Beggar Cultivation System

Clouds gathered.

Thunder rolled.

And lightning flashed.

They arrived instantly, seemingly ready to wreak havoc wherever they touched.

Apollo's eyes reflected the countless flashes in the night sky. A bitter smile crept across his face. There's no turning back now, he thought as the night briefly turned to day.

He was still being dragged by one of the tails of the Alphadusk Shadowtail. However, compared to their usual speed, they seemed to be moving slower than before.

The Alpha looked up at the sky and howled angrily. Dark orbs materialized around them and shot toward the clouds, but they vanished like drops in the ocean.

The monster roared as its speed gradually slowed.

Apollo glanced upward, feeling a pressure he had never experienced before. It was far stronger than anything Mathias had shown or even the ten-tailed Alpha had displayed.

"Is it too late to back out now?" Apollo muttered, but his words seemed to anger the heavens. A lightning bolt struck beside them, instantly turning the ground into molten lava!

Apollo gulped, while the monster let out a low growl.

Then, more lightning came, scorching the ground around them! At the same time, Apollo realized his vision was rising. Looking down, he saw that the Alphadusk was already up in the air!

The monster's hair stood on end as it struggled fiercely, but its efforts were futile. No matter what it tried, the power of the heavens was almighty.

Apollo also felt the grip of the tail around him weaken. Clearly, the wolf was too alarmed by the current situation to focus on its marked prey.

He seized the opportunity and slashed at the tail, channeling the Simple Sword Technique through his entire arm. His hand became as sharp as a blade, cutting through the tail as easily as slicing paper.

Even without the tail holding him up, Apollo didn't fall. Instead, his body floated.

Suddenly, a deafening thunderclap echoed, far louder than the others. Simultaneously, an interface materialized in front of him.

"You have 3 seconds before the Lightning Tribulation arrives," the System's voice echoed alongside the notification.

"Sh*t." Apollo knew there was no turning back. Seeing the wolf preoccupied with its battle against the air, he began swimming toward the ground.

3. The countdown began.

Apollo gritted his teeth, his hands and feet moving faster than ever.

2. Apollo was nearly at the ground, but he didn't touch it. Instead, he looked up and saw he was directly beneath the monster.

1… A thunderclap rang out, his ears buzzing and his vision turning white. Even as he instinctively closed his eyes, the brilliance seared into his mind.
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…

Master Popo and Elmo halted in their tracks when they saw the thunderclouds that had appeared so suddenly. A heavy pressure descended on them, making it hard to breathe. Frowns formed on their faces.

"This feeling…" Elmo squinted at the rolling clouds, then a thunderbolt shattered the ground beside the Alpha that held the small masked man. "A Lightning Tribulation… but how?"

"This is dangerous," Master Popo said, his tone cold and low. "If we get closer, we'll be subject to heavenly judgment as well. Should we… go and save him?"

Elmo didn't respond as the monster started floating into the air.

"There should be enough time. From what I know, the Heavens judge the subject's strength and adjust the Lightning Tribulation accordingly. It's a fifty-fifty chance," Elmo said.

"So, are you suggesting we should continue?" Master Popo smiled. "Let's go before it's too late!"

Elmo nodded. But the moment they took a step forward, a thunderclap echoed, their ears buzzing before everything went silent! Their eyes widened as they saw a lightning strike engulf the monster and everything within dozens of meters around it!

The impact immediately turned the ground into molten lava, and fierce winds blew, forcing the two Headmasters to take several steps back before raising shields around themselves. Even with the shields, they could still feel how powerful the lightning strike had been.

It came so fast that they hadn't been given a chance to save the small masked man!

The two Headmasters glanced at each other, seeing the disappointment reflected in each other's eyes. They could only sigh heavily before starting their retreat.

Meanwhile, back where the Martial Students were watching:

Filly covered her mouth with her hands while Gail clenched her fist.

"W-why… why is there a Lightning Tribulation all of a sudden?!" Filly exclaimed. Even from their distance, they could feel the pressure emanating from the lightning.

