Moro's gaze was complex, filled with both regret and relief. The regret stemmed from the fact that Chen Yuan ultimately didn't trigger the eighth level of lightning tribulation that he had predicted.

Though he had endured seven layers of lightning tribulation far surpassing ordinary individuals, proving Chen Yuan's absolute potential to become an immortal, it still fell short of his expectations.

In his view, only by triggering the eighth layer of lightning tribulation could one truly face the formidable enemies of the Immortal Realm in the future. Without such an unparalleled figure, there would be almost no possibility of contending against them.

But besides this, he also felt a sense of relief.

After all, the seventh layer of lightning tribulation had already ravaged Chen Yuan's body to a state of severe injury, nearly obliterating him. If it were the eighth layer, wouldn't there be absolutely no hope of survival?

Of course, there was also the possibility that there simply wasn't a so-called eighth layer of lightning tribulation, but this possibility was unlikely.

He also underwent the seven layers of lightning tribulation to transform into Yang, so he naturally knew the vast gap between himself and the legendary Chu Taizu. This wasn't a small difference but a tremendous one.

He had spent so many years and was still just a Human Immortal. Although he had condensed three Flowers of Rule, considered the peak of Human Immortals, it was still not enough. Even the Buddha could suppress him.

Not to mention the Chu Taizu who suppressed the mortal realm in legends.

Therefore, he was certain that the Chu Taizu must have undergone the eight layers of lightning tribulation to transform into Yang.

Moro turned his gaze toward Chen Yuan, intending to approach and say something, but suddenly, the powerful tribulation clouds that had just dispersed began to gather again.

Moreover, the power was completely different from before. This time, even Moro felt a sense of fear at the pressure. Looking up, he saw more and more black tribulation clouds gathering in the void. The rumbling sounds echoed continuously, and the terrifying pressure, as if heralding the end of the world, was unsettling.

Chen Yuan also abruptly looked up, his gaze extremely solemn.

In his perception, he once again sensed that he was being locked onto by the will of the tribulation clouds, which also meant that he indeed had more than seven layers of lightning tribulation.

The eighth layer of lightning tribulation, not recognized by the world, had finally arrived!

Moro's heart was filled with both shock and joy, and he was momentarily speechless.

Indeed, the world did possess eight layers of lightning tribulation, and Chen Yuan had triggered them. This also meant that Chen Yuan's potential might be able to replicate that of Chu Taizu.

The mortal realm… was saved!

But… how could he withstand the eighth layer of lightning tribulation?

The tribulation clouds in the void gathered more and more, covering an area of hundreds of miles in a short quarter of an hour. And this hadn't reached its limit, still expanding and gathering power.

Half an hour later, the tribulation clouds had gathered over four or five hundred miles of sea.

Countless sea creatures trembled under this pressure, prostrating themselves on the seabed.

…

In Japan, within the most important forbidden area of the Yagyu clan, a colorful light suddenly flashed. A young man dressed in Japanese martial attire walked out of the forbidden area, stepping on the light.

He raised his head and looked in a certain direction, his eyes showing a hint of solemnity and surprise.

"Such a strong aura! It could actually startle me!"

Could it be that some unparalleled figure was making a move in the East Sea?

And the direction he was looking at was precisely the direction where Chen Yuan was cultivating.

East Sea, Martial Emperor City, on the peak of the Immortal Mountain.

Lu Chengfeng, who was sleeping, also sensed the aura of the eighth layer of tribulation lightning. With a turn of his body, he walked out of the secret realm and arrived at the entrance of the main hall, a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

"Such a familiar aura…"

This was... the aura of the eighth layer of Yang God tribulation!

Suddenly, Lu Chengfeng remembered something and his eyes widened.

He had witnessed that fellow undergoing tribulation, and it seemed to be such a terrifying aura. Even if it was just a trace, he still sensed it.

"Who exactly is it?"

Lu Chengfeng's heart was filled with both shock and joy.

He constantly recalled the figures he had valued in the past, one by one ringing in his mind, and then excluding them one by one because they seemed to have already achieved the Yang God Realm.

The only one who hadn't undergone it should… perhaps… be Chen Yuan!

A look of joy appeared on Lu Chengfeng's face. That kid really didn't disappoint him. As expected of that fellow's descendant, he truly had the demeanor of his great ancestor!

