Alex had never imagined that there would be so many divine-level warriors waiting for him when he came out of the Tomb. He could feel at least seven or eight of them surrounding him, using their senses to scan him.
Two of the people seemed hostile. One was the woman between Antoine and Evan, and the other one was somewhere in midair.
He raised his head and searched the clouds. He sent his senses upward, and they collided with Linden's. The shock of the impact drove Linden back several yards.
Alex looked up at the distant clouds again. He could clearly feel someone watching him from there, but he couldn't spot them through all the shadows.
**
Deep in the clouds, inside the invisible spaceship, Zaxx could tell that something was wrong.
To his astonishment, the Great One's power-enhanced senses seemed to be able to detect his ship. He could clearly feel Alex sweeping the clouds and stopping for a few moments on the spaceship before withdrawing.
Zaxx pulled Alex up on the ship's screen and noticed that he had a tiny smile on his face. What is that man up to? he wondered.
An alarm sounded inside the ship. Divine-level spaceships made from high-end living materials were almost like actual divine-level warriors, and they had the ability to anticipate danger and warn their pilots.
He read the messages on his monitor.
[Decetion system activated
[Defense system activated]
[Ship's weapons activated. Laser cannon charged and ready.]
[Requesting instructions.]
"Show me the danger," he thought at the ship.
The screen filled with color, showing him the outside of his own ship. A huge rainbow cloud floated above it, and seven colored beams of light shone out of the cloud, rotating counterclockwise. In the center of it all was a whirlpool flashing with a rainbow of colors.
It can't be, Zaxx thought, completely baffled. That's tribulation lightning. And a divine-level warrior's tribulation lightning at that. Who could possibly be facing their trial to reach the divine level at a time like this?
Linden was flying under the ship. He felt that something wasn't right and looked up. Above his head, a seven-colored cloud had appeared. He had seen tribulation clouds before, but never such a huge one. It had almost covered the entire Tomb.
**
Antoine, Evan, Paula, and the others were just as surprised as Linden.
They had never imagined that such a huge tribulation cloud would appear right after Alex arrived. Paula's plan had been to settle her grudge with Alex, but when she saw the size of this tribulation cloud, she had second thoughts.
After all, anyone standing under the center of the cloud would be shouldering the tribulation alongside its creator, and none of them could withstand that.
Everyone was wondering the same thing. Was this tribulation cloud really Alex's? If he succeeded in passing this trial, he would become a god.
Elsa and Gwen, who were under the edge of the cloud, trembled. Elsa was looking toward Alex in shock and confusion. She couldn't believe he hadn't gone through his tribulation yet and that he wasn't already a golden core warrior. He was far more powerful than he should be at this stage.
**
The tribulation cloud filled the sky and covered the sun. The noise of the thunder was deafening, and even the spaceship far above was in shadow. Alarms wailed as the power of the cloud buffeted the ship's shields.
"Is that man even human?" Zaxx couldn't believe his eyes, and his antennae drooped.
He knew his own strength was enough to trigger such a terrifying tribulation cloud. But Alex, on the other hand, was only at the golden core level, so the appearance of such a cloud was incredible. Despite his worry, Zaxx felt a trace of admiration for his opponent.
Linden came back inside the ship. "I'm opening fire," he said. He felt he had to stop Alex, and he didn't care how much damage the ship's weapons would do to anyone else.
Zaxx reached out a hand to stop him. "No. That tribulation cloud is enormous, so this is not an ordinary trial. If we open fire, it might hurt Alex, but the cloud will reflect the damage back to us, and that would be enough to destroy us."
"Then what can we do?" Linden asked. "Just sit here and watch him succeed?"
Zaxx shook his head. "Even an ordinary cloud of tribulation should be enough to kill a golden core warrior, so we don't need to do anything. We'll just sit back and watch the show. I doubt he'll survive."
Linden frowned. "But if he does succeed in passing his tribulation, then his strength will increase tremendously, and you and I will be his next targets."
He was worried because he had known about Alex's strength and talent for a long time. Alex had already done many supposedly impossible things, and Linden had a feeling that surviving this giant tribulation cloud would be another one.
Zaxx held firm. "I've seen a lot of things in my long life. Such a terrifying tribulation cloud would turn even a nascent-level being into ashes. A man who is only at the golden core level has no chance. It's completely impossible. It would violate the very rules of the process."
Linden wasn't convinced, but he held his tongue. Zaxx had not lived this long by taking risks, and he was certain of his assessment of Alex's abilities.