War God Long Ao

Outside the National Protection Hall of the Nebula Royal Family.

Hao Chao, the top expert in the National Protection Hall under the three Hall Masters, was a Peak of Evolution Martial Artist.

Long Ao, who had joined the National Protection Hall less than a month and a half ago, was a Peak One-Line Heaven Martial Artist.

The gap in strength between Hao Chao and Long Ao was enormous. Public opinion was almost unanimous; everyone believed that if the two fought, Hao Chao would be victorious and Long Ao would suffer a crushing defeat.

Yu Wei and the others stared with contempt at the proud youth standing in the distance. They all wished Hao Chao would simply kill him. If that wasn't possible, then seeing Long Ao thoroughly humiliated would also be a satisfying outcome.

"Brother Tang, you and I are well aware of Brother Hao's strength. Long Ao's chances of victory are virtually zero. So why did you agree to this?"

"Your Majesty, almost everyone in the National Protection Hall ostracizes Long Ao. If I hadn't agreed to this, I believe it would have been impossible for him to get anything done here. Moreover, the Thunder Battle is about to begin, and I don't want any unnecessary complications."

Ouyang Feng let out a deep sigh. He wasn't a fool; he knew the reason these members of the National Protection Hall ostracized Long Ao was nothing more than envy, jealousy, and hatred.

Hao Chao and Long Ao stood facing each other, both radiating a powerful will to fight.

"Brother Long, I greatly admire you, regardless of the outcome of this battle."

"Thank you."

Seeing the cold, stern expression on the other's face, Hao Chao said no more. Long Ao stood there quietly, clad in black with a full head of white hair. His expression was one of proud, cold indifference—a collection of seemingly incompatible traits that somehow manifested perfectly in him.

"Begin."

With a sudden dash, Hao Chao shot forward. As a Peak of Evolution Martial Artist, he had already completed all one hundred and eight cycles of Evolution and was just one step away from officially stepping into the Fusion Realm.

Hao Chao's strength was undeniable. The moment he moved, his attacks were like a thunderous storm, striking relentlessly like lightning from a clear sky.

Not daring to be the least bit careless, Long Ao met the attack. Ever since the incident with Yuyin, he seemed to have changed, growing colder and more distant. In turn, his strength had also advanced. Although he hadn't yet reached the Peak of One-Line Heaven Realm, he was almost there.

He didn't draw his Blood-Drinking Mad Saber, as he had a favorable impression of Hao Chao. To him, this was just a simple spar.

Fists flying, he unleashed the first form of the Blood-Drinking Eight Techniques—the Netherworld Nine-Link Strike—as well as the Ice-Sealed Heart Devourer. The two instantly began to fight, and in the blink of an eye, they had exchanged three rounds of blows with no clear winner.

'Long Ao lasted for three rounds?'

Watching Long Ao and Hao Chao locked in battle, everyone was stirred. What was happening before their eyes seemed to defy all their expectations of Long Ao.

In a fight between a One-Line Heaven Martial Artist and a Peak of Evolution Martial Artist, almost everyone had assumed Long Ao wouldn't last three moves against Hao Chao—he might not even last one.

But now, under everyone's stunned gazes, not only had Long Ao avoided instant defeat, but he seemed to be fighting with increasing vigor, even managing to contend with Hao Chao as an equal. 'Is this really happening?'

The Soul-Sealing Seal, the first seal of the Destruction Seal Technique.

The power of the Soul-Sealing Seal lay in its insidious nature, making it impossible to guard against. As Long Ao continued to attack Hao Chao, the Soul-Sealing Seal had already silently invaded his body and begun to erode his soul.

Greatly alarmed, the once-confident Hao Chao felt his soul being corroded by a mysterious and powerful force. He immediately circulated all the energy in his body to resist the invasion.

The Soul-Sealing Seal was his best and most powerful trump card.

In every battle, every time he fought an enemy of a higher level, the Soul-Sealing Seal would invariably catch them by surprise, helping Long Ao achieve victory.

Long Ao knew full well that at his current level of strength, without the insidious power of the Soul-Sealing Seal, defeating even an ordinary Evolutionary Martial Artist would be an incredibly difficult task, let alone a Peak of Evolution Martial Artist.

Seizing this golden opportunity, Long Ao unleashed the Netherworld Nine-Link Strike. The Fist Force stacked layer upon layer, and in an instant, nine waves of power had fully combined. The terrifying force of the punch shot forward.

At that moment, Hao Chao had no spare energy to deal with Long Ao. He was focused entirely on resisting the mysterious power within him, knowing that if his soul was corroded by this force, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The Fist Force shot out. If this punch landed, Hao Chao would undoubtedly be sent flying. Even if he survived, he would surely be crippled.

But just as Long Ao's fists were a mere centimeter from Hao Chao, he brought them to an abrupt halt. "Brother Hao," he said. "My apologies."

Long Ao withdrew his fists and stood tall. Again, the black clothes, the white hair, the proud, cold expression. He stood there alone, perfectly still.

It took a full minute for Hao Chao to completely expel the mysterious power from his body. He let out a huge sigh of relief. He knew exactly what had just happened, and even though a part of him refused to accept it, he still spoke. "Brother Long, in this battle… I have lost."

"In this battle… I have lost."

Hearing Hao Chao's words, the entire crowd was stunned. They stared dumbly at the two men, unable to believe that Hao Chao had actually lost. 'Could a One-Line Heaven Martial Artist truly defeat a Peak of Evolution Martial Artist?'

"Impossible! This is impossible! Brother Hao, how could you lose to a good-for-nothing?!"

Yu Wei hadn't even finished his sentence when he felt an icy Killing Intent wash over him, sending a violent shiver down his spine.

The white-haired man in black fixed his cold eyes on Yu Wei. Long Ao's voice was like something out of Hell as he said, "One more stupid remark, and I'll kill you without a second thought."

Long Ao's dominance completely terrified Yu Wei. He swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue. The situation was almost comical: a One-Line Heaven Martial Artist had actually intimidated an Evolutionary Martial Artist into silence.

Before this day, no one in the National Protection Hall had respected Long Ao; they had all looked down on him. But now that he had defeated Hao Chao, who would dare to cause him trouble?

Tang Lin and Ouyang Feng were the most pleased of all. For a figure like this to emerge in the National Protection Hall was a great boon for the Nebula Royal Family.

"Long Ao, I hereby announce that you are officially a Vice Hall Master of the National Protection Hall."

Tang Lin's decision caused an uproar. Everyone knew what it meant to be a Vice Hall Master of the National Protection Hall. The three leaders—Hall Master Tang Lin and the two Vice Hall Masters, Luo Cheng and Yang Yi—were all Fusion Martial Artists. If even Evolutionary Martial Artists weren't qualified to become Vice Hall Masters, how could a One-Line Heaven Martial Artist possibly be worthy?

Previously, no one would have accepted Long Ao in this role. But now?

Long Ao had defeated Hao Chao. Even if they were a million times against it in their hearts, they all knew the matter was settled and couldn't be changed. And so, the members of the National Protection Hall and all the other onlookers put on smiling faces and offered their congratulations. Long Ao couldn't care less about any of it. He cared about only one thing now: leaving immediately for the Thunder Empire to find the Thousand-Year Thunder Fruit.