I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Vol 2 Chapter 73: Body Tempering

Amidst the flashing lightning and roaring thunder, the Tianhe Sect disciple's celestial sword transformed into a streak of light, slashing directly at Chen Ting’s head.

The sudden move caught everyone off guard.

Chen Ting instinctively retreated, and a round mirror appeared above his head. The mirror surface gleamed with a grayish light, sending a mystical ray toward the broad sword.

The disciples of the Great Freedom Demon Sect glanced at each other, momentarily hesitant, unsure who to attack.

The dark clouds above their heads slowly dissipated, indicating their intent to observe the battle rather than charge in immediately.

But at that very moment—

A thick bolt of lightning as wide as a barrel suddenly struck behind them!

One of the outermost disciples of the demon sect was engulfed in the lightning, letting out a piercing scream.

Standing within the lingering electric arcs was none other than the Tianhe Sect disciple.

Taking advantage of their momentary distraction, he had ambushed and killed one of the demon sect disciples outright.

Zheng Fa’s lips twitched.

This guy fights dirty!

"You… You are this arrogant?!"

Now left with only four members, the Great Freedom Demon Sect disciples quickly spread out, looking at the Tianhe Sect disciple with disbelief.

Zheng Fa completely understood their reaction.

Couldn’t he take them on one by one?

Why insist on antagonizing them all at once?

It was clear—this person had absolute confidence in his own strength.

"Disciples of the demon sect—no matter how many there are, what difference does it make?"

The Tianhe Sect disciple snorted dismissively and lunged forward, engaging the remaining four in battle.

This Tianhe Sect disciple was strong.

That was Zheng Fa’s immediate impression as he watched the fight unfold.

And it wasn’t just about cultivation level.

Due to the restrictions in the Thunder Pool, these cultivators weren’t daring to reveal their full strength. Most of them were fighting at Foundation Establishment level. ℞𝓪ΝỔ𝐁Ëṩ

But at this level, the Tianhe Sect disciple outclassed them completely.

His broad sword was incredibly powerful—it alone was enough to keep Chen Ting occupied in a balanced duel.

And despite being barehanded, he held his ground against the four Great Freedom Demon Sect disciples without faltering.

He seemed to be trained in lightning techniques, allowing him to move effortlessly in the Thunder Pool’s chaotic environment. Every so often, he would toss out a lightning talisman, sending the demon disciples scrambling in a panic.

Artifacts, spells, talismans—he wielded them all with remarkable proficiency.

On the other hand, Chen Ting and the demon sect disciples seemed constrained.

Their spells and artifacts were clearly weaker compared to the Tianhe Sect disciple.

Watching this, Zheng Fa suddenly understood.

It was because of the Thunder Pool itself.

In the Xuanyi Realm, demonic cultivation techniques were typically yin-aligned and sinister, whereas lightning techniques were the ultimate yang force, a natural counter.

Inside the Thunder Pool, demon sect disciples were even more suppressed than others.

As the fight dragged on, the Tianhe Sect disciple, despite being outnumbered, gradually gained the upper hand.

Chen Ting and the four remaining demon sect disciples exchanged glances—without saying a word, they instinctively moved closer together.

Zheng Fa couldn’t help but sigh.

Wasn’t Chen Ting being hunted by these guys?

And now they’re teaming up?

It just showed how much pressure the Tianhe Sect disciple was putting on them.

Zheng Fa glanced at the Tianhe Sect disciple again—

But instead of getting angry, the man actually laughed aloud.

"This is exactly what I was waiting for!"

Everyone froze.

The next moment, the Tianhe Sect disciple’s crane-feathered robe flared open, revealing a massive, muscle-bound physique underneath!

Something felt very wrong.

Zheng Fa immediately turned his boat around and fled at full speed.

But for Chen Ting and the others, it was too late to run.

The Tianhe Sect disciple swung his arm—his broad sword rose into the sky, embedding itself deep into the rolling thunderclouds above.

The surge of spiritual energy from the sword far exceeded the limits of Foundation Establishment!

"!"

Zheng Fa suddenly realized what this guy was doing!

The Thunder Pool wouldn’t let this slide.

