Chapter 2124: Smooth Travels To The Lightning Prison

After unraveling the mystery of the Starlight Curtain, the inscriptions on the Crimson Soul Tablet seemed to have advanced a great step in deducing the formula for his rank eight advancement formula.

However, the revelations also brought Shang Xia even more questions than before.

Fortunately, they didn’t confuse him too much or become an obstacle on his journey to a breakthrough.

On the contrary, it was precisely because of those questions that Shang Xia grew even more eager to uncover the true nature of his rank eight advancement formula.

It was also one of the main reasons he was in such a rush to head over to the Lightning Prison in the Flood Star Region.

He was certain that the connection between the Starlight Curtain and his ascension to the Eight Trigram Realm was a complete accident.

Had Mei Jingya not revealed that secret to him in her moment of desperation, Shang Xia would have continued as planned, collecting the origin qi of the eight Star Fields from the forbidden regions scattered across the Chaotic Sea of Stars, slowly pushing forward the tablet’s deductions.

That approach would likely have taken longer, but Shang Xia was confident that once he had gathered all eight kinds of origin qi from the foreign Star Fields, the inscriptions on it would inevitably undergo new changes, opening a new path toward perfecting the advancement formula.

Yet now that the situation across the Chaotic Sea of Stars had become ever more unpredictable, Shang Xia naturally wished to complete the formula sooner, to seize control of the initiative for his own breakthrough into the Eight Trigram Realm.

From what he had already learned about the Starlight Curtain, it was evident that figures like the Star Origin Lord, monsters who had survived for more than 1,000 years, possessed a level of understanding and preparation for the Eighth Order far beyond his imagination.

Perhaps they lacked a treasure like the Crimson Soul Tablet, capable of calculating a perfectly tailored advancement path for its owner, but after centuries of trials, discussions, exploration, and the exchange of secrets, they had likely come close to grasping part of the truth behind the Eighth Order, and had long prepared for it.

At the very least, from what Shang Xia already knew, apart from the Starlight Curtain, there were also things like the Star Core, the Beast Warrior transformation secret arts, and others.

“If I can truly obtain some clues about ascension to the Eighth Order from those old monsters, or from their successors, even mere speculation might further shorten the tablet’s deduction time for my advancement formula. Especially if I could get my hands on some tangible treasures!”

The thought crossed Shang Xia’s mind, but what appeared in his thoughts most vividly was the Star Core the Star Origin Lord held.

He had heard mention of the artifact many times from various sources, and every one of them spoke of its absolute connection to the method to ascend to the Eighth Order.

If he could see it for himself, or better yet, touch it personally, then perhaps the Crimson Soul Tablet’s deduction for his path to the Eight Trigram Realm would progress even further.

Unfortunately, the Star Core had always remained in the Star Origin Lord’s possession. Everyone had heard of it, but no one had ever seen the real object, much less taken it from his hands.

He was only one man, and compared with the Star Origin Lord, who had virtually merged with the Essence Ping World and was likely integrating the Six Essence Heavenly Field into himself, he was still far from being a true match.

On his journey to the Lightning Prison, Shang Xia concealed his tracks and left a clone in charge of his travel while he entered a deep meditative trance.

Although with his cultivation already at the grand completion stage of the Seven Star Realm and he could no longer advance merely through hard practice, such prolonged cultivation allowed him to command his inner qi with increasing mastery, polishing the Big Dipper Star Origin in his dantian until it grew ever denser and purer.

Every bit of that accumulation became part of his foundation, so that when the true opportunity arrived, he would be ready to release it in a single, unstoppable burst.

When Shang Xia finally awoke from his deep meditation, his Star Ship had already neared the Flood Star Region.

Compared to the Towering Star Region, where nearly the entire area had been turned into a tightly-woven network of defensive channels, the Flood Star Region seemed tranquil.

Information about it gathered by the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field from various sources had been scarce, and what little was known suggested that the region was far more stable than most of the Chaotic Sea of Stars. The assaults of foreign Star Fields had caused minimal damage.

For that reason, Shang Xia’s entry into the Flood Star Region went smoothly. So long as he avoided approaching any of its Heavenly Fields too closely, no Sage would notice his presence.

That smooth passage continued as he located the void coordinates of the Lightning Prison.

In his imagination, a place with such a name should have appeared as a realm of endless lightning, vast arcs of lightning raging across the void, illuminating it like a colossal celestial prison, with deafening thunder echoing like the roars of gods and demons shaking heaven and earth.

Yet when Shang Xia drew near, there were no exploding storms, no flashes of lightning tearing the sky, only an endless ocean of clouds, boundless and depthless. No sense of direction or distance could be discerned.

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

It was at that moment that Shang Xia’s presence was first detected.

A rolling surge of clouds stirred nearby, and from within them emerged a man of ordinary appearance. However, his every movement carried immense, hidden might. He was clearly a high-level Sage.

“This fellow cultivator also seeks to enter the Void Thunder Prison to temper his divine soul and will?” the stranger asked.

Shang Xia’s gaze sharpened slightly as he looked at the man. “Greetings, fellow cultivator. I came here out of admiration for this place’s reputation. Yet I find it strange, why is it that one can neither hear thunder nor see lightning here?”

The man laughed heartily. “Whenever visitors come from other Star Regions, eight out of ten will ask that very same question!”

He then explained, “The true power of the Lightning Prison doesn’t lie in lightning striking the body, but in the lightning tribulations that descend upon the cultivator’s divine soul. The ‘prison’ here confines not flesh, but spirit!”

“Every warrior who enters the Lightning Prison does so to temper his own soul and will. They call the process ‘doing time’, and over the ages, everyone began to take that nickname literally. In the end, this place is known as the Lightning Prison.”

Shang Xia nodded slightly. “So that’s how it is. Many thanks for the explanation. Though the purpose of my visit isn’t to temper my soul or my will. Now that I understand, I certainly won’t let the opportunity pass.”

The man was momentarily taken aback, blurting out instinctively, “Not here to temper your soul? Then, may I ask what exactly brings you here, fellow cultivator?”