"I’m afraid this place won’t be peaceful for much longer. Let’s go, quickly," Meng Jian said abruptly, grabbing Lin Hao and pulling him along.

Not long after they departed, several middle-aged men appeared on the scene.

They stared dumbfounded at the scene for a moment before one of them spoke up. "Quick, let’s search! See if any treasures were left behind."

"Don’t bother. Judging by this level of destruction, a top-tier expert of the Soul Gathering Realm was definitely just here."

"We all saw it. A radiant light just shot into the sky from this very spot. A rare treasure must have emerged! It might be down in the canyon."

"Then let’s hurry up and search! That light pierced the heavens; it’s bound to attract more experts. Our time is short."

"You search up top. We’ll go down into the canyon."

The middle-aged men split up and got to work...

Lin Hao and Meng Jian moved swiftly, and before long, they had reached the top of a mountain.

Just then, they both turned to look back simultaneously.

"Sister Meng, that looks like the place where we ran into the assassin from the Netherworld Hall. Why does it look like people are fighting there now?" Lin Hao asked, puzzled.

Meng Jian listened intently for a moment, an odd expression crossing her face.

"The radiant light that erupted from your body earlier alerted the nearby Martial Artists. They think a rare treasure has emerged, and now they’re fighting over it."

"Ah..." Lin Hao hadn’t imagined this was all his fault. He scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Let’s go. People are greedy; you can’t be blamed for this," Meng Jian said.

Lin Hao nodded, and the two of them sped off in the direction of the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

Half a day later, the main peak of the Heaven-Stepping Sect, Heaven-Stepping Peak, was faintly visible in the distance.

Although its height meant they were still a great distance from the Heaven-Stepping Sect, Lin Hao’s expression was still one of excitement.

"All right, this is as far as I go. You can walk the rest of the way yourself," Meng Jian suddenly announced.

Lin Hao turned back. "Sister Meng, you don’t have anywhere to go, anyway. Why don’t you come back to the Heaven-Stepping Sect with me?"

The moment he heard Meng Jian was leaving, Lin Hao’s joyful mood evaporated.

Meng Jian shook her head.

"Then at least see me to the sect gates! We’re still a long way from the Heaven-Stepping Sect. What if you leave and another assassin from the Netherworld Hall shows up? What am I supposed to do?" Lin Hao pleaded pitifully.

"If you hadn’t been there, even I wouldn’t have been able to handle that assassin from the Netherworld Hall. They won’t be sending another one anytime soon. Besides, someone from your sect is on their way to escort you."

"Someone’s coming to escort me?" Lin Hao asked, confused, and looked back toward the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

But he saw nothing.

When he turned back again, the beautiful woman was gone without a trace.

"Liar!" Lin Hao muttered under his breath.

A wave of sadness washed over him.

Although he hadn’t known Meng Jian for long, she had taught him a complete set of Swordsmanship and had tirelessly escorted him. He hadn’t yet repaid this debt of gratitude.

"Sister Meng, I swear I’ll repay you for everything!" Lin Hao shouted in the direction she’d disappeared.

He stood there in a daze for a long while before finally moving forward again.

After his figure had vanished from sight, Meng Jian reappeared and murmured, "You silly boy. You don’t owe me a thing."

Of course, Lin Hao had no idea that Meng Jian had never truly left. After walking for a while, he quickly adjusted his mood and pushed thoughts of her to the back of his mind for the time being.

All of a sudden, Lin Hao’s entire body went taut, his expression turning incredibly grave.

A moment later, however, he relaxed and called out happily, "Master."

Just as Meng Jian had said, someone from the Heaven-Stepping Sect had arrived. The man in the lead was none other than Wu Taichu.

Wu Taichu landed before Lin Hao, looking very pleased.

He cupped his fist respectfully and asked Lin Hao, "Martial Grand-uncle, what brings you here?"

"I was returning from the Danling Sect and took a shortcut," Lin Hao answered.