Above them, thunderclouds rapidly thickened, layer upon layer stacking up like an enormous storm front.

The clouds descended so low that it seemed like one could reach up and touch them.

And then—

A torrent of heavenly lightning crashed down!

It looked like an endless forest of thunderbolts, illuminating the entire sky.

Naturally, the main target of this punishment was the Tianhe Sect disciple.

But Chen Ting and the demon sect disciples had terrible luck—

They were standing too close.

One strike of heavenly lightning could hit three people at once—and they had not expected this lunatic to deliberately trigger the tribulation!

Zheng Fa watched as two of the four demon sect disciples were instantly incinerated into ash.

The remaining two barely escaped, fleeing in utter panic.

Chen Ting had his mirror artifact, which protected him to some extent, but even he was retreating as fast as possible, clearly unwilling to stay in this death zone.

But the one getting hit the most was still the Tianhe Sect disciple.

He stood in the middle of it all, a living lightning rod, absorbing at least half of the heavenly lightning.

Yet, he didn’t seem to care at all.

Even as lightning danced wildly across his body, he was still chasing after the survivors—relentlessly hunting them down.

The two remaining Great Freedom Demon Sect disciples didn’t last long.

The Tianhe Sect disciple caught up to them effortlessly, but before he even had to make a move, they were already struck down by the heavenly lightning, their bodies reduced to ashes.

What kind of suicide attack strategy was this?!

After finishing them off, the Tianhe Sect disciple immediately turned and charged toward Chen Ting.

Chen Ting, still relying on his round mirror for protection, had barely managed to put some distance between them. But when he turned his head and saw that feral grin beneath the billowing thunderclouds, his entire body shuddered, and he sped up desperately.

Zheng Fa watched the two of them barreling toward his direction. Without hesitation, he turned his Dujie Boat and steered away, wanting to clear their path and avoid any unnecessary involvement.

But to his surprise, Chen Ting changed course directly toward him.

"Junior Brother Zheng!" he called out, "For the sake of our past as fellow disciples, lend me a hand!"

Hearing this, Zheng Fa said nothing. He simply pushed the Dujie Boat to full speed.

The boat was built for the Thunder Pool, making it exceptionally fast in this environment.

And with the Tianhe Sect disciple constantly slashing at Chen Ting with his sword, it further hindered his escape.

Not only did Zheng Fa fail to close the distance between them, he actually pulled even farther ahead.

Chen Ting’s face showed a hint of disbelief.

What? Aren’t we supposed to be on the same side?

Zheng Fa mentally scoffed.

Are we even that close?

That guy is dragging a rolling thunderstorm behind him!

And you want me to shield you?

"I have information on Senior Sister Zhang!"

Chen Ting shouted as he saw Zheng Fa speeding away.

Zheng Fa's expression froze.

He gave Chen Ting a closer look, and for a moment, the boat slowed slightly.

The expression on Chen Ting’s face was earnest—it looked like he was telling the truth.

"I've been hunted by the Great Freedom Demon Sect recently. I've also killed quite a few of their people and uncovered some information about Senior Sister Zhang!"

Chen Ting spoke quickly, eager to convince him.

The logic did make sense.

Chen Ting had not only sacrificed the old ancestor possessing him, but also offered up a portion of the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor’s divine power.

If the Great Freedom Demon Sect hadn’t noticed that, it would have been strange.

And Senior Sister Zhang had disappeared in a battle against the Great Freedom Demon Sect.

"I know you and Senior Sister Zhang have deep feelings for each other. If you help me escape, I swear I'll—"

Before he could finish his sentence—

Zheng Fa’s Dujie Boat surged forward at full speed again.

"Junior Brother Zheng! Do you not care about Senior Sister Zhang anymore?!"

Chen Ting shouted desperately.

"Brother Chen," Zheng Fa’s voice carried from the distance, "Before I came to the Thunder Pool, Martial Uncle Pang gave me plenty of advice. The one thing he emphasized most was not to blindly trust two-faced, deceitful, and treacherous people."

"I'm not! I was also once our master's disciple—he knows me best!"

"Yes, he does." Zheng Fa sighed slightly, then said with a hint of pity, "That’s why his warnings specifically included your name…"

"…"

It wasn’t that Zheng Fa didn’t want to know about Senior Sister Zhang’s whereabouts.

