"I think, Master, you should make an soulbound connection with Blue." Celia said while Cole, Blue and human Shelly was bonding.
"What?" Cole asked, not getting the meaning behind her words.
Pondering Celia raise her head and explain to him her idea, "I just thought that after Blue successfully breakthrough to Tier-5, you could received his insights through your soulbound connection like what happened with sister Virgo and brother Shelly. With the [Heavenly Lightning Concept], you could also absorb natural lightning like Blue and quickly raise your strength."
Cole visibly stop after he heard Celia's advice. So say that he's not interested to the idea was a big fat lie. However, he can't help but felt a little hesitation.
Bolt of lightning was a true horror back at Earth. Even just being electrocuted by appliances was enough lesson that could cause trauma for most humans. And here now, someone saying to him to specifically bath in that sea of lightnings. What more, knowing the standards of this world, with the presence of spiritual energy, lightning here was far more scarier. Add to the fact that it's not normal since its a lightning from Heavenly Tribulation.
However, he knew that whether he likes it or not, he have to bend his standards into crazy way. Bathing in the barrage of lightning was not the first absurd idea he heard and definitely not the last.
Besides, he saw that Blue enjoy bathing in the Heavenly Tribulation as though he's just getting drenched with rain. It was probably the effect of [Heavenly Lightning Concept]. If he really received initial understanding about Blue's [Concept], he could probably achieve that too.
In addition, there's another reason why he wanted to use it too – the fact that he needs a huge amount of energy amount due to his number of cores inside. Although he only have to cultivate the five main elements of Fire, Water, Wood, Earth and Metal to achieve the initial requirements to qualify to reach the next stage, and could follow his other affinities like Space and Time, it was still five times than normal human. Absorbing the huge amount of Lightning-Energy from Heavenly Tribulation might just be the thing that could help him.
According to additional information about [Dantian Genesis Cultivation Method], there were not much restriction if he wants to step to Void Trancendance-Stage, Void Sensing-State in this method, he only have to comprehend a single [Concept] and everything will have the ability to increase the energy stage without the restriction of [Concept].
For instance, even if he breakthrough using the [Moment Control Concept] which is time affinited, his five main elements could also breakthrough to Void Sensing-State standard without their respective [Concept].
Of course, since there's no [Concept] to those affinities, it will be inferior to anyway besides its maximum energy capacity.
However, eventhough [Concept] was not really required, increasing the stage of five elements at once still pose a huge challenge. Celia's proposal was just he needs.
But while was deep with his thought about using the Heavenly Tribulation to make a successful breakthrough, he forgot to think about the thing normal cultivators used when making a breakthrough, like natural treasure of Heaven and Earth or pills.
Perhaps because he achieved his current cultivation without depending on those things, it won't appear in his mind during this time despite the fact that he knew about their use.
In fact, what's his thinking was the method cultivators won't use. But to be fair, they don't have the combination of Cole's unique cultivation methods and techniques.
Other cultivators thinks about warding, blocking and fighting the Heavenly Tribulation, he and his beasts thinks of utilizing it to increase his and their strength.
It didn't take a long thinking before Cole steel his resolve to follow Celia's advice. In any case, leaving the scope of Heavenly Tribulation should be easy for him.
As for the matter of creating a soulbound contract with Blue, they have already achieved the requirement to do that. Blue's loyalty have long since reached 100%, after all, Cole practically raised him from the moment he was born. If he met Blue's dead mother, the Hallucination Fox, he'll confidently said that he raised her son to a wonderful and powerful beast.
At some point, Blue return to his throne, if Shelly was his head, his shoulder. When he look at him, the beast just lick his face which signifies his agreement.
Cole didn't try to said something but just looks at the cute fox with loving gaze. Since he raise Blue from being a baby fox, he treat him just like his first son. Their connection and feeling to one another was no means weaker with real family or relatives.
Without even using the [Summoning Grimoire], Cole try to create a soulbound connection with Blue using [Heavenly Beast God Technique].
Instantly, that strange yet familiar feeling once again felt by Cole. Lights have covered both of them which lasted for a few moments. When the phenomenon was gone and the process was finished, Cole have yet to open his eyes when his face was lick a dozen times by his certain beast.
Since it was a special occasion, Cole didn't stop it but this was definitely the last he'll let his face covered with saliva. It was fortunate that Blue's saliva don't have lighting or else his face will be electrocuted. The thought of that experience is very dreadful.
Outwardly, there's no change for the both of them, it was spiritually that great changes happen to them. There was a strong connection between them, as though it was there in the first place.
As for his soul tree, there were now an additinal [Soul Fruit], which is of course represent Blue. It was an crystallized image that represents their soulbound connection between them, and most of all, their deep trust.
Now, all that was left was for Blue to successfully pass his Heavenly Tribulation and transfer his understanding about his [Concept]. After that, he could absorb Heavenly Lightnings like water.
"Now, all we have to do was to prepare for little brother Blue's Heavenly Tribulation." Celia said out of a sudden which caught Cole's attention again.
A little confused, he asked, "Why do we have to prepare for Blue's tribulation?"
As far as he knew, among them, Blue should have the easiest process of tribulation, after all, he could just stand their and absorb the lightning right? Or there's something he should know?
"Heavenly Tribulation, also known as Heaven's Test, always vary on the one to be tested. Brother Shelly might have faced a normal Heavenly Lightning in his tribulation, but that is expected since he don't have the ability to absorb them. However, since Blue could absorb it, it will be a great nonsense if he could pass tribulation that easily. And so, the tribulation he'll face is definitely different and unique." She paused.
