Rise of the Wang Clan: Starting with a Portable Farm

Chapter 208: Golden Core Cultivator Wang Guang’an

On the periphery, Li Dedao barked orders for his clan to evacuate, but his gaze remained fixed on the Danfu Pavilion, burning with undisguised envy. The Wang family wasn’t just mass-producing Foundation Establishment experts anymore; they were about to birth a Golden Core powerhouse.

Since Li Derong’s return, the Li family had effectively become a vassal state to the Wangs. They had no choice but to obey. In the world of Cultivation, strength was the only law that mattered.

Although the Li family had sent over a dozen talented youths to the Wang estate, they were all merely Qi Refining cultivators. Their futures—and the future of the Li clan—depended entirely on the Wang family’s distribution of Foundation Establishment Pills. How could they possibly stand tall with their spines so thoroughly bent?

High above, Ye Yunjun flicked her wrist. A set of formation flags shot out, creating a barrier around the neighboring structures of the Danfu Pavilion to shield them from the collateral damage of the heavenly wrath.

BOOM!

Scarcely had the crowd retreated when a deafening thunderclap shattered the silence. A thick pillar of silver lightning tore through the tribulation clouds, crashing straight toward Wang Guang’an.

Wang Guang’an’s expression was grave. He had no Dharma Protector to share the burden, meaning he had to face the heavens alone. Fortunately, Wang Hao had gifted him a true Dharma Treasure—the Blue Flood Dragon Furnace. This alchemical cauldron gave him a fighting chance.

He raised his left hand. The blue cauldron shot into the sky, expanding instantly to form a massive, protective canopy over his head.

The lightning struck.

With a violent flash, the bolt slammed into the giant cauldron. The shockwave pulverized the surrounding masonry into dust. Residual arcs of electricity bypassed the furnace, cascading down onto Wang Guang’an.

He felt a numbing jolt. His Spirit Weapon-grade robes were instantly reduced to ash, bursting into flames before disintegrating.

However, the weakened current could no longer harm his flesh. Instead, as the electricity coursed through his body, it washed over his embryonic Golden Core, causing it to shine with an even more brilliant luster.

This was only the opening salvo. Although the Golden Core Tribulation lacked the world-ending terror of the Nascent Soul Tribulation, a single moment of carelessness would still result in death.

Thunder roared like a war drum. Silver bolts cascaded down in a relentless torrent, drowning Wang Guang’an in a sea of blinding electricity.

The building beneath him had long since been reduced to rubble. Outside the perimeter, Wang Yanfeng and the others watched with hearts in their throats, clearly seeing the accumulation of wounds on the Old Ancestor’s body.

Wang Wenmei’s face was pale with anxiety. She hesitated, then whispered, “Eighth Uncle, should we beg the Senior from the Ye family to intervene? Perhaps she could help the Old Ancestor…”

Wang Yanfeng shook his head grimly. “Even if she agreed—which is unlikely—our Wang family has no foundation to repay such a debt. The cost would be astronomical. Furthermore, the Patriarch gave no such order before entering Secluded Cultivation. We cannot make such a decision on his behalf.”

The Wang clan members hung their heads in helplessness. This was the tragedy of shallow foundations. Without a powerful lineage or sect, there was no one to mitigate the lethality of the lightning. Unlike the Nascent Soul Tribulation, which was intimately connected to the Heavenly Dao, the Golden Core Tribulation allowed for external assistance, but for a rogue family, such help was a fantasy.

Yet, this isolation was a double-edged sword. The tribulation was both a trial and a gift. Surviving it alone conferred benefits that relying on others could never provide.

The family’s first Golden Core cultivator had to rely on his own destiny. Cultivation was an act of defying the heavens; no path was smooth. That Wang Guang’an had reached this step was already a stroke of immense fortune.

With a Dharma Treasure in hand, the odds were in his favor.

In the distance, Ye Yunjun watched with cool indifference. Ensuring Wang Guang’an wasn’t disturbed by outside forces was already a significant favor. For her to step into the lightning? That would require the Wang family to sign themselves over as eternal slaves to the Ye clan.

There were no free lunches in the Cultivation world. Even the protection of the surrounding buildings was a calculated service. Whether Wang Guang’an lived or died, the Wang family would be receiving a bill for the formation usage and the property damage.

Wang Wenmei and Wang Wenyan sighed, helpless to do anything but offer silent prayers.

