Chapter 298: Extreme Transcendence, Reincarnated Saint?
Void Extremity!
Li Hao's heart sank. Earlier, the opponent had accurately identified his ability, proving that he too had mastered the Void Extremity, the fifteen-mile extremity.
This battle was becoming increasingly difficult.
As he faced increasingly powerful opponents, from competing with ancient prodigies to slaying the Buddha Lord, most of the strong enemies he encountered seemed to have mastered one or two kinds of extremity powers.
After all, those who reached the Taiping Dao Realm, or even the Dao Seeking Realm, were exceptional among people—prodigies of their time. With the accumulation of years and resources, it wasn't surprising that they could cultivate several extremities.
However, encountering someone who mastered the Void Extremity was a first.
This meant that the opponent might have also mastered other extremities, aside from the Heavenly Dharma Aspect, which was nearly impossible to reconstruct and tested one's temperament immensely. Li Hao had to be on guard against all other extremities.
Deciding not to target the yellow-robed youth first, Li Hao opted to deal with this most challenging opponent later.
Whoosh!
His body vanished into a Void Shift, an unpredictable movement.
As soon as he disappeared, the other four's faces changed, and their bodies tensed. Almost simultaneously, they activated their Dao domains, enveloping themselves.
A Dao domain at the Dao Seeking Realm contained the power of the Great Dao's laws, far surpassing the rules of the Taiping Dao Realm. It could easily annihilate those in the Real Person Realm.
Whoosh!
Li Hao's figure ghosted into the exquisite woman's Dao domain, who had just had her head smashed. If it were a regular Dao Shift, he could only teleport outside the Dao domain, as his Dao Rhythms couldn't extend into someone else's domain. But Void Shift was different; it allowed him to cross space purely, appearing directly in front of her.
When she saw Li Hao's face, the beautiful woman's expression turned pale.
She hadn't expected him to target her again, determined to kill her no matter what.
However, as Li Hao appeared, the laws of her domain instantly acted upon him. A terrifying force locked down his body, sealing his limbs.
Sealing Laws!
Under the influence of this law, Li Hao's body was confined. Yet, almost simultaneously, he unleashed his inner strength, forcibly swinging his sword with transcendent force. The sword wasn't bound by the domain's laws, slashing directly at her exquisite head.
The beautiful woman's eyes contracted in terror and rage.
Fortunately, Li Hao's momentary pause when teleporting gave her time to react, allowing her to hastily activate her Dao power.
Splurt!
Blood splattered as her beautiful head flew, eyes wide with disbelief.
Li Hao's sword effortlessly cleaved through her Dao power, ignoring its obstruction.
While Dao power couldn't be destroyed, it could be deformed. The sword's pressure forced it to bend, creating an opening for the blade to strike.
Li Hao hadn't expected the sword to be so powerful. This must be the old Daoist's treasured weapon, likely the most potent in the Dayu Divine Dynasty.
Whoosh!
After striking, Li Hao instantly Void Shifted away.
Just as he vanished, the yellow-robed youth suddenly appeared where he'd been, stabbing his spear into empty space.
Li Hao retreated to the domain's edge, his face darkening.
The beautiful woman's head had been severed, but she wasn't dead; her domain still held.
Void Shift excelled in first encounters, catching enemies off guard for a near-certain kill, as no one would always have their domain defenses active.
But now, they were on alert. With domain suppression, he couldn't land a second blow as easily as he had against the purple-robed youth.
This was the limitation of his current Taiping Dao Realm; the gap in cultivation was too great. For others, approaching these opponents would be impossible.
"Ahhh! This is infuriating!"
The beautiful woman's severed head floated within her domain, screaming in rage.
To be decapitated twice by a mere mortal cultivator was a disgrace beyond measure!
As her head reattached to her neck, blood sealing the wound, she cursed, "Bastard! Brother Mu, kill him for me!"
While she furiously called for help, she quickly activated her Sacred Heart treasure to prevent Li Hao from striking again and humiliating her further.
