Realm-Hopping Martial Master

Moreover, it was only when everyone stubbornly held out in resistance that the Ancient Bronze Gate finally swung completely open!

"Retreat!"

Jiang Shu made a snap decision, striking out to stabilize the surroundings of that Ancient Bronze Gate.

After that, one figure after another plunged directly into it, and in the blink of an eye, they vanished without a trace.

Two or three breaths later, the Space Storm finally shredded the lingering Power left behind by the crowd and wrapped that Ancient Bronze Gate into itself.

In the underground battlefield ruins, the figures of Jiang Shu and the others suddenly appeared. They panted continuously, lingering fear in their hearts.

"How could the Space Storm in that heaven and earth be so terrifying? We almost left our lives there."

A Daoist Venerable of the True Martial Sect swallowed hard.

The aftermath of the calamity still seemed to be right before their eyes.

Time seemed to accelerate as that terrifying aftermath was continuously worn away, bit by bit suppressed.

Immediately afterward, even the rifts torn open by their struggle against the Space Storm were gradually smoothed over and slowly repaired.

One must know, in their panic just now, they hadn’t even had time to close this Ancient Bronze Gate.

"This..."

A Daoist Venerable’s gaze wavered slightly as he looked toward the Ancient Bronze Gate. His eyes bulged; he spoke in astonishment and faint delight: "This Ancient Bronze Gate is absolutely not simple!"

Any entrance to a small heaven and earth, even that of a Daoist Master’s small heaven and earth, once it encounters a Space Storm, that storm almost never stops.

Even the entrance itself might be damaged.

Especially that Space Storm they had just faced—although they had not truly been drawn into it, its might alone revealed how terrifying that Space Storm was. Even if a Daoist Venerable were pulled in, they might still face ten deaths and one slim chance of life.

Otherwise, they would never have left so decisively.

Yet now, when that Space Storm met the Ancient Bronze Gate, it was as though a sea that had just surged into a tsunami suddenly grew calm.

The entire Ancient Bronze Gate did not show the slightest fluctuation.

This alone was enough to prove the Ancient Bronze Gate’s mystery!

Jiang Shu looked in all directions, exchanging glances with the Daoist Venerables present.

"Let me try again..."

Jiang Shu took a deep breath, fully shielding himself, then stepped into it, one step at a time.

Almost in an instant, the Power of Heaven and Earth Rejection surged over him once more; however, compared to before, it was indeed much weaker.

"Just now, that Space Storm seemed to have swept those black dark currents off to other places as well?"

"In that case, these black dark currents likely cannot affect an existence who has grasped the Space Dao."

"If this were a normal heaven and earth, as long as two Sect Leaders were present, we could be sure of safety."

"Only, this heaven and earth ultimately harbors a Repulsive Force. The Sect Leader of the Heavenly Puppet Sect and the Sect Leader of the Hidden Sword Sect both dare not strike with full Power; even if they did, they could not display battle strength on par with the Cang Mang Domain."

Turning these things over in his mind, Jiang Shu gazed ahead. In the Void, there were still some black dark currents slowly emerging.

Just as he was pondering, Jiang Shu suddenly raised his head, pupils contracting, as he felt an oppression so terrifying it reached the extreme!

At the same time, it was not only him.

Even the Sect Leader of the Hidden Sword Sect and the Sect Leader of the Heavenly Puppet Sect outside the Bronze Gate both turned their heads slightly, then finally stepped into this heaven and earth as well.

The three of them looked up toward the distant reaches of this heaven and earth. A raging wind pounced toward them, whipping their robes into a hunting flutter.

They saw, upon the far-off sky dome, within this heaven and earth that repulsed them, a colossal palace—vast to the extreme, suppressing all things—slowly force open a crack, entering this heaven and earth through that fissure.

No!

It was not entering; rather, it was forcibly inlaid into the edge of heaven and earth, brutally propping open a rift!

As that palace descended, countless black dark currents swarmed toward it, as if they had found an outlet through which to pour.

"Th-this is..."

The Sect Leader of the Heavenly Puppet Sect’s pupils shrank, a look of dread surfacing on his face.

With his level of Cultivation, he could naturally sense with ease that such a palace was an absolute top Treasure!

It even gave him a terrifying feeling, like a mortal trying to use human strength to stop a mountain.

At that moment, Jiang Shu, face cold and stern, eyes gleaming with icy light, slowly spat out four words.

"Demon Race Imperial Palace!"

