Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

After the bird man finished speaking, he stared at Lin Hao expectantly.

’Everyone’s got a bit of curiosity,’ he thought. ’Lin Hao will definitely ask me what happened next.’

However, Lin Hao’s reaction was a disappointment.

It was as if Lin Hao hadn’t heard a word he said. His eyes never left the guards’ armor.

The bird man’s mouth twitched. He had no choice but to continue on his own. "The moment he took off his helmet, a divine thunderbolt descended from the heavens and blasted him right out of the Divinity Realm. Tsk, tsk. The blood that rained down from the sky back then... it was truly delicious."

As he finished, the bird man was practically drooling.

Meanwhile, Lin Hao had moved on from just looking. At some point, he had even started touching the armor.

The bird man was about to speak again when someone pushed him aside.

"Well, well, you’ve got a good eye, little brother." The man who had just been peddling the secret Artifact Refiner’s manual sidled up to him, a sly look on his face.

Lin Hao’s eyes narrowed slightly as he turned his head.

’Looks like the people in this Divinity Realm are no simpletons.’

’I thought he was just a common swindler, but it seems he’s actually got some skills.’

Lin Hao was almost certain that this man knew he had recognized the value of the two sets of armor.

For the first time, Lin Hao began to size him up properly.

A mess of tangled hair, sunken eyes, and a body as thin as a rail. Aside from a pair of bright eyes, he looked like a standard old beggar.

"You want the armor they’re wearing?" the old beggar asked Lin Hao in a low voice.

Lin Hao nodded. "I doubt they became Law Enforcers because of these two sets of armor. So, whether they have it or not shouldn’t matter to them. But I need it."

Lin Hao’s brazen admission left everyone feeling dizzy.

The bird man, in particular, was floored. ’After all that I said, this guy still wants the armor!’

’To actually have designs on the Law Enforcers’ equipment... this guy’s nerve is something else.’

But on second thought, what he said did seem to make some sense.

The old beggar’s eyes narrowed into slits. He chuckled darkly. "I agree with you wholeheartedly. How about this? If you really manage to get their armor off, sell one set to me. It’s not like you can wear two sets at once, anyway."

Lin Hao sized him up for a moment, then shook his head.

’There are only two sets. I can only give them to my third and fourth brothers. There won’t even be one for Shenshan.’

’Besides, even if I were to sell one, this old man is a complete wreck. What could he possibly use to buy it?’

The old beggar caught his look and was so angry his beard bristled.

"Kid, as long as you can get that armor, whatever you want, Lord Ji can get it for you!" The old beggar, incensed at being looked down upon by Lin Hao, was furious.

’Lord Ji as in the noble surname, or Lord Ji as in chicken?’

’If it’s the former, the surname Ji, then he’s an extraordinary figure.’

"COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!"

Just as Lin Hao was wondering, the sound of a rooster crowing rang out.

"Lord Ji, your rooster is calling you home for dinner," a teasing voice called out.

A chill ran down Lin Hao’s spine. He took two steps back, shaking his head repeatedly.

Before Lord Ji could figure out what was happening, Lin Hao made his move.

Lin Hao’s right index finger bent, while his other four fingers formed a caliper, moving swiftly over one of the guard’s bodies.

"Hahaha, kid, could you be any more ridiculous? Are you trying to measure his size with your bare hands?" Seeing Lin Hao’s actions, everyone in the crowd burst out laughing.

But amidst the laughter, Lord Ji’s eyes suddenly narrowed. He muttered four words, almost inaudibly: "Divine Forbidden Eight Skills!"

"Old Ji, what’s the Divine Forbidden Eight Skills?" Beside Lord Ji, the man who had been selling the *Alchemy Quick-Start Guide* secretly sent a voice transmission to him.

"Get lost! I said he’s having a psychotic episode!" Lord Ji snapped.

The other old man didn’t get angry. He continued his voice transmission, asking, "Do you think the kid will succeed?"

"In the millions of years since the Divinity Realm was formed, has anyone ever managed to take the armor from the guards of the starting point?" Lord Ji retorted instead of answering.

The old man shook his head.

"Well, there you have it! Look at him, acting like a lunatic. He’s not getting that armor off! Otherwise, it wouldn’t still be here after all this time," Lord Ji said with absolute certainty.

But the moment the words left his mouth, a loud clattering sound was heard.

When he looked closely, the armor on one of the guards, helmet and all, was gone.

Lord Ji’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The old man next to him had the same reaction.

And so did everyone in the surrounding crowd.

"H-Holy... I’m not seeing things, am I? The Law Enforcer’s armor was stripped right off! I was still waiting to drink some blood." After a long moment of silence, the bird man spoke up.

By this time, Lin Hao had already gotten his hands on the second guard’s armor.

HISS!

The sound of sharp, collective gasps filled the air.

Then, as if remembering something, they all turned to look at a specific spot.

Lin Hao placed the two sets of armor into his storage ring and followed their gaze, but he saw nothing.

Just as he was feeling puzzled, that spot suddenly erupted in a brilliant flash of light.

The phenomenon lasted only a second before vanishing, as if nothing had happened.

Lin Hao watched for a few seconds. Seeing nothing else unusual, he withdrew his gaze and fixed it on the greatswords in the guards’ hands.

