Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Before Lin Hao could even speak, Wenren Yuxin cut in, telling the man, "He’s busy. I’m afraid he can’t make it."

The moment the man spoke, it was crystal clear to Wenren Yuxin. ’Something major has happened? This is obviously a setup, and the target is Lin Hao.’

Under the circumstances, there was no way Wenren Yuxin would let Lin Hao go.

However, as if he were completely oblivious, Lin Hao smiled and replied to the messenger, "My own affairs aren’t urgent. Since His Highness thinks so highly of me, I will certainly be there tonight."

How could Lin Hao not know what the Eighth Prince was plotting? But he felt no fear.

"His Highness said you would surely agree. I can finally report back." The man said with a smile, then gave a slight bow and departed.

Whether it was intentional or not, he didn’t give Lin Hao an invitation.

"Hey, what about the invitation?" Wenren Yuxin suddenly realized. Just as she was about to chase after the man, Lin Hao called out to stop her.

Lin Hao shook his head. "Don’t bother. He’s long gone."

"Inviting someone without an invitation? Who does that? It’s outrageous!" An icy expression covered Wenren Yuxin’s beautiful face.

The corner of Lin Hao’s mouth quirked up as he smiled. "It’s even better without an invitation."

His smile was so wicked it sent a shiver through Wenren Yuxin. ’Someone’s about to have a very bad day.’

"I need to return to my estate for a bit. Wait for me, I’ll come find you. We’ll go together," Wenren Yuxin instructed, deeply afraid that Lin Hao would get into huge trouble if he went alone.

She had just extorted several pill formulas and Alchemy Hand Seals from Lin Hao in her room, so this was also a perfect chance to go back to her estate and study them.

Lin Hao knew she had things to attend to, so he nodded and headed toward his own courtyard.

Just as he reached the central courtyard, he came face to face with Chen Qian.

"I heard you’re going to the party the Eighth Prince is holding tonight?" Chen Qian asked anxiously, the moment he saw him.

An inscrutable light flashed in Lin Hao’s eyes before he nodded.

"The Eighth Prince is incredibly narrow-minded. He’s obviously trying to get revenge on you, how could you agree?!" Chen Qian’s face was a mask of anxiety.

"It’s just a party. At most, they’ll have a few sparring matches to liven things up, and that happens to be my favorite kind of entertainment." A smile glinted in Lin Hao’s eyes.

Chen Qian seemed to understand. He said no more, instead bidding Lin Hao farewell. "I have to return to my estate and prepare. I’ll see you tonight."

Lin Hao nodded and watched him go.

Once Chen Qian’s figure had vanished, Lin Hao stood still for a moment, then abruptly looked up toward the highest point of the Saint Institute.

From there, an enormous bird, over twenty meters in length, suddenly took flight. On its back stood several women, their robes fluttering in the wind, looking like celestial fairies descending upon the mortal world.

Just moments before in Wenren Yuxin’s room, Lin Hao had been extorted for the refining methods of several medicinal pills. In return, Wenren Yuxin had answered some of the questions on his mind.

Before coming here, Lin Hao had expected to run into Lu Dieyi, but he hadn’t seen her at all.

Furthermore, when he entered the city, he had clearly seen the Palace Master of the Misty Palace arrive at the Saint Institute, yet he hadn’t seen a single one of their female disciples.

Wenren Yuxin told Lin Hao that the five major divine sects seemed to have reached some sort of agreement with the Dean of the Saint Institute, who had yet to make a public appearance. The disciples of these five sects were considered members of the Saint Institute, yet they would not physically be present within its grounds.

This way, the divine sect disciples could legitimately participate in the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion’s trials in the future under the identity of Saint Institute disciples.

Now, upon seeing this giant bird of prey, Lin Hao knew that what Wenren Yuxin had told him was most likely true.

The disciples wouldn’t enter the Saint Institute, yet they would have a guaranteed spot when it was time for the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion’s trials.

Such was the power and influence of the divine sects.

