When Destiny Brings the Demon

The Shi clan was an enormous family, with its main branch residing in the inner mansion. There were hundreds of notable direct descendants, each with their own children—the lower their cultivation level, the more offspring they tended to have. Every Shi clan member, once their bloodline was recognized, received a jade token symbolizing their identity. This token granted them access to several trial and training grounds controlled by the Shi clan within the inner mansion.

For instance, there was Thunderclap Valley, which could block Tribulation Lightning to the greatest extent; the medicinal pool that healed wounds and cleansed chronic ailments; the Tranquil Spirit Platform that suppressed inner demons and allowed for peaceful cultivation—as long as Shi clan members met certain requirements, they could enter these places. The clan possessed many such treasured sites, and over generations, the Shi clan had produced countless talents, firmly securing their grip on Gengchen Immortal Mansion.

These places were naturally unique and heavily guarded. Apart from Shi clan disciples, even members of the Mu clan—who shared the closest ties with the Shi clan through generations of intermarriage—were denied entry.

Liao Tingyan was unaware of these details. Sima Jiao never spoke much about such matters, and whatever arrangements he made, he never explained them thoroughly.

With the little white mouse Shi Yuxiang in tow, she successfully passed through the layers of guards and entered Thunderclap Valley.

This valley was entirely different from the exquisite beauty of the immortal mansion outside. It seemed like another world—no mountains, rivers, plants, or clever beasts in sight, only deep purple thunderstones scattered everywhere. Some towered like buildings, while others were as low as park benches, arranged irregularly like a massive quarry.

Liao Tingyan entered alone. Before setting off, Sima Jiao had told her, "I won’t accompany you. Go by yourself."

Fine.

She didn’t think much of it at first, but upon entering and realizing she was the only one in the entire valley, it suddenly struck her that she had been by Sima Jiao’s side almost constantly since arriving in this world. The longest they’d been apart was three days. This time, for her breakthrough, she’d likely have to stay here for half a month.

But it wasn’t unfamiliar to her. After all, before meeting Sima Jiao, she had lived alone for many years. What working adult hadn’t experienced solitary life? If she had any strengths, adaptability was one of them.

Thunderclap Valley was vast. Liao Tingyan stood at the entrance for a while, scanning the area before picking a direction to walk in.

She found a thunderstone shaped remarkably like a bench, cast a spell to wash it with water, dried it with a wind spell, then laid out a soft cushion and propped up a parasol.

She hadn’t forgotten the unlucky little white mouse Shi Yuxiang, whom she’d brought along as a pass. She took out a soundproof cover and placed it over the mouse, setting it aside.

After finishing these preparations, she thought for a moment and cast a warning spell to encircle her resting spot. It never hurt to be cautious when alone.

Others who entered would nervously hurry to find a spot to sit cross-legged and cultivate, consolidating their strength. But Liao Tingyan? After her setup, she simply lay down, as if she’d come here for a nap.

On a tall, deep-purple thunderstone in the distance sat Sima Jiao, who had claimed he wouldn’t accompany her through the tribulation. One hand rested on his knee, while the other toyed with a small, dark thunderstone as he watched Liao Tingyan from afar.Seeing Liao Tingyan's behavior, he suddenly recalled the first time he met her—she had been exactly like this. Among all the people sent to approach him for various purposes, while others were nervous and worried, she alone had been lazily napping.

Wherever she went, she always arranged everything perfectly for herself.

Sima Jiao played with the Thunderheart Stone for a while. As the sky gradually darkened, his movements paused, and he leaned slightly forward.

There was movement near Liao Tingyan—not because she had woken up, but because long worms had emerged from beneath the thunderstones not far from her. Not just one, but many, almost surrounding her.

These worms were called Sound-Swallowing Worms, known for devouring sound. The Thunderclap Valley was so silent precisely because of these creatures. Otherwise, in such an open and unique terrain, even the slightest sound would echo endlessly.

These worms were insignificant to a Transformation Stage cultivator, but if Liao Tingyan panicked and didn’t know how to deal with them, she might suffer a bit.

