Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Having just scrambled to his feet, Tang Jun heard the voice and wasn’t about to let the opportunity slip by. He pointed at Lin Hao and said, "It was him! His name is Lin Hao, and he’s from the Cangnan Empire. He has no respect for the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion whatsoever!"

"Fifth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm... A cultivation level like that would only make him a Lower Court Disciple in my Heaven-Breaking Pavilion. And yet he’s so arrogant." The blurry face seemed to glance at Lin Hao before speaking faintly.

Just then, Lin Hao heard a voice transmission from Ling Xiao. "Senior Brother, there was something I forgot to tell you. There’s a rule against fighting in Beginning City. And I heard that the Tokens in every disciple’s hands were made through Refining by Heaven-Breaking Pavilion disciples. You can’t act rashly."

Ling Xiao knew Lin Hao’s temperament well. His senior brother feared nothing, and it was highly likely he would attack a mere disciple of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion.

After hearing Ling Xiao’s words, Lin Hao ignored the person opposite him and turned to ask Ling Xiao, "Do you know why your cultivation advances so slowly?"

Ling Xiao froze for a moment, then shook his head.

"Hesitation is the greatest taboo for a Martial Artist," Lin Hao said. In the instant that Ling Xiao was still stunned, Lin Hao suddenly struck, slamming his palm down on the blurry face.

"Insolent!" the voice roared in fury. The blurry face shifted again, transforming into a hand that met Lin Hao’s palm.

BOOM!

The clash of their palms was world-shaking.

The Celestial Meteorite below began to crack, and the rampaging gust of wind sent several people spitting up blood.

But Lin Hao’s hair just whipped wildly in the wind as he snatched the Token from the ground.

"Lin Hao, how dare you be so brazen! I am a disciple of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion!" The voice from before rang out from the Token again.

"Fifth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm only makes you a Lower Court Disciple of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion. Your true body’s cultivation is likely that of a Middle Court disciple at best. What is there to fear?" Lin Hao said, then forcefully crushed the Token in his grip.

A blood-curdling scream echoed, and then there was only silence.

Everyone in the vicinity was stunned by this scene.

This young man named Lin Hao was far too audacious. He hadn’t even entered the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, yet he dared to challenge one of its disciples.

Lin Hao paid no mind to the crowd’s reaction. He called out to Ling Xiao and started walking into the city.

As for Tang Jun, he had seen things were going south and had already fled.

"That kid Lin Hao is finished. Not only did he offend He Jundao, a genius disciple from our Celestial Star Saint Institute, the moment he entered Beginning City, but he also dared to attack a Heaven-Breaking Pavilion disciple." Someone shook their head as they watched Lin Hao’s retreating figure.

"He Jundao? You mean Tang Jun’s backer is *that* He Jundao from the Celestial Star Saint Institute, the one at the Seventh Layer of Soul Gathering Realm?!" a person next to him exclaimed in shock upon hearing this.

One had to understand that He Jundao was only eighteen years old, yet he had already reached the Seventh Layer of Soul Gathering Realm. One could only imagine how formidable he was!

A cultivation at the Seventh Layer of Soul Gathering Realm... Even on the Holy Stele of the Yujin Saint Institute, there were only two disciples who had surpassed the Seventh Layer of Soul Gathering Realm.

After the Fifth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm, breaking through was extremely difficult. And even among those at the Fifth Layer, someone at the Late Layer of the Fifth Layer was far stronger than someone in the early stage.

It was safe to say that the Fifth and Seventh Layers of the Soul Gathering Realm were not in the same league at all.

"Judging by your accent, you must be from the Moon Worship Empire. I didn’t expect you to know about our Celestial Star Empire," the first person to speak said, surprised that a disciple from another empire knew of He Jundao.

There were six great empires on the Celestial Yang Continent, with countless smaller kingdoms situated between them. Only a few truly peerless geniuses were known to people in the other empires.

"You’re really out of the loop. He Jundao is one of the Ten Great Scions of the Celestial Yang Continent. How could I not know of him?"

"Although I’m also a disciple of the Celestial Star Saint Institute, I’ve been in seclusion. Brother, could you please tell me about these Ten Great Scions...?"

While the two were discussing the so-called Ten Great Scions of the Celestial Yang Continent, Lin Hao, led by Ling Xiao, had already met up with Duan Mushuang.

"Take your Tokens. We’re leaving immediately; the Starry Sky Ancient Road is about to open." Duan Mushuang wasted no words. After handing over the Tokens, she was already on the move.

As she walked, she explained, "To ensure the fairness of the assessment, three Starry Sky Ancient Roads will open simultaneously at the edge of Beginning City. One is for those from the First to Third Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm, and another is a passage for those from the Fourth to Sixth Layer. Take care of yourselves. Don’t be reckless—your lives are more important."

The disciples all nodded.

Now that they were here, everyone wore a grave expression. After all, this assessment was incomparably dangerous.

Beginning City was vast. Its wide streets could accommodate several columns of people marching abreast without feeling the least bit crowded.

As Lin Hao was walking, he suddenly sensed something and looked in a certain direction.

He immediately spotted Tang Jun. In front of Tang Jun, a young man of about seventeen or eighteen gave him a cold glance.

It was just a seemingly ordinary glance, yet it caused Lin Hao’s Emperor Art to activate on its own, and the Tai Chi Array Map in his Dantian shook violently. This had never happened before.

Lin Hao’s eyebrow twitched. That young man’s cultivation was terrifying.

But Lin Hao was not afraid. In fact, the flames of battle raged in his eyes.

However, the young man didn’t seem to consider Lin Hao worth his attention. After that one glance, he shifted his gaze elsewhere.

Lin Hao followed his gaze and his pupils contracted. He saw a person whose every step seemed to contain a hidden Dao Rhyme!

Lin Hao tore his gaze away from that person and scanned his surroundings, feeling a slight tremor of shock.

The six great Saint Institutes were all gathered in Beginning City, with countless genius disciples among them!

One could only imagine that the Starry Sky Ancient Road ahead would be paved with bones.

"Master Duan, how long is this Starry Sky Ancient Road, and where will we regroup?" Snapping back to his senses, Lin Hao asked Duan Mushuang via voice transmission.

’I just saw several disciples with terrifying cultivation,’ Lin Hao thought. ’I estimate that right now, I’m far from being their match. This upcoming Starry Sky Ancient Road is my only chance to close the gap between us.’

Duan Mushuang didn’t break her stride, but her cold voice replied via transmission, "Hmph! Of all the disciples, you were the only one who was late! And now you expect me to give you a private lesson? How absurd."

Lin Hao was taken aback. He didn’t know how he had offended her, but Duan Mushuang had never treated him kindly.

As Lin Hao was pondering this, Duan Mushuang’s voice sounded again. "This is Beginning City. The next city is named Wangchuan. All three Starry Sky Ancient Roads will eventually converge at Wangchuan City. According to the rules, you must reach Wangchuan City within three months."

Lin Hao sent a voice transmission to thank her.

’I have three months to make use of. That’s more time than I expected.’

"Lin Hao, you need to be careful. The Starry Sky Ancient Road is fraught with countless dangers and has numerous forks. If you can’t determine the right direction, you could become lost on it forever, never reaching Wangchuan City, let alone the path that lies beyond."

To Lin Hao’s surprise, Duan Mushuang had actually spoken again to add this.

While Lin Hao was still in a daze, everyone came to a halt as the earth began to tremble.

Lin Hao looked up and saw a section of Beginning City’s wall sinking before him.

The Starry Sky Ancient Road was officially opening!