I Fear You Won't Live to Pay the Bill

Wang Hao's peripheral vision swept toward the New Emperor Sword.

The New Emperor Sword was trembling so hard its entire blade quivered with righteous fury.

"Master!"

"He's still eating!"

"He's still eating my Emperor Corpse!"

"Isn't this the same as snatching the bowl right in front of my face?"

Wang Hao transmitted his voice calmly.

"Do you want to snatch it back?"

The New Emperor Sword snapped to attention instantly.

"I do!"

"I really do!"

"Master, tell me how we snatch it!"

Wang Hao's voice was flat.

"Go into the ruins and get me one drop of the Emperor Corpse's blood."

The New Emperor Sword was stunned.

"Blood?"

"Master, you want me, the majestic Emperor Sword, to go picking up blood?"

"Isn't that a bit beneath my noble status?"

Wang Hao sneered.

"Didn't you just say the Emperor Corpse was your meal?"

"What's wrong with picking up your meal?"

The New Emperor Sword went silent.

That... actually made a weird kind of sense.

But it still sounded deeply insulting to a sword.

It muttered quietly, "But the food fell on the ground..."

Wang Hao's face was expressionless.

"So are you going to eat it or not?"

The New Emperor Sword immediately turned solemn.

"I'll eat it!"

"Master is wise!"

"Food that fell on the ground is still food!"

"As long as it lets me level up, dignity means jack!"

The corner of Wang Hao's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

This sword was shameless, sure, but it had one clear advantage.

It had no shame at all.

Which made it perfect for him.

Wang Hao didn't waste another word.

He suddenly raised his hand, and the Imperial Dragon Qi within him erupted violently.

Nine golden dragons coiled around his body, lightning dancing across their scales.

The Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Tower trembled behind him.

The eighth layer's gate swung open.

A Thunder Phoenix burst forth, its wings spreading wide.

Tens of thousands of lightning feathers descended like heavenly blades, pouring down upon the vortex of sinister artifacts.

At the same time, Wang Hao gripped the New Emperor Sword tightly with his right hand, and the blade's black light surged explosively.

"Ji Wushang!"

"You wanted to devour, didn't you?"

"Well, let This Emperor pick your teeth for you!"

Wang Hao slashed out with his sword.

The blade light interwove black and gold, tearing through massive swaths of sinister energy, hurtling straight toward Ji Wushang's terrifying gaping maw.

Ji Wushang sneered.

"Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot!"

Dozens of sinister artifacts vibrated simultaneously.

The blood-stained bone lantern spat out ghastly white flames.

The bronze broken ring released a decaying, rotten light barrier.

The tattered banner covered in eyeballs opened all its eyes at once, and hundreds of millions of venomous glares converged into a shield.

Boom!

Wang Hao's slash struck the barrier of sinister artifact light.

The barrier shook violently.

Several low-grade sinister artifacts exploded on the spot.

But the overall vortex remained stable.

However, at the very moment of collision, the New Emperor Sword—as if unable to withstand the backlash—whistled as it flew backward, crashing deep into the ruins of the sacrificial altar.

Rumble!

Rocks exploded outward.

Black smoke billowed everywhere.

From within the ruins, the New Emperor Sword let out a miserable, ear-piercing scream.

"Ah!"

"Master!"

"Little Sword can't go on!"

"Little Sword is about to shatter!"

"But before I die, I have one last wish!"

The corner of Wang Hao's eye twitched.

This shameless sword was really hamming it up.

He shouted coldly, "Shut up, you worthless piece of junk!"

The New Emperor Sword's voice grew even more tragic.

"Master!"

"After Little Sword dies, remember to sprinkle that Ji dog's ashes on my grave!"

"That way, even in death, I can still smell the aroma of my meal!"

Wang Hao: "..."

Ji Wushang merely glanced over and didn't pay it any mind.

A sinister artifact ranked eighty-nine, that's all it was.

It had that nuisance of an ability to devour and evolve, which was indeed troublesome.

But after being repelled by the backlash of dozens of sinister artifacts, there was no way it could charge back out any time soon.

Besides, he was now at the most critical moment of his transformation into a sinister being.

As long as he devoured the Emperor Corpse—even if only most of it—he could step into the tenth level of the sinister.

By then, Wang Hao, the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Tower, that cheap sword, all of it—they were nothing but playthings in his palm.

Ji Wushang lowered his head again, biting down hard on the Emperor Corpse's sternum.

Crack!

He tore off a chunk of imperial bone with his bare teeth.

The Emperor Corpse let out a roar toward the sky.

In that roar, there was even a faint trace of grief and indignation.

It had once been an emperor.

Even in death, even refined into a corpse, even reduced to a lingering remnant of consciousness—it should not have been gnawed at like this.

But it couldn't resist.