"It won’t be long before the Heaven-Stepping Pavilion rises. The Cangnan Empire is too small, and even the Celestial Yang Continent is too small." As the Flying Heaven Eagle shrank into the distance, Lin Hao retracted his gaze and muttered to himself.

This was no empty boast.

The current Heaven-Stepping Pavilion now possessed a secret realm, countless lost pill formulas, and even an outstanding Artifact Refining genius like Lian Lanxin. Most importantly, the Heaven-Stepping Sect was united from top to bottom; its rise was only a matter of time.

As Lin Hao was contemplating matters of the Heaven-Stepping Sect, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"This is just too much!"

Hearing the voice, Lin Hao looked up and realized he had arrived outside his own courtyard. The sound was coming from within.

From the sound of it, it seemed to be Ling Xiao.

Lin Hao pushed the door open and went inside, immediately spotting Ling Xiao and Yang Peng.

"What happened?" Lin Hao asked.

Ling Xiao ranted, "I was going to check out the Library Tower, but I was stopped. The reason they gave was that I’m not a ’true’ disciple of the Saint Institute."

"Why would they say that?" A glint flashed in Lin Hao’s eyes. His first reaction was that someone was pulling strings, targeting the people around him.

"They said it’s because I haven’t signed some ’Saint Hall Treaty.’ I asked them for it, and they just said I wasn’t qualified. It’s infuriating!" Ling Xiao was livid, his face ashen with rage.

’To think that I, the number one—no, the number two—genius of the Heaven-Stepping Sect, would come to the Saint Institute and try to learn about this so-called Saint Hall Treaty, only to be dismissed as ’not qualified’!’ ’This is an insult, a blatant, naked insult!’

"If you haven’t signed the Saint Hall Treaty, you aren’t considered a true disciple of the Saint Institute, just a nominal one. They even charge us for lodging, and the fee is ten times what an outside inn would cost!"

"Are nominal disciples qualified to participate in the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion’s trials?" Lin Hao asked.

"Yes, they are."

"Then it doesn’t matter. If we can’t go, we just won’t," Lin Hao said with a faint smile.

Although he had never seen this so-called Saint Hall Treaty, he could make a good guess about what it entailed.

’That treaty is meant for those ’geniuses’. It’s undoubtedly filled with restrictions, and for the Saint Institute, it offers nothing but benefits with no drawbacks.’

’As for these ’nominal disciples,’ they are disciples in name only. The Saint Institute provides nothing, but if one of them actually manages to enter the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, the Institute still reaps the fame and glory.’

Now, Lin Hao finally understood why those divine sects didn’t actually send their disciples to reside in the Saint Institute.

However, upon hearing that they could only be nominal disciples, Lin Hao wasn’t angry. On the contrary, he was pleased.

His mind contained not only the various martial arts gathered by the Carefree Divine Monarch but also the memories of Chu Tiandu. The one thing he didn’t lack was martial techniques.

Moreover, both individuals came from the era of the Fall of Gods and Demons; the martial techniques in their memories were far beyond anything the Celestial Yang Continent could compare to.

Take the Carefree Divine Monarch, for instance. In his memories, the weakest martial technique was Profound-level Top Grade.

"If we don’t sign the Saint Hall Treaty, the other Saint Institute disciples will look down on us. Plus, nominal disciples aren’t allowed to live outside the Institute grounds. Aren’t we just paying for the privilege of being miserable?" Across from him, a stunned Ling Xiao continued to complain.

"Without access to the Library Tower, we can’t learn any martial techniques. We’ll have no hope of getting into the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion." The more Ling Xiao spoke, the angrier he became, and the light in his eyes dimmed.

Back in the Southern Border Prefecture, he had been a top-ranked talent, but here at the Saint Institute, he was reduced to a mere nominal disciple. The blow to his pride was immense.

Lin Hao watched him with an unreadable smile, saying nothing.

"It’s just the Saint Institute’s Library Tower. If you just ask our Senior Brother nicely, he’s much more reliable," Yang Peng suddenly interjected.

