Chapter 702: The Celestial Seal Explodes

"Aren't you afraid of death? This area is surrounded by ancient demons—why aren't you running?!"

The woman didn't answer Li Hao's question; instead, she snapped back irritably.

Her voice was crisp, charming yet tinged with coldness, undeniably alluring.

Li Hao let her pull him along, pondering whether he should seize the chance to ambush and kill her in one strike.

But though her aura was weak, when she had previously concealed it, there had been an immensely vast celestial power—she wasn't truly a True Immortal.

Li Hao had no confidence; after brief thought, he decided against taking the risk—after all, such an unusual ancient demon was something he'd never seen before.

Once back with the Yanchu Celestial Army, he could observe what she intended—was she infiltrating as a spy? Could Yanchu Celestial Dynasty even detect it…?

Whoosh!

As Li Hao pondered, suddenly, a faint spatial fluctuation erupted ahead of their escape, slicing toward them with razor-sharp, overwhelming speed.

The subtle fluctuation hid deep within space; Li Hao noticed the woman hadn't sensed it—his expression changed. The attack was clearly aimed at them, indiscriminate—if they kept running, he'd be caught too.

"Wait."

Li Hao exerted slight force on his arm, pulling her back.

The woman frowned, about to ask—then suddenly sensed something, her face darkened, and a vertical black slit instantly bloomed in her eyes as terrifying celestial energy surged around her.

She slashed forward with a sword, severing the void—the spatial fluctuation leapt out, slicing horizontally toward the two of them.

The woman gasped in fury, biting her lip as she unleashed her ancient demon true blood; her celestial power surged over tenfold, the twisted arm from earlier healing instantly, as if snapping some celestial law bound to it.

Then, she whispered softly, raising her hand—behind her, a towering phantom figure wielding a brush appeared.

The phantom raised its brush and tapped once—the void trembled, and the spatial fluctuation vanished instantly.

As the spatial fluctuation dissipated, two massive cracks opened in the void, from which two enormous ancient demon figures emerged.

Seeing those two ancient demons, Li Hao's expression changed.

Ancient Demon Commanders—and there were two.

And the aura they radiated was far more terrifying than the one that had chased him before!

Li Hao's gaze sharpened, though internally he felt uncertain—he quietly gathered strength. What puzzled him was that these two Commanders didn't seem to be after him, but the ancient demon woman beside him.

As Li Hao's eyes flickered, one of the ancient demons suddenly spoke in ancient demon tongue, its voice low:

"Come back with us. Don't struggle. Or hand over that thing—we might not pursue you to death!"

The ancient demon woman smirked faintly, offering no direct reply, but whispered telepathically: "Don't dream. That thing isn't on me. Chasing me is a waste of time—even if I die, and that thing is lost, you'll still die!"

Both ancient demons' expressions changed, their killing intent turning even colder.

They knew she spoke the truth—this thing was of immense importance. If they retrieved it safely, it would count as a merit. If they failed, regardless of effort, they were dead.

"It seems only the Three Lifespan Art can make you speak."

The ancient demon growled.

He spoke in ancient demon tongue—muffled, like a low roar to outsiders—but Li Hao, having trained with Nangong Xue Jian on the Starry Ancient Road, understood it, and a sudden clarity struck him.

Yet the woman beside him remained silent, still pretending—likely communicating telepathically.

This mess? Li Hao wanted out.

He broke free from the ancient demon woman's grip, bowed respectfully as she stared in surprise: "Elder, I leave these two ancient demon Commanders to you. Your humble servant takes his leave!"

After speaking, he bowed, then turned and fled.

Whoosh!

But before Li Hao could teleport away, the void shuddered violently—a terrifying celestial aura surged after him, piercing toward his body.

Li Hao's face darkened; the sensation of four layers of spatial origin let him barely catch the attack's movement—but it was too fast to dodge.

Stop!

Li Hao's celestial energy erupted violently—his Ten Thousand Star Meridians instantly manifested, surrounding stars glittering, his internal energy vaporized in an instant. This extreme activation of temporal origin froze time around him for a fleeting moment.

Though only a breath, it was enough—he teleported sideways, narrowly avoiding the strike that grazed his body.

"Hm?"

Seeing his attack miss, the ancient demon Commander froze.

