CHAPTER 27: UGH! MEN ARE SO EMOTIONALLY STUPID!

Nantian Wan'er slowly regained consciousness. She reached out both her hands into the air. "Mm... What is this on my lips...? It's so soft..."

Lu Chen quickly stopped her. "Wan'er, don't move. It's me. I'm healing you,"

"O-Okay, I won't move." Nantian Wan'er went on to open her eyes, but when she saw Lu Chen's face so close to hers, she let out a startled cry. "Ah!"

Nantian Xiu heard her voice and called out excitedly, "Wan'er? Wan'er, you're awake?"

Lu Chen warned her gently, "Shh, don't move. The spirit qi hasn't finished circulating yet."

He then lowered his lips back onto hers.

"Mmm... I'm not moving. Lu Chen, was it you who saved me?" Nantian Wan'er looked into his eyes, her voice soft. "The coldness in my body... it feels less intense now."

"The chill in your meridians has mostly dissipated. Right now, I'm reinforcing your Heavenly Pool."

"Mmm... All right. But... my mouth feels so sore, and my heart is racing. Is that normal?" Nantian Wan'er muttered, her voice filled with uncertainty. "Mmm..."

It was the first time Nantian Wan'er had experienced such intimacy. She couldn't tell whether her reaction was due to the cold spirit qi leaving her... or something else entirely.

"It'll be over soon. There shouldn't be any problem. My heart's beating fast too, so it's probably fine."

Just then, a warm red glow radiated from Lu Chen, while a cold blue light began to shine from Nantian Wan'er. The light spiraled outward from where their hands were joined, intertwining and swirling in rhythm.

One was black, and the other was white. One went forward, and the other went in reverse. One was yin, and the other was yang. One was a man, and the other was a woman.

Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er formed a yin-yang diagram, reflecting the balance between heaven and earth. The black fish marked the yang eye, while the white fish marked the yin eye. There was yin within yang, and yang within yin. The two forces flowed in harmony, constantly interchanging with each other.

The Green Sovereign Divine Tree emerged from Lu Chen's Heavenly Pool and joined the rotation of the diagram.

It gradually positioned itself between them, becoming the boundary line between yin and yang. One branch extended into Lu Chen's Heavenly Pool, coiling around the black fish; another reached into Wan'er's, entwining the white fish.

By now, Lu Chen had withdrawn his lips. Nantian Wan'er stared in amazement at the changes happening inside them both. "What is this? There's a little fish inside me... and I can feel it connecting to your Heavenly Pool. Huh? You have one too, except yours is black."

"That's a treasure from my Heavenly Pool. It looks like our bodies are now connected."

Lu Chen discovered that their Heavenly Pools had become linked, and the Green Sovereign Divine Tree had become the bridge between them, allowing them to access each other's Heavenly Pools.

"You're right. I can feel your emotions too," Wan'er said softly. "Your heart... why is it beating so fast? Your Heavenly Pool is strange... it's different from ours. Huh? This little white fish... it feels like it leads to a strange place."

Nantian Wan'er accidentally triggered the mechanism that opened the entrance to the Twin-Fish Medallion's world, and Lu Chen was pulled into it along with her.

"Lu Chen, is this the space inside your enchanted artifact? This is the first time I've seen something like this. Our Nantian Sect doesn't have anything like it."

Nantian Wan'er roamed freely within the small world. There wasn't the slightest restriction placed on her.

Lu Chen watched her move about curiously like a child and didn't stop her from exploring the secrets within his body.

Perhaps because of everything that had happened, Lu Chen now had unshakable trust in Nantian Wan'er. He was willing to share everything with her. They could sense each other's thoughts as if they had become one.

***

Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er exited the world inside the medallion. They had come to understand the changes in their bodies and could now read each other's minds, fully aware of each other's secrets.

The swirling yin-yang diagram continued to grow denser. Lu Chen had no idea when this process would end, so he could only wait in silence.

"Wan'er, you must not tell anyone, not even your grandfather, about what happened today."

Lu Chen had too many secrets. Now that his thoughts were connected to Nantian Wan'er's, he had to warn her in advance to prevent any accidental slips.

"Lu-gege, I understand. You don't need to say a word. I can feel your thoughts. These are our secrets, and I won't tell anyone."[1]

Nantian Wan'er had long given her heart to Lu Chen. Now that their hearts and minds were linked, she naturally wouldn't reveal any of his secrets.

Just then, the yin-yang diagram stopped rotating and slowly turned into a massive cocoon, wrapping the two of them inside.

Rumble...

A thunderous roar echoed in the sky as dark clouds rapidly gathered and bolts of crimson divine lightning came crashing down.

Nantian Xiu stared at the giant cocoon, unable to tell what was happening inside. "Red lightning? What's happening in there?"

Ever since the yin-yang diagram had solidified, all information about Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er had been completely cut off. No matter what divine techniques Nantian Xiu used, he couldn't sense anything from inside.

Nantian Xiu fixed his gaze on the cocoon and clenched his fists. "Please make it through..."

Rumble!

The red lightning struck the cocoon, sending electric light scattering across its surface. But the cocoon remained completely unharmed. If anything, it had become even more crystal clear.

The lightning struck once, twice, and three times... Eventually, a total of eighty-one bolts of red divine lightning struck the cocoon, and it now glowed with radiant brilliance.

"Is it finally over...?" Nantian Xiu examined the aura of the cocoon. "Eighty-one divine bolts, and not a single one could break it... What is about to happen?"

