Immortal Martial Emperor

It was high noon.

The scorching sun hung in the sky like a giant ball of fire, radiating a heat that made all living things wilt.

By now, Xiahuang Ba and the other powerful experts had used their immense power to blast channels into the Fallen Dragon Pool, diverting all the water away.

The Fallen Dragon Pool was now completely empty, leaving behind only a mansion covered in Restriction Arrays.

BOOM!

Brilliant blasts of Primordial Gang Power rained down.

They slammed into the Prohibitions outside the mansion, causing the entire Fallen Dragon Pool to tremble. The fish and shrimp at the bottom, now without water, were either pulverized into dust or cooked instantly by the immense energy.

The Prohibitions shook violently.

Their light dimmed.

It seemed they were not far from shattering completely.

"One more day. After one day, we should be able to break through more than half of the Prohibitions. By then, we’ll be able to see what’s inside and let those within sense the outside world!" a powerful expert reported respectfully to Xiahuang Ba.

Xiahuang Ba nodded.

His gaze was grim and eerie, like two clusters of Netherworld Ghost Fire burning brightly. "How are Feng Xue Xin and Yeban?" he asked faintly.

"The Blood Corpse Insects have already acted up today, devouring one of their meridians. But those two are tough as nails; they didn’t even make a sound. I’m afraid if this continues, we’ll get the same result tomorrow and won’t be able to provoke Hong Yu!" the expert replied with a helpless, bitter smile.

Xiahuang Ba grunted in acknowledgment, his scarlet tongue licking the corner of his lips. His expression was both playful and savage. "Have Zhang Weilong and Xiahuang Dun figure something out. Do whatever it takes to make them suffer. Even if you have to kill them, you must force Hong Yu out!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Xiahuang Ba narrowed his eyes and muttered, ’Hong Yu, oh, Hong Yu... I’d like to see if you can really stand by and do nothing while your friends are tormented!’

Amid a cacophony of noise, a tall tower had been erected.

A tightly bound Young Master Yeban and Feng Xue Xin were both dragged up and tied to two massive wooden pillars.

"Heh heh, you two really are stubborn!" Zhang Weilong’s eyes filled with a savage grin. "The Blood Corpse Insects were gnawing on your meridians, yet you didn’t even cry out. You’re tough, I’ll give you that."

Feng Xue Xin spat at him and said coldly, "You will regret what you’ve done today!"

SLAP!

Xiahuang Dun slapped Feng Xue Xin across the face.

Half of Feng Xue Xin’s face instantly turned crimson and swelled up. He spat out a mouthful of thick blood.

"Regret? Hmph, I really don’t see what you could possibly do to make us regret anything!" Xiahuang Dun said arrogantly.

Young Master Yeban spoke calmly, "You’ve tied us up here for no other reason than to force out Hong Yu. But let me give you a piece of advice: if you really wait for Hong Yu to come out, you will truly regret it!"

THUD!

Zhang Weilong slammed a fist into Young Master Yeban’s stomach.

Excruciating pain washed over his body, feeling as if his organs had been concussed. He doubled over, spewing out yellow bile.

Zhang Weilong flexed his fist and suddenly said to Xiahuang Dun, "These two are pretty stubborn!"

Xiahuang Dun nodded. "How about we have someone forge a pair of Pipa Locks and run them through their bodies?"

"Now that you mention it, I’ve got a great idea!"

Zhang Weilong’s eyes lit up, and he said excitedly, "I remember the Xiahuang Ancient Kingdom has a set of torture devices for the ’Eighteen Punishments.’ Let’s have someone forge a set overnight. Tomorrow, when we break through the Prohibition and Hong Yu can perceive the outside world, we’ll use this set to torture them. What do you think?"

"Excellent idea! Hahaha!"

The two departed with savage smiles.

With blood at the corner of his lips, Young Master Yeban looked at Feng Xue Xin. "What do we do?"

Feng Xue Xin grimaced in pain. "No matter what, we absolutely cannot make a sound tomorrow. We can’t afford to distract Hong Yu."

