A thunderclap, of such magnitude it shook the very heavens, descended. It was as if a dominion of lightning, centered upon Wang Lin, exploded outwards in all directions. With each step he took, the thunder around him intensified, growing more and more concentrated, until the sight was truly awe-inspiring!

San Ling Shangren, following in Wang Lin’s wake, witnessed this spectacle and his eyes widened in astonishment. The battle against the Grand Elder of the Lightning Flash Clan had shown him clearly Wang Lin’s immense power, a display of arcane arts rivaling the very secrets of creation.

Now, stepping forth from the realm of the seven million worlds, this man had barely moved before inciting a symphony of thunder across the heavens. In the flickering light, amid the deafening roar, San Ling Shangren was once again taken aback.

Wang Lin’s face was a mask of cold indifference as he advanced relentlessly. With each stride, he drew closer to the formidable defensive array woven from sixteen celestial bodies that guarded the Lightning Flash Clan.

As he quickened his pace, the boundless dominion of thunder around Wang Lin surged and expanded, a roaring tempest of sound and fury. Lightning danced within it, searing the eyes with its brilliance. Before long, the defensive array of the Lightning Flash Clan loomed into view, a distant but undeniable barrier.

The array, crafted from sixteen celestial bodies, shimmered with a verdant light. This green glow spread outwards, enveloping the Lightning Flash Clan in a protective sphere. Even from afar, Wang Lin could hear the grinding, cracking sounds emanating from within the green aura. In moments, the previously ethereal glow solidified, taking on a tangible form.

With astonishing speed, the green light coalesced, becoming akin to the shell of a colossal egg, encircling the Lightning Flash Clan in its embrace.

To shatter this eggshell defense was to tear open the defenses of the Lightning Flash Clan, exposing them to Wang Lin’s wrath!

A chilling glint flashed in Wang Lin’s eyes. He halted abruptly a thousand *zhang* from the defensive array. Extending his hands, he grasped at the very fabric of the void, as if seizing the boundless dominion of thunder that swirled about him. With a guttural roar, he heaved his hands upwards with tremendous force!

The heavens boomed, and the thunder roared in a frenzied cacophony. The very air seemed to tilt and buckle. The thunderous dominion surrounding Wang Lin, viewed from above, would have resembled a mirror or a vast ocean. Now, under Wang Lin’s immense power, this ocean-like mirror began to rise.

The ancient god’s star glyph on Wang Lin’s brow spun furiously. Veins bulged in his arms as, with another earth-shattering roar, he raised his arms completely, lifting the thunderous ocean before him until it stood erect!

It was as if a mirror had been stood upright, or the ocean raised vertically, on display against the backdrop of the star-strewn void!

San Ling Shangren’s pupils constricted. He instinctively recoiled, staring in horrified awe at Wang Lin. Nor was he alone. Within the Lightning Flash Clan, the cultivators, having long anticipated the arrival of a powerful enemy, emerged from their sacred grounds, their eyes fixed upon Wang Lin beyond the defensive array.

The moment they beheld Wang Lin’s face, their hearts pounded like war drums, and their faces paled.

Though Wang Lin had inhabited the body of a vessel upon first entering their territory, when attempting to breach the sacred grounds, his true form had revealed itself to the Clan.

Now, with the Grand Elder having pursued this individual and not yet returned, the arrival of Wang Lin filled the hearts of the Lightning Flash Clan with terror. Numerous conjectures spiraled through their minds, each more terrifying than the last.

“The Grand Elder is a master of heavenly arts; surely, he is unharmed. This fiend must have used some trickery, or perhaps had allies who drew the Grand Elder away, allowing him to approach and break our defenses. We must not panic! We need only hold the array for a short time, and the Grand Elder will surely return!”

“Yes! With the Grand Elder’s cultivation, save for a third-step Paragon, none within the Ancient Starry Sky can stand against him! Furthermore, the Grand Elder possesses a multitude of mystical treasures and techniques. He will be unharmed!”

“But… but the Holy Lightning of Unextinction suddenly departed, only to return weakened. At the same time, the defensive array was inexplicably activated…”

Within the protective barrier, the faces of the Lightning Flash Clan were grim as they watched Wang Lin outside the array. Yet they clung to the belief that the Grand Elder would soon return, unharmed!

Wang Lin, arms raised, as if bearing the weight of the towering thunderous ocean, fixed his gaze forward, and strange lights flickered to life within his eyes. He spoke slowly, each word resonating with power.

“Ancient Thunder Dragon souls merged within my spirit, in the name of Wang Lin, I command you! Eight dragons become one! Join my own soul’s thunder dragon; come, nine dragons united, to devour the array with thunder!” Wang Lin’s voice echoed through the heavens. Instantly, blinding bolts of lightning erupted from his entire being as he was enveloped in a storm of thunder. He plunged directly into the upright dominion of thunder.

Within the mirror-like thunderous mass, lightning crackled and roared. A ground-shaking bellow erupted from within, accompanied by the furious visage of a colossal dragon head. Bearing the marks of war and a savage aura, this head spewed forth from the erected thunderous domain.

The head was colossal, its azure scales glimmering with menacing beauty. A terrifying aura surged from it, akin to that of a demonic dragon of unholy lightning, as it thundered forth!

The head alone was ten thousand *zhang* in size. As the roar echoed across the heavens, the full head materialized, followed swiftly by the rest of the body. In mere moments, the dragon had emerged completely from the thunderous domain!

The thunderous dominion shrank ever smaller until, with a final, deafening crack, it was obliterated as the dragon’s tail snapped through the heavens!

