The storm altered.
Lightning attracted to spears, dozens of them, hanging in mid-air like the gods' swords. The vacancy trembled, all strikes intended not for the soul, but for the flesh.
Li Xian clenched his teeth, blood dripping from his mouth. His skin was already charred, red veins pulsating with a dim light under the burns. Every breath rattled his ribs, creaking by the previous strike.
The system's voice echoed, unyielding and firm:
Tribulation Phase II: Trial of the Body.
[Goal: Endure devastation agony. Defeat = total collapse.]
He laughed, gruff and rasping, defiance burning in his eyes. "Heaven wishes me to be broken? Then it ought to have employed more chains."
---
The spear fell.
It bit into his shoulder with a crunching blow, flesh torn apart, bone shattering viciously. He stumbled back, scarlet qi rushing to repair his body while blood flowed unimpeded.
The next one hit, gliding into his thigh. He dropped onto one knee, gasping, red wings pulsing.
"Li Xian!" Su Yao shrieked, jade hands grasping his arms, her white light flowing into his wounds. Each strike that reduced him to ashes seared her as well, their bond holding them together.
Her body trembled, blood seeping at the corner of her lip as she suffered alongside him. Her gaze stayed resolute nonetheless.
If you drop, I drop with you!"
The third spear strike, shattering the ground they stood upon. Their red and white shield shattered, blood gushing over the void.
---
Mei Ling at the edge of the tempest, mouth ajar, dagger clutched tightly in her trembling hand.
"So much suffering… so much blood… and still he laughs." She panted, half-mad. "I've murdered so many soldiers… but not so pretty a one as this."
---
The spears fell faster now, a pain blizzard. They burned through bone and muscle, cutting flesh from their bodies.
Li Xian's gasps grew harder, his laughter harsh but unfailing. His body was tattered wounds and scarlet light laid bare, and yet he remained.
Su Yao, white and sweating profusely, clung to him with all her qi. Her bony body shook involuntarily, her veins bulging as Heaven's lightning also destroyed her.
Her voice, though, pierced the thunder, fresh and unbreakable.
"If Heaven wants to kill you… then it has to kill me too!"
Her cry filled the void.
The system hesitated.
> [Warning: Host's body at 98% collapse.]
[Dual Cultivation resonance triggered.]
[Pain shared. Burden halved.]
The lightning spears shattered in mid-air, their force halved, shared equally between the two.
Li Xian gasped, then laughed once again, crimson eyes blazing.
"Heaven itself cannot stand between us."
---
The storm raged, infuriated. The void grew wider, new lightning building above — stronger, sharper, deadlier.
The Trial of the Body was not yet finished.
And neither were they.