Silence lingered within the inheritance hall.
The ancient formation beneath their feet pulsed rhythmically, its countless runes illuminating the chamber with a gentle blue glow. Yet Lin Sheng's mind was anything but calm.
The words "The Heavenly Dao has already discovered you" continued to echo within his consciousness.
For the first time since transmigrating into this world, he genuinely felt powerless.
He had always believed that with the Chip and enough time, every obstacle could eventually be overcome.
But this...
This was no enemy he could strike down.
It was Heaven itself.
Taking a slow breath to steady his thoughts, Lin Sheng looked toward the elderly formation spirit standing before him.
His voice was quieter than before.
"Elder..."
"If the Heavenly Dao has truly set its sights on me..."
"...is there any way to escape it?"
The old man quietly stroked his long beard.
His expression was calm, but his eyes carried an ancient depth that spoke of countless years of experience.
"You truly ask the correct question."
He slowly nodded.
"If you had asked how to defeat the Heavenly Dao..."
"I would have thrown you out immediately."
Lin Sheng smiled bitterly.
"I still possess enough self-awareness."
The formation spirit chuckled softly.
"Good."
He took several steps across the hall before speaking again.
"If you had not passed the trials..."
"This old man would never have revealed any of this."
"I would have allowed you to leave ignorant."
Lin Sheng frowned slightly.
"Why?"
The old man answered matter-of-factly.
"Because ignorance sometimes prolongs one's life."
"If you knew nothing..."
"You might continue cultivating as before."
"You would make only small changes."
"The Heavenly Dao would continue observing."
"But now..."
He looked directly into Lin Sheng's eyes.
"You know."
"And knowledge itself changes one's actions."
"If your panic causes you to forcefully alter destiny..."
"You may very well accelerate your own destruction."
Lin Sheng fell silent.
That made perfect sense.
A man who knew he was being hunted would inevitably behave differently from one who remained ignorant.
The old man suddenly raised a finger.
"You previously asked how one escapes Heaven's judgment."
"The answer..."
"...lies in understanding tribulations."
Lin Sheng immediately focused.
"Elder means the Heavenly Tribulations?"
The formation spirit slowly shook his head.
"No."
"I speak of something far more terrifying."
He paused.
"The Human Tribulation."
Lin Sheng's brows furrowed.
"The Human Tribulation?"
The old man nodded.
"Most cultivators only fear lightning."
"They fear heavenly flames."
"They fear heavenly wind."
"They fear heart demons."
"But these..."
"...are merely the most visible forms of tribulation."
His expression gradually became solemn.
"The Heavenly Dao rarely acts directly."
"It prefers using the world itself."
He slowly began explaining.
"Imagine a cultivator."
"One who has finally accumulated enough cultivation to break into the Nascent Soul Realm."
"They enter secluded cultivation."
"They activate their formation."
"They prepare countless pills."
"Everything proceeds perfectly."
He looked toward Lin Sheng.
"And then..."
"An old enemy."
"One thought long dead."
"Just so happens..."
"...to pass by."
The old man's tone carried unmistakable emphasis on those two words.
"Just so happens."
Lin Sheng immediately understood.
"Coincidence..."
"There are no true coincidences."
The formation spirit nodded approvingly.
"Correct."
"The enemy discovers the vulnerable cultivator."
"A battle erupts."
"The breakthrough fails."
"The cultivator dies."
He spread his hands.
"Was it Heaven that struck him?"
"No."
"It merely arranged circumstances."
Lin Sheng felt a chill run down his spine.
The old man continued calmly.
"Human Tribulations come in countless forms."
"A trusted friend betrays you."
"A sect suddenly declares war."
"A hidden assassin appears."
"A treasure attracts countless enemies."
"A loved one is captured."
"Or perhaps..."
"You simply choose the wrong road one day."
He sighed.
"The Heavenly Dao possesses endless methods."
"It merely pushes."
"The rest..."
"...is accomplished by the greed, hatred, ambition, and fear within men's hearts."
The inheritance hall fell silent.
After several breaths, Lin Sheng finally spoke.
"So..."
"The Human Tribulation..."
"...is Heaven using humans."
The formation spirit smiled faintly.
"Precisely."
"It is also the most difficult tribulation to guard against."
"You cannot predict it."
"You cannot calculate it."
"You cannot seal yourself away from it forever."
He slowly turned toward the ancient formation surrounding the hall.
"A minor Human Tribulation..."
"...can usually be overcome through sufficient strength."
"A rogue cultivator."
"A robber."
"A beast tide."
"An assassination."
"Such things are dangerous."
"But not impossible."
His voice gradually became heavier.
"But a major Human Tribulation..."
He looked directly at Lin Sheng.
"...is one personally arranged by Heaven."
"It gathers countless threads of fate."
"It weaves together impossible coincidences."
"It corners you."
"It leaves you with no apparent escape."
"And for most cultivators..."
"It is synonymous with death."
Lin Sheng unconsciously clenched his fists.
For a brief moment, the hall became utterly quiet.
Then the formation spirit suddenly smiled.
"But..."
"The Great Dao gives rise to fifty."
"Only forty-nine may be grasped."