Wu Taichu nodded, then his eyes suddenly lit up. "Martial Grand-uncle, since you came this way, did you happen to see a radiant light that pierced the heavens?"

Lin Hao nodded, then asked hesitantly, "Master, don’t tell me you were...?"

Wu Taichu admitted it freely. "That burst of light was astounding, piercing right through the heavens. A rare treasure must have emerged. I wanted to go try my luck."

"Uh, you’d better not go. It was all a misunderstanding. I heard it was just a strange phenomenon caused by some guy’s training," Lin Hao said, embarrassed to think the commotion he’d accidentally caused had even reached the sect.

"What?" Wu Taichu’s eyes shot open as he stared at Lin Hao in disbelief.

’A training phenomenon that causes a radiant light to pierce the heavens? That’s incredible.’

But on second thought, Wu Taichu was no longer surprised.

"It’s nothing spectacular. When *you* train, Martial Grand-uncle, you can stir the sun and moon. Compared to that, this is laughably weak," Wu Taichu said to Lin Hao with a smile.

Lin Hao coughed twice and quickly changed the subject. "Master, let’s head back."

"Yes, yes, of course," Wu Taichu nodded eagerly.

Wu Taichu stepped aside to let Lin Hao go first. After just two steps, he suddenly asked, "Martial Grand-uncle, are the rumors that are spreading like wildfire true?"

"What rumors?" Lin Hao asked, confused.

"All day, rumors have been spreading that you killed a marquis in Celestial Jade City, Martial Grand-uncle. And that just a day or two ago, you also slew the Golden Eagle Saint King."

"I didn’t think word would travel so fast," Lin Hao murmured.

Wu Taichu sucked in a sharp breath, shock flashing in his eyes.

A marquis. The title alone represented immense power, yet Lin Hao had cut one down just like that.

How unbelievably audacious!

"Are you afraid?" Lin Hao asked teasingly.

Wu Taichu’s expression turned serious, and he immediately shook his head.

"With you here, Martial Grand-uncle, what is there to fear?"

"So you have that much confidence in me," Lin Hao said, still smiling.

"Martial Grand-uncle, you may not be aware, but the first group of disciples sent to the Tongming Sea has returned. Not only has their cultivation greatly improved, but their gains were also substantial. Furthermore, a few days ago, an elder from the Danling Sect personally delivered a large amount of Crystal Stones and refined iron. All of this is thanks to your efforts, Martial Grand-uncle. With you here, the sect’s revival is assured. Those people are nothing to be afraid of."

Wu Taichu continued, reporting to Lin Hao on the sect’s developments over the past several days.

He covered the Spirit Grass harvest from the medicinal fields, the number of pills refined by the Alchemy Masters, and he didn’t even leave out Lian Lanxin’s learning progress.

At this moment, Wu Taichu had lost all airs of a Sect Leader; he was more like a household steward reporting to the Patriarch.

Lin Hao listened quietly, nodding from time to time.

’Even the Sect Leader of the Heaven-Stepping Sect calls him Martial Grand-uncle. By that logic, he must be Senior Cang Yan’s junior martial brother.’ As Lin Hao and Wu Taichu walked further into the distance, Meng Jian’s figure reappeared, her eyes wide with shock at this discovery.

’It’s still half a day’s journey to the Heaven-Stepping Sect. With his sect’s masters here, I can rest easy. Lin Hao... we’ll meet again in a year.’ Meng Jian whispered to herself, then vanished.

As they were walking, Lin Hao suddenly stopped and glanced behind him.

"Martial Grand-uncle, what’s wrong?" Wu Taichu asked.

Lin Hao shook his head. "It’s nothing. I just thought I heard something."

He thought he had just heard Meng Jian’s voice.

"The Suo Demon Sect has been wiped out, the Zhengyang Sect’s expert has been eliminated, and we’ve formed an alliance with the Danling Sect... In short, the Heaven-Stepping Sect is in an excellent position right now. No power would dare make a move against us."

Wu Taichu declared with an excited expression, making his closing statement.

