Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Lu Diewu was young, but she was definitely smart.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Lin Hao say that, but then her mouth opened again.

She could hear the resentment in Lin Hao’s words. She wanted to defend her older sister, but found she didn’t know where to begin.

It was precisely because Lu Dieyi was cultivating in a top-secret location within the Proud Moon Divine Sect that the Lu family had fallen under Lu Xinyuan’s control.

Neither Lu Diewu nor anyone else in the Lu family had any news of Lu Dieyi.

"Father..." Suddenly, Lu Diewu remembered something and took off running.

She stopped at the doorway, turning back to Lin Hao. "Brother-in-law, wait for me. I’ll go rescue my father and have him explain it to you."

Lin Hao’s face was expressionless.

"Young Master Lin," Eighty-Eight, who stood nearby, explained, "that Lu family girl lost contact with her family while she was at the Proud Moon Divine Sect. Lu Xinyuan seized the opportunity to make his move. He used Marquis Red Blood’s influence to take control of the Lu family and wants to marry Lu Diewu off to the young marquis."

"That has nothing to do with me. Pavilion Master, we’ll be taking our leave," Lin Hao said with a smile, already turning to go.

Eighty-Eight was stunned, his expression changing drastically. "Young Master Lin, you mustn’t! You came all the way to Celestial Jade City but won’t even stop by the Treasure Hunting Pavilion for a visit? If the Young Miss finds out, she’ll surely blame me for my poor hospitality."

"Pavilion Master, it’s not that I’m unwilling to stay, but I have urgent business to attend to. As you probably know, the Danling Sect’s grand assembly is about to be held. I am representing the sect and must be on my way. I can’t afford any delays," Lin Hao replied with a smile.

The Danling Sect’s annual grand assembly was a major event in the Southern Border Prefecture. Not only would all the prominent figures of the Southern Border Prefecture attend, but people from other prefectures would travel for it as well.

For this grand occasion, many powers would make meticulous preparations, some even lodging in the towns near the Danling Sect in advance.

Once Lin Hao put it that way, Eighty-Eight understood. He stopped insisting and offered to see Lin Hao off personally.

Lin Hao didn’t refuse. He walked up to the Turtle Egg and kicked it.

Seeing this, the corner of Eighty-Eight’s mouth twitched.

’It incapacitated a Soul Gathering Realm expert with a single glance. I’ll definitely never treat it as an ordinary turtle again,’ he thought.

But the fact that Lin Hao dared to treat it so roughly filled Eighty-Eight with immense admiration.

"Damn it, who..." The Turtle Egg woke up, ready to start cursing.

Before it could finish speaking, it was kicked by Lin Hao again.

"Hey, hey, hey! I’m injured here! Have you no compassion?" the Turtle Egg protested, not daring to get angry.

Lin Hao noticed its listless eyes and grew thoughtful.

’Incapacitating Marquis Red Blood with a single glance must have cost the Turtle Egg a great deal.’

"Let’s go. Get off this guy," Lin Hao said, glancing at Wei Feng, who was pinned underneath the Turtle Egg and barely breathing.

The Turtle Egg climbed off and began to crawl forward, still dragging Wei Feng along with it.

It moved at a leisurely pace, yet Wei Feng was unable to get up.

Lin Hao and Meng Qing followed behind it.

Eighty-Eight escorted them a long way, watching until their figures disappeared in the distance before he finally snapped out of his daze.

"Brother, where is Lin Hao?" Two figures had suddenly appeared beside Eighty-Eight.

One was a stunningly beautiful young woman, the other a middle-aged man with an urgent expression.

"Brother Lu, you’re too late. He has already left," Eighty-Eight replied.

The middle-aged man, addressed as Brother Lu, was about to give chase when Eighty-Eight stopped him. "It would be unwise to chase after him now. Brother Lu, it’s best to make a long-term plan."

Brother Lu paused, then cupped his fists. "I hope you will elaborate, my brother."

"He went to the Danling Sect." After saying this, Eighty-Eight walked away.

