Chapter 998: The First Battle of the New Dao (IV)

Seeing as there were a few core origin replicas that refused to surrender, Lin Hongyu snorted coldly. “Kill them all! We don’t need to learn anything from them. The commander will sweep through the world and eliminate those who don’t obey him after he emerges from seclusion!”

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

“KILL!” rang answering shots as several more core origin replicas exploded!

“A grisly end’s coming for you!” one of them howled. “Do you think this is our full force?? When my primary body emerges...”

“And do

you

think this is our full force?” Lin Hongyu sniffed. “I am just sixth level Mountain and Sea. There are a dozen Sun and Moon heavyweights in the Skystar Commander Office! They’ll exterminate your primary body like they’re slicing tofu! You are such a cocky idiot, how are you worthy of being hailed as a New Martial powerhouse?? This is ludicrous! You are an affront to your age and should be executed!”

“Sun and Moon?” the ancient asked with incredulity. What cultivation level was that?

But there was no chance for them to ask.

Kaboom!

All of the remaining core origin replicas shattered!

......

Silver Moon.

Multiple powerhouses in an ancient city spat out blood as their core origin shook. The city seemed alive in this instant.

“Our replicas have all died!” gasped one of them. “Someone killed them all!”

Based on this timing, they should’ve just reached Skystar City. How was this possible?! Who’d done it?? That’d been fourteen heavyweights, how could they all have died so quickly?

Within the city lord manor at the center of the city, a ponderously ancient existence opened its eyes. “No wonder...” A solemn and aloof look could be found in them. “It looks like the change in the world has much to do with Li Hao!”

The fourteen core origin replicas all possessed the strength of an Apex. While they weren’t as strong as Apexes of New Martial, they were the undisputed titans of this age.

How could they have been killed in an instant?? It was impossible to believe! Less than half a day had elapsed since he gave the order.

“Milord...” An apprehensive subordinate waited at the door.

“Send someone to investigate, but keep a lower profile and don’t take brash action!” grunted the ancient existence. It frowned with the implications of this result—the restrictions of the world were still present. Wouldn’t that mean an even higher level of power had taken action in order to kill fourteen Apexes? So the other side also had large numbers of New Martial citizens helping them?”

The possibility stymied the existence, so it could only choose to gather more information before making their next move.

“Have the three great organizations quickly deliver a report. Also, have that Ying Hongyue come see me as soon as possible!”

“Understood!”

......

Lin Hongyu looked out over the Skystar Sea and into the distance.

“Battle Heaven seniors have come to visit, we apologize for the delayed greeting!” she said softly with a smile. “The commander is still in closed door cultivation and I, Lin Hongyu, am the acting city lord. I have prepared a welcome banquet outside the city gates. Please make your way over and have a rest! I will report your arrival to the commander so that we can open the city gates and properly welcome our honored guests!”

Thousands of Demon Hunters stood in formation on the shore. Multiple powerhouses hovered over the sea. Across the way, thousands of Battle Heaven soldiers remained unmoving in silent formation.

“To think that the Eleventh Division leader would recruit thousands of soldiers in such a short duration!” the Ninth Division leader sighed with gratification. “You show good training. Although you are not elite troops, this is a rare feat that you have accomplished!”

“This is only one third of the Demon Hunter Army,” Lin Hongyu smiled. “What we have sent into the field today is our second echelon of troops. Our first echelon is currently defending the Skystar Commander Office and suppressing various rebels throughout the land. This is but a trifling demonstration to the senior!”

More than ten thousand troops!

The Ninth Division leader took a step forward through the air. He recognized almost no one present.

“If the Eleventh Division leader is still in seclusion, then...”

“You wait!” snapped someone by Lin Hongyu’s side. “You talk too much, Li Daozong!”

“......” The Ninth Division leader blinked. Who was that? He looked at the people next to Lin Hongyu.

“Who you looking at? It’s me, Jiang Yingli!”

The Ninth Division leader blinked again. Although he’d guessed it was that group of students, he hadn’t thought that they would speak up in Li Hao’s defense. “Have you... seen Wang Ye?”

“We have!”

“His... great dao has broken...”

“Oh, that. He’s fine, he’s still alive! Not to mention, Teacher Zhang is here too. What can go wrong?”

“Martial uncle is also here?” The Ninth Division leader’s eyes widened.

“Of course. Li Daozong, we should not have stopped you and your troops, but the times have changed. Teacher says that since New Martial has abandoned this world, we should follow its own rules. The times now are not what they were one hundred thousand years ago!”

The Ninth Division leader looked around in a daze.

The times now are not what they were one hundred thousand years ago!

