Chapter 268: Surviving the Thunderstorm

Standing with his sword in hand, the long sword raised high in the air, Rod let out a fierce roar before leaping upward, soaring into the sky.

In the distance, people were stunned, their mouths agape in disbelief. The lightning was so intense that even those dozens of miles away felt dizzy and uncomfortable, as if their souls were being pulled. They hurriedly used their internal energy to resist. They saw a figure appear beneath the white light, beneath the lightning—for the first time, they saw this figure. With the help of divine-level combat energy, they could still make out a dark spot from dozens of miles away.

A dark silhouette stood out sharply against the dazzling lightning! Before, they had only seen the lightning and not the mysterious figure’s resistance. Now, at last, they saw resistance. To resist to this extent meant he must have reached an extraordinary level. Their hearts pounded faster.

What would be the outcome of such a lightning storm battling that mysterious powerhouse? Whatever the result, one thing was certain: this warrior had won everyone’s respect and recognition. At least no one in the arena claimed to be capable of doing the same—even Melon couldn’t; they didn’t even have thequalifications to attract such a celestial being.

At that moment, Rod stood proudly before the lightning, while Xuanyuan emitted an unprecedentedly mighty aura that filled the entire universe.

Time seemed to stand still. This scene would forever remain in everyone’s hearts. Finally, after what felt like thousands of years, as if traversing the vastness of the universe, the sword and lightning collided.

Boom… Thunder roared as the Dark Dragon rushed into the lightning, recklessly stirring it, trying to destroy it and break it apart. The lightning, as if alive, resisted fiercely, simultaneously devouring Rod and the Dark Dragon.

The few remaining dark clouds in the sky rushed into the lightning as if summoned, merging with it. The lightning twisted and devoured wildly, Xuanyuan stirred and destroyed frantically, while Rod drove his combat energy to the extreme, firmly guarding his mind and soul, denying the lightning any chance.

Slowly descending from the sky to the ground, nothing stopped—everything continued.

White light flashed everywhere as lightning rushed into Rod’s body. Xuanyuan also suffered greatly; countless tiny lightning bolts danced across the sword, producing a crisp, sharp sound, like a deadly melody.

Pfft… Finally, the intense shock caused Rod to spit out a mouthful of blood, his face turning even paler. In his madness, he no longer cared about anything else; he reached out and took out a divine-level magical beast core, frantically channeling its energy into his combat aura to cause destruction. Continuing like this would yield no benefits—this lightning’s power far exceeded his imagination. It was truly world-shattering, and the only way to hold on was by relying on external forces. The elements around him were also drawn in and merged, allowing him to easily control them due to his affinity for them. A fierce wind blew, causing all the trees in the forest to sway precariously. Within a hundred miles, there was no trace of any magical beasts anymore; they had all wisely fled as soon as the thunderstorm appeared, going as far as they could. At that moment, the entire forest, centered around where Rod stood, began to spread outward, with terrifying power recklessly destroying everything in its path! “Can he hold on?” “Is this the thunderstorm of the Yang Xuan realm? It’s insane!” Inside Dark Moon City, people stared in shock at the distant scene, mouths agape, thinking to themselves. Looking at that vortex, about five or six li in diameter, raging relentlessly, everyone’s heart clenched painfully. “If it were me, I’d be finished by now!” Even Melon felt powerless, experiencing a sense of helplessness for the first time. Even his pride from facing the thunderstorm of the Yin Huang realm had vanished, replaced by fear. Would he be able to endure such a trial in the future? “Rod is still over there, isn’t he?” Rubio, still holding onto his simple thoughts, worried about Rod. Was he in danger? Dark Moon City was unusually quiet today; it seemed all eyes were fixed on that direction, everyone’s thoughts drawn by the thunderstorm over there. The roaring sounds were terrifying with each blast, and the vortex kept spreading, with lightning spinning like a giant dragon writhing its body. Yet it seemed to be slowly shrinking and dimming. But was that really the case? Everyone knew that much of the energy had simply flowed into that mysterious person’s body for a confrontation—the real battle took place inside. After all, one must not forget the reputation of the white lightning.

“Argh…” At this critical moment, suddenly, a long howl pierced the heavens, incredibly loud. Immediately afterward, everyone saw a red-blue figure rushing into the lightning, struggling desperately. What was going on? Could it be some form created by a technique? Was it that mysterious person? Seeing this, everyone was shocked once again.

It was Fen Tian. After remaining calm for so long, Fen Tian stepped forward at this critical moment, when Rod was in grave danger, diving into the lightning to help Rod distribute the pressure and control his powers.

