Chapter 138: Surviving the Tribulation

“This man is a young friend of mine. There is no need for you to speculate. All of you, return to seclusion and prepare for war.”

The Ancestor of the Mo Family issued this declaration, preventing anyone from spying on them. But at that moment, Lin Fan had no time to concern himself with such matters, for a tremendous transformation had erupted within his body.

“The Celestial-Human Realm must endure the Five Decays. Each one is an immense trial, representing Heaven’s test of the individual. Only after surviving every decay can one truly be considered a cultivator—and one acknowledged by Heaven and Earth at that.”

Lin Fan’s consciousness turned these thoughts over in his mind. He had adjusted himself to his absolute peak condition in order to pass this decay as steadily as possible.

“The Five Decays represent five interrogations by Heaven and Earth. The path of cultivation is difficult—more difficult than ascending to the heavens.”

Lin Fan sighed. Then he cast aside all other thoughts and focused completely on facing the calamity.

Boom!

At that moment, a bolt of red lightning tore through the void and descended directly upon Lin Fan. Strangely, however, it did not damage anything in the mortal world.

Lin Fan’s eyes suddenly opened, glowing with a faint, eerie radiance, as though he had just awakened. He then saw a beam of light merge into his body.

“This is the Blood Decay.”

Lin Fan spoke to himself without making the slightest movement, as though he were merely an outsider observing the scene.

The Blood Decay was exactly what its name implied: the decay of one’s blood.

Before long, Lin Fan’s blood began to evaporate, slowly vanishing into thin air. Soon, he was reduced to skin and bones, his body covered in wrinkles, making him look like an old man on the verge of being buried.

“What a terrifying decay. This is only the first, the Blood Decay. The Bone Decay and Soul Decay that follow will undoubtedly be even more perilous.”

Lin Fan’s entire body trembled as unprecedented agony spread through him. The power of the Celestial-Human Decay could not be resisted. It swept through his blood like a force of destruction, obliterating it utterly—even the trace of gold disappeared.

Three days passed in this manner. Throughout the entire ordeal, Lin Fan could clearly feel his blood vanishing. In the end, nothing remained but a skeleton and a shriveled layer of dead skin.

The process was excruciating—ten thousand times more painful than the bites of countless ants. Yet Lin Fan endured it from beginning to end without uttering a single cry of pain.

“What astonishing willpower. Under normal circumstances, the first decay would merely evaporate and refine one-fifth of a person’s blood. I have never heard of blood being completely dried up. This is already a calamity on the level of the Five Decays of the Celestial-Human Realm. Clearly, Lin Fan is not merely at the Fourth Decay, and the fluctuations of the calamity are not particularly great either. Otherwise, his blood would have been dried up in an instant.”

The distant Ancestor of the Mo Family glanced at Lin Fan in surprise. In the end, however, he closed his eyes again. Although the power of this decay was formidable, it was still not enough to concern him.

Three days later, the power of the Blood Decay finally came to a halt. Lin Fan’s blood, however, had not returned, and he remained a mere skeleton.

Another three days passed before Lin Fan opened his eyes once more. He had finally passed the Blood Decay safely, but the suffering involved had been astonishing. If every drop of a person’s blood were drained away, how many could endure the agony? It was not uncommon for powerful Celestial-Human Realm cultivators to perish during the Blood Decay.

Yet before Lin Fan could catch even a moment’s breath, the blood-red clouds in the sky sent another streak of crimson light plunging downward.

“How can it be happening so quickly?!”

Lin Fan’s consciousness remained intact, and for the first time it emitted a fluctuation. By all ordinary reasoning, after the Blood Decay ended, there should have been a period of recovery. This accorded with Heaven’s supposed mercy toward living beings: even beneath a calamity of life and death, a chance for survival should remain.

But the immediate descent of the Bone Decay completely overturned that principle. It was practically an attempt to kill him outright.

“Damn it!”

Lin Fan cursed furiously, but he had no time to dwell on it. He threw himself back into the tribulation. The power of the Bone Decay was more than a level stronger than that of the Blood Decay. The slightest carelessness would result in complete annihilation.

Crack, crack.

Almost immediately, the sound of breaking bones rang out. Had anyone else been present, they would have clearly seen Lin Fan’s skeleton shaking at a strange rhythm, as though a gigantic hand were crushing it inch by inch.

Fragments of bone began to drift downward. These were impurities within his bones, forcibly stripped away.

There was no denying that the Celestial-Human Decay was a tremendous opportunity—but it was an opportunity fraught with extreme danger. The slightest mistake meant the destruction of both body and soul.

If Lin Fan could survive this decay, his strength would undoubtedly rise tremendously. He had even begun to suspect that, after passing through all five decays, his natural talent might rise another level, reaching the rank of one rarely seen in seven thousand years.

Before long, the entire room resounded with cracking noises, one after another without end. Eventually, they were like peals of thunder. Every sound signified another bone in Lin Fan’s body breaking apart.

The pain was unimaginable. Lin Fan’s bone marrow slowly dissipated until not the slightest trace remained.

This was the Bone Decay. Yet Lin Fan’s consciousness remained intact, and a sliver of vitality still endured.

To survive the Bone Decay, Lin Fan needed an unwavering will to preserve that last spark of life. The moment his spirit faltered, his body and soul would be destroyed.

Lin Fan continued to endure—not merely because of the lethal danger concealed within the decay.

Once broken, his bones would re-form several times stronger than before. This meant that his physical body would become far more powerful. Thus, although he was suffering an agony beyond words, he persisted.

The difference between Lin Fan’s Celestial-Human Decay and that of others lay in its intensity. For reasons unknown, his decay was perfect, nearly equivalent to the complete Five Decays normally experienced by others. Yet at present, he had only reached the First Decay. Once he survived it, however, the benefits would be beyond imagination.

“A mere Celestial-Human Decay cannot stop me. These are only external forces. As long as I do not wish to die, no one can make me fall!”

Lin Fan roared inwardly.

The Human Sovereign’s Sacred Statue, which had long been dormant, stirred once more. Strands of golden patterns spread outward, covering Lin Fan’s bones. They were changing his constitution at its very foundation, allowing him to cast off his former mortal body completely.

Another full half-month passed before the Bone Decay finally ended. Lin Fan awoke from it, and an immense vitality erupted from within his body.

Before long, his bones re-formed, gleaming with golden radiance and possessing an extraordinary quality. They were far stronger than before. Then his blood reappeared—golden and sacred, like the blood of a god. At the same time, the pressure naturally emanating from Lin Fan became even more formidable, leaving the spirit trembling.

“The Blood Decay and Bone Decay of the Celestial-Human Tribulation have both been overcome perfectly. Now only the final Soul Decay remains. I wonder what kind of spectacle it will bring.”

Lin Fan opened his eyes, his former appearance restored. He waited for the arrival of the final decay.

By then, the war between the Mo Family and the Yi Family had already begun. The Ancestor of the Mo Family had personally entered the fray and was no longer in the great residence. However, he had recognized Lin Fan’s condition and had not disturbed him. He had merely instructed his servants to invite Lin Fan to the Yi Family once he awoke.