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A cruel smile touched the lips of the youth in beast hides when he heard that the approaching boy was Lin Hao.

’The Jinglian Saint Institute has remained hidden from the world for far too long. To think someone would dare to challenge them, even stealing a Spiritual Artifact from the Saint Institute! Today, I’ll let everyone witness the consequences of offending the Jinglian Saint Institute!’

In that instant, the youth thought of a hundred ways to torture Lin Hao.

However, when the youth turned and saw Meng Qing on the platform looking at Lin Hao with a worried expression, his smile vanished, replaced by a cold, sinister look.

’In his mind, Meng Qing was already his forbidden prize.’ Even though Lin Hao was young, he was still a man, and the youth would not allow Meng Qing to worry about another man.

"You’re going to stand up for her? What is your relationship?" the youth asked, pointing a finger at Meng Qing.

Lin Hao’s expression was indifferent. "She is my person."

On the Wind and Cloud Platform, a brilliant light flashed in Meng Qing’s eyes, but her face immediately turned deathly pale.

She understood Lin Hao’s personality and knew he intended to stand up for her.

But their enemy was too powerful; even the Proud Moon Divine Sect, one of the five great divine sects, could only temporarily avoid a direct confrontation. For Lin Hao to step forward now was like an egg crashing against a stone.

"That makes things simple. Here is the betrothal gift." Seeing Meng Qing’s expression, the youth smiled cruelly as a longsword suddenly appeared in his hand. He tossed it, and the sword landed perfectly in front of Lin Hao, its blade plunged into the ground.

"I was originally going to offer fifty Tier One Spiritual Artifacts. But since she’s your person, one is enough."

An insult. This was a naked, blatant insult.

Countless eyes were fixed on Lin Hao, all wanting to see how he would respond.

Under everyone’s gaze, Lin Hao walked straight to the sword, pulled it from the ground, and then, with one hand on the hilt and the other on the blade, gave it a sharp twist.

In no time at all, the Spiritual Artifact was twisted into knots by Lin Hao.

Then, Lin Hao casually tossed the mangled sword to the feet of the beast-hide youth and said with a smile, "I finally understand why the Jinglian Saint Institute sent you out. Your Artifact Refining skills are just terrible. If I were you, I’d have killed myself from the shame long ago."

BOOM!

The moment Lin Hao spoke, countless people’s eyes widened in shock.

Lin Hao was too arrogant, daring to directly challenge someone from the Jinglian Saint Institute.

"Luo Zhonglou, cut out his tongue for me!" the youth in beast hides roared in fury.

He was an Artifact Refiner from the Jinglian Saint Institute. Forget the Southern Border Prefecture—even in the Ancient Empire, the Monarch himself would have to treat him with courtesy.

But now, he was being provoked like this by a mere boy. It enraged him beyond measure.

An aura exploded from Luo Zhonglou—the fluctuation of a Soul Gathering Realm expert. Lin Hao’s body was instantly restrained by the pressure.

But Luo Zhonglou didn’t succeed, because Su Molixi made her move.

"You want to make an enemy of the Jinglian Saint Institute?" The beast-hide youth’s face was livid, killing intent naked in his eyes.

Song Xinchuan of the Proud Moon Divine Sect’s eyes flashed. Just as he was about to step forward, a voice sounded from the side.

"Lin Hao has a grudge with our Mingjian Manor. We’ll cut out this tongue for the young master." The speaker was Fifth Sword, the only woman among the Nine Great Sword Attendants.

Even without the matter of the Jinglian Saint Institute, they would have made a move. Now, they could kill two birds with one stone.

"Then what are you waiting for!" the youth in beast hides demanded haughtily, looking at the Nine Great Sword Attendants.

Then, he sneered at Lin Hao. His expression seemed to say, ’See that? I don’t even have to say a word, and people will step up for me.’

Unfortunately for him, Lin Hao didn’t even spare him a glance.

Lin Hao’s gaze was fixed on the Nine Great Sword Attendants.