The ancient demon woman and the other one were also startled—though focused on each other, they couldn't ignore what happened right beside them.

A mere True Immortal Third Layer brat had dodged a furious strike from an Immortal Lord? That was unbelievable!

Li Hao internally cursed—Aren't you two fighting each other? Why target me?!

He didn't look back, accelerating his escape.

"Stop him!"

Seeing Li Hao's move, both ancient demon Commanders changed expression and immediately attacked him.

The ancient demon woman hadn't expected this weak human to draw fire from these two Immortal Lord pursuers—astonished, she suddenly understood why Li Hao had stood so calmly in ancient demon territory earlier.

With such ability, only an Immortal Lord ancient demon could truly threaten him.

And the power Li Hao had unleashed—she saw clearly—it wasn't hidden cultivation, but mastery of a Final Realm force, coupled with profound comprehension of spatial origin.

He was undoubtedly a prodigy among humans!

Her eyes flickered—she suddenly had an idea. Instead of fleeing through the opening, she suddenly struck, blocking both Commanders.

She knew they attacked Li Hao only because they feared she'd hand that thing to him, letting him escape.

Though the possibility was slim, their cautious natures hadn't missed it.

Boom!

As the ancient demon woman struck, the attacks aimed at Li Hao were instantly blocked. Both Commanders froze—they'd expected her to flee, not fight for a human.

This confirmed a suspicion.

That thing might truly be on this human!

"Kill him!"

One ancient demon Commander growled: "I'll hold her off!"

"Can you manage?"

"No excuses. If we don't get that thing, we all die. Time to fight!"

With two roars, both Commanders, enraged, charged toward the ancient demon woman and Li Hao respectively.

Though fleeing, Li Hao hadn't expected the ancient demon woman to defend him—but seeing the two enraged Commanders, he instantly guessed their thoughts, sighing inwardly: What bad luck.

He no longer held back—unleashing his ultimate power, his Heavenly Dharma Form appeared, every force pushed to its peak.

"Die!"

The ancient demon Commander soared like a great roc, leaping a million miles—suddenly catching up to Li Hao.

Li Hao's face darkened—this opponent's cultivation wasn't just Immortal Lord First Layer; possibly Fourth or Fifth Layer. The pressure surpassed the previous pursuer by more than tenfold.

A crushing shadow of death loomed—he no longer held back, unleashing his full power for the first time.

The Nine-Petal Celestial Seal burst from his forehead, radiant celestial light illuminating all around.

"Break!"

Li Hao roared, unleashing his strongest Sole Self Sword Dao.

The Azure Sky, the Sword God, and the two Imperial Sword Intentions he'd cultivated atop Emperor Sword Peak fused instantly into his Sole Self Sword Dao.

Taowu!

Li Hao mentally called—Taowu instantly soared into his hand. Sensing Li Hao's overwhelming battle intent and killing aura, Taowu's ferocity vanished—it trembled, whispering telepathically:

"Master, that's a Seventh Layer Immortal Lord ancient demon—and it's a powerful bloodline!"

Li Hao had never heard of "powerful bloodlines," but now, there was no turning back.

Slash!

Li Hao spun around—the Nine-Petal Celestial Seal soared skyward, illuminating the ancient demon Commander's eyes in this desolate place.

The Commander's pupils contracted, shock flashing in his eyes—Nine-Petal Celestial Seal? A human prodigy of the highest caliber!

Shock vanished instantly, replaced by fierce killing intent—such a prodigy must die, regardless of whether he possessed that thing.

Boom! Sword qi surged, tearing the void—the Nine-Petal Celestial Seal spun rapidly, all nine Great Dao origins converging into this single strike!

The radiance of this strike forced even an Immortal Lord First Layer to retreat.

A jet-black crescent shadow sliced through—two ultimate forces collided violently in the void.

Li Hao felt as if a mountain had slammed into him—bones ached as if shattered, his body flung backward.

Amid the shockwave, the ancient demon Commander's figure surged forward with lethal intent, closing in on Li Hao.

A bloody gash marred his jaw—inflicted by Li Hao's sword qi.

A True Immortal Third Layer, pushing to his limit, had wounded an Immortal Lord Seventh Layer! Even accounting for Taowu's aid, this was astonishing!

