Strongest War Emperor

As it happened, Shui Qingwu’s cousin, Shui Ningxin, suddenly appeared and unleashed a torrent of cold taunts and sarcastic remarks at Shen Lang, infuriating Shui Qingwu, who was standing beside them.

Shen Lang, on the other hand, simply crossed his arms, tilted his head, and watched Shui Ningxin jabber on without saying a word.

But his silence only made Shui Ningxin even more furious!

”You... Don’t you look at me like that! I’m not afraid of you!” Shui Ningxin felt as if her attacks weren’t landing at all. It was like seeing a step ahead, only to move forward and miss it completely, stepping into empty air.

The memory of the Third Prince offending Shen Lang and being forced to slap his own face, combined with her current frustration—all these negative emotions swirled together, driving Shui Ningxin practically mad with rage!

With a soft thud, before Shui Ningxin’s anger could erupt, Shui Qingwu brought a hand down on the nape of her neck in a chop, knocking her out cold.

”Take her back and put her in confinement!” Shui Qingwu supported Shui Ningxin and handed her over to two experts from the Shui Family who had rushed over.

Only then did Shui Qingwu turn around, raising an eyebrow with a smile. ”You don’t mind, do you?”

The corner of Shen Lang’s mouth lifted slightly. ”Seeing as her older cousin is so beautiful, I’ll let it slide. If it were anyone else, I would’ve slapped them all the way to Yunfeng Country.”

With that, Shen Lang leisurely strolled toward the Profound Dao Sect’s area.

’That guy...’

Shui Qingwu’s face flushed red. She glanced left and right a few times and then, like a thief with a guilty conscience, lowered her head and hurried away.

By the time Shen Lang reached Chu Qingcheng’s side, the surrounding disciples of the Five Sects had all stood up, their expressions full of respect as they watched him.

Chu Qingcheng was in the middle of praising Shen Jianfeng. ”Jianfeng, you did a great job this time. You executed the ’Seventy-Two Dominating Spear Techniques’ so... shabbily... uh, I mean, respectably.”

”Not only did you not even take out the Magic Shield that Xiaolang made, but your Spirit Beast also never made an appearance, and you barely used any Talismans... Not bad, not bad at all. Take some time to absorb what you’ve learned. The benefits will be endless.”

The Magic Shield he mentioned had been crafted by Shen Lang using the scales of a Four-winged Green-scaled Python. In a battle between Spirit Martial Realm Martial Artists, it was an almost impenetrable fortress unless one possessed a powerful Profound Artifact.

But Shen Jianfeng had used neither the Magic Shield nor the Spirit Beast Shen Lang had provided.

He had truly defeated Xiao Hongyue with his own courage and strength.

So, as Chu Qingcheng praised Shen Jianfeng, Sect Leader Su Wenxuan, Wang Dashu, and the others beside them were also full of praise.

Chu Qingcheng rarely praised anyone, so with the added commendations from the Sect Leader and several Elders, Shen Jianfeng was so overjoyed he could hardly think straight.

Shen Lang rolled his eyes. ’He knew Shen Jianfeng was in for it now...’

Sure enough, after buttering Shen Jianfeng up and leaving him giddy, Chu Qingcheng’s very next sentence was, ”Jianfeng, my cultivation hasn’t progressed an inch lately. How about you lend me three hundred Spirit Stones?”

Lost in his excitement, Shen Jianfeng didn’t even stop to think. Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, he took out three hundred Low Grade Spirit Stones and stuffed them into Chu Qingcheng’s hands...

Everyone rolled their eyes.

At that moment, the Profound Dao Sect’s Elder Ancestor, Dongfang Jian, who was sitting behind them, spoke in a booming voice. ”Xiaolang, you’re here. I’m leaving everyone in your hands. Just as you guided Shen Jianfeng, guide the others to defeat their opponents...”

Everyone nodded repeatedly.

With Shen Lang here, the outcome of the competition was basically a foregone conclusion.

Chu Qingcheng gave a thumbs-up. ”Excellent! The Elder Ancestor is truly as cunning as an old... uh, I mean, as experienced and prudent as they come!”

Unexpectedly, Dongfang Jian added in a whiny tone, ”Do this, and that business about you telling that madwoman which way I fled... we’ll call it even!”

Shen Lang was stunned for a moment. He turned his head and saw that Dongfang Jian’s left hand was wrapped in bandages, and he was glaring at him with palpable Killing Intent.

Meanwhile, the surrounding crowd had all wiped the smiles from their faces. They put on stern, serious expressions, looking as though they bore a deep and bitter grudge, as if they’d all just been gang-raped.

Back when Shen Lang had first entered the Imperial Capital, he’d run into Dongfang Jian at the main gate being hunted down by Duanmu Rongrong and several King Martial Realm powerhouses. Not only had Shen Lang not intervened, he had told Duanmu Rongrong which way Dongfang Jian had escaped.

This ultimately led to Dongfang Jian getting cornered and ganged up on...

Shen Lang’s expression turned serious. ”Elder Ancestor, you mustn’t believe such divisive words. I clearly pointed them in the opposite direction... Ahem. But getting back to the point, all the martial brothers here are elite disciples from their respective Sects. Plus, I’ve already given them so many good things. Never mind anything else, just with a Magic Shield and a High Tier Spirit Beast, it’s basically impossible for them to lose, unless they run into a Spirit Martial Realm Ninth Heaven Peak powerhouse.”

”I don’t mean to be harsh, but if they still manage to lose multiple matches and forfeit their qualification to enter the Yumu Cave Blessed Land under these conditions, then even if I guided them to a win or two, they’d probably just be going there to die.”

