Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

”Lu Dingtian, you plotted against General Lu Chao in a treacherous and unjust manner! You deserve death!”

”Lu Dingtian, you sought to frame me, the Second Prince, with treachery and injustice! You tried to murder me! You deserve death!”

Wu Zhiqiu’s voice boomed towards the Great Wu soldiers opposite him. ”Whoever slays Lu Dingtian now will be a hero of the Great Wu Empire!”

”This... this is...”

The soldiers of the Great Wu Empire murmured amongst themselves, but the noise quickly died down.

They answered only to Lu Dingtian.

Lu Dingtian himself was exceedingly calm, a cold, mocking smile on his face...

”Listen, my soldiers...”

”Second Prince Wu Zhiqiu has been possessed by a Fierce Ghost! The Lu Chao before you is also a terrifying Fierce Ghost! He plans to bring disaster upon the world! He wants to destroy our Great Wu Empire and turn all of Great Wu into a land of vengeful spirits!”

At this moment, Lu Dingtian naturally needed a pretext to keep his entire army in check.

Although the Great Wu soldiers answered to him—useless even if the Emperor of Great Wu himself were here—Lu Chao’s presence was a different matter. These very soldiers had fought alongside Lu Chao, and more importantly, their hearts had been won over by him.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been routed by the sight of a mere mask before Sword Tooth City...

Even though the talk of a Fierce Ghost was utter nonsense, many of the men still felt a chill run down their spines.

Everyone knew that Lu Chao was already dead.

”This Lu Chao before us—whether he’s real or fake, man or ghost—he is one of the Hundred Countries.”

”He is our enemy! Now, follow me and slay him...”

Lu Dingtian bellowed once more. Countless Great Wu soldiers and officers raised their weapons, ready for battle.

At that moment, Wu Zhiqiu ground his teeth. ”I hereby appoint Lu Chao as the Grand Marshal of Great Wu! Execute the traitor, Lu Dingtian!”

”Ha, hahaha...”

Lu Dingtian roared with laughter. ”Wu Zhiqiu, even if you aren’t a Fierce Ghost, what right do you have to appoint a marshal?”

The Second Prince didn’t care about that. He just needed to give Lu Chao a legitimate title.

He believed his Father Emperor would understand...

Besides, this was no longer a struggle between the three major powers of the Azure Flame Domain. They were now facing the Cyan Sword Great Empire. In Wu Zhiqiu’s heart, only Lu Chao could protect the Azure Flame Domain.

At the same time, Lu Chao slowly took out his mask... CRACK!

He snapped the mask in two, crushed one half to dust, and placed the other half on his face...

”Lu Dingtian, the moment you revealed your vile true colors, we were through.”

”You gave me this mask.”

”But it represents Lu Chao of the Great Wu Empire. I will now wear half of it, and I will fight for the Great Wu Empire.”

As Lu Chao spoke, the soldiers of the Great Wu Empire once again fell into a solemn silence.

If Lu Hanyan were leading the troops now instead of Lu Dingtian, their morale would have likely already collapsed.

Seeing this, Lu Dingtian’s face twisted into a ferocious scowl.

He thundered, ”Playing tricks and putting on an act! A rebellious son will always be a rebellious son! Everyone, with me! Charge!”

Lu Chao’s eyes were cold. Beneath the pouring rain, his half-mask looked eerie and inscrutable.

Suddenly... CRACK!

The Bone of Myriad Stars inside him, which had been suppressing the aura of the Life-taking Devouring Bone, shattered from the successive bursts of power. But at the same time, the Fire Roaring and Water Chant Saint Bones suddenly let out two buzzes...

A powerful aura erupted from them on the spot.

Two auras of Divine Bone burst forth from Lu Chao’s body. The two Saint Bones had fully evolved into Divine Bones.

They instinctively suppressed the Life-taking Star-devouring Bone, which still only had the aura of a Saint Bone. This transformed Lu Chao into what seemed like a body of water and fire, causing his Martial Arts Realm to surge once more, reaching the Sixth Layer of the True Fate Realm on the spot.

