Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Lin Hao, of course, had no way of knowing that because of his combat record on the Starry Sky Ancient Road, the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion had broken a thousand-year-old rule.

At this moment, Lin Hao was in the process of pulling the Fire Serpent’s claw out of his body, inch by inch.

A moment ago, one of the Fire Serpent’s claws had pierced straight through Lin Hao’s body. After finishing off the creature, he hadn’t immediately tended to his own wounds. Instead, he had first dealt with the Fire Serpent’s corpse, placing it inside his storage spirit ring.

This was, after all, a descendant of an ancient vicious beast; it was no exaggeration to say its entire body was a treasure trove.

Only after dealing with the corpse did Lin Hao finally turn to his own injury.

Lin Hao’s movements were slow, but his expression remained unchanged, as if the body wasn’t his own.

The Fire Serpent’s claw had passed perilously close to Lin Hao’s heart, an incredibly dangerous wound.

As Lin Hao pulled the Fire Serpent’s claw from his body inch by inch, the wound should have been bleeding profusely. But strangely, not a single drop of blood emerged.

All that could be seen was a swirling, vaporous energy.

While pulling out the Fire Serpent’s claw, Lin Hao was also employing an emperor technique. His Chaos True Essence enveloped the wound, healing it almost as quickly as the claw was extracted.

His Chaos True Essence was incomparably powerful.

BOOM!

Suddenly, a body was sent flying backward, hurtling straight toward Lin Hao.

Lin Hao’s brows knitted, and he moved. The hand pulling out the Fire Serpent’s claw didn’t stop, and a moment later, his other arm swept out to catch the body.

PTUI!

The person coughed up blood and immediately fell unconscious.

Lin Hao’s expression became terrifyingly cold.

It was Lu Diewu, the person Lu Dieyi had asked him to protect.

And when he saw the person who had attacked her, killing intent surged in Lin Hao’s eyes.

During his duel with the Fire Serpent, someone had launched a sneak attack. Lin Hao had used a Body Technique to escape in the nick of time, and as he did, he had identified the attacker.

Now, the person who had injured Lu Diewu and the one who had ambushed him were one and the same. How could Lin Hao not be enraged?

"Stop!" Lin Hao commanded. His voice wasn’t loud, yet it carried a murderous air that not only stopped the advancing Martial Artists in their tracks but also caused the three still fighting to separate.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!

Meng Ru stumbled backward, only managing to regain her footing when Lin Hao reached out to steady her.

After her body suddenly tensed, Meng Ru also spat out a mouthful of blood.

As for Meng Qing, she had suffered the least impact thanks to her Body Technique. But even so, her face was deathly pale.

Their attacker was, of course, Yin Tianzheng.

Although Yin Tianzheng’s cultivation base had been artificially inflated with rare treasures and Spirit Pills, he was still at the Seventh Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm. Even teamed up, the three women were no match for him.

When Yin Tianzheng saw the Fire Serpent’s claw still embedded in Lin Hao’s body, a strange light flashed in his eyes.

However, when he saw what Lin Hao was doing, his expression changed.

Lin Hao was pulling the claw out with his bare hand without so much as a frown, which gave Yin Tianzheng a sense of profound unease.

It wasn’t just him; the other Martial Artists who had followed them saw this scene, and their eyes went wide.

Seeing the claw’s location, they could imagine the excruciating, heart-piercing pain it must cause. Yet Lin Hao’s expression was so composed. ’What kind of endurance is this?’

An ominous premonition arose in Yin Tianzheng’s heart, and he attacked in the next moment.

’The sooner I strike, the better.’

Meng Ru and Meng Qing saw this and were about to intervene, but Lin Hao was faster.

As Lin Hao’s figure shot forward, the hand gripping the Fire Serpent’s claw yanked it outward, sending a shower of blood into the air.

But the bleeding stopped almost immediately, and Lin Hao’s wound began to heal at a speed visible to the naked eye.

At the same time, Yin Tianzheng’s attack arrived.

Without dodging or evading, Lin Hao fiercely struck out with the Fire Serpent’s claw in his hand.

The claw collided with Yin Tianzheng’s hand, creating a deafening boom.

Lin Hao was forced back by the blow, while Yin Tianzheng merely staggered for a moment before attacking again.

Having just fought the Fire Serpent, Lin Hao had expended too much energy. His current cultivation was at less than seventy percent of its peak.

And that was only after having just used his Chaos True Essence.

Right after the battle had ended, Lin Hao’s cultivation had been at less than fifty percent, with the drain on his Divine Soul being especially severe.

But the emperor technique that created his Chaos True Essence allowed Lin Hao’s recovery speed to be far faster than others.

Although his opponent, Yin Tianzheng, didn’t know this secret, their recent clash had allowed him to probe Lin Hao’s condition.

Because of this, Yin Tianzheng was now brimming with confidence.

Yin Tianzheng attacked again, and Lin Hao once again met his blow without dodging.

A powerful sonic boom erupted in the air, far more terrifying than the last impact.

And in this exchange, Lin Hao was once again forced back.

Yin Tianzheng likewise only staggered, but the relaxed look on his face was gone.

With that last strike, he could feel that Lin Hao’s strength was even greater than the first time.

Although he didn’t know why, Yin Tianzheng already realized something was wrong.

Without the slightest hesitation, a long, slender, jet-black sword appeared in Yin Tianzheng’s hand in the next moment.

Lin Hao’s brow twitched slightly.

The longsword in Yin Tianzheng’s hand was a Tier Two Spiritual Artifact.

However, Lin Hao was not afraid.

Driven by Yin Tianzheng’s power, the Spiritual Artifact’s blade gleamed with a worldly brilliance that was utterly terrifying.

In the next instant, Yin Tianzheng became one with his sword, attacking Lin Hao.

The sword strike was incredibly fast. Although Yin Tianzheng’s body was more than ten meters above the ground, his movement carved a trench in the Celestial Meteorite-paved ground below.

One could only imagine the speed of Yin Tianzheng and the might of this sword strike.

The sword’s brilliant light raged as it charged at Lin Hao, who held the Fire Serpent’s claw vertically before him and shot backward in retreat.

The Fire Serpent’s claw began to glow; although it was struck by the sword’s light, it was not damaged.

His strike having missed, Yin Tianzheng changed his technique.

With a flick of his wrist, the longsword in Yin Tianzheng’s hand vibrated, emitting a peculiar sound.

In the next instant, Lin Hao mimicked Yin Tianzheng’s action.

The once incomparably hard Fire Serpent’s claw became as soft as dough under Lin Hao’s manipulation.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The area between the two erupted in a series of explosions—the result of the two sword lights colliding.

Yin Tianzheng’s expression changed.

A moment ago, with a flick of his wrist, the sword light that had burst from his longsword had targeted more than ten of Lin Hao’s major acupoints. Hitting even one would have been fatal.

He had never imagined that this strike, which he had been certain would succeed, would be thwarted by Lin Hao.

Just then, something even more unthinkable happened.

Lin Hao, who had been in constant retreat, suddenly rushed toward him at an unbelievable speed.

By the time Yin Tianzheng realized what was happening, Lin Hao was almost right in front of him.

Yin Tianzheng was horrified and tried to retreat explosively.

Alas, it was too late.

The Fire Serpent’s claw shot from Lin Hao’s hand.

Yin Tianzheng’s eyes flew wide—he couldn’t even see the claw’s trajectory.

In a panic, he brandished his sword in an airtight defense, trying to block Lin Hao’s attack.

He succeeded, but the power contained within the Fire Serpent’s claw was beyond imagination.