Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

After all, Lord Lingdi had met several Great Emperors and lived for countless years, yet it couldn’t see through this turtle.

This was unimaginable.

The turtle’s origins were astonishingly grand.

Wu Taichu and the others also noticed something was off, and shock flashed in their eyes.

But Lin Hao’s mouth twitched. ’This Turtle Egg is such a pervert! As its master, this is so embarrassing.’

"Turtle Egg, get your ass over here!" Lin Hao snapped irritably.

Upon hearing that, Lord Lingdi nearly collapsed in fright. ’What kind of awful name did Lin Hao give it?!’

"Pretty kitty, I’m a divine turtle! A divine turtle! You have to remember that." Turtle Egg retreated reluctantly, not forgetting to maintain its image in front of Lord Lingdi.

Three dark lines appeared on Lin Hao’s forehead.

"Aunt Ling, it’s just a kid. Please don’t take it seriously."

"Aunt?! Are you kidding me? She’s still a virgin, you know!" Turtle Egg protested.

Lord Lingdi’s ears instantly turned beet red, and it fled as if for its life.

"Hey, don’t run! Let me tell you, I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time. Oh, and ’Lord Lingdi’ is a terrible name. Why don’t you just call yourself Ling Meng instead?"

Fast as lightning, Turtle Egg shot off in hot pursuit.

Behind them, Wu Taichu, the three elders, and even Lin Hao were all petrified.

"Martial Grand-Uncle, that turtle...?"

Lin Hao shrugged. "I don’t know its origins either. It was sealed within the Forbidden God Mountain."

"A divine being from the Forbidden God Mountain! Martial Grand-Uncle, its origins may be world-shaking!" Wu Taichu’s expression was grave.

"Who cares," Lin Hao said, still looking unconcerned.

He didn’t sense any malicious aura from Turtle Egg. Plus, he’d gained a mount out of it. What was there not to like?

"Martial Grand-Uncle, you spent ten days and ten nights climbing the Forbidden God Mountain?" Beside them, Gu Yong’s tongue was tied in knots.

At this, Lin Hao perked up.

"I paid a visit to the Suo Demon Sect and helped myself to some goodies in their secret realm. But the Suo Demon Sect had a Soul Gathering Realm Martial Artist, so I had to take the long way home over the Forbidden God Mountain."

Lin Hao spoke of it as if it were nothing, but monstrous waves crashed through the hearts of Wu Taichu and the three elders.

After Emperor Hongtian, the Heaven-Stepping Sect once had a Sect Leader of breathtaking talent whose cultivation was at the Sealed Martial Realm. He was determined to ascend the Forbidden God Mountain, but ultimately returned in defeat.

Yet Lin Hao, merely at the Blood Coagulation Realm, had crossed the Forbidden God Mountain. It was nothing short of a miracle!

"Come on, let’s go. Back to the sect. I’ll show you the things I snagged from the Suo Demon Sect." In Lin Hao’s mind, crossing the Forbidden God Mountain was just a personal challenge, far less important than those Crystal Stones.

"Yes, yes, of course." The four of them, led by Wu Taichu, were completely dazed and could only nod mechanically.

「In the Heaven-Stepping Sect’s meeting hall.」

Lin Hao dumped everything he had gotten from the Suo Demon Sect’s secret realm out of his spiritual storage ring and onto the table.

"This... This is supreme-grade Red Cloud Cold Iron!"

Wu Taichu was stammering.

"Then what are these?" Gu Yong asked, pointing to a small pile of crystal stones beside it.

Wu Taichu stared for a long moment before speaking, his voice trembling. "This looks like... Is it Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone?"

Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone was the essence found within Red Cloud Cold Iron. Wu Taichu had only ever heard of it, never having seen it with his own eyes, so he spoke with uncertainty.

After speaking, he stared expectantly at Lin Hao, hoping for clarification.

A brilliant smile spread across Lin Hao’s young face as he nodded. "That’s right. This is Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone. With this as a supplementary material, we can refine several decent Spiritual Artifacts."