"It seems that the technique he used to kill Xuanfeng isn't something he can employ repeatedly."
"Be cautious and use your domains to isolate him. I've already suppressed his domain, so if he gets close, he'll be affected by your laws."
The yellow-robed youth remained calm, despite Li Hao's strange and deadly attack that had even trapped Xuanfeng's soul, making escape impossible.
But after two failed attempts at assassination, he noticed that the bizarre killing move had limitations.
He couldn't discern what those limitations were, but avoiding consecutive strikes from Li Hao was critical.
"You focus on your defenses. I'll keep him occupied."
The yellow-robed youth's Dao power surged, making him appear like an insurmountable peak, an overwhelming presence that seemed to obscure the heavens.
Li Hao's cold gaze didn't waver.
His Heavenly Pulse quietly transformed, pushing his transcendence to its peak.
He knew he had to seize every opportunity to strike, ensuring that each move was lethal. If he couldn't quickly reduce their numbers, he would face dire straits.
Whoosh!
Almost instantly, Li Hao and the yellow-robed youth, as if telepathically connected, disappeared simultaneously.
No one knew where the other would appear, but Li Hao didn't speculate. He reappeared in another section of the sky.
The yellow-robed youth appeared where Li Hao had vanished, the two locking eyes, neither able to locate the other's position, relying solely on their reactions.
Whoosh!
Li Hao vanished again as soon as he appeared, materializing in a different part of the sky. The yellow-robed youth seemed to pause momentarily, and as Li Hao appeared again, he disappeared.
He attempted to catch Li Hao in the gap between his teleportations, trying to lock onto him.
But Li Hao, unfazed, swung his sword backward the instant he reappeared, as if predicting the move.
The sword's light gleamed brilliantly, slicing through space. Splurt! As the yellow-robed youth emerged, preparing to strike with his spear, Li Hao's blade severed half his head.
Blood splattered, and the yellow-robed youth's split head showed shock before his body disappeared, reappearing at a distance.
His head rapidly healed, but as he reappeared, Li Hao vanished again, catching him in the gap.
"You're courting death!"
The yellow-robed youth's eyes turned dark with anger. In their first exchange, he had fallen into a disadvantage, thinking he had predicted Li Hao's move, only for Li Hao to predict his prediction.
But now that the tables had turned, he quickly responded, launching a counterattack.
His domain extended, concealing a deadly divine attack, ready to trigger the moment Li Hao appeared near him.
Bang!
However, this time Li Hao didn't reappear beside the yellow-robed youth. Instead, without warning, he materialized behind the beautiful woman.
His sword slashed toward her neck again, but a golden lightning flash suddenly flickered before him, blocking the blade. Within the lightning was a small mountain the size of a fingernail.
Though it resembled a mountain, it was more like a stone, brimming with condensed lightning.
When the sword struck, it split the lightning into a thousand arcs, lighting up the entire imperial courtyard in gold.
In the next moment, the lightning exploded, and the sword severed the woman's neck once more.
Her severed head floated in the air, filled with shock. She couldn't believe that Li Hao had chosen to attack her again instead of pursuing the heavily wounded Mu Shixiong!
Three times now, her head had been severed!
What's wrong with this guy?! The beautiful woman was furious, ready to explode. But Li Hao continued to strike with his sword, attacking a second and third time.
"Seal!"
She hurriedly activated her domain, her sealing laws locking down Li Hao's body.
Within her domain, her law was ten times more powerful than outside, and Li Hao's body was immediately constricted, his face changing as he tried to strike but had to teleport away instead.
"Bastard!"
The beautiful woman was on the verge of madness.
Why was this man so fixated on her? They had only just met, yet he seemed to harbor a deep hatred, ruthlessly targeting her without a shred of mercy. Despite her devastating beauty, he showed no pity!
Did he think she was an easy target?
The other three immediately closed ranks around her, no longer trying to cut off Li Hao's escape.