The surrounding crowd snapped back to their senses and turned in unison to stare at Lin Hao, only to see where he was looking. They all nearly fainted.

"My idol, you don’t possibly want their swords too, do you?" The bird man’s mouth felt dry.

Lin Hao nodded, then paused and asked the bird man, "What did you just call me?"

"Idol, do you have any idea what you just did?" the bird man retorted.

"I just stripped their armor off, what’s the big deal? You two guard brothers have been so good to me. Thank you, thank you." Lin Hao first rolled his eyes, then grinned and cupped his fists at the two guards.

"You set an unprecedented record, and you say it’s no big deal?!" The bird man’s mouth twitched violently.

"Set a record?" Lin Hao asked, confused.

He knew far too little about the Divinity Realm.

The bird man, now somewhat immune to the shock, simply explained:

"Did you see that light just now? That’s the Divine Light, unique to the Divinity Realm. It only appears when someone sets a new record. The Emperor Venerables’ original purpose in creating the Divinity Realm was to use this place to cultivate successors. They have impossibly high standards, and only those who set records can even hope to catch their eye."

With this explanation, Lin Hao understood. He had unknowingly set a new record.

However, Lin Hao disagreed with the second part of the bird man’s statement. This record seemed far too easy to set.

"You’re not kidding me, are you? It’s just taking off their armor. Forget me; I’m sure there are plenty of people from the Jinglian Saint Institute who could do it." As Lin Hao said this, he glanced at Lord Ji.

He knew the Jinglian Saint Institute must have a significant background.

"If not a thousand, at least eight hundred people from the Jinglian Saint Institute have come to this starting point. Remember that guy I mentioned who took a Law Enforcer’s helmet? He was from the Jinglian Saint Institute," the bird man said disdainfully.

Hearing that, Lin Hao grew even more puzzled. ’But this is obviously so simple.’

"Oh, right! Idol, you should hurry and leave your message so we can see what the reward is. The last time the Divine Light appeared was two years ago!" While Lin Hao was still puzzling over it, the bird man suddenly spoke again.

Hearing there was a reward, Lin Hao’s eyes lit up. But his next words nearly made everyone cough up blood.

"Leave what message?"

"Idol, how in the world did you get to the Divinity Realm? How do you not know anything? Fine, I’ll take you there." Seeing Lin Hao’s blank expression, the bird man was utterly defeated by him.

The bird man led the way toward the spot where the Divine Light had appeared, with Lin Hao following behind him.

And behind Lin Hao, a large crowd followed.

They all wanted to know Lin Hao’s name.

Although this was only the starting point, anyone who could enter the Divinity Realm was extraordinary. After learning that Lin Hao came from a small place, they were eager to find out his name so they could try to recruit him in the real world.

A Martial Artist who could perform a miracle in the Divinity Realm was destined for a world-shaking future. If they could bring such a person into their fold, their faction would, at the very least, flourish for a time.

As for the possibility of failing to recruit him... that never even crossed their minds. ’He’s from a small place and hasn’t seen the world. Recruiting him should be a piece of cake.’

The bird man led the way for about ten minutes before stopping.

Then, Lin Hao saw countless stone steles standing not far ahead.

At a glance, the steles looked quite ordinary, but Lin Hao could clearly see a divine light coiling around each one, exuding a majestic and powerful aura.

There was writing on every stele, but even from a hundred meters away, Lin Hao found he couldn’t make out the characters.

Activating his Emperor Art, Lin Hao’s eyes shone with a brilliant light, but he still couldn’t read the words.

This shocked Lin Hao.

Back in the real world, he could see the veins on a leaf from hundreds of meters away even without using his Emperor Art. With it, his vision was even more incredible. How could it be that in the Divinity Realm, his eyesight actually got worse when he used the art?

However, when Lin Hao looked elsewhere, he could see scenes hundreds of meters away with perfect clarity.

Now Lin Hao knew. There was something strange about these steles.

"Go closer. Once you’ve written your information, we’ll all get to witness the glory of the Divine Stele," the bird man said to Lin Hao.

Lin Hao wanted to ask why, but he ultimately held back.

As he stepped forward, the steles began to shift, and a blank stele appeared before him.

"Idol, go ahead. Inscribe your glorious achievement! Not just this starting point, but the entire Divinity Realm will know of your existence." The bird man looked even more excited than Lin Hao.

Lin Hao didn’t know what to write, so he glanced at a stele to the side.

This time, the words on the stele appeared with perfect clarity.

But one look left Lin Hao utterly stunned.

Hongtian. A Divine Soul that shook the past and present. Unrivaled in the Soul Gathering Realm.

This stele was actually left by Emperor Hongtian!

Lin Hao looked at the inscription date. It was just over ten thousand years ago.

He looked at another one and was even more shocked.

Profound Celestial. Physical defense, unbreakable by any.

The inscription date on this stele was from tens of thousands of years ago.

’Profound Celestial... that must be the Profound Emperor.’

It wasn’t strange for an Emperor Venerable to set a record, but the fact that two Great Emperors had both been to the Divinity Realm was something worth pondering.

Lin Hao then turned to a third stele.

At this sight, Lin Hao’s eyes contracted sharply.

He saw a familiar name...