Volume 3 - Chapter 404: Imperial Might (Part 2)
She felt a twinge of disappointment in her heart, but quickly caught herself, dispelling the emotion and regaining her composure.
At that moment, discussions were still buzzing beneath the battle platform. Li Hao’s performance had thoroughly etched his name into the minds of the many noble clan prodigies present.
Everyone understood that from this battle forward, Li Hao would be a name known across Gusu Imperial Star.
“You’re incredible,” said Lin Jinrou, who wasn’t far away, her tone filled with admiration.
“You flatter me,” Li Hao replied modestly.
Lin Jinrou smiled, her eyes glimmering. For someone with only a century of soul lifespan to wield such combat prowess—if it came down to raw talent, even her elder brother might not compare. Just where had this monster emerged from?
She suddenly found the situation amusing. Would her brother feel a sense of pressure when this news reached him?
All her life, she’d never met anyone who could rival her brother. Now, it seemed one had finally appeared.
Elsewhere, Jiang Huanhuan sent Li Hao a voice transmission, expressing her amazement and inviting him to visit the Jiang Clan estate.
Li Hao politely declined, also via voice transmission. Jiang Huanhuan wasn’t upset. If he wouldn’t come to her, she’d just visit him at the Su Clan.
Within the crowd, someone secretly activated a Soulspan Mirror, using it to reflect Li Hao’s figure.
In moments, the mirror revealed his soul lifespan: 102 years!
Upon seeing this, that person’s pupils contracted. A storm of shock surged through them—so the rumors from the Su Clan were true!
A monster. An absolute, peerless monster!
On the battle platform, the defeated prodigies of the noble clans began to re-enter their shattered immortal bodies, bit by bit repairing themselves as they returned to the base of the stage. When they looked at Li Hao again, their gazes were filled with fear and disbelief—none dared provoke him further.
Seeing that the discussion was dragging on and no one was stepping up to the platform, Immortal King Tan finally opened his mouth to urge them on.
Only then did the others remember: the Sword Pond Trials were still underway.
Seeing that no one else was eager to take the stage, Lin Jinrou smiled faintly and leapt up, continuing her pursuit of an undefeated record.
Before long, more challengers stepped forward, but all fell to Lin Jinrou’s sword.
Li Hao noticed that everyone present was a practitioner of the sword. Curious, he asked Su Wanqing about it.
Su Wanqing replied, “The Sword Pond Trials draw sword Dao prodigies from every clan. Those who major in other Daos aren’t here, or the numbers would be far greater.”
Realization dawned on Li Hao. He then looked toward Su Wanqing and Su Wanxue. So they were both sword cultivators too. Truly, the sword was the most universal of weapons.
As Lin Jinrou secured her undefeated record and earned the right to harvest the Immortal Aura Purple Osmanthus, the trials pressed on.
With the passage of time, Su Wanxue also stepped onto the platform—but she was intercepted by another prodigy from the Jiang Clan. She was defeated and failed to achieve an undefeated record.
Jiang Huanhuan whispered that this Jiang Clan prodigy had already become a disciple of an Immortal Emperor and had just returned from cultivation. His master had told him to descend the mountain to temper himself, saying a great opportunity awaited him on Gusu Imperial Star.
Su Wanxue’s loss left her with a dark expression. As one of the Four Phoenixes, she had never been defeated by anyone in her realm.
“It’s alright. I’ll get one for you,” Su Qiyu said, trying to comfort her.
Su Wanxue thanked him, but her expression remained unsightly. This defeat left her feeling both ashamed and frustrated. She realized her cultivation had grown lax.
Not long after, Jiang Huanhuan stepped onto the stage and achieved an undefeated record within the fourth stage of the Immortal Sovereign Realm. Though her realm was lower than the Su sisters’, and her soul lifespan shorter, she was still a top-tier talent in her realm.
Li Hao swept his gaze around. As expected, only members of the three major clans could achieve undefeated records, a testament to their dominance on Gusu Imperial Star.
Once the challenges ended, the gathering moved on to the harvesting of the osmanthus blossoms.
First up were those who had earned the right to harvest the Flowing Frost Silver Osmanthus.
“The sword monument contains a terrifying sword intent. To harvest an Immortal Osmanthus, you must endure its tempering. It’s not an easy task,” Su Wanqing said to Li Hao.
Even as she spoke, many had already succeeded in harvesting their blossoms. Yet a few, upon nearing the sword monument, suddenly groaned in pain and were thrown into the waterfall, injured by the sword intent.
“With your sword Dao, you should be able to claim an Immortal Aura Purple Osmanthus,” Su Wanqing said encouragingly.
Li Hao gave a small nod.
Soon, the harvesting of the Flowing Frost Silver Osmanthus was complete. Next came the turn of those qualified to harvest the Divine Spring Golden Osmanthus.
There were fewer of them, and each exuded a powerful, commanding presence as they charged toward the sword monument.
Out of more than a dozen people, only two or three fell short—most succeeded in harvesting the blossom.
“It’s yours now,” Su Wanqing said, gazing toward the summit where the Immortal Aura Purple Osmanthus bloomed. Her eyes held both fondness and regret.
Su Muqing, her expression cold, was the first to move. Her white immortal dress fluttered as she soared up like a sword fairy. In an instant, she reached the osmanthus bloom. Sword qi condensed in her hand—one slash, clean and sharp—and she swiftly plucked a blossom before returning.
“Hurry! Or someone else will snatch it first!” Su Wanqing urged Li Hao.
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