With Void Shift, if Li Hao wanted to flee, it would be difficult for them to stop him.
"You!"
The yellow-robed youth, seeing Li Hao's actions, grew enraged. The young man's tactics defied logic, his calculations continually thwarted.
Li Hao, though frustrated that his sword hadn't killed the woman, quickly adjusted. With his Heavenly Pulse at its limit, he finally reached the peak of transcendence.
Full Transcendence!
Li Hao's eyes gleamed with dark silver, like they held endless light. His body began to seep blood as the rift between transcendence and rapid regeneration balanced out.
At 100% transcendence, he had become one with heaven and earth, capable of wielding unimaginable power. A sliver of pure divine energy formed in his hands.
This sliver of divine power could easily slice through Dao power, like the sharpest blade.
Li Hao took a deep breath, the intense tearing pain in his body long since familiar. His eyes were cold, devoid of emotion.
Whoosh!
The yellow-robed youth suddenly Void Shifted, launching a fatal strike. However, this time, as the youth entered the Void Shift, Li Hao vaguely sensed a trace, an indication that his Heavenly Extremity seemed to counter the Void Extremity.
Whoosh!
Instead of teleporting, Li Hao remained in place, delivering a sudden, radiant sword strike infused with divine power, shining to the utmost brilliance.
The yellow-robed youth reappeared directly in front of Li Hao, intending to catch him off guard, opting not to attack from another direction. After all, against such an unpredictable opponent, focusing more attention on positions other than directly in front seemed prudent.
Yet, upon reappearing, he found himself facing the same situation as before—directly meeting Li Hao's sword.
This time, however, the sword's light carried a trace of energy that made the youth's hair stand on end, filling him with a sense of dread and the scent of death.
How is this possible?!
The yellow-robed youth's pupils shrank rapidly. His eyes widened in shock as he attempted to block with his spear, but Li Hao's attack was already in place. The sword light cleaved through his head.
Splurt!
The yellow-robed youth's body split from the top of his skull, blood gushing out. A Sacred Heart treasure on his body shattered, unable to withstand the divine sharpness of Li Hao's sword, severing even the laws it was meant to protect.
"Brother Mu!"
The beautiful woman was still in the process of reattaching her head when she saw this. Her not-yet-healed head trembled, and she cried out in shock.
The other three were equally stunned. They hadn't expected their strongest member, Brother Mu, to fall again. It seemed impossible.
Li Hao didn't stop. This time, his sword, infused with divine energy, cut through the opponent's Dao domain laws, giving him another chance to strike.
Whoosh!
The split body of the yellow-robed youth instantly disappeared. However, as he tore through the Void Shift, Li Hao caught another trace. In his state of extreme transcendence, his body merged with the heavens, allowing him to perceive every minute change in the surrounding space—beyond the scope of ordinary Dao domains.
As soon as the youth reappeared, Li Hao followed, his sword striking down in fury.
"No way!"
The yellow-robed youth, split in two, hadn't died yet. His severely injured soul still sustained him. Seeing Li Hao relentlessly pursuing and accurately predicting his teleportation destination, he was horrified.
If he had been outwitted by Li Hao in attacking, that would be a matter of intelligence, something he could accept. But now, in the vast heavens, where he teleported randomly to avoid detection, how could Li Hao still find him? This could only mean that Li Hao could see the traces of his Void Shift!
But that's impossible!
He had never heard of such a thing—unless this young man was an omnipotent saint.
"Divine Art, Snow Realm!"
The yellow-robed youth roared in frustration, finally unleashing his divine art. He could no longer afford to treat Li Hao as a mere plaything.
Suddenly, his Dao domain filled with countless falling snowflakes. He had mastered the Great Dao of Extreme Cold, practicing his sword on a snowy mountain for sixty years. His spear techniques had merged with the mountain, tapping into the extreme cold hidden within the snow's depths.
As the divine art was unleashed, the countless snowflakes, infused with law power, enveloped Li Hao.
At the same time, Li Hao's body began to dissolve, as if turning into snow.
