Lord of The Karmic Armada - Chapter 3: Forest of Shadows

Recently, major news broke out in A City. A rich family discovered that the daughter they had raised for eighteen years was not their biological offspring. The real young lady was found, and the fake young lady was sent away. Lu Ning was now a beautiful swan who had turned into an ugly duckling. Everybody waited for the opportunity to laugh at her. They wanted to see how she would survive after being pampered like a princess for eighteen years. However, Lu Ning wasn’t afraid at all. So what if she was poor? All she had to do was earn money. But before she could bring wealth to her family, they brought her home and started counting stacks of cash. Her eldest brother, a business mogul, offered her a few companies.

“These are all yours now. There are more if you want them. You can choose anything from dining, entertainment, fashion, theme parks, and any industry you can think of.” “Ning, would you like to participate in a talent show? I’ll write you a recommendation letter,” her second brother, a major celebrity, asked. Even her youngest brother, a computer expert, said, “Sis, whoever says bad things about you on the internet will never get to use it again.” “…” Lu Ning was speechless. Wasn’t her family poor and useless?

“Ning, if you don’t like gold, I’ll get someone to bring you diamonds instead. You can have diamonds embedded in all your clothes. What do you think? Hang on. I’ll get someone to do it right away!” Lu Ning’s mother said.”Ning, are you getting bored of the black card? Why don’t I give you one with a credit limit? Is 50,000,000 enough?” Lu Ning’s father asked. “Huh?” Lu Ning was confused. Wasn’t her family so poor that they couldn’t even pay off their mortgage? Lu Ning didn’t even have any opportunity to contribute. There was nothing for her to do.

However…”Come and be our boss!” A secret organization approached her.”Come and be my successor!” The director of a research center approached her.”Is this never going to end? I just want to be an ordinary person!” Lu Ning exclaimed. “Baby! Come into my arms!” Mr. Huo, an extremely wealthy man, arrived at top speed.

“Heroes killed my parents. Now I wear the mask of one. Until I can bury them all.”At seven years old, Hernan Vale watched his parents — two powerful heroes — brutally executed in their own home by the very people they trusted most: the legendary super-team known as the Zodiac 13.They thought he was dead.They made sure the world blamed villains.They covered their tracks.But Hernan survived — and never forgot.Ten years later, under a false name, Hernan enters the prestigious Hero Academy, hailed as a prodigy. To the world, he’s a rising star. To his classmates, he’s charming, calm, unstoppable.But inside?He’s a weapon. Waiting. Smiling. Counting names.As he trains to become a licensed hero, fights real villains, and rises through the ranks, Hernan plays the long game — earning the trust of the Zodiac, learning their routines, studying their weaknesses. One by one, he’ll bring them down.And this time, he won’t hide in the closet.But the deeper he goes, the more blood he spills — the more he wonders if he’s becoming worse than the monsters he’s hunting.And when love, loyalty, and lies collide, Hernan may have to decide:Will he save the world like they think he will...or finish burning it down?

What if being the protagonist was actually the WORST possible choice?Li Hanfeng thought he'd gotten the short end of the reincarnation stick—transmigrated into a cultivation world with “only” Upper Grade spiritual roots. Sure, he joined the prestigious Shushan Sect, but compared to those Heavenly Grade chosen ones? He was clearly destined to be a background character.Then his golden finger awakened.The Karma Detection System.Suddenly, Li Hanfeng could see the true cost of every “opportunity” before him. That mysterious cave everyone's excited about?[Great Karma: Ancient Tomb][Death Rate: 97%].The beautiful junior sister asking him on a “simple” mission?[Path of Destiny][Triggers: Sect Destruction, Heavenly Tribulation, Outer Domain Demons].Wait... being the protagonist means a 90% chance of horrible death?!NOPE.While other disciples fight over “destiny” and “fortune,” Li Hanfeng discovers something incredible: his system doesn't just detect karma—it “rewards him for avoiding it”. Refuse a death flag mission? Get premium cultivation pills! Skip the mysterious inheritance? Unlock rare techniques! Dodge the protagonist route entirely?His cultivation speed actually INCREASES.“Junior Sister, I'm busy that day.”“Senior Brother, that treasure isn't for me.”“Sorry everyone, I'll pass on saving the world.”[Karma Severed Successfully! Reward: Immortal-Grade Technique]But there's a problem: the more protagonist flags he dodges, the stronger he becomes. And the stronger he becomes, the more the world tries to drag him into main character scenarios.Ancient masters want him as a disciple. Mysterious beauties keep appearing. Evil sects mark him as a threat. Even his own karma system seems shocked by how overpowered his “background character” route is becoming.Li Hanfeng just wanted to cultivate peacefully and avoid death flags.Instead, he accidentally became the most terrifying existence in the cultivation world.The kind of person who's so strong that destiny itself has given up trying to make him the protagonist.

In the vast and grand universe, myriad treasures and artifacts existed, some crafted by the Grand Dao of the universe itself, while countless others paled in comparison to the might of those created by the Grand Dao.Yet, amidst the cosmic expanse, one individual achieved the extraordinary feat of fashioning a treasure on par with those birthed by the Grand Dao.This creator wasn't mortal, nor an immortal cultivator who had ascended to the pinnacle of power.Neither inherently good nor bad, this enigmatic figure stood as the genesis of countless races—a shattered being unlike any ever witnessed.Known by many names, the most prominent being the 'Son of the Universe'.Born directly from the Grand Dao of the universe, he was not the first entity to be brought forth in such a manner.The universe had previously given rise to beings governed by the System of Reality—known by various titles such as Heavenly Daos or World Trees—acting as gods of creation for innumerable planets across the universe.These divine entities, also referred to as the 'Daughters of the Universe', were exclusively female, with no sons among them.However, the Grand Dao of the universe defied this established norm, birthing a Son and thereby breaking the rules of the System of Reality.The treasure forged by the 'Son of the Universe' was lost to time, only to reappear fortuitously in an alley on a fateful night.On that particular night, a young man named Sam Hailstorm stumbled upon this extraordinary artifact, forever altering the course of his life.As for why the Grand Dao birthed such an unimaginable being, why this treasure found its way to Sam, and the purpose behind the Son of the Universe creating such a powerful artifact, join Sam on his journey of discovery as he unravels the truths and destinies that lie ahead.