Why Is It Always Me Who Gets Hurt?

However, at that moment, a tribulation lightning bolt suddenly descended from the void, striking straight downward.

Seeing the unexpected tribulation lightning, Hongjun thought to himself, As expected, even someone as exalted as the Dao Venerable cannot receive preferential treatment from the Heavenly Dao. After all, the Heavenly Dao is the collective will of the Primordial Wilderness. How could it refrain from punishing someone just because of their noble status?

When Xuanxiao saw the tribulation lightning, his expression changed. He hurriedly shouted toward Hongjun, "Fellow Daoist Hongjun, watch out!"

Hearing Xuanxiao's warning, Hongjun froze for a moment, his face filled with confusion. "Watch out? What am I supposed to watch out for? That lightning isn't striking me..."

Before he could finish speaking, the tribulation lightning came crashing down.

"Ah!" Completely unprepared, Hongjun let out a shriek. His originally snow-white Daoist robe was instantly scorched black, while his hair was burned to a crisp, giving off a pungent smell.

"Could the Heavenly Dao make mistakes too?" Hongjun muttered gloomily, black smoke pouring from his mouth.

Hearing Hongjun's words, Xuanxiao looked at him in surprise and thought, Could it be that Hongjun isn't afraid of the Heavenly Dao? He actually dares to question it directly?

As soon as Hongjun finished speaking, another tribulation lightning bolt struck down violently, with him as its target once again.

This time, Hongjun had been prepared, so he was not as disheveled as before.

"This..." Hongjun looked utterly helpless.

"So you're just bold. I thought you really weren't afraid of the Heavenly Dao." Seeing this, Xuanxiao could not help laughing.

At that moment, Hongjun was filled with confusion and helplessness. He felt as though he was about to start doubting his entire life. He truly could not understand why the Heavenly Dao was so irritable today, nor why it refused to strike Xuanxiao. Could it be...

Just as Hongjun thought, Could the Heavenly Dao bully the weak and fear the strong? his heart tightened. Afraid that the Heavenly Dao would sense the thought, he hurriedly forced it out of his mind.

Hongjun looked at Xuanxiao with a bitter smile. "I never expected the Heavenly Dao to respect the Dao Venerable so much." In his view, this was the only reason that could explain why the Heavenly Dao did not punish Xuanxiao.

"Respect? The Heavenly Dao has no intelligence, so how could it respect me? It's simply that its tribulation punishment is powerless against me, so it can only punish living beings whose words have a karmic connection with me." Xuanxiao waved his hand dismissively as he explained.

At that moment, another tribulation lightning bolt appeared in the void. This time, Hongjun had prepared himself in advance as soon as Xuanxiao finished speaking. Thus, when he saw the lightning descending, his expression remained calm and composed. After all, he did not want to embarrass himself in front of Xuanxiao again.

Unfortunately, Hongjun still did not understand the Heavenly Dao.

"Ah!"

Hongjun let out another scream, his voice filled with pain and astonishment.

"How could this happen? I clearly prepared myself already!" Hongjun was filled with confusion and bewilderment. He felt as though his entire understanding had been overturned, and he had even begun to doubt his life.

Looking at Hongjun's unlucky expression, Xuanxiao smiled helplessly and patiently explained:

"Fellow Daoist Hongjun, you prepared far too early. You should know that the Heavenly Dao's tribulation punishment adjusts its power according to your specific circumstances.

"You prepared before the tribulation punishment even appeared. As a result, the power of the Heavenly Dao's tribulation punishment naturally became even greater." This was knowledge Xuanxiao had accumulated through his long years of experience.

Hearing Xuanxiao's explanation, Hongjun suddenly understood. He could not help exclaiming, "So that's how it is!" At that moment, he felt that he had learned another strange piece of knowledge he had never encountered before.

"May I ask why you went out of your way to find me?" Xuanxiao looked at Hongjun with a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

Hongjun gently shook his head and explained, "To be honest, there is nothing important. I was merely somewhat curious about your exalted identity as the Dao Venerable, so I came to investigate. I simply did not expect that you would notice me so quickly after I found you."

After hearing this, Xuanxiao's heart stirred. Looking at Hongjun, he suggested, "Since you have nothing else to do, why not travel through the Primordial World with me? What do you think?" In truth, Xuanxiao was equally curious about Hongjun.

In the memories Xuanxiao possessed, Hongjun was an unavoidable key figure in the Primordial World. For a long time, many people had speculated that the shattering of the Primordial World might have been carefully orchestrated by Hongjun behind the scenes.

Naturally, Xuanxiao wanted to personally investigate this future Dao Ancestor, the spokesperson of the Heavenly Dao, and see what his true character was like.