The black core was embedded in its forehead.

The rules of the sinister artifacts bound its limbs with chains.

The crystal nucleus in Ji Wushang's chest continuously released corruption energy, converting the Emperor Corpse's death essence into fuel for the sinister.

Wang Hao watched this scene, killing intent churning violently within him.

But he didn't rush.

The more critical the moment, the less he could rush.

The Life-Substitution Sinister Talisman only had one use.

If he used it too early, the Emperor Corpse's remnant body would be too heavy to drag out.

If he used it too late, the Emperor Corpse would be completely devoured, and even the strongest talisman would only substitute for an empty void.

He had to wait.

Wait until Ji Wushang had almost finished devouring—but was still short of that final bite.

At that moment, the Emperor Corpse's residual imperial will would be at its most agonized, the death tribulation of the devouring at its peak, and the sinister eye not yet fully open.

That was the only window to pry open the rules.

Wang Hao raised his hand.

The Heaven-Sealing Earth-Crushing Palm descended with a thunderous crash.

First palm!

Second palm!

Third palm!

Giant heaven-covering palms stacked layer upon layer, slamming toward the vortex of sinister artifacts.

He wasn't trying to shatter it.

He was just trying to disrupt it.

To force Ji Wushang to divert his attention to defense.

Ji Wushang looked up, his eyes mocking.

"Wang Hao, don't you get it yet?"

"Your attacks can't stop me anymore."

Wang Hao sneered.

"I can't stop you from eating crap, but This Emperor can at least make sure you don't get to eat in peace."

Ji Wushang's face darkened.

The people of the Great Xia could barely hold back their laughter.

Yin Jiuyou muttered under his breath, "His Majesty's tongue... even a tenth-level sinister being would get verbally destroyed into a mental breakdown."

Xue Wuhen nodded.

"Indeed."

"When it comes to vicious words, His Majesty has already transcended."

The Demon Lord's mouth twitched slightly.

But he didn't laugh.

Because he noticed something.

Every attack Wang Hao made—though seemingly wild and violent—deliberately avoided several key positions.

He wasn't striking blindly.

He was guiding the flow of sinister energy.

Creating blind spots in sightlines.

Shielding something.

The Demon Lord's eyes flickered. Suddenly, he understood.

That sword!

Deep within the ruins.

The New Emperor Sword wasn't actually badly injured.

Its blade pressed against the cracks of the shattered altar stones, sliding forward like a black mudfish.

Its artifact spirit projection lay sprawled across the blade, its hands clawing at the rubble.

As it clawed, it grumbled nonstop.

"This esteemed swordship."

"Now I've been reduced to picking up blood in the ruins."

"How disgraceful."

"Too disgraceful for a sword."

"But... the Emperor Corpse's blood should smell pretty good, right?"

Just as that thought crossed its mind, Wang Hao's icy voice transmission echoed inside its mind.

"If you dare sneak a taste, I'll plant you in the latrine pit for three years of suppression."

The New Emperor Sword shook violently.

"Master!"

"You're eavesdropping on Little Sword's thoughts!"

Wang Hao said flatly, "Your little thoughts reek of gluttony from eight hundred li away."

The New Emperor Sword was indignant.

"Tyrant!"

"You're nothing but a tyrant!"

Wang Hao's voice turned even colder.

"Oh?"

The New Emperor Sword immediately changed its tune.

"The great master sees all with keen perception! Little Sword is in awe!"

It didn't dare waste more time, continuing to crawl forward.

Earlier, where Wang Hao had slashed open the Emperor Corpse's arms, kneecaps, and shoulder bones, a considerable amount of grayish-white dead blood had been scattered.

But most of it had been dragged back by the vortex of sinister artifacts, becoming part of Ji Wushang's fusion array.

The rest remained scattered in the cracks of the ruined altar.

Each single drop weighed as heavy as a mountain.

Radiating the deathly imperial might.

An ordinary Martial God realm cultivator who so much as touched it would have their flesh corroded, and even their divine soul might be dragged into the rules of death.

The New Emperor Sword wasn't afraid of that.

It was a sinister artifact.

It specialized in devouring sinister energy, death energy, and corruption.

The problem was, Wang Hao wouldn't let it eat.

That was pure torture for a sword.

It finally found a single drop of grayish-white dead blood beneath a fractured black stone.

That drop of blood was only the size of a fingernail, yet it hung there in the depths of the crack like a dead, gray-white miniature sun.

The space around it was warped and compressed.

The New Emperor Sword stared at it, almost drooling.

If it could drool, that is.

"So fragrant..."

"So hungry..."

Wang Hao's voice transmission rang out again.

"Bring it back."

The New Emperor Sword felt wronged.

"Master, just one lick?"

"Even one lick counts as stealing a bite."

"Then can I just sniff it?"