As Li Hao flew through the air and saw the wound on the Commander's face, a flicker of relief crossed his eyes. As the enemy drew near, death looming, he was about to call for Wang Lao—when suddenly, a jet-black light shot from his body.

Whoosh!

The black light was no larger than a thumb, unremarkable—but instantly shot to the ancient demon Commander's face, then from the deep void behind it, a colossal tower emerged.

The tower seemed pulled from the deep void by the black light, radiating ancient, desolate energy, carrying unimaginable pressure.

Boom!

The tower's shadow trembled slightly—the void fell into brief silence.

The ancient demon woman and the other Commander, locked in battle far away, felt this overwhelming aura and turned in shock.

Seeing the tower's phantom, the ancient demon woman's pupils contracted—she cried out: "Futu Emperor Heart Tower?!"

The other Commander also recognized the tower's true form, roaring in shock and fury: "That tower was destroyed! The Emperor Heart was extinguished! How could it be here?! How?!"

As they stared in awe, the tower descended like a majestic emperor, crushing the ancient demon Commander who had been attacking Li Hao.

The Commander froze in horror, trying to flee—but his body was already shrouded in the tower's shadow; his Primordial Spirit exploded violently, trembling, then locking rigid in place.

One hundred thousand years ago, that tower struck fear throughout the True Realm, known to all, and even the ancient demon clan feared it deeply—until their top-tier Emperor-level elders destroyed it.

Unexpectedly, after countless eons, the tower's phantom form reemerged from the deep void, as if pulled from time itself, once again becoming the ancient demons' nightmare!

Boom!

The ancient demon's primordial spirit was crushed by the great tower and instantly extinguished.

Its physical body turned to a lifeless corpse, unharmed yet utterly devoid of life energy.

A powerful ancient demon of the Immortal Lord realm, seventh layer, vanished without a sound, without even struggling or resisting.

Li Hao stood frozen at the sight, his eyes filled with shock.

He recognized the phantom tower—it was the Questioning Heart Tower of Futo City!

And the black light—he now saw clearly—it was the ordinary iron shard the old man Han had given him before departure.

But now, that iron shard radiated a concentrated black light, sharp enough to sever vision itself.

As the great tower suppressed the ancient demon commander, its body gradually faded and sank back into the deep void.

The black light traced an arc, flying toward Li Hao and landing once more in his hand, cold to the touch.

Li Hao froze—he had long suspected the old man Han was deeply connected to the Questioning Heart Tower, but this still exceeded his expectations.

Could it be…? Li Hao did not dwell on it; instead, he clenched the iron shard and looked up at the ancient demon woman and the other demon commander.

At that moment, the woman and the demon commander regained their senses.

Boom!

The ancient demon woman launched a surprise attack, slashing out a dark-moon-like beam that severed one of the demon commander's wings, then turned and fled toward Li Hao without hesitation.

"Run!"

The ancient demon woman spoke quickly, reaching to seize Li Hao and flee.

Li Hao dodged her hand and said, "Don't drag me into this. Go your way—we're even."

The ancient demon woman froze, urgently saying, "You can't escape now! Do you think they'll spare you? Look!"

She pointed at the demon commander.

Li Hao turned his head—and saw the demon commander was not chasing them; instead, it fled in another direction. It clearly mastered the fundamental Dao of space, no less skilled than Li Hao, and vanished in an instant.

Li Hao's face darkened as he glared at the ancient demon woman: "You betrayed me!"

Seeing the fire and killing intent in Li Hao's eyes, the ancient demon woman—had this been any other time, even her own ancient demon kin would never dare face her with such hostility—did not rage. Instead, she let out a bitter laugh.

"I've dragged you into this. Do whatever you want to make me pay—let's leave here first. If it returns to report, they'll send far more next time."

Li Hao stared at her, uncertain whether the iron shard would still work. Alone, even if he wanted to kill her, he seemed powerless to do so.

He snorted coldly: "Then let's go back—to the Immortal Army."

He did not expose her true identity as an ancient demon; he played along.

Hearing this, the ancient demon woman exhaled in relief. Her earlier aid had been motivated by many thoughts—among them, recognizing Li Hao as a human prodigy, hoping to use this connection to penetrate deep into human society.