Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Chapter 436: Chapter 432: Genius Showdown

Even as Yin Duwen revealed Lin Hao’s cultivation level, his expression was a bit dazed.

He had seen Lin Hao yesterday but hadn’t paid any particular mind to his cultivation. It was only after leaving that he’d felt something was off, the more he thought about it. So, he had gone back to probe Lin Hao’s cultivation level.

That probe nearly scared Yin Duwen to death.

He could never have imagined that Lin Hao’s cultivation would skyrocket so quickly.

In just over ten days, his cultivation had gone from the Soul Gathering Realm First Layer to the Fourth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm. This simply subverted his entire worldview.

Upon learning this, Yin Duwen had nearly suffered a cultivation deviation!

Fortunately, he had cultivated for over two hundred years and was richly experienced. He had narrowly averted disaster.

After breaking out in a cold sweat, Yin Duwen’s hatred for Lin Hao reached an unprecedented height.

Thus, he had spent the night devising a series of plans.

"What?!" Hearing Yin Duwen’s words, several people cried out in shock.

These people were all high-level figures from the major divine sects and had seen countless prodigies and geniuses, but at this moment, hearing about Lin Hao’s cultivation, they still lost their composure.

This was too shocking.

Considering the timeline, it had been less than a year.

To go from the Blood Coagulation Realm to the Soul Gathering Realm in that amount of time... forget seeing it, they had never even heard of such a thing.

"No, Lin Hao is too monstrously talented. With him around, the geniuses our sects sent this time will all be overshadowed." Beyond their shock, some began to realize they couldn’t let Lin Hao stand in their way.

Several people present had the same thought.

Yin Duwen smiled and spoke again. "Lin Hao’s talent is indeed extraordinary, but he was only promoted from a nominal disciple to a middle courtyard disciple just over ten days ago. He was very dissatisfied, so he made a trip back to the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

"Somehow, his cultivation skyrocketed after he returned. In his rush to become an upper courtyard disciple and qualify for the Six Institutes Martial Competition, he must defeat two masters from the Holy Stele on the Saint Institute battlefield today."

At this point, Yin Duwen had finally explained the whole story.

’The Heaven-Stepping Sect must have a Secret Technique for rapid cultivation! It seems a trip there is necessary.’

’He has to defeat two Holy Stele masters just to qualify for the Six Institutes Martial Competition? It seems Lin Hao won’t be a threat to our sect’s disciples after all.’

’No matter what, we can’t let Lin Hao enter the Six Institutes Martial Competition! It seems I need to give our sect’s genius a few ideas.’

After Yin Duwen finished speaking, it was impossible to say how many people began to grow wary of Lin Hao, or even started plotting against him.

Today, regardless of whether Lin Hao won or lost, he would become a public enemy. This was Yin Duwen’s goal.

And now, it seemed his goal had been achieved.

"Sis... Sis..." In a courtyard of the Yujin Saint Institute, a young girl yelled as she ran.

Then, she shoved open the door to one of the rooms.

"Diewu, this is the Saint Institute. How can you be so improper?" The one in the room was Lu Dieyi.

They hadn’t been at the Saint Institute for long, but the institute hadn’t slighted them in the least, arranging rooms for them with the utmost speed.

And Lu Diewu, after washing up, had run right out.

Lu Diewu stuck out her tongue playfully, but her expression immediately changed. "Sis, I just heard that brother-in-law is fighting some Holy Stele masters today."

"What! Holy Stele masters!" Upon hearing this, the normally quiet Lu Dieyi’s pretty face changed dramatically, and she shot to her feet.

"How can he possibly be a match for Holy Stele masters! Diewu, come on, let’s go see." Lu Dieyi grabbed Lu Diewu and hurriedly rushed out.

Lu Diewu pouted and muttered, "Honestly. A moment ago you said we shouldn’t make a public appearance, and now... Sis, slow down..."

The upper courtyard plaza was packed with people, and the crowd was still growing.

Yesterday, Duan Wushuang’s words had already spread throughout the Saint Institute. Everyone knew today was the day Lin Hao would challenge the Holy Stele masters, so they all came to watch.

The tenth-ranked on the Holy Stele challenging the seventh and sixth—such a thing had likely never happened since the Yujin Saint Institute was founded.

Regardless of the outcome, Lin Hao’s name would be remembered.

"Look, Senior Brother Mei has appeared!" someone shouted, pointing in a certain direction.

There, a young man of seventeen or eighteen strode forward, his bearing extraordinary.

There were only a handful of people in the entire Cangnan Empire who could reach the Fifth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm at his age.

In a sense, the Holy Stele masters represented the rankings of the entire younger generation of experts in the Cangnan Empire.

To be ranked seventh on the Holy Stele naturally meant he was a genius among geniuses.

The appearance of such a genius would naturally cause a sensation.

"Ever since Senior Brother Lin went out to train, Senior Brother Mei hasn’t fought in a long time. To see his heroic figure on the Saint Institute battlefield again today is truly a blessing," one disciple said admiringly.

"Who do you guys think will win today?" some newer disciples whispered amongst themselves.

"Hmph! Is that even a question? Senior Brother Mei, of course. That Lin Hao is simply courting death. So what if he’s at the Fourth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm? He used a Secret Technique to raise his cultivation in just over ten days, so his realm must be unstable. How could he possibly be a match for Senior Brother Mei?"

"That’s right. You have to remember, Senior Brother Mei was already seventh on the Holy Stele a year ago, and back then he was only at the Fourth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm. In half a year on the Saint Institute battlefield, he fought no less than a hundred battles. Aside from the one time he challenged Senior Brother Lin, he was undefeated. At the Fourth Layer of Soul Gathering Realm, he is an invincible existence!"

An upper courtyard disciple spoke up, full of confidence in Mei Shengjie.

"Why hasn’t Lin Hao shown up yet? Don’t tell me he’s too scared to fight?"

"It’s possible. If the Holy Stele masters were so easy to challenge, the top rankings wouldn’t have stayed the same for so many years. As for the tenth-ranked challenging the seventh, there’s absolutely no precedent."

"That may be, but Lin Hao isn’t even an upper courtyard disciple yet. If he wants to enter the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, this is his only chance. He probably won’t give up."

"Making so many people wait for him alone... Lin Hao is being pretty arrogant."

"I bet he’s doing it on purpose. You all should still remember that bizarre incident on the Saint Institute battlefield last time."

"..."

The discussions on the upper courtyard battlefield grew more and more heated, the voices getting louder and louder.

Mei Shengjie, however, remained calm. His real opponent had never been Lin Hao. Since Lin Feichen hadn’t appeared yet, he was in no hurry.

"Elder Yin, when will this duel begin?" someone asked Yin Duwen.

’The sooner I see Lin Hao, the sooner I can make my plans.’

Yin Duwen’s expression was grim. Last time, Lin Hao had taken a nap on the Saint Institute battlefield, making them wait for several hours. He didn’t want a repeat of that.

While giving a noncommittal answer, Yin Duwen told a disciple to go get Lin Hao.

However, before the disciple could even set out, Lin Hao appeared.

"Lin Hao, get on the Saint Institute battlefield now!" Yin Duwen barked the moment he saw him.

"What’s the rush? The day is still young," Lin Hao replied lazily.

Lu Dieyi was hiding in the crowd. When she heard Lin Hao’s voice, she started and looked up.