Zombie World: Starting as an apprentice of the Thunder King

That morning, Lin Bei was practicing Five Thunder Fireballs in the courtyard when he suddenly heard a series of urgent bell tolling from the front mountain.

He finished his practice and walked to the courtyard gate, where he saw several Shenxiao Sect disciples rushing towards the main hall.

"What happened?" Lin Bei grabbed a passing disciple.

The disciple's expression was solemn: "The Supreme Elder, Master Lei Yuan, has returned, bringing back Elder Wu and the others'... relics."

Lin Bei was startled, released his grip, and walked towards the main hall.

In the square in front of the main hall, a large number of disciples had already gathered.

Master Leiyuan stood at the entrance of the main hall, his face gloomy, with lightning still emanating from him, clearly indicating that he had just returned.

"After investigating for months, I only found their corpses."

Master Lei Yuan's voice was low and deep, filled with suppressed anger, "That evil cultivator set up a trap beforehand, lured them into the encirclement, and then used some kind of large-scale Yin Sha formation to trap and kill them."

"By the time I arrived, the evil cultivators had already left."

"Within a radius of a thousand miles, no trace of the heretical sect has been found!"

The square was silent. The disciples clenched their fists, and some had tears in their eyes.

"waste!"

Master Yu Lei was rarely truly enraged. "A heretical cultivator at the Earth Master level, and our Divine Firmament Sect couldn't find him even after mobilizing the entire sect's resources!"

"This is a complete slap in the face!"

"Sect Leader, those heretics have probably already fled far away," an elder said in a low voice.

"We can't just let it go like that!"

Master Yu Lei stood up, his gaze icy. "Issue my decree: issue a kill order in the name of the Shenxiao Sect!"

"Anyone who slays this heretic can come to our sect with their head and receive a high-grade magic weapon, or pills, spells, or spiritual materials of equal value, to choose from."

These words immediately caused an uproar in the square.

High-grade magic artifacts are not common items; many sect leaders only use mid-grade magic artifacts.

The allure of a high-grade magic artifact is enough to tempt any cultivator.

"A kill order! This is going to throw the entire cultivation world into chaos." Lin Bei stood at the back of the crowd, looking at the scene with a sense of dread.

As expected, after the news spread to the Shenxiao Sect, rogue cultivators and disciples from various sects within a radius of a thousand miles flocked to the area like sharks smelling blood.

In no time, the towns and cities near the Shenxiao Sect were packed with cultivators.

The matter was being discussed everywhere in teahouses and taverns.

"Have you heard? The Divine Firmament Sect has issued a kill order; killing this heretic will earn you a top-grade magic weapon!"

"What's a top-grade magic weapon? They're said to be able to be exchanged for equivalent pills and spells! The Divine Firmament Sect has really gone all out this time!"

"Yeah, anyone lucky enough to stumble upon that evil path could strike it rich!"

"What's the origin of that heretical practice? And why is it so valuable?"

"I heard he's an evil cultivator who slaughtered more than a dozen villages, and even the geomancer elder of the Shenxiao Sect died at his hands."

"Hiss... That's no pushover. Even geomancers can't beat him. Wouldn't we just be throwing our lives away if we went?"

"We have to go, even if it means dying! What if we manage to snag a bargain? That's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"

Most of these people were just there to join in the fun.

In the mountains and forests surrounding the Shenxiao Sect, one can often see groups of cultivators searching in twos and threes. These people carry compasses and lead spirit dogs, turning over every mountain peak within a hundred miles.

However, after several months, they hadn't found a single trace of anything, let alone any heretical methods.

That heretical sect seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no trace whatsoever.

"Could it be that the Divine Firmament Sect is lying to us?"

"Exactly, we haven't even seen a trace of it. Could it be that this evil path doesn't even exist?"

"What do you know? Several geomancer elders have died, how could it be fake?"

"Then where are they?"

The voices of doubt are growing louder.

Master Yu Lei simply responded, "As long as the evil path is not eradicated, the kill order will not be lifted."

The news naturally reached Liu Santong's ears as well.

Thousands of miles away from the Shenxiao Sect, in a secluded mountain cave, he sat cross-legged on a blue stone, his body surging with murderous aura.

Awei stood at the entrance of the cave, holding a communication talisman he had obtained from outside.

After hearing the message from the transmission talisman, Liu Santong let out a cold laugh: "The Divine Firmament Sect? A kill order? A high-grade magic artifact?"

"In their eyes, am I only worth a high-grade magic artifact?"

"I am not one of those useless trash from the Soul Society."

"They really have no tact..."

Awei stood silently at the cave entrance, simply waiting for Liu Santong's next order.

Liu Santong stood up and stretched. "Hmph, I originally wanted to just stay away from the Divine Firmament Sect!"

"Since they've come to find me in such a grand manner, I should make an impression on them."

"If things are done well, this chaotic world will become interesting."

Maoshan, Jiuxiao Wanfu Palace.

In the rear hall, Shi Jian had been sitting cross-legged on a futon for half a year.

The aura grew stronger and stronger, and all the disciples of Maoshan could feel the terrifying power brewing within them, knowing that Shi Jian's breakthrough had reached its final stage.

Inside the dantian, the surface of the golden elixir was covered with fine cracks.

Shi Jian is using all his magical power to continuously break through the final barrier.

"broken!"

Shi Jian suddenly roared, and the golden core in his dantian, which contained decades of his cultivation, exploded.

Countless fragments surged and spun in his dantian, then quickly reformed into a palm-sized humanoid phantom.

The figure had clear features and a face identical to Shi Jian's; it was his nascent soul.

The moment the nascent soul opened its eyes, it passed through the two bridges of heaven and earth and appeared in its dantian.

The moment the nascent soul settled in the Purple Mansion, a powerful aura erupted from Shi Jian's body.

Shi Jian felt a jolt, and a feeling of breaking through his shackles surged from his dantian to the top of his head.

He felt his power, perception, and affinity with the laws of heaven and earth all leap to a new level at that moment.

"Celestial Master...this is what it feels like to be a Celestial Master."

At that moment, he suddenly realized how lucky he had been to fight Shi Wuming.

Before he could fully savor the exhilaration of the breakthrough, a powerful pressure from heaven and earth had already locked onto his location.

Large swaths of dark clouds gathered from all directions above Maoshan, shrouding the entire mountain in gloom.

Lightning flashed through the clouds, each bolt carrying a chilling, overwhelming pressure.

"The Nascent Soul is complete; next... comes the tribulation of lightning."

Master Qingwei's expression was solemn. "To become a Celestial Master, one must pass through nine tribulations of lightning, each one stronger than the last."

He turned to look towards the rear hall, where Shi Jian's figure had already emerged and stood in mid-air.

He was radiating intense lightning, which danced across his body as if a thunder god had descended to earth.