”Besides...” Shen Lang said with a yawn, ”it’s not realistic for me to guide over five hundred people one by one, is it?”

”Cut the crap!” Dongfang Jian snapped. ”You’re already here, so would it kill you to help out? We have good things, but it’s not like the Major Sects are far behind... Not everyone has Mo Ge’s level of strength!”

The surrounding crowd pricked up their ears, afraid of missing a single word.

For some time now, everyone, from the disciples of the various Sects to the Sect Leaders and Elders, had grown to rely on Shen Lang.

They all felt that as long as he was present, basically nothing was too difficult to handle.

So even though their cultivation had surged, they had High Tier Talismans, their Magic Shields had astonishing Defense Power, and they were accompanied by powerful Spirit Beasts...

...everyone still hoped that Shen Lang would offer his guidance at a time like this and help them crush their opponents.

After all, such guidance wasn’t just about winning or losing this battle; it would also be of great benefit to their future cultivation.

One only needed to look at the change in that idiot Shen Jianfeng before and after receiving guidance to understand its value.

At this moment, the heated duels on the four stages in the middle of the Martial Arts Arena resumed.

Dongfang Jian’s ability to grasp the situation was clearly no match for Shen Lang’s.

His worries did not come to pass.

The disciples of the Profound Dao Sect and the other four of the Five Sects shone brilliantly in match after match, with many defeating their opponents by an overwhelming margin.

After more than ten matches, they hadn’t suffered a single defeat!

This forced the various Major Sects to see them in a new light.

Moreover, during the initial stages, almost none of them had even brought out their Magic Shields or Spirit Beasts.

At most, they only used a few powerful Talismans for support.

Many classic, widely discussed duels emerged from these bouts.

What puzzled everyone, however, was that Tian Hao—the guy who had been lying in a chair like a mummy both back at the Profound Dao Sect and here in the Imperial Capital—was actually fighting remarkably well in every single match!

He himself was responsible for several of these ”classic” duels!

For example, in his first two matches, Tian Hao ended the fights using only two cheap Illusory God Talismans, earning everyone’s reluctant admiration.

He used the first Illusory God Talisman just as his opponent was about to unleash an ultimate move.

Many of the powerful ultimate moves used by Spirit Martial Realm Martial Artists require time to prepare, gather power, and wait for the perfect moment to execute.

Just as Tian Hao’s opponent was channeling Spiritual Power for a finishing blow, a herd of large white pigs suddenly rumbled past...

Tian Hao’s poor opponent could only stare blankly as the herd of pigs ran by. By the time they came to their senses, Tian Hao’s own ultimate move had already struck.

The entire audience howled with laughter, almost to the point of passing out.

He threw the second Illusory God Talisman just as his next opponent launched an attack... Amid a flash of light, a massive, thirty-foot-tall Demon Beast materialized on the stage. It opened its cavernous maw to swallow them whole, scaring the opponent out of their wits and allowing Tian Hao to knock them off the stage with a single blow!

By the time the other disciples grew to despise Tian Hao and refused to be fooled by his Illusory God Talismans, the giant Demon Beast appeared once again... only this time, it was real.

It was a genuine Sixth Level Demon Beast, an Ice Dragon Rhinoceros—a creature equivalent in power to a Spirit Martial Realm Ninth Heaven Peak Martial Artist!

And so Tian Hao, who had originally been the weakest...

...armed himself with an extremely defensive Profound Iron Treasure Umbrella that was impervious to water, fire, blades, and spears.

While hiding behind the colossal Ice Dragon Rhinoceros, he had the beast charge into battle for him, taking his shamelessness to the absolute limit. This drew a storm of curses from the entire audience... but curses were just curses. They were helpless as long as they couldn’t defeat him.

The moment Tian Hao suffered his first loss, Chu Qingcheng woke up Shen Lang, who had been resting with his eyes closed.

”Hm?”

Shen Lang opened his eyes, and they immediately narrowed.

Down on one of the stages, Tian Hao had finally met a worthy opponent!

Tang Wenqing, a Spirit Martial Realm Ninth Heaven expert from the White Bone Hall!

Right then, Tian Hao was directing the Ice Dragon Rhinoceros to frantically pursue Tang Wenqing, but no matter how fast the beast moved or how it attacked, it couldn’t even touch the hem of her clothes!

Tang Wenqing, clad in Silver Armor, moved like a silver dragon, her speed incredible as she darted about freely.

Tian Hao frowned and sneered, ”Tang Wenqing, stop running. What’s the point? Surely you don’t think you can escape from the palm of my hand?”

”You may be at the Spirit Martial Realm Ninth Heaven, but on a stage this small and facing my colossal Ice Dragon Rhinoceros, you can’t bring your full power to bear... Just give up!”

”Alternatively, if you agree to go on a date with me, I might consider letting you off the hook,” Tian Hao added with a lecherous chuckle.

Tang Wenqing lightly tapped her toes on the Ice Dragon Rhinoceros’s sharp horn, soaring into the air like a drifting leaf and effortlessly dodging the Demon Beast’s attack once again.

She let out a light laugh. ”Oh? You’ve taken a liking to me? I suppose I should be delighted, but...”

Tian Hao raised an eyebrow. ”But what?”

Tang Wenqing giggled. ”But you’re just too ugly... Moon-breaking Cangming Technique!”

With that sharp cry, Tang Wenqing spread the fingers of her right hand. A black storm instantly split into eight strands, sweeping toward Tian Hao like eight Black Dragons!

A sharp glint flashed through Shen Lang’s eyes. ’Demon Sealing? Tian Hao has already lost... To think someone from the humble White Bone Hall would possess such an Exotic Treasure!’