Nine Nether Heavenly Emperor

The once-great Emperor Nine Nether was the pinnacle of existence on Tianheng Continent, his thoughts could control the life and death of millions; not to mention this mere Second-stage Refiner before him, even if faced with an Eighth-level Alchemist, who could be said to be the highest-ranked alchemy master ever to appear on the continent, he had killed five of them.

On Tianheng Continent, the Martial Arts Realm is divided into Nine Realms: Samurai, martial master, Martial Spirit, Martial King, Martial Emperor, Martial Sect, Martial Venerable, Martial Saint, and Great Emperor.

And there are also one to nine stages for Alchemy Masters, but Ninth-stage Emperor Alchemists are now heard of only in ancient legends.

At this moment, both sides of the street were already abuzz.

"This... this kid is truly too ignorant of his own insignificance, he actually dared to insult an Alchemy Master."

"Alas... no one can help him now; if he dies, he dies, but he's going to drag his whole family down with him to be buried alongside."

...

"You... you've got some nerve, insulting Lord Ming'an like that."

The coachman, still kneeling on the ground, was startled by Shi Feng's words but then felt a surge of joy. He had offended Lord Ming'an and was pleading for mercy when this inconsiderate youth suddenly redirected Ming'an's wrath towards himself, giving the coachman a chance to redeem himself.

Stealing a glance at Ming'an's increasingly darkened face, the coachman quickly feigned an expression of extreme anger, as if his divine spirit had been desecrated, his fists clenched tightly, his body shaking with apparent rage: "Lord Ming'an has a lofty status, unmatched in the Path of Spells, revered by all under the heavens. How dare you, a mongrel, insult him." With a roar, the coachman leaped up, glaring at Shi Feng who was walking closer, stepping forward, his whip lashing toward Shi Feng's head once again.

"Ah, that's it! The Hai Family, indeed one of Moon City's Four Great Powers, even a stableman is a Martial Artist."

"Two-star Martial Disciple!"

A Martial Disciple is actually merely an apprentice of a Martial Artist; only the common folk would consider him a Martial Artist. In the eyes of real Martial Artists, they are not considered at all.

As soon as the coachman moved his body and his presence was exposed, many people on both sides of the street couldn't help but speak out. As the words were spoken, almost everyone had already decided Shi Feng's fate in their minds.

Although Martial Disciples are just at the beginning of the Martial Arts, a full-force strike from a Two-star Martial Disciple has the strength of two hundred catties, something a common man can't contend with.

People seemed to have already seen the whip smashing into Shi Feng's head, followed by it cracking open like a watermelon, brain and blood splattering everywhere.

Only Shi Feng, from beginning to end, remained calm and unfazed. If a mere Martial Disciple could take his life, then all his years of Martial Arts Cultivation would have been in vain.

With a slight movement of his body, he concentrated all his strength in his right hand and then pointed out a finger.

"Poof!" Like the sound of piercing through a paper window.

To the shock of the crowd, the coachman's whip was about to strike the youth's head, missing by just a little to fulfill the gory ending they imagined.

However, for some unknown reason, the youth lifted his right hand, which seemed to move very slowly, but managed to pierce the coachman's throat with his index finger before the whip could hit his head, boring through it.

Could it be that the Hai Family's stableman deliberately went easy? But that was impossible; who would be foolish enough to gamble with his own life?

A common youth had actually killed a Two-star Martial Disciple with one finger; how could this be possible!

What was even harder to accept for the Hai Family's coachman was that his whip-wielding hand was now suspended in mid-air, his eyes widening as if they were about to pop out of his sockets, his face full of shock, panic, unwillingness, rage, and disbelief.

"This... this... no!"

He wanted to roar out with all his strength, but it was not to be. As Shi Feng withdrew his finger from the coachman's throat, a streak of crimson blood sprang forth, and the coachman's consciousness ebbed away from his brain like a tide; he still had his eyes wide open as he fell backward.

"Nine Nether Technique! Devour!" Shi Feng commanded in his heart, with his hands forming a profound handprint.

As the coachman died, a weak Power of Death emerged and was quickly absorbed into Shi Feng's body through the circulation of the Nine Nether Technique.

On Tianheng Continent, Martial Artists cultivate with countless techniques, the majority of which involve connecting with heaven and earth to absorb Primordial Power, or consuming Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures to practice Cultivation.

It was legendary that the unrivaled genius, Emperor Nine Nether, had created a Cultivation Technique called the "Nine Nether Technique," capable of devouring the Power of Death, Dark Evil Power, and even Soul Power.

The most profound of these is the soul! The soul, also known as the spirit, disappears when a person dies. However, some with strong or special souls can survive after death.

As the Power of Death was absorbed into Shi Feng's body, he felt a very comfortable and warm sensation throughout his body, strengthening his flesh, bones, and meridians.

Shi Feng was engulfed in a warm sensation, followed by a flash of white light on his body.

"This white light... he... he has actually advanced to Martial Disciple status, becoming a Martial Artist!" The crowd was astounded once again.

"I get it now." Someone exclaimed: "This youth must have learned a Cultivation Method from some unknown source and has been practicing it hard for years, already on the verge of becoming a Martial Disciple. That Two-star Martial Disciple from the Hai Family underestimated his opponent, thinking he was just an ordinary person and didn't take him seriously nor put much effort into his attack, which gave this youth the opportunity to exploit."

