Chapter 441: Heaven

In ancient times, during the age of immortal gods and legends, there circulated the four characters: Heaven, Earth, Mystery, Yellow.

The Dao heart is also graded by these, but no one has ever heard of a Dao heart surpassing Earth grade—if such a thing exists, it would be the Heaven Heart, the Heart of the Heavenly Dao!

Countless sages have transmitted the Dao through millennia, yet all they achieved was only Mystery Earth-grade Dao hearts—this ambition is already the limit of our imagination, is there still something greater?

The people inside the Immortal Gate exchanged uneasy glances.

To their understanding, it was nearly impossible to imagine a Dao heart surpassing the sages' lofty aspirations.

This was unheard of; better to believe the Dao Heart Tower had malfunctioned, since that probability was higher.

While they debated, the Ancestor Yu fixed his gaze on the boy outside the Immortal Gate and murmured:

"He's coming in. This boy—I, Yuan Shi Sacred Ground, will spare no cost to claim him. I hope none of you compete for him!"

"Ancestor Yu, your words are too tyrannical. Though our Heavenly Phoenix Sacred Ground is inferior to Yuan Shi, we are still willing to exhaust all our sacred resources to nurture him!"

Beside them, the noble woman, like a divine goddess, her eyes flashed with sharpness, yet her expression remained calm.

"If I'm not mistaken, your Heavenly Phoenix Sacred Ground is a demonic clan, and mostly female disciples—wouldn't that be unsuitable?"

Hearing her words, Ancestor Yu glanced at her coldly and said:

"So what if we're demonic? Haven't we got cultivation arts suitable for humans? Humanity and demons have long lived in harmony—do you imply I'm trying to incite conflict between the two races?"

The divine goddess, radiating noble aura, replied coldly: "Besides, many female disciples may not be a bad thing for him."

"..."

Ancestor Yu withdrew his gaze, too lazy to argue further, though he sneered inwardly.

This boy came from the mortal realm—he knew his disciple's situation there; the boy was likely closely tied to the Jiang family. With that leverage, others would find it hard to compete with him.

Thinking of this, he glanced at the old man beside him—the ancestral elder of the Void Sacred Ground from Yunxia Realm—but the old man's face was expressionless, silent, seemingly uninterested in competing.

This surprised Ancestor Yu—such a prodigy, and the Void Sacred Ground showed no interest?

Meanwhile, other factions, upon hearing the divine goddess's words, fell silent. The boy hadn't even stepped through the Immortal Gate, yet these two half-sage ancestors were already fighting over him—this was absurd.

Yet they knew: such a prodigy was beyond their reach—he would surely enter a Sacred Ground, and be taken as a direct disciple by a Sage.

Ji Yu Ji Xuanshen and others exchanged glances, faintly smiling in resignation—this guy always stirs up storms, always shocks everyone.

"Boy, come in."

Ancestor Yu spoke to the boy outside the Immortal Gate.

Outside, Li Hao waited for feedback from the Dao Heart Tower, but the small tower remained silent—he grew puzzled.

Still, he didn't care how his Dao heart was rated—low or high, it was his heart, his path.

Hearing the voice from within the Immortal Gate, Li Hao shook off his thoughts, staring at the gate just before him—he knew this single step would separate him from the mortal realm.

Li Hao turned back, gazing at the square, at Ren Ren Qianqian at the end of the Ascending Stairs, at Yu Huang soaring into the sky, and at the old Taoist flying toward him.

Their eyes met—he gave them a slight nod, a quiet farewell.

At the same time, Li Hao's spiritual sense noticed the distant figure standing midair beyond the Emperor's Palace—the Jiang family's War God, Jiang Ji Tianchao.

Li Hao held goodwill and affection for this elder, and nodded to him.

Jiang Ji Tianchao, seeing Li Hao's gentle, calm gaze, trembled inside—his previously grief-stricken heart felt gently soothed.

His eyes reddened slightly; he smiled at Li Hao and raised his thumb.

Li Hao's gaze fell upon the crowd, seeing Li Li Yuanzhao and others with faces flushed with excitement—he smiled warmly and waved to them.

"Brother Hao saw us!"

Li Li Yuanzhao grew even more excited, face beaming.

Li Li Wushuang and Li Li Zhining froze, staring at the boy's gentle expression—then suddenly laughed, though something glistened at the corners of their eyes.

Li Hao sent Ren Ren Qianqian an encouraging glance, then steadied his emotions and turned to step through the Immortal Gate.

As soon as he stepped in, Li Hao sensed something strange.

The Immortal Gate, so close, rippled like water—a sensation of traversing space and time.

Yet before he could adjust, suddenly, the numerous blurred figures behind the gate didn't sharpen—they grew distant.

At the same moment, a sudden icy killing intent surged from the void, carrying immense pressure—a vast, overwhelming Sage will!

Li Hao froze, pupils contracting sharply—he looked up, seeing only boundless chaotic void, yet a blurred figure and will suddenly descended to crush him!

This killing intent came utterly unexpectedly.

Li Hao's body hairs stood on end, his blood seemed to freeze—he felt intense danger, like facing the Saint Demon corpse in the abyss, a direct brush with death.

Was this a Sage's attack?! Li Hao was stunned, disbelieving—then fury surged.

He erupted instantly, entering Divine Power state, while the Heavenly Meridians rapidly gathered cosmic power, directly entering Ultimate Immortal Transformation.

With a boom, his body suddenly shattered.

Under that overwhelming force, he was like an egg beneath a stone hammer—no chance of survival.

Behind the Immortal Gate, Ancestor Yu and the divine goddess, waiting for Li Hao to pass through, suddenly changed expression—their gazes seemed to pierce the gate, sensing the hidden energy fluctuation within.