Bang!
The snowflakes surged, swirling around the sword light, shattering Li Hao's attack.
Each snowflake was imbued with laws, swirling and grinding the sword energy to dust.
Li Hao felt his body slowing, his thoughts and consciousness freezing, and even the power within him solidifying. Despite merging with the heavens, the surrounding world seemed affected.
This is the power of divine art… terrifying beyond imagination!
It was akin to the technique that had caused his Dao domain to regress earlier.
Bang!
With Li Hao's attack delayed, the yellow-robed youth roared in anger, utilizing his undying power. His body rapidly fused, and the moment it rejoined, he thrust his spear violently forward.
But Li Hao quickly withdrew, teleporting away to target another opponent.
"Quick, suppress him with Dao techniques! Kill him!"
The yellow-robed youth shouted, realizing that toying with Li Hao was no longer an option. He had tasted the scent of death, narrowly avoiding disaster.
Seeing their strongest member wounded, the other four were equally shaken. Before he could give further instructions, they had already joined forces.
"Suppress!"
"Seal!"
"Thunder Pool!"
As their Dao techniques activated, the void solidified, and the laws of heaven entwined around Li Hao, threatening to crush his body.
It was like when the Buddha Lord had shattered Li Hao's body after breaking through to the Dao Realm.
But now, with Li Hao in his state of extreme transcendence, the immense pressure was strong, but it couldn't destroy him—unless they could sever him from the heavens.
However, the Dao Realm didn't yet possess such power.
Despite this, Li Hao still felt intense discomfort. His body was constrained, his movements sluggish like in a swamp. He teleported again, appearing beside the half-masked youth.
As soon as he entered the opponent's Dao domain, Li Hao felt a numbing sensation as if struck by a terrifying electric current.
Before he could swing his sword, countless bolts of lightning surged toward him.
The laws in this youth's domain carried lightning, moving at incredible speed. Li Hao's entire body was engulfed in electric arcs, suffering intense damage.
But Li Hao's sword light had already pierced through, decapitating the youth.
Simultaneously, his domain turned into a dense web of electricity, forming a thunder pool.
Even in his extreme transcendence, Li Hao felt overwhelmed, his body leaking blood and scorched black.
He teleported away, his balance of tearing pain and rapid regeneration broken. His body felt like it was falling apart.
Li Hao quickly adjusted, stabilizing his injuries.
The yellow-robed youth took the chance to recover, his body healing. Around him, a vision of an unimaginably cold, snowy landscape emerged.
The half-masked youth, meanwhile, was surrounded by a prison of thunder, resembling the lightning king bathed in electricity.
The five of them looked serious, finally abandoning their earlier contempt. They prepared to kill Li Hao seriously, without holding back.
"He doesn't seem to be at the Dao Seeking Realm but is still at the Taiping Dao Realm. Form a formation and use Dao techniques to crush him directly!"
The yellow-robed youth's eyes were ice-cold. Even in the Holy Land, he hadn't suffered such humiliation for a long time. Now, on the fringes of this dynasty, he had narrowly escaped death—a notion beyond belief.
The other four's eyes narrowed, shock flashing in their gazes before quickly subsiding.
Indeed, Li Hao's aura indicated he wasn't at the Dao Seeking Realm. Unless he was disguising his strength while fighting for his life, this made no sense.
But if he truly was at the Taiping Dao Realm, how could that be possible?!
Each of these individuals was a prodigy, their cultivation journeys unparalleled. They had often triumphed against the odds in their youth, but after reaching the Absolute Study Realm, such feats became rare.
Especially after entering the Dao Seeking Realm, each advancement brought a qualitative change in power—never mind crossing entire realms.
"Could he be the reincarnation of a saint?"
Their gazes grew cold as they stared at Li Hao.
If a Taiping Dao Realm cultivator could wield such terrifying power, he could only be a reincarnated saint. No ordinary person could cultivate such abilities.
