Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

The emergence of the imperial technique shook Imperial City. Old monsters who hadn’t appeared in years were all making their move.

And as they rushed toward Mist Rain Tower, Lin Hao vanished once more.

The Array empowering him activated again. This time, Lin Hao didn’t choose to evade. Instead...

PFFT!

A soft sound suddenly came from where the black-robed man stood.

Then, the black-robed man’s body shot backward, instantly vanishing from everyone’s sight.

In the spot where he had stood, a person appeared—it was Lin Hao!

"What’s going on? Why did he retreat?" someone asked in confusion.

"I think I saw his robes get cut open by a sharp weapon."

"I saw it too. A flash of cold light appeared, about to slice that Soul Gathering Realm Martial Artist in two. Luckily, he reacted quickly and dodged. His black robe was slashed open, so he probably didn’t want anyone to see his true face."

HISS!

At these words, the crowd gasped.

Even an expert of the Soul Gathering Realm had almost been killed. This was too terrifying!

Such a technique left the crowd stunned and speechless.

But Lin Hao stood proudly in the center of it all, shaking his head and sighing.

’Soul Gathering Realm experts truly are formidable. I pushed my sword speed to its absolute limit, but still failed to land a decisive blow.’

His reaction made the crowd want to vomit blood.

That was a Soul Gathering Realm expert! An expert of that caliber couldn’t even gain the upper hand and ended up fleeing, yet this guy still looked unsatisfied.

Meanwhile, in the shadows, the black-robed man who had just escaped had already re-shrouded himself. Seeing Lin Hao’s gesture now, he spat out a mouthful of blood.

BOOM!

Sparks flew from the Vajra Rock where Lin Hao had been standing. A clear claw mark, several inches deep, had suddenly appeared in the stone.

But Lin Hao’s body reappeared a short distance away.

A powerful expert had arrived and, without any warning, attacked, trying to capture Lin Hao.

Decisive and domineering!

Lin Hao had just steadied himself when the person attacked again.

Lin Hao’s body vanished once more, and the claw attack missed again.

"Old bastard surnamed Duan, crawl back to your doghouse!" Lin Hao’s voice boomed through the void, echoing across Imperial City.

In the shadows, experts from the Lin family, the Wenren family, the Hu family, the Chen family, and the Imperial Saint Institute had all arrived. Hearing this, they all wore strange expressions.

To attack directly and attempt to capture someone alive, only the imperial royal family would dare to be so brazen and domineering in Imperial City.

Moreover, it was one of the imperial royal family’s old monsters who was attacking.

It was no secret among the great families that the Cangnan Empire’s royal family had several old monsters, all at the Spirit Transformation Realm.

Forty years ago, when Cang Yan had single-handedly stormed the capital, they had taken action.

And the fellow who had dodged twice had clearly guessed the old monster’s identity.

To know it was an old monster from the imperial royal family and still dare to be so arrogant—his nerve was simply too great!

And he could even evade a Spirit Transformation Realm expert. That was terrifying.

"You’re only relying on an Array. Let’s see how long you can hide!" An old voice echoed from the void, its owner unseen.

PFFT!

As the voice faded, a white light flashed and vanished. Another claw mark appeared on the Vajra Rock, and this time, fresh blood splattered onto it.

At this moment, Lin Hao’s body appeared briefly in the void, his expression extremely solemn.

With the arrival of a supreme Martial Artist, the onlookers had long since retreated a hundred meters. The area where he stood was now a vacuum, devoid of any cover. Sooner or later, he would be caught by that old monster.

Spirit Transformation Realm experts were unfathomable. The gap between Lin Hao and him was too vast; he was only able to sense the attacker’s position by relying on his Spiritual Sense.

Another point was that Lin Hao sensed a sluggishness in the old monster’s True Essence.

This indicated the old monster was unwell. Otherwise, no matter how powerful Lin Hao’s Spiritual Sense was, it would have been impossible to sense his position.

He had narrowly avoided the first two attacks, but the third time, the old monster’s speed suddenly increased by thirty percent. By the time Lin Hao noticed, it was too late.

The situation was critical. Lin Hao was on the verge of revealing his identity.

Lin Hao was certain that Su Molixi was also in the shadows. If he revealed his identity, Su Molixi would definitely intervene.

But that would only save him temporarily and would make the Misty Palace a target for all.

Similarly, there was another method.

He could use the exotic flame that Wenren Yuxin had given him.

Once that exotic flame appeared, Wenren Yuxin would surely recognize him, and perhaps the Wenren family would intervene.

But the chances of that were too slim.

PFFT!

Lin Hao’s body was sent flying. He had taken another heavy blow.

And at that moment, Lin Hao discovered his Array had lost its effect!

Due to the materials used, the empowering Array had limitations on both distance and number of uses.

Each use consumed some of the materials.

Now, the materials were depleted, and he had reached his limit.

That afternoon, Lin Hao had prepared two Arrays in total. He could immediately activate the other one.

But Lin Hao didn’t plan to use it, because in front of a Spirit Transformation Realm expert, this Array was almost completely ineffective.

Lin Hao’s body materialized, and a streak of white light shot towards him at an incredible speed, trying to grab him.

Lin Hao’s body was frozen, unable to move.

This time, Lin Hao had no way to dodge.

Of course, Lin Hao still had the Flowing Light Divine Flame left to use.

This was his greatest trump card at the moment.

Lin Hao had a detailed plan; this trump card was originally saved for tomorrow.

But it seemed he had no choice but to use it now.

Just then...

A soft cry rang out in the void.

A brilliant ray of light slashed toward the white streak.

The next moment, the white light retreated, and a person appeared before Lin Hao.

