Chapter 2608 Unfairness in Life

The Fifth Heaven Domain.

In the depths of the northwestern icefield, a cave residence lay hidden thousands of feet underground.

Azure radiance bathed the skies as the Primordial Chaos Thousand Daos Tree spread its roots across the vast expanse. Its branches and leaves swayed gently, diffusing the supreme dao mysteries of the last epoch.

Lin Xun sat cross-legged in meditation, quietly comprehending the profound truths of the dao. Not far away, Nie Qingrong was tempering her life-bound Emperor weapon, while Leng Qingxue was guiding Xiaoxi in her cultivation.

Although the world outside was bitterly cold, the cavern was warm as spring, quiet and peaceful. It had been three months since Lin Xun and the others arrived in the Fifth Heaven Domain. Three years and four months had passed since they left the First Heaven Domain.

Over those years, from the First to the Fourth Heaven Domain, Lin Xun had stirred up great waves, overturned the heavens and threw the world into chaos. Countless powerful cultivators under the enemy Immortal Imperial Clans had perished!

To Lin Xun, this counterattack was only the beginning. After all, those he had slaughtered along the way were nothing but lackeys of those Immortal Imperial Clans. Their deaths were not considered true losses to those clans.

So despite his rising fame and growing might over the years, Lin Xun felt there was nothing to be proud or boastful about.

“I’m going out for a walk.” After a long silence, Lin Xun stood up from meditation and said lightly, “Don’t leave this place until I return.”

Nie Qingrong, Leng Qingxue and Xiaoxi nodded in unison.

Over the years, they had journeyed with Lin Xun. Although they had spent most of their time inside the Limitless Abyss Sword Cauldron, they had witnessed everything he had done with their eyes.

At first, they had constantly worried for him, but after watching him survive countless perils and fight his way from the Second Heaven Domain to the Fifth Heaven Domain, they had come to trust in his heaven-defying strength. Their hearts were no longer filled with the same dread.

In truth, to be able to follow Lin Xun in battle to this point felt like a dream. It was so surreal that it often didn’t feel real at all.

“Brother Lin, are you going to fight again?” Leng Qingxue couldn’t help but ask as he was about to leave.

Over the years, every time Lin Xun arrived at a Heaven Domain, he would first lie low for a period of time, carefully assessing the local conditions before unleashing a wave of bloody carnage.

“Not to fight, but definitely to gather intel.”

Nie Qingrong’s beautiful eyes glimmered with contemplation. “We’re already in the Fifth Heaven Domain. It’s different from the previous ones. Numerous Immortal Imperial Clans are entrenched here. Although it can’t compare to the Sixth Heaven Domain, there are still Immortal figures stationed within these clans...

“Not to mention the Immortal Imperial Clans here, those in the Sixth Heaven Domain were utterly humiliated by Brother Lin in recent years. They barely managed to save face... If I were them, I would definitely mobilize their strongest force to strike him down in this Fifth Heaven Domain.” Her voice lowered slightly at the end as her expression turned grave.

Leng Qingxue was taken aback for a moment, then nodded in agreement. “You’re right, the Sixth Heaven Domain lies just above this one and it’s the stronghold of those Immortal Imperial Clans. If they can’t stop Brother Lin this time, it won’t be long before he reaches the Sixth Heaven Domain.”

“If that really happens, those enemies in the Sixth Heaven Domain will probably be living in constant fear!

“After all, while they’ve suffered heavy losses over the years, most of those killed were just subordinates. But once Brother Lin makes it to the Sixth Heaven Domain, his very presence will become like a blade at their throats, posing a direct threat to them!

“Perhaps, Brother Lin doesn’t yet have the power to bring down an entire Immortal Imperial Clan, but if he chooses to sabotage them instead, how many of them could withstand that kind of torment?”

Those words made Nie Qingrong pause in surprise. She couldn’t help but smile and said, “Qingxue, you’ve become much more thoughtful than you used to be.”

“The path of cultivation is shaped by one’s heart and mind and the worldly trials one endures. In the past, I was wholly devoted to cultivation and paid no mind to the affairs of the world. This was because I knew that leaving the First Heaven Domain was nearly impossible for me.”

A gentle smile appeared on Leng Qingxue’s pretty face. “But things are different now. We’ve reached the Fifth Heaven Domain. Everything’s changed, so I also can’t stay the same as before.”

Nie Qingrong praised, “This is what they mean by ‘insight into worldly affairs is true wisdom, and truth reveals itself in silence.’ When the heart and mind undergo transformation, one’s cultivation path often begins to shift in subtle ways.”

“It’s all thanks to Brother Lin. If he hadn’t brought us out of the First Heaven Domain, we likely wouldn’t have had the chance to step foot in the Fifth Heaven Domain in this lifetime...” A trace of worry appeared between Leng Qingxue’s brows. “It’s just that the situation in the Fifth Heaven Domain may be far more perilous than we imagined. Brother Lin...”

“Don’t worry, nothing will happen to him,” Nie Qingrong said firmly, her gaze resolute.

At that moment, Xiaoxi, who had been listening quietly the whole time, nodded earnestly and chirped, “Brother Daoyuan is super powerful! He’ll be fine for sure!”

......

