248

Chapter 248: Evening Radiance (Xi Yan)

Li Hao didn't stop, continuing his cultivation refinement.

Soon, the third supreme martial art technique, the Ancestral Dragon Divine Body, evolved from the Myriad Dragon Body, also formed its own Dao Domain.

The Dao Domain's principle was solidified compression, capable of crushing and pulverizing anything within its boundaries.

With the expansion of this third Dao Domain, the previously faint Saintly Intent was instantly completely blocked.

However, it was merely blocked, not annihilated. Saintly Intent could not be extinguished unless one shattered Dao with Dao!

Li Hao didn't rest, instead continuing to refine the remaining martial arts techniques.

Layer upon layer of Dao Domains unfolded, enveloping his body.

From within the abyss, Li Hao sat in meditation, an unimaginably terrifying aura emanating from him. A total of nine Dao Domains overlapped, completely isolating the decaying Saintly Intent, preventing it from approaching.

As for the other supreme-grade martial arts, Li Hao could only refine them to the supreme level. To cultivate them into Dao Domains would be challenging due to their inherent limitations and his lack of deeper understanding.

Unless his Flesh Dao could be elevated further, he could fully compensate for the remaining deficiencies.

However, refining dozens of supreme-grade martial arts to the supreme level was already a feat that would shock the world.

Li Hao stood up and practiced within the abyss, his flesh and blood compressing and contracting. Since there was no natural energy here, he drew upon the blood of the demon saint within the Blood Lake, absorbing it with the True Demon Soul-Nourishing Art, converting it into natural energy to temper his body.

His aura continuously surged and condensed, his flesh and blood rapidly transforming, and his physical strength rapidly increasing.

Initially, his strength was just under two million catties, but now, as Li Hao practiced, it gradually climbed to three million, four million, five million catties!

This was already five times the strength of a Godforce state!

Simply by elevating his Flesh Dao from the seventh to the eighth stage, and with the transformation of numerous martial arts, he achieved such an incredible increase.

"I wonder, if I could reach ten million catties, would I break through another limit?"

Li Hao's eyes flickered, but to achieve that, he would need at least dozens more body-tempering martial arts, and they would have to be non-overlapping with the ones he was currently cultivating. This wouldn't be easy to find.

He didn't dwell on it, continuing his practice and absorption.

The Blood Lake, which had once threatened his life, now became his nourishing source.

Only at this moment did Li Hao have the leisure to truly perceive the Blood Lake. The pure blood energy it contained wasn't as vast as he had imagined. The demon saint had died ten thousand years ago, its body severely depleted before death, its essence blood burned away, leaving only decaying flesh.

But despite this, it was still a demon saint. Li Hao absorbed it continuously for several days before completely draining the pure energy from the Blood Lake, converting it all into the refinement of his own body.

His physical strength increased again, from five million catties to about seven million, comparable to two Godforce states.

And his physical resilience had also significantly improved. Li Hao didn't know the exact extent, but he felt that even without releasing any power, if he were to step into another's Dao Domain with his physical body, he likely wouldn't be injured.

At this moment, with the layers of Dao Domains blocking his surroundings, Li Hao transferred the Candlelight Divine Couple and Little Red Whisker from the Universe Jade Belt into his own Heavenly Space. He also moved the remaining miscellaneous items. He initially intended to discard the dilapidated Universe Jade Belt, as he no longer needed it.

But on second thought, it was thanks to this item that they had survived.

Li Hao put it away again. Then, he stomped his foot, abruptly soaring into the sky. The nine Dao Domains protected him, overlapping and reinforcing each other, rendering the abyss's anti-gravity force unable to affect him.

Soon, he broke through the abyss, rising into the air, reaching the high altitudes above.

Looking up, the Sky-Imprisoning Island was the size of a silver disc, suspended in the sky. The three Abyssal Heaven Chains were all back in place. It seemed that a powerful figure from the Ji Clan had arrived to handle the situation.

However, they didn't seem to have noticed him in the depths of the Blood Lake.

But Li Hao didn't misunderstand or resent them. The Saintly Intent on the Blood Lake was chaotic, making it normal for their perception to be blocked.

He glanced at the Sky-Imprisoning Island, then withdrew his gaze, his eyes calm, devoid of love or hate.

Then, his figure flickered, the nine Dao Domains retracted, leaving only one, traversing the desolate sea, flying straight ahead, leaving this perilous land behind, as if bidding farewell to the past.