But then his expression turned grave. That fellow had almost perished during his tribulation back then. This kid…

Suddenly, Lu Chengfeng's eyes lit up again. With a thought, a vast force of rules instantly covered the sky, and the faint aura of tribulation lightning that had been spreading was quickly concealed by him.

Regardless of who was undergoing tribulation, he had to lend a hand, and he couldn't allow this aura to flow into the Central Plains. Once the people of the Immortal Realm sensed it, they would definitely be unable to resist taking action.

At the same time, Lu Chengfeng waved his hand, and a stream of light streaked across the sky, heading further east.

…

…

"Such a strong pressure!"

As the aura of the tribulation lightning grew heavier, Moro's expression changed from solemn to horrified. He couldn't help but worry about Chen Yuan, and the chances of him surviving seemed slim!

"Amitabha…"

Even though Moro didn't believe that the Ancestor of All Buddhas was watching him, he couldn't help but have a thought of Buddha's blessing at this moment, hoping that Chen Yuan could safely survive the tribulation!

The pressure between heaven and earth grew stronger and stronger, and even with Moro's powerful cultivation, he couldn't see the edge. The covered area had probably exceeded five or six hundred miles of sea.

Apart from the initial solemnity, Chen Yuan had now completely focused his mind on the tribulation, rapidly absorbing the last of the dragon pearl's power to strengthen himself. Even if it was just an extra sliver of a chance of success, it would be good.

Chen Yuan knew very well that such terrifying tribulation lightning, almost unrecorded in the history of the Immortal Gate, would definitely lead to his demise if he couldn't survive it!

There was no room for error.

Time slowly passed, and in the blink of an eye, an hour had passed. The terrifying pressure between heaven and earth had finally built up to its peak.

Looking up, one couldn't see the sky at all, only the dark, ink-like dark clouds and the rumbling sounds of tribulation lightning coming from within.

Finally, with a deafening explosion.

A black tribulation lightning, like a pillar of light, instantly descended!

This time, the color of the tribulation lightning changed again, becoming black.

And its power far exceeded that of the previous seventh layer.

Chen Yuan's body lit up, gathering all his strength to collide with it.

"Boom!"

The black tribulation lightning directly exploded, and all of Chen Yuan's defenses collapsed. The powerful black tribulation lightning directly enveloped him, causing his primordial spirit to contort.

He felt a deadly danger.

But, fortunately, after his previous defenses, he still managed to survive this lightning tribulation with some close calls.

If Chen Yuan hadn't been tempered by the seven layers of lightning tribulation, he would have perished directly from this single blow. Fortunately, the strength of his primordial spirit had already been tempered.

Compared to before, it had risen to another level.

But even so, the light of Chen Yuan's primordial spirit quickly dimmed, and traces of black lightning constantly flickered on his body.

"Boom!"

The second lightning tribulation followed closely behind and descended again.

Chen Yuan's primordial spirit could only resist it head-on, but at the cost of his right arm being nearly obliterated. The powerful black tribulation lightning was constantly eroding his vitality.

The third,

The fourth,

The fifth…

After three consecutive black lightning tribulations descended, Chen Yuan's primordial spirit was almost collapsing. His arms and legs gradually began to dissipate, and the original purple shield on his body.

Had all disappeared.

His entire being resembled a black primordial spirit!

"Not good!"

Moro's expression tightened. He had been paying attention to Chen Yuan's state and could sense that Chen Yuan was now nearly collapsing. Perhaps, the next lightning tribulation would completely destroy his body and soul.

"No! No!"

Chen Yuan raised his head, his eyes filled with determination.

What a joke! His grand plan hadn't been completed yet, he hadn't achieved immortality, and he hadn't reached the end of martial arts. How could he perish here?!

Absolutely not!

Chen Yuan's powerful fighting spirit rapidly surged, and the constantly exploding black tribulation lightning was like a suit of armor, setting him off as a demon god.

"Come!"

Chen Yuan's primordial spirit rose, turning into a black stream of light and rushing straight into the sky.

"Boom!"

The sixth lightning tribulation directly blasted him into the seabed, smashing out a huge pit, and the surrounding hundred miles shook.

But then, Chen Yuan rose again.

"Boom!"