"Of course I know that, but these Blood Corpse Insects are just too terrifying. I could clearly feel it gnawing on my meridians just now. I’ve already lost thirty percent of my cultivation. The feeling of just waiting to die is agonizing. And..."

Young Master Yeban gave a bitter smile. "Didn’t you hear them? They’re talking about using the ’Eighteen Punishments’ on us."

Feng Xue Xin took a deep breath, his eyes filled with resolve. "Hong Yu has saved my life. Even if I die, I can’t be a burden to him."

Young Master Yeban hesitated for a moment, then let out a weak sigh. "Alright. I, Yeban, am not the type to sell out a friend. The worst that can happen is death! So be it. Eighteen years from now, I’ll come back as a hero!"

The two of them looked at each other and nodded.

Scorched by the blazing sun, the two endured another day.

「The next day, at noon.」

The scorching sun blazed across the sky, baking the earth. With their cultivation Sealed and a meridian devoured by the Blood Corpse Insects, Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban were pale and ashen-faced.

"Damn it, I’m dying for a drink of water!"

Young Master Yeban’s lips were cracked, and his mouth was so dry it felt like steam could escape from it.

Feng Xue Xin gave a bitter smile, his throat parched. "Water? I feel like I could drink an entire river."

"Hahaha, are you two feeling thirsty?"

A sharp, grating voice rang out.

Feng Xue Xin and Yeban froze. They saw Zhang Weilong fly over and hover at their eye level, his gaze filled with mockery and contempt.

The two remained silent.

Zhang Weilong grew annoyed and snorted coldly. "Don’t know what’s good for you."

As if he’d thought of something, Zhang Weilong grinned again. "I’m a kind-hearted person by nature. I know you’re thirsty, so I went to the trouble of getting you a bowl of water. Here, just beg me, and I’ll let you drink it!"

"Pah!"

The two of them spat simultaneously.

Unfortunately, with their mouths so dry, they could only manage a pathetic dribble.

"Damn it, you asked for this."

Zhang Weilong’s expression froze, then twisted into a cold sneer. He unfastened his pants and let loose a stream of dark yellow urine, spraying it all over Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban. "Drink! Go on, drink! This is my Holy Water! Drink up! Aren’t you thirsty? Hahaha..."

The foul-smelling urine sprayed across Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban’s faces, drenching them in a humiliating stench.

"Hahaha, you two pieces of trash," Zhang Weilong said coldly.

"Alright, stop playing around. It’s time to put the Pipa Locks on them!" Xiahuang Dun flew over as well.

Each of them held a Pipa Lock.

These were different from ordinary Pipa Locks; a massive iron ball was attached to the end of each.

The iron balls weighed around three to five hundred catties.

With two sickening squelches, the Pipa Locks pierced through the shoulders of Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban. The two convulsed violently. The locks had truly run straight through their shoulders, front to back, before the heavy, unyielding metal was clasped shut!

"Oh? Still not talking? Tsk tsk, what tough guys!"

"But we already figured you’d be stubborn, so we added a little something to the Pipa Locks. This iron ball won’t snap your bones, but it will make you constantly suffer the agony of flesh being torn and bones being split!"

As they finished speaking, Zhang Weilong and Xiahuang Dun each kicked an iron ball away.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The iron chains scraped against each other, creating a piercing sound.

The two iron balls hung in mid-air, pulling the Pipa Locks taut.

AARGH!

Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban couldn’t help but scream in agony.

Every time the iron balls swayed, they jerked the Pipa Locks, tearing at their flesh and bone as if trying to rip their entire shoulders off.

Blood gushed out, streaming down the iron chains.

It dyed the Black Iron chains blood-red.

"Hahaha, so you can scream after all!"

"Fuck, I really thought you were tough guys. Guess you can’t take the pain either!"

The faces of Xiahuang Dun and his companion were filled with savage delight.

Just then, a violent RUMBLE suddenly erupted.