Inside the cocoon, Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er were still dazed and light-headed.

The crimson lightning pierced through the massive cocoon, repeatedly tempering Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er's bodies. It refined them again and again as it purged the impurities from their muscles and bones.

Gradually, a crystalline, multicolored glow began to radiate from their skin. This was the radiance that marked initial mastery of body-tempering—a stage that normally took hundreds or even thousands of years of cultivation, often requiring one to reach perfect mastery over the Qi Condensation Realm to achieve.

Yet, Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er had done it in less than fifteen minutes. Such a fortuitous opportunity was simply unimaginable.

Lu Chen examined both his and Nantian Wan'er's Heavenly Pools. After the refinement, he noticed that the two pools had merged into one. The two of them now seemed to exist as a single symbiotic entity.

He circulated his spirit qi to examine his body. The shared Heavenly Pool had achieved a balance of yin and yang. The fire and ice poisons, once deadly threats, had now merged and dissipated completely. Even without the Yin Ocean Pearl, the fire poison would no longer resurface.

"This feels incredible," Lu Chen said, clenching his fists and punching out toward the cocoon's wall.

Craaaack!

Light flared from the cocoon as it shattered apart.

Lu Chen couldn't wait to share what had happened inside the cocoon with Nantian Xiu, "Grandpa Xiu! We did it! The fire and ice poisons are completely gone!"

Tears welled up in Nantian Xiu's eyes as he felt the aura radiating from the two of them. In that moment, it felt as if the wish he had carried for years had finally come true. "Good, good... that's wonderful."

Suddenly, dark clouds began gathering in the sky. A surge of black divine lightning started forming above.

"Grandpa Xiu, I think I'm about to break through. My heavenly tribulation is coming."

Lu Chen sensed the spirit qi in his Heavenly Pool. His spirit qi had already begun condensing into spirit liquid. From the moment his pool had merged with Nantian Wan'er's, he had sensed that this moment would come.

Now, with the skies darkening and his qi surging wildly, he felt more certain than ever that his breakthrough was near.

"Heavenly tribulation? Black divine lightning? Why is the tribulation at the Qi Absorption Realm already this powerful?" Nantian Xiu muttered as he stared at the clouds overhead.

"Grandpa, I think mine's coming too," Nantian Wan'er said from behind Lu Chen.

"What? Wan'er, yours as well? Why are both your heavenly tribulations happening at the same time? A single person's heavenly tribulation is already a life-or-death ordeal, and now with two stacking together..."

Nantian Xiu knew just how terrifying heavenly tribulations were for cultivators attempting a breakthrough. He quickly pulled out two defensive enchanted artifacts from his storage space and handed them to Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er.

"Be very careful, you two. I've nurtured these defensive enchanted artifacts with spirit qi for many years. They should be enough to withstand twelve strikes of tribulation lightning at the Qi Absorption Realm. The thunderclouds have already formed. There's no stopping it now. I must leave immediately. If the tribulation lightning senses an external force interfering, it will become even fiercer."

"Grandpa Xiu, go ahead and leave. Our bodies were just strengthened. I can already feel that the lightning doesn't pose much of a threat," Lu Chen said.

Thanks to the memories Feng Tiancheng left behind, Lu Chen could sense clearly the power of the tribulation. With the current strength of his physical body, it wouldn't be much of a threat.

The clouds overhead had already swelled to many times their original size. Thick black lightning serpents slithered through the skies.

Rumble! Rumble!

"Good. It's about to begin. Don't forget the method I taught you for enduring the tribulation. Be cautious and stay focused."

With that, he turned and shot into the distance, swiftly leaving the range of the tribulation.

Boom!

The moment Nantian Xiu left the area, a ten-meter-wide bolt of black lightning crashed down from the clouds.

Watching the thunderous light descend from the sky, Nantian Xiu's face was filled with worry. Please make it... To think that Lu Chen's tribulation at the Qi Absorption Realm already rivals one at the Sunken Core Realm. His talent is truly exceptional.

Lu Chen kept his eyes on the sky. The first bolt of lightning was still some distance away.

"Wan'er, put on the defensive enchanted artifact. We have already reached initial mastery of body tempering. As long as we stay cautious, we can get through this."

Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er stood side by side and braced themselves for what was to come.

From Feng Tiancheng's memories, Lu Chen was aware that tribulation lightning wasn't just a test; it was also a blessing for cultivators.

Every strike of tribulation lightning was a chance to temper the body. During the ordeal, one had to make sure the lightning refined every part of their flesh. Once the lightning ended, there would be a chance for a blessing from the Heavenly Dao. Cultivators could use this opportunity to heal any hidden injuries.

The first strike finally descended. The lightning serpent coiled above them, electric arcs flickering and crackling in the air. Lu Chen led Nantian Wan'er and met the lightning head-on with their bodies.

Boom!

The bolt struck, and a torrent of lightning, as fierce as a raging thunder serpent, crashed down on the two of them, surging through their bones and muscles in wave after wave.

They received one strike, then another, and another... Countless bolts rained down, each one illuminating the valley where they stood. The ground around them was scorched and shattered, reduced to a broken, smoldering wasteland.

As the first wave of the tribulation came to an end, the figures of Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er reappeared amidst the fading light. They were completely unscathed.

"Not bad at all. That first wave of tribulation was manageable."

1. In Chinese, "gege" means "older brother," but it’s often used by girls to refer to an older boy they admire, trust, or have romantic feelings for. It shows closeness and dependence, not an actual sibling relationship. ☜