https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-424-Soul-Annihilation-Beneath-the-Forbidden-Area/13451678/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-425-Immortal-Emperor-s-Legacy-Part-2-/13451680/
Chapter 425: Immortal Emperor's Legacy (Part 1)
Chapter 425: Immortal Emperor's Legacy (Part 1)
Li Hao could sense the old man's terrifying power. With just a wave of his hand, he could extinguish an ancient demon soul spirit as easily as crushing an insect, leaving no trace behind.
However, the old man harbored no ill will toward Li Hao; otherwise, he would have wiped him out as well.
After a moment of thought, Li Hao slowly descended.
The Immortal Dao Laws that once restrained the Double Crevice Demon Valley had long since vanished. Li Hao felt the Heaven and Earth here were incredibly dense, as if he were on an ancient battlefield.
This seemed to be a True World soil.
On a zabuton in the distance, a dozen Sages noticed the newcomer. Many turned to look, and upon recognizing Li Hao as a soul spirit remnant with only the aura of a Second Calamity Sage, they couldn't help but smile.
"Another newcomer, and he looks pretty rough."
"Chased by demons until only his soul spirit remains, escaping here must have been desperate."
"But he's fortunate now."
"Who knows what year it is outside?"
Amid the Sages' laughter, Li Hao landed before the old man at the thatched cottage, bowing slightly. "Thank you, Senior, for your help!"
The old man slowly observed Li Hao, his face bearing a gentle smile that grew more pronounced as he continued to look. "It's rare, very rare. You've already cultivated Divine Bones. Even without my assistance, that thing wouldn't have been able to kill you."
Li Hao's heart tightened. His soul spirit, suppressed by the Laws of the Double Crevice Demon Valley, had concealed his Divine Bones. He appeared extremely frail, as if he could dissipate at any moment. The old man's ability to see through his concealed power was quite formidable.
However, the old man could easily extinguish a True Immortal ancient demon's soul spirit, indicating he was at least at the Immortal Lord Realm.
"Senior, where are we?"
Li Hao looked around, his face filled with curiosity. Who would have thought that deep within the Double Crevice Demon Valley, there would be such a scene, a hidden Cave Heaven.
"That is the Heavenly Calamity Hall, and I am its Hall Guardian."
The old man pointed to the towering palace, which had countless steps leading up to it, an imposing structure.
He looked at Li Hao, his smile fading, replaced by a deeper, more serious expression. "Why did that thing come here? Has the Mysterious Mother Gate been breached, allowing it to intrude?"
Heavenly Calamity Hall... Li Hao's heart raced. Nangong Jian had once mentioned that this All Heavens pseudo-realm was created by the Immortal Emperor, who was none other than the Heavenly Catastrophe Immortal Emperor. Was this his palace?
"The Mysterious Mother Gate hasn't failed, but it has a flaw, allowing the ancient demons to slip through. However, it can still block True Immortal Realm entities from entering this world. I don't know how this ancient demon managed to get in."
Li Hao spoke truthfully. The old man, claiming to be the Hall Guardian, was likely an ancient existence who understood the Catastrophe of the True World's ancient demons. No wonder the ancient demon soul spirit was instantly extinguished; it was the deep-seated enmity between Immortal Deities and ancient demons.
Hearing Li Hao's words, the old man sighed in relief but then showed concern. "Even if it's just a saint-level ancient demon, has a True Immortal been born outside? If not..."
Li Hao understood his concern. Ancient demons easily outmatched other races at the same level. Even the Dragon Race, renowned as the strongest, had no advantage against ancient demons. Without a True Immortal to stand guard, even a saint-level ancient demon's invasion would lead to the fall of All Heavens.
"All Heavens has no True Immortal, but this True Immortal Realm ancient demon has been dealt with. Only one ancient demon can squeeze through the gap at a time, and the Sages can block them. Moreover, the news has reached the True World. As long as we hold on, the reinforcements from the True World will arrive, and we'll be safe."
Li Hao said.
"True World reinforcements? Have you been to the True World?"
The old man was taken aback, not expecting Li Hao to have actually entered the True World. His expression suddenly became agitated, and he grabbed Li Hao's arm, nearly crushing his Soul Spirit arm.
"How is the True World? Has the war ended? Did you see Immortal Emperor? Are the Divine Army still there? What about the Western Sea..."
Li Hao, hearing the barrage of questions and seeing the intense excitement in the old man's eyes, quickly grasped his hand and gently patted it. "Elder, Elder, please calm down. Although I have been to the True World, I only saw the battlefield outside the Mysterious Mother Gate. Ancient demons still guard that battlefield, and I never ventured beyond it. I know nothing about the current state of the True World."
