Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Chapter 1100: Defying the Very Heavens

The strange roar of the newly evolved martial spirit tore through the roaring wind and announced a sudden shift in the brutal execution from the heavens. The bloated winged creature floated above the cracked stone tiles and unleashed a torrent of pure vitality that channeled back through its host. This dense life force washed over Li Yu and penetrated deep into his charred bones while pulling him back from the very edge of true death.Fresh muscle began to weave together over his exposed ribs as new blood vessels sprouted and reconnected with astonishing speed. His ruined flesh regrew at a rapid pace and pushed away the blackened, dead tissue that covered his frame. The restorative power cascading from the whale-like koi spirit was actively out healing the damage from the cosmic storm even though the descending lightning was the strongest it had ever been. Li Yu felt a surge of strength return to his limbs and he slowly pushed himself up from the ruined floor of the sacred grounds.

But the heavens did not take kindly to this blatant defiance of its judgment.

The swirling multi-colored clouds above the plaza suddenly halted their chaotic churning and a terrifying stillness took hold of the sky. The center of the vortex turned a deep suffocating shade of black purple that intertwined with blinding streaks of pure white. This new tri color lightning did not crackle with standard energy or combination of different laws like before. It carried the heavy and undeniable presence of death and destruction itself.

The heavens would not tolerate Li Yu and his continued existence any longer so they manifested the ultimate form of its lightning to erase him.

A thick pillar of black purple and white lightning crashed down from the silent clouds and slammed into the evolved martial spirit. The majestic creature let out a wail of agony as the energy washed over its glowing scales. The spirit that had proudly shouldered more than half of the tribulation burden just moments ago now withered under the oppressive weight of this new execution. The absorption rate plummeted from fifty percent down to maybe five percent and the winged beast struggled violently just to handle that small fraction.

The remaining ninety five percent of the lightning bypassed the spiritual defenses and struck Li Yu directly.

The miraculous healing that Li Yu was undergoing was reversed in an instant. The fresh muscles that had just woven together began to rot and turn into gray sludge while the few areas that made new skin peeled away like burning paper. The black purple energy burrowed into his marrow and tore through his entire body. Li Yu collapsed back onto the stone tiles as his body decayed back down to its most gruesome state so far.

He was nearly just a skeleton held together by a few stubborn strips of muscle and the lingering spiritual glue of his soul power. His head remained mainly intact through the onslaught but the flesh on his cheeks and jaw melted away to reveal the white skull underneath. The overwhelming stench of his own rotting flesh filled his nose and drove his mind toward the brink of madness.

Li Yu lay in a pool of his own decaying blood and looked up at the merciless sky in disbelief, just when he thought he was making it, it was snatched away.

'Is this it?' Li Yu thought while his vision began to darken around the edges. 'Is this as far as I can go?'

An immense sense of sorrow washed over him as he once again realized how cruel the universe truly was. He was facing total erasure just when things were looking so positive and full of hope. He thought of his parents and the sacrifices they had made to keep him safe from the cosmic wars. He thought of his wider family and the pride shining in his grandfather's eyes. Of the friends he made along the way and the experiences they shared with one another. He thought of his budding love for Lian and the future they might have had together.

There were so many things he did not get to do and so many promises left unfulfilled. It all left a bitter taste in his mouth, if he still had one.

'What did I do to deserve such treatment from the heavens?!' Li Yu questioned the swirling void above him but couldn’t talk anymore. If he could, he would have yelled it with all of his remaining might. 'What did I do for the cosmos to judge me like this?!'

He knew he was powerful. He knew his path was unique and special. He could see the truth of his own foundation and the potential resting within his body. But why did the universe bring this absolute nightmare to his door instead of a fair trial? How was anyone supposed to survive this? Anger, resentment and madness then burned within him like never before.

'Why is it so unfair?!' Li Yu screamed in his own mind as the death lightning continued to strip away his flesh. 'There are so many things I want to do and so many experiences I still need to have. There are so many favors to taste and so many realms to explore.'

He pictured all of his loyal retainers and friends who had placed their faith in him. He remembered the quiet moments by the lake and the warmth of his family’s embrace. His thoughts turned towards the ancestor within his soul and how he would now be dragging along an entire race of people with him as well. Li Yu's thoughts drifted to his first and only kiss with Lian and then all of the dreams and goals he still had to pursue. He refused to let his story end as a forgotten pile of ash on a ruined stone plaza.

'I want to do them all!' Li Yu declared with a fierce internal roar. 'I want to live!!'

His resolve for living surged upward and burned brighter than the lightning raining down upon him. It was a determination that had never been stronger than it was in this exact moment of ultimate despair. It was then that the Fisherman soul finally took action.

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The martial spirit hovering above him was on the verge of breaking and shattering into a million pieces. It was the last thing helping him slightly against the death lightning but its strength was fading fast. Just as Li Yu was going to die and fade into nothingness, a heavy voice sounded in his ears and a figure appeared before his blurred vision.

"Finally!"

The single word shocked Li Yu to his very core for two distinct reasons. The first reason was because it was the very first time the Fisherman had ever spoken to him since the Fisherman Soul appeared within him. He had never heard a voice from this mysterious soul until now and in most cases it refused to speak with him.

