Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Lin Hao really wanted to ask, ’Is that something one of our own should be saying?’

They hadn’t even left yet, and she was already spouting such demoralizing words.

As Lin Hao shot her a sideways glance, the disciples behind him felt their hearts begin to pound.

’Master Duan said that? It must mean she has no faith in us. Jumo Ridge must be incredibly dangerous.’

In an instant, they were filled with apprehension.

’The inheritance of a quasi-emperor is tempting, but what good is it if you’re dead?’

Just as the group was about to descend into chaos, Lin Hao’s voice drifted out calmly. "Rest assured, Master Duan. We understand your good intentions and won’t bring shame upon the Saint Institute or you. If we were cowards, we wouldn’t be standing here right now."

The moment Lin Hao finished speaking, the restless group fell silent.

Duan Mushuang was not only a Saint Master, but also a great beauty. Though they were only nominal disciples, the appreciation for beauty is universal, and none of them wanted to be looked down upon by such a woman.

Besides, as a Saint Master from the Saint Institute, she was the last person who should have said something like that.

’Clearly, she was just testing them before the battle.’

The disciples, feeling they had figured it out, were somewhat ashamed. They all spoke up, "Rest assured, Master Duan. We are not cowards."

"Let’s go." Duan Mushuang swept her gaze over them, spitting out the two words coldly.

The group immediately set off for Jumo Ridge.

With the Cloud-Stepping Beasts galloping at full speed, the journey of over twenty li didn’t take long at all.

Ahead, the stench of blood filled the air.

Even the Cloud-Stepping Beasts stopped, refusing to advance.

They stamped their hooves, deeply unsettled.

Suddenly, a massive boulder fell from the sky, crashing down toward the group.

Fortunately, the disciples were on high alert and scrambled out of the way.

BOOM!

The massive boulder crashed to the ground, gouging a deep crater into the earth.

The disciples paled. The boulder had to weigh over a thousand pounds, yet it had been launched over the ridge in front of them. It was terrifying to imagine how fierce the battle must be.

"That boulder was launched from the Cangyun Battlefield inside Jumo Ridge! There’s a massive battle going on. Let’s move!" Lin Tian looked up as more boulders rained down from the sky, and his face fell.

The so-called Cangyun Battlefield was originally just a series of mountain peaks on Jumo Ridge.

After years of war between the soldiers of the Cangnan Empire and the Mo Yun Kingdom, several of the peaks had been completely leveled, and the very mountainsides had sunk, creating a vast battlefield.

Once the battlefield formed, nearly all the great battles between the two kingdoms took place upon it, which is how it earned the name Cangyun Battlefield.

Lin Tian and Lin Yuan had been in Jumo City for months and had fought on the Cangyun Battlefield countless times, but never before had boulders been flung from it like this.

The flying boulders meant that the Mo Yun Kingdom’s army was mounting a massive offensive. If reinforcements didn’t arrive in time, the situation would become critical once the enemy crossed Jumo Ridge.

The situation was dire, and they had every reason to be frantic.

"Someone from the Mo Yun Kingdom must be using the Blood Transformation and Bone Refining Skill! Come on, let’s go seize that quasi-emperor’s inheritance!" Ling Xiao roared with excitement, spurring his Cloud-Stepping Beast into a frantic charge up the slope.

His words instantly electrified the disciples. With frenzied cries, they charged up the slope.

In the sudden rush, they left Lin Hao behind.

Turtle Egg had run off somewhere again, and an ordinary warhorse couldn’t bear Lin Hao’s weight, so he had covered the distance using his Body Technique.

The others sprinted ahead, leaving only Duan Mushuang, Chen Xiao, and Lin Hao behind.

"I’m finally back on the battlefield. Uncle Lin Hao, I’m not waiting for you!" Chen Xiao declared from atop his Dragon Horse before charging off as well.

Duan Mushuang stared after Chen Xiao, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

Though she rarely saw Chen Xiao, she did know him. Lately, she’d felt he was different from before, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on how.

"Master Duan, since it doesn’t look like you’re planning on going up, how about you get down and let me ride—"

Before Lin Hao could finish his sentence, Duan Mushuang seized him.

Her hand seemed to expand and then shrink, and in an instant, Lin Hao was yanked into the air, right in front of her face.

An icy chill radiated from Duan Mushuang, and a terrifying killing intent began to emanate from her.

"Ahem! You misunderstood! I meant, let me borrow your mount." Duan Mushuang’s power was terrifyingly high, and because Lin Hao never expected her to strike, he found himself completely unable to resist.

"Hmph!"

Duan Mushuang snorted, then violently threw Lin Hao toward Jumo Ridge.

Her strength was immense; Lin Hao’s body shot into the sky like a cannonball.

"Aaaah!" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Hanging in mid-air, Lin Hao only had time to let out a startled cry.

Duan Mushuang looked up, her eyes widening as her expression changed dramatically.

High in the sky, a massive boulder was hurtling straight for Lin Hao.

Lin Hao and the boulder were both moving at incredible speeds. By the time Duan Mushuang thought to intervene, it was already too late.

BOOM!

The next moment, they collided with a thunderous crash.

Duan Mushuang turned her head, unable to bear watching.

She had been overcome by a fit of anger when she threw him, completely forgetting their location.

Although she had thrown him forcefully, she had controlled her strength, using a precise application of power.

’The upward trajectory would be powerful, but the force would decrease sharply as he began to fall. He would be punished upon landing, but it wouldn’t be fatal.’

’But now that he’s collided with a boulder during his ascent... he’ll be severely injured, if not killed.’

This was her assessment, and that was even taking into account the known toughness of Lin Hao’s physical body.

An ordinary person, colliding with a boulder at that velocity, would have been instantly obliterated.

CRUNCH!

Immediately, Duan Mushuang heard a second massive crash.

She looked up just in time to see Lin Hao’s body collide with a second massive boulder. As for the first one, it had already shattered into countless pieces.

Duan Mushuang froze. Lin Hao’s body proceeded to crash into a third massive boulder.

"So that’s why Senior Brother wasn’t moving. He wanted to be a human cannonball," Ling Xiao murmured from below, staring up at the scene in the sky.

By now, he had already reached the top of Jumo Ridge and was surveying the scene ahead from his Cloud-Stepping Beast.

Before him lay a vast battlefield, teeming with soldiers as far as the eye could see.

But right then, many soldiers on the Cangyun Battlefield had stopped fighting to stare up at the sky.

They had watched with their own eyes as a human figure smashed through several of the flying boulders.

Now, the figure was directly over the Cangyun Battlefield.

"That poor soul..." Countless soldiers on the battlefield shook their heads and sighed. After impacts like those, there was no way the person in the air could have survived.

On the far side of Jumo Ridge, a youth mounted on a massive Three-Eyed Demon Wolf also witnessed the scene in the sky.

A wicked smile played on his lips, but it froze when he saw this. "Moshan, sound the horn!" he ordered warily. "Have the soldiers press the charge! Anyone who can throw a person with that much force must be a powerhouse from the Cangnan Kingdom!"

"Wait." A young woman’s voice cut in from beside the youth. "Moshan, nock an arrow. Shoot him down!"