369: Only children make choices!

So after reviewing Li Daoxuan's memories, Lu Ming vaguely realized that Li Daoxuan's string of bad Luck in his Late Stage, especially how he was repeatedly thwarted after meeting him until he was reduced to a Banner Spirit...

...was very likely the manifestation of the "Human Tribulation" he encountered on his path to the Nascent Soul Realm!

And he himself was that "path-blocker"!

As for the result, it was obvious; Li Daoxuan ultimately failed to survive this tribulation.

However, in Zhuge Xuanji's description, the Heavenly Secret Master's path to the Nascent Soul was completely the opposite!

Because a Nascent Soul True Monarch shares the authority of heaven and earth, the Heavenly Dao naturally loathes those Cultivators who achieve the Nascent Soul Realm or are about to do so.

Thus, Heavenly Secret Masters follow the will of heaven, acting as spokespersons or executors of the "Heavenly Dao."

They take the initiative to guide, and even create, the "Three Tribulations and Five Calamities" for other Cultivators!

Then, through schemes and arrangements, they obstruct the paths of other Cultivators attempting to reach the Nascent Soul Realm, even causing them to fail their tribulations and perish in Life and Death.

Once they successfully "block the path," the Heavenly Secret Master can receive "rewards" from the Heavenly Dao in the unseen.

It could be a blessing of Luck, an advancement in cultivation, or a deeper understanding of the Laws.

Simply put: your success is my failure; your failure is my success!

The main theme is following heaven and responding to men, executing the Dao on behalf of heaven, and building one's own path upon the countless corpses of others.

"Holy crap..."

After reading Zhuge Xuanji's educational explanation, Lu Ming couldn't help but grumble in his heart.

"This method of Undergoing Tribulation is so damn disgusting!"

But looking at it this way, why does it feel similar to how I use the golden book to transfer side effects and let others bear the risks for me?

Could it be... that only being a scoundrel is the core of the Great Dao of [Karma]?

"Eh—"

Lu Ming felt something was off; this didn't sound like a proper path at all!

Why did it feel like he was sprinting down the broad road of a villain?

This was really doing him a disservice; he was clearly a good person!

He was so honest and kind; making him spend all day thinking about how to harm others and block their paths, his conscience felt a bit uneasy!

Lu Ming lamented insincerely, but in his heart, he had already made a decision.

Go! He must take it! Who else but him!

This Great Dao of [Karma] was simply a path to heaven tailor-made for Lu Ming!

Its core philosophy had such a high level of compatibility with the golden book's abilities and his own style of doing things!

Not taking this path would be a waste of natural resources, an insult to the golden book, and even more so to himself!

Moreover, he possessed a massive advantage that no other Heavenly Secret Master could match: the golden book!

Is blocking the path for a "Human Tribulation" really that hard?

Other Heavenly Secret Masters who want to create a "Human Tribulation" need to spend long years planning and scheming to trigger Karma, which might be detected by the target and lead to a backlash.

But he only needs to wait for the target to be "on the list," and then he can secretly strike from the shadows, transferring damage, grafting Karma, and even guiding tribulations without leaving a trace.

Furthermore, what he could do seemed to go beyond the scope of "Human Tribulations."

He heard that "Earthly Tribulations" would cause one to be haunted by Heart Demons and have their spirit invaded by delusions?

That's just too perfect; among the many Demonic Techniques he Cultivated, there were plenty of bizarre side effects that influenced the mind and eroded the Dao Heart.

If he transferred them all to the target, wouldn't that count as artificially driving the formation of an "Earthly Tribulation"?

And then there's the "Heavenly Tribulation"!

Hmm... it seems he can't artificially create a "Heavenly Tribulation" for now.

But if he could quietly give the opponent a heavy blow while they were Undergoing Tribulation, even if it was just a bit of interference... it seemed there was some room for maneuver!

"My god..."

The more Lu Ming thought about it, the more feasible it seemed, and his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

"Looking at it this way, I'm simply the chosen one born for the Great Dao of [Karma]!

And by doing this, the opponent might not even know who the mastermind is until the moment they die.

Want to calculate it? Then they'll have to taste what Zhuge Mingyi felt!"

In an instant, all the previous confusion and uncertainty regarding the Nascent Soul path vanished into thin air!

A crystal-clear broad road had already presented itself before him!

Who else is there!!!!

Lu Ming was filled with pride and excitement.

However, this excitement did not last long; in the depths of Zhuge Mingyi's memories, he saw a serious conversation between Zhuge Xuanji and Zhuge Mingyi.

It immediately made him frown deeply.

In the memory, the white-haired and white-bearded Zhuge Xuanji, his eyes containing the stars and the vicissitudes of life, slowly spoke to the respectfully listening Zhuge Mingyi.

"Mingyi, you must remember, our lineage of Heavenly Secret Masters seemingly follows the Heavenly Dao and avoids the Three Tribulations and Five Calamities, making the path to the Nascent Soul appear smooth."

"However, all of this is an illusion!"

"The Heavenly Dao is heartless, treating all things as straw dogs. It does not like Nascent Soul True Monarchs sharing its authority, so we clean house for it. It seems we gain its favor and are granted providence and Karma.

In reality, we have been invisibly bound by the Heavenly Dao, becoming pawns used to maintain balance and curb the growth of Cultivators."

"Achieving the Nascent Soul through this method is certainly relatively easy, but the price is losing the possibility of true 'transcendence'."

"A Nascent Soul Cultivator could originally wander the Great Void, initially transcending the constraints of a world to pursue great freedom and leisure, exploring higher paths.

But the Nascent Soul of us Heavenly Secret Masters, because the dao foundation is too deeply entangled with the Heavenly Dao, is actually 'bound' within the rules of this world.

Trying to truly transcend is as difficult as climbing to heaven!"

"In other words, the Nascent Soul is the end of the path for us Heavenly Secret Masters.

If you want to go higher, the path has actually been personally blocked by the Heavenly Dao!"

"Because the Nascent Soul is already the limit of the Heavenly Dao's patience. The Dao Venerable of Spirit Transformations above it have power that can, to some extent, tamper with the rules of heaven and earth—that is a 'variable' the Heavenly Dao will never allow to appear!

And our Dao relies on the Heavenly Dao. If we wish to defy it or even try to break free from it, it will naturally take back all its 'blessings' and even bring down a Heavenly Punishment more terrifying than the Three Tribulations and Five Calamities."

"Therefore, our lineage of Heavenly Secret Masters, from ancient times to the present, can only reach the Nascent Soul True Monarch at most.

"Because, the road ahead is broken!"

These words not only shocked Zhuge Mingyi.

They also rang like a heavy bell in Lu Ming's heart.

"Jealous of the talented! This Heavenly Dao is simply jealous of talent!"

Lu Ming was very indignant. He had finally found a perfect path, only to be told it was a dead end?

Who could stand that!

But despite his complaints, he understood in his heart.

In the affairs of the world, there are gains and losses; if you want to take a shortcut, you must pay the corresponding price!

The Heavenly Dao gives Heavenly Secret Masters a relatively easy path to the Nascent Soul, and at the same time, it takes away their possibility of reaching higher Realms.

"But... why do I have to choose one or the other?"

Lu Ming was a greedy person to the core.

The possibility of him making a choice was lower than the possibility of someone just killing him!

"Only children make choices. I, Lu Ming... want it all!"