He had completely returned to his former peak realm, once again beneath the Blood Stele.

The Star Dragon General Bone quaked violently once more...

The Dragon General Bone stirred the soldiers’ morale. Pointing his long spear forward, Lu Chao commanded gravely, ”Soldiers, charge!”

RUMBLE...

A bloody battle between the Hundred Countries and the Great Wu Empire erupted once more on the Yanwu Battlefield. This time, Lu Chao represented both the Hundred Countries and the Great Wu Empire—his current status was unprecedented.

The two armies passed through the temporary small town and, in the blink of an eye, clashed in brutal combat.

...

A colossal Demon Beast Sword-Winged Ice Wolf was flying over the lands of the Hundred Countries, carrying Niu Dong and the other guards, as well as the injured Yan Mu.

They were heading straight for Cyan Sword Mountain.

By now, Yan Mu had been bandaged and treated by the guards, and he was fully conscious.

He glared viciously at Niu Dong and the others, demanding frantically, ”Why?! I was a whole Eighth Layer Minor Realm higher than that country bumpkin! He’s just a hick from the Azure Flame Domain! Why did I lose?! Tell me why I lost!”

Now that he was out of Lu Chao’s grasp, Yan Mu’s emotions were exploding.

The corners of the mouths of the black-armored Niu Dong and the other guards twitched incessantly. For a moment, they didn’t know how to explain. They couldn’t possibly say, ’All your victories, from childhood until now, were completely arranged for you, right?’

That would get them killed. The Madam and Lord Mo Jing would never let them off.

But how were they supposed to explain it?

”Say something!” Yan Mu roared madly when Niu Dong and the others remained silent.

Finally, an idea struck Niu Dong, and he quickly replied...

”Young Master, it’s just as you said.”

”That country bumpkin, Lu Chao, knows a terrifying Evil Technique. It’s a legendary Evil Technique from the Azure Flame Domain. The moment he defeated you, he used that Evil Technique to instantly reach the Creation Realm, but it only lasted for a moment.”

He could only bullshit, using Yan Mu’s own earlier words—an Evil Technique.

One by one, the guards hurried forward, all agreeing that it was an Evil Technique, all saying that Lu Chao had only defeated the Young Master by instantly reaching the Creation Realm.

If not for the Evil Technique, he would have been no match for the Young Master at all, and so on.

Yan Mu heard this and immediately believed it. He had never lost since he was a child! In his mind, he was invincible among his peers. A sudden loss had to be the result of an Evil Technique. He cursed viciously a few times...

Slowly, Yan Mu’s head shot up...

”An Evil Technique that lets you jump from the True Fate Realm to the Creation Realm in an instant... I must have it! You have to get it for me.”

At these words, Niu Dong and the others nearly fell off the Sword-Winged Ice Wolf.

’Damn it, now what the hell do we do?’

They could only say repeatedly that they had to capture Lu Chao first, and that one couldn’t cultivate Evil Techniques recklessly.

In any case, the priority was to return to Cyan Sword Mountain.

Not daring to delay for a second, not daring to take any more risks, they flew straight toward Cyan Sword Mountain... During the journey, Yan Mu finally fell asleep. Niu Dong turned to a female guard and asked, ”Have you notified Lord Mo Jing?”

”I have, but Lord Mo Jing is likely also traveling on a Little Sword-Winged Ice Wolf. The carrier pigeon can’t catch up,” the female guard replied.

The corner of his mouth twitched. Niu Dong glanced at the sleeping Yan Mu, completely speechless.

”Commander, that Lu Chao is clearly a country bumpkin. Why is he so strong?” the female guard suddenly asked in a low voice.

A cold glint flashed in Niu Dong’s eyes. ”He’s a disciple of the Azure Flame Sect. That Lu Dingtian said before that he intends to re-establish the Azure Flame Sect.”

Hearing this, the female guard quickly asked again, ”The Azure Flame Sect... were they very strong in the past?”