Dragon Monarch System

Chapter 1190: Chapter 1190:- Moments Before Heavenly Tribulation [II]

Aditya floated silently in the sky, keeping a considerable distance from his loved ones. He had deliberately moved away from everyone before stopping. The Heavenly Tribulation was his trial, and he had no intention of letting anyone else accidentally get caught in its range.

As for whether he was confident that he could successfully overcome the Heavenly Tribulation by himself, Aditya could not say that he was one hundred per cent certain.

But then again, who could?

No cultivator standing on the verge of facing their Heavenly Tribulation could confidently claim that they had a one hundred percent chance of surviving it. There were simply too many uncertainties involved. No matter how talented, experienced, or powerful someone was, Heavenly Thunder was not something that could ever be underestimated.

Of course, under normal circumstances, cultivators could make preparations before attempting their breakthrough. They could construct specialised defensive formations, prepare defensive artefacts, healing pills, and many other things that could increase their chances of successfully enduring the Heavenly Tribulation.

Aditya had none of those preparations. His breakthrough had come far earlier and far more suddenly than he had originally expected.

Technically, he could have remained within the city and attempted to use the massive defensive dome protecting the city to shield himself. However, Aditya immediately dismissed that idea.

It would be completely unrealistic. The defensive dome surrounding the city was designed to protect against attacks from cultivators and invading armies. It was never constructed to withstand Heavenly Tribulation.

Heavenly Thunder was fundamentally different from ordinary lightning or conventional attacks. To defend against it, cultivators required specialized defensive formations specifically constructed to withstand and weaken the power of Heavenly Tribulation. Building such formations required time, resources, and preparation.

Aditya had none of those things available to him right now. The enormous amount of unstable Crimson Flame-element mana inside his body had forced him to begin his breakthrough immediately. There had been no opportunity to spend days preparing formations or gathering additional defensive measures.

So there was no point regretting his lack of preparation.

Aditya raised his head and silently looked toward the sky. This was something he had to face without external help. For this breakthrough, he could depend only on his own strength. And whether he liked it or not, that would have to be enough.

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Scene Change____

“What is happening?” Even though there was still an hour and a half remaining before the war was scheduled to begin, hundreds of thousands of troops belonging to various Dukedoms had already begun gathering outside Axel City. Using the teleportation arrays, armies continued arriving one after another, preparing themselves for the upcoming war.

However, upon arriving, everyone quickly noticed that something was wrong. Axel City had been completely closed off from the outside world. No one was being allowed to enter or leave, and even the massive Defensive Dome Structure protecting the entire city had been fully activated.

Seeing such extreme security measures being taken right before the war, many soldiers and commanders showed expressions of confusion and bewilderment. Even several Dukes could not understand what had happened inside the city.

“Reporting! It appears that someone within the Harrington Family is currently attempting a breakthrough. We have been strictly ordered to remain where we are and not do anything that could interfere with the process.”

“Anyone who interferes with the Heavenly Tribulation, whether intentionally or otherwise, will immediately be declared an enemy of the Harrington Family.” The messenger quickly explained everything he knew.

Hearing this, the Duke’s expression became slightly nervous. The Harrington Family was already a colossal powerhouse among the 119 Dukedoms, standing undoubtedly as the strongest Dukedom among them. Yet now, right before the beginning of the war, someone from the Harrington Family was apparently attempting another breakthrough. Depending on who this person was, the overall strength of the Harrington Family could increase even further.

“Who is this person?” The Duke immediately asked the messenger, wanting to know which member of the Harrington Family was undergoing the breakthrough.

“My Lord, I have no idea.” The messenger shook his head before continuing.

“However, something very strange happened earlier. The temperature throughout the entire city suddenly began rising at a terrifying rate. It became so hot that many ordinary people fainted because of the extreme heat. The hottest area in the entire city was around the Harrington mansion.”

The messenger paused briefly before adding, “Fortunately, Lord Harrington managed to contain most of the heat within the mansion. Otherwise, I fear many ordinary citizens, along with a large number of First Order and Second Order cultivators, might have died from the extreme temperature.”

However, the Duke barely paid attention to the final part of his explanation. What immediately caught his attention were two words.

Extreme heat.