Sima Jiao had never seen Liao Tingyan kill anything. This lazy worm seemed incapable of most things and unwilling to kill. Sometimes, he felt she was out of place in this world.

His hand pressed against the stone surface, his body tensing to move forward, but suddenly, he stopped.

Liao Tingyan woke up. She saw the worms—no shock, no panic. She simply took out a few pills, crushed them into powder, and scattered it around. Then she pulled out a wide-mouthed jar and collected all the dazed worms inside.

Sima Jiao realized she had been prepared, which surprised him. But why was she collecting these worms?

After dealing with the worms, Liao Tingyan washed her hands and face, applied a facial mask, and ate something. Then she took out a book and two jade slips, flipping through them.

Sima Jiao understood—she was preparing for her breakthrough. But why was she reviewing materials at the last moment?

He didn’t know that modern exam-oriented education produced talents with exceptional psychological resilience. Resting well before a test, maintaining a relaxed state, and reviewing summarized key points for reassurance—this was Liao Tingyan’s habit.

Once fully prepared, she began her tribulation.

At this point, Liao Tingyan was still quite relaxed. She had read books at the academy, filling in her foundational knowledge. With her average-to-good aptitude and Spirit Root, advancing from the Transformation Stage to the Void Refining Stage usually meant facing the Four-Nine Heavenly Tribulation—nine major lightning strikes, each preceded by four minor ones.

The Thunderclap Valley’s unique terrain weakened the Tribulation Lightning. She also had the ultra-strong defenses crafted by her ancestor and her own cultivation to rely on. Nothing could go wrong.

But her relaxed mood turned uneasy as her cultivation reached completion, the breakthrough imminent, and thunderclouds gathered in the sky.

Her thunderclouds were unusually thick, tinged with purple, stretching across the entire sky. The faint flashes within hadn’t even struck yet, but the oppressive weight was already palpable.

This was Liao Tingyan’s first time facing a tribulation. The sheer scale of it felt off—far more exaggerated than the descriptions in the books.The first bolt of heavenly lightning was even more terrifying than she had imagined. The massive pillar of thunder descended with overwhelming force, its sheer momentum clearly aimed at reducing its target to ashes.

Liao Tingyan thought to herself, This is only the first Tribulation Lightning. Cultivators in this world really have it rough!

After the first round, she was stunned. This didn’t seem like the Four-Nine Heavenly Tribulation—it was the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation! Nine major thunder calamities, with nine minor ones in between each major one. She counted one full cycle and confirmed it without a doubt, her heart sinking halfway. This damn Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation—did the heavens make a mistake and send the wrong one?

The Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation was an exceedingly rare ordeal, not lightly bestowed. It was usually reserved for Mahayana-stage cultivators on the verge of transcending their mortal forms and ascending to immortality. Such severity was because achieving divinity while still in human form defied the natural order, warranting the harshest of trials. As for a rookie like her—what qualifications did she have to face this?

It was like preparing for a sixth-grade math test, only to be handed an advanced calculus exam.

Liao Tingyan couldn’t make sense of it for the longest time. She watched as the Tribulation Lightning crashed down relentlessly onto her head, the flashes of electricity and thunder merging into a blinding radiance that made it impossible to keep her eyes open. Even with her Defensive Magic Treasure, the crown of her skull ached faintly from the strikes, and her skin tingled with numbness.

She could even hear faint cracking sounds from the Beaded Necklace Collar around her neck—the sound of its defenses shattering as they struggled to block the lightning. The overlapping sounds of breaking and thunder left no doubt in her mind: the moment her Defensive Magic Treasure failed, she would be blown to smithereens.

Perhaps because she was immersed in the tribulation, she felt a fleeting connection to the heavens and earth. She sensed the killing intent within the lightning—not a test, but a pure, unadulterated intent to annihilate her.

Strangely, at this moment, Liao Tingyan thought of Sima Jiao.

She remembered how, before she left, that ancestor of hers had arrogantly declared, "If I don’t let you die, you won’t die." If she really ended up as charred fragments here, wouldn’t that be a slap to his face? It’d definitely sting.

