Chapter 109: Heart-Pounding Fear

This man was the Ninth Elder of the Qingcheng Sect. Some of his subordinates were quite unique—they were either half-beast men or spiritual beasts. He specialized in training spiritual beasts.

At this moment, the three men facing Lin Hao were considered his prized disciples. These three were peacock half-beast men, who had been taken under the Ninth Elder’s wing by chance. Originally, half-beast men were despised by the divine beast realm; these three had been abandoned and bullied there. Later, after being taken in by the Ninth Elder and mastering the inherited techniques, they achieved their current prowess.

The Ninth Elder had also contracted and trained many peacock spiritual beasts through these three, making them his pride and joy. Now, with a smug expression, he watched the three men put Lin Hao in such a difficult position and began to gloat.

“Hmph, don’t forget, my disciple Zhong Shi was far more formidable than you now!” The Third Elder, seeing the Ninth Elder’s pride, retorted harshly, thinking bitterly that since his beloved disciple had fallen, these three half-beast men should perish as well.

“And you think everyone’s like your foolish, big disciple? Just wait and see, my darlings won’t be like Zhong Shi!” The Ninth Elder bristled at the Third Elder’s words and shot back without restraint.

“You—who are you talking about?!” The Third Elder, offended by the harsh words, stood up, eyebrows knitted and face full of anger, pointing at the Ninth Elder.

“I’m talking about you. Just now, someone was boasting about how Lin Hao would be finished in the first stage and the others could retreat. But now, it’s clear that’s not the case—your prized disciple Zhong Shi has already been defeated.” The Ninth Elder challenged the Third Elder with a provocative look.

Furious, the Third Elder rose, his hostility palpable as he seemed ready to confront the Ninth Elder.

Seeing this, the Ninth Elder's expression turned cold, fearless.

While the two were embroiled in their quarrel, the Sect Leader cleared his throat sharply: “Ahem! Ahem!”—loud enough for everyone to hear.

At that sound, the Ninth and Third Elders froze as if spellbound, halting any further action.

With the situation under control, the Sect Leader spoke slowly, “Are you watching him break through the trials or just arguing? If you want to watch, sit quietly. If not, leave now!”

His tone was clearly displeased.

Upon hearing this, the Third Elder reluctantly sat back down, still resentful but forced to hold back his anger and glare at the Ninth Elder.

The Ninth Elder, however, paid no mind, his eyes gleaming triumphantly at the Third Elder before turning to the big screen to watch Lin Hao.

Lin Hao, on his side, truly had no immediate idea how to deal with these three half-beast men. There was no time for him to ponder either.

Suddenly, the three half-beast men let out a series of unintelligible cries and immediately sprang into action.

They rushed at Lin Hao with a fierce “Ao!”—spreading their wings, claws extended, and flew straight at him.

Lin Hao instantly dodged, narrowly avoiding the oncoming attacker.

“Clang!” His Cloud Swallowing Sword struck the attacker’s claw.

Though the claws were powerful, Lin Hao’s sword was no ordinary weapon.

The sword struck just beside the claw, tearing through the skin nearby and drawing blood.

Only the claws were razor-sharp; the surrounding flesh was vulnerable.

This was merely a test by Lin Hao, and he had succeeded in drawing blood.

The half-beast man instantly grew furious, roaring loudly, “Oh!”

The other two half-beast men responded by spitting numerous icy blades towards Lin Hao as they charged with their claws.

Lin Hao furrowed his brow, parrying swiftly; sparks flew as claws and sword clashed continuously.

The sharp clashing sounds rang out sharply.

Yet, Lin Hao found that relying solely on his Cloud Swallowing Sword was insufficient against their furious assault.

Caught off guard, a blade of ice hurtled straight at him. Unable to block in time, he quickly summoned the Flame Lotus, raising a wall of fire.

Boom! Sizzle!

The ice blades collided with the fire wall, smoke billowing as they fizzled.

Still, the mystical flames only delayed the three half-beast men momentarily; they could not keep them at bay for long.

Lin Hao had to continuously channel spiritual energy into the Flame Lotus to maintain it.

After a while, Lin Hao stood alone, facing three half-beast men. His spiritual energy was nearly depleted.

Anxious, he realized he could not keep this up; if he did, his energy would run out and he would be trapped indefinitely.