Those four words were not loudly spoken, yet they were like a giant hammer, blasting directly into the hearts of the two Sect Leaders.

The Demon Race Imperial Palace!?

That was a place akin to the Demon Race Holy Land; it was even rumored that a Demon Lord Level existence had long sat in town there.

Jiang Shu’s avatar was the Golden Horn, so in its memories he had naturally seen this Imperial Palace.

His gaze pierced layer upon layer of mist, locking onto that Imperial Palace.

All of a sudden, Jiang Shu’s heart contracted fiercely. He suddenly felt a crystal-clear, undeniable sense of being watched!

A certain gaze seemed to have noticed him, piercing through heavy skies to land unerringly upon his body.

That gaze seemed able to penetrate everything, including the two Sect Master Venerables at his side.

Whether or not it held malice, it made the three of them feel a chill in their hearts.

Then, in unison, a single thought arose within them—Phoenix Clan Demon Lord!

But in the span of a breath, that gaze moved away.

A bead of cold sweat oozed on Jiang Shu’s forehead, and a strange unease gripped him.

He had once endured the glance of Daoist Masters or Saints before, yet that had only been a remnant afterimage left behind by a Saint.

But now, what was watching them was a true Demon Lord!

Forcing his emotions to settle, Jiang Shu spoke: "This heaven and earth repels us. Even a Demon Lord would absolutely not be able to strike at us here."

"The Demon Lord’s coming most likely means that something is here—a Treasure even a Demon Lord covets."

"It may even be that what has come isn’t the Demon Lord themself, but rather an external avatar."

Jiang Shu’s conjecture was not without reason. The two Sect Leaders also suppressed the horror in their hearts.

In an environment like this, the higher one’s Cultivation, the harsher the punishment from heaven and earth.

All the more so for a Demon Lord who at all times was in fusion with their own Great Dao?

"In such an absolute dead land, what are they here for!?"

Jiang Shu muttered under his breath.

...

Demon Domain.

Several days earlier.

Ao Qing had personally struck out, in the lowest levels of the Imperial Palace, mobilizing a sea-like torrent of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. Together with several Demon Venerables, he moved in unison, further reinforcing the seal laid upon the Heaven-Burning Ancestor.

At this very moment, in this vast space, a crimson sun was struggling ceaselessly, erupting with resplendent Lie Yang radiance.

Yet beneath an omnipresent suppression like that of the entire heavens and earth, that crimson sun was pinned immovably in place by countless Chains, unable to move even an inch.

"If this Heaven-Burning had not been greedy, had simply cultivated peacefully in the Imperial Palace, then even though his mind would occasionally grow muddled because of the Great Array, he could ultimately have used various methods to forcibly clear his senses."

"But in the end, he succumbed to greed, went to such a place. It appears he truly encountered something there—his mind has been in chaos until now and still has not recovered."

Ao Qing shook his head slightly.

With his Realm, comparing it to the Heaven-Burning Ancestor’s current state,

He could also guess what must have happened at that time.

"With a mind gone astray, no matter how great your Power, you are nothing more than a mad dog."

"It is only that the Imperial Palace currently believes Heaven-Burning still has some use."

"Otherwise..."

Ao Qing gave a cold snort. There was even a trace of relief in his eyes.

After all, if not for the Heaven-Burning Ancestor chasing down Jiang Shu back then.

His own end might not have been any better.

Handing the duty of maintaining the seal over to other Demon Venerables, Ao Qing prepared to continue instructing the Golden Horn.

During this period, he could clearly feel the Golden Horn’s progress.

Possessing the Ancestor Dragon Bloodline, some of his Great Techniques that had cost him a thousand years seemed innately attuned to the Golden Horn. Though the Golden Horn had yet to truly master them, it had already achieved simple entry-level proficiency.

As long as it could gradually deepen its comprehension.

Once its Realm rose another step, the Golden Horn reaching battle strength on par with his own could be said to be just around the corner.

His mind was still on the Golden Horn when Ao Qing suddenly halted mid-step. He jerked his head up, looking toward the firmament!

A streak of dazzling golden light cleaved through heaven and earth, splitting Qiankun. In the blink of an eye, it had already fallen into his line of sight.

"This is..."

Ao Qing’s pupils tightened slightly, shock rippling through his heart.

What appeared before his eyes was a single Dragon Scale!

That Dragon Scale gleamed with brilliant gold. Wherever it passed, it lifted waves of space like storm-tossed seas, then came to a halt, hanging in midair before him.