As soon as this person spoke, the onlookers nodded in agreement, and a few even showed mocking expressions; it was quite obvious that this was the case, no need for explanation.

These words, of course, also reached Shi Feng's ears. He just smiled indifferently and slowly lifted his head, looking towards Ming'an, who was still atop the carriage and high above.

Ming'an's face was cold as ice, looking like it was about to freeze over. As a noble Alchemy Master, he was being stared at by someone whom he considered as inconsequential as an ant.

And the expression of disdain on that ant's face was one of overt mockery.

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"Presumptuous!" Ming'an pointed his finger at Shi Feng's head and roared, "Kneel down and gouge out your own eyes, and I might spare your worthless life!"

Hearing Ming'an's words, Shi Feng couldn't help but find them laughable. Kneel to him? He doubted there was anyone in the world who had such privilege.

"I kneel to your sister!" Shi Feng cursed with a laugh, stepping forward to close the gap with Ming'an. Raising his right hand, he pointed a finger straight at Ming'an's right knee, executing a move that was the same as the Life-taking Finger that had just claimed the life of the Hai Family's stableman.

"You little bastard, you dare!" Ming'an was now furious, wishing to flay Shi Feng's skin and tear him to pieces.

Yet he took Shi Feng's pointed finger seriously, knowing that although he had devoted his life to the Path of Spells and his Martial Arts Cultivation wasn't much to speak of, he was still a Five-star Martial Disciple. He could sense this finger technique was no ordinary Martial Skill.

"Hmph, even if your Martial Skill is profound, what of it? A mere recently advanced One-star Martial Disciple's trash, let me show you how overwhelming strength can break all techniques!" Ming'an bellowed, clenching his right hand into a fist and bringing it crashing down toward the finger Shi Feng had pointed at him.

A furious punch from a Five-star Martial Disciple carried the force of five hundred pounds. If it connected, Shi Feng's finger would surely be crushed on the spot.

"Huh? How could this be?" Just as his fist was about to strike the finger, Ming'an saw that the finger suddenly vanished—not just the finger, but Shi Feng's entire right arm disappeared.

"Boom!" Ming'an's blow struck the ground, causing the entire carriage to shake violently.

"Crack!" A low sound of breaking bones followed.

Silence! The scene fell into an eerie stillness.

Shi Feng's previously vanished right arm reappeared, and the finger that had thrust forward was now pressed against Ming'an's knee, the sound of breaking bones from a moment ago belonging to Ming'an's shattered knee cap.

Shi Feng remained unfazed. The Netherworld Finger, a technique he had created himself, wouldn't be worthy of its name if it could be broken by a punch from a Five-star Martial Disciple.

"Ah!" Ming'an screamed in agony like a slaughtered pig as Shi Feng withdrew his finger, a stream of crimson blood spurting out in its wake.

"Kneel!" With a light command, Ming'an felt as if a cold, chilling sound wave entered his ears. Indeed, Ming'an could truly feel the coldness of the sound wave entering his ears, as if his entire strength had been frozen.

"Thump," with no strength left, and his knees paining him, Ming'an knelt down on one knee before Shi Feng.

"Ah... this... how is this possible..."

"An Alchemy Master is kneeling to him!"

The onlookers around the street were nearly short-circuiting their brains. From the beginning of the spectacle to the current moment, too many incredulous things had occurred, each shattering their common sense and overturning their understanding.

"Die! Die, damn you! I'll have you drawn and quartered! Ah!" Ming'an's face twisted in rage as he roared loudly; at that moment, he felt a misery worse than death.

"Shut up!" Shi Feng snorted coldly, directing his Life-taking Finger once more, this time hitting the proud Second-stage Refiner Ming'an directly in the chest.

"Ah!" The onlookers screamed, shocked that this youngster dared to strike down an Alchemy Master.

Killing a stableman of the Hai Family might leave some room for negotiation.

But killing an Alchemy Master, and a Second-stage Refiner at that...

One should know how difficult it is to become a Second-stage Refiner. Not to mention the exceptional genius required, just the resources expended are beyond what an ordinary power could afford.

Even Moon City's Four Great Families, with the most power, couldn't raise one, and it was questionable whether a combined effort of all Four Great Families could achieve it.

In other words, behind every Second-stage Refiner, there must be a massive power backing them.

Moon City was about to undergo a seismic shift!

And it could even implicate every living being in the city!

As the Netherworld Finger pierced through Ming'an's chest, he gaped and widened his eyes, clearly unable to believe that this was really happening to him.

A mere One-star Martial Disciple was no different from an ant in his eyes, easily crushed whenever he pleased.

Yet now, a lowly ant had... ended his life.

Consciousness rapidly receded from his mind like a tide, and Ming'an's haughty head dropped.

A genius Second-stage Alchemy Master had fallen!

And at that moment, a white light flashed on Shi Feng's body once more; he had actually advanced again!

"Less than an hour, and he's killed two people, his Martial Arts Cultivation unexpectedly advancing two stages!"

"Is this... I've never heard of killing people to advance, right?"

"If that were really the case, the world would be in chaos, rivers of blood everywhere, right?"

These people from a remote little city naturally couldn't understand the Profound Mystery of the Nine Nether Technique created by Emperor Nine Nether. As Ming'an died, Shi Feng circulated the Nine Nether Technique to absorb the Power of Death into his body.

And since Ming'an was a Five-star Martial Disciple, his Power of Death was several times stronger than that of the stableman, allowing Shi Feng's Cultivation Level to advance yet another stage.

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