Chapter 893: Sovereign Domain

“Ancestral Emperor Power? Original Demon Cave?”

Li Hao froze, having never heard of these before.

Shi Miao stood beside Li Hao and whispered: “Ancestral Emperor Power is a force that awakens with extremely low probability when the Emperor Bloodline ascends to the Immortal King realm. Only Immortal Kings can barely withstand and wield it—it is the primordial sealing power hidden within the Emperor Blood, immensely terrifying. Once awakened, Ancestral Emperor Power allows one to rival the very pinnacle of Sovereign Domains among Immortal Kings!”

“Sovereign Domain?”

Li Hao frowned—it was another term he had never heard.

Shi Miao was exceptionally patient with Li Hao, knowing he had just entered the Immortal King realm and lacked knowledge of common truths, unlike other Immortal Kings who had cultivated for eons and spent their leisure time absorbing all manner of information.

“The Sovereign Domain is the pinnacle among Immortal King domains!”

Shi Miao told Li Hao: “The superior heart domains I mentioned earlier—such as the nine-sequence variations, including your Reverse-Time Heart Domain—all belong to the superior category.”

“Superior heart domains must be unique, matching the heavens in scope!”

“Reverse-Time, Transcendent Domains—these are all superior, possessing power that reverses heaven and earth; they are already top-tier heart domains!”

“Yet beyond these top-tier heart domains lies another, even more terrifying one—rarely seen, like legend. Once formed, it becomes the sovereign way of heaven and earth, commanding and suppressing all paths, known as the True Sovereign, capable of effortlessly shattering superior heart domains. How exactly it is forged depends entirely on fate.”

Li Hao froze—he had never imagined such a terrifying heart domain existed, one that could effortlessly shatter superior heart domains. Could it also easily destroy his Formless and Reverse-Time domains?

“Are you a Sovereign Heart Domain?”

Li Hao couldn’t help but look at Shi Miao.

Shi Miao met his gaze and smiled faintly. “Naturally.”

Li Hao’s heart trembled—he once again felt Shi Miao’s extraordinary talent.

“This Sovereign Heart Domain, though exceedingly rare, truly exists. When I was my master’s disciple, I was the only one to forge a Sovereign Heart Domain—and I did so only at the final moment before the great war, transcending into the Pretender Emperor realm and breaking through the tenth layer of Time Origin, escaping that cataclysm.”

Shi Miao whispered softly.

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor said nothing, silently listening as Shi Miao explained to Li Hao. His gaze rested on the girl, ancient seas and fields passing through his eyes—this was the Time Sovereign, famed across all four realms of the True World ten thousand years ago, one of the original Seven Sovereigns!

This title—Sovereign—was their own; it denoted an Immortal King who was invincible within their realm, undefeated among peers—all those who had forged a Sovereign Domain.

Indeed, across the vast, boundless True World—including the Original True World—during that era, only seven had forged a Sovereign Domain.

Remember, in that golden age, the direct disciples of Immortal Emperors were far from scarce; yet seven Sovereigns meant that among the many disciples painstakingly nurtured by some Immortal Emperors, not a single one had emerged!

“Then what is your Sovereign Domain?”

Li Hao couldn’t help but ask, his curiosity burning—he could hardly imagine what kind of heart domain could effortlessly shatter his Reverse-Time Domain.

This was an extremely impolite question, touching on the most secret knowledge, yet Shi Miao felt no offense from Li Hao. She glanced at Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor, then whispered into Li Hao’s mind:

“Eternal Chronos. This is my heart domain. Whether Reverse-Time or Chaos, all are eternally frozen before mine. Nothing in this world can withstand eternity!”

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor watched her expression and chuckled silently—this little girl was truly unafraid to guard her secrets from him.

“Eternal Chronos…”

Li Hao murmured softly, faintly sensing a terrifying realm—he seemed to grasp, just a little, the power of a Sovereign Domain.

“I originally forged multiple top-tier heart domains related to time and space, fused them together, and only then transformed them into my own Sovereign Heart Domain!”

Shi Miao glanced at Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor—this time she did not whisper, but spoke softly: “So, if you fuse the two heart domains you forged, though you may not instantly transform them into a Sovereign Heart Domain, you will certainly grow stronger, drawing closer to it.”

“So, cultivating a Sovereign Heart Domain means forging multiple top-tier heart domains and fusing them?”

Li Hao asked.

Shi Miao nodded. “This is my path. I believe it is the only way—directly forging a Sovereign Heart Domain is impossible.”