Lin Hao frowned, a vague sense of unease creeping over him.

The news of him killing a marquis had spread far too quickly. It seemed like a hidden hand was fanning the flames from behind the scenes.

Just then, a series of urgent bell tolls echoed from the direction of the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

"For the chimes to travel this far, Elder Gu must be ringing the bell himself! This is bad—a powerful enemy is attacking the sect!" Wu Taichu’s expression changed dramatically.

The color drained from Lin Hao’s face as well. He dissolved into a wisp of green smoke and shot toward the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

Meanwhile, the vast Heaven-Stepping Sect was already completely surrounded.

As far as the eye could see, there were people everywhere; it was impossible to tell how many had come.

Armored soldiers and warhorses filled the landscape, creating a grim and murderous atmosphere.

The army had arrived.

At the main gate of the Heaven-Stepping Sect, Elder Gu stood alone, holding the pass against an army of thousands.

Down below, a man clad in silver armor and mounted on a Dragon Horse was shouting, "Hand over Lin Hao, or we will raze the Heaven-Stepping Sect to the ground today!"

Elder Gu’s expression flickered as he looked at the hundred or so cannons, but he shook his head. "The Heaven-Stepping Sect is the hallowed lineage of an Emperor Venerable. It has stood for ten thousand years. You think you can shake it?"

The silver-armored General didn’t waste any more words and simply waved his hand.

The next moment, a cannon fired, sending a shell hurtling toward the sky above the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

Elder Gu launched himself from the ground, flying up to intercept the cannonball.

The silver-armored General watched with an icy gaze, making no move.

BOOM!

Elder Gu manifested a giant hand of True Essence, intending to swat the cannonball aside.

However, the moment the True Essence hand touched the cannonball, it detonated violently in mid-air.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP...

Elder Gu crashed to the ground, his face flushed crimson. He stumbled back several steps before he could regain his footing.

His expression had finally changed.

’Thank goodness I just manifested a hand of True Essence, or I would have been seriously injured. There’s something strange about these cannonballs.’

"These cannonballs were brought from the capital by a mighty Martial Artist and forged by an Artifact Refining Master! They detonate on contact with True Essence or True Qi. No matter how heaven-defying your abilities, you are powerless against them! Hand over Lin Hao, and we will spare your lives!"

The silver-armored General spoke again.

"Neighboring kingdoms are constantly harassing our borders. You have such powerful weapons, yet instead of sending them to the border armies, you use them against my Heaven-Stepping Sect. This is sheer incompetence!" Elder Gu snapped.

"The Crimson Flame Army is stationed at the border. Doesn’t that man, Chen, bear the title of War God? They have no need for these. As for your Heaven-Stepping Sect, His Majesty has given a direct order: all who offer futile resistance will be killed without mercy!"

"So, you’ve come to avenge a slap from forty years ago. In that case, what difference does it make whether we hand him over or not?" Elder Gu said with a grin, but a crimson long saber had already appeared in his hand.

A Tier Four Spiritual Artifact, the Annihilation Demon Saber.

The moment the Annihilation Demon Saber appeared, a murderous aura flooded the heavens.

The warhorses, which had been standing quietly, grew restless.

"General, that’s a Spiritual Artifact in his hands," a subordinate whispered to the silver-armored General.

"Hmph! So what if it’s a Spiritual Artifact? If he dares use it here, the Heaven-Stepping Sect will be destroyed all the same. It’s just a scare tactic."

Having said that, the silver-armored General addressed Elder Gu once more. "I’ll give you ten breaths. If you don’t hand over Lin Hao, we will raze your Heaven-Stepping Sect to the ground!"

His voice had barely faded when, without waiting for Elder Gu to reply, he began the countdown. "Ten!"

The word, powered by his True Essence, boomed across the sky above the Heaven-Stepping Sect.

Without a moment’s pause, he shouted the next number.

Before long, the count had reached "Five!"

Elder Gu’s grip on the Annihilation Demon Saber tightened, his heart leaping into his throat...