"No sniffing either."

"Master, you have no heart."

"Your emperor has a sword hilt."

The New Emperor Sword immediately behaved itself.

It carefully released its devouring black light, yet didn't dare to actually swallow that drop of Imperial Corpse blood.

Instead, it wrapped the blood in the black light like it was carrying a piping-hot pearl in its mouth, and slowly dragged it back.

Just then.

On the other side of the ruins, a blood-stained bone lamp slowly turned around.

It was a remnant artifact that had been blasted away from the eerie artifact vortex. The wick burned with a pale white flame, as if it had detected the fluctuation of the Imperial Corpse blood.

The New Emperor Sword's blade went stiff with terror.

"We're doomed."

"We've been spotted."

The next instant.

From above the abyss, Wang Hao suddenly roared.

"Ji Wushang!"

"Watch your emperor smack your dog head!"

The fourth, fifth, and sixth palms of the Sky-Sealing Earth-Covering Palm Technique all came crashing down at once.

The black lightning of the seventh floor of the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda transformed into ten thousand chains, bombarding the eerie artifact vortex from all directions.

A terrifying shockwave swept outward.

The blood-stained bone lamp was shaken, its flame tilting to one side.

Seizing the opening, the New Emperor Sword zipped into another crack.

"Master, you're a legend!"

Wang Hao ignored it.

His face had turned slightly pale.

The time remaining on the Nirvana-Realm Physical Examination Card was running shorter and shorter.

That feeling of temporarily bearing Transcendence-level power was slowly ebbing away.

His true body was only at the second layer of the Martial God Realm.

Had it not been for the Examination Card's enhancement, let alone fighting against a half-step Transcendence ancient monster like Ji Wushang, he wouldn't even be able to get close to the eerie artifact vortex without being crushed into a mist of blood.

And now, the Examination Card was about to expire.

The old wounds on his physical body began to backlash.

His meridians felt scorched by thunderfire.

His organs were vibrating.

But not a trace of distress showed on Wang Hao's face.

In fact, his mouth was still as tough as ever.

Ji Wushang stared at him and suddenly sneered.

"Wang Hao, you're stalling for time?"

Wang Hao said calmly, "Yes, I am."

Ji Wushang froze.

He hadn't expected Wang Hao to admit it so readily.

Wang Hao continued, "Your emperor is waiting for you to choke to death."

Ji Wushang's eyes darkened.

"Running your mouth."

Wang Hao smiled.

"Your emperor isn't just good with his mouth."

"I'm also hard to kill."

"Someone like you, with a black egg growing out of your chest, a black eye on your forehead, and a mouth that splits all the way to the back of your skull—a freak of nature like you hasn't died yet, so why the hell should I?"

From amidst the ruins, the New Emperor Sword heard this and was reinvigorated.

"Master, what a burn!"

"That thing is hideous!"

"So ugly that even a little sword buried under rocks wants to vomit just thinking about it!"

Ji Wushang's face went completely cold.

He suddenly opened his mouth wide and bit down on another half of the Emperor Corpse's rib.

Boom!

Malevolent energy surged skyward.

The Emperor Corpse's body lost another massive chunk.

The bone spurs on Ji Wushang's back grew wildly, nearly transforming into a black forest that swallowed the entire abyss.

The Malevolent Eye was opening at an even faster pace.

Ghost Granny's face turned pale.

"Not good."

"His devouring rhythm is too fast."

"At this rate, in at most fifteen breaths, he'll complete the tenth-level metamorphosis!"

Han Shanyue said urgently, "What is His Majesty still waiting for?"

The Demon Lord said in a deep voice, "He's waiting for an opening."

Yin Jiuyou swallowed hard.

"What kind of opening?"

The Demon Lord stared at Wang Hao's back.

"An opening that will make Ji Wushang unable to laugh anymore."

Wang Hao slowly raised his head.

The New Emperor Sword, carrying that drop of Imperial Corpse blood, had already slipped through the shadows of the ruins and was closing in behind him.

Ji Wushang hadn't noticed.

Or rather, he had sensed some faint fluctuations, but Wang Hao's attacks were too ferocious, his mouth too irritating, the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda too noisy, leaving Ji Wushang unable to devote enough attention to it.

A cold glint flashed in Wang Hao's eyes.

Still not enough.

There was still too much of the Emperor Corpse remaining.

The Substitute-Death Demon Talisman couldn't be used yet.

He had to keep stalling.

Stall until Ji Wushang was at his most arrogant.

Stall until Ji Wushang thought victory was already sealed.

Stall until that final piece of meat was at his lips, but before he had swallowed it down.

Wang Hao raised his left hand.

The seventh palm of the Sky-Sealing Earth-Covering Palm Technique condensed with a roar.

Within the palm's momentum, a phantom of mