Demonic Cultivation: Devouring Ten Thousand Demonic Beasts
Chapter 19: Failed Core Formation Breakthrough

Chapter 19: Failed Core Formation Breakthrough

Failed Core Formation Breakthrough...

It’s referred to when something went wrong during the most critical moment of the Core Formation process, preventing the spiritual core from fully forming or stabilizing.

There could be several reasons: impurities in the spiritual energy disrupting the condensation process, a flawed cultivation technique or unstable foundation, mental disturbance or emotional imbalance during the breakthrough... but most commonly, it was external interference, such as being attacked or disturbed during the crucial moment.

Any of these could result in failure. And when that happened, the consequences were often devastating.

In Yue Ling’s case, the fact that she was able to form even a false core was already the best possible outcome.

"But how? What happened?" Langtian’s brows furrowed.

He knew his senior sister. She wasn’t the type to rush things, nor would she attempt a breakthrough without adequate preparation. More importantly, she had already gone through this process once before, forming her own golden core.

But then he remembered...

Here, in this cursed valley, Yue Ling had been all alone.

Once she entered the meditative trance for her Core Formation breakthrough, there would’ve been no one to protect her.

"Could it be... that some demonic beasts attacked you mid-breakthrough?" he asked.

"Well, that," Yue Ling sighed, "and the Heavenly Tribulation."

"...Huh? Heavenly... what?"

"Yeah, you heard me. Heavenly Tribulation."

"Wait—WHAT?! THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE!"

Langtian’s voice cracked with disbelief.

Heavenly Tribulation?

That was absurd!

"How could a Heavenly Tribulation happen this early? Right at the Core Formation Stage?!"

Everyone knew that Heavenly Tribulations only began when attempting to break through to the next major realm after Core Formation, the Primordial Embryo Stage.

A Heavenly Tribulation was, in essence, the wrath of the heavens. It’s a divine trial sent down to test those who dared to defy the natural order and step onto the path of immortality.

Most often, it came as a storm of lightning. But depending on the cultivator, it could also take the form of divine fire, soul-rending winds, or even illusions of karma and past sins.

Each tribulation was tailored to the cultivator’s nature, weakness, and potential.

It was not just a test of strength, but also of will, spirit, and fate.

Fail, and your body would be broken, perhaps even reduced to ash.

Survive... and you would ascend, becoming many times stronger than before.

So then...

Why would Yue Ling have faced something like that before even reaching the Embryo Stage?

"Wait. Senior Sister, are you really sure that was a Heavenly Tribulation?"

Langtian still couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

Couldn’t it have just been a natural phenomenon that happened to occur at the same time...?

"Yeah?" Yue Ling replied flatly. "Come on. I know what a Heavenly Tribulation looks like. You think divine lightning just randomly strikes a place five times in a row for no reason?"

"Damn... you’re right..." Langtian muttered.

"So it really was a Heavenly Tribulation."

But then—

Another realization struck him.

"Wait. How many rounds did you say?"

Yue Ling didn’t answer with words.

She simply raised her hand... and spread her fingers.

Five.

Langtian’s eyes flew wide open.

"WHAT?! Five?! What the hell?! Even when breaking through to the Primordial Embryo Stage, it’s usually only three rounds of divine lightning!"

"Holy shit..." he clutched his head, disbelief crashing over him.

Because he knew exactly what that meant.

During a Heavenly Tribulation, each strike of lightning would be more devastating than the last, its power doubling with every round.

By the third strike, it would already be eight times stronger than the first. Many powerful cultivators had met their end at that point, their bodies unable to withstand the sheer destruction.

But the fifth strike?

That would be thirty-two times the power of the initial bolt!

That’s insane...

So then, how could anyone, especially someone who hadn’t even formed a proper Spiritual Core, possibly survive that?

It wasn’t just a trial anymore, it was clearly a death sentence!

It was like the heavens themselves didn’t want his senior sister Yue Ling to live!

Langtian stood frozen, stunned silent as the weight of it all settled in his mind.

Not only had a Heavenly Tribulation descended early, at the Core Formation stage, but it also came with five rounds of divine lightning.

Damn...

That could only mean one thing.

This demonic beast cultivation path, it was simply too heaven-defying!

It challenged the natural order so completely that it provoked the wrath of Heaven itself!

It was as if walking this path was nothing short of a declaration of war against the will of the cosmos.

They often said cultivators were like ants climbing a divine pillar, striving toward immortality beneath the cold gaze of the gods.

But this? This would be like an ant... baring its fangs at the heavens.

Of course the heavens would strike first, to snuff out the threat before it could grow.

However, That alone had also revealed one more terrifying, incredible truth:

The very laws of Heaven feared this path.

And so, perhaps, once someone set foot upon the demonic cultivation path...

If they survived, if they endured, they would become way stronger than anyone else.