Might as well struggle a little longer.

Liao Tingyan monitored the limits of her Defensive Magic Treasure, circulating her spiritual power in preparation to endure another wave.

She had lost track of how many bolts of the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation had struck. Each one came with terrifying force, showing no mercy, battering her without respite. When she sensed the Beaded Necklace Collar had only one last line of defense remaining, she braced herself to take over.

Just then, the thunder roared violently. Amid the blinding white flashes, Liao Tingyan saw a dark figure appear before her.

He stood there, his long sleeves and black hair whipping in the storm. His pale arm, stretched upward, was laced with purple arcs of electricity, resembling bulging veins. With a vicious motion, he seized the descending heavenly lightning and tore it apart with his bare hands.

Liao Tingyan: "..." Tearing lightning apart barehanded—ancestor, you’re still the ancestor.

As she tried to move forward, Sima Jiao—as if he had eyes on the back of his head—reached back and pressed a hand against her head, forcing her to stay seated.

Through the deafening thunder, she heard his voice clearly. It was cold, laced with unwilling resentment and fury—but none of it directed at her. "Sit still. You won’t die. I said so."

Instinctively, she wanted to ask, "Then what about you?" But the words never left her lips. She simply sat quietly.Sima Jiao didn’t have the towering physique of a bodybuilder, yet standing there, he resembled a majestic mountain—so imposing it seemed he could prop up the heavens and earth. A single glance at him evoked fear, as if his very presence declared, "Trash like you could never scale my Mount Everest."

Liao Tingyan had just realized something was wrong with the Tribulation Lightning, and her heart was filled with panic and shock. But now, seeing Sima Jiao standing there, she inexplicably felt at ease. She didn’t even notice that, despite the Tribulation Lightning not yet passing—and in fact growing even more terrifying, like the wrath of an enraged being—she had unconsciously relaxed.

Sima Jiao’s eyes were crimson. Flames surged from his body, rising skyward to meet the bolts of lightning and thunder. There was a phrase—"heavenly thunder striking earthly fire"—used to describe two people falling passionately and swiftly in love. Now, Liao Tingyan was witnessing the real version of it.

Sima Jiao’s flames spread like the thunderclouds above, erupting like a volcano, wrapping around the lightning pillars. The entwined thunder and fire were deafening, their clash shaking heaven and earth. Caught in the midst of this cataclysmic tribulation, Liao Tingyan could barely breathe under its overwhelming pressure. She couldn’t even stand, making her all the more awestruck by Sima Jiao.

Not only did he remain standing, but he also tore through one Tribulation Lightning after another. Liao Tingyan saw his fingers split open by the lightning, Blood Beads scattering from them, suspended in the air. Crushed by the violent storm of thunder and fire, they took the shape of flowers—like red lotuses—before suddenly igniting.

The scene was hauntingly beautiful, as if not of this world. Blood trickled down Sima Jiao’s upraised arm, his entire body seemingly ablaze.

Above, purple thunderclouds and violet-white lightning raged, while below, flames wrestled with the thunderbolts. The thunderstones around them hummed faintly under the influence of the storm, their deep purple surfaces blooming with pale violet radiance where touched by the thunderfire, like flowers blossoming from stone. All light erupted here.

...

Finally, the last Tribulation Lightning dissipated. The world fell into abrupt silence, leaving only a ringing in the ears, a sudden illusion of deafness.

The thunderclouds still churned overhead, as if unwilling to relent.

Sima Jiao lowered his hand and gave the sky a cold, mocking laugh, filled with resentment and disdain.

Another bolt of lightning suddenly struck down—but this time, it wasn’t tribulation lightning, just an ordinary thunderbolt, lashing out at him in fury. Sima Jiao flicked his sleeve, dispersing it, the Blood Beads on his fingers splattering onto a nearby thunderstone.

He turned, looking down at Liao Tingyan, who sat gazing up at him. With his bloodstained fingers, he gently brushed her cheek.

His fingers were cold. His blood was warm.