Red Cloud Cold Iron was already incredibly rare, and Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone was the cream of the crop from even supreme-grade Red Cloud Cold Iron. Yet Lin Hao was only thinking of using it as a supplementary material.

Lin Hao had said something similar before he left the sect.

At this, Wu Taichu finally couldn’t hold back any longer. "Martial Grand-Uncle, if I may ask, what material do you intend to use as the primary component?"

Lin Hao didn’t answer, but took out an object. It was the Flowing Light Divine Stone.

"What’s this?" Of those present, only Wu Taichu knew a thing or two about Artifact Refining. If even he didn’t recognize it, the others stood no chance.

"The Flowing Light Divine Stone! It’s millions of times more precious than the Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone!" Lin Hao declared.

’Flowing Light Divine Stone?’

The four men all shook their heads. They had never even heard of it.

Just then, a knock came at the door of the meeting hall.

"Big Brother, are you in there?" Lian Lanxin’s voice came from outside.

"Come in," Lin Hao said. ’This girl’s timing is perfect.’

’If I’m not mistaken, she should have heard of this material.’

Lian Lanxin pushed the door open and entered.

He hadn’t seen her in over ten days, and Lian Lanxin seemed to have grown quite a bit taller.

Upon seeing Lin Hao, Lian Lanxin cried out cheerfully, then covered her mouth.

"Red Cloud Cold Iron! Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone!" She recognized the materials on the table with a single glance.

"And... this looks like the legendary Flowing Light Divine Stone!" When her eyes fell upon the Flowing Light Divine Stone, they widened in utter disbelief.

Then, she fixed her gaze on Lin Hao.

Lin Hao nodded with a smile.

"I must be dreaming! I can’t believe I’m actually seeing a Flowing Light Divine Stone!" Lian Lanxin cried out, unable to believe her eyes.

Wu Taichu and the three elders were bursting with curiosity. They had never heard of this thing before.

"Lan Xin, my dear girl, what exactly is its origin?"

Lian Lanxin took a deep breath. "According to legend, the Flowing Light Divine Stone is an essential material for refining Ultimate Dao Weapons!"

BOOM!

At these words, Wu Taichu and the three elders felt their very Divine Souls tremble.

And these Ultimate Dao Weapons... were none other than Emperor’s Soldiers!

Weapons were divided into grades. The lowest tiers were split between ordinary weapons and Divine Weapons.

Above Divine Weapons were Tier Nine Spiritual Artifacts.

But Tier Nine Spiritual Artifacts were not the pinnacle of weaponry.

The ultimate weapons were Emperor’s Soldiers!

Emperor’s Soldiers—the exclusive property of a Great Emperor!

That this Flowing Light Divine Stone was an essential material for refining Emperor’s Soldiers spoke volumes about its value.

In the presence of the Flowing Light Divine Stone, the Red Cloud Cold Iron and Red Cloud Cold Crystal Stone were instantly rendered lackluster.

"Martial Grand-Uncle, don’t tell me you have more Flowing Light Divine Stone?!" Lin Hao had said he would use the Red Cloud Cold Iron and Crystal Stone as supplementary materials. Didn’t that mean he had to have the Flowing Light Divine Stone as the primary one?

Wu Taichu, the three elders, and Lian Lanxin all stared at Lin Hao with bated breath, their composure completely gone.

"It’s not that *I* have it. Our sect does!" Lin Hao replied.

Wu Taichu was stunned. "Our sect has it?"

"That’s right. Beneath our withered secret realm, there is a whole vein of Flowing Light Divine Stone!"

"A... a vein!" Wu Taichu stammered, his legs trembling.

An entire vein of Flowing Light Divine Stone! The thought was simply mind-blowing!

’How ridiculous! To think our own sect’s withered secret realm has a vein of Flowing Light Divine Stone underneath it, and here we were, envying the Suo Demon Sect’s trashy little realm.’