Just then, in a moment of inspiration, Lin Hao clenched his fist.

“Ha!” With a punch, he struck the ground.

“Bang!” The earth cracked wide open.

“Whoosh!” Lin Hao dropped into the fissure, vanishing from sight.

The three half-beast men were caught off guard, their attacks still mid-air.

Suddenly, an explosion erupted where Lin Hao had stood, shaking the ground and affecting all three.

They had no choice but to flap their wings and retreat quickly to avoid harm.

Once they stopped, they stared in confusion at the place where Lin Hao had disappeared. The spot had become a swirling vortex but soon returned to normal earth.

Yet, Lin Hao was nowhere to be seen.

The three stood there, bewildered and hesitant to advance, exchanging uncertain glances.

Watching from the Qingcheng Sect’s main hall, the Sect Leader and others were equally shaken.

Seeing Lin Hao vanish, they too were puzzled.

The Ninth Elder chuckled proudly, “Hahaha, it seems Lin Hao has dug his own grave and fallen into it.”

Hearing this, some disciples below smirked with delight: “Haha, so Lin Hao isn’t much after all! He couldn’t even survive the second stage!”

“Exactly!”

“Looks like he buried himself!”

Everyone assumed Lin Hao was dead.

Even Cao Yi, who stood waiting at the teleportation array’s entrance for Lin Hao, momentarily froze.

Yet, soon after, his expression changed as if he saw through something, regaining composure without a word.

One of his subordinates stepped forward and asked, “Senior Brother, Lin Hao has clearly failed. Should we leave now?”

Cao Yi replied, “No need. Let’s watch a little longer.”

Meanwhile, in the main hall, the mood was similar. The Ninth Elder shot a provocative glance at the Third Elder, then stood and cupped his hands, “Sect Leader, it seems Lin Hao has been defeated at the second stage. Should we notify the others to return?”

The Sect Leader, eyes fixed intently on the spot where Lin Hao disappeared, looked puzzled.

At that moment, the Third Elder suddenly said, “No, that’s not right.”

His face was grave.

The Ninth Elder, thinking the Third Elder was provoking him, retorted, “What’s wrong? Lin Hao has buried himself underground, hasn’t he?”

“No, surely there’s something we’ve overlooked,” the Third Elder frowned, opening his mouth to say more.

Suddenly, the Fifth Elder interjected, “Of course not. Who says digging a hole means burying oneself? Don’t forget, Lin Hao has an Earth-element spiritual root.”

The Ninth Elder, who had been irritated and ready to argue, suddenly fell silent at this, wondering if something unexpected had occurred.

He turned to look at the spot where Lin Hao had vanished, suspicion flickering in his eyes.

Upon hearing that Lin Hao possessed an Earth spiritual root, everyone recalled that he had five spiritual roots—and they were unique five-element roots. The Sect Leader’s expression grew complex.

“That’s truly not right. Lin Hao is definitely unharmed,” the Sect Leader declared decisively.

Just as he finished speaking, the ground where Lin Hao had fallen started to tremble violently.

Suddenly, a scream pierced the air—a brutal cry from a beast or bird.

One of the half-beast men suddenly felt earth burst beneath his feet, dirt flying everywhere.

Crackling sounds accompanied shards of debris scattered around the ground.

Then Lin Hao lifted his head, sword in hand, soaring into the sky, flames roaring along the blade.

Looking closer, one of the three half-beast men had been cleaved in two, his body fragments scattered in all directions.

The remaining two half-beast men, still in shock, gaped at their fallen comrade’s remains.

“What? What’s going on? Brother Zhong Shi vanished just like that, but why is Lin Hao still coming out?”

“Yeah? What’s happening?”

“This is disastrous. The Ninth Elder’s favorite disciple has been lost, and Lin Hao really has that much power?”

The crowd below erupted in a commotion.

The entire main hall grew chaotic.

The Ninth Elder, once proud, now wore a face as dark as the Third Elder’s had been—filled with rage and disbelief.

He had not expected Lin Hao to possess such a trick, especially after his own boastful confidence that Lin Hao had buried himself.

Now, this was a blatant slap in the face—far more humiliating than the Third Elder’s earlier embarrassment.

All eyes watched as Lin Hao effortlessly defeated one of the three half-beast men.

The battle had taken a dramatic turn.