Step by Step Ascend to Immortality

Chapter 58: Chapter 48: I will die for you

"I don't want to see you anymore..."

Wang Zihan's voice was soft but resolute. As she spoke, the last trace of silver light at her fingertips was swallowed by the surrounding darkness. She turned her face away, hiding it in the shadow of the night.

Du Yunlong stood there, his heart heavy and his courage gone. He couldn't even muster the strength to say "I'm sorry." His body felt weak, and he had to press his hands against the altar to stop himself from collapsing.

Silence engulfed them, broken only by their faint, uneven breaths. For a long time, neither of them moved nor spoke.

Finally, Du Yunlong broke the stillness. "No matter what you say, I'm taking you to Yuan Province."

"I don't want to see you!" Wang Zihan snapped, her commanding presence cutting through the night. "Get lost, now!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not leaving."

Du Yunlong reached out, hesitating for a moment as something clicked in his mind. "You're trying to push me away because of the Silken Thunder Tribulation, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about?" Wang Zihan, now seated on the altar, still refused to look at him. "You're overthinking things. Just go!"

"I understand now," Du Yunlong whispered, grasping her cold hand in the dark. "I'm not leaving. I'll stay and face the tribulation with you."

In a flash, everything became clear to him. The sudden shift in her attitude, her haste to send him away—it all made sense.

Earlier, Wang Zihan had called upon her spiritual energy twice, summoning the Silken Thunder Tribulation both times. But during her fierce battle with Pang Tianshan, she had used a far more advanced technique—the "Seven Treasures Pool and Eight Merits Water," a powerful Buddhist art. The amount of energy she'd drawn must have surpassed her previous attempts by a hundredfold.

By all logic, the Silken Thunder Tribulation should have struck her by now, obliterating everything in its path. Even in its smaller form, such a tribulation would have been enough to reduce her to ash.

Yet here she stood, unharmed. Her strength even seemed to be recovering. The only explanation was that she had somehow suppressed the tribulation with a secret technique—a temporary solution, but one that wouldn't last.

Sooner or later, the suppressed tribulation would return, ten times stronger, with enough force to destroy her completely.

Realizing this, Du Yunlong tightened his grip on her hand. He wasn't going to let her face this alone. Where else could he find someone as brave and selfless as Wang Zihan?

They hadn't known each other long, but in that short time, every moment they'd spent together flashed through his mind.

From the moment they met, to the battles they'd fought side by side, every memory bloomed in his heart.

He remembered the tense moments in Tian Nü Temple. After regaining her strength, Wang Zihan could have left him behind and saved herself, yet she had stayed, risking everything to fight the powerful Pang family for his sake.

Now, she was willing to face the tribulation alone, just to protect him from the impending danger.

A deep sense of guilt and admiration flooded Du Yunlong's heart. He owed her everything—more than a lifetime could repay. In that moment, he knew he couldn't let her go.

His grip on her hand tightened as he swore silently to himself that he wouldn't abandon her.

Wang Zihan tried to pull away, but he held on. He couldn't let this chance slip through his fingers. In the darkness, she yelled at him, her voice trembling. "You're being ridiculous! I can handle myself! There's no tribulation—just go!"

"Even if there isn't a tribulation," Du Yunlong said firmly, "I'm staying. We'll face it together. After that, no matter where you go, I'm going with you."

"You fool!" Wang Zihan had no more words for him. "Why are you so stubborn? Isn't there someone else you care about more than me?"

"I want to be with you," Du Yunlong replied, his voice steady. "Right now, that's all that matters. I'm willing to die for you."

"Servant!" Wang Zihan repeated the word she had used so many times before, but this time, it carried a strange warmth. "What about Yan Ruojiang? Isn't she the one you love?"

"She's in the past," Du Yunlong said quietly. "I still care about her, but right now, it's you I love. My lady, I want to be with you. I'm ready to die for you, just as you were willing to sacrifice yourself for me."

His words stirred something deep within her. Wang Zihan thought back to her battle with Pang Tianshan. Back then, she had been prepared to die for him without hesitation.

"Servant..." Wang Zihan's fingertips glowed faintly with silver light as she smiled softly. "Would you really do anything for me?"

"Anything," Du Yunlong said without hesitation, his voice full of sincerity. "I'll do whatever you ask, my lady. Even if it means drinking the water you wash your feet in, as long as that water is sweet."

A warmth spread through Wang Zihan's heart, but her reason told her to push him away. "Servant, leave now!"

"I'm not leaving!" Du Yunlong declared. "No matter how dangerous the tribulation is, I want to face it with you. Even if it kills me, I want to be with you."

Wang Zihan struggled against his grip, but his resolve was unshakable. "You really mean that?" she asked, her voice softer now.

"I do," Du Yunlong said, his expression more serious than she had ever seen. "I mean it, my lady."

"Then carry me outside," she whispered. "Let's see what awaits us."

With a tender care, Du Yunlong lifted her into his arms. Pain radiated through his body with every step, but it didn't matter. This was the happiest moment of his life.

He carried her out of the temple, and as they stepped into the open air, the sky darkened above them.

The moon had vanished, and the stars were hidden behind a sea of dark clouds. Thick, stormy layers of tribulation clouds stretched across the horizon, crackling with silent blue lightning.

Only now did Du Yunlong truly grasp the immense power of the impending storm. The tribulation they would soon face was beyond anything he could have imagined.

As Du Yunlong stood under the oppressive weight of the descending sky, an overwhelming sense of dread gripped him. He had faced countless dangerous situations before, even witnessed the terrifying power of Foundation Establishment cultivators, but nothing compared to this. His mind was blank, save for the crushing darkness of the storm clouds and the fear that surged from deep within him.

The ominous energy in the air was far beyond anything a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment or even the Golden Core stage could endure. Yet, even as the pressure forced him to one knee, Du Yunlong refused to let go of Wang Zihan. Holding her tightly in his arms, he kept her safe, his teeth gritting in determination. Despite the tremor in his voice, he managed to say, "We're outside now, my lady..."

Above them, the sky was a tapestry of storm clouds, layer upon layer, crackling with cold, eerie blue lightning. The sight reminded Du Yunlong of the time Wang Zihan had told him about her encounter with the great roc on Mount Yuehua. That massive bird's shadow had blotted out the heavens, much like the storm clouds overhead now, but with an even greater, more terrifying presence.

At that time, Du Yunlong had silently mocked Wang Zihan for her fear. Now, standing under the crushing weight of the impending heavenly tribulation, he understood her terror all too well. If he had been in her place back then, he might have fainted on the spot.

But Wang Zihan's thoughts were elsewhere. She stared up at the swirling storm above them, her voice calm yet filled with an unspoken burden. "Do you see it? This is the tribulation I must face next. It's no longer just a simple lightning trial. This is a true Heavenly Tribulation, far more devastating than anything a regular Golden Core cultivator would face."

She added with a quiet pride, "It's almost on par with the tribulation my master faced when she ascended."

Her master, the revered Wugou Shinni, had been a Nascent Soul cultivator, and Wang Zihan's words made it clear that this tribulation was close to that level. "Are you ready to die with me in this storm?" she asked, her tone heavy with the gravity of the moment.

Du Yunlong, without hesitation, gave the only answer that truly mattered. "I love you, Wang Zihan. That's why..."

He looked her in the eyes, unwavering. "I'm willing to die for you."

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