The gathered members of the Rimmer family were incredibly excited. They turned to each other, all talking at once.
"Willard is about to become a god!"
"I knew our grand master wouldn't die so easily!"
"That's good," Zoe said excitedly. "That's very good. Our family is finally going places."
In the middle of the dark clouds, a thick bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, and the air crackled with electricity.
On the ground, an ancient tree exploded, and sawdust flew everywhere as the lightning bolt scorched the ground. It was like a snake, flickering and sizzling as it darted in all directions.
On the ground, rats, cockroaches, centipedes, and toads were all fleeing, but they were not fast enough, and many died when the lightning hit too close to them.
Nine bolts of heavenly lightning descended, which was the test needed for someone to become a god.
The nine bolts of tribulation lightning were getting stronger and stronger, but Willard had been lucky. When he had been struck by Alex and fallen from the mountain, he had landed right below the giant tree, which now sheltered him.
The first lightning strike blasted the giant tree into powder. The remaining force might have been deadly to others, but to Willard, it was merely a tickle.
Just as the first bolt of lightning dissipated, the second bolt of lightning struck. This time, there was no big tree that could help defend Willard, and he was in dire straits. His body was covered in dragon scale fragments, and his blood was dripping on the ground, leaving him extremely weak.
Lightning tribulation! he thought. The tribulation has really arrived. I thought I had passed it by bathing in icy rain for a few years. I never thought the tribulation mentioned in the ancient books would be like this. In my current condition, I'm afraid I won't be able to withstand three bolts. But I've already passed the first one, so I only need to endure eight more.
He raised his head and looked at the dark clouds above his head, and he could tell that the second lightning bolt was going to be twice as fierce as the first.
He lifted his hands and used his power to release a giant dragon head that rushed toward the lightning bolt.
The second bolt of lightning instantly shattered the dragon's head and hit Willard's fist, burning his entire body. Then, hitting the ground, the lightning dissipated once more.
The ground was scorched, and many underground creatures were blasted by the lightning.
Willard fell to the ground. His hair and eyebrows had been burned away by the lightning, and his skin was black.
An ominous rumble sounded again, and the black cloud flickered with lightning.
Willard laughed bitterly. There are still seven more, and I can't even use my dragon fists, he thought. Becoming a god is so difficult. Since ancient times, countless warriors have died in the lightning tribulation, and it looks like I won't be successful either.
Just as the third lightning tribulation was brewing, an unusual-looking man wearing a snow-white robe appeared below Marauders Mountain. With his hands behind his back, he strolled along the small path by the roadside. He appeared to be extremely slow, but then, in the blink of an eye, he had arrived under the tree where the lightning tribulation had just occurred. He stopped and looked at Willard.
Alex stood on the mountain, looking down as the scene unfolded. The man in the white robe stood to one side of Willard.
When Willard saw the man, he raised his eyebrows and said, "Evan Warner, what are you doing here?"
Evan looked up at the dark clouds in the sky. Then he looked through the flying sawdust and leaves and saw Alex standing with arms folded across his chest.
He called up to Alex. "Alex, is that you?" He gave a small smile, then his body slowly floated upward, like a bird riding a thermal, until he landed on the mountain.
"Look, who is that man in white?" the people below asked each other.
"Have you ever seen such a strange person in this day and age? He's dressed so weirdly."
The man who had spoken suddenly found himself flying through the air as if he had been slapped hard. He jumped up, ready to attack, but when he discovered that it had been Leroy who had hit him, he immediately became dispirited.
"You dare to insult my family's master?" Leroy said, scowling at him. "Be careful, or I will slap you again."
"Evan Warner is here!" muttered one onlooker
"The master of the Warner family hasn't appeared for several decades," said another. "No one knows how strong he is right now."
Evan was a famous veteran. Nobody would have thought that the battle between Alex and Willard would attract the master of the Warner family.
Evan looked at Alex from head to toe, and then he asked again, "Alex?"
Alex nodded and said in the same tone, "Evan?"
Evan nodded. "Yes. I was wondering who had just become a god. I didn't expect it to be Willard.
He must have finally understood his situation after the battle with you. It's a pity that the injuries on his body were too severe for this step. When I went through it, my body was complete, and even then, I only managed to withstand nine lightning tribulations with the help of an artifact. In the end, the Rimmer family's master may still be lacking what it takes. I'm afraid it will be difficult for him to pass this trial."
"I could pass it," Alex said, shrugging.
Evan scoffed. "Oh? Do you have some secret technique to pass the lightning tribulation? I can see that you haven't become a god yet, right?"
His eyes flashed with a bright light as he spoke.
He has really good eyesight, Alex thought. He can actually see through me to my skill level.
In return, Alex sized up Evan and discovered that his strength was very rare on Earth.
Feeling a little combative, he said, "It's true that I haven't become a god yet, but this lightning tribulation is weak. If it was me, I would be able to break it with a flick of my finger!"
Evan frowned. He knew that most arrogant people had true abilities, but Alex's boasting made him feel somewhat uneasy.
"Alex, if the lightning tribulation is really as easy as you say, then wouldn't more people have passed it?" he asked disapprovingly. "You haven't taken this step yet, but are just standing here and watching. Of course it's easy when it's not you going through it. Only when you are the one in the midst of the lightning tribulation, can you know how terrifying it truly is. It's definitely not something you can imagine."
Alex shrugged. "You are you, and I'm me. If I want this lightning tribulation to disappear, it will do so. If I want it to continue, it won't dare stop."
"Alex, don't be so arrogant." Evan shook his head. "When you reach this step, you will know how difficult the lightning tribulation is."