"One..."
"...always escapes."
"There is always a sliver of hope hidden within absolute despair."
"The question..."
"...is whether you possess the ability to seize it."
The old man's final sentence lingered within the inheritance hall.
> "There is always a sliver of hope hidden within absolute despair."
Lin Sheng lowered his head in thought.
His mind rapidly analyzed everything the formation spirit had revealed.
If the Heavenly Dao truly governed the operation of the world through laws rather than emotions...
Then there could never be an absolute dead end.
Otherwise, it would contradict the very balance it sought to preserve.
Taking a slow breath, Lin Sheng raised his head.
"So..."
"The only way to survive is to become stronger?"
The formation spirit smiled faintly.
"That is one way."
"But it is not the only way."
Lin Sheng's eyes brightened slightly.
"There are other methods?"
"There are."
The old man slowly stroked his beard.
"You have already heard this old man mention that all things approaching Rank Four must undergo a Heavenly Tribulation."
Lin Sheng nodded.
"Yes."
The elder continued.
"Most cultivators only see the danger within a Heavenly Tribulation."
"They believe it exists solely to destroy."
"They are wrong."
He raised a finger.
"A Heavenly Tribulation is also..."
"...recognition."
Lin Sheng narrowed his eyes.
"Recognition?"
The old man nodded.
"When Heaven sends down its tribulation..."
"It is acknowledging your existence."
"If you perish..."
"You were unworthy."
"If you survive..."
"The Heavenly Dao recognizes your qualification to continue existing at a higher level."
His voice remained calm.
"That is why every path leading to Rank Four requires a Heavenly Tribulation."
"Golden Core cultivators."
"Rank Four formations."
"Rank Four pills."
"Rank Four artifacts."
"Even Rank Four spirit herbs."
"They all experience Heavenly Tribulation."
"They all receive Heaven's acknowledgment upon surviving."
Lin Sheng immediately understood the implication.
"So..."
"Surviving the tribulation is equivalent to obtaining Heaven's approval."
The old man smiled.
"You understand quickly."
"Once recognized..."
"The Heavenly Dao no longer treats your existence as something that should be casually erased."
"It has already tested you."
"You have already proven yourself."
Lin Sheng quietly absorbed every word.
The formation spirit continued.
"Take demonic cultivators as an example."
"They cultivate methods despised by righteous cultivators."
"They refine blood."
"They devour souls."
"They walk paths filled with slaughter."
"Yet..."
"They are not constantly struck dead by lightning."
Lin Sheng nodded.
He had wondered about that himself.
The elder continued.
"When demonic cultivators break through to the Golden Core Realm..."
"Their Heavenly Tribulation is far more violent than that of ordinary cultivators."
"The Heavenly Dao views them with greater hostility."
"The lightning."
"The heavenly flames."
"The heavenly winds."
"All descend with increased intensity."
"But..."
"If they survive..."
"They are recognized all the same."
The old man looked directly at Lin Sheng.
"From that moment onward..."
"They no longer need fear lightning suddenly descending upon them while cultivating."
"Nor while sleeping."
"Nor while walking."
"The Heavenly Dao has already judged them."
"It has accepted their continued existence."
Lin Sheng slowly nodded.
His thoughts rapidly connected everything together.
"So my situation..."
"...is similar."
The formation spirit smiled.
"Very similar."
"You are not a demonic cultivator."
"But both of you share one characteristic."
"You are anomalies."
"Demonic cultivators challenge Heaven through forbidden methods."
"You challenge Heaven through an impossible reincarnation."
"The methods differ."
"But both eventually require Heaven's acknowledgment."
Silence filled the chamber.
Lin Sheng lowered his head.
Everything finally clicked together.
The Human Tribulation...
The Heavenly Tribulation...
Recognition...
They were all part of the same system.
If he could survive a Rank Four Heavenly Tribulation...
Then perhaps the Heavenly Dao would no longer regard him as an anomaly that needed constant observation.
That single realization caused countless possibilities to appear before him.
Then—
Another thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
His pupils abruptly contracted.
Wait...
His breathing slowed.
Something...
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
He slowly raised his head toward the formation spirit.
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"Elder..."
"The martial path..."
"...doesn't have a Rank Four realm."
The old man said nothing.
His silence was answer enough.
Lin Sheng felt his heart suddenly sink.
The immortal path advanced from Purple Palace to Golden Core.
Golden Core was Rank Four.
Artifacts.
Formations.
Pills.
Spirit herbs.
Yao beasts.
Everything became Rank Four through Heavenly Tribulation.
Everything obtained Heaven's recognition.
But martial artists...
The Xuan Gang Realm advanced into the Astral Gang Realm.
There was no Rank Four.
No Heavenly Tribulation.
No acknowledgment from Heaven.
No opportunity to be recognized.
The realization struck Lin Sheng harder than any lightning bolt ever could.
His breathing became uneven.
If martial artists never underwent a Rank Four Heavenly Tribulation...
Then...
How could Heaven ever acknowledge their existence?
And if Heaven never acknowledged them...
Then...
How could someone like him, walking the martial path, ever escape the gaze of the Heavenly Dao?