Martial Uncle Zhang wanted everyone to respect the rules of this time period.

The Gold Armor looked at Skystar City and scanned the thousands of armored warriors in front of him. He then rested his gaze on the modern powerhouses standing in his way. “Then I will wait here for the Eleven Division leader to emerge from seclusion!

“We make camp here!”

“Understood, sir!” chorused the troop leaders.

The Demon Hunters watched as thousands of Battle Heaven troops quietly set up camp. They watched with bated breath, staring at this ancient army that was said to be dead. Only lingering obsession was left of them, but they remained the elite forces that they were!

Some Demon Hunters had grumbled when the Gold Armor had said that the Demon Hunter Army was not elite. However, they understood what he meant when they saw the Battle Heaven Army set up camp in a massive defensive formation. Not a single motion was wasted as they completed their task in record time. It was a marvelous layout that one could both attack and defend from; the sight gladdened the heart.

Was this what was meant by an ancient army of elite troops?

Huang Yu was observing them as well; the man was quite solemn. This army was comprised of the dead and just the reserve defenders of a city. They weren’t the first echelon of their army either!

How long could the thousands under his command hold on if they encountered a Battle Heaven Army in peak battle condition? Perhaps... not even fifteen minutes before they were completely eradicated.

The Ninth Division leader also silently assessed his modern counterparts, feeling quite a mix of emotions. These were weak existences, but there was nothing to pick at when it came to their military discipline. It did not falter even when faced with strong foes. How had Li Hao accomplished this level of training in such a short period of time?

The kid was irreverent, lackadaisical, and a martial master without orthodox training. Was it possible for a guy lacking military bearing to train such an accomplished troop?

It was incredible!

And, was Wang Ye dead or not? Also, what was the Mountain and Sea or Sun and Moon that these people spoke of?

A multitude of questions swirled in the Ninth Division leader’s mind. He was even more curious where the core origin replicas had come from. Which faction had revitalized so many people? Fourteen replicas indicated that fourteen existences had awakened. The weakest of them must be Immortal as Apexes would not easily sever their core origin.

The two armies faced off against each other.

Lin Hongyu went about her duties, assigning runners to take the new recording and have it edited by professionals. The new martial dao was due to be shared with the world. This battle would be more effective for advertising compared to anything else.

Perhaps the four continents would outright surrender when they heard of how the Demon Hunter Army had killed so many seven elements! And she had firmly found her footing after this battle. While the Battle Heaven experts were very strong, she put them out of mind since they’d chosen to stand down.

Lin Hongyu was in excellent spirits after achieving such a smashing victory without needing to inform Li Hao. The Demon Hunter Army had also put their mettle to the test after facing the Battle Heaven Army. The results of the day put her in a very good mood.

Her smile deepened when she looked at the merry Chen Zhongtian next to her.

You won’t be so cheerful after the final version of the film comes out because... no one will know you. Take a look at who your opponent is next time before you try to steal someone else’s thunder!

Meanwhile, Deputy Zhou didn’t say a word. He vanished with the wind to bring a report to the city. This wasn’t just a skirmish against fourteen replicas, but a sign that the enemy was starting to move against them.

How would Li Hao answer the challenge?

......

The Skystar Town ruins.

Numerous bodies hovered in the air. Some had exploded, others were fully preserved. Director General Wang was dazzled by the sight and his eyes gleamed brightly, not knowing which one to choose.

Li Hao ignored him, turning to refine the divine corpse instead. Immense earth energy swept in all directions—it held sway over the earth!

An ‘earth’ character darted into the body. While it couldn’t bring Saint-level strength to bear, the body still proved to be a formidable asset. It was enormous at first, but began gradually shrinking until it was the size of a normal human. It stood next to Li Hao like a bodyguard, one that was much stronger than anyone else. The key was that it wasn’t afraid of death and could wholeheartedly protect Li Hao.

Yuan Shuo and the rest were very satisfied with this outcome. To be honest, they were uneasy at relying on New Martial citizens to protect the young man. The divine corpse perfectly filled the gap.

Li Hao was very strong and possibly the only true Sun and Moon cultivator at present. But he was still very far away when compared to the New Martial powerhouses. Everyone was much more reassured to have another divine bodyguard by his side.

The young man was also quite delighted. While he couldn’t use the body indefinitely, it would buy him more time and opportunities. This was the body of a local divine spirit. Compared to the formidable bodies of New Martial, Li Hao felt that it might be more useful than the body of the faux Empyrean King.

At the very least, he could control this one. He couldn’t manipulate the Empyrean King because core origin dao was required for that.