Battle Through the Heaven: Purple Heaven

Xiao Bai glanced up at the thickening thunderbolts converging above, then at Little Yi and Little Bing, struggling to absorb the silver lightning. A sense of urgency gripped him. Gotta get out now, or I'm in trouble.

It wasn't that the seeds were incapable, but converting the silver thunder into their own attributes required wood and fire essences. As immature seeds, they couldn't handle much raw lightning energy alone.

Checking his dantian, Xiao Bai estimated he needed half a teacup's time to absorb enough external energy for the nine-star Dou Shi breakthrough. Another thunderbolt loomed, its pressure surpassing the last. His face darkened, but he forced calm. Little Yi and Little Bing were still grappling with the previous bolt—no help there.

His mind raced, soul force sweeping his storage ring. Gold coins! Could they work?

No time to overthink—let's try. Deciding, he used soul force to crush a pile of gold coins into a ball, then stretched it into a several-meter-long pole. Sensing the impending thunder, he layered soul barriers as a fallback.

As the bolt teetered on release, Xiao Bai hurled the gold pole to a pre-planned spot—higher than his position, closer to the thunder but farther from him. The silver bolt, like a serpent, lunged from the clouds toward him, only to veer toward the pole, drawn by its conductivity.

It worked! Xiao Bai's heart leapt, his past-life knowledge of lightning rods proving true. Unlike cultivator-controlled lightning or tribulation thunder guided by intent, these natural bolts, though mighty, followed basic rules like those in his old world.

His relief was short-lived. The thunder struck the pole, melting it instantly. Smaller arcs scattered, one hurtling straight for him.

Damn it! He scrambled, reinforcing his soul barriers. The first shattered on impact, then the second, and the third. Out of time, he braced as the weakened arc hit.

A jolt coursed through him, silver sparks crackling across his body. No major harm, and crucially, his breakthrough wasn't disrupted. The lightning even accelerated it, his dantian nearing completion.

Moments later, he stood, a nine-star Dou Shi aura radiating. But joy was absent. The clouds grew denser, water vapor thickening, his sense of danger spiking. The storm was descending, threatening to engulf him in a maelstrom of countless bolts.

No time to waste, he recalled the sated seeds, still circling him, and dove for the ground. The instant they vanished, a nearby bolt struck.

His honed instincts, sharpened by relentless practice of the Heavenly Heart Sensing Chapter, screamed danger. The bolt's menace promised severe injury, if not death, if taken head-on. His recent blood refinement had bolstered his body and lightning resistance, but this bolt felt unstoppable, even if his physique doubled in strength.

Halting his descent, Xiao Bai faced the thunder. No time for another pole. Bing Fire Yang Lightning erupted, forming a net at the forefront. His late-stage Mortal Realm soul surged, layering a thick barrier over the net. Yi Wood True Lightning shielded his organs, while he compressed his newly enhanced Dou Qi into a near-solid gauze armor—more akin to plate than cloth.

All in. Xiao Bai braced for a fight.

Yao Lao's face paled at the sudden shift. The bolt's ferocity, even a high-tier Dou Huang would tread carefully against, carried dire consequences if mishandled. Powerless to help—heavenly thunder was a soul body's bane—he wavered. A desperate intervention might save Xiao Bai but could plunge him into another coma, duration unknown. Worse, this was one minor bolt among countless above. Drawing more could doom them both.

Damn it, Xiao Bai! It's storming, and you play with thunder? Now you're stuck! Yao Lao paced at the cave mouth, cursing in frustration.

In the shadows beneath a tree, Ling Ying, masked, fumed with equal urgency. Idiot kid, showing off, and now you're trapped! If Miss blames me, I'll be joining you in the grave! As a Dou Huang, he couldn't casually intervene like a Dou Zong might. More thunder could spell disaster.

Fine, I'll save him. Miss would be heartbroken otherwise. Ling Ying, treating Xiao Xun'er like a niece despite propriety, steeled himself to block the bolt.

Then, both Yao Lao and Ling Ying froze. Xiao Bai halted midair, crimson light flaring—his signature move. Is he planning to tank it?

In those fleeting breaths, the thunder struck, erupting in a blinding flash. A deafening boom followed, shaking the air.