Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

"To think that channeling the *Divine Illumination Scripture* at the Seventh Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm isn’t even enough to break it." Emperor Hongtian spoke, seeming to express dissatisfaction with his own cultivation level.

However, when Lin Hao heard these words, they stirred a tempest within him.

’The Seventh Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm... Emperor Hongtian is only using the power of the Seventh Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm!’

’At the Seventh Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm, Emperor Hongtian could already cultivate the *Divine Illumination Scripture* to the point of plucking stars from the sky. If he reached the Soul Gathering Realm Peak, the Spirit Transformation Realm, or even higher, how terrifying would he be?!’

’No, that’s not right!’

With his essence, energy, and spirit in perfect harmony, Lin Hao perceived Emperor Hongtian’s current state.

’Emperor Hongtian is clearly fighting me in the state he was in before he became a Great Emperor.’

’Absolutely terrifying!’

For the first time, Lin Hao realized he still had a long, long way to go.

Before, having never met a living Great Emperor, Lin Hao had always believed that even if a Great Emperor were reborn, he himself would be invincible within the same realm.

Now, facing the spiritual imprint of a Great Emperor from before his ascension, Lin Hao saw just how laughable his own thoughts had been.

The divine might of a Great Emperor was immeasurable, their power terrifyingly boundless.

Across from him, after Emperor Hongtian spoke, an even more horrifying scene unfolded.

Stars reappeared in the firmament, incomparably brilliant.

Then, the stars began to fall again, one after another.

Horrifying. Absolutely horrifying!

Lin Hao was aghast, but he gritted his teeth and did not retreat.

He activated two great emperor techniques, and in just a moment, the sun and moon appeared together behind him!

Terrifying Chaos True Essence surged out, enveloping his Divine Soul and causing the Tai Chi Array Map to manifest in the air, expanding infinitely.

Manifesting the sun and moon in such a short time was a feat that far surpassed his past achievements, but it still wasn’t enough.

Lin Hao could feel the pressure from the heavens.

With a thought, Lin Hao summoned his Primordial Body once more.

Then, Lin Hao took a desperate risk, having his Primordial Body activate the emperor technique.

This was the path Lin Hao had to walk, so he had been experimenting constantly, but he had never succeeded.

But now, Lin Hao couldn’t afford to worry about that.

Just now, Emperor Hongtian’s words had created a crack in Lin Hao’s state of mind; only by defeating Emperor Hongtian’s spiritual imprint could he mend it.

This time, Emperor Hongtian had not shown a shred of killing intent or unleashed any of his imperial might from start to finish, yet he made Lin Hao feel an unprecedented sense of crisis.

This crisis attacked Lin Hao’s mind as subtly as a silent, nourishing rain, yet it had actually shaken his martial heart.

This was the terror of a Great Emperor.

However, this immense sense of crisis also brought Lin Hao an unprecedented opportunity.

At this moment, the blood in Lin Hao’s entire body boiled, and his Lifebound True Blood began to emit strange threads of energy, nourishing his five spiritual aspects: his mind, psyche, soul, intent, and will.

These five spiritual aspects resonated in harmony. In the next instant, not only did the Primordial Body successfully activate the emperor technique, but even his True Self Divine Soul began to channel it as well.

BOOM!

Lin Hao, his Primordial Body, and his Divine Soul simultaneously activated the emperor technique, manifesting the sun and moon. A terrifying scene unfolded.

Wangchuan City was instantly obliterated.

To be precise, it was the hidden, starry Ancient Road that shattered—an Ancient Road that only Lin Hao had triggered in three thousand years.

Lin Hao and Emperor Hongtian’s spiritual imprint appeared in the boundless void.

Within the void, a great portal stood open, showing Lin Hao the way out.

However, Lin Hao couldn’t leave.

Above them in the void, countless stars were falling, threatening to tear the Tai Chi Array Map apart.

There was no sound of impact, yet each time a star collided with the Tai Chi Array Map, a black hole would tear open in the void.

