Holders and group rivals Western Sydney Wanderers drew 0-0 with FC Seoul to leave Guangzhou already eyeing the last 16 with three pool games to go.
Elsewhere, Australian champions Brisbane Roar had to scramble to rescue a point against Suwon Bluewings in Group G despite being two-up in the first 22 minutes.
In another thrilling match, Brandon Borrello and Devante Clut gave the hosts the two-goal cushion before the South Korean side fought back with a brace from Seo Jung-Jin.
The DPRK striker Jong Tae-Se appeared to have secured a famous win on 71 minutes, before Clut spared Brisbane's blushes with his equaliser with 10 minutes to go.
In Group F, Theerathon Bunmathan levelled on 62 minutes as Thailand's Buriram United held Japanese treble-winners Gamba Osaka 1-1 away.
In West Asia, Saudi Arabia's Al Ahli went three points clear at the top in Group D after they beat Iran's Tractorsazi 2-0.
Taisir al-Jassim was Al Ahli's hero as he struck in the 72nd and 80th minute to help his team score their second win in three matches.
UAE's Al Ahli, however, remained at the bottom of the group after a goalless draw with Uzbekistan's Nasaf.
In Group B, UAE's Al Ain secured a valuable away win, beating Uzbek giants Pakhtakor 1-0 in Tashkent to go top.
Slovakian Miroslav Stoch scored the only goal of the match in the 61st minute, but was sent off with 15 minutes remaining.
The 2003 Asian champions dominated the game despite the absence of star players Asamoah Gyan and Omar Abdulrahman, and went ahead when Stoch's long-range shot beat Pakhtakor goalkeeper Alexander Lobanov all ends up.
