The skies above the Divine Spirit Domain had changed. Once a place of tranquility where the rivers sang soft hymns and qi flowed like silver mist, it now crackled with spiritual unrest. Thunder roared from the heavens, not in random strikes but rhythmic pulses—as if the heavens were breathing. The clouds spun into fractals, spiraling toward a singular point above the mountain where Lin Tianming stood.
He was calm.
The storm before him was unnatural. It wasn't a punishment or even a standard tribulation—it was a manifestation of divine rejection. The plane itself was attempting to purge him.
Behind him, three women stood vigilant.
Yuelan, the Ice Phoenix Maiden, looked pale. Her icy aura clashed with the heated air as she struggled to remain steady.
Zhao Yueyin, her face bruised from a recent skirmish with the Blackwood Sect's elders, stood silent, her hand resting on the hilt of her spirit blade.
Qingmei, youngest of the trio and purest in heart, had tears in her eyes.
"Tianming," she whispered, "this… this isn't a normal tribulation."
He didn't reply immediately. His eyes were fixed on the swirling mass above. Through his spiritual perception, he could feel something colossal—something ancient—watching him.
System Notification:
> Host has reached Peak Dao Foundation. Conditions met for breakthrough to Heavenly Ascendant. Warning: Host's accumulated fortune and karmic energy exceeds the laws of this plane. Consequence: Heavenly Tribulation – 'Worldstorm Protocol' Initiated.
So, this was it.
He had known, deep down, that walking the path of defying heaven would have consequences. His cultivation was too fast, too smooth. The System had granted him access to heritage arts, divine manuals, and even bloodline enhancements. In ten short years, he had eclipsed even the ancient prodigies of legend.
Now, the heavens wanted payment.
He stepped forward. The mountain trembled beneath his feet. Space cracked in lines of golden energy, and a gust of wind swept his long robe aside, revealing the Heaven-Crushing Emblem on his chest.
"System," he whispered, "lock all auxiliary functions. Direct all qi circulation into the Primordial Wheel."
System Notification:
> Acknowledged. All modules entering combat protocol. Primordial Wheel initialized. Qi capacity: 100%.
He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as the wheel inside his dantian began spinning. Not literally—a metaphysical construct, the Primordial Wheel harnessed the essence of all six elemental paths he had mastered: Fire, Ice, Metal, Wood, Thunder, and Wind.
Suddenly, a boom—deeper than thunder—rumbled through the air.
From the sky descended the first strike.
A spear of light, nearly a thousand meters long, pure golden in color, surged downward like divine judgment.
Tianming's eyes flashed open. His pupils glowed with violet and gold. He raised his right arm and invoked the [Celestial Break] technique, channeling the pure destructive essence of the chaos path into his palm.
With a single upward thrust, he met the descending spear.
BOOOOOM!
The shockwave flattened trees miles away. Birds fell from the sky. The girls behind him had to create barriers just to withstand the backlash.
But Lin Tianming remained standing.
The light shattered.
His palm bled, but he stood tall.
Another notification appeared.
System Notification:
> First Strike Overcome. Resistance recorded. Adaptive Protocols initializing.
Suddenly, hundreds of spears rained down from the clouds, all smaller, but infinitely faster.
He didn't block. He danced.
His body shimmered with qi, dodging at angles no human should've been able to move. Each movement left an afterimage, and his footwork activated the [Ninefold Illusory Steps], creating overlapping clones that confused the strikes.
Dozens still struck him.
He coughed blood.
But he smiled.
"Is this it?" he roared, his voice shaking the clouds. "Heaven, you're still too weak!"
A crackling sound echoed across the sky. Then silence.
From the breach above, descended a figure.
It had no face.
It had no voice.
But its presence was overwhelming.
A being of pure law. The will of the plane given shape.
It hovered above Tianming, arms outstretched, and its chest bore an ancient glyph:
審 – "Judgment."
The figure raised its hand.
Lin Tianming clenched his jaw. He drew his sword.
It was a divine blade—[Moonfall], forged from meteoric essence and tempered in dragon flame. Its blade shimmered with crimson and silver.
The figure flicked its wrist.
A dome formed over the mountain. The world outside blurred.
Tianming realized: this was a sealed space. No reinforcements. No escape. Just judgment.
The fight began.
The figure launched forward, its palm crackling with cosmic law. Wherever it struck, space warped.
Tianming parried, his sword singing. Every collision birthed shockwaves.
They clashed in the air, exchanging over a hundred blows in moments. Their figures were but blurs, their auras overwhelming.
Tianming's qi reserves depleted rapidly.
"System—now!"
> Activating Forbidden Sequence: Dragoncore Overload.
His heart ignited.
Not literally—but his core began burning his life essence for power. A dangerous gamble. But he needed more.
His aura surged.
He moved faster. Struck harder.
One blow—then another.
And finally, with a deafening roar, he pierced the law-being's chest.
It shrieked without sound and exploded into motes of light.
The dome shattered.
He collapsed to his knees.
Yuelan was the first to reach him.
"Don't move," she said, placing her icy palms against his back and circulating her qi to stabilize his dantian.
Zhao Yueyin formed a protective ward, shielding them from residual energies.
Qingmei knelt before him, weeping softly.
Then—
System Notification:
> Trial Complete. Heaven-Denial Level 1 Achieved. Title Earned: Plane-Defiant. Reward: Access to Fragmented Divine Realm.
Lin Tianming's breath slowed. He looked up.
The clouds parted.
Beyond the sky… was another sky. One layered atop the next. A glimpse of another world.
The Fragmented Divine Realm.
This was his path now.
To ascend beyond mortal cultivation.
To defy every chain heaven placed upon him.
To rise… endlessly.
He stood slowly.
"Girls," he said, "rest. We move again at dawn."
They nodded.
And high above, in the divine observatories beyond mortal reach, entities stirred.
"Another has broken through," said a voice.
"Yes," another replied. "Prepare the gates. The Inter-Realm Tournament must begin."
For Lin Tianming, this was only the beginning.
---
[End of Chapter 28: The Storm Beyond Skies]