“So, splitting my two heart domains apart might not have been a good thing?” Li Hao said.

Shi Miao shook her head. “I can sense your domain power is far stronger than a single top-tier heart domain. If fused, your heart domain would strengthen, but the gain would be far less than your current dual-domain independence. To put it plainly: fusion might grant you a half-percentage boost, but now, with them separate, your power is doubled!”

“Moreover, the path you’re walking has never been tread before. If you can make multiple heart domains coexist, you may well rival a Sovereign Heart Domain!”

Shi Miao stared intently. “The most terrifying part? Once you’ve forged this path of coexisting heart domains, you can still choose to fuse them later! I once fused five top-tier heart domains to become my Sovereign Heart Domain!”

Li Hao understood—he realized that for now, his current state maximized his combat power.

In the future, once he uncovered the path of multiple heart domains, he could choose to fuse them and forge a Sovereign Heart Domain!

And if time permitted… he could even continuously forge more top-tier heart domains, fusing them repeatedly, allowing multiple Sovereign Heart Domains to coexist!

The more Li Hao thought about it, the more terrifying it became—he could hardly imagine how powerful such a state would be.

“He’s right. Though Sovereign Heart Domains are strong, among the Seven Sovereigns ten thousand years ago, only two ultimately forged their own Emperor Paths—the rest failed, including the one beside you.”

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor said calmly.

Shi Miao glared at him, displeased he was belittling her before Li Hao, muttering: “Had it not been for the Ancient Demon War, I would have forged my own Emperor Path. This lifetime, I will surely walk it!”

Li Hao understood his master’s meaning: Sovereign Heart Domains were less important than Emperor Paths.

“I understand.”

Li Hao said.

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor nodded slightly, deeply aware of his young disciple’s intelligence: “Your journey to the Eastern Region is under the care of your fifth senior brother. Challenging the Original Demon Cave holds little meaning for you. I grant you permission to leave the mountain.”

Li Hao nodded. “What is the Original Demon Cave?”

“The Original Demon Cave is an extremely terrifying secret realm. You know the central region of the Original True World is Chaos—it was the original True World, thus closest to the world’s origin. There lies a place connecting to the world’s deepest depths: the Original Demon Cave!”

“That place is, in essence, the original Ancient Demon cavern, containing the primordial bloodseed of the Ancient Demons!”

“Primordial bloodseed?”

Li Hao’s expression changed—he hadn’t expected the Ancient Demons to have roots here too.

“Simply put, they are the original Ancient Demons. The Ancient Demons you encounter outside are descendants after countless generations—far weaker than these original Original Demons,” Shi Miao said.

Li Hao’s face darkened—Original Demons were stronger than Ancient Demons? The Ancient Demons’ extraordinary physique already crushed all other races within the same realm; only peerless prodigies could kill them, while ordinary elites could barely match them.

“Master, where do the Ancient Demons truly come from?”

Li Hao asked, sensing their mystery—and suspecting his master knew their origin.

Hearing Li Hao’s question, Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor fell silent, then slowly spoke: “You’ve now broken through to the King realm; there’s no need to conceal this from you. But knowing it won’t help you much. The Ancient Demons come from Reincarnation.”

“Reincarnation?”

Li Hao froze—he suddenly recalled what the Ancient Demon girl, Mi Xueyao, had mentioned: Reincarnation Fragments.

“It is said Reincarnation shattered, so the Ancient Demons came to the True World to seize the world belonging to the myriad races.”

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor spoke slowly: “Some Immortal Emperors once planned to unite and launch the ‘Reverse Demon’ scheme, intending to invade the Ancient Demons’ world—only to discover their world had already shattered. This meant the Ancient Demons had no retreat. We once sent an Immortal Emperor to negotiate, offering to cede part of the True World for them to dwell in. But that Immortal Emperor was treacherously ambushed, severely wounded, barely escaped, and nearly perished.”

At this, his eyes flashed with cold, icy light.

The myriad races of the True World had offered goodwill, willing to coexist with the Ancient Demons—but the Ancient Demons sought to devour them all, to rule as sovereigns, reducing the myriad races to livestock.

Li Hao paused, his expression darkening—he knew that, including his master, many Immortal Emperors had labored and attempted to prevent this, yet all failed, leading to the cataclysm ten thousand years ago.

“Even if you challenge the seven layers of the Original Demon Cave, you can pass—it requires Immortal King realm second-layer combat power. Your foundation is profound; though you’ve just broken through to King realm, you already rival Immortal King realm second-layer.”