The second reason was the sheer emotional weight carried within that voice, Li Yu never felt anything like it before. The tone resonated with his very being but it sounded incredibly jaded and deeply sad. It was brimming with resentful anger and a hatred so profound that it eclipsed the hostility of the heavens above. It was a voice that seemed to hate everything in existence and simply wanted the world to burn to cinders.

The Fisherman soul stepped out of the spiritual space and appeared as a towering figure hovering outside of Li Yu. The phantom wore a weathered straw hat and a simple woven cloak that fluttered in the chaotic wind. The towering figure slowly raised a hand and pointed a weathered finger toward the dark clouds and the very heavens themselves.

The Fisherman stood tall, as if challenging the tribulation itself to a duel. The phantom reached back and launched his fishing pole hook high into the sky as the ethereal line shot upward and pierced straight into the heart of the black purple clouds to establish a direct link between the heavens and the Fisherman.

The tri color lightning surged with renewed fury and rained down upon that thin fishing line. The energy tried to travel down the tether to annihilate the challenger but the lethal sparks seemed to just die and fizzle out before they could ever reach the hands of the Fisherman.

The Fisherman slowly tilted his head up and his eyes glowed with a terrifying mixture of black and white light. The soul let out eons of suppressed rage and resentment that had been locked away for countless eras. An unimaginable killing intent exploded outwards and warped the air into sharp jagged ripples as the aura of the Fisherman flared like never before and rose up to meet the tribulation head on in a clash of wills.

The entire event was still shielded by the outer layer of multicolored lightning so no one outside the dome could tell what was happening inside. The spectators on the ridges only saw a churning storm while the Fisherman soul shielded Li Yu from the execution.

The protective barrier established by the Fisherman allowed the vitality from the martial spirit to surge forward once again. The life force rushed into Li Yu and began to mend his skeletal frame and piece his flesh together to make him anew.

Empowered by the residual lightning and everything he had experienced over the last days, Li Yu was being reborn anew but the process was incredibly slow. He willed his body forward even though he was still almost just a skeleton with barely any flesh besides his head. His foundational physique began to evolve under the lightning from the past days and was being reborn as the Heavenly Leviathan Physique.

The main physical transformation that could be seen was microscopic scales to form directly over his bones and new dense muscle fibers to weave over those scales. Then microscopic scales on top of the muscles and then his skin would cover those as well. What was needed now to complete this evolution was an unimaginable amount of pure energy.

Li Yu looked up through his remaining eye and saw that the exact energy he needed was hovering right above his head.

All the different types of lightning that had struck him over the days were now crackling around his reforming body. The elemental sparks combined with all the different types of laws he had mastered during his journey and formed a brilliant halo of power around his skeletal frame. Li Yu did not wait for the storm to strike again, he instinctively bent his knees and launched himself upward toward the tribulation clouds.

He merged with the Fisherman soul as he flew through the air and the towering phantom combined within him to share its boundless killing intent. An eruption of power exploded from his core and sent a devastating shockwave across the plaza, leveling it completely. The blast wiped out all the ambient lightning in the surrounding area as he flew directly into the very clouds above. T

he black purple and white death lightning struck him repeatedly during his ascent but the lethal bolts were seemingly getting absorbed into his new physique and having no negative impact on him at all. For a brief moment the explosion of power cleared the outer edges of the storm and pushed the multi-colored clouds apart.

The people gathered on the distant ridges and viewing platforms were able to see his form for just a few seconds and the crazy amount of killing intent coming from his body. They saw a figure rocketing into the sky with a head that was destroyed down in many areas to the very bone. They saw a body that was stripped of skin and missing most of its muscle. The gruesome sight sent a wave of loud gasps rippling through the spectators who had been waiting for days.

Zhan Tielan and Li Canghai stood on the balcony and their eyes widened in horror. Tears spilled over their cheeks as they witnessed the terrifying state of their only child. Zhan Tian gripped the stone railing until it cracked under his fingers and his proud heart ached with sorrow.

They knew he was lingering on death's door and they realized he had just barely made it through the execution but seeing his ruined shape was a terrible blow to their spirits. To reach such a state meant he must have been truly suffering over the last few days, how he managed to hang on no one knew.

The leaders of the hidden legions floating in the dark void were the same way. The brief glimpse of their lord in such a terrible state sent a spike of cold fury and deep sadness through their ranks. Commander Shan lowered his head while Talia's hands trembled. Draven and Nyssa shared a look of pure heartbreak as they remembered the warm smile of their ancient father figure.

Kui sat inside his opulent golden carriage and watched the young man fly into the clouds in such a sickly form. The ancient turtle retainer leaned heavily on his golden cane as tears welled up in his ancient eyes.

"Wise Host…" Kui whispered in a voice thick with grief and reverence.

The multi-colored clouds violently slammed back together and swallowed the skeletal figure once again. The storm resumed its deafening roar but the energy signature inside the vortex were shifting rapidly as Li Yu ascended into the heart of the crucible to claim his rebirth and prize.