Volume 3 - Chapter 414: Li Hao's Dao-Origin Immortal Seal (Part 1)
The cold wind swept across the void, casting a stillness over the outskirts of Gusu City.
The patriarchs of the various clans—including those of the Jiang, Su, and Lin families—remained silent, their eyes heavy with emotion.
Should they blame Lin Zhexuan? The opponent’s cultivation was above his, and she had used the legendary Dao-Origin Immortal Seal. Lin Zhexuan had already displayed monstrous talent. It was just that the black-veiled woman was even more terrifying.
But the price of failure… was simply too steep.
Without Lin Zhexuan, who else could stand in the way? If the human race were to be utterly defeated in this first round of the challenge, the morale of the demon domain would skyrocket. As for the human race in the Northern Region, it might crumble to the point of no return. People would begin fleeing, spreading fear. Once news spread, even the military’s morale would collapse.
Everyone’s hearts clenched in agony, tightening with an unbearable sense of helplessness and despair.
Across the thirty-six thousand immortal cities, countless immortals stood in stunned silence. Just those three words—“I concede”—were enough to drain the color from countless faces, leaving only expressions of pale hopelessness.
Lin Jinrou’s lips parted slightly, her eyes dazed. The brother who had always seemed godlike in her heart, invincible from childhood… had actually lost.
He had actually… bowed his head in surrender.
Su Muqing stared in a daze at the scene. She understood Lin Zhexuan. He had given it everything he had. Short of burning his soul or taking foundation-damaging divine medicine, he had already fought at his peak.
But the opponent… was simply stronger—so strong it was absurd.
A sudden wave of sorrow welled up within her. She hated her own weakness. If she hadn't lost earlier, if she had held on long enough to face the black-veiled woman herself, she would have burned her bloodline, even sacrificed her life to inflict a heavy wound. That might have created a chance for Lin Zhexuan to defeat or even slay that demon prodigy, then sweep through the rest of the challengers to claim victory.
Such a victory would have spared countless lives in the Northern Region. The implications were enormous.
In the midst of this grief and despair, within the arena, Lin Zhexuan looked deeply at the black-veiled demoness across from him and asked,
“What’s your name?”
“Hei Ji.”
Her eyes were cold and indifferent. Though she hadn’t killed Lin Zhexuan, this battle had earned her respect for this human prodigy.
Lin Zhexuan nodded. “I’ll remember you. Next time we fight, the outcome won’t be the same.”
As soon as he said it, he realized such words sounded like empty bravado. While they were sincere, it still felt somewhat undignified. Without another word, he turned and left the arena, returning to the Lin family.
The first person he thought of upon seeing his clan’s expressions was Su Muqing. He turned his head toward the Su family.
He saw the sorrow in her eyes, full of regret.
Their gazes met, and the sadness in Su Muqing’s eyes receded slightly. She forced a comforting smile at him.
She knew her smile was stiff and ugly, but she also knew Lin Zhexuan had done all he could. She herself was a defeated warrior—how could she blame him?
Lin Zhexuan’s heart warmed slightly. He returned an apologetic look, then swept his gaze across the crowd. Seeing the complex and despairing expressions of the clan patriarchs, including the Jiang family, left a bitter taste in his mouth.
If he had won this fight, he would have become famous across the Northern Region. Both the human and demon realms would know his name.
But… he had truly done his best.
Aside from not burning his soul or taking foundation-harming divine medicine, he had used every skill at his disposal.
The opponent was simply stronger—and even more willing to sacrifice. To kill him before he could surrender, she had gone as far as burning her soul.
“Forgive me, Grandfather.”
Lin Zhexuan turned to Lin Daogong and gave a slight bow. “Your grandson was not strong enough.”
Lin Daogong hadn’t expected him to lose either. His eyes were filled with complexity, weariness, and loss. Hearing Lin Zhexuan’s apology, his expression turned bitter.
“Is your Dao Heart intact?”
Lin Zhexuan looked up calmly. “Yes. Though this is my first defeat, losing to the Dao-Origin Immortal Seal is not disgraceful. But once I condense the Chaos Law, I will catch up!”
If the pinnacle of the True Immortal Realm was the Nine Blossoms and Nine Sequences Immortal Seal, then the pinnacle of the Immortal Lord Realm was the Chaos Law!
The laws mastered at the Immortal Lord level were refined from the essence of the Great Dao. The Nine Blossoms and Nine Sequences Immortal Seal could give rise to all worldly laws and thus encompass the essence of all paths.
But in true combat, one needed only a single law, a single strike!
Therefore, the merging and mutation of laws marked the watershed of strength among Immortal Lords.
Take Hei Ji, for instance. Her Evernight Law and Deep Darkness Law were fusions of the Space-Time and Earth Dao Essences, as well as the Darkness Dao Essence. This power surpassed all single laws except the Space-Time Origin and the Form Control Essence.
Moreover, her realm was no lower—she had reached the seventh layer of the Law Origin Realm, just like Lin Zhexuan’s mutated laws.
Under such conditions, with both having seventh-layer mutated laws, only Su Muqing’s seventh-layer Time Origin Law could counter or suppress Hei Ji’s. But Su Muqing’s soul was weaker. If the opponent attacked from the soul level—like that demon prodigy’s nightmare ability earlier—there would be a real chance to kill her.
As for the Chaos Law, it was said to fuse all Daos—regarded as the strongest of them all.
It could suppress Time, Space, the Nine Sequences, and any other fused or mutated laws!
Lin Zhexuan’s words gave Lin Daogong some comfort. Though they had lost this battle, at least Su Muqing and Lin Zhexuan were still alive. These two were currently the human race’s top prodigies, and in time they could reach the half-step Emperor realm. As for whether they could truly become Emperors—that would depend on fate.
Even with such talent, all one earned was a glimpse of the threshold of the Emperor Realm. Countless peerless geniuses throughout the ages hadn’t even reached that point.
“As long as your Dao Heart is intact… and you’re alive… that’s enough.”
Lin Daogong offered a bitter consolation.
Lin Zhexuan nodded slightly. His Dao Heart was firm, having reached the Third Eternal Realm, resonating with Nine Chimes. It would not be easily shaken.
Though he felt regret over this loss, he understood that his survival was more crucial for the greater good.
“Everyone, we’ve lost this time. But so long as we live, hope remains. One day, we will strike back!”
Seeing the defeated expressions around him, Lin Zhexuan spoke loudly.
He wanted to rally their spirits. Even though he had lost and the human side was doomed to defeat in this round, the future still lay ahead.
Yet aside from the Lin family’s expressions easing slightly, the other patriarchs looked grim.
“Lin Zhexuan, your strength was on par with that demoness—why didn’t you fight to the death?!”
“Exactly! Everyone else risked their lives! You didn’t even burn your soul or take divine medicine! Does your Lin family not have any? If not, I would’ve given you some!”
“You lost—who else can fight?! Everyone was hoping for your victory, but you…”
Their voices brimmed with anger. These patriarchs had already prepared for their own clan’s top prodigies to go to battle and die.
But the strength gap between the demon prodigies and their own had been too great. Sending them up would’ve meant instant death—useless sacrifices. That was why they had remained silent.
If there had been even the slightest chance to fight, they would’ve driven their prodigies to give everything—even if it meant soul destruction!
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