The vast desolate sea, under the accelerated speed of Li Hao's Dao Domain, was crossed in a short time.

Upon leaving the desolate sea, the surrounding natural energy rapidly converged, absorbed by his Heavenly Veins, replenishing his flesh and nourishing him continuously.

Passing by the lone peak guarding the desolate sea, the elder there was dozing off, his eyes half-closed. Suddenly hearing the wind, he looked up and saw a young man's carefree figure flying towards the distance.

"Who is that...?"

The elder was puzzled. He only saw the back, but couldn't perceive the young man's aura.

Over a distance of hundreds of thousands of miles, Li Hao landed on a hill, then quickly opened his Heavenly Space and released the Candlelight Divine Couple and Madame Yin.

They were still curled up together, their bodies in a semi-fused state, enveloped by their Dao Domains, the extreme Yang and Yin bloodline powers still swirling around them.

Li Hao carefully observed them, and soon noticed something. They had chosen to fuse in the face of death, but their power was insufficient, so they only fused halfway.

If no external force broke them apart, they might remain in this state for many, many years...

Little Red Whisker, nestled in their embrace, was also covered by their Dao Domains, benefiting from their protection and surviving.

Li Hao didn't hesitate, quickly mobilizing his Heavenly Veins, drawing in vast amounts of natural energy from all directions, then guiding it all towards them.

As a continuous stream of energy poured in, the extreme Yang and Yin bloodline powers on the bodies of the Candlelight Divine Couple gradually slowed their swirling motion, then slowly sank into their respective bodies.

Soon, their bodies began to change, as if growing and awakening.

The Candlelight Divine quickly opened his eyes, looking around in confusion. When he saw Li Hao, his eyes showed a hint of familiarity:

"Where are we?"

Li Hao didn't answer, but said, "Withdraw your Dao Domain."

The Candlelight Divine looked at Li Hao twice. Though puzzled, the subconscious imprint made him feel extremely close to the young man, and he sensed no killing intent from Li Hao. He immediately obeyed.

Li Hao beckoned, gently taking Little Red Whisker from the cover of their Dao Domains, holding him in his palm.

An extremely faint life force emanated from Red Whisker. Li Hao suddenly thought of the Dao Rhyme Blood Fruit from the Universe Jade Belt. He hadn't eaten it earlier because it wasn't of much use to him, intending to save it for Ren Qianqian.

This fruit was condensed by the Red Blood Vine Demon King himself, essentially one with it. It was the most suitable thing to replenish its blood essence.

Li Hao quickly took out the fruit, then drew in immense energy, which he tempered and controlled, making it extremely gentle, just like when Red Whisker gently held him on the Blood Lake.

This energy, combined with the Dao Rhyme Blood Fruit, transformed into blood plasma and pure energy, slowly sinking into Little Red Whisker.

Li Hao watched intently. After a moment, the faint aura on Little Red Whisker began to strengthen bit by bit.

Li Hao felt relieved.

As Little Red Whisker's aura gradually strengthened, the absorption rate also accelerated. Soon, Little Red Whisker's body grew longer, raising a small whisker, confused and bewildered:

"I... am I alive again?"

"It seems so."

"So that means, we didn't die?"

"Mm."

"Wow!"

Little Red Whisker immediately wrapped around Li Hao's arm, extending two red whiskers, like two small hands, waving excitedly:

"Not dead, not dead, we actually didn't die. Is it an illusion? How did you do it?"

"I was planning to go to the Nether River to find you."

A smile appeared on Li Hao's face: "It seems you're quite clever, you didn't completely sacrifice yourself."

"Are you angry?"

Little Red Whisker immediately shrank back, asking softly.

"You guess."

Little Red Whisker looked around, finally convinced that it wasn't a dream. They were truly alive, and they had left the terrifying abyss.

It relaxed, its two small tentacles touching each other in front of its body, like two small fingers poking:

"After all, I'm a demon. If I had truly sacrificed everything for you, even if I died, I would be laughed at by other demons."

"Besides, the little bit of my roots I left behind, even if you ate them, wouldn't have made much difference. As a demon, I can only be killed by humans, that's the only way to die with dignity!"

"You're quite concerned with face."

Li Hao couldn't help but chuckle.

"So you're not angry?" Little Red Whisker immediately asked.

Li Hao smiled, "Of course not, you don't owe me anything."

