Chapter 432: Lin Tian Stunned, Immortal King’s Backlash

In just a single breath…

The old man turned into a lifelike ice sculpture, even the terrified expression on his face frozen perfectly.

Snap.

Zhou Chen snapped his fingers.

The ice sculpture instantly shattered, turning into a cloud of ice powder that dissipated into the air.

Along with it, that unsent message Jade Slip also vanished into nothingness.

“Seventh level of the True Immortal Realm, too weak.”

Zhou Chen shook his head and, with a casual wave, drew the storage ring left behind by the old man into his palm.

His Divine Sense swept over it.

Inside, besides a few tens of thousands of immortal crystals and some miscellaneous items, there was nothing of value.

“Poor ghost.”

Zhou Chen tossed the storage ring into the System space with disdain.

After cleaning up the scene, Zhou Chen checked the Ice Palace once more.

Confirming that he had sucked the pool so dry that not even dregs remained—he had even scraped a layer of mud off the bottom—he finally nodded in satisfaction.

If you're going to do something, do it thoroughly.

Leaving even a single drop for Lin Tian would be an insult to his status as a villain.

Zhou Chen's figure flashed and disappeared into the vast wind and snow.

…

Time flies.

For a cultivator, half a year is but the blink of an eye.

In the Arctic lands, the wind and snow still raged across the sky.

A slightly disheveled figure appeared at the foot of an iceberg.

Lin Tian braved the blizzard; his face was somewhat pale, but his eyes shone with a fanatical excitement.

He had lived miserably over the past half year.

For some reason, ever since his Cultivation speed dropped, his status in the Sect had plummeted.

The Elders who had originally favored him now looked at him with subtle shifts in their gaze.

Even the lackeys who usually swarmed around him had begun to treat him with outward compliance but inward defiance.

But he didn't care.

Because he still had the capital to make a comeback.

That vague intuition told him that right here, an earth-shattering Opportunity was waiting for him.

As long as he obtained this Opportunity, he could cleanse his marrow and refine his bones, reconstruct his Foundation, and trample all those who looked down on him under his feet.

“It's just ahead.”

Lin Tian licked his dry, cracked lips and quickened his pace.

He rushed into the cavern.

A terrifying chill rushed toward him.

Lin Tian was ecstatic.

The stronger this chill was, the more precious the treasure inside must be.

He sprinted all the way, not slowing down in the slightest even as his eyebrows frosted over and his limbs grew numb with cold.

Finally.

He reached the end of the cavern.

A massive Ice Palace revealed itself before his eyes.

Lin Tian immediately spotted the huge pool in the center.

He trembled with excitement and scrambled to the edge of the pool.

“Mine! It's all mine!”

“With these precious liquids, I, Lin Tian, will surely…”

His voice stopped abruptly.

Lin Tian stood blankly by the pool, the expression on his face instantly shifting from ecstasy to dullness, before finally twisting into extreme disbelief.

Before him, it was empty—one could even say it was spotless.

Forget spiritual liquid; even the stones at the bottom of the pool had been scraped shiny, as if licked clean by a dog.

Refusing to give up, Lin Tian jumped into the pool, crawled on the ground, and felt around frantically with his hands.

Nothing.

There was nothing at all.

Only a lingering trace of faint Spiritual Qi remained, mocking his incompetence.

“Argh!!!”

A shrill and agonized scream echoed within the Ice Palace.

Lin Tian knelt at the bottom of the pool, his hands frantically pounding the ground, blood staining the ice red.

“Who is it! Who exactly is it?!”

“Why? Why do this to me?!”

It had happened several times in a row now.

Every time.

Every single time, he was just one step away.

Someone was like a roundworm in his stomach, always one step ahead of him, always keeping him completely suppressed.

“Who the hell is it! Dammit! If you have the guts, come out and fight me one-on-one! Show yourself!”

Lin Tian drew his longsword and slashed frantically at the air.

Sword Qi crisscrossed, leaving the surrounding ice walls riddled with holes.

Lin Tian sat dejectedly on the ground, his eyes bloodshot.

After despair came extreme madness.

“Someone must be targeting me… This is specifically aimed at me.”

“Could it be those old fogies in the Sect?”

A trace of malice flashed in Lin Tian's eyes.

On the surface, Zixia Sect was harmonious, but behind the scenes, it was rife with factions.

Someone didn't want to see him rise.

“Since you are being heartless, then don't blame me for being unjust.”

Lin Tian pulled an ancient jade pendant from his robes.

This was his greatest trump card.

And his final reliance.

Crack.

The jade pendant shattered.

An obscure spatial ripple instantly spread out.

…

Tens of thousands of miles away.

In a Small World independent of the current world.

A towering palace floated above the Nine Heavens.

Deep within the palace, a white-haired old man abruptly opened his eyes.

He wore a grey Daoist robe, and no aura fluctuated around his body; he looked just like an ordinary Mortal old man.

But the moment he opened his eyes, the Laws of the entire Small World trembled.

An Immortal King Realm powerhouse.

The Lin Family Old Ancestor, Lin Potian.

“Tian'er is summoning me?”

Lin Potian frowned slightly.

This jade pendant was a life-saving item he had left for Lin Tian; unless it was a matter of absolute necessity, he would never use it lightly.

Could he have encountered a crisis of life and death?

Lin Potian tore through the Void Realm with one hand and stepped out, instantly crossing tens of thousands of miles.

A moment later.

His figure appeared within the Arctic Ice Palace.

Seeing Lin Tian kneeling in the empty pool, covered in blood and looking like a madman, Lin Potian's face darkened.

“Tian'er, what happened?”

Hearing the voice, Lin Tian looked up abruptly.

The moment he saw the Old Ancestor, he could no longer hold it together and wailed like a wronged child.

“Old Ancestor! My Opportunity… it was stolen, I'm being targeted!”

“Again?”

Lin Potian's gaze swept over the empty pool, and the corner of his eye twitched.

The lingering aura in this pool made even him feel startled.

It was definitely a top-tier marrow-cleansing treasure.

To think someone had beaten him to it?

Lin Tian incoherently recounted his experiences over the past year.

From the auction to the current Ice Palace, every single event made Lin Potian's brow furrow tighter and tighter.

“You mean, someone is specifically watching you to steal from you?”

“Exactly! Old Ancestor, that person must be within Zixia Sect! He knows my every move!”

Lin Tian said through gritted teeth, his eyes full of resentment.

Lin Potian fell silent.

As an Immortal King, he naturally knew of the concept of Luck.

Lin Tian was a person of great Luck; logically, he should have constant Opportunities and be Turning Misfortune into Blessing.

But being intercepted one after another like this was indeed bizarre.

“Do not panic, let this Old Ancestor perform a deduction for you.”

Lin Potian sat cross-legged.

His hands formed seals, and he struck out series of profound techniques.

Above his head, an illusory long river slowly emerged.

The River of Fate.

Lin Potian wanted to follow Lin Tian's Karma line, go upstream, and drag out that mastermind.

As long as the opponent's cultivation did not exceed his, they would absolutely have nowhere to hide.

“Karma cycles, let the heavenly secrets be revealed! Open!”

Lin Potian gave a low shout.

In the River of Fate, a thick red line connected to Lin Tian, extending toward the depths of the void.

Lin Potian looked along the red line.

Before him was a patch of mist.

He increased his magical power output, wanting to brush aside the mist.

However.

Just as his Divine Sense was about to touch the center of that mist.

Boom!