Identity Exposed

The roar from the Myriad Transformations Dao Heart Cauldron wasn’t harsh, but it carried a shock that struck straight at the soul.

It made everyone present feel their hearts leap violently.

Then, the dao patterns on the cauldron began to light up one after another, and the lid shuddered violently, emitting a series of clattering sounds.

Beams of multicolored light burst from the lid’s gaps—red like morning clouds, blue like clear water, purple like auspicious clouds—intertwining in a beauty that dazzled the eyes and mesmerized the mind.

The crowd below stood up one after another, eyes wide.

“Such potent dan energy—this is on a whole different level from Huo Yan’s just now.”

“Look at the sky!” someone shouted.

Everyone raised their heads at once.

Above the arena, the sky, which had been clear and bright, suddenly darkened.

The spiritual energy within dozens of miles was drawn in, converging wildly toward the Myriad Transformations Dao Heart Cauldron.

“Spiritual energy backflow—this is spiritual energy backflow!!!”

Huo Yan’s face turned completely pale. As an alchemist, no one understood better than him what spiritual energy backflow meant.

It meant that even with the medicinal power of the herbs alone, Qin Hao’s pill couldn’t stabilize—it required special techniques to draw the spiritual energy of the heavens and earth into it.

“Boom!!!”

A pillar of rainbow light shot up from the cauldron, piercing the clouds.

A vortex of spiritual energy madly surged into the pill.

After a moment, a single pill slowly rose, hovering directly above the arena platform.

Qin Hao waved gently, and the pill floated into his palm.

Around the pill, a faint multicolored halo swirled—so exquisite that it seemed less like a pill and more like a piece of art.

Sensing the pressure emanating from the pill, Huo Yan couldn’t help but smile bitterly:

“Immortal-grade mid-rank. It really is immortal-grade mid-rank. I’ve lost.”

Shaking his head in anguish, Huo Yan clasped his hands toward Qin Hao and walked down from the arena, dejected.

“So it turns out, I was the one being arrogant.”

“He wasn’t a novice at all. The reason he acted so casually was that, no matter how careless his technique looked, his mastery of the dao of alchemy was enough to produce a pill better than mine.”

Dead silence fell over the whole venue.

Everyone stood dumbfounded, staring at the pill in Qin Hao’s hand.

“He really did it—an immortal-grade mid-rank pill!!!”

“Unbelievable! He’s like a god! Across the entire Ten Directions and Nine Netherworlds, is there anyone more monstrous than him?”

Qin Hao put the pill away, then continued scanning the crowd below, his gaze clearly asking: Who else dares to challenge me?

Though Qin Hao’s performance was extraordinary, there were still those unwilling to accept it who stepped onto the platform.

But as expected, they were all defeated one by one.

Using his double-pupils, Qin Hao inscribed every one of their cultivation techniques and supernatural abilities.

Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.

Qin Hao still stood on the arena. For seven days, he had defeated prodigies from all over the Ten Directions and Nine Netherworlds in every domain without suffering a single loss.

Standing at the center of the platform, Qin Hao swept his gaze over the tens of thousands of cultivators below.

No one spoke.

No one stepped forward—even their breathing seemed to become cautious.

Seven entire days. In every field, those who considered themselves the best had challenged him.

Yet in every field, Qin Hao had used overwhelming performances to make his opponents concede and leave the platform in total defeat.

He truly had done it—beaten them using the very arts they excelled in.

Seeing no one step up to fight, Qin Hao shook his head:

“Since there’s no one left, let’s end this.”

With that, Qin Hao turned and walked down from the platform.

As his figure disappeared at the edge of the arena, the assembled prodigies couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

“Ah, he’s finally gone.”

“Yes. He’s nothing short of a monster—seven whole days he fought, seven days! He defeated everyone.”

“Before him, we were like children. And now he’s only at the Mahayana stage—yet he can overwhelm us Nascent Immortal stage cultivators until we can barely breathe. Just imagine how powerful he’ll be when he reaches the Immortal stage!”

“I swear, from today on, I never want to see that guy again.”

Amid the clamor, there was astonishment, reverence, bitterness, and even relief.

But no matter the emotion, everyone reached the same understanding—this man named Ye Hao was destined to become a legend across the Ten Directions and Nine Netherworlds.

Qin Hao walked down from the arena, stretching his stiff muscles. The seven days of battle had deepened his insight into every aspect of his own abilities.

More crucially, after seven days of intense tempering, his cultivation could no longer be suppressed. He needed to find a place to break through to the Tribulation Transcendence stage.

“Ye Hao!!!”

A crisp voice came from behind.

Qin Hao turned around to see Ling Shuangshuang descending from above. Her purple robes billowed audibly in the wind.

She landed before Qin Hao, her beautiful eyes fixed on him as though trying to see through him completely.

“What’s wrong?” Qin Hao asked with a faint smile.

He knew that the abilities he’d displayed must have aroused Ling Shuangshuang’s suspicion.

Others might not have noticed, but Ling Shuangshuang, who was from the same era as Liu Ruyan, could certainly tell that the techniques he’d used belonged to the Three Realms and Nine Heavens.

Of course, this was exactly what Qin Hao had intended to reveal.

Otherwise, just using divine abilities from the Lingxiao Divine Dynasty’s Sutra Library would have been more than enough to defeat these people.

Ling Shuangshuang bit her lip, her gaze toward Qin Hao growing complicated.

“I need to talk to you. Come with me.”

Her voice lacked its usual boldness and carried a rare tone of seriousness.

Qin Hao raised an eyebrow and followed Ling Shuangshuang.

The two walked one after the other, crossing the arena and returning to her residence.

As soon as she entered, Ling Shuangshuang dismissed the servants and set up a barrier to ensure no one could overhear their conversation.

After setting the barrier, she spun around on the spot.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye—

A cold flash streaked through the air as the sword at her waist left its sheath, the tip hovering three inches from Qin Hao’s throat.

Frigid energy flowed along the blade, and frost crystals began to form on its edge, radiating a biting chill.

Qin Hao didn’t move—he didn’t even frown. He just looked calmly into Ling Shuangshuang’s eyes.

“You’re from the Three Realms and Nine Heavens, aren’t you?”

Ling Shuangshuang’s voice, though framed as a question, left no room for doubt.

She tightened her grip on the sword hilt, inching the tip forward until it nearly touched Qin Hao’s skin.

Her voice dropped low, each word crystal clear:

“Pupil arts, swordsmanship... the techniques and divine abilities you use don’t follow the methods of the Ten Directions and Nine Netherworlds at all!!!”

“Others might not notice, but you can’t fool me!!!”

Ling Shuangshuang’s eyes locked onto Qin Hao, watching for the slightest change in his expression.

Seeing no emotional reaction from him, her look grew even more complicated:

“Who are you really? How did you come to the Ten Directions and Nine Netherworlds? What was your purpose in approaching me at the Lingxiao Divine Dynasty?”

Three questions, each sharper than the last.