Ling Xiao froze for a second, then his eyes suddenly lit up, shining with brilliant light.

He recalled the duel between Yang Peng and Chang Bao from the day before.

Chang Bao, at the Fifth Layer of the Elemental Realm, couldn’t even withstand a single punch from Yang Peng!

Ling Xiao had never even heard of this Yang Peng before; it was as if he had risen out of nowhere.

After they emerged from the Demon Suppression Cave, Ling Xiao had asked Wu Taichu about it, but Wu Taichu seemed to have a reason he couldn’t speak of and told him nothing.

He had even sternly warned him not to pry into Yang Peng’s affairs.

He didn’t dare to defy Wu Taichu, so he had buried his questions deep in his heart.

But after Yang Peng made his move yesterday, those questions resurfaced. Ling Xiao had tried probing Yang Peng about the origin of his cultivation, but Yang Peng refused to say a word.

Now, Yang Peng’s words made everything clear.

"Senior Brother, about that..." Ling Xiao said with a grin, rubbing his hands together with a fawning expression.

He looked like a completely different person from the first time Lin Hao had met him.

"We can talk about it when your cultivation reaches the Peak of the Elemental Realm."

"Oh, come on, Senior Brother! You told us to purify our True Essence over and over again. At that rate, it’ll take forever for me to reach the Peak of the Elemental Realm!" Ling Xiao pleaded pitifully.

"Then you can choose not to listen to me. When you reach the Peak of the Elemental Realm, I’ll teach you all the same."

"Fine, I’ll listen to you," Ling Xiao said, suddenly looking completely deflated.

Lin Hao chuckled and walked into his room.

"Junior Brother, what do you think is the fastest way for us to advance?" From behind, Ling Xiao asked Yang Peng.

Although Yang Peng’s cultivation level was lower than his, Ling Xiao didn’t dare underestimate him in the slightest. Yang Peng’s body technique and fist style possessed not only a majestic aura, but also a sharp, indomitable momentum. In a fight against an opponent of the same rank, Ling Xiao knew he would be no match for Yang Peng.

"Simple. We’ll challenge the disciples of this Saint Institute. We’ll grow stronger through constant battle," Yang Peng replied.

"Haha! Junior Brother, that’s a brilliant idea! They look down on us nominal disciples, do they? Then let’s go show them what we’ve got!" Ling Xiao roared with laughter.

With that, Ling Xiao took the lead and stormed out.

Yang Peng followed right behind him.

Not long after, two of the Saint Institute’s Saint War Platforms rose into the air, one after the other...

Meanwhile, Lin Hao was already in his room, sitting cross-legged and beginning to mentally break down and refine his martial techniques.

In the Carefree Divine Monarch’s memories, the weakest martial art was a Profound-level Top Grade body technique: the Ghostly Divine Step.

In the beginning, Lin Hao’s cultivation hadn’t been high enough, so he could only derive variations from this body technique. But after reaching the Seventh Layer of the Elemental Realm, he had already perfectly mastered those derivations. What he needed to do now was fuse it with the Heaven-Stepping Step.

The Ghostly Divine Step was the precursor to the Heaven-Stepping Step. Lin Hao now had a profound mastery of this body technique and could use it as if it were second nature. His goal was to increase its speed even further.

Several hours passed in this state of deep analysis.

By the time Lin Hao opened his eyes, the sky had already begun to darken.

"Brother Lin, are you in there?" Chen Qian’s voice called from outside.

Lin Hao answered and opened the door.

Chen Qian had just taken two steps forward when the courtyard gate was pushed open again and Wenren Yuxin strode in.

She wasn’t surprised to see Chen Qian. Instead, she tossed a bundle to Lin Hao.

"Change your clothes. Otherwise, I’m not going with you. It would be mortifying," Wenren Yuxin said, her words sounding very much like flirtatious banter.

Lin Hao knew, of course, that Wenren Yuxin was afraid someone would make an issue of his shabby clothes. Though he didn’t care himself, it was a thoughtful gesture on her part. He said nothing and went to change.