Hearing Li Hao's words, the old man gradually calmed down, realizing he had almost crippled Li Hao's arm. A gentle power surged from his palm, healing Li Hao's arm and subtly enhancing his soul spirit power.
"The ancient path... the battlefield. Could it be that the battle was lost?"
The old man's eyes glazed over, gazing at the towering celestial palace in the distance, his expression filled with sorrow.
At this moment, the Sages who had noticed Li Hao earlier left their zabutons and gathered in front of the thatched cottage. Hearing the conversation, they exchanged glances, stunned into silence.
They had been here for countless years, and when had they ever seen the Master Son so emotionally stirred?
"You've been to the True World? How did you get there?"
One of the Sages couldn't help but ask Li Hao, curiosity evident in his voice.
Li Hao looked at the Sages, sensing the aura of All Heavens from them, recognizing them as the fallen Sages from the Double Crevice Demon Valley.
"The Ancient Hall in the starry sky", Li Hao replied.
"What is that?"
A Sage wore a puzzled expression, having never heard of such a place in his time.
"I know. It's that Ancient Hall. I've heard rumors that it might hold secrets about the Immortal Deity. I never thought they were true."
Another Sage nodded in understanding.
"You actually went to the True World. Have any other Sages been there?"
A Sage looked at Li Hao with surprise. They had come here and learned from the Master Son about the Immortal Deity's realm, the True World, and the existence of ancient demons, but none had ever seen it.
The Master Son, in his free time, would often tell them about the great battle of the past and the glorious deeds of the Heavenly Catastrophe Immortal Emperor.
They were deeply moved by the tragic grandeur of the battle and understood why All Heavens had no Immortal Deities.
Li Hao shook his head slightly, not answering the question. Thinking about the Sages going to the True World and attracting ancient demons, he couldn't help but sigh.
At this moment, the old man seemed to recall something and asked Li Hao, "Why did you say the True World has reinforcements?"
Li Hao explained, "I met a woman at the Immortal Lord Realm. She seemed to be a commander and personally promised me."
The old man's eyes showed understanding as he murmured, "Could it be that the war has continued to this day and hasn't ended?"
"If so... what about Immortal Emperor..."
His gaze darkened. He had known the outcome for a long time, but this seemed to confirm it even more.
He turned and walked into the thatched cottage, closing the door behind him.
The Sages, familiar with the Master Son and understanding his current mood, had nothing to say in comfort. After a moment of silence, one of them asked Li Hao, "What year is it outside? Have you seen Xu Zu? Has he cultivated to the Supreme Sage realm?"
Xu Zu... Li Hao's mind conjured the image, his eyes narrowing slightly, but he remained calm. "Are you Xu Zu's friend?"
He sensed the other's aura, though restrained, it was incredibly powerful, far beyond Xu Zu's level, likely that of a Supreme Sage!
"Yes."
The Sage smiled, "That guy is quite reclusive and doesn't have many friends. I'm one of his few."
"He's gone", Li Hao said calmly.
The Sage was taken aback, his expression changing. "What do you mean he's gone? Who killed him? Could he have offended a Supreme Sage? That's impossible. Although he's reclusive, he wouldn't provoke a Supreme Sage. He knows his limits..."
"Unclear."
Li Hao shook his head, naturally not intending to reveal that he was the one who killed Xu Zu.
Having just arrived, Li Hao didn't want to stir up trouble or add more Wraiths to his tally.
After all, with Xu Zu's death, their grudge had been settled.
However, upon hearing Li Hao's response, the other party didn't think much of it. A trace of sorrow flashed in his eyes, and he sighed deeply, saying, "I had hoped to have a drink with him someday. How could he have left so soon..."
With that, he shook his head and sighed beside Li Hao.
"Have you seen the Sage of Mitian? Do you know him?"
A young-looking Sage couldn't help but ask, his face showing a hint of unease upon hearing of Xu Zu's demise.
Li Hao was somewhat surprised and replied, "Are you a friend of the Sage of Mitian?"
"He is my Master", the young Sage answered, noting Li Hao's expression. He then smiled, "Have you met him?"
Li Hao understood; this young Sage must be a disciple of Mitian, a fellow disciple of Old Feng.
"I've met him and even played a few games of chess with him", Li Hao said with a smile.
The young Sage breathed a sigh of relief and then asked, "When did he start playing chess? I didn't know about that."
