Volume 3 - Chapter 407: Breakthrough, Arrival!
News that the demon race had come to challenge the Su family on Gusu Emperor Star didn’t stay confined to the Su clan for long. It quickly spread to the Lin family, the Jiang family, and all the other great aristocratic houses.
In the Jiang family’s Divine Manor…
“A demon challenge? Perfect. However many come, I’ll kill them all!”
A young prodigy of the Jiang family said coldly.
“So that’s what Master meant by ‘a chance to descend the mountain.’ No wonder he told me to return home.”
Another young man from the Jiang family spoke. He was the same prodigy who had been defeated by Su Wanxue in the Sword Pool Competition—Jiang Huanhuan’s fourth brother.
“If they want to take this opportunity to kill our human prodigies, then we’ll do the same and slay theirs!”
“Exactly. Even if they don’t come now, in a thousand years I’ll head to the border battlefield myself and bathe them in blood.”
The Jiang family disciples were brimming with fighting spirit. Not a single one retreated before the threat of demons—this was precisely why the Jiang clan stood as one of the pillars of the Northern Domain’s human race.
At the Lin family…
The news had spread to every courtyard. Countless Lin family prodigies gathered, and one among them sped toward the ancestral grounds to deliver the message to a certain imperial heir—the pride of the Lin family.
Outside the ancestral grounds, an old man from the Lin clan lounged in a rocking chair and stopped the approaching messenger.
Upon hearing the news, Old Xue shook his head lightly and said calmly, “Such a trifling matter—there’s no need to disturb him. When he emerges from seclusion, I’ll inform him. If the timing is right, he can go and slaughter those demons. If not… well, let that little girl from the Su family give it her all. The other noble houses ought to shoulder some of the burden too.”
Outside the three major families, many other noble clans were also making urgent preparations. They poured all their resources into their most elite prodigies.
Some families chose to send their finest talents to defend the dignity of the human race. They hoped to make a name for themselves in this very first duel of the generations—and crush the demons’ ambitions at the outset.
Others chose to send substitutes instead, hiding their true dragons away. If the real geniuses fell here, their entire family might decline.
In the depths of the Su residence, inside the Celestial Courtyard…
Su Muqing and Li Hao flew back to the courtyard, one in front of the other. Just as they landed, Su Muqing strode toward the main hall. But as she stepped over the threshold, she paused, turned slightly, and looked back at the youth standing in the courtyard.
“If you’ve got even a shred of spine, then cultivate properly.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she frowned slightly. She realized she was being redundant.
Li Hao might have the qualifications to participate, but he was only at the first level of the Immortal Lord Realm. His cultivation was far too low. Even if his movement technique was outstanding, in real combat, all he could do was flee—useless.
Moreover, demons didn’t care about martial virtue. They wouldn’t agree to same-realm duels. Most likely, the ones sent to fight would be monstrous prodigies at the seventh or eighth level of the Immortal Lord Realm—or even those at peak stage—pressing right up against the soul lifespan limits for participation.
Li Hao’s soul lifespan was too short, his realm too low. If he devoted himself to bitter cultivation, he might qualify for the next round in a thousand years. But by then, his soul lifespan would exceed the limit. This grand clash between great clans left no room for him to shine.
She shook her head and thought no more of it. With her thoughts reined in, she stepped into the hall.
Three years was but a blink to her. She had to seize this chance to advance even further.
With a loud bang, the hall doors slammed shut.
Li Hao glanced at her fading silhouette, then looked away and returned to his carved wooden chair.
“Three years…”
His eyes flickered with thought. If he could break through the Sculpting Dao to the twelfth segment during these three years, his combat power would soar.
The human race in the Northern Domain was in a precarious position. If the chance arose, he too wanted to contribute his strength.
With that thought, he picked up his carving knife and began to focus intently.
The block of wood in his hand gradually took the shape of a human figure. It was the likeness of Ying Xiaoxiao.
Previously, he had refused to carve her with the eleventh segment of his sculpting technique—he felt it would be a desecration. But now, only when sculpting her could he fully immerse himself and attain new insights. He sensed this was the only way to help him grasp the true meaning of sculpting even faster.
He poured his insights from the Painting Dao into his sculpting as well.
Sculpting and painting appeared similar, yet in truth they were vastly different.
To mortals, one used a brush as a blade, the other used a blade as a brush.
But in Li Hao’s eyes, their cores were fundamentally distinct.
Sculpting seemed like drawing on wood, but in truth, it was about removing flaws and revealing nature—chiseling away to unveil a naturally perfect form.
Painting, on the other hand, was about condensing the five essences to refine one’s true self.
Color, ink, form, intent, and soul—these were painting.
Yet they shared a commonality—both sculpting and painting contained the Laws of Time and Space.
“The most precious form of carving in this world… must be sculpting with the blade of time itself, shaped by the passage of ages…”
Li Hao’s eyes gleamed.
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