"A whole vein! However, mining it is extremely difficult. It requires a cultivation at the Third Layer of the Elemental Realm, plus a Tier One Spiritual Artifact."

"We have them! We have four Tier One Spiritual Artifacts! We can start mining right away! Martial Grand-Uncle, when do we leave?!" Wu Taichu’s composure shattered once again.

A Spiritual Artifact refined with Flowing Light Divine Stone as the primary material and Red Cloud Cold Iron as a supplement would, without a doubt, be the absolute pinnacle of Spiritual Artifacts. Just the thought of it made their eyes burn with desire.

"The Flowing Light Divine Stone is incredibly hard. Four Tier One Spiritual Artifacts won’t be able to mine much before they’re destroyed."

"That’s fine, that’s fine!"

At this moment, Wu Taichu and the three elders felt no heartache whatsoever over the loss.

And these were four Spiritual Artifacts that they normally treasured beyond measure.

"Even with the Flowing Light Divine Stone and Red Cloud Cold Iron, I’ll need many more materials to refine the ideal Spiritual Artifact I have in mind. I went to check the Divine Weapon Hall, but the materials there have been pretty much ruined," Lin Hao sighed.

An embarrassed look flashed across Wu Taichu’s face. He was the one who had given the order to let them run amok in the Divine Weapon Hall.

Now, he was filled with regret.

"I-I’ll have them thrown out immediately," Wu Taichu promised Lin Hao.

"Martial Grand-Uncle, I have an idea," Gu Yong suddenly said.

"Go on."

"The Danling Sect’s annual conference is in a month. With your help this time, the new pills we release are sure to cause a sensation. Why don’t we tell Master Shan Dan and ask him to help us collect some Refining Materials?"

Lin Hao’s eyes lit up. That was indeed a good idea.

"Alright. I’ll make a trip to the Danling Sect, and then I’ll send you into the secret realm to mine some Flowing Light Divine Stone."

"No! We can’t let you risk yourself, Martial Grand-Uncle. I will go to the Danling Sect, Elder Gu will hold down the fort, and as for the other two elders... my apologies, but you’ll have to enter the secret realm to mine the Flowing Light Divine Stone," Wu Taichu arranged.

The elders all nodded. The two chosen elders looked grateful. Going to mine Flowing Light Divine Stone was an honor, how could they possibly feel inconvenienced?

"I can’t stay in the sect forever. It’s time for me to get out and about. Besides, you don’t know the Refining Materials I need as well as I do. I have to go to the Danling Sect. As for mining the Divine Stone, the two elders are more than capable," Lin Hao disagreed with Wu Taichu’s plan.

The men fell silent.

They knew that once Lin Hao made a decision, there was no changing his mind.

In the end, they just instructed Lin Hao to take Xiaojiu with him.

Afterward, the four of them actually started to fight over the job of mining the Divine Stone.

Wu Taichu spoke up, "As the Sect Leader, I should lead by example. I must be one of the ones to mine the Divine Stone."

"You just said we would go! How can you go back on your word?!" the two elders who had just been assigned protested.

Even Elder Gu jumped in, saying, "My two colleagues, in my opinion, you should focus on raising your cultivation. Just let me handle the mining of the Divine Stone."

It was the first time any of them had ever seen Flowing Light Divine Stone. To be the one to mine it was an incredible honor, and none of them wanted to give up such a wonderful task.

The four of them—one the esteemed Sect Leader, the other three venerable Sect Elders—with their high statuses, were actually arguing until they were red in the face over a miner’s job.

Lian Lanxin didn’t understand. "No matter how great the Divine Stone is, it’s just a Refining Material. You’ll just be miners in there. Why are you fighting over it? Can’t you just talk it out?"

"I’d be happy to be a miner," one of them shot back, and the four of them immediately started arguing again.

The four of them had gone mad over the position!

If word of this scene got out, it would surely stun everyone in the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

Lin Hao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. In the end, he pulled Lian Lanxin away. "Come on. Let’s go see how your Artifact Refining studies are coming along."