The newcomer wore a fluttering white dress, the ends of her long, beautiful hair dancing in the wind.

A peerless beauty!

"Are you all right?" the woman asked Lin Hao, her voice laced with concern.

"What are you doing here?" A look of delight appeared on Lin Hao’s face when he saw her.

The newcomer was none other than the fairy Lin Hao had met at the Danling Sect—Meng Jian!

’She recognized me even with my mask on.’ Lin Hao was deeply moved.

"Little girl, you have some nerve!" From the void, the old voice boomed, filled with anger.

"Senior, you are a great expert. It is unbecoming of you to bully a junior like this," Meng Jian said, her voice cold.

"Hmph! If I were truly trying to bully him, he would have died a thousand times over by now." The old voice was filled with immense confidence.

"Thank you, Senior," Meng Jian immediately replied.

Lin Hao was just as quick to react, immediately taking advantage of the situation. He bowed and said, "Thank you, Senior, for sparing my life."

The current situation was too disadvantageous for Lin Hao. A great man knows when to yield and when to stand firm. Lin Hao wasn’t some inflexible blockhead; offering a soft word came easily to him.

"You!" From the void, a furious aura rushed toward Lin Hao and Meng Jian.

Meng Jian snorted coldly, and the aura instantly dissipated.

"Truly shameless," Lin Hao muttered under his breath.

That old monster hiding in the shadows spat words like daggers, his intentions utterly malicious.

"I will not spare you today! This king will suppress you!" A Spirit Transformation Realm expert could hear even the faintest sounds; Lin Hao’s voice had naturally been heard.

He had already been prepared to drop all pretenses, and Lin Hao’s words just gave him the perfect excuse.

Meng Jian took a step forward and said, "Senior, you are unwell. It would be best not to get angry."

The old monster in the void had lived for countless years and was as cunning as they come. How could he not understand the meaning behind her words? He retorted sharply, "Little girl, you have only just entered the Spirit Transformation Realm! Even if this king is unwell, I can still take you down! What’s more..."

Before the old monster could finish, Lin Hao felt a chill run through his body.

Someone had attacked Lin Hao from the shadows!

Just as Meng Jian was about to rescue him, the streak of white light appeared, attacking her.

Clearly, the old monster had also made a move to keep Meng Jian occupied.

RUMBLE!

Meng Jian clashed with the unseen old monster from the void.

The Vajra Rock shattered, and rows of houses turned to dust.

This was with both of them suppressing their cultivation. Otherwise, the entire Imperial City might have been wiped from existence.

From that single blow, Meng Jian was sent flying backward, blood spraying through the air.

The old monster in the void had been in the Spirit Transformation Realm for a long time. Even if he was currently unwell, he was still not someone Meng Jian could contend with.

Meanwhile, Lin Hao’s body was seized by a large hand that reached out from the void.

At this moment, Lin Hao’s face showed neither joy nor sorrow, but his eyes were ice-cold, surging with killing intent.

’This hand won’t kill me. But the moment it pulls back, I swear its owner will be turned to ash!’

’And I will go on a rampage!’

’Once the Flowing Light Divine Flame is released, I can incinerate everything in Imperial City!’

"Don’t worry about me! They can’t do anything to me," Lin Hao said, sensing the aura around Meng Jian steadily rising.

"Old monster, you’ve successfully angered this young master! Today, I will turn the tallest structures in Imperial City to ash!" Lin Hao’s voice thundered across the area.

The tallest buildings in Imperial City represented the supreme imperial authority of the Cangnan Empire. For someone to dare say they would turn them to ash was utterly lawless to the extreme!

"You’ve got guts. I’d like to see who you really are!" the old voice rang out from the void.

The next moment, the Human Skin Mask on Lin Hao’s face was ripped away.

"You... Lin... Lin Hao!" someone exclaimed in shock.

Everyone in the Lin family was intimately familiar with Lin Hao’s portrait, as they had been searching the entire city for him these past few days. Seeing his face so suddenly, the Lin family Martial Artist hiding in the shadows couldn’t help but cry out in alarm.

This Lin Hao was simply too audacious.

"What?! Lin Hao!"

The Soul Gathering Realm expert’s cry was not suppressed at all, and the name "Lin Hao" carried far and wide.

Everyone who heard those two words was stunned.

The stories of Lin Hao’s deeds had already spread throughout Imperial City, though they had been deliberately suppressed by certain parties.

But in the exclusive circles of Imperial City, such news couldn’t be contained.

Quite a few people knew of him.

Now, hearing the name "Lin Hao" so suddenly, everyone was shocked.

He was lawless to the extreme. This was Imperial City, yet he dared to reveal himself in such a manner.

With Lin Hao’s true identity exposed, countless gazes instantly shot toward him, all of them filled with killing intent.

If they weren’t all coveting the imperial technique he possessed, Lin Hao would have already been torn to pieces.

"Lin Hao, you killed a commandery prince, exterminated a noble house, and even dared to kill the Guards sent by the Sovereign to apprehend you. Any one of these crimes is enough for the death penalty, let alone all of them combined! You will not be spared today!"

A voice from the void thundered across Imperial City, directly sentencing Lin Hao to death.

Needless to say, this was someone from the Lin family speaking.

The Lin family was currently at the peak of its power. With Lin Wu about to enter the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, they had even begun to disregard imperial authority.

Before, they had always kept themselves in check.

But now that Lin Hao had appeared, the Lin family could wait no longer.

Before the voice had even faded, terrifying auras surged toward Lin Hao from all directions.

Several powerful Martial Artists were acting in unison to execute Lin Hao.

Even with the Flowing Light Divine Flame, Lin Hao would be helpless.

The situation was beyond critical!