Chapter 342: A Terrifying Divine Ability

Yang Tian had already braved the pressure emanating from the stone statue no fewer than a hundred times. It not only tempered his physique, laying a solid foundation, but also refined his soul body, making it more compact. His soul body was now on the verge of breaking through to the middle stage of Soul Tempering.

Cultivation of the soul body grew increasingly difficult as one progressed. Even many powerful experts only managed to reach the Soul Tempering realm, and the seven chakras required vast amounts of soul power to break their shackles.

Yang Tian's Soul Refining Art, however, was a fearsome soul cultivation technique that allowed him to devour soul bodies to cultivate, achieving extremely fast progress.

In the sky, a fierce aura instantly filled the heavens. The sky-covering scroll blazed with golden light, obscuring the firmament, emitting heart-stopping roars that caused heaven and earth to change color.

This artifact was extraordinarily astonishing. With Yang Tian's current cultivation, he could not even activate its power. A supreme celestial weapon was far more terrifying than the Black Demon Sword.

A tear opened in the scroll, and Yang Tian and the others stepped inside. Compared to the sea of dan energy before, it had now greatly diminished. The internal elixirs had been heavily consumed over this period.

But the effects were extraordinary. Xiao Qing and Xiao Bai had made significant progress in strength. Awakening the mysterious energy within them required a powerful foundation, and even a single sacred land could not afford to support a fully grown divine beast!

On the altar, the mysterious stone statue overlooked the land, motionless since ancient times. But Yang Xiao dared not underestimate it. In life, it must have been a terrifying figure of heaven and earth. Even a mere remnant of its will blocked Yang Xiao's path.

Yang Xiao had already touched the threshold of the Manifest Saint realm, and his soul body was terrifyingly powerful. Yet even he was wary, showing how fearsome this person must have been—likely a supreme human expert from the ancient era.

Yang Tian walked over. The oppressive force at the periphery posed no obstacle to him. He strode swiftly, covering most of the distance in a single breath.

Rumble! When he was still five zhang from the statue, a terrifying soul pressure emerged, surging wildly toward his brow.

Yang Tian was used to it. He had experienced many soul-killing attacks here, but each time he relied on his soul space to evade the terrible onslaught. He couldn't help but marvel at his past fortune.

The soul crystal was so hard it was terrifying. Unless attacked by a supreme artifact, it would not shatter, and Yang Tian's soul body remained safe.

Bang! Yang Tian suddenly lifted his foot and took a full zhang step. The terrifying pressure descended abruptly, forming what seemed like a mountain range above his head.

Bang! He took another large step. Heaven and earth rumbled like thunder, shaking his eardrums. The immense pressure had multiplied several times.

Exceeding the previous limit, Yang Tian murmured, looking at the distance of three zhang. His blood surged, crimson light blazing for a thousand zhang, like a great furnace burning.

He shouted, and his foot stomped heavily. The terrifying step shook the entire altar, yet the rock beneath remained undamaged.

Heaven and earth kept rumbling. The dreadful pressure increased geometrically, and every bone in Yang Tian's body creaked.

Gritting his teeth, Yang Tian moved his foot. Every inch of his flesh and blood leaped, emitting soul-shaking sound waves like ancient divine roars.

When he was still a zhang away, the stone statue seemed to come alive. Stars and rivers flickered in its eyes, and a wave emanated from within that made heaven and earth tremble.

Crack! Bones snapped. Yang Tian's spine bent slightly. The incredibly intense pressure scraped against his body like sharp swords.

He roared, black hair dancing, crimson light for a thousand zhang. Vigorous essence swirled through the void, and infinite divine light shot from his eyes as he suddenly took half a step.

Rumble! The entire altar shook violently, as if a giant was trampling it. Overwhelming pressure descended, distorting even the divine light Yang Tian emitted.

Threads of terrifying aura seeped in, drawing blood from Yang Tian's body—a physique just tempered by the Golden-Winged Roc's essence blood. This showed how fearsome the pressure was.

Yang Tian shouted, lightning blazing from his eyes. His body turned into a sea of thunder. Like a minor divine king, he bathed in myriad thunderbolts, standing tall between heaven and earth, exuding an invincible aura.

Bang! He stomped forward, using thunder to clear a path of destruction. Terrifying lightning spread across the entire altar, giving rise to strange phenomena.

With a hum, a supreme attack descended! A dreadful force struck at Yang Tian's back, tearing through the void instantly—an extremely terrifying killing blow.

Roar! As if Yang Tian had eyes in the back of his head, a giant dragon emerged, crouching behind him. It raised its head and roared, shaking the surroundings. Heaven and earth quaked with boundless divine power.

Hum! The killing strike was terrifying, like a ferocious beast, tearing apart the dragon's head and shattering its entire body.

Get lost! Yang Tian bellowed, essence energy swirling, thunder surging. Like a divine demon, his eyes shot out a fearsome river of stars, enveloping the area. Then a sun and moon appeared above his head, fully protecting him.

Suddenly, heaven and earth rumbled. The terrifying force in the air emitted a strange power.

Something's wrong! Yang Tian's heart tightened. The myriad thunderbolts instantly contracted, forming a huge thunder bell that heavily shielded his body.

Boom! With a loud crash, the dreadful force actually penetrated the river of stars. This was a terrifying divine ability, causing even Yang Xiao's expression to change.

Pfft! Yang Tian's body stiffened. His bones cracked, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. A bloody hole on his back spurted blood.

At that moment, Yang Tian roared. The dragon around his body suddenly dispersed, turning into layers of essence energy that surged like a sea, washing over his physique.

The bloody hole on his back began to coagulate, and his bones crackled with clanging sounds. The essence energy from the dragon healed his physical wounds.

Rumble! The purple dragon in Yang Tian's bloodline stirred, circulating within his body. The surrounding terrifying essence energy transformed into surging blood energy, flowing through him.

Boom! Yang Tian gritted his teeth and stepped forward. The technique he had just used was recorded in the Dragon Transformation Art, but it could not be used too many times, or it would harm his origin and bloodline.

Hum! Heaven and earth rumbled. The dreadful attack came again. Yang Tian gnashed his teeth in frustration. This attack was impossible to defend against—too terrifying, a rare great divine ability that could bypass certain obstacles.

After three consecutive such terrifying attacks, Yang Tian nearly bled to death. Most of his bones were shattered, and his body was drenched in blood, almost staining the sky.

Hum! Another supreme strike descended. Yang Tian felt like cursing, but his fingers had already touched the purple jade box. At that instant, the terrifying pressure seemed to dissipate.

Heaven and earth returned to normal. The stone statue seemed to come alive, emitting a tremor. It remained motionless, as if choosing a successor.

Is it over? Sensing that the world had returned to normal, Yang Tian scratched his head and looked at the statue. He could feel that the dreadful pressure still existed.

Yang Tian did not linger. He took the two jade boxes and quickly retreated. If the attacks had come a few more times, his chances of obtaining the boxes would have been very low.