952 12 Bolts

Ma Tianxin saw the remains of what was previously senior Bu disperse into the storm that raged above. His face lost all color as dread filled his heart at what he had just seen.

"What... what just happened?" he asked fearfully.

"You are not allowed to interfere in the Lightning Tribulation of someone else. No matter if you're trying to aid or not," Alex said. "He who interferes faces Heaven's judgment."

"That... that bolt of lightning was from the heavens?" Ma Tianxin looked to the sky again. "Is your pet going to be fine?"

"Yes," Alex said without hesitation. He did not doubt that Pearl would overcome this. All he worried about was that he would be hurt a bit in the process.

'As long as the tribulation lightning isn't as strong as when they were for me, he should be fine,' Alex thought.

He and Ma Tianxin watched as Pearl stood on all four and flew upwards. As he did, the first of the nine lightning flew down from the heavens.

~CRACK~

The lightning bolt slammed into Pearl, but Pearl walked out of it unscathed. The power of this lightning bolt was barely stronger than an attack used by a True Realm emperor if they had Saint Qi.

Pearl's physical body alone was strong enough to protect himself entirely.

The second lightning bolt came down not long after, striking Pearl again. This time, the strength was a little stronger than what a True Emperor 2nd realm could use with Saint Qi.

Pearl brushed it off quite easily as well.

The third lightning bolt fell, striking Pearl.

Then fourth, and then the fifth.

Each successive lightning bolt got stronger and stronger, slowly increasing in power each time it fell. Each of the lightning strikes seemed to be gathering damage, slowly improving itself until it reached the maximum damage Pearl could have handled had he not broken through.

The sixth lightning bolt fell, and then the seventh. Even the eighth struck Pearl, but he easily brushed them off.

Alex was surprised at how easy it was for Pearl. But then, he remembered his own and also remembered it was easy for him until the 9 lightning bolts struck him.

The real problem came afterward.

The ninth lightning bolt struck Pearl and this time even if his body was stronger than the bolt itself, he felt the pain. He understood that he couldn't rely on his body anymore.

So, he got ready to fight. The armor he wore could help him block quite a bit of the damage, but he was sure he couldn't rely on it any more than his own body. He needed to use his Qi as much as he could too.

Energy gathered in the sky as Alex looked up. Even he could tell what the first lightning was going to be about. He was surprised it was this one, but then Pearl only knew 3 Dao so there couldn't be anymore.

A lightning bolt with an aura filled with the Dao of Metal struck down from the heavens toward Pearl.

Pearl swung his paw upward, hitting the lightning bolt just as it landed. The two powers collided creating a massive explosion that produced shockwaves that even Alex and Ma Tianxin felt.

Alex took in a deep breath when he felt the power behind the lightning bolt just now. 'That was... Saint Condensation 1st realm?' he thought. 'No, it is weaker. So... a little below that.'

Pearl's cultivation base was 'a little below that' as well. So, he was struck with the force of his entire cultivation base.

Thankfully, Pearl had more than just his cultivation base. He had his armor, and he had his body.

He walked out, not fully unscathed, but well enough that he was ready to fight again. Alex smiled when he saw that, but then it immediately turned into a frown as the next attack prepared in heaven.

'Which dao is it now?' Alex wondered. It had to either be the Dao of Sharpness or the Dao of  Teleportation. Alex wondered which one the heavens considered more valuable.

In his eyes, teleportation was obviously more valuable than sharpness. But then... maybe he was wrong?

Pearl knew what was going to happen this time around. He had seen it when Alex was fighting the bolts of lightning the last time around.

His body glowed golden as he used the White Tiger's Golden Body to reinforce himself. Then, he slammed his paw upwards again, sending a golden paw-shaped power directly into the sky, reinforced by the Dao of metal behind it.

The paw struck the lightning bolt and stopped it for a split second, reducing the damage as well in the process. However, it couldn't stop it all.

The lightning bolt teleported and fell right on top of Pearl and struck him. Pearl fell down from the sky, slamming onto the mountain down below, destroying a big part of the mountain.

"Oh no!" Ma Tianxin spoke up when he saw that, but Alex didn't say anything. He knew that level of damage would hardly injure Pearl, especially since he had his golden body.

Pearl walked out of the snow-filled rubble and flew into the sky. He didn't look as white as he usually did, his fur a little charred at places, but other than that he looked fine.

Alex smiled when he saw Pearl safe. He looked back into the sky and waited for the next lightning to--

"Hmm?" his eyes narrowed with a confused look. "That's... the teleportation aura?"

Alex tried to peer into the aura of the Dao of teleportation that had come down with the lightning, and while he did sense the Dao of Teleportation there, there was something else as well.

He tried to understand what it was, but he couldn't really tell anything different aside from the fact there was some minor difference.

'What is it?' he wondered, but with his limited understanding of everything, he was simply incapable of telling what was wrong with it.

As he was wondering that, he couldn't help but develop a foreboding feeling in his heart as he felt the final lightning prepared for its arrival.

Alex felt the aura of the dao and found it familiar to the one in the gorge. He recognized the dao of Sharpness, he only didn't understand it fully yet.

'Sharpness...' Alex worried. If the lightning bolt was truly sharp, then Pearl would be in trouble.

"Give it your all, Pearl!" Alex shouted back at him.

Pearl couldn't hear Alex's words at all. He was in a world of his own as he prepared his defense against the final lightning strike.

His body glowed yellow, and he powered his armor as best as possible. A barrier made up of pure golden light appeared in front of him, once again empowered as well as he could with his metal Dao.

And then, the lightning struck.

Alex saw each moment on its own with his demon eyes. From the moment the lightning dropped from the heavens to the moment it struck the barrier.

He saw each crack appear on the barrier and then he saw the barrier shatter into a million pieces. Pearl's paw struck the lightning as it fell and the two power clashed.

The surrounding mountains shuddered from the impact and the snow there started sliding down in an avalanche.

The mountain where Pearl stood was already rubble, to begin with. But with this attack, it completely collapsed.

Alex watched with unclosing eyes, waiting to see one thing. Waiting for that one moment.

The light disappeared and only the destroyed mountain peak remained, and they were unmoving.

"Come on, you can do this," Alex said softly.

Suddenly, the rubble moved, and from it appeared in a tiny Pearl. He was the size of a kitten at most.

He seemed hurt, but not so bad that he was in any sort of danger. Just a few days of rest would do it.

Alex sighed in relief and looked to the sky. The storms threatened to send down another bolt of lightning, but he knew that wasn't going to be the case.

Just as he thought, after a few sparkles of intimidation, the storm receded and dispersed as sunlight pierced through the sky.

The tribulation was done. Pearl had passed it. Now, all he needed to do was upgrade his Qi by just a sliver, and he will have entered the Saint realm officially.