Although his physical condition was inferior to Rod’s, and the energy of the lightning caused him immense harm, he still appeared at this crucial moment.

Diving into the lightning, as a soul being, he was first struck by the powerful force. His form kept changing as the lightning rushed into his body, ravaging his soul and attacking his mental strength, causing his body to gradually blur.

Watching this happen, Rod grew anxious. Damn it, how could he have forgotten? As a soul beast, wasn’t this kind of lightning the most deadly enemy for Fen Tian? How could he appear now? Annoyed and helpless at Fen Tian’s reckless decision to rush in against his objections, Rod felt a surge of anger and helplessness.

The only solution now was to eliminate this lightning as quickly as possible; otherwise, Fen Tian would be in grave danger and might even dissipate. Having fought alongside him for so many years, this was definitely not the outcome Rod wanted to see.

After what seemed like an eternity, more than half of the lightning’s energy remained. Watching Fen Tian’s fading figure, Rod grew anxious and resolute. Gritting his teeth, he made a stunning decision.

“Do you really want to do this?” Xuan Yuan asked in a deep voice after understanding Rod’s thoughts.

This idea was too dangerous. If it failed, he would be destroyed, and everything would be lost. Was it worth it for Fen Tian?

“Yes, it’s worth it! He is my most loyal companion and comrade. I’ll take all the lightning into my body. You should be fine. If something happens to me, find a good master and follow him well!” Rod said without hesitation.

The lightning energy at that moment was roughly equivalent to that of six bolts of lightning. Taking it all into his body was extremely dangerous, but there was still a glimmer of hope. He couldn’t just watch Fen Tian dissipate. More importantly, Xuan Yuan would be safe this way.

“Good, I’ll help you! We are the best comrades!” Words weren’t needed—just a few sincere sentences were enough. One sentence could express everything in one’s heart. Sharing joys and hardships together—nothing better than that.

Having made up his mind, Rod suddenly gave up resisting. In an instant, a flash of lightning rushed into him, as if enlightening him, before disappearing into the sky. With the disappearance of the lightning, Fen Tian crashed to the ground with a shrill cry, barely alive.

As for Rod, he had fully immersed his consciousness within his body. The spirit of the Xuanyuan Sword also rushed into his body to fight alongside him. Every corner of his consciousness sea and every cell of his body became a battlefield.

“Guard the consciousness sea and use your combat energy to help me—start with the body! Control your soul well!” Xuanyuan arranged everything at the fastest speed, as he had considerable experience in such situations.

If they could hold off this time, the benefits Rod would gain were imaginable—he might reach a level beyond anyone’s comprehension. As for Xuanyuan, his fate hinged on this attempt; life and death were intertwined as the battle within his body intensified rapidly.

Xuanyuan unleashed all his energy without reservation, attacking those lightning forces. The rampant lightning energy went wild within Rod’s body!

From the outside, it was visible that Rod’s pores were slowly oozing blood—a terrifying sign of severe damage to his body.

The onlookers in the distance were stunned, their faces filled with concern. Had that mysterious person failed? Otherwise, why had the lightning suddenly disappeared? Was he dead? Many began to speculate.

Seemingly regaining his strength, Fen Tian let out a mournful cry before vanishing between heaven and earth, rushing into Rod’s body to join the battle. It knew that Rod’s previous actions had been for its sake, so it naturally couldn’t watch its master suffer for it. External elements also poured into Rod’s body at this moment—the refined core of a magical beast in his dantian and a mysterious mist that Rod couldn’t fathom began to play an unimaginable role! Especially the mist, whose powerful devouring ability manifested itself as it left the dantian and spread throughout his body, devouring everything in its path.

Rod tightly held onto his consciousness sea and soul, while Xuanyuan fought bravely, gradually reclaiming lost ground. Time stretched slowly, with each second feeling like a thousand years. After what seemed like an eternity—through countless cycles of life and death, spanning thousands of years—finally, the energy was weakened to a level Rod could control. By then, he was exhausted both physically and mentally.

Taking a deep breath, he mustered his last strength to launch a counterattack. Finally, once the last trace of his lightning power vanished, everything returned to calm. By then, two full hours had passed since the last lightning strike. During those two hours, Rod had been engaged in a life-or-death battle, and four hours had elapsed since the onset of the thunder calamity.
The four-hour battle, which felt like an eternity, finally came to an end. With the terrifying thunder calamity gone, Rod collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. The feeling of being reborn was truly wonderful.