Chapter 1207: The Out-of-Body Tribulation

In the fifth level of the Saint Domain, the Out-of-Body realm, the primordial spirit leaves the body. To become stronger, one must undergo the Out-of-Body Tribulation.

Although a weapon can reach the Out-of-Body realm, its spirituality cannot condense a primordial spirit to break free from constraints. However, it can transform to grow legs and walk like a human, becoming much more agile than before.

The cauldron before them had originally reached the half-step Out-of-Body level. Now, after fusing with the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone, it finally broke through the shackles and triggered the Out-of-Body Tribulation.

The dark clouds grew larger, tearing open the roof, scattering dust, and revealing the sky outside.

The many artificers in the room, seeing for the first time a weapon they had forged reach the Out-of-Body realm, trembled with excitement, and none left.

Crack!

Thunder roared down, countless blue lightning bolts intertwined, as if about to tear the air apart.

This cauldron—how could it trigger the Out-of-Body Tribulation without being tempered?

President Qin was full of disbelief.

Forging a weapon involves three steps: first, melting the metals and ores; second, hammering the weapon body; third, quenching!

For a skilled artificer, the first two are not difficult; the hardest to master is the third.

For many weapons, whether the materials can perfectly fuse and whether the quality can be further improved depends on the artificer's grasp of quenching.

He had failed to understand many of the previous techniques. He had thought that the final quenching would open his eyes and let him truly see the level of a skilled artificer. Never in his dreams did he expect... that before tempering even began, the Out-of-Body Tribulation would be triggered!

It's not that it hasn't been tempered, but... it's about to be tempered!

Master Lin Jie's throat went dry.

About to be tempered? Master, you mean... using thunder to temper?

His pupils contracted, President Qin realized something and his body stiffened.

Correct, he intends to use thunder for quenching... Master Lin Jie nodded.

The Out-of-Body Tribulation is fierce and violent. Even true Out-of-Body realm experts find it hard to withstand. To let a newly promoted weapon use this...

President Qin felt it wasn't him who had gone mad, but that Master Zhang.

The Out-of-Body Tribulation is thunder, ferocious beyond measure. Many Out-of-Body experts fear it and dare not face it head-on! Master Gou of the Master Hall had long broken through his realm, yet he dared not endure a single thunderbolt, because he was old and frail, feeling he couldn't withstand it—a slight misstep would mean his soul scattering.

Such a great calamity, everyone avoids it as much as possible... This fellow actually uses it for quenching, meaning he absorbs the thunder's power into the weapon...

Too bold!

A slight misstep, and all previous efforts would be ruined—that's nothing... The most critical thing is that it might not withstand it and explode on the spot.

An Out-of-Body weapon suddenly exploding is equivalent to a self-destruction of an expert at that level... It could even wipe out their entire branch in an instant.

Completely erased from the Master Continent.

"Everyone, fall back! Guide everyone to evacuate..."

Unable to hold back any longer, he hurriedly shouted orders.

All the七星-level artifact refiners of Qingyuan City had gathered here, intending to attend Master Lin Jie's lecture. If they were all blown to death, it would truly be the end...

"Yes!"

"Run..."

"Quickly go to the Master Hall and summon help... If we can't control it, countless lives will be lost!"

Many artifact refiners also sensed the danger, their faces turning pale as they scrambled to flee outside.

Soon, only Zhang Xuan, Master Lin Jie, Guild Leader Qin, and Chu Xiang remained in the room.

At this moment, Chu Xiang was also pale with fear, trembling uncontrollably. He hurriedly looked at Master Zhang, who was guiding him nearby, only to see the latter standing with his hands behind his back, gazing at the thunder in the sky. Far from showing any fear, he was instead filled with intense excitement.

"Master Zhang..."

He swallowed his saliva and called out.

"Don't worry. It's just the Nascent Soul Tribulation. The Golden Origin Cauldron can definitely withstand it!"

Knowing what the other was worried about, Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

Normal tempering, while it could also unleash the power of the Gold Crystal Mystic Stone, would certainly be far inferior to the forging of thunder. Doing this not only allowed all materials to fuse to perfection but, more importantly, imbued the entire cauldron with the power of thunder, granting a great advantage when battling other Nascent Soul realm experts!

Crack!

As everyone watched in shock, the first bolt of lightning struck down.

It landed on the Golden Origin Cauldron and was effortlessly absorbed, causing no disturbance. Instead, it made the cauldron's luster even more dazzling, as if its texture had become tougher and denser.

"This..." Master Lin Jie could hardly believe it. "This cauldron itself is a mid-grade sacred artifact. Now that it has fused with the Gold Crystal Mystic Stone, it's nothing special that it can withstand the first thunder tribulation. But how is its spirit completely unharmed?"

Spirit, like a shamanic soul, is yin in nature and most afraid of thunder!

When lightning is absorbed into a weapon for tempering, the spirit is naturally attacked... If mishandled, it could be reduced to ashes!

Yet the spirit of this cauldron was completely fine, instead controlling the cauldron to twist wildly in the air, looking smug like a petty villain...

What on earth had happened?

"The spirit of the Golden Origin Cauldron has undergone a thunderous impact before, and its spirit has already transformed. Although the Nascent Soul Tribulation's thunder is not weak, it is still difficult to harm it!"

