"HEAVENLY LIGHTNING!!! COME FORTH!!!"
Tran Kien's roar was not an act of arrogance, but a declaration of war. A declaration of an unyielding will, daring to confront and borrow the power of heavenly might itself!
Heaven and Earth seemed to still for a single moment. The wind ceased blowing. The rain stopped falling. Only the luminous, righteous, and domineering aura radiating from Tran Kien remained, akin to a solitary, resplendent lighthouse amidst the pitch-black sea, provoking the wrathful heavens.
And the azure sky answered.
"CRACK... BOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!"
A sound that defied description. It was not mere thunder; it was the roaring of the entire cosmos. The pitch-black sky was torn asunder by a colossal silver rift. From within that rift, a bolt of lightning—no, a true lightning dragon—immense and more ferocious than any previous strike, plummeted downward, carrying the momentum to obliterate all creation!
For that instant, the entire world was reduced to a blinding, boundless white light.
Old Kinh, clinging desperately to the mast, could only widen his single eye, which overflowed with terror and utter disbelief. He had spent his entire life on the sea, witnessing the most horrific storms, but never—never had he beheld a scene of such divine and demonic proportions.
The lightning did not target Tran Kien alone. It targeted an entire swath of the sea.
The moment it struck, the sturdy Ironwood boat was hurled into the air by an irresistible, massive force. Tran Kien, standing at the bow, was the first to bear the brunt of that destructive power.
"Ugh!"
He didn't even have time to cry out. His entire body felt as if crushed beneath ten thousand mountains. The layer of Primordial Chaos Qi protecting his exterior shattered like glass. The domineering lightning, carrying pure, destructive Yang energy, madly flooded into his body, ravaging every meridian, incinerating every fiber of muscle and every segment of bone.
But precisely at that moment, the Sun Essence Guardian fragment within his chest erupted with a brilliant golden halo, desperately shielding his heart meridian and divine soul, preserving a final thread of life force.
He was blasted away, smashing heavily into the mast. Fresh blood sprayed like a fountain; his entire body was charred black as coal. He then lost consciousness, his life or death unknown.
Yet that lightning dragon, having passed through Tran Kien, did not diminish in the slightest. Carrying its residual momentum, it plunged straight into the surface of the sea.
Directly into the location of the Black Ink Demon King!
"ROA...O...O...OAR!!!"
This time, it was no longer a ferocious bellow. It was a miserable, agonizing howl of absolute despair.
The overlord of the sea, a water-attribute demonic beast, facing the pure Yang, destructive power of heavenly lightning, had met the greatest nemesis of its existence. The terrifying surge of electrical energy instantly incinerated its colossal form from the inside out.
The surrounding seawater boiled furiously. A plume of pitch-black smoke, carrying the acrid stench of charred flesh, billowed into the sky. The massive, hill-sized body of the Black Ink Demon King convulsed madly, its dozens of tentacles flailing chaotically, creating horrifying pillars of waves.
Then, slowly, slowly... its struggles weakened. The light faded from its eyes, which were as large as silver platters. Its gargantuan, charred body rolled over, revealing its pallid belly, before silently sinking into the abyssal depths, never to surface again.
The overlord of these waters had been judged by a strike of heavenly lightning, its soul and spirit entirely shattered.
And strangely, after that horrific lightning strike descended, the storm seemed to have exhausted all its fury. The black clouds in the sky slowly dispersed. The wind also weakened. The torrential downpour was reduced to a light drizzle.
The sky cleared, and the clouds parted. All that remained was a devastated wooden boat, drifting lazily upon the still-rippling sea, and two figures—one old, one young—their life or death unknown.
"Cough... cough..."
Old Kinh was the first to regain consciousness. The shockwave had inflicted considerable injury to his internal organs, but fortunately, it was not life-threatening. He struggled to his feet, surveying the surrounding scene.
The main mast had snapped in two. The sail was torn to shreds. The deck was covered in scorch marks. But thanks to being crafted from sturdy Ironwood and protected by array formations, the boat had not shattered—a true miracle.
He cared not for those things. He staggered toward the bow, where Tran Kien lay motionless.
"Boy! Boy, wake up!"
Trembling, he placed a hand beneath Tran Kien's nose. There was still breath. Faint, but present.
He hastily examined the youth's injuries. His entire body was charred black; his clothes had turned to ash. The flesh in many places was cracked open, revealing the white bone beneath. The Qi within his body was incredibly chaotic; a domineering surge of lightning energy was madly ravaging his meridians.
Old Kinh, who had spent his life on the sea and witnessed countless gruesome scenes, couldn't help but feel a sudden spike of dread. He knew that with such injuries, even a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator would surely die.
But he discovered something bizarre. Despite such severe injuries, within Tran Kien's body, a remarkably robust and tenacious life force was slowly, slowly healing the damage, contending against the destructive lightning energy. It was the power of the Dragon Vein.
"A monster... truly a monster..." Old Kinh murmured.
He dared not delay. He hastily brought out the finest blood-stanching and healing herbs he had, carefully applying them to Tran Kien's wounds. He also utilized his own meager spiritual energy to help stabilize the youth's chaotic Qi.
Days passed.
The devastated boat drifted aimlessly upon the boundless sea. Old Kinh, alone, had to care for Tran Kien while simultaneously mending the sail and repairing the rudder. He employed all his survival knowledge.
Tran Kien remained comatose. He felt as if he were inside a pill furnace. Within his body, an uncompromising battle raged. The domineering lightning energy of the heavenly strike and the Primordial Chaos Qi carrying the life force of the Dragon Vein continuously clashed, merged, and separated.
His body would alternate between being scorching hot as fire and freezing cold as ice. But after each conflict, the lightning energy seemed to be tamed just a fraction, becoming a part of the Primordial Chaos Qi.
On the seventh day following the storm.
Old Kinh sat beside Tran Kien, applying a fresh layer of medicine. Suddenly, Tran Kien's charred fingers twitched slightly.
Then, he slowly opened his eyes.
Within his profound eyes, a streak of silver lightning seemed to flash before vanishing.