"He… he's dead," Gail muttered, lowering her head to stare at the ground.

Filly didn't answer, her eyes fixed on the light in the distance. Though the lightning had faded, a brilliant glow still lingered where it had struck.

"B-but why him?" Filly asked, but Gail couldn't come up with an answer other than the small masked man being incredibly unlucky.

Axton, overhearing her question, stared at the brilliant light with a raised eyebrow as realization dawned on him.

He's been marked, Axton thought. All this time, there were two marked individuals—one by a nine-tailed and another by a ten-tailed Alphadusk Shadowtail.

The Great Serpent Headmaster saw the two approaching Headmasters while his body was already one-third composed of water.

"The situation is not good," Elmo said gravely, stopping in front of Axton. "The light won't disappear for another five minutes, and the area is too saturated with Heavenly Lightning. Approaching it might trigger the tribulation again."

"We couldn't save the kid," Master Popo sighed heavily.

Axton wasn't surprised but remained suspicious about why the Lightning Tribulation had suddenly been triggered.

There was one likely reason. Cultivators typically trigger a Lightning Tribulation when they reach a certain cultivation stage, usually Core Creation. However, the lightning here was far more powerful than usual—enough to pressurize everyone within a kilometer radius.

"Call the Array Masters," Axton ordered, half of his body already translucent. "Seal off the Tribulation zone and prepare for possible combat."

Elmo immediately understood the reason for the order. He nodded and began sending thought transmissions to the nearest Array Masters. Besides the Martial students on the scene, there were also regular cultivators—official ones—and Array Masters who had chosen to stay and watch.

Soon, white-robed men with inscriptions on their clothes appeared around them. After being informed of the situation, they immediately sprang into action.

They surrounded the bright light and performed a series of hand gestures before countless inscriptions materialized in front of them. The array inscriptions glowed with a yellow-white light, expanding until they covered the radius where the ground had turned to lava. The pressure from the tribulation was contained, preventing it from leaking out.

"This body has reached its limits," Axton said, glancing at Master Popo and Elmo. His body had almost completely turned to water, with only his eyes and head remaining. "I'll need a few more hours before I can create another clone. You two should handle the rest."

"Don't give orders like you're our superior," Elmo chuckled. "Don't worry, I know what to do."

"It's a pity," Master Popo sighed heavily. "A once-in-a-thousand-years talent has died so suddenly."

"That's nothing new," Elmo remarked. "There have been more talented individuals than him who ended up the same. Some are alive but wish they were dead. Only a small percentage manage to succeed."

"It's a curse for the talented. The Heavens don't want too many of them," Axton said as his entire body turned to water.

"He was the perfect disciple for me," the Exhibitionist said with regret.

"Stop daydreaming. No one's more perfect for you than a naked man," Elmo retorted, and soon the two began bickering.

Axton shook his head before turning into a puddle of water, splashing onto the ground.

They had seen and experienced all sorts of things. The death of a talented cultivator was regrettable, but they didn't dwell on it for long. There were more pressing matters at hand.

As the burning white light dispersed, it revealed the massive body of the ten-tailed Alphadusk Shadowtail. The monster's body lay stiff in a pool of lava. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air, and parts of the creature's body began to crack and fall into the molten pool.

One of the array masters studied the scene before shaking his head.

"No signs of life," the array master said, letting out a sigh of relief.

"What about the martial student?" his companion asked.

"Do you think someone at the 4th-Step of Foundation Building could survive a Lightning Tribulation?"

"No."

"Exactly. There's no way he survived that. Just look at the lava and the air distorting from the heat. This place would have turned toxic if not for our inscriptions."

At the same time, the clouds in the sky parted, revealing the brilliance of the moon.

Klown City was in an uproar as rumors spread: a mythical monster had turned out to be real, the Advancement Examination had been disrupted, and the tallest mountain in the region had collapsed from the inside out.

But the news that shocked them most was the Lightning Tribulation, felt throughout the entire city.