He found that the aura of each of the nine was stronger than the last. Looking at them, he felt as if he were facing nine sharp swords, waiting to be unsheathed.

Lin Hao simply stared at them, his gaze direct and unrestrained.

"Lin Hao, hand over the Evil-Slaying Sword and cut out your own tongue. Don’t make us dirty our hands," Fifth Sword said, meeting his gaze.

Though she was a woman, her words were venomous, her heart as vicious as a viper.

"The sword is here, and my tongue is here. If you have the skill, come and take them yourself," Lin Hao replied, holding the Evil-Slaying Sword without a trace of fear.

Just as Fifth Sword was about to move, a man beside her stepped forward.

"Remember my name. I am Sword Six," the man said, his killing intent chilling.

Then, he took a single step, and a fierce gale erupted around him.

Those with discerning eyes felt their hearts tighten.

Sword Six hadn’t even moved his sword, yet his intent had already taken form. It was a terrifying sight.

Lin Hao didn’t dare to be careless. He activated his imperial technique, and his eyes became incredibly brilliant.

Everything became clear.

He could see that within the void, the raging gale was actually showing signs of coalescing.

Then, Sword Six moved.

His sword was fast.

Without even the sound of it cutting through the air, it was already in front of Lin Hao.

Lin Hao’s figure retreated explosively. With a flick of his wrist, he drew the Evil-Slaying Sword, unleashing a torrent of Sword Qi.

Nearby, Fifth Sword sneered.

’Sword Six has already touched the threshold of Sword Intent. For Lin Hao to fight back with mere Sword Qi, he’s at an Innate disadvantage. His defeat is inevitable.’

"And here I thought he was something special. Turns out he’s just average," Fifth Sword said, not bothering to hide her contempt.

In the audience, not a few people, especially the Sword Dao experts, shared Fifth Sword’s opinion.

In their view, both Sword Qi and Sword Intent could kill, but Sword Intent could kill without a trace and was far more profound than Sword Qi.

It was obvious that Sword Six had already comprehended Sword Intent.

"Lin Hao, I’m afraid..." Countless people shook their heads and sighed inwardly.

CLANG! 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

A crisp sound rang out, and the duel between the two came to an end. But the result was far beyond everyone’s expectations.

Sword Six’s sword was caught between Lin Hao’s fingers, while Lin Hao’s own sword was pointed directly at Sword Six’s throat.

’What just happened?’

Fifth Sword was utterly bewildered.

"He has mastered the first form of the Immortal Slaying Sword Skill, ’Sword into a Myriad,’ to the point of absolute perfection," Sword One spoke, his expression grave. "If he hadn’t shown mercy, Old Six would be dead already."

Just now, he had seen it clearly. Lin Hao’s sword was not only fast, but his Sword Qi moved at will, making it impossible to defend against.

"Why? Why did I lose?" Sword Six’s face was ashen. He couldn’t accept this reality.

"Your Sword Intent isn’t there yet," Lin Hao said as he stepped back.

In truth, winning against Sword Six so quickly was a stroke of luck for Lin Hao.

When Sword Six attacked, he immediately used Sword Intent with great fanfare. Unfortunately for him, after Lin Hao activated his imperial technique, he saw through the attack’s strengths and weaknesses in a single glance.

Beating him was, in some ways, even easier than beating the other Sword Attendants.

"I admit, I underestimated you. You’re quite good. Good enough for me to perform a sword dance for you," Fifth Sword said suddenly, giving Lin Hao a bewitching smile.

Lin Hao’s heart skipped a beat, as if it had been plucked by something.

Before Lin Hao could process it, Fifth Sword had already drawn her sword and begun to dance.

The moment her sword moved, the entire arena filled with the gleam of sword light. Martial Artists with lower cultivation levels felt dizzy, and no one dared to look directly at her.

"Big Brother, how long do you think this kid can last against Fifth Sister’s sword dance?" one of the Nine Great Sword Attendants asked Sword One.

Sword One frowned, staring intently at Lin Hao without answering.

