Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

Everyone stared at Lu Chao, unsure of what to say. It just felt like following him was always an exciting, thrilling ride.

It seemed there were always pleasant surprises...

In the next moment, Lu Chao’s voice grew heavy again. ”These are all minor things. We still need to find a way to get the Flame Countries to agree to give the Descendants of Azure Flame a place to live.”

Everyone’s hearts clenched once more. This was the true priority.

Lu Chao added gravely, ”First, we’ll bypass Yinzhou City. Prepare yourselves. We must abandon our horses and enter the mountains.”

Yinzhou City was a key stronghold on the southern border of the Great Wu Empire, flanked by towering mountain ranges teeming with Demon Beasts. Warhorses could no longer navigate the steep terrain, so they had to abandon their mounts and enter the mountains to bypass the city.

”The road ahead will be perilous.”

”Our next opponents will be the Demon Beasts in the mountains and the harsh environment.”

”And just bypassing Yinzhou City isn’t enough. While Lu Hanyan is no great commander, Guan Zanyi is even more pathetic. There’s no telling how long he can hold Yinzhou City; it might fall in a single assault.”

”We must make a much wider detour, cutting through the Yinzhou Mountain range until we reach Tiger Flame territory.”

”Prepare yourselves for a grueling trek.”

Upon hearing this, everyone’s expression turned grim.

They had no path of retreat. Treacherous mountains and terrifying Demon Beasts were still easier to face than the malicious people of the Flame Countries.

And so, the group abandoned their horses and entered the mountains.

...

「Meanwhile...」

Lu Hanyan had finally led her troops to the gates of Yinzhou City.

She stared up at Guan Zanyi on the city walls, her voice laced with ice. ”Hand over Fan Jinhua, and I will spare your lives.”

Guan Zanyi and his men on the wall were stunned. ’Weren’t Fan Jinhua and his group intercepted by Lu Hanyan?’

’Weren’t they surrounded on all sides by Great Wu Soldiers and Horses?’

Soon, Guan Zanyi received a report from his subordinate: Fan Jinhua and his group had abandoned their horses and fled into the mountains.

’That damned Fan Jinhua. Cornered, he actually fled into the mountains.’

’Hmph. I hope you don’t get devoured by Demon Beasts. Once I’m back in the Tiger Flame Kingdom, I’ll deal with all of you personally.’

With that thought, Guan Zanyi put Fan Jinhua out of his mind for the moment and glared down at Lu Hanyan. ”You little wench, who do you think you are? If your Brother Chao were here, I’d throw the gates wide open...”

Before he could finish his sentence... BOOM!

Below the city walls, True Qi erupted from Lu Hanyan’s entire body.

The terrifying Power of the Water Chant Saint Bone manifested as the roar of an ice dragon, blanketing the ground beneath the walls in frost. Her voice dripped with cold malice. ”You old fool. You shouldn’t have tried to provoke me by mentioning that piece of trash who would murder his father to steal a talisman.”

”You... must die!”

Lu Chao’s official crimes remained: patricide to seize a talisman, and the slaughter of prisoners and civilians from the Hundred Countries.

Lu Hanyan wouldn’t normally have been so provoked. She had even felt a thrill after seizing the Saint Bone. But that old rumor still persisted... ’Without Lu Chao, the three of them—father and children—would be nothing.’

Naturally, she was desperate to prove herself and despised it when anyone so much as uttered Lu Chao’s name.

Lu Hanyan’s assault on the city officially began...

And so, following Lu Chao’s supposed death, the war between the Hundred Countries—led by a few major Flame Countries—and the Great Wu Empire was reignited.

The fighting wasn’t just at Yinzhou City; battles raged fiercely on all other fronts as well.

Initially, the Hundred Countries held a significant advantage. But when news spread that Lu Hanyan had survived the assassination attempt, their fighting spirit waned.

Gradually, the war settled into a stalemate...

But one front was on the verge of collapse: Yinzhou City, where Lu Hanyan was the commanding general.

The main reason was that Guan Zanyi was utterly incompetent.

After holding out for a mere half a day, Yinzhou City was breached. Guan Zanyi could only retreat with his soldiers to a pass in the Tiger Flame Kingdom and continue his defense there.

