. The true imperial crown is not bestowed by heaven and earth, but resides in the hearts of the people."
"Good. It is well that you understand this principle."
Listening to the conversation between the two men, Fang Xiaoyu suddenly understood.
"So, the 'established sects and powers' you mentioned actually refer to Emperor Lei Mountain and the Thunder Emperor Palace."
"Yes. Years ago, when we went there, I said that one day I would stand there."
"Wow!"
Fang Xiaoyu immediately transformed into a fangirl, gazing at Wan Lei with adoration and giving him a thumbs-up.
A little too fake.
"Old Fang, how many tribulation passers does each of the nine great powers in the Central Region actually have?"
To know your enemy and yourself ensures victory in every battle.
"The Liu family has three, the Sky-Splitting Sword Sect has three, the Huo family originally had two, which became three a few years ago, and now it's back to two. The other powers each have two."
"Heh, your powers are quite good at hiding."
Wan Lei chuckled.
"Our Fang family originally had two, but after today, we will also have three."
Old Fang stood up.
"What do you mean? Where did you find another tribulation passer?"
Wan Lei looked at Old Fang curiously, then suddenly raised his head and gazed at the sky.
The dark clouds in the sky had not dispersed; instead, they condensed further, with terrifying lightning flashing within.
Seeing Wan Lei's astonished gaze, Old Fang smiled and explained.
"I had been unable to break through that final barrier, but just now, by leveraging your imperial presence and the shifting laws of heaven and earth, I managed to break through that final layer and successfully advanced."
As he spoke, Old Fang soared upwards, heading towards the tribulation clouds.
Wan Lei was stunned for a moment, then laughed and shouted,
"You can't just borrow it for free! You have to give me some benefits."
"Benefits? Isn't this giving you benefits? Come help me through my tribulation, and all this lightning will be yours!"
Hearing this, Wan Lei was stunned again. His long-held secret made him habitually cautious.
"Do you still need to conceal yourself now?"
Old Fang's voice echoed from above. Wan Lei let out a long roar and headed towards the heavenly tribulation.
In the past, Wan Lei never told anyone about his innate thunder body, except for those closest to him. Even when helping Qing Feng through a tribulation, he had to wear a mask.
This was because the Wan family was too weak, and Wan Lei was too weak.
If the hostile families among the Nine Great Powers discovered that Wan Lei possessed the innate thunder body, they would undoubtedly try to kill him at all costs.
After all, the Emperor Lei of that era also possessed the innate thunder body, and the six families that had once destroyed the Wan family would never want to see another Emperor Lei appear above them.
It was only the Fang family, because Fang Xiaoyu was his beloved, and because of Old Fang's vision and magnanimity, that they did not harbor animosity towards him.
But now, Wan Lei was no longer afraid of the Nine Great Powers considering him a threat.
In the past, families like the Liu and Huo families had attacked him because they feared his heaven-defying talent, worried that he would become a threat to them if he grew up.
Now, they could no longer attack him without reason, because Wan Lei had grown to a point where he could threaten them.
Wan Lei's current strength and influence were enough for him to confront any major power without being at a disadvantage.
Therefore, the Nine Great Powers had to treat him as a power of equal standing.
It was like how the United States used to attack another country, suspecting them of possessing nuclear weapons. Later, why did they stop? Because that country genuinely possessed nuclear weapons.
Wan Lei no longer needed to conceal himself, because he now had the capital to make the Nine Great Powers treat him as an equal.
On the contrary, he needed this news to spread, to build his momentum.
A person with Emperor Lei's physique, one who could kill a tribulation passer with Mahayana power – if you chase him, even if you defeat him, what if he escapes?
When he breaks through to the tribulation stage and returns, will your entire family survive?
On this day, a series of news swept across the Thunder Wind Continent, each piece of news earth-shattering.
One, Wan Lei and Fang Xiaoyu, in less than an hour, completely defeated and killed Huo Qingfeng, a tribulation passer of the Huo family, and emerged unscathed.
This was the first time in tens of thousands of years that a tribulation-passing expert had perished. Even the veteran tribulation passers had never killed an expert of the same level.
From then on, Lei and Yu ascended to the ranks of the tribulation passers in the Thunder Wind Realm.
Two, the Patriarch of the Fang family broke through to the Tribulation Passing stage within the family!
Three, Wan Lei, a direct descendant of Emperor Lei's bloodline, absorbed all the tribulation lightning from the Fang family patriarch's breakthrough, confirming his innate thunder body, identical to that of the ancestor Emperor Lei.
These three pieces of news shook the world.
It was widely rumored that Wan Lei would undoubtedly recreate the glory of Emperor Lei.