"Thank you," the middle-aged man, Lu, said with great joy.

"Father, should we..."

"The Danling Sect’s grand assembly is still a few days away. Once I’ve settled our family’s affairs, we will go to the Danling Sect!" the man said, gritting his teeth in determination.

At the gates of Celestial Jade City, several guards were gathered together, talking and laughing.

"So, what do you guys think happened to that fellow who was just raising hell in Celestial Jade City?" one of the guards suddenly asked.

Another guard immediately answered, "He offended both the Wei family and the Lu family. What else could happen? He’s bound to die a horrible death."

"And don’t forget, Marquis Red Blood went to the Lu family too. That guy’s so arrogant, if he offended the Marquis... now *that* would be a show."

"Speaking of Marquis Red Blood, I hear he’s a real libertine with a taste for beautiful women. Even though that woman with the guy had her face covered, you could tell she’s a total knockout. If the Marquis saw her, he’d never let her get away."

"I wonder if he’d have the guts to challenge Marquis Red Blood over that woman..."

"Heh, forget him. Even the Mansion Master has to bow and scrape when he sees Marquis Red Blood. He’d have to act like a little—"

Before the guard could finish his sentence, his gaze suddenly fixed on something in the distance, his eyes going wide.

The other guards followed his gaze, and the smiles on their faces instantly froze.

Then, they quickly snapped back to their positions, their expressions stern.

As for the captain of the guards, he had already quietly turned his back, his face ashen.

The person they saw was, of course, Lin Hao.

They were stunned to see him walking out completely unharmed, with Wei Feng still looking like a half-dead dog.

As Lin Hao walked past, the guards were so terrified they didn’t dare to breathe.

Only when Lin Hao was far in the distance did they all let out a collective sigh of relief.

It was only then that they realized their backs were soaked with cold sweat.

Lin Hao, of course, was unaware of this scene. He led Meng Qing straight ahead, eventually stopping in front of a freshly dug grave.

"Grandpa..." Meng Qing collapsed, sobbing her heart out.

After a long, long time, Meng Qing’s wails subsided into sobs.

"Grandpa, you said you’d help me find my little sister."

"Grandpa, our family still hasn’t been reunited. How could you leave me all alone?"

"Grandpa, now that you’re gone, you’ve left me all by myself. What am I going to do?"

...

Her plaintive voice grew softer and softer.

Finally, Lin Hao heard one last sentence. "Grandpa, rest assured. I will find Xiaoru and bring her here to see you."

And then, there was only silence.

Lin Hao looked over and saw that Meng Qing had passed out.

Lin Hao felt a tightness in his chest. He bent down, lifted Meng Qing into his arms, and infused her with his True Essence.

"Sister Meng Qing, don’t worry. You still have me."

Lin Hao deeply empathized with what Meng Qing was going through.

Three years ago, his own bloodline had been forcibly stolen from him at the Blood-Swapping Pool. His cries to heaven and earth went unanswered, and he had no family to turn to. He had been utterly alone and helpless.

Meng Qing’s situation now was so similar to his own back then.

Carefully placing Meng Qing on the Turtle Egg’s back, Lin Hao hauled Wei Feng to his feet.

Wei Feng’s chest was a mangled ruin of flesh and blood, but he was not yet dead.

Just as Lin Hao was about to act, a weak and hoarse voice spoke up. "Young Master, let me do it."

Lin Hao looked and saw that Meng Qing had awakened.

Lin Hao nodded and stepped aside.

Meng Qing struck, her palm connecting with Wei Feng’s skull.

As someone with a Heavenly Charm Physique, even though Meng Qing couldn’t awaken her bloodline, she still possessed the strength of the Third Layer of the Blood Coagulation Realm. Filled with hatred, her palm strike instantly ended Wei Feng’s life.

"Grandpa, I’ve avenged you." With tears streaming down her face, Meng Qing knelt before the grave and kowtowed three times.

Then, she turned and began to kowtow to Lin Hao.

"Sister Meng Qing, what are you doing?" Lin Hao bent down to help her up.