Moments later, the vast tribulation clouds shrank into a dense, concentrated mass. But the storm did not disperse.

The black clouds roiled and compressed, finally birthing a creature of pure destruction. A colossal silver python, formed of condensed lightning and three times thicker than the previous bolts, coiled through the sky before snapping its jaws open at Wang Guang’an.

The spectators gasped, forgetting to breathe. Fingers dug into palms, drawing blood unnoticed.

CRACK-BOOM!

A sound so loud it felt like a physical blow struck their eardrums. A blinding white light forced everyone to squeeze their eyes shut.

Debris from the ruins was blasted into the sky, creating a choking cloud of dust.

Silence followed.

Everyone stared intently at the settling dust, searching for a silhouette in the ruins.

Wang Guang’an stood amidst the devastation, stark naked. His skin was scorched black in large patches, blood trickled from his lips, and his aura flickered weakly.

But as the charred skin cracked and fell away, the flesh underneath was revealed to be tender and vibrant. The deep wrinkles on his face had vanished. His beard and hair, once snow-white, had turned a lustrous black.

He had been reborn.

The Pressure radiating from him was undeniably that of a Golden Core cultivator.

Wang Guang’an exhaled a long, shaky breath, and a look of ecstatic disbelief washed over his rejuvenated features.

“Ancestors bless us… After five hundred years, the Wang family finally has a Golden Core cultivator!”

He threw his head back and let out a long, ragged cry of triumph, tears streaming down his face.

With the aid of two potent spiritual items, the condensation process had been smooth. The only true danger had been the final lightning strike. Without Wang Hao’s Blue Flood Dragon Furnace, he would have been turned to ash.

“Fellow Daoist, this is not the time to weep. That tribulation cloud contains the pure essence of Heaven and Earth. Absorb it quickly; it is vital for consolidating your realm.”

Ye Yunjun’s voice cut through the air. Now that Wang Guang’an was a fellow Golden Core, she was willing to offer a few pointers to establish a karmic tie.

Her words snapped Wang Guang’an back to reality. He hurriedly pulled a spare Daoist robe from his Storage Bag, dressed himself, and bowed deeply toward Ye Yunjun. “Many thanks for the guidance, Fellow Daoist.”

He felt no resentment for her lack of intervention. They were strangers, not kin. Her presence alone, keeping the peace, was already a courtesy.

As the tribulation clouds dispersed, they released a rain of pure spiritual energy. Hidden within was a trace of Origin Energy—a substance capable of permanently improving a cultivator’s aptitude.

Wang Guang’an opened his mouth. His Golden Core drifted slowly from his Dantian, hovering above his head like a second sun, greedily devouring the falling energy.

Once it had drained the immediate surroundings, the core shot upward, piercing into the lingering Spiritual Qi vortex above the city.

As it entered the center of the vortex, it dyed the swirling chaotic energy with a brilliant, imperial gold.

Below, the onlookers froze, awestruck.

“He… he actually did it!”

“The tribulation has passed. The Golden Core is formed. He is a Golden Core True Person now!”

Envy washed over the crowd. In the overseas regions, Foundation Establishment cultivators were common, but Golden Cores were rare entities, each one a lord of their own domain.

Several other Golden Core cultivators in the city, who had been watching from the shadows, nodded in acknowledgement.

“Haha! I knew he would succeed. My judgment remains sharp!”

“Brother Xin has a keen eye. Speaking of which, since this Fellow Daoist has succeeded, shouldn’t we pay a visit? We can offer congratulations and share some insights. The Wang family runs a pill shop, after all; it wouldn’t hurt to build a bridge.”

“True. However, he has just broken through. He will need time to stabilize his cultivation. The Wang family isn’t going anywhere. We can visit in a few days.”

“Agreed. I see the Ye family is handling the cleanup. Fellow Daoist Wang will likely need to visit the City Lord’s Mansion to pay his respects first. Let us wait.”

Under the nourishment of the heavens, Wang Guang’an’s Golden Core grew increasingly dazzling. After draining the massive reserves of Qi left by the vortex and the lightning clouds, the core physically expanded, pulsating with power.

Slowly, the Golden Core descended, sinking back into Wang Guang’an’s body.

A terrifying, majestic Pressure erupted from him, sweeping across the ruins.

At this moment, the deed was done. Even without immediate consolidation, there was no longer any risk of his realm collapsing. Wang Guang’an had ascended.