HUALAThe runes on the array glowed brightly as multiple formation circles appeared in the air.Six pillars rose from the platform's corners and reached a height of a hundred meters. Intricate runes glowed upon them while energy flowed through them.The disciples who witnessed this now understood what was happening."Heavens… He's really going to do it," one of the disciples spoke in shock."He's really going to break through here and now?" The other disciples hadn't expected this."Quick! Inform the Patriarch and the Elders!" one of the disciples shouted, spurring the others into action.The High Elder, though, didn't care about any of this and simply focused on the task at hand."To think after all this time, I have finally reached this point," the High Elder muttered to himself, a smile appearing on his face. "And just when I was about to run out of time too…"Unknown to everyone, the High Elder had been waiting for this moment for a long time. He had been in seclusion because he had been stuck at a bottleneck for thousands of years and was close to exhausting his lifespan. In fact, he barely had a year or two left before he would have been forced to undertake an Immortal Tribulation.Even if they hadn't come to bring him out of his seclusion, he would have come out on his own in a few days. It had simply been brought forward a bit.HUUUThe High Elder took a deep breath as he stared into the sky, where clouds had begun to gather. The clouds turned gray before darkening into black, and soon, arcs of lightning could be seen jumping within them.RUMBLEThe peal of thunder echoed across the entire River Bending Axe Sect, startling all the people.After all, the entire sect was protected by arrays, and as such, there would never be thunderstorms appearing within it. Even if the weather outside was bad, the sect itself would remain unaffected. And yet, all of them could now see the thunderclouds above them.They all rushed outside to take a closer look while the Elders and other higher-ups of the sect sensed the Immortal Qi fluctuations coming from the sky along with a powerful energy.As soon as they sensed it, they all rushed out as well, their eyes going wide as they looked at the sky."Immortal Tribulation? Who's undertaking one right now?" they wondered.All disciples or Elders who were to break through would register for it a long time in advance, ensuring that nearly everyone in the sect would be aware of it. Of course, the Elders wouldn't really care about the common disciples undertaking tribulations, as those didn't require their attention unless it was one of their own disciples.But what was more surprising to them was the presence of the thunderclouds, as that could only mean one thing."Lightning Immortal Tribulation… Who is it? Which Elder is undergoing it?" they all wondered.The majority of the River Bending Axe Sect members practiced water-elemental cultivation techniques, and many of them also had an innate affinity for the water element. As such, most of them followed the usual protocol of taking the Immortal Tribulations in a certain order.And in this order, the Lightning Immortal Tribulation was always the last Immortal Tribulation they took, even if they had other elemental affinities. Even for the rare few disciples that had a Lightning Elemental affinity, they still took it as their last tribulation.As far as they knew, none of those disciples were having their breakthrough right now, thus that only left a few individuals in the sect."We need to see this ourselves." The Elders thought as they all flew out to the Tribulation Platform.RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLEAnd by the time they reached it, the tribulation had already begun.Lightning bolts fell from the sky, targeting the old man who stood in the center of the Tribulation Platform.But before they could reach his body, they were blocked by a barrier made out of black water.BOOM BOOM BOOMEvery strike evaporated a large amount of water, but more would fill the void, strengthening the barrier even further.The thunderclouds in the sky multiplied and soon covered the entirety of the sect, extending beyond its borders.Lightning bolt after lightning bolt fell from the sky, yet none could truly reach the old man who stood unmoving.The number of people watching also grew every second until most of the sect had gathered.SHUAAmong the observers, a middle-aged man soon joined. The man wore deep blue robes adorned with gold embroidery. A large and prominent crest could be seen on his robes, none other than the symbol of the sect.Upon seeing him, the Elders and disciples respectfully bowed."Patriarch." They all greeted.The Patriarch didn't reply to them and instead focused his gaze on the High Elder."To think he would begin his tribulation as soon as he left seclusion," the Patriarch spoke."Is this fine, Patriarch?" one of the Elders asked. "Shouldn't he have informed us in advance?""This is Elder Yannan we're talking about. When has he ever followed protocols?" another Elder scoffed."True… we can't do much about it now that he's already here." The other Elders let out a sigh while the disciples watched in silence.They were all focused on the Immortal Tribulation. After all, it was not every day that they got to observe a Lightning Immortal Tribulation. This would serve as a great lesson for them when it was their own time to undergo it.Of course, whether they could reach that point was entirely unknown.Ninety-nine percent would fail long before that, and many would die before even coming close.Still, they didn't wish to miss out on the insights they could gain from this. The same could be said for the other Elders as well.Hours passed as the tribulation finally ended.HUALAAnd as soon as it did, immense Immortal Qi fluctuations spread from the old man."We Congratulate High Elder Yannan for reaching the Seventh Tribulation Stage of the Immortal Realm!" the disciples shouted in unison.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com