"Either he's a saint's incarnation or a reincarnated saint. If he were merely an incarnation, his true form would have intervened by now, which means he must be a reincarnated saint."
The half-masked youth's eyes darkened, brimming with killing intent.
Killing a reincarnated saint seemed like an impressive feat.
After all, even if the saint reincarnated again, they would lose all memories of this life.
And if they eventually regained their memories, these young prodigies would have reached the saint level themselves by then.
Once enmity was established, it was kill or be killed. Sparing him now would only ensure their enmity grew deeper, so it was best to uproot the threat.
"You're strong, but you haven't yet entered the Dao Seeking Realm. With your talent, it should be easy for you. Are you searching for the right path?"
The yellow-robed youth stared at Li Hao below. Saints often reincarnated to repair their flawed foundations, fill in gaps in their extremities, or restore their damaged saintly path.
This meant that ordinary breakthroughs didn't interest them. Finding a higher path was their true goal—an extremely difficult task.
Thus, most reincarnated saints were terrifyingly powerful, almost invincible in their realm.
Hearing the yellow-robed youth's words, the imprisoned Li Muxiu and the others, including the royal family, were stunned. They turned to look at the young figure in disbelief.
Taiping Dao Realm?
General Haotian, only at the Taiping Dao Realm?!
Everyone was astonished. While in the Dayu Divine Dynasty, being at the Taiping Dao Realm was considered top-tier, it was leagues apart from the Dao Seeking Realm. Even Dao Master Qin, a Dao Law Realm powerhouse, had been utterly crushed, so how could someone at the Taiping Dao Realm stand a chance?
They recalled another hidden Taiping Dao Realm expert among them, an elder from Qiandao Palace who guarded the Dao Treasury and was once Qin Zhenren's direct disciple. Yet, even when that elder unleashed his Dao Domain, he was instantly crushed by a single word from these six demons, his flesh and blood obliterated without a trace left.
"Taiping Dao Realm? He's only at the Taiping Dao Realm?"
"Didn't he just kill that Dao Law Realm guy? But he's only at the Taiping Dao Realm?!"
"This... this is unbelievable..."
The crowd was in shock. For someone at the Taiping Dao Realm to come to their aid and face six Dao Law Realm experts alone—and even kill one of them—was beyond comprehension.
"He's really only at the Taiping Dao Realm?"
Even Xia Linglong and others were dumbfounded. They knew the truth about the Buddha Lord's death and had assumed that Li Hao had long since entered the Dao Seeking Realm, thinking his strength wasn't far off from these six. Yet now, it turned out Li Hao was only at the Taiping Dao Realm.
The gap was a whole major realm apart!
Qin Zhenren and Emperor Yu were equally stunned. They too sensed Li Hao's aura, confirming it was indeed that of the Taiping Dao Realm, not the Dao Seeking Realm. They had initially thought Li Hao was concealing his power, but the enemy's words made them realize the truth.
Indeed, there was no point in hiding it now. This could only mean Li Hao truly was at this realm.
"Child, if you can't hold on, then run. Just stay alive... that's all that matters..."
Emperor Yu hastily transmitted his thoughts to Li Hao, his gaze filled with pain. How could someone at the Taiping Dao Realm possibly fend off the combined assault of five Dao Law Realm experts?
Li Hao didn't respond; he couldn't afford to be distracted.
Whoosh!
He abruptly Void Shifted, charging at the enemy once more.
This time, however, the five were ready. They no longer held back and merged their Dao Domains.
Bang!
As soon as Li Hao Void Shifted into the beautiful woman's Dao Domain, he was instantly engulfed by a terrifying killing intent.
Extreme cold, binding, wind cuts, thunder strikes—these methods converged upon him.
Their merged Dao Domains stacked fivefold. The moment Li Hao appeared, he was heavily injured, spitting out blood.
Simultaneously, the yellow-robed youth Void Shifted, thrusting his spear with an overwhelming force of extreme cold.
This was the same spear that had once pierced through an entire snow mountain, causing a massive avalanche. Now, it pierced straight through Li Hao's chest.
