Fate-Defying Demon Emperor

BOOM!

The giant frost palm descended, shaking the entire ground. Countless shards of ice burst in all directions, causing everyone’s expressions to change as they quickly retreated to defend themselves.

”You old geezer, you dare to injure me? Let’s see you survive this time!”

The sinister youth clutched the wound on his abdomen, a triumphant look on his face as he gazed at Li Mingliang’s position. He was confident that his palm strike had already crushed Li Mingliang into a meat patty. As for the Myriads Swords Returning Origin Technique, he wasn’t worried. The old one was dead, but wasn’t there still a young one? As long as he captured Li Qingyue, obtaining the Myriads Swords Returning Origin Technique would be no problem. Presenting it to His Majesty would surely be a monumental achievement. The sinister youth was already fantasizing about his own meteoric rise.

At this moment, the others shared his thoughts. This was, after all, a Supreme Treasure, possessing the power of a supreme strike. With Li Mingliang’s strength at the Divine Power Realm, he definitely couldn’t withstand it; his death was certain. Unfortunately, all the credit was about to be monopolized by the sinister youth alone, which made everyone green with envy. Still, they dared not harbor any resentment. The name of the Marquis of Zhenyuan still carried a significant deterrent effect.

Suddenly, the smile on the sinister youth’s face froze. ”Hmm?” His pupils contracted as he stared ahead in utter disbelief.

He saw that the giant frost palm had shattered, turning into a pile of ice debris that was slowly melting away. And Li Mingliang, whom he thought was dead for sure, was still alive.

A figure was standing in front of Li Mingliang, having blocked the palm strike for him.

”The Nineteenth Prince!”

Upon getting a clear look at the figure, the sinister youth sucked in a cold breath, his eyes nearly bulging from their sockets. He had never imagined that the person who saved Li Mingliang would be the Nineteenth Prince.

”My apologies,” Su Han said, taking out Healing Pills from his Bronze Ring and handing them to Li Mingliang.

He had been so immersed in his battle with the Sword Intent of Ages that he had forgotten about Li Mingliang and Li Qingyue, allowing them to be attacked by the sinister youth. The oversight filled him with guilt.

”Your Highness, this is not your fault!”

Li Mingliang naturally wouldn’t blame Su Han. He took the Healing Pills and consumed them. His injuries quickly stabilized and stopped worsening.

”Go take care of Qingyue. Leave this to me.”

Li Qingyue’s Enlightenment had not yet ended. Su Han had already instructed the Crane Sword Saint to protect her, and now he sent Li Mingliang over as well to ensure she would not be disturbed.

Li Mingliang bowed respectfully and left. With Su Han here, he no longer had anything to worry about. He trusted that Su Han would handle the situation perfectly.

”Your Highness, these two are remnants of the Myriad Swords Sect! Please act quickly and capture them. Forcing the Myriads Swords Returning Origin Technique from them and presenting it to His Majesty would be a great service!” the sinister youth blurted out, unaware of the relationship between Su Han and Li Mingliang. He was trying to curry favor.

Unfortunately for him, Su Han remained expressionless, his gaze only growing sharper.

”You know they are remnants of the Myriad Swords Sect. But do you know they are my people?”

Su Han walked toward the sinister youth with his hands clasped behind his back. He radiated no particular aura, yet his presence alone was enough to inspire awe.

”What?”

Su Han’s words made the sinister youth’s face pale. He had arrived early and ascended the Arena of Sword Discourse ahead of everyone, so he hadn’t seen Li Mingliang and Li Qingyue arrive with Su Han. No wonder these remnants of the Myriad Swords Sect dared to attend the Mount Hua Sword Competition. They had already pledged allegiance to the Nineteenth Prince! The sinister youth understood everything in an instant. A cold sweat beaded on his forehead as his heart went cold.

”Your Highness, I’m sorry! I didn’t know they were your people! I apologize to you, and I apologize to them!”

Watching Su Han’s steady approach, the sinister youth was terrified. Although he was the son of the Marquis of Zhenyuan, the gap between his status and that of the Nineteenth Prince was vast. Even if the prince killed him, his father would be unable to avenge him.

”Apologize?” Su Han sneered, perfectly emulating the Nineteenth Prince’s famous conceit. ”If apologies were useful, what would be the point of cultivation?”

His steps were unhurried, but in the eyes of the sinister youth, they were like the advance of the Grim Reaper. He collapsed to the ground with a thud, staring up at Su Han in terror. He wanted to live, not die here, but he knew he was no match for the Nineteenth Prince, whether in background or personal strength. Moreover, a prince was a sovereign, and he was but a subject. If the sovereign commands a subject to die, the subject must obey!

Just then, a gentle voice sounded. ”Nineteenth Brother, why would you target your own subject for the sake of an outsider?”

The crowd parted to let a man and a woman step forward—it was none other than the Eighth Prince and the Thirteenth Princess. The commotion from the earlier fight had been too great for them to ignore. The mention of Myriad Swords Sect remnants had drawn their attention to Li Mingliang and Li Qingyue. If the sinister youth hadn’t already acted, they might have tried to capture the two themselves.

They just never expected their Nineteenth Brother to intervene, or that he had already brought these two remnants under his command. This was not good news for them. The Nineteenth Prince’s innate talent was already superior to theirs; now that he had acquired two members of the Myriad Swords Sect, he would surely gain favor with their Imperial Father. He might even obtain the Myriads Swords Returning Origin Technique. The competition for the emperor’s favor was growing more intense, and they had no desire to see the Nineteenth Prince rise above them.

”Your Highness the Eighth Prince, Thirteenth Princess, you must save me!”

Seeing the two royals, the sinister youth’s eyes lit up as if he’d seen his saviors, and he quickly pleaded for help. He couldn’t stand against Su Han, but the Eighth Prince and Thirteenth Princess could. He wasn’t a fool; he could see the Eighth Prince was positioning himself against the Nineteenth Prince. Although the Eighth Prince’s innate talent was inferior to the Nineteenth Prince’s, his strength was greater. For the youth, this was a powerful backer worth clinging to.

The sinister youth’s quick thinking earned a silent nod of approval from the Eighth Prince. He had stepped forward precisely to use the youth as a pretext for targeting the Nineteenth Prince, hoping to find a way to take the two Myriad Swords Sect remnants for himself.

”Nineteenth Brother, today is the auspicious day of the Mount Hua Sword Competition. Besides, those two are wanted criminals, while this young man is a Little Marquis of our Heavenly Sword Dynasty. You can’t just turn right and wrong on their heads!”

The Eighth Prince strode forward with a smile that concealed his antagonism, intending to brand Su Han as someone incapable of telling the loyal from the treacherous. In terms of innate talent, his was indeed no match for the Nineteenth Prince’s, but in terms of strength and cunning, he believed he could crush him. He was full of confidence as he schemed how to claim Li Mingliang and Li Qingyue.

SWOOSH!

At that very moment, Su Han pointed his fingers like a sword. A tangible beam of Sword Qi, faster than lightning, whistled out and sliced across the sinister youth’s neck.

The sinister youth had assumed that with the Eighth Prince’s arrival, the Nineteenth Prince wouldn’t dare to kill him. He had no time to react before the Sword Qi struck. His head slid from his neck, and his corpse crumpled to the ground.

Having done this, Su Han looked up at the Eighth Prince. ”You can’t protect the person I choose to kill.”