Xiahuang Dun and Zhang Weilong exchanged a glance, seeing the excitement in each other’s eyes. ’The Prohibition is broken?’

They both whipped their heads around to look toward the depths of the Fallen Dragon Pool.

More than half of the thirty-three layers of Prohibitions surrounding the mansion had been destroyed. This twentieth layer was located right in the middle and served as an isolation barrier.

It cut off all communication between the inside and the outside.

Outsiders couldn’t see in, and those inside, unless they controlled the Prohibition, couldn’t see out or hear any external sounds.

"Hahaha, it’s finally open!"

Xiahuang Ba and Zhao Wushuang flew up at the same time.

The two of them stood hovering in the air.

Their gazes were like brilliant torches, surging with magnificent, frenzied light. Their sharp stares seemed capable of piercing through a wall of steel.

"Hm? Hong Yu is here!"

Xiahuang Ba suddenly spotted Hong Yu.

At that moment, Hong Yu was sitting cross-legged on a blood-red Lotus Platform, with terrifying streams of bloody light flowing into his body.

A layer of blood-colored energy covered Hong Yu’s entire body. His skin seemed to be completely cracked, covered in ghastly, bloody lines that were horrifying to behold. He looked as terrifying as a Ghost God.

"Is he receiving some kind of inheritance?"

"Could it be the legendary Dragon Blood Inheritance? Damn it! If that’s true, once he successfully completes the inheritance process, his power will soar again. At that point, I’m afraid even the two of us combined won’t be his match!"

Both Zhao Wushuang and Xiahuang Ba felt a grave sense of crisis.

Xiahuang Ba’s gaze turned cold. He gritted his teeth. "Have Zhang Weilong and Xiahuang Dun go all out. We’ll be responsible for amplifying the commotion here and transmitting it into the mansion to disrupt Hong Yu’s cultivation."

"Good!"

Zhao Wushuang nodded, his eyes cold. "The Dragon Blood Inheritance is incredibly dangerous. One wrong move, and his body will perish and his spirit will scatter. If we can affect Hong Yu, he might just bring about his own demise without us having to lift a finger."

"Let’s do it!"

The two of them simultaneously activated their Profound Skills. A surging power enveloped the tower, amplifying the scene a hundredfold and transmitting it into the mansion.

The time had just reached high noon.

The Blood Corpse Insects inside Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban’s bodies finally began to squirm.

With every movement, they would devour a section of their meridians.

Two bulges could even be seen slowly moving beneath their skin. It was a heart-rending, soul-crushing torture that made life worse than death.

HISS!

Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban gritted their teeth so hard their gums bled, yet they still remained silent.

Zhang Weilong and Xiahuang Dun’s eyes glinted coldly. "Still not making a sound? You’re forcing our hand!"

Then, the two of them struck viciously.

They grabbed the hands of Feng Xue Xin and Young Master Yeban and, with the twenty ten-centimeter-long steel needles they had prepared, drove them one by one straight into their fingernails.

AAAAARGH!

The pain from one’s fingers is said to connect directly to the heart. Even with their resolute minds, the two couldn’t help but let out a blood-curdling scream.

Amplified by Xiahuang Ba and Zhao Wushuang, this scream was transmitted into the mansion.

Hong Yu, who was in the middle of the trial for the Dragon Blood Inheritance, felt his ears twitch. He had suddenly heard a familiar scream. In that split second of distraction, a surging wave of Dragon Blood drilled into his body.

Hong Yu’s aura instantly fell into chaos. He opened his mouth and, with a GACK, spat out a mouthful of blood.

He had been disturbed and suffered a cultivation deviation.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The entire Grand Array was disrupted because of this, erupting with an incomparably terrifying surge of energy. Even more Dragon Blood than before began to pour in.

The previous level had already nearly caused Hong Yu’s physical body to collapse. Now, its power had increased tenfold.

Could he possibly withstand it?

[First update of the day. There will be two more around 10 o’clock, for a total of four updates today!]