Seeing that this master was about to go mad, Zhang Xuan shook his head and explained.

In the Sea of Thunder, when the Golden Origin Cauldron saved someone, its spirit was struck by lightning and fell into slumber. What it experienced back then was far more powerful than this...

Even without anyone presiding over it, the power of an eighth-level formation was not something a nascent soul tribulation could compare to.

It was precisely because of this experience that Zhang Xuan dared to use lightning to quench the metal.

"You've experienced thunder?" Only then did Master Lin Jie understand, and he breathed a sigh of relief, but soon showed concern: "The Nascent Soul realm is also divided into four levels: early, middle, late, and peak, corresponding to four thunder tribulations. I wonder... what level can this Gold Origin Cauldron reach?"

For a normal Nascent Soul cultivator, upon reaching the early stage and experiencing the first tribulation, there was only one bolt of lightning. Although it was hard to endure, as long as one could withstand it, the primordial spirit would consolidate and become stronger after the injuries healed. Subsequent tribulations would then be somewhat easier to endure.

From early to middle stage, many people took decades or even centuries to cultivate, so there was enough time for the primordial spirit to heal the wounds caused by the thunder.

Weapons were different.

If it advanced too many levels at once, directly reaching the Nascent Soul peak, it would attract four thunder tribulations—early, middle, late, and peak—all coming together. Without time to recover its spirituality, it would likely be unable to withstand them and shatter.

"Chu Xiang's artifact refining technique is still a bit weak. Although the cooperation was good, it still hasn't reached the Nascent Soul peak—it should be around the late stage!"

After making a calculation, Zhang Xuan said.

Although gold crystal mystic stone was rare and greatly beneficial to weapons, the Gold Origin Cauldron's original material was too weak, and Chu Xiang's refining technique was somewhat lacking... Even with his guidance and no mistakes, reaching the late Nascent Soul stage was the limit.

However, one should not underestimate this level.

Reaching the fifth level of the Saint Domain, every minor step was harder than ascending to heaven, trapping countless people.

With the strength of the late Nascent Soul stage, plus being tempered by lightning, even a normal Nascent Soul peak cultivator might not be a match. Such strength, even in the Qingyuan Title Empire, let alone the Qianchong Title Empire, would be considered top-tier.

"Late Nascent Soul stage? It will have to endure three thunder tribulations... That will be very difficult!"

His mouth twitching, Master Lin Jie's face was full of worry.

Reaching the late stage in one go meant enduring the first, middle, and last tribulations—three bolts of lightning, each more terrifying than the last. To pass through... was as hard as reaching the sky.

"I know!"

Zhang Xuan nodded: "But I believe the Gold Origin Cauldron can succeed!"

Enduring three thunder tribulations at once was very difficult, but... only by enduring them could it be truly tempered and its strength greatly increased.

How can you see a rainbow without experiencing wind and rain?

Although the Gold Origin Cauldron seemed somewhat unreliable, it was a spirit that had lived for who knows how many years, nourished by countless people in the Master Teacher Academy, imbued with the thoughts and spirit of master teachers. It would surely be able to persevere.

Otherwise, back in the Thunder Sea, it would not have fallen asleep but died outright.

Boom!

Amid their conversation, the second bolt of lightning fell again.

This time it was even more ferocious. Before it even arrived, the air was scorched black by the lightning, as if it might tear apart at any moment.

Crack!

Thunderbolts struck the Golden Origin Cauldron, causing it to shudder. Unable to maintain its airborne form, it plummeted straight down, smashing a large crater into the ground.

Though it looked battered, it still held on.

Rumble!

The second bolt ended, and before the cauldron could react, a third thunderbolt came crashing down.

This one was even more powerful, a deep blue electric bolt as thick as a water vat, striking straight at the Golden Origin Cauldron.

"Not good! It's far larger than I imagined—we might not hold out!"

Seeing the might of the lightning, Zhang Xuan lost his earlier composure, his face tightening.

Though he had great faith in the Golden Origin Cauldron, the thunder before him was too terrifying. If it struck directly, the cauldron might be blasted apart on the spot, its spirit scattered and its essence lost.

"Golden Origin Cauldron, devour the earthfire and counter the lightning with fire..."

Knowing that the cauldron alone could not withstand it, Zhang Xuan shouted urgently while flipping his palm, a stack of formation flags appearing in his hand.

He flicked them out.

Swish, swish, swish, swish!

The formation flags landed around the Golden Origin Cauldron, instantly forming a formation to channel the earthfire.

The thunder was immense; resisting it head-on was impossible. Since that was the case, he would meet strength with strength!

Use earthfire to counter the lightning.

Whoosh!

The formation activated, and the surging earthfire was drawn out by the formation, forming deep purple flames.

The Golden Origin Cauldron, knowing this was a life-or-death moment, struggled to climb out of the crater, opened its lid, and took a mighty inhale.

Whoosh!

The flames entered the cauldron's belly, forming a massive fire dragon.

The fire dragon surged out and collided with the third lightning bolt descending from the sky.

Boom!

The earth shook and mountains quaked. The shockwave from the two colossal forces radiated outward, in an instant flattening the artificer's buildings and collapsing countless structures.

"My guild..."

His eyes twitching, President Qin burst into tears.

"You said you wouldn't storm the hall, just let you forge... And now it's come to this. How am I to face my ancestors?"