The world outside was vast and blanketed in ice and snow. Lin Xun strode forward with his hands behind his back. Each step seemed to compress space itself, shrinking the earth into inches, making distant horizons feel as close as arm’s reach. He vanished in a blink.

Like Nie Qingrong and Leng Qingxue, he was well aware that the Fifth Heaven Domain would not be like the ones before it. His enemies had likely already begun to act in secret.

Despite that, Lin Xun was not afraid. In the past, limited by his strength, he often had no choice but to retreat when pursued by terrifying foes. He would either lie low or keep his distance.

Now he was no longer the same as before, so why would he still choose to endure or retreat? Throughout these years of battle and bloodshed, he had faced danger again and again. He was even hunted by Immortal powerhouses, but each time, he had escaped unscathed!

Put simply, unless he fell into an utterly hopeless situation, not even Immortals had much chance of killing him! It was precisely this very strength that had allowed him to fight his way from the Second Heaven Domain all the way to the Fifth Heaven Domain.

“Soon...once I reach the advanced Emperor Ancestor Stage, I might be able to fight head-on against Heavenly Longevity Immortals...” As Lin Xun moved forward, he sensed the profound transformation within his qi.

The battles over these years had tempered and transformed his cultivation multiple times amidst the bloodshed and peril. Now he had broken through to the intermediate Ancestor Stage and reached its pinnacle!

Such rapid progress was not only the result of intense combat tempering, but also closely tied to the changes in the overall cultivation environment. If he had not left the First Heaven Domain, even he wouldn’t have imagined that the higher heaven domains could have such a profound influence on cultivation.

To put it in perspective: in the eyes of Emperor-level cultivators, if the First Heaven Domain was like a shallow pond, then the Second Heaven Domain was a gently flowing stream. The third was a vast lake. The fourth was a surging, torrential river. Finally, the fifth was no different from a boundless ocean!

The differences between Heaven Domains were so great that even the world’s laws, the aura of the great dao, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth all underwent entirely different transformations.

According to Lin Xun’s own inference, the Third Heaven Domain alone was enough to sustain an Emperor-Ancestor’s cultivation, while the Fourth could meet the cultivation needs of Immortal-level cultivators.

The Fifth Heaven Domain not only provided abundant cultivation resources for Immortals, but also possessed the natural conditions necessary for them to break through to even higher realms!

It was no wonder that Emperor Ancestors like Nie Qingrong and Leng Qingxue were so determined to leave the First Heaven Domain. After all, different Heaven Domains offered a world entirely different from the last.

He was even certain that if he had not left the First Heaven Domain, his cultivation would never have progressed so rapidly!

Occasionally, he would think of his senior brothers and sisters from Fangchun Mountain. With their deep foundation and remarkable talents, they had been suppressed for so many years in the Ancient Nebula Road. Now that they had arrived in the Eternal True Realm, it was like a trapped dragon ascending to the heavens. Their cultivation would surely erupt with unimaginable progress in a short time!

“This is only the Fifth Heaven Domain. If it’s already like this, what would the Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Heaven Domains be like?” Lin Xun marveled.

He couldn’t help but recall the supreme Emperor Ancestors he had encountered at the Ruins of the Gods, such as Qi Lingyun, Zhongli Xiao, and Chi Pojun. They had all hailed from the Eighth Heaven Domain.

He also thought of Yun Luohong, a figure known as one of the ten supreme Emperor Ancestors of the Seventh Heaven Domain.

These dazzling nobles had cultivated in the Seventh and Eighth Heaven Domains since birth, supported by powerful Immortal Imperial Clans. From the moment they began their cultivation, they enjoyed rare and precious resources that ordinary cultivators couldn’t even imagine. How could their path on the great dao possibly be ordinary?

The world of cultivation was never fair. From birth, everything was already decided. No matter how dazzling your talent, if you were born in a remote and impoverished place, you would likely spend your entire life trapped in that small, narrow world.

Yun Qingbai was proof of this very reality. Conversely, even if one was utterly mediocre, being born into one of the Ten Immortal Giants of the Eighth Heaven Domain meant that they were practically guaranteed to attain great achievements in life.

Poor aptitude? Then just throw all kinds of divine materials at them to forge a solid cultivation foundation.

Mediocre talent? Then just invite a host of immortal powerhouses to personally guide them. That would surely guarantee them to gain enlightenment.

Weak spiritual roots? No problem, just use some heaven-defying forbidden techniques to cleanse their marrow, shed the old, and rebuild the body from scratch!

A piece of trash completely unable to cultivate? Didn’t matter. Their clan’s power alone could ensure they lived a carefree, unrestrained life.

This was unfairness, a cruel reality predetermined from birth.

Take Lin Xun, for example. He came from a mine prison, rose from obscurity, journeyed across the Ziyao Empire, and made his name known throughout the Ancient Wasteland Domain...

Over the years, he had braved countless dangers, endured deadly battles, and survived numerous life-and-death ordeals. Only then did he attain the achievements he possessed today.

In contrast, nobles such as Qi Lingyun and Zhongli Xiao had reached the same Supreme Emperor Ancestor Stage as Lin Xun without ever having to endure even a fraction of the hardships he faced.

This was the innate gap. Fortunately, such a gap could still be bridged through perseverance and hard earned effort. Otherwise, this world would be far too bleak and hopeless to bear...