Whoosh!
Li Hao's body instantly Void Shifted away, retreating from their fivefold Dao Domain.
A large bowl-sized hole gaped in his chest, the wound frozen by an intense cold that spread outward.
Li Hao coughed up blood, quickly wiping it away. Gritting his teeth against the searing pain, he rapidly began to heal.
"If you're truly a reincarnation, you should have stayed low, quietly cultivating. Why provoke us? You're simply seeking death!"
The half-masked youth sneered.
"Kill him! I'll tear him apart! I'll tear them all apart!"
The beautiful woman's eyes blazed with a cold fury. They chose not to engage Li Hao in close combat, knowing his Void Extremity made him slippery. Instead, they combined their Dao techniques to overwhelm him.
"Divine Art, Empty Vision!"
Another youth made his move, silently unleashing a divine art.
This divine art's law allowed him to shatter everything within his sight.
As the terrifying law enveloped him, even Li Hao's body, which was comparable to a Sacred Heart treasure, felt like it was being torn apart, unable to withstand the force.
His body lacked the Dao power to resist, relying only on the energy converted from a single breath of celestial qi. Against this law, it was like trying to prop up a boulder with a single strand of straw—insufficient in quantity.
If not for his extreme transcendence, allowing him to recklessly wield this power, Li Hao wouldn't even qualify to fight them.
Whoosh!
Li Hao swiftly Void Shifted, his face dark and thoughtful, constantly searching for a way to turn the tide.
With their merged Dao Domains and restrictions on Void Shift, he couldn't get close.
Having only managed to kill one of them earlier, if he could have taken down two or three, he might have stood a chance. But these prodigies reacted too quickly.
Li Hao's body continuously Void Shifted, dodging one Dao law after another.
Seeing him darting around like a slippery eel, the five became increasingly frustrated. His ability to detect the extension of their laws was absurd.
Their verbal incantations, executing laws nearly instantaneously, were still evaded by Li Hao—a near-impossible feat.
"You can run, but what about them?"
The yellow-robed youth's eyes turned cold. Instead of attacking Li Hao, he glanced at the imprisoned Li Muxiu and the others.
"Die!"
With a single word, a royal princess dressed in luxurious attire instantly exploded.
There was no warning, not even for her. She hadn't felt anything.
This word, a command of death, obliterated not just her body but also her soul.
Li Hao's face darkened.
But the yellow-robed youth merely smirked, lifting his hand to point at another.
"Die!"
A prince's face turned pale as he looked towards Emperor Yu. "Father, I..."
Bang! His body exploded.
Emperor Yu trembled but looked towards Li Hao. "Run! Don't worry about us!"
Seeing Li Hao heavily injured as he Void Shifted, he realized that the combined might of these five was too much for Li Hao to handle.
Even Dao Law Realm cultivators would struggle, let alone someone at the Taiping Dao Realm. These were beings from celestial sects, wielding Dao law divine arts far beyond those of the mortal realm.
Even with the Jiang family's inheritance, mastering two divine arts, Qin Zhenren had been utterly crushed by these six—how vast was the difference in power?
"Run, Hao'er!"
Li Muxiu also urged, clenching his fists, attempting to use his Unrivaled Fist's special state to see if he could help Li Hao.
"Why are you just standing there? Why are you always so disobedient?!"
Li Tiangang roared in fury.
"General Haotian, don't worry about us! Just run!"
Others also cried out in despair. For Li Hao, someone at the Taiping Dao Realm, to come to their aid was already extraordinary.
Given his displayed power, Li Hao must have already understood the situation here before entering the battlefield. Yet he had still chosen to appear and fight.
For someone at the Taiping Dao Realm to shoulder the burden of facing six Dao Law Realm enemies—how could that be possible?
"Silence! All of you, die!"
The half-masked youth frowned and raised his hand. A massive palm imprint, surrounded by dazzling lightning, descended upon them like a hand of thunder.