Got suspense, he instantly ask, "Unique what?"
"The different and unique variations of tribulation, like Lightningfire Heavenly Tribulation. Just like what's its name said, this kind of tribulation not only have Lightning and Thunder-Energy to them, it also have the trace of Fire-Energy. If it happens, Blue won't be able to absorb it since it have the trace of fire. He won't have any choice but to defend himself."
Saying that he's not worried after hearing Celia's speculation will be a big fat lie. However, it was reduced drastically when he remember the new skills Blue learned, [Lightning Crystals] and specially [Lightning Gathering Array].
As far as he remember, the latter have to ability to store unabsorbable energy inside the [Lightning Crystals] to be slowly refine and turn into [Heavenly Lightning], which means that even if Blue face those different kind of tribulation, he should not have a problem on getting out alive of tribulation. In fact, he might be able to received some unexpected harvest after the tribulation.
Still, Cole made many preparations for Blue. That includes attaching recovery items both for physical injuries and lost spiritual energy inside his mouth. He could just crush it and swallow for fast application.
And this is where Cole detected that he have to provide his beasts their own spatial storage... So that they could store many things that they needed for every-day life.
After moments of preparations, Blue position himself at the past position where Shelly face his tribulation while him and Celia distance themselves in case the tribulation felt their presence and increase the might and difficulty of lightning barrage. As for Shelly, he have send him inside the [Inner World] beside the Tree of Life for recovery. The Tree of Life might almost none offensive abilities but its recovery skills are very top notch if not the best. With her aid, their recovery was very fast.
After all the preparation and distancing, Blue have finally let his full aura out and summon the tribulation. And so, for the second time, black clouds once again gather on the sky.
It was without a doubt that it attracts the attention of all the creatures inside and out of medicinal garden. One time was very normal but second time definitely wasn't! Even for a whole empire, attracting tribulation twice in a day was very rare occasion, not to say that it happens with almost no interval!
Those people outside could only look at gathering clouds in the sky with astonishment but since they can't enter the ruins, they could only look with anticipation. But that was not the same for those people who enter the medicinal garden.
On a place near Cole, there's a man in her twenties with devilish but handsome appearance was looking at the sky with interest. After debating in his mind for a moment, he still decided to take a look at the reason of the phenomenon.
Taking out a flag like equipment, he fly towards the place but when he enter the darkness, he vanished like a ghost.
Back at Clear Lotus Pond, the giant lotus flower of Yellow Spring Spirit Lotus open and she looks at the sky of black cloud, her face smiling as she thought of her great insight of sending those people away when they make a breakthrough. Or else, just a single tribulation with nine lightning strike was enough to fry her empire of lotus to crisp, not to say that there's a second one.
While the others are having their own thought about the second tribulation phenomenon, Cole look at the sky full of expanding black clouds with all his efforts. He's hoping to predict of what kind of tribulation Blue will have to face.
Boom!!! Krrk!!! Boom!!!
When the black clouds have cover half of the distance Shelly faced, lightning have started to flash and booming sound thunder started to reverberate. It was apparent that the tribulation have started to accumulate lightnings.
After a while, a flash of lightning was seen by Cole outside of the black cloud and instantly, he felt grave. That is because everything was just like Celia's prediction, Blue's tribulation was different from Shelly. He could say this because the lightning he saw was not usual but more like a... silver lightning! Just by the threat he felt by that single view, he knew that this silver lightning was more powerful and destructive!
"That lightning was known as Lightning of Salvation which is known to have the trace of Life-Energy in addition to Lightning-Energy. And don't think that becuase of that Life-Enery that Lightning of Salvation could be considered mild but in fact it used it to amplify its destructiveness to another level." Celia informed Cole when she saw his confused look while looking at that flash of lightning. However, when she saw his worried expression, she immediately, "But don't worry, the good thing about it is that it could heal injuries to some extent after the destruction of lightning."
But when Cole heard this, it didn't lower his anxiety. In fact, after he heard the added destructiveness, almost all that follows didn't register in his head.
"Master, relax. You should believe to Blue. Your nervousness could only affect him detrimentally through your newly established soulbound connection." Celia tried to ease him.
After hearing this, Cole immediately try his best to stabilize his own emotion, fearing that not only he can't help, he might even put Blue to dangerous situation.
After full of worry of waiting, the tribulation have cover the same area as Shelly, which probably signifies that this tribulation was also a nine strike kind.
Several moments later, loud sound of thunder was heard from the cluster of black clouds, lightning have flashed more occasionally than before. A vortex have also formed in the middle of black clouds. It didn't take long before the first lightning strike!
Boom! Bzzt~~ Boom!
For a moment, the whole area was covered with silver radiance that even the powerful eyes of cultivators can't penetrate. It practically turns the whole place in sea of lightning.
With the lack of visual, Cole's felt worried. However, when he don't felt any changes with their soul contracts, his confidence regain.
When the radiance vanish and Blue was revealed again, what greeted them was Blue being covered with his own blue Heavenly Lightning, probably the skill called [Magnetic Field], and the [Lightning Crystals] flashing with rich amount of lightning. However, since the first batch of [Lightning Crystal] contains Heavenly Lightning, the silver color Lightning of Salvation flash continuously in [Lightning Gathering Array] but everything started to subside when a first silver colored [Lightning Crystal] was formed as all of it flow towards it immediately like a steady flow of river water.
Everything happen very fast. Blue have yet to recover fully from the first strike when the second lightning have already formed and attack again!