Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Lin Hao’s smile was unnerving.

A sense of foreboding washed over them.

Without a word, the two sealers moved to shield Yao Yue, their gazes fixed warily on him.

Seeing their reaction, Lin Hao feigned confusion. ’Such a shame,’ he lamented inwardly.

Of course, Lin Hao had no intention of compromising or believing their nonsense. He was just trying to buy time.

Even before acquiring the Divine Illumination Scripture, Lin Hao could rapidly heal his body with a single Emperor Art. Now that he had two, his recovery speed was even faster.

The addition of his Chaos True Essence pushed his healing speed a notch higher.

A moment ago, Lin Hao had planned to catch Yao Yue off guard and capture him. He hadn’t counted on the two sealers’ Spiritual Sense being so terrifyingly sharp.

’Damn it!’ Lin Hao cursed himself internally.

The sealers had sealed their cultivation, not their Spiritual Sense. Though they were only at the Sixth Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm, they possessed the Spiritual Sense of the Spirit Transformation Realm.

Lin Hao hadn’t considered this, which was why they had seen through his intentions.

An opportunity like that, once lost, would never come again.

The sealers’ Spiritual Sense was formidable, but Yao Yue’s was not. He couldn’t sense anything unusual about Lin Hao. Seeing his guards protect him so fervently, he grew angry. "What are you doing? Am I, a prince of a kingdom, supposed to be afraid of a dying man?!"

The two sealers separated but kept their eyes locked on Lin Hao.

"When it comes to a choice between integrity and my life, the answer is obvious. I choose life," Lin Hao said to Yao Yue with a smile. "But to see experts from the Moon Worship Kingdom so afraid of a dying man... it truly is a sight to behold."

Yao Yue was furious at Lin Hao’s words. "Back! Get back!" he snapped, shooing the two sealers away as if they were flies.

The two men backed away but never took their eyes off Lin Hao. One of them said, "Your Highness, something’s not right with him. It’s best to make him hand over the Emperor Art quickly."

His words only served to enrage Yao Yue further. "Are you implying that I can’t even handle a single dying man?!"

The two sealers were struck speechless.

Lin Hao continued to fan the flames. "You’re their master; how could they dare speak the truth? If you were really that strong, they wouldn’t have had to seal their cultivation and enter this Ancient Road just to protect you..."

"Shut up!"

Before Lin Hao could finish, one of the sealers cut him off.

Having cultivated to the Spirit Transformation Realm, they found Lin Hao’s attempt to sow discord far too crude.

The roar was infused with True Essence. Lin Hao could have withstood it, but an opportunity like this was too good to pass up. Naturally, he would take full advantage.

PFFT!

As the roar echoed, Lin Hao suddenly spat out another mouthful of fresh blood.

But Lin Hao smiled and said, "You see, they’re afraid I’ll attack and kill you."

BOOM!

A great hand of True Essence materialized and slapped toward Lin Hao.

One of the sealers was making a move on Lin Hao.

Lin Hao did not move a muscle.

A flash of light shot out from the side, slashing at the True Essence hand.

The hand of True Essence abruptly retracted.

It was Yao Yue who had struck.

"Stop!" Yao Yue’s face was twisted into a terrifying mask. He turned to the two sealers. "I knew it! You look down on me! In the Moon Worship Kingdom, everyone only knows of Young Master Moon, not of me, Yao Yue! You may have sworn a Blood Oath to protect the royal family since you were children, but in your eyes, you’re no different from anyone else!"

The two sealers opened their mouths to speak, but Yao Yue silenced them. "Today," he continued, "I will show you that I, Yao Yue, am in no way inferior to him! Once I obtain this Emperor Art, I will make the entire Moon Worship Kingdom know only my name!"

As he spoke, Yao Yue took a pill from his robes.

"Lin Hao, this is a pill exclusive to the disciples of the Moon royal family. Each person is only ever given one in their lifetime. It can bring the dead back to life. Take it!" As he spoke, Yao Yue tossed the pill to Lin Hao.

In the Moon Worship Kingdom, Young Master Moon was bathed in a boundless aura of glory, while he, Yao Yue, could only stand in the shadows. He was desperate to prove himself.

He had considered resisting, but the mere sight of Young Master Moon was like being crushed beneath a mountain, leaving him breathless.

Young Master Moon exuded immense power with his every move.

But this was the Ancient Road. Young Master Moon wasn’t here. And upon hearing that Lin Hao possessed an Emperor Art, an intense desire had surged within Yao Yue’s heart.

Therefore, he would do whatever it took to obtain Lin Hao’s Emperor Art.

He had learned of Lin Hao’s strength from Evil Wind. And though Yao Yue had acted nonchalant, he had still devised a detailed plan. He could not afford to fail in acquiring the Emperor Art.

But Lin Hao had been too slow to arrive. The canyon had been filled with disciples from the Saint Institute, but Lin Hao was nowhere to be found.

So, in a fit of rage, he had ordered everyone in the canyon to be brutally slaughtered.

From the moment he’d first seen Lin Hao, he had been daydreaming about the glory that would be his after obtaining the Emperor Art. But Lin Hao’s words had just struck a nerve, causing him to lose all reason.

The pill traced a beautiful arc through the air, but then Lin Hao’s eyes narrowed.

One of the sealers snatched the pill from the air. At the same time, the other sealer struck, knocking Yao Yue unconscious.

Lin Hao knew that his plan had failed.

The two sealers had acted with too much decisiveness.

If it weren’t for what Yao Yue had just said, Lin Hao would have assumed they were after his Emperor Art for themselves. But knowing they had sworn a Blood Oath, that possibility no longer held water.

Knocking Yao Yue unconscious at a time like this meant one thing: they were utterly furious.

A vicious battle awaited Lin Hao.

Fortunately, Lin Hao had stalled long enough. His injuries were almost completely healed.

"Lin Hao, I never thought that on top of your impressive cultivation, you’d have such a clever tongue. You cannot be allowed to live!" one sealer said, carefully setting Yao Yue aside. The other stared at Lin Hao, his eyes brimming with killing intent.

After laying Yao Yue down, the sealer rejoined his companion.

It looked like they intended to attack together.

"You really flatter me," Lin Hao said, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards in unconcealed mockery.

But the two of them paid his taunt no mind. One said, "Do you know how we’ve survived this long? It’s not because our cultivation is outstanding, but because we are sufficiently cautious. We never underestimate an opponent who could pose a threat to us. Ahem... you’ve earned that much."

He paused mid-sentence. Not long ago, when they had unleashed their Blood Moon Divine Soul and saw Lin Hao meet it with his bare hands, they had, for a fleeting moment, looked down on him.

"Besides," the other man added, a flicker of amusement in his eyes, "it’s just us out here. No one will know we attacked you at the same time."

Things had come to this; Lin Hao naturally wouldn’t back down now.

Lin Hao shrugged, his voice calm. "Since it’s come to this, let’s begin."

The auras of the two sealers erupted. In the next instant, the sky plunged into darkness once more, and two blood moons appeared, hanging in the air.

Lin Hao looked up.

Lin Hao never expected they would unleash their Blood Moon Divine Soul again right from the start.