He was clearly a cautious man.

"In the battle ten years ago, Fifth Sister’s dance stirred the four corners of the world. By the halfway point, countless people had slit their own throats, including many Martial Artists who had reached the third and fourth layers of the Elemental Realm. This Lin Hao’s cultivation is still in the Blood Coagulation Realm. It would be a miracle if he could last until the halfway point."

Sword One didn’t answer, but another Sword Attendant did.

"He won’t last that long. Look, Fifth Sister’s dance has just begun, and he’s already staring blankly, completely captivated."

Another Sword Attendant spoke up, shaking his head.

The other Sword Attendants looked over and saw it was true.

Lin Hao was staring intently, his eyes not even blinking.

In the center of the arena, Fifth Sword’s dance continued.

"Fifth Sister is being too cautious. It’s already at this point, yet she still hasn’t made her move," a Sword Attendant said, puzzled.

"Never underestimate your opponent," Sword One said in a low voice.

And at that very moment, the dancing Fifth Sword finally spoke.

"Lin Hao, cut out your own tongue."

Her voice was ethereal and indistinct, yet it contained a strange Magic Power.

In the audience, some people shuddered upon hearing her words.

They remembered the rumors about Fifth Sword.

It was said that ten years ago, among the sects that had besieged Mingjian Manor, countless experts had committed suicide after watching a woman’s sword dance.

The reason was simply that the dancing woman had said one sentence: "All of you can die now."

This woman was, of course, Fifth Sword.

Fifth Sword’s dance contained a bewitching power that could sow chaos in the mind and control the will, making it impossible to defend against.

Thus, her dance was secretly called the Life-taking Sword Dance.

Among the Sword Attendants, some wore faint smiles.

Fifth Sword had waited until the halfway point of her dance to speak. There was no way Lin Hao could escape.

But in the next moment, their smiles froze on their faces.

Lin Hao was still maintaining the same expression, completely unmoved.

’What’s going on?’

Fifth Sword paused for a fraction of a second, then her dance became even more frantic.

Her voice rang out again, "Lin Hao, cut out your own tongue."

Lin Hao remained still.

"Lin Hao, throw the Evil-Slaying Sword over here." Seeing that her dance was about to end and that forcing Lin Hao to self-mutilate wasn’t working, she changed her command, now wanting the Evil-Slaying Sword.

Unfortunately, Lin Hao still did not move.

At that moment, the sword dance was complete.

Her eyes were wide with disbelief. She couldn’t believe this was real.

Her sword dance had actually failed.

Ever since she mastered this sword dance, even Martial Artists one or two layers higher in cultivation than her would be affected. It had never failed.

And Lin Hao, whose cultivation was only at the Blood Coagulation Realm, should have been an impossible target to miss.

Gritting her teeth, Fifth Sword prepared to strike again.

Just then, Lin Hao suddenly spoke.

"Stop dancing. Your sword dance is ugly, just like you. After seeing it once, I have absolutely no desire to see it a second time. Alas, this isn’t what a sword dance should be in my eyes."

PFFT!

Fifth Sword staggered and violently spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Lin Hao, I’ll kill you!"

A woman’s concern for her appearance is beyond imagination. Hearing Lin Hao’s words, Fifth Sword became like a madwoman.

"Fifth Sister, you have lost." Sword One intervened, blocking her path.

Then, Sword One turned to Lin Hao and asked, "I wonder, what does the ideal sword dance look like in Young Master Lin’s mind?"

"Swift as the archer Yi shooting down nine suns, agile as gods astride soaring dragons. It comes like rolling thunder that contains its wrath, and ends like the vast sea condensing into clear light," Lin Hao replied with a faint smile.

When these words were spoken, not only was Sword One’s expression one of deep shock, but even Su Molixi’s delicate body trembled.

Fifth Sword’s face turned ashen.

In just a few lines, the image of an invincible sword dance was vividly brought to life.

The depth of Lin Hao’s insight was simply shocking.