"Does our agreement still stand?" It quickly asked again.

"Of course."

Li Hao raised his hand, "Hooky."

"Yeah, right, hooky."

Little Red Whisker quickly wrapped around Li Hao's little finger, renewing their agreement.

"Wherever you want to go, I'll accompany you in the future."

Li Hao said softly, then smiled slightly, "After we leave here, I'll help you find some divine medicines and rare materials to help you recover your body."

"That's what you said. Will you charge interest?"

"Yes, one bite a day."

"Ugh, but I'm not fully recovered yet."

"Then you owe it."

"How long can I owe it?"

"Until you can repay it."

"..."

After a moment of silence, Li Hao said, "What should I call you from now on?"

"I don't know. They all call me the Red Blood Vine Demon King."

"Do you have your own name?"

"Name... isn't Red Blood Vine Demon King a name?"

"That's more of a title."

"Let me think..."

Li Hao could tell that it didn't have a name. Demons didn't seem to care about such things, only humans did.

After all, the 'ming' in 'gongming' (功名, fame and glory) is the same 'ming' as in 'mingzi' (名字, name). It signifies reputation and identity.

"I can't seem to think of one. How about you just call me whatever you want?"

Li Hao saw a patch of Moonflower on the hill and said, "Then I'll call you Xi Yan."

It's the name of a flower.

"Xi Yan?"

"Mm."

"So I'll be called Xi Yan from now on? Xi Yan, Xi Yan... I have a name?"

"Mm."

"It's nice. From now on, I'll be called Xi Yan. If anyone calls me Red Blood Vine Demon King again, I won't respond."

Li Hao smiled. Seeing Xi Yan transform back into a red ring, wrapping around his wrist, his eyes held not only a smile but also a hint of seriousness.

He looked up at the Candlelight Divine Couple, seeing that they had both awakened, but as Ji Yun Ge had said, their memories seemed to have vanished. They were now quite close to him.

"From now on, you'll follow me."

Li Hao said.

The couple quickly nodded.

Their bodies separated from the semi-fused state, transforming into the forms of a young man and woman, kneeling before Li Hao.

Li Hao raised his hand, drawing in more natural energy, tempering and controlling it before nourishing their bodies.

Their bones and flesh slowly grew, their aura strengthened, and their appearances seemed to age a year or two.

Li Hao planned to slowly help them gradually restore their original strength on the way back.

Now, he no longer cared whether they recovered their strength or not.

Temporarily storing them in his Heavenly Space, Li Hao stepped out, instantly disappearing from the location.

Ji Clan, Sacred Mountain.

A month and a half had passed since Li Hao's supposed sacrifice, but the grief lingered in the hearts of the Ji Clan members, unable to dissipate. However, not many people dared to mention it anymore.

In the Ji Clan's ancestral temple, an old, heroic spirit sat on the doorstep, gazing into the distance, tears streaming down his face every day.

His daughter was gone, and his most outstanding grandson was gone too.

He never thought that after his death, he would still shed so many tears and suffer so much heartache.

Hundreds of miles outside the ancestral temple, there were several interconnected mountain peaks, the residence of the Yun branch.

"The information we sent to investigate has been received."

Inside a palace on the mountain peaks, Ji Tianchao and the others looked dejected. In just over a month, they seemed to have aged considerably.

"His father was from the Li family of the Great Yu Dynasty. The child was the most outstanding prodigy in the Great Yu Dynasty for hundreds of years, but he fought with his father and was forced out of the family."

"Not long ago, we heard that he saved a large state, millions of people, becoming a hero of the time, admired by countless prodigies, granted titles and positions, and deeply favored by the Emperor of the Jiang Dynasty..."

"No wonder he has the surname Ji..."

"But Qingqing..."

After reading the investigation materials, they all looked grim, their hearts filled with sorrow.

It was hard to imagine how that young man had persevered to get to where he was.

"Is this fate, causing the Ji Clan's fortune to dim..."

Ji Yunyue murmured, her face filled with dejection.

Ji Yunqing's lips moved slightly, wanting to say something, but no words came out.

Just then, Ji Tianchao suddenly looked up, towards the sky.

His gloomy eyes suddenly showed a hint of surprise.

After carefully gazing, soon, a dark figure broke through the air from afar, rushing towards them.

When they saw the figure's face, Ji Tianchao was stunned, then the edges of his eyes widened to their limit, revealing an incredulous shock.

(End of Chapter)