Lin Xun had been on the run for several days, and he had survived many obstacles and attacks along the way. In total, he had fought at least dozens of battles.

On the most serious occasions, he encountered joint attacks from Yu Xiaosheng and Lin Lang. Although he managed to escape, his injuries worsened.

Worst of all, as time passed, there were more and more cultivators and he had no time to rest and recover.

This continued for dozens of days. His body became badly mangled and drenched with blood. He looked as though he would collapse at any time.

He had consumed even the last of the Treasure Lantern King Ginseng, a rare elixir coveted by even Life Death Stage Kings. Imaginably, the battles he encountered along the way were incredibly intense.

He had used up all the king ginsengs but he still had a sprig of the Qilin Grass. Although he could treat his injuries, he was most worried about the fatal damage to his Heaven Ascension Platform.

The heavenly tribulation chain was too bizarre and terrifying as it was full of the supreme power of law and order. Lin Xun had failed to remove it no matter what he did. He could only continue to watch it corrode his Heaven Ascension Platform and shake his Great Dao foundation.

Lin Xun went into hiding in a cave after fleeing from another chase and tried to recover as quickly as possible. He knew he only had limited time and couldn’t slack off.

In recent days, he had been wracking his brain to figure out what had led to the bizarre calamity during his breakthrough to Heaven Ascension Stage. But he couldn’t understand the reason, which left a shadow on his state of mind.

“That’s a Dao injury!” Lin Xun received an unexpected answer when he asked Jin Duyi.

“The heavens do not tolerate you. I remember that only heaven-defying characters in ancient times triggered such terrifying tribulation calamities!” Jin Duyi cried out in surprise. “I didn’t think you were such a monster! What kind of cultivation arts do you practice?”

Dao injury?

Lin Xun looked blank. He remembered that all the arts he practiced—the Mystery Grotto Devour Wilderness Scripture, Little Divine Meditation Art, Heavenly Yuan Blade Art and the Nine Heavenshaking Destructions Art. They all came from the Omega Secret Realm.

Even the Origin Aeth Artery he had developed in his body was inextricably linked with the Omega Secret Realm.

Could the bizarreness of his tribulation and the damage to his Great Dao be connected to the Omega Secret Realm?

He couldn’t be sure.

“For cultivators, Dao injuries are the most terrifying. It affects one’s foundation of the Great Dao. Moreover, the Dao injuries you sustained are even more special. It is the power of a heavenly tribulation. It’s almost impossible to dissolve it.”

Jin Duyi was serious. Lin Xun’s situation was so bad that he was in no mood to joke around.

“Since ancient times, several peerless geniuses had to end their cultivation path because they failed to recover from their Dao injuries.”

“Is there no hope of treating it…?” Lin Xun’s face grew more and more overcast.

After a long moment, he sighed softly and stopped thinking about it. He would not give up until the last moment.

A few days later, he was fleeing for his life. His injuries were so bad that they couldn’t be any more worse, and he often coughed up blood.

This was because his Heaven Ascension Platform had been shaken and started to dim. That was the foundation of his Great Dao! Such heavy damage would no doubt bring unimaginable consequences.

“Damn you heavens…” he sighed.

But he still didn’t give up. He didn’t believe that he would die in the pursuit and continued to ponder about how to treat the Dao injuries in his body.

“You can go.”

On that day, Lin Xun’s injuries and condition started to deteriorate after a fierce battle. He looked as though he would crumble from a gust of wind.

So, he decided to let Jin Duyi leave.

“I should be able to hold on for a while longer, but if something goes wrong, you will have to suffer with me. So, it’s better for you to leave,” Lin Xun urged.

Jin Duyi scrunched up his face in surprise mixed with a complex expression as he gazed at the youngster bleeding endlessly.

In the end, he nodded and gave a wave of his hand. “You still have a conscience. When you die, I will set up a grave for you.” He turned around and left.

As Lin Xun watched him leave, the corners of his pale lips curled upwards in a slight smile. Then, he shook his head, got up and continued to flee for his life.

A few days later…

Boom!

Another battle broke out. A group of cultivators, including the Saint of the Water Ape Clan and the Saintess of the Dark Wood Clan, caught up to him.

Lin Xun fought with everything he had and managed to escape again.

However, after he fled from the attackers, he couldn’t hold on any longer and slipped into a swamp.

His body was riddled with ghastly scars and wounds, and his dark eyes were dull and lifeless, which contrasted sharply with his deathly pale face.

“Is there really nothing I can do?”

He felt a surge of bitterness and unwillingness in his heart. He completely let go. There was no longer any shred of fear or worries in his heart. He felt light and free and didn’t care whether enemies were approaching him.