"Maybe you came too early", Li Hao replied.
The young Sage nodded, realizing that time could change many things. He then introduced himself warmly, "My name is Chen Baoyu, you can call me Baosheng."
Li Hao nodded and said, "I am Hao Tian."
The other Sages nearby also began to ask Li Hao about the outside world.
Li Hao didn't hide anything, selectively sharing what he could about the current situation outside.
Then, Li Hao inquired, "Are all of you unable to leave this place?"
"That's right. If we could leave, we would have done so long ago. The Double Crevice Demon Valley can only be entered, not exited, unless one passes the trial of the Heavenly Catastrophe Immortal Emperor and inherits his Dao Tradition."
Luo Sheng, the Sage who had asked about Xu Zu, nodded. He was an elderly figure with a long mustache, and he smiled warmly at Li Hao.
"Immortal Emperor's trial? Inheriting his Dao Tradition?"
Li Hao was momentarily taken aback, his gaze shifting to the towering celestial palace in the distance. The Dao Tradition of an Immortal Emperor?
Earlier, Nangong Jian had mentioned that in the True World, an Immortal Emperor was the pinnacle of existence, overseeing countless realms with immortal kings as generals and millions of True Immortals as foot soldiers. Such a powerful being could only emerge once per epoch, and each True World epoch lasted a million years.
To inherit the Dao Tradition of such a being would make even immortal kings fight to the death and Immortal Lords go mad with excitement. And now, that Dao Tradition was right before his eyes?
Could it be that falling into the Double Crevice Demon Valley was a stroke of incredible fortune?
Seeing Li Hao's expression, another Sage named Dong Dao shook his head. "It is a good thing, but passing the trial is extremely difficult. You'll understand once you try it. We've been trapped here for countless ages, and the one who has been here the longest is the Pastoral Sage. He is a Sage from the Primordial Ancestor period, only about ten thousand years younger than the Primordial Ancestor, and yet he remains trapped here."
Li Hao followed his gaze and saw a middle-aged Sage with snow-white hair, sitting cross-legged on a zabuton with his eyes closed, deep in meditation.
Only ten thousand years younger than the Primordial Ancestor... That's truly ancient, Li Hao thought to himself.
The Primordial Ancestor, being the oldest Sage, saw the birth of the first Sages within the first ten thousand years of his existence. They were the earliest batch.
After several more millennia, the number of Sages gradually increased, leading to the peak era.
It was also during this time that the god kings emerged.
"Over there is the Bright Sage. He was already a Supreme Sage when he entered, and even after being trapped here for so long, he still can't leave."
Chen Baoyu pointed to another elderly Sage, whose Dao Domain manifested as a clear river flowing around him.
Li Hao's eyes flickered. The Double Crevice Demon Valley had gained its notorious reputation because the Bright Sage, a Supreme Sage, had entered and never left. A place that could trap a Supreme Sage was indeed one to be feared.
"What is this trial?"
Li Hao asked with curiosity.
"Right over there is the first step of the trial. It measures the grade of one's Dao heart. You need a Heaven-grade Dao heart to be considered qualified."
Winter Blade pointed, and in front of the zabuton, there hung a massive, floating bell.
Li Hao was taken aback, immediately recalling the small tower at the Great Yu Imperial Palace where he had taken the Immortal Gate test.
That tower could also measure one's Dao Heart, but it had failed to gauge the quality of his Dao Heart. However, it was clear that his Dao Heart had surpassed the Earth grade, indicating it was at the Heaven grade. The small tower's level was just too low to reveal this.
"Even we Ascenders don't necessarily have a Heaven-grade Dao Heart. I reached this level by comprehending an immortal technique and grasping the essence of the Immortal Deity, thus enhancing my Dao Heart to the Heaven level."
Winter Blade glanced at the thatched cottage and continued, "Elder Wang has said that a Heaven-grade Dao Heart merely signifies a belief and Dao Will that can rival Heaven and Earth. Without this Dao Will, even if one achieves immortality, they will remain in the True Immortal Realm for their entire life. Only those with a Heaven-grade Dao Heart have the qualification to comprehend the legacy of the Celestial Calamity Immortal Emperor."
Li Hao nodded slightly, this being the first time he had heard such a requirement for the Immortal Dao.
"If you wish to comprehend an immortal technique, you'll have to wait for Elder Wang to teach you. We don't have that qualification", Chen Baoyu told Li Hao.
Li Hao asked curiously, "Can one cultivate an immortal technique even if they aren't a True Immortal?"
(End of Chapter)
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