Both were shocked, instantly looking up at the unreachable sky—where a blurred figure flickered and vanished—a trace of Sage will had descended! A Sage had acted!

And they immediately recognized it—Void Sage!

Ancestor Yu sharply turned to the old man beside him—the man's expression remained indifferent, but his lips curled into a faint sneer. Ancestor Yu was stunned and furious—no wonder he never competed; he never intended to let this prodigy survive—he planned to assassinate him!

And to prevent interference, even the Void Sacred Ground's own Sage had personally acted! The man had become a Sage through Void Dao, mastering spatial manipulation at the pinnacle—this short span of the Immortal Gate was, in his hands, transformed into a vast battlefield.

"Void Sacred Ground, you've gone too far!"

Ancestor Yu couldn't hold back his furious roar.

"Exactly! Even if you can't win, you don't have to destroy him!"

The divine goddess's face was icy cold—she never believed her Heavenly Phoenix Sacred Ground had no chance—but now, it was utterly gone.

"My apologies. This boy offended my sect's Holy Son—he must die."

Facing their furious accusations, the old man spoke calmly.

Other factions were also shaken by this sudden turn—when they heard the three's exchange, they were stunned.

Ji Yu Ji Xuanshen, Jiang Jiang Lichen, and others waited to greet Li Hao, but after he stepped through the Immortal Gate, he vanished—as if transported elsewhere, never reappearing. They were puzzled, then heard the three ancestors' words and were stunned.

Destroyed? What happened? Ji Yu Ji Xuanshen and others stared in shock at the old man.

The old man instantly became the target of all eyes, yet his expression remained serene, as if he didn't care.

Everyone knew: anger alone could not touch an Ancestor.

"I will report this to Yuan Shi Sage. Void Sacred Ground must give an explanation!"

Ancestor Yu's eyes glinted with killing intent, suppressing his rage.

The old man's face remained cold, unresponsive—he had already known this outcome when he secretly communicated with the Sage.

The boy was indeed an unparalleled prodigy—but a dead prodigy is no longer a prodigy. And he hadn't even joined Yuan Shi Sacred Ground yet. Even if Yuan Shi demanded justice, compensation was manageable.

The Sage wouldn't ignite a full-scale Sage war over a dead prodigy—everything would eventually settle.

In the world of the strong, right and wrong don't matter—only interests do.

When interests are satisfied, even if you know the other side is wrong, you praise them.

Even if you know you've slandered a good person, you blame the good person for being foolish, for provoking someone he shouldn't have.

"You're too despicable!"

Jiang Jiang Lichen glared at the old man—he now guessed why the old man claimed the boy had offended the Holy Son.

Earlier, Li Hao had slain six Dao Law cultivators, letting one escape—clearly, that one was the one scheming for Da Yu's incense.

He never expected the enemy to stand right before him.

"Hmm?"

The old man's eyes turned cold as he glanced at Jiang Jiang Lichen.

A vast will crushed down—Jiang Jiang Lichen spat blood, face pale, his sword bones vibrating fiercely within his spine, barely resisting the half-Sage will.

Ancestor Yu instantly waved his hand, blocking the old man's aura and gaze, stepping before Jiang Jiang Lichen and others, his face icy: "Are you forcing me to fight you here?!"

The old man's expression remained cold—he withdrew his gaze. He knew now: this recruitment was over. These disciples would never join Void Sacred Ground.

But losing a batch of disciples? Merely a loss. Some of the better ones never intended to join anyway—so what did it matter?

Void Sacred Ground was vast. Recruiting a few outstanding disciples was good—but sacrificing them to eliminate a prodigy like Li Hao? Absolutely worth it.

Otherwise, once he grew strong, amassed incense, and became a Sage, he would become a true threat to Void Sacred Ground!

Moreover, even if this act brought shame, it would establish Void Sacred Ground's prestige—letting all know: don't provoke Void Sacred Ground!

"If other Sages learn of this, they'll demand an explanation from you too!" The divine goddess stared coldly at the old man—she had seen his arrogance.

"No need for you to worry about it."

The old man replied indifferently.

As they spoke, within the Immortal Gate's void, space seemed stretched—Li Hao's body shattered into countless bones and blood, scattered across the void.

Yet now, these bones and blood rapidly healed and reformed.

The shocked, furious cries from behind the Immortal Gate reached Li Hao—he suddenly understood. That old man's voice felt familiar—it was the same voice that had greeted him through the Immortal Gate half a year ago, when he slew the Void Yuan Holy Son and the man fled.

Identical! The man had remained silent all along—he must have recognized Li Hao, waiting for him to enter the gate, then using the Sage's power to strike within the gate's space.

The one stealing Jiang family incense was in Yunxia Realm—one of the three Sacred Grounds. No wonder he'd probed Jiang family incense in the mortal realm—perhaps his scheme began a thousand years ago.

But knowing this now was useless. Li Hao's consciousness returned to the void—his body had just reformed when the Sage will appeared again.

"Blood rebirth? No wonder..."

A towering, detached voice echoed—cold, aloof—then the Sage will descended once more.

Li Hao's heart surged with fury—the man hadn't even appeared, yet a mere trace of will sought to crush him.

Li Hao roared, entering Ultimate Immortal Transformation again—Heavenly Meridians frantically drew power from the surrounding void.

His golden skin was covered in white, his hair turned snow-white, his consciousness fused with the void—he once again glimpsed the vast, supreme will of the Heavenly Sovereign.

He borrowed a thread of the Heavenly Sovereign's will and suddenly slashed toward that sacred intent.

(End of Chapter)