Follow the path of Dao from infancy - Chapter 643

Chapter 643: Chapter 116: Fame as the Sword, Extreme Realm Test (Second Update)

Seeing Emperor Yu personally coming to greet them, Jiang Ziyan and the others were astonished, then quickly thought of the person Emperor Yu mentioned earlier.

Confident in their status, they did not step forward to greet him, merely using their divine thoughts to assess the situation.

On the other side, Master Qin from Gan Tao Palace transmitted his divine thoughts, speaking to Li Hao:

“The General has arrived, the sword I forged for you is ready. When will you come to collect it?”

“I’ll come later.”

Li Hao replied.

“Very well, I’ll be waiting for the General.”

Master Qin said warmly.

Then he withdrew his divine thoughts.

Emperor Yu at that moment invited Li Hao toward the back hall of the Imperial Palace.

Ren Qianqian followed beside Li Hao, feeling somewhat reserved along the way. This was the Imperial City. Even though her father was a grandmaster, she had never come to see it, and the elderly man before them was actually the emperor of Dayu, looking so gentle.

“Your Majesty, have you found my Little White Fox yet?”

Upon reaching the back hall of the Imperial Palace, Li Hao inquired about the Little White Fox.

Previously entrusted to Emperor Yu to find, yet there was still no news.

Emperor Yu shook his head slightly at his words, “I have instructed the Monster Suppression Department to search with all their might, the minister is personally involved, but no news yet. There is too little information, and there are too many fox demons. It might take some time.”

Li Hao sighed, wondering where that little creature had gone. Could something really have happened to it and it had fallen prey to other demons?

At that thought, he frowned and said, “Then I’ll trouble Your Majesty to keep looking.”

“The fox demons are good at hiding. I’ve had the Monster Suppression Department spread the word. Maybe it will come out on its own when it knows you’re looking for it.” Emperor Yu comforted Li Hao.

Li Hao nodded and then asked, “What about the calligraphy, paintings, and chess manuals?”

Emperor Yu laughed and said, “I’ve found quite a lot for you. I can take you to appreciate them soon.”

“Great.”

Li Hao nodded, wondering what kind of peculiar attributes he might gain this time.

At this moment, several figures came to the back hall, namely Jiang Ziyan and the others.

They saw the young man talking warmly with Emperor Yu in the courtyard, and their eyes moved slightly. Before they had set out to the Immortal Gate, they had never seen anyone other than the royal offspring converse so freely with their father.

Had it not been for their recent return from the Immortal Gate with enhanced cultivation, they too would have been apprehensive and fearful before Emperor Yu’s majesty.

Emperor Yu noticed his daughter Jiang Ziyan and other royal siblings approaching, so he introduced Li Hao.

When Li Hao entered the Immortal Gate, with his qualifications, he was bound to join the Saint Mountain, and they could look out for one another in the future.

“…This is my daughter, Jiang Ziyan. Ziyan, this is the young man I told you about who saved the Dayu Divine Dynasty, a benefactor of our Jiang family.”

Emperor Yu said, though he didn’t ask Jiang Ziyan to look after him, his gaze was quite solemn.

Jiang Ziyan studied Li Hao, discovering that although she was in the Dao Law Realm, she could not read Li Hao’s aura at all. Only the faint glimpse he deliberately revealed to her showed a Tao Comprehension Realm.

*Could someone so young, trained in the Mortal World, really kill six Dao Law Realm individuals across realms?*

*Jiang Ziyan found it hard to believe, but she knew her father wouldn’t lie. He was also too shrewd to be deceived. Besides, she had visited Grandpa Qin recently and learned about that battle.*

*In the Immortal Gate, she had witnessed all kinds of absolute techniques, secret arts, and divine skills, alongside the existence of Martial Arts Extreme Realm. If combined, it was indeed possible to fight beyond one’s realm.*

*Plus, the young man in front of her was a Sage reincarnation. The skills he possessed couldn’t be lacking.*

“General, thank you for aiding our Jiang family. Ziyan will remember this kindness.”

Jiang Ziyan said softly, “In three days, the Three Great Sacred Lands of our Cloud Realm will come here to recruit disciples. The main target for this recruitment is those who have mastered the Extreme Realm, followed by top heavenly talents. Since the General has slain Dao Law Realm individuals, you must have mastered quite a few Martial Arts Extreme Realms, right?”