If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t have risked getting involved just to observe the battle earlier.

But Chen Ting was the kind of man who had betrayed his own ancestor.

Zheng Fa didn’t exactly hate him, but he absolutely didn’t trust him either.

Even if Chen Ting truly had information, the price Zheng Fa would have to pay for it would likely be steep—at the very least, he would have to fight the Tianhe Sect disciple head-on, or even help Chen Ting fend off the Great Freedom Demon Sect.

That Tianhe Sect disciple…

Just look at him!

Other people take one lightning strike, he takes ten!

If Zheng Fa got caught up in their battle, it wouldn’t just be his problem anymore—even Jiushan Sect would be dragged into it.

But there was one important piece of information hidden in Chen Ting’s words—

The Great Freedom Demon Sect knew where Senior Sister Zhang was.

At this moment, the jade pendant left to him by Martial Uncle Huang was still glowing. That meant that, at the very least, the Great Freedom Demon Sect had not yet dealt with Senior Sister Zhang.

Zheng Fa thought for a moment.

If he wanted to find her, Chen Ting might have clues—but he was too cunning to be a reliable source.

The most direct way was still to find members of the Great Freedom Demon Sect and extract the truth from them himself.

Following the map that Senior Sister Zhang had left for him, Zheng Fa continued searching for a suitable location for lightning body tempering.

The map marked five possible locations.

He didn’t rush into a decision. Instead, he spent half a month surveying each one.

After visiting them all, he felt a bit disappointed.

It wasn’t that they weren’t suitable for lightning body tempering.

But deep down, he had been hoping that Senior Sister Zhang might have left behind some kind of clue to help him find her.

Yet, he found nothing.

In the end, he chose the most secluded, least populated location and anchored his Dujie Boat.

Sitting cross-legged at the bow, his soul left his body, soaring straight into the thunderclouds above.

BOOM!

A heavenly thunderbolt crashed directly onto him.

His entire body shuddered violently.

Compared to the lightning used in the Blood Renewal stage, this heavenly thunder was far stronger.

But surprisingly, it felt less painful.

Within the lightning, there seemed to be a hidden vitality—

While destroying his body, it was also reconstructing it.

Zheng Fa could feel his physique slowly transforming—no, evolving!

He finally understood the true purpose of the Five Thunder Talisman Body.

The previous four levels had only served to strengthen his body enough to endure the destructive power of heavenly lightning.

Only now could he begin to absorb its vitality.

Within his body, something was growing.

Before he could fully comprehend what was changing inside him—

BOOM!

Suddenly, the Azure Sun Qi given to him by the Jiushan Ancestor erupted in his dantian!

Since it had entered his body, it had remained dormant.

As if it had been waiting for this exact moment—the completion of the Five Thunder Talisman Body.

One part of the Azure Sun Qi fused into his body.

The other shot skyward, piercing through the thunderclouds and rising into the infinite heavens.

High above, a colossal tree appeared.

It had a trunk but no branches, with massive crimson leaves growing directly around it—radiant as the evening clouds.

The tree was so enormous that it seemed to connect the sky above and the underworld below.

The thunderclouds dispersed, as if paying homage to this celestial tree.

All across the Thunder Pool, the constant battles fell silent.

Everyone turned their heads skyward.

Inside Zheng Fa’s body, the Azure Sun Qi spread through his meridians, forming new, intricate pathways.

The patterns of these meridians mirrored the veins of the tree’s crimson leaves.

Jiushan Ancestor’s words echoed in his mind—

"Once you complete the Pure Yang Body Refinement Technique, the Azure Sun Dao Body will manifest."

Were these new meridians the mark of the Azure Sun Dao Body?

Before he could process it all, Zheng Fa hurriedly piloted his Dujie Boat away.

The commotion was far too big—

He didn’t want any unwanted visitors.

But then—

"You enjoy getting struck by lightning too?"

A voice came from behind him.

Zheng Fa turned around.

The Tianhe Sect disciple was staring at him with bright, enthusiastic eyes—as if he had just found a kindred spirit.

Wait… what do you mean ‘too’?!