His expression slowly changed as a certain possibility appeared in his mind. As far as the Duke knew, there was one person currently staying with the Harrington Family who was capable of producing such terrifying heat.

And that person possessed the legendary Crimson Flame. It did not take long for the Duke to connect everything together.

‘His Highness is breaking through?’ The Duke’s eyes widened slightly as he instinctively looked toward the enormous defensive dome covering Axel City.

But almost immediately, another question appeared in his mind. ‘But how is that possible? Wasn’t His Highness only a Mid Fifth Order cultivator the last time I saw him?’

The more the Duke thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed. Yet the terrifying heat, the sudden lockdown of Axel City, and the upcoming Heavenly Tribulation all pointed toward the same conclusion. The person attempting to break through inside Axel City was very likely Aditya.

“Sir, what should we do?” The commander of the Duke’s army asked while looking toward Axel City.

The Duke did not immediately answer. His eyes remained fixed on the massive Defensive Dome Structure surrounding Axel City from every direction. The entire city had been completely sealed, making it clear just how seriously the Harrington Family was treating this breakthrough.

“For now, we watch and wait.” The Duke finally replied. “If His Highness really is the one attempting this breakthrough and he succeeds, then this will be an enormous blessing for all of us. Our Supreme Commander will no longer be a Fifth Order cultivator. He will become a Beginner Sixth Order cultivator right before the war begins.”

The Duke’s expression gradually became excited as he continued, “I have heard that despite being only a Mid Fifth Order cultivator, His Highness was already powerful enough to fight against Peak Sixth Order cultivators. If those reports are true, then I can only imagine how terrifyingly powerful he will become once he reaches Beginner Sixth Order.”

For the Anti-Emperor Faction, Aditya becoming stronger at this exact moment could not have come at a better time. Their Supreme Commander gaining such a massive increase in strength only an hour and a half before the beginning of the war could significantly increase their overall fighting power and also boost the morale of the entire army.

“This is a blessing for us.” The Duke declared.

He then raised his arm and turned toward the enormous army gathered behind him. His expression became completely serious as he issued his next command.

“My men, spread my orders throughout every legion. From this moment onward, anyone who attempts to approach Axel City with the intention of interfering with His Highness’s breakthrough will be treated as our mortal enemy. I do not care who that person is. I do not care whether they are one of our allies, someone from another Dukedom, or even one of our own people.”

The Duke’s voice became colder as he finished his command. “If anyone attempts to interfere with His Highness’s Heavenly Tribulation, kill them before they can even reach the city. There will be no warnings and no exceptions. His Highness must be allowed to complete his breakthrough without any interference.”

“Yes, My Lord!” The commander immediately responded before turning around to spread the Duke’s orders throughout the army. Within minutes, the hundreds of thousands of troops under the Duke’s command became another layer of protection surrounding Axel City.

As time passed, more and more Dukes arrived outside Axel City with their armies. Through the various teleportation arrays, tens of thousands of soldiers continued appearing until the number of troops gathered outside the city steadily grew.

Naturally, every newly arrived Duke immediately noticed the massive Defensive Dome Structure covering Axel City and the fact that the entire city had been completely sealed. However, they did not remain confused for long. News of what was happening quickly spread among the gathered armies.

Their Supreme Commander, Aditya, was currently attempting to break through to Beginner Sixth Order.

Once they learned this, the reactions of the Dukes were almost identical. One after another, they declared that until His Highness successfully completed his breakthrough, their armies would help protect Axel City. Although they had gathered here to prepare for the upcoming war, protecting Aditya during such a vulnerable and crucial moment immediately became their highest priority.

Soon, hundreds of thousands of soldiers from multiple Dukedoms were positioned outside Axel City. The Dukes ordered their commanders to remain vigilant, making it clear that anyone attempting to approach the city with suspicious intentions or interfere with His Highness’s Heavenly Tribulation would be stopped immediately.

Without anyone formally planning it, the enormous allied army gathering for the civil war had effectively transformed into another layer of defence around Axel City.

However, Aditya knew absolutely nothing about what was happening below.

More than a thousand meters above the ground, he silently floated in the sky with his complete attention focused on what was about to come.

He could already feel it. The atmosphere around him was beginning to change. Aditya slowly raised his head toward the vast sky above him.

The first strike of Heavenly Thunder could descend at any second now.

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