Li Hao had already heard about these matters from Chu Jiuyue, so he just nodded.

“If you have mastered one Extreme Realm, you can be selected by the Sacred Lands. If it’s three Extreme Realms, you could apprentice a Semi-Saint, perhaps even catch the attention of a Saint. If it’s four Extreme Realms, you could become a Saint’s disciple…”

Jiang Ziyan glanced at Li Hao and said, “If the General could apprentice a Semi-Saint, I hope you would choose our Primordial Holy Land. Even amongst the Lands of All Saints, our Primordial Holy Land is famous throughout and is the number one Sacred Land of the Cloud Realm.”

Li Hao’s eyes shifted slightly, and he asked about the situation in the Land of All Saints.

Jiang Ziyan did not hide anything from Li Hao and informed him of the basic situation.

It was then Li Hao learned that the Land of All Saints was unimaginably vast, comprising thirty-three minor worlds and a hundred and eight Sacred Lands. No wonder it was called the Land of All Saints.

Saints, rare to glimpse in the Mortal World, were as abundant as the scorching sun in the Land of All Saints, illuminating countless dynasties.

However, even in the Land of All Saints, seeing a Saint was extremely difficult. One needed to be exceptionally talented to possibly see one in person.

Occasionally, when a Saint preached, it would attract talents from all over, becoming a grand event.

After a brief conversation, Jiang Ziyan and the others left. They also needed to scout some royal Heavenly Talents to see who had the intention and qualifications to enter the Immortal Gate.

Meanwhile, Li Hao followed Emperor Yu to the Royal Treasury to select the collected calligraphy, paintings, and chess manuals.

Additionally, Li Hao took out 170 war banners he had prepared and handed them to Emperor Yu.

Only ten were left at the Heavenly Gate Pass, though even just ten were sufficient.

Li Hao explained the wonderful utility of the war banners to Emperor Yu. Emperor Yu had already learned during the battle in Liangzhou that the formations within Li Hao’s war banners were extremely lethal. Now, seeing Li Hao gifting such items, he was astonished and curious.

“Where did you learn to make these?”

Even Emperor Yu couldn’t help but feel that Li Hao was indeed a Sage reincarnation, with many unimaginable skills that were hard to explain.

“I just figured it out by trial and error.” Li Hao couldn’t explain, so he had to say it bluntly.

Emperor Yu smiled and didn’t press further; after all, it involved secrets.

He stored away the war banners, feeling a bit reflective. According to Li Hao, these 170 war banners were likely more impactful than the 10 Dao Talismans given by Jiang Ziyan.

After all, beyond their inherent striking power, when fully utilized, these war banners would amount to more than just a simple 170.

Each war banner possessed an intimidating force.

“If Dayu faces a calamity in the future, it will be adorned with your war banners…” Emperor Yu said softly.

Li Hao felt a bit helpless. That kind of talk shouldn’t be said, for what if it came true?

Emperor Yu took Li Hao to the calligraphy and chess manuals, saying, “Here they all are. Choose for yourself. I don’t understand them too well. Let me know if you need anything. I need to attend to some mundane affairs first.”

Li Hao nodded, and Emperor Yu turned to leave, leaving Li Hao, this outsider, in the Royal Treasury, seemingly unconcerned about him stealing anything.

After Emperor Yu left, Li Hao surveyed the many calligraphies and paintings, pulling up his panel to begin detecting and cataloging.

Soon, prompts for cataloging appeared on the panel:

Detected famous painting ‘Great Earth Roaring Moon Chart’. Catalog it?

“Yes.”

Quickly, a famous painting was added to the panel’s gallery.

And the famous painting of a group of towering peaks before his eyes disappeared.

Li Hao glanced at it and chose to embed the ‘Great Earth Roaring Moon Chart’ into his Physical Body Dao.

Soon, attributes on the gallery followed suit:

Great Earth Roaring Moon Chart: Attack power gains a piercing effect.

Li Hao was momentarily stunned, piercing effect?

This attribute was one he had seen for the first time, but it seemed quite powerful.

For instance, against the Dragon Clan’s robust and harsh physical body or some treasure armors, he wondered if his attacks could bypass them.

