Douluo Dalu: Ascension Across the Realms

"Wouldn't you agree, Wang Lin?"

A light, unhurried voice drifted through the small, humble shop. The man in white furrowed his brows slightly as his aura rippled faintly—but it extinguished just as quickly as it rose.

He locked eyes with the silver-haired youth, and calmness returned to him.

"Hmm?"

The silver-haired youth raised an eyebrow, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. Isn't Old Devil Wang known for his decisive and ruthless nature? Yet here he was, making no move to act?

A trace of disappointment surfaced in the young man's eyes. He shook his head with a sigh and casually strolled along the shop's wooden shelves, examining the wares.

"Uncle Wang, the wine's here!"

A youthful voice rang out from the door. Huzi came rushing in, arms full of jars of fruit wine. A few beads of sweat glistened on his forehead from the run, and his breath came in short pants.

The boy wore a simple, sincere smile that added a touch of warmth to the air.

"Uncle Wang, you didn't overcharge him, did you?"

Huzi placed the jars down and leaned in toward Wang Lin, whispering anxiously while casting frequent glances at the silver-haired guest. His small eyes gestured subtly with concern.

Wang Lin merely shook his head with a helpless smile, saying nothing. He grabbed one of the wine jars and took a quiet sip.

The light fragrance of the wine wafted gently into the air. The silver-haired youth turned and walked over, watching Wang Lin's carefree demeanor with a faint smile of his own.

"Good wine. Brother Wang, joy shared is joy doubled..."

"Take it."

With a cheerful tone, Wang Lin tossed the wine jar toward him. The youth caught it smoothly, took a whiff, and without hesitation, sat down and took a hearty swig.

"Hahaha, excellent indeed!"

The youth burst into laughter. Huzi, on the other hand, blinked in confusion. He'd tasted this fruit wine plenty of times—it was decent at best. Why were Uncle Wang and this stranger acting like it was some divine brew?

Bewildered, the boy studied both of them. He didn't understand, but quietly made a mental note of it anyway.

Silence fell over the shop for a moment. Huzi stood awkwardly, glancing between the two men, hesitating to speak. Just then, the silver-haired youth stood up.

"I'll take this."

He casually picked up a wooden carving shaped like a plant from a nearby shelf. The sculpture pulsed with vibrant life essence, and as he examined it, satisfaction flickered in his expression.

Whoosh.

With a flick of his fingers, a jade bottle flew from his hand and landed in front of Wang Lin. Without another word, he grabbed another wine jar and strolled out of the shop.

Behind him, Wang Lin's gaze lingered long and thoughtful. A subtle sense of unease stirred in his heart. His eyes dropped to the jade bottle—within it was a milky-white pill exuding a faint alchemical fragrance.

His expression shifted. That pill's energy contained an overwhelming vitality that made his heart tremble. Silently, he put it away, yet his emotions remained unsettled.

Picking up his carving knife again, he resumed his work, the youth's image still lingering in his mind. As woodchips flew, the rough outline of a figure began to emerge—its resemblance to the young man was striking.

Crack... crack...

With crisp snapping sounds, cracks formed across the wooden sculpture. Moments later, it shattered into pieces. Wang Lin gazed silently at the fragments on the floor. With a wave of his hand, they were ground into dust. He gently shook his head and sighed.

Putting the remaining wood aside, he made no attempt to carve again.

...

Outside the shop, not far away, the youth sat atop a tavern. He took a sip from his wine cup, subtly sensing the atmosphere. A thin layer of isolation energy now separated him from the outside world.

"This world... really is fascinating," he murmured.

An unseen aura radiated from his body, sealing him off from the surrounding space.

This silver-haired youth was none other than Chen Xiaoming, a Boundary Breaker. He had arrived in this world nearly six months ago.

From the moment he arrived, Chen Xiaoming had understood where he was.

To follow is mortal, to rebel is immortal—this is the world of Renegade Immortal!

Unlike the worlds of Douluo or Battle Through the Heavens, where he had previously traversed, Chen Xiaoming had chosen to remain extremely low-profile in this realm.