The seventh lightning tribulation descended, blasting Chen Yuan's arms to pieces, but his eyes still showed no intention of retreating. Instead, his fighting spirit grew stronger and stronger, as if taunting the lightning tribulation.

At this moment, after experiencing seven lightning tribulations, Chen Yuan's primordial spirit began to collapse. He relied on his powerful unyielding fighting spirit to avoid being obliterated.

"Boom!"

The tribulation clouds seemed to be angered, and the eighth black lightning tribulation, an extremely dark color, shook the heavens and the earth. Chen Yuan's primordial spirit legs were also completely shattered.

Only half of his body remained.

It could be foreseen that Chen Yuan had almost no chance of surviving the last lightning tribulation, but he still didn't retreat. Only by not retreating could he seek survival; retreating would lead to certain death!

"Without madness, there is no survival. Come on!"

Chen Yuan completely fell into madness. Even in the midst of the tribulation, he directly mobilized the heaven and earth spiritual energy without hesitation to reshape his divine form.

Since it was almost a certain death situation anyway, he might as well be even more crazy.

Chen Yuan held his breath, forgetting everything, and directly rushed into the rolling black tribulation clouds. But… after waiting for a long time, he didn't wait for the ninth lightning tribulation to descend.

Before he could think about whether the eighth level only had eight lightning tribulations.

Suddenly, the pressure of heaven and earth rose to another level. A black figure, several feet tall, condensed between heaven and earth, holding a black spear and staring at Chen Yuan.

Its appearance was unclear, as if it were a void, but the style of the black spear in its hand was somewhat familiar to him. It was clearly the God-Slaying Spear that Xiang Qianqiu had held in the Battle of Liangshan!

Could it be…

Chen Yuan was startled. He didn't expect that the ninth lightning tribulation would actually be Chu Taizu!

Moro, who was watching the battle below, was also stunned for a long time, and a trace of despair had already appeared in his eyes. How could Chen Yuan compete with such a powerful existence?

"Fight!"

Chen Yuan also forcibly used the black tribulation lightning in his hand, enduring the great pain, and condensed it into a saber in the style of the Emperor Slaughtering Blade, pointing directly at Chu Taizu.

So what if he suppresses heaven and earth!

It was nothing more than a battle!

"Kill!"

With an angry roar, as if lifting himself up, Chen Yuan held the saber condensed with the last of his strength and charged directly towards the black figure in the distance.

"Boom!"

The saber and spear collided, and the black figure seemed to stare at Chen Yuan for a moment. Immediately afterwards, a powerful and terrifying force instantly condensed, shattering the black saber in Chen Yuan's hand with one blow.

Then, Chen Yuan threw a punch, but how could his body forcibly condensed with vitality compete with the ninth lightning tribulation? The black figure shattered it with a single spear.

The next moment, the black spear flashed with light, stabbing directly at Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan didn't retreat. Now he only had one breath left to support himself. If he retreated, his spirit would be completely scattered. Immediately, he used another fist to meet the black spear head-on.

Boom!

With this blow, his left arm was also broken. Then, the black spear in the black figure's hand directly pierced Chen Yuan, like a tragic picture.

Chen Yuan only felt endless weakness flowing before his eyes.

Was… he going to die like this?

Damn it!!!

Chen Yuan was unwilling and wanted to force the black spear out, but the powerful black tribulation lightning filled his body, eroding his last remaining strength.

The black figure approached, seemingly wanting to take one last look at this person.

"Ah!!!"

Chen Yuan roared, but couldn't muster any strength.

"In the end… I still lost!"

Moro sighed. Chen Yuan had done well enough. In the end, he even had a chance to survive, but… the ninth lightning tribulation was too terrifying.

It was actually the imprint of Chu Taizu.

Not to mention Chen Yuan, no one had any hope of surviving.

Below, the physical body that had been blasted into the seabed during the tribulation was now glowing with brilliant light in its five organs. The sound of his powerful heartbeat shook like a war drum.

Above the five brilliant rays of light, traces of cyan light rapidly rose. That was the power of the dragon essence left in the depths of Chen Yuan's physical body, and it was also the most essential power.

That power, like a stream of light, rapidly entered Chen Yuan's primordial spirit above. His fists and legs recondensed, and long-lost power once again filled him.

"I don't care who you are, anyone who blocks my path must die!"