Including dao power that couldn’t be obliterated, could his attack penetrate obstacles and directly kill his enemies?

These would need real combat to discern.

Li Hao continued to catalog.

Some chess manuals and famous paintings steadily entered the panel.

Though not all calligraphies or paintings were masterpieces to the point of being cataloged, he still amassed over a dozen entries.

….

Meanwhile, in the Nineteen Provinces, heavenly talents from all sides gathered in the Imperial Capital.

The outside of the Imperial Palace in the Imperial City was bustling with excitement, eagerly awaited by the heavenly talents of various families.

“Do you think Hao will also enter the Immortal Gate this time?”

“Mother asked us to try our luck, but who knows if we’ll succeed.”

Gathering in a restaurant outside the Imperial Palace were a few figures, including Li Wushuang and Li Yuanzhao.

The selection standards had yet to be set; they only knew disciples would be recruited, and being extraordinary talents in the mortal realm, they were quite outstanding, if not to the monstrous level of Li Hao. Even without him, they were remarkable.

If they were favored by one of the Sacred Lands within the Immortal Gate, cultivating under a Saint, even listening to a Saint’s teachings once or twice would be an immensely rewarding experience.

“It’s a pity Uncle Jiu isn’t here; with his talent, he would have definitely been noticed.”

Li Yuanzhao sighed, then looked toward the Imperial Palace. He heard Li Hao would also come this time, and the thought of soon seeing him made him excited.

Li Wushuang, along with her sister Li Zhining, came too, while Li Yun, having a bit lesser talent, didn’t come.

“I’ve heard the recruitment is quite strict this time. We might not be selected.” Li Wushuang’s eyes flickered. Though she wished to train in the Immortal Gate, she didn’t have a strong obsession about it.

Besides those few, many talents from other Divine General Mansions came as well, not just the younger generation but many older ones too. Although they were older, within their relatively long lifespans, they still held hope.

Back then, when the Immortal Gate recruited a thousand years ago, it wasn’t limited to the young generation; many long-renowned experts were also chosen as disciples.

However, compared to the Li Family, the other Divine General Mansions prospered more, given the demons’ centuries-long scheming primarily targeted the Li Family to rip apart and destroy one Divine General Mansion as a breach point.

While the Imperial City was bustling, figures emerged from the depths of the Great Wilderness Heaven, rushing to the Dayu State’s Imperial City to partake in the event.

Meanwhile, Li Hao, having cataloged the calligraphies and chess manuals in the Royal Secret Vault, then headed to Gan Tao Palace.

Master Qin handed Li Hao the Daoist Palace Sword, which had already been forged.

This sword was pitch-black with a thick, dark body, devoid of the Saint Heart Essence of a sacred treasure. It appeared lifeless, yet it was sufficiently heavy and sharp.

When Li Hao held the sword, it felt as if he were gripping a mountain.

Had his physical body strength not easily reached five to six million jin after recently breaking into the Tao Comprehension Realm, he might have had difficulty wielding it.

“A sword weighing a million jin, certainly heavy enough.”

Li Hao weighed it, finding it quite handy.

“What name does the General wish to give this sword?” Master Qin asked with a smile.

Li Hao thought for a moment and said, “Since it is a Daoist Palace Sword, let its name be Gong Ming, as the palace is called Gong Ming.”

“Gong Ming.”

Master Qin pondered briefly and nodded, “Indeed, fitting its sharpness.”

Li Hao put away the Daoist Sword ‘Gong Ming’ and returned to the Imperial Palace to play two games of chess with Emperor Yu.

Under Emperor Yu’s persuasion, Li Hao agreed to head to the Immortal Gate, where Feng was waiting to reconnect with him, and there was also that Saint Heir to deal with.

“I’ll return after I’m done.” Li Hao told Emperor Yu.

Emperor Yu smiled wryly, “I hope you achieve Sagehood there.”

“I’ll try my best.”

Li Hao said.

Time flew by, and three days passed in the blink of an eye. In the sky above the Imperial Palace, as morning sunlight shone, energy fluctuations began as though boiling.

Soon after, a golden light appeared, slowly opening to reveal endless rays of light.

The resplendent Immortal Gate opened at that moment.

This overwhelming aura stirred up all the strong individuals in the Imperial City, their gazes uniformly directed above the Imperial Palace.