An awe-inspiring thunder dragon, nearly one hundred thousand *zhang* in length, descended into the world. It was a construct born from Wang Lin’s absorption of eight ancient thunder dragon souls, merged with his spirit, a manifestation of illusory power!

Yet despite its ethereal nature, it contained an unimaginable reservoir of thunderous energy. Within the immense form of the thunder dragon, a keen observer could discern nine souls locked in a desperate struggle. One soul stood dominant, the others steadily weakening and being forced into submission.

The hundred-thousand *zhang* long thunder dragon roared. Above its head, lightning intertwined, and the figure of Wang Lin materialized. Standing atop the dragon’s head, his face frozen in cold detachment, he raised his right hand and pointed forward!

With this gesture, the colossal thunder dragon roared once more. Its massive form surged forward with unstoppable momentum, hurtling towards the protective barrier of the Lightning Flash Clan!

A thousand *zhang* was but a fleeting moment for such a being. The dragon’s immense form crashed into the defensive array with a deafening, heaven-rending explosion that unleashed a cataclysmic wave of energy.
The protective array groaned under the assault, fissures spiderwebbing across its surface. The once impenetrable shell, designed to deflect cosmic storms and arcane energies, was buckling, threatening to shatter under the relentless force!

A cacophony of gasps and cries erupted within the array’s fragile embrace. The beings of the Flash-Lightning Clan, their eyes wide with disbelief and terror, struggled to comprehend what unfolded before them. Doubt, a venomous serpent, began to coil in their hearts.

“Your Grand Elder’s physical form lies shattered, his spirit captured and bound! Even your vaunted Eternal Lightning flees in disarray! Do you believe this paltry defense can stay my hand?” Wang Lin’s voice, cold as a winter storm, boomed across the barrier, reaching every ear within the besieged clan.

His words struck like a physical blow. The Flash-Lightning Clan reeled, their faces contorted in denial.

“Impossible! This is a trick, an attempt to sow discord in our ranks! The Grand Elder, a master of the heavens, could not possibly fall before this… this upstart!”

“Absurd! Your lies are as transparent as a shattered crystal! The Grand Elder stands upon the precipice of immortality! Unless you command the power of a Third Step Ascendant, you cannot hope to defeat him!”

“Even against a Third Step Ascendant, the Grand Elder possesses countless spells and treasures to safeguard his life!”

“Insolent fool! Your words are laughable! If the Grand Elder were to fall, I would willingly obliterate my own cultivation! You speak nonsense, pure and utter nonsense!”

Wang Lin remained impassive. The lightning dragon beneath him, a creature of roiling energy, lifted its head and unleashed a deafening roar, then plunged downwards, ramming the fragile array with the force of a falling star!

*BOOM!* The fissures widened, spreading like cracks in a frozen lake. The array, now a fractured mosaic, teetered on the brink of collapse.

The thunderous impacts reverberated through the heavens as the lightning dragon, consumed by a primal fury, continued its assault. Its head hammered relentlessly, each strike a hammer blow against the beleaguered defense. Even its tail, lashing out with blinding speed, added to the devastating barrage.

Finally, the array could endure no more. With a final, earth-shattering impact, the point of contact exploded outwards, shattering the protective shell. Countless shards of arcane energy cascaded inwards, leaving a gaping hole in the once-impenetrable barrier.

The lightning dragon roared in triumph, its head plunging through the breach without hesitation. The immense dragon’s head, a testament to raw power, emerged into the heart of the Flash-Lightning Clan. The sight caused a wave of terror-stricken Flash-Lightning Clan cultivators to instinctively recoil.

Sanling Shangren, his eyes burning with a complex mix of hatred and anticipation, followed close behind. He strode through the shattered remains of the array, his every step driven by a burning desire for vengeance.

“This one’s cultivation barely touches upon the Broken Nirvana realm! He wields Heavenly Tribulation force through some unknown trickery! We must strike him down swiftly!”

“The bald-headed one who has undergone the Fourth Heavenly Decay is the true threat! Prevent his advance!”

Eleven cultivators of the Flash-Lightning Clan, each marked by the power of Heavenly Tribulation, surged forward. Seven turned to intercept Sanling Shangren, led by one of the two who had weathered the Fourth Heavenly Decay.

Wang Lin found himself confronted by the last Heavenly Decay cultivator and a cadre of Clan warriors.

“Without your Grand Elder, the Flash-Lightning Clan… you cannot hope to delay me,” Wang Lin said with a dismissive shake of his head. He had no desire for drawn-out combat. His sole purpose was to reach the Eternal Lightning and claim its power.

The lightning dragon surged forward, its immense form bursting through the remaining defenses, sending the Flash-Lightning Clan cultivators scrambling.

“The Grand Elder will return soon! We must hold them at any cost!”

“Once the Grand Elder arrives, their fate is sealed!”

The Flash-Lightning Clan warriors fought with the desperation of cornered beasts, their eyes burning with fanatical zeal. They charged forward without fear, even resorting to the forbidden self-destruction of their Clan mark in a desperate attempt to entrap their foes.

They refused to believe that their Grand Elder could be defeated. They clung to the unshakable faith that he would return, that he would deliver the Flash-Lightning Clan from the brink of oblivion.

The Grand Elder was the linchpin of their clan, the very embodiment of their hopes and dreams.

Wang Lin scoffed. As the lightning dragon continued its relentless advance, he raised his right hand. In a flash of blinding light, the Kunji whip materialized, uncoiling through the Flash-Lightning Clan’s starfield. Encircling the whip, its golden tendrils wrapped tightly around the figure of a broken, closed eyed, divine spirit, a fragment of the very one who they were so sure would come back. The ravaged remnant of the Grand Elder himself.