Shi Miao told Li Hao.

Not only did he possess dual heart domains—his Heavenly Dao force, combined with his numerous Extreme and Ultimate realms, including the Ultimate Dao Art and True God Blood, all enabled him to unleash power equivalent to Immortal King realm second-layer.

“So, those two who passed the nine layers of the Original Demon Cave—can they effortlessly slay Immortal King realm first-layer peak?”

Li Hao asked, astonished.

Shi Miao nodded. "That's already barely comparable to the power of the third layer of the Immortal King realm. The Ancestral Emperor's power is terrifying."

Li Hao was speechless—he had forged dual heart domains, yet still fell short of an opponent who had awakened Ancestral Emperor Power. Was this the depth of ancestral heritage?

Even the most extraordinary self-made breakthrough couldn’t match the casual display of a true dragon-blooded heir… Li Hao smiled bitterly, but felt no desire to compete with them. Cultivation was a solitary quest—the path of enlightenment. Like studying a chessboard, the process wasn’t about defeating an opponent, but breaking through an almost unsolvable pattern—it was about self-improvement and transcendence, unrelated to others.

Forging an Emperor Path was the same: the only “enemy” was one’s own obstacles—the challenge of making multiple heart domains coexist.

“Fifth.”

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor called out. Long Qingge’s avatar appeared, stepping forward to pay homage: “Master.”

“I’m sending Hao’er to you. Take good care of him.”

Long Qingge nodded. His master had already mentioned this—he naturally didn’t want to miss the chance to bond with his young junior brother. Though they were fellow disciples, if they could become close allies, it would be a great advantage for the future Ancestral Dragon Court in the Eastern Region.

“Master, rest assured—I’d die before letting my junior brother be harmed!”

Long Qingge immediately vowed.

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor nodded slightly to Li Hao: “Then go with your fifth senior brother.”

“Yes.”

Li Hao nodded.

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor raised his hand and drew a circle in the void. From within it, six beams of divine light fell—clearly a set of Domain Artifacts!

Gazing at the set, Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor’s eyes flickered with sorrow, quickly suppressed. He pushed the artifacts toward Li Hao and said slowly:

“These were once the Domain Artifacts of a close friend’s disciple. They bear three seals. Each will unlock when you reach Immortal King realm third, sixth, and ninth layers. Until then, your current power cannot control them.”

“Twilight of the Gods.”

Shi Miao’s expression changed instantly upon seeing the set—she was stunned.

Li Hao looked—the armor bore golden tear-like marks, as if dried traces of something. Precisely: traces of blood!

“How did this set end up in your hands?”

Shi Miao looked at Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor.

Dao Yuan Immortal Emperor gazed at the artifacts, calmly: “Naturally—my friend and his disciple both fell silent.”

Shi Miao’s expression darkened, but as if recalling something, she remained silent.

Li Hao asked Shi Miao: “What is the significance of this set?”

Shi Miao nodded slightly. “This set was once the battle armor of one of the Seven Sovereigns ten thousand years ago—the God-Slaying Emperor. Before the great war, he was already a Pretender Emperor. In his youth, he stormed the Ancient God Clan, defeating all their young prodigies. On that day, the Ancient God Clan suffered a crushing blow, their prestige shattered. He wore this armor then—hence its name.”

Li Hao froze—he immediately understood this artifact carried a distant legacy.

Now, the Ancient God Clan’s Shen Wujie—he had met him before, and the man had been kind to him.

Ten thousand years ago and ten thousand years later—things change. Li Hao would never conflate them. Besides, within great clans, members are always a mix of good and evil, virtue and vice—cannot be judged as a whole.

“This is a top-tier Immortal King realm Domain Artifact—usable up to Immortal King realm tenth layer.”

The Dao Source Immortal Emperor said to Li Hao: “Aside from that, your immortal sword is no longer sufficient to unleash your full power. I shall give you another one.”

He raised his hand, and suddenly gray lightning flickered in the void; the space trembled slightly, as if something immensely terrifying was emerging.

Immediately, a jet-black ink sword appeared, its hilt wrapped in spiraling threads of blood, and at the pommel sat a vivid red eyeball—which, as Li Hao looked on, suddenly turned to gaze at him.

Their eyes met, and Li Hao instantly felt a faint tremor in his mind, as if a powerful spiritual sword cry had surged into his thoughts, like a sliver of sword light piercing his vision and slashing deep into his spiritual sea.