If Hongjun truly harbored thoughts of destroying the Primordial World, Xuanxiao would not mind taking action, choosing a new Dao Ancestor for the Primordial World, and finding the Heavenly Dao a more suitable spokesperson.

"To have the opportunity to travel through the Primordial World with the Dao Venerable would be an immense honor." Hearing Xuanxiao's invitation, Hongjun smiled happily and nodded in agreement.

Hongjun had come this time with the intention of learning more about Xuanxiao. Now that Xuanxiao had extended such a sincere invitation, there was naturally no reason for him to refuse.

The two understood each other perfectly and reached an agreement at once.

Afterward, Xuanxiao and Hongjun set off together, leaving the nameless mountain valley.

Xuanxiao and Hongjun strolled through the Primordial World. They seemed to have no destination, but both secretly harbored their own thoughts.

Xuanxiao knew that Hongjun had been observing him in secret all these years, but he did not mind. He was likewise observing Hongjun, so their aims happened to coincide.

After spending this period of time together, Xuanxiao had gained a certain understanding of Hongjun.

For now, Hongjun did not seem to harbor any ill will toward the Primordial World. Thus, Xuanxiao had no intention of making this future Dao Ancestor "disappear" from the Primordial World.

Xuanxiao understood that the Heavenly Dao was inherently flawed and would inevitably choose a living being to merge with it in the future, thereby perfecting itself.

Judging from Hongjun's current conduct, at least for now, he still cared about the Primordial World.

"Dao Venerable, what do you think of the Primordial World as it is now?" Hongjun looked at Xuanxiao curiously and asked.

Hearing this, Xuanxiao could not help rolling his eyes. "What do I think? Of course I'm looking at it with my eyes. What else would I use?"

Hongjun gave a helpless, bitter smile. "Dao Venerable, I'm not joking. I sincerely hope to receive your guidance."

Looking at Hongjun, Xuanxiao thought to himself, It seems Hongjun has already begun making contact with the Heavenly Dao. I simply don't know how far that contact has progressed.

However, Xuanxiao soon cast those thoughts aside and comforted himself, Forget it. Why am I worrying about this? If the sky falls, someone tall will hold it up. Here in the Primordial World, I'm not the tallest one.

Although Hongjun had never deliberately revealed his cultivation, Xuanxiao knew by instinct that Hongjun's cultivation was definitely above his own.

However, Xuanxiao did not care. In his heart, even if Hongjun's cultivation was profound, as long as he had not broken through to the Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortal realm and attained Sainthood, dealing with him would still be as easy as a father disciplining his son.

Even if Hongjun attained Sainthood, Xuanxiao was not afraid. With the spirit treasures on his person, he would still dare to fight even a Sage.

Moreover, even if Xuanxiao could not defeat him, it would not matter. With all the Great Dao Merit on his person, anyone who dared to kill him—even a Sage—would have to be buried alongside him.

"Fellow Daoist Hongjun, stop asking me these questions all the time. I have never intended to interfere in the affairs of the Primordial World. As long as you don't turn the Primordial World upside down, I won't concern myself with anything. But if anyone deliberately tries to destroy the Primordial World, don't blame me for showing no mercy." As he spoke, Xuanxiao shook his head at Hongjun.

Hearing Xuanxiao's answer, a thoughtful expression appeared on Hongjun's face.

Seeing this, Xuanxiao immediately understood that Hongjun had come up with an idea. He waved his hand and said, "Looks like you no longer have the mind to travel through the Primordial World with me. If you have something to do, go take care of it."

Hearing this, Hongjun nodded at Xuanxiao. "Then, Dao Venerable, this Poor Daoist will take his leave first."

As soon as he finished speaking, Hongjun's figure vanished in an instant.

Xuanxiao gazed in the direction Hongjun had disappeared and gently shook his head. He muttered to himself:

"The Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin tribes have already developed ambitions to dominate the Primordial World. Even I can sense the abnormal fluctuations in the fortune of the Three Clans. It seems they've already discovered the wonders of fortune. There's probably also someone named Luohu scheming against them in secret. No wonder Hongjun couldn't sit still."

Xuanxiao knew that Hongjun's departure was certainly related to Luohu, but he had no intention of getting involved.

"Still, I heard that Luohu seems to have a way to destroy the spiritual veins of the West. That won't do. It looks like I'll have to find an opportunity to warn him later. This Primordial World was created by Big Brother with his own hands. In a sense, it's my home too. I absolutely can't let that fellow Luohu destroy my home." Xuanxiao muttered under his breath.

With that, Xuanxiao flashed away and quietly left the area.