Chen Yuan roared in his heart. The next moment, ignoring the black tribulation lightning spear within his primordial spirit body, his fist directly slammed into the head of the black figure!

At the same moment, the black figure also punched towards Chen Yuan's head.

The two sides were deadlocked at this moment.

Like a painting.

Time slowly passed. Finally, Chen Yuan, whose head was almost half shattered, smiled with joy. Finally… the final victor was still him!

The black figure opposite him moved slightly, as if it was smiling. The next moment, the black tribulation lightning collapsed and scattered, turning this place into a black sea of lightning.

Then, Chen Yuan saw a wisp of illusory wind leave the tribulation lightning when the black figure collapsed, and then blow against his cheeks…

Below, Moro, who saw this scene, finally breathed a sigh of relief, and a long-lost smile appeared on his face. Although there were ups and downs, Chen Yuan had finally survived this eighth lightning tribulation.

Chen Yuan had succeeded!

He would be the next Chu Taizu!

The endless black sea of lightning gradually dissipated, and a gentle wind, like heavenly dew, fell from the nine heavens and brushed against Chen Yuan's primordial spirit.

His severely injured, almost obliterated primordial spirit also regained its vitality at this moment.

The aura of supreme yang and pureness within his primordial spirit also surged, and a relaxed smile finally appeared on Chen Yuan's face. Although it was difficult and he almost died under the tribulation lightning.

But the result was good.

Chen Yuan slowly fell from the tribulation lightning, and the aura on his body also climbed steadily. When the transformation was complete, he would be a true Yang God True Lord.

Moro looked at Chen Yuan from afar and said loudly:

"You finally survived the eight layers of lightning tribulation."

"Yes…"

"But…"

"But what?"

Chen Yuan raised an eyebrow.

Moro pointed to the tribulation clouds above and frowned:

"But this tribulation cloud… why hasn't it dissipated yet?"

Hearing Moro's voice, Chen Yuan also suddenly raised his head, and a vaguely ominous feeling flashed in his eyes. Yes, why hadn't the tribulation clouds dissipated yet?

Logically speaking, he had already survived the Yang God tribulation, and these tribulation clouds should have collapsed little by little. But… not only did the qi not dissipate, but it also felt like it was getting stronger.

Could it be…

Chen Yuan and Moro quickly exchanged glances, thinking of an almost impossible thing.

Could it be that there was a ninth lightning tribulation?

Yes, nine was the extreme of numbers. There was no reason why there would be eight layers of lightning tribulation but not a ninth. Even if there had never been such a record in history, wasn't the eighth layer also unrecorded?

"No way…"

At this moment, even Moro was a little panicked.

There was still a slight chance of surviving the eighth layer, but there was basically no possibility of surviving this ninth lightning tribulation, and they didn't have the means to shatter these gathering tribulation clouds.

They could only watch it getting stronger and stronger…

Chen Yuan raised his head, and a hint of uneasiness also flashed in his eyes. The last bit of power from the dragon pearl had been squeezed dry by him. What could he use to be reborn again?

But the more he didn't want it to gather, the more the tribulation clouds seemed to gather. Its already terrifying power increased again, and at the same time, an inexplicable will once again locked onto his primordial spirit.

Just like before!

Chen Yuan let out a breath, clenched his fists, and rapidly mobilized the heaven and earth spiritual energy to recover as quickly as possible. Even if there was a ninth tribulation lightning, he would survive it!

Time slowly passed, and in the blink of an eye, a whole day had passed, and it was already the second day. But under the cover of the tribulation clouds, there was no way to see the sun to estimate the time.

If one could see from a very far distance, they would find that the terrifying tribulation clouds, after a day of gathering power, had actually reached more than a thousand miles…

This had never happened before. Even Moro was a little at a loss and could only place his hopes on Chen Yuan, hoping that the great luck on his body could help him survive this tribulation again.

Chen Yuan raised his head, his gaze solemnly staring at the rolling black tribulation clouds. In the rumbling sounds, he keenly noticed that a flash of purple light seemed to flash within the black clouds.

Almost the same as the purple light on his body.

The tribulation lightning… had changed color again!

Rumble…

As time passed, another hour or so passed, and the tribulation lightning above the nine heavens seemed to have finally gathered its power to its true extreme.

Then, a purple divine light appeared between heaven and earth, illuminating everything.

The terrifying tribulation lightning instantly descended!