Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

It wasn’t that Jumo City had been breached. They had walked into a trap. The moment they entered, countless pairs of eyes turned to look at them.

Upon entering Jumo City, Lin Hao discovered that what he had seen from the outside was nowhere near as shocking as the view from within.

A hundred-meter-tall mountain had been hollowed out, carved layer by layer into more than ten tiers.

After they entered, soldiers in full armor, spears in hand, stared down at them from every tier and every direction.

More than ten tiers, densely packed with soldiers—at least tens of thousands of them.

These were true iron-blooded soldiers, every one of them stained with the blood of countless battles. When their gazes converged, an invisible killing intent instantly blotted out the sky.

All the Cloud-Stepping Beasts came to a halt.

Even though they were Tier Two Devil Beasts with strength equivalent to the Elemental Realm, they instinctively sensed danger in the face of such an overwhelmingly dense killing intent.

Compared to the beasts, the disciples, who were already exhausted, fared even worse.

Although the weakest of these disciples were at the Fourth Layer of Elemental Realm, they felt an instinctual fear in the face of this killing intent. A terror even rose from the depths of their souls.

Crushed by the formless pressure, countless people bent over, struggling to breathe.

Among them, only Lin Hao, Ling Xiao, Yang Peng, and Chen Xiao remained unmoved.

As for Chen Xiao, his face held a strange radiance. ’This is the Crimson Flame Army!’

As for Duan Mushuang, she was naturally unaffected by such an aura.

Looking around, Duan Mushuang sighed inwardly and was about to speak.

Just then, Lin Hao’s voice suddenly rang out. "Xiaojiu, the Crimson Flame Army certainly has a unique welcoming ceremony."

Although Lin Hao’s words were directed at Chen Xiao and not spoken loudly, they clearly reached everyone’s ears.

Instantly, everyone’s gaze converged on Lin Hao.

Behind Lin Hao, the others felt the pressure suddenly lessen. They straightened their backs and let out a long breath.

"Uncle Lin Hao, they’re doing this for our own good. If we can’t even withstand this much pressure, we won’t be qualified for the supply transport mission," Chen Xiao said in a low voice, snapping back to his senses upon hearing Lin Hao.

Although his voice was low, it was heard by countless people.

Not only the nominal disciples from the Saint Institute who had followed them, but even the nearby Jumo City soldiers showed surprise on their faces.

They all knew who Chen Xiao was, and hearing him be so polite to Lin Hao, they found it somewhat incredible.

After a moment of shock, all the soldiers in Jumo City stared at Lin Hao, their eyes suddenly widening.

The next moment...

CLANG!

A perfectly synchronized sound rang out as the soldiers simultaneously slammed the butts of their spears onto the ground.

Then, in perfect unison, they all dropped to one knee and bowed their heads before Lin Hao.

Lin Hao was stunned.

Although he had never been in the army, he knew that soldiers only offered this level of obeisance to their supreme commander.

He glanced at Chen Xiao, and then understanding dawned on him.

’Chen Xiao is riding Chen Yan’s dragon horse. Of course they’re kneeling to Chen Xiao.’

Having figured this out, Lin Hao prepared to move aside.

"Uncle Lin Hao, they are kneeling to you, not me." But to his surprise, Chen Xiao just shook his head.

Behind Lin Hao, everyone stared blankly at him, their eyes wide with disbelief.

The Crimson Flame Army was an iron-blooded force that knelt only for their commander, Chen Yan. Yet now, they were kneeling to Lin Hao. The scene shook them to their very core.

"Huh?" Lin Hao was also greatly shocked. ’This is my first time in Jumo City. Why would these soldiers kneel to me?’

"A few months ago, Healing Saint Institute was introduced to the Crimson Flame Army," Chen Xiao explained. "Who else would they kneel to but you?"

Now Lin Hao understood what was going on.

"Soldiers, please rise. You defend the nation and its people, spilling your blood on the battlefield. What I, Lin Hao, did was a trivial matter; I am not worthy of such a grand gesture." Faced with their kneeling, Lin Hao felt not pride, but shame.

These soldiers fought to the death on the battlefield, never asking for anything in return. He had only done a trivial little thing, yet these men-at-arms were repaying him by kneeling.

At this very moment, Lin Hao felt nothing but shame.

In that instant, the entirety of Jumo City fell utterly silent, with only Lin Hao’s voice echoing through the space.

Several seconds passed before all the soldiers gave Lin Hao a heavy nod and then rose to their feet.

By now, the bloody aura had long since vanished. The way all the soldiers looked at Lin Hao’s group had softened.

It was at this moment that a General, flanked by two personal guards, approached with the stride of a dragon and the gait of a tiger.

He walked up to Lin Hao, removed his helmet, and revealed the resolute face of a middle-aged man.

"Brother Lin, I didn’t expect it to be you. Please forgive my poor reception," the middle-aged man said to Lin Hao, a trace of apology in his voice.

"Brother Tianyu, you’re being too polite." Lin Hao glanced at the two personal guards behind the middle-aged man, then shook his head and replied with a smile.

This middle-aged man was none other than Chen Tianyu, with whom Lin Hao had a brief encounter back in War Dragon City.

Chen Tianyu’s lips split into a grin at his words, and then he saw Duan Mushuang.

"Your Highness, the Eldest Princess, I didn’t realize you were leading the group. My apologies for the poor reception," Chen Tianyu said, turning to Duan Mushuang.

However, he really wasn’t very good with words.

"It seems Brother Chen only has eyes for him, so of course you wouldn’t see me," replied Duan Mushuang, the frost on her perpetually icy face melting slightly.

Chen Tianyu opened his mouth but didn’t know how to respond.

He was skilled at leading troops and fighting wars; other matters were a bit more difficult for him.

"I was just joking, Brother Chen. Please don’t mind me." Duan Mushuang, who knew Chen Tianyu’s personality, broke into a smile.

"Not at all, not at all," Chen Tianyu replied.

"Uncle Qi, we’re all about to die from exhaustion. Let us rest for a bit, then you can assign us our mission," Chen Xiao chimed in from the side.

Seeing Chen Xiao on the dragon horse, a strange light flashed in Chen Tianyu’s eyes, and he shot another glance at Lin Hao.

Lin Hao’s two older brothers were stationed here under his command, so Chen Tianyu was well aware of the situation with their bloodline.

And since Chen Xiao had arrived riding a dragon horse, and with Lin Hao no less, Chen Tianyu could guess what had happened to him.

For a moment, Chen Tianyu’s mind was in turmoil, but this was clearly not the time or place to talk.

"Your Highness, Brother Lin, this way please." Suppressing his emotions, Chen Tianyu invited Duan Mushuang and her group to rest.

"Master Duan and all my fellow disciples should go rest. I’ll be fine," Lin Hao said, glancing at the two personal guards and shaking his head in refusal.

Duan Mushuang nodded.

After traveling nonstop for five days and five nights, even she was a little tired. Moreover, going so long without washing up had made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

If she felt this way, one could only imagine how the other disciples felt.

Hearing they could rest, they quickly followed. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

After taking a couple of steps with Duan Mushuang, Chen Tianyu suddenly turned to the two personal guards behind him and said, "You two, rest for an hour, then come and report."

"Yes, Commander!" the two guards answered in unison.

When the others had left, the two personal guards removed their helmets, revealing two young faces.

Looking at Lin Hao, both of them had expressions of pure excitement.