He had no choice. The power scale of the Renegade Immortal universe was staggeringly high—and its antagonists were terrifyingly formidable.

He was currently on the Vermilion Bird Star, which, along with the surrounding star systems, was merely part of a Cave World. Beyond that lay the Immortal Astral Continent, and even that was just a small portion of the Vast Expanse.

Cultivation here reached the Fourth Step—Heaven Trampling Stage, with even greater horrors in the Fifth and Sixth Steps.

Just the Spirit of the Boundary Compass, or that time-transcending being Slaughter, were enemies far beyond Chen Xiaoming's current ability to confront.

Fortunately, the compass spirit mistook this world as merely Wang Lin's dream, not daring to probe further, and chose to conceal itself.

Slaughter, bound by the River of Time, could not even exist in the same timeline as Wang Lin.

For this, Chen Xiaoming felt genuine relief. Otherwise, he would've never dared approach Wang Lin at all.

"Whew... Enough of that. Time to level up."

Ding!

[You took a deep breath and gained +10,000,000 EXP!]

As the system's prompt echoed in his ears, Chen Xiaoming felt comfort wash over his frail, anxious soul.

The power scale here in Renegade Immortal was insane—but even a breath here gave more EXP than entire days elsewhere. Compared to the Shrouding the Heavens universe, this world offered ten times the experience.

He had already decided: he would seclude himself in this world for a hundred years—then emerge as an unstoppable force.

Whoosh.

A streak of light shimmered before him—his System Interface appeared:

Host: Chen Xiaoming

Age: 53

Realm: Qi Condensation Stage 1 (+) 2.375 Trillion / 1,000

Refinement: 10 Billion

True Body: Azurewood Tree (Soulfruit of Douluo) (Shrouding Dragonfruit) (Battlebreaking Emperorfruit)

Bloodline: Hollowheart Willow (Intermediate) (+) 2.375 Trillion / 1 Trillion

Alchemy: Imperial-Grade Alchemist (+) 2.375 Trillion / 1 Trillion

Items: 100,000-Year Divine Armor (+) 2.375 Trillion / 200 Billion

Boundary Break: 10 Billion

Total EXP: 2.375 Trillion

Chen Xiaoming glanced at his astronomical experience gain over just one year and couldn't help but sigh with appreciation.

If I were in the Battle Through the Heavens universe, even deep breathing every day, twenty years might not be enough to reach this.

"Let's begin."

He muttered softly. With a year's worth of accumulation, he was eager to see how far this 2.375 trillion EXP could take him.

Swish swish swish...

Streams of light flickered rapidly as Chen Xiaoming, wielding the speed of a fifty-year-old single man, tapped through the interface at inhuman speeds—becoming a blur of motion.

Realm:

Qi Condensation First Layer...

Qi Condensation Fifteenth Layer...

Foundation Establishment Early Stage...

Foundation Establishment Perfection...

Core Formation Early Stage...

Core Formation Perfection...

Nascent Soul Early Stage...

Nascent Soul Perfection...

Soul Formation Early Stage...

Soul Formation Perfection...

"Hmm? That's not right..."

As his cultivation surged all the way to the Soul Formation Realm, Chen Xiaoming's brow furrowed. Among all the realms in the Renegade Immortal world, what he cared about most was Soul Formation—because it was at this stage that one could truly touch upon Domain, and begin to comprehend and wield the Origin.

To break through the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm and enter Soul Formation, one must grasp their own Domain. Yet this damned system just kept boosting his cultivation... and gave him none of that Domain.

A flicker of disappointment dimmed his gaze. His breathing grew heavier, even as the constant chime of accumulating experience points echoed in his ears. In the end, he couldn't hold back.

"Damn scam system! It's stealing my Domain, destroying my Origin—this defies the will of Heaven!"

Breath System: Heh. If you're so capable, go comprehend it yourself.

----

TN: The raw says "Artistic Concept" or "Intent" and not Domain, but knowing that the term used in Renegade Immortal's translation was "Domain", I opted for the latter.

Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/igotneonlight [remove the parenthesis ( )]