Yinzhou City had belonged to the Great Wu Empire, so this retreat naturally brought the battle into the Tiger Flame Kingdom’s territory.

The pass connecting the Tiger Flame Kingdom and the Great Wu Empire was called Fierce Tiger Pass!

Afterward, the other kingdoms began to send troops to reinforce the Tiger Flame Kingdom...

The Great Wu Empire also sent reinforcements for Lu Hanyan. Fierce Tiger Pass gradually became the main battlefield between the Hundred Countries and the Great Wu Empire.

「A few days later...」

Grand Marshal Lu Dingtian of the Great Wu Empire gave an order to his trusted subordinate...

”We must break Fierce Tiger Pass. We must invade the Tiger Flame Kingdom to quash any rumors about Lu Chao. This will help Hanyan achieve fame in a single battle and make everyone forget that worthless wretch, Lu Chao.”

With this command, the Great Wu Empire’s soldiers united and threw themselves furiously at Fierce Tiger Pass.

Afterward, Lu Dingtian commanded from the rear while Lu Hanyan served as the commanding general on the front lines. The Lu Family, Lu Dingtian’s clan, called this a crucial battle to erase Lu Chao’s name from memory.

Failure was absolutely not an option.

He wanted everyone to know that his own children, Lu Dingtian’s own flesh and blood, were a thousand times better than Lu Chao.

...

On the other side, deep within the terrifying Yinzhou Mountain range, Lu Chao led the two thousand Descendants of Azure Flame through countless perils.

They picked their way through the mountains, fighting for survival against both the harsh environment and the Demon Beasts.

Time passed slowly. It was now their tenth day in the mountains.

The group finally found a temporarily safe spot to take a short rest.

It was the first real chance they had to catch their breath in ten long days. Every one of them was utterly exhausted. Yet, when they saw Lu Chao, they immediately gritted their teeth, sat cross-legged, and forced themselves to begin. They had to cultivate diligently.

That’s right—for Lu Chao, resting meant Cultivation.

To make it through the mountains, they had to keep pushing forward and fighting Demon Beasts. To do that, they had to get stronger.

Four hours later... BOOM!

True Qi exploded from Lu Chao as he cultivated. After devouring Lu Yan’s Heavenly Bone, he had finally achieved another breakthrough, reaching the Postnatal Ninth Layer.

He was just one step away from the Innate Realm.

Lu Chao slowly opened his eyes, murmuring to himself, ’Once I reach the Innate Realm, I can continue to devour the Star Destiny Bone. I might even figure out a way to retrieve the Heavenly Fire Sparrow Bone...’

At this thought, he glanced at the equally exhausted Cheng Yunsu beside him.

Although she was making progress with the Beast Bone that had replaced her own, she would stop improving once she reached the bone’s limit.

For Cheng Yunsu, getting her Heavenly Fire Sparrow Bone back was critically important.

”Hm?”

Suddenly, Lu Chao’s gaze shifted from Cheng Yunsu.

His Secret Technique of Bright Eyes and Clear Wind Guide swept across their surroundings. The dense auras of countless Demon Beasts were stealthily closing in...

”Demon Beasts. Splitting Wind Demon Wolves.”

”Everyone, on alert! We’re being ambushed by Splitting Wind Demon Wolves. And where there’s one, there’s always a pack.”

Instantly, the hair on everyone’s arms stood on end as they snapped into a combat stance.

Fan Jinhua, Uncle Leng, and even Wu Caicai were all at a higher cultivation realm than Lu Chao...

Fan Jinhua was even a Transformation Realm expert.

Yet none of them had sensed the Splitting Wind Demon Wolves’ approach. Despite this, they had unwavering faith in Lu Chao’s warning.

Over the past ten days, Lu Chao’s Perception Power had proven to be nothing short of terrifying.

It was as if his eyes could see through countless distant dangers. That was the only reason they had all survived this long.

Of course, they didn’t know...

Lu Chao’s Life-taking Star-devouring Bone had devoured the Heavenly Destiny Bright Eye Bone, granting him the powerful Secret Technique, Bright Eyes and Clear Wind Guide. It allowed him not only to perceive the world in minute detail but also to see the hidden things that were invisible to ordinary people.