The power of their collision was terrifyingly boundless.

"Lin Hao, you are running out of time. That door will close soon." Emperor Hongtian spoke, and it was impossible to tell if he was reminding Lin Hao or trying to disrupt his concentration.

Lin Hao remained unmoved. His three suns and three moons shone with incomparable brilliance.

"Divine Illumination." At that moment, Emperor Hongtian spoke again, uttering two words.

As he spoke these two words, the firmament was instantly plunged into a brief darkness.

The darkness lasted for less than a breath before it was illuminated by the stars.

The stars were now exceptionally strange.

They only appeared in the sky above Emperor Hongtian.

Moreover, the stars in the sky grew ever brighter and larger, shrinking the gaps between them.

And with every degree the stars brightened, the surrounding darkness grew deeper.

Even the sun and moon manifested by Lin Hao were about to be swallowed by this darkness.

Although stars were no longer falling from the sky, Lin Hao felt an even greater sense of crisis.

The light of the sun and the radiance of the moon were the foundation of Lin Hao’s power. If the sun and moon were consumed by darkness, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Lin Hao pushed his emperor techniques to their absolute limit, using everything at his disposal except for the Flowing Light Divine Flame.

But it was still useless.

At this moment, the stars in the sky were about to merge into one, as if to form a giant, full moon.

And beneath the stars, Emperor Hongtian’s figure was shrouded in light as a terrifying aura began to awaken within him.

Lin Hao’s five spiritual aspects were united as one, and his Spiritual Sense had grown to a terrifyingly potent level.

This powerful Spiritual Sense told Lin Hao that it was imperial might that was reviving.

’If I wait for the stars to truly merge and the imperial might to revive, I’ll never have a chance to turn this around.’

The darkness deepened. The sun and moon manifested by Lin Hao’s main body, Primordial Body, and Divine Soul were completely suppressed by it, and a wave of despair washed over him.

But Lin Hao refused to admit defeat and finally used the Flowing Light Divine Flame.

In the past, Lin Hao had used the Flowing Light Divine Flame to temper his body and had channeled its energy to execute the *Godslaying Celestial Slash Skill*, which had shown him infinite possibilities.

Now, Lin Hao was constantly trying to use the Flowing Light Divine Flame to enhance the energy of his sunlight and moonlight.

However, Lin Hao discovered that compared to the full power of his sunlight and moonlight, the energy of the Flowing Light Divine Flame was too weak to be of any help.

Suddenly, the Flowing Light Divine Flame encountered his Lifebound True Blood.

BOOM!

Roasted by a wisp of the Flowing Light Divine Flame, the Lifebound True Blood abruptly burst into flames, then swiftly drilled into Lin Hao’s meridians, bones, and flesh.

And in that instant, Lin Hao felt an unparalleled power.

The sunlight and moonlight, which had been suppressed by the darkness, suddenly flared, threatening to break through.

Overjoyed, Lin Hao directed wisps of the Flowing Light Divine Flame toward his Lifebound True Blood.

The Divine Flame ignited the blood, and like oil meeting fire, it erupted with tremendous energy.

Now, not only did his sun and moon shine brighter, but Lin Hao even began to absorb the stellar power from the stars above Emperor Hongtian’s head.

The *Divine Illumination Scripture* was Emperor Hongtian’s Cultivation Technique. And now, Lin Hao was using Emperor Hongtian’s own technique to steal the very energy Emperor Hongtian was manifesting.

Even Emperor Hongtian was visibly moved by this sight.

It was the moment the stars were supposed to merge into one, but as Lin Hao absorbed their power, a small star split off from the unifying mass.

In the next moment, a single spark started a prairie fire.

Above, in the firmament, the unified star Emperor Hongtian had created was continuously breaking apart, giving birth to one new star after another.

One became two, two became three, and three became all of creation...

In the span of a moment, stars filled the void, and all the stellar power Emperor Hongtian had manifested was completely dismantled.

Gazing at the sky, Emperor Hongtian was lost in a daze...