His body was mangled beyond recognition, and his energy and spirit were on the verge of exhaustion. The Heaven Ascension Cave in his body was dimming and becoming dull, and the luminous, glass-like platform was shrouded by terrifyingly dark and oppressive shadows.

“I have to give it a try! There is a cause for every effect, and from every single drink to every single bite, there is nothing that is not preordained. To solve this calamity, I must explore the source!”

He gritted his teeth and exhausted the remaining of his strength to investigate the mysterious omega door in his mind-sea.

At that moment, he was akin to an empty shell, about to die.

Boom!

Right then, a wave of mighty energy gushed out from the Origin Aeth Artery in his heart like a torrent.

His severely damaged body was submerged in the swamp, still and lifeless, but inside him was a majestic force spreading around, rapidly healing the wounds.

However, he didn’t notice.

Unlike in the past, this time it was his consciousness that had entered the secret realm, and it was still the same familiar scene.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

An azure cloud path stretched straight ahead, and at the end stood a mysterious door that seemed unopened in years.

After breaking through to the Heaven Ascension Stage, he again earned the opportunity to enter the Omega Secret Realm and challenge the fifth level of the Great Azure Cloud Path.

As he stepped onto the path once again and glanced around, a different wave of emotions and feelings swirled in his heart.

Then, familiar cryptic energy quietly permeated the area, scanning Lin Xun.

A voice as cold as ice resounded across the world—

“Dao seeker, the fifth level of the Great Azure Cloud Path is called Harmonize Dao. Do you want to challenge it now?”

Lin Xun shook his head. How could he be in the mood to challenge the fifth level now?

Without any hesitation, he asked aloud, “I came here just to ask whether the tribulation I suffered is related to this place?”

He remembered the voice had answered his question when he had passed the previous level. In other words, there was an existence behind the voice, and it had spiritual intelligence.

However, this time he received no answer. He waited for a long time, but the world was utterly silent.

Just when he was a little disheartened, the emotionless voice rang again. “This level is prepared for refining Dao injury.”

That one sentence was earth-shattering!

Lin Xun’s spirit was suddenly lifted. “As I thought, the source of the bizarre tribulation is here!”

“Dao seeker, are you going to challenge the level?” asked the cold voice.

Lin Xun took a deep breath and answered, “Yes!”

“You will pass the level when you grasp the profound meaning of the Dao Slashing Art.”

As the cold voice faded, a drizzle of light transformed into a mysterious ancient Dao symbol before cloaking Lin Xun’s entire figure.

Almost subconsciously, Lin Xun sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

At the same time, a majestic Dao sound resounded in the depths of his spirit and all kinds of obscure and mysterious inheritance art secrets emerged.

Dao Slashing Art!

In short, it wasn’t a cultivation art. but a mysterious art that specialized in dissolving tribulation power!

Defy the heavens and slash the dao, turn the tribulation back into its original form and harmonize the Dao to its true form. This sentence summarized the true purpose of the wonderful art.

“It seems that, when I first started to challenge the levels, the creator of Omega Secret Realm had already anticipated everything that had happened today. This is why there are nine levels in the Great Azure Cloud Path to test and guide me…”

“No!”

“It is prepared for the challengers and not just for me. Whoever enters the Omega Secret Realm will encounter a similar tribulation after passing the many tests. This is why the Dao Slashing Art exists!”

“Defy the heavens and slash the dao. Who opened up the Omega Secret Realm?”

Lin Xun quickly gave up on figuring out the question. He was immersed in grasping all the mysteries and wonders of the Dao Slashing Art.

An unknown amount of time passed before the cold, emotionless voice rang in his ears again.

“The level has ended. You will need to master imago power to challenge the sixth level.”

As the sound faded, Lin Xun’s consciousness left the Omega Secret Realm and returned to his body.

“Cause and effect.”

Thoughts swept through his mind. He recalled the lightning tribulation he had encountered, remembered the endless attacks he had to deal with along the way, and then reminisced about entering the Omega Secret Realm to comprehend an art to resolve the tribulation. He felt enlightened.

For the first time, he realized the existence of a mysterious force called cause and effect in the world.

He wouldn’t have come this far without the Omega Secret Realm, but it was also because of the Omega Secret Realm that his cultivation path had become completely different from other cultivators—He had to face many unexpected tribulations and dangers. This was cause and effect!

Without further deliberation, he performed the Dao Slashing Art and attempted to dissolve the heavenly tribulation power on his Heaven Ascension Platform.

His mind was clear and devoid of desires and thoughts. As he mobilized the Dao Slashing Art, a wave of invisible and obscure energy gathered and enveloped the heavenly tribulation chain.

His Heaven Ascension cave started to boom and spew out mist!

An unknown amount of time passed before a fierce battle noise shook the area. The unusual sound alarmed Lin Xun, who was refining the tribulation power with all his strength.