Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Lin Hao had succeeded, obtaining a warrior.

But after his success, Lin Hao showed no sign of joy.

The winged ape’s reaction just now had been highly unusual, as if it recognized the Beast Pattern Skill.

This was not a good sign.

Before Lin Hao could figure out what was going on, Meng Ru’s voice interrupted his thoughts. "Brother Hao, what did you just do?"

Meng Ru was incredibly curious. She had just seen the savage winged ape flee the moment Lin Hao produced a yellow paper talisman.

And what’s more, it had been suppressed and killed before it could even escape.

Even though she came from one of the five great divine sects, she had never seen such a technique.

Lin Hao opened his hand, giving the soybean-sized object to Lu Diewu. He then took out the Demon Bear Warrior he had obtained in the Celestial Break Mountain Range and gave it to Meng Qing.

Afterward, Lin Hao didn’t hide anything. He told them the truth and explained how to use the warriors.

In truth, using a warrior created from a Devil Beast was quite simple. You just had to let it stay on your person for an hour to absorb your aura, after which you could simply throw it to deploy it.

"Heavens, it’s the Beast Pattern Skill! My master once said that the Beast Pattern Skill was lost to time. I can’t believe you actually know it, Brother Hao." After hearing Lin Hao’s explanation, Meng Ru’s mouth hung open wide enough to fit a beast egg. Her beautiful eyes widened as she spoke.

Although Lu Diewu didn’t know what the Beast Pattern Skill was, after hearing Lin Hao’s explanation, she stared at him with undisguised admiration.

A single throw of a soybean-sized object could conjure a Devil Beast warrior. It was a shocking ability.

’This brother-in-law of mine is just too powerful.’

Previously, Lu Diewu had been terrified after witnessing the bloody nature of the Ancient Road, but seeing Lin Hao’s methods put her heart at ease.

’Give my brother-in-law enough time, and he could build an invincible army of Devil Beasts! What is there to be afraid of?’

Among the three women, only Meng Qing showed no outward reaction, merely thanking Lin Hao.

However, her voice betrayed her delight.

The three women were optimistic, but Lin Hao couldn’t share their happiness as he recalled the winged ape’s behavior. Still, he didn’t let it show on his face, nor did he voice his concerns.

Afterward, the four of them continued on their way.

The atmosphere was noticeably more cheerful than before, but Lin Hao only grew more vigilant.

"Brother Hao, walk faster! Let’s go refine a few more warriors so we can sweep through this starry Ancient Road." Seeing that Lin Hao wasn’t moving very quickly, Meng Ru urged him on excitedly.

She had just learned about the miraculous Beast Pattern Skill and was dying to see it in action again. But they hadn’t had a single opportunity along the way, and with her naturally restless personality, how could she bear it?

"You think these warriors are cabbages, that you can have as many as you want?" Lin Hao couldn’t help retorting, finding her words amusing.

Hearing this, Meng Ru stuck out her tongue and was about to reply.

But Lin Hao’s expression suddenly turned serious, and he held up a hand, gesturing for silence.

The next moment, Meng Ru clamped a hand over her mouth, a look of horror on her face.

She smelled blood. Though the stench of blood had filled the air this entire journey, the smell now was overwhelming.

Something major had definitely happened up ahead.

Lin Hao shot a look at the three women, signaling them to be on alert, before proceeding cautiously.

After advancing a few hundred meters, Lin Hao heard the sounds of fighting.

He couldn’t help but quicken his pace.

"Brother Hao, there’s a huge battle with lots of people up ahead. Maybe we should wait," Meng Ru said after a while, having also heard the sounds.

Lin Hao shook his head. "No. There might be people from the Royal Brocade Saint Institute in there."

Lin Hao replied curtly and continued forward.

"Hmph, the people from the Royal Brocade Saint Institute aren’t very friendly to you. It would be better if they all died," Meng Ru grumbled, but she kept moving.

"The starry Ancient Road is no place for you. In your next life, don’t make the same choice. Remember, the one who crippled you is named Xin Li." Suddenly, a voice boomed from ahead, shaking the surroundings.

"Xin Li, my Royal Brocade Saint Institute will not let you go!" a furious roar followed.

Hearing this, Lin Hao’s eyes narrowed.

After walking a few more meters, the path ahead suddenly opened up, and the swirling mist completely dissipated.

And Lin Hao saw the scene several hundred meters away.

Several hundred meters away lay a massive canyon, and within it was a scene of utter carnage.

The bodies of humans and Devil Beasts were strewn everywhere, and fresh blood stained the canyon red.

The Devil Beast corpses, in particular, were piled up like mountains—it was no exaggeration.

In the middle of the canyon stood a giant boulder, and atop it stood a single person.

He was a youth of sixteen or seventeen, his black robes fluttering in the wind. In his hand, he held a long, blood-dripping saber. He had been looking in another direction within the canyon, but the moment Lin Hao’s group appeared, he immediately spotted them.

His gaze shot toward Lin Hao, lingered for a moment, then swept over the three women, a fervent light erupting in his eyes.

But in the next instant, he leaped down from the boulder and vanished from Lin Hao’s sight.

Lin Hao took a few more steps and saw two unexpected people.

Standing in the canyon were two young men, leaning on their swords for support, covered in blood. It was Zuo Ming and Zuo Yi.

"Senior Brother Lin Hao." Just then, a voice, faint as a gossamer thread, rang out with a hint of joy.

Lin Hao looked and saw another person, who was lifting his head from the ground near the Zuo brothers’ feet.

"You know me?" Lin Hao asked in confusion as he walked closer.

"He’s from your Royal Brocade Saint Institute!" The man didn’t speak, but Zuo Yi had already answered Lin Hao’s question.

Lin Hao was now a Holy Stele disciple, so it was indeed proper for ordinary disciples of the Saint Institute to call him Senior Brother.

Lin Hao nodded. As he got closer, he realized the man’s legs had been severed at the knees.

Glancing around, Lin Hao saw several others in the same condition, except they were all dead. Although they all had other wounds, Lin Hao could tell they had all taken their own lives.

"Who did this?!" Lin Hao demanded in a low voice, murder surging in his eyes.

This was the starry Ancient Road. To sever a Martial Artist’s legs here was to leave them for dead. The perpetrator was too cruel.

"It was Xin Li of the Celestial Star Saint Institute. The youth in black with the saber from just now," Zuo Yi answered again.

Lin Hao nodded, then knelt down to feed the disciple from the Royal Brocade Saint Institute some Divine Spring water.

But the disciple shook his head and refused. "Senior Brother Lin Hao," he began, "you must avenge our fellow disciples. Those people are not human. We were fighting a pack of ferocious beasts in this canyon and had exhausted our strength when a dozen of them suddenly rushed out, intending to suppress and kill us along with the beasts."

"They had a plan all along. They used you as bait," Lin Hao said, his eyes narrowing as a flicker of killing intent flashed and vanished.

The disciple nodded, then thanked the Zuo brothers.

The next moment, the disciple’s head lolled to one side. He stopped breathing, having severed his own heart meridians to die.

Lin Hao stood up and also thanked the Zuo brothers.

It was clear they had been trying to help.

"No need to thank me. A man must have principles. I may consider myself a villain, but even I despise such actions. The next time I see him, I, Zuo Yi, will see to it that his head hits the floor," Zuo Yi said coldly.

"You won’t get the chance." Just then, a voice rang out.

Xin Li had returned.