But Meng Qing shook her head. "Young Master, we were complete strangers, yet for my grandfather’s sake, you dared to move against the Wei family. For my sake, you killed Marquis Red Blood. For the rest of my life, I can only be your servant to repay this immense debt of gratitude."

"Sister Meng Qing, I never expected you to repay me. I only did what I should have. Please don’t be like this," Lin Hao said, flustered.

Meng Qing was already stunningly beautiful, but now, with her veil removed and tears in her eyes, her appearance was enough to stir pity in any heart.

Having her kneel before him like this made Lin Hao feel extremely awkward.

"No! If you don’t agree, I’ll follow my grandfather right now!" Meng Qing shook her head, her expression one of grim resolve.

Although she was a woman, she believed that all debts, whether of gratitude or vengeance, must be repaid. How could her heart be at ease if Lin Hao didn’t agree?

Lin Hao was dumbfounded.

A beautiful woman wanted to become his servant to repay his kindness, and was now threatening suicide if he refused.

"Thank you, Young Master," Meng Qing said while Lin Hao was still in a daze.

"What are you thanking me for?" Lin Hao asked, confused.

Meng Qing said, "Your silence means you’ve agreed."

Lin Hao: "..."

In the end, Lin Hao was unable to persuade Meng Qing.

Once a woman sets her mind on something, she becomes unreasonable.

And when they become unreasonable, not even ghosts or gods can handle them.

"Sister Meng Qing, wait here for me. I’ll be right back." Lin Hao had planned to carve an epitaph for Mr. Yu, but looking at the shabby, lonely grave, he decided he had to do something more.

Before Meng Qing could answer, Lin Hao’s figure had already vanished.

With the Turtle Egg present, Lin Hao felt at ease leaving.

Before long, Lin Hao reappeared.

Meng Qing’s spirits lifted at the sight of him.

"I went to the Treasure Hunting Pavilion and asked the Pavilion Master to arrange a proper burial for the old master," Lin Hao said with a smile.

Meng Qing couldn’t hold back her tears, and they began to fall again.

Though Lin Hao was young, he had a way of inadvertently touching Meng Qing’s heart.

"Sister Meng Qing, what is it now?" Lin Hao asked in confusion. At his age, he still didn’t understand the hearts of women.

"I’m fine, Young Master. Let’s go," Meng Qing said, managing a strained smile.

Lin Hao nodded blankly and led her away.

"Sister Meng Qing, I heard you mention you have a younger sister?" Lin Hao asked as they traveled.

"Yes. My younger sister is named Meng Ru. She went missing many years ago. A while back, my grandfather and I were in the main city of Chijing County and we saw a group of celestial ladies. She was among them, but I only caught a fleeting glimpse and didn’t have a chance to speak with her."

"Uh, Sister Meng Qing, if you didn’t speak to her, how can you be sure it was your sister?"

Meng Qing replied, "I saw her hand. My younger sister has a butterfly-shaped birthmark in the webbing between her right thumb and index finger. I can’t be mistaken."

"Then why did you come to Celestial Jade City? Did you find out where she is?"

"Later, I managed to find out that those celestial ladies were from the Misty Palace, one of the empire’s five great divine sects. They were on their way to attend the Danling Sect’s grand assembly."

Now Lin Hao understood. He comforted her, "As long as she is going to the Danling Sect, I will definitely help you find her."

"Thank you, Young Master," Meng Qing said.

’To be honest,’ she thought, ’before, I wanted to find my sister quickly so our family could be reunited. But now, things are different.’

’I want to find my sister and ask her to help Lin Hao. After all, he killed the ruler of a county for my sake.’

’A Marquis holds significant power. The death of one will surely cause a massive stir throughout the empire.’

’But with the help of one of the five great divine sects, even if Marquis Red Blood’s backer is the imperial family, they would have to think twice.’

Unfortunately, Lin Hao didn’t know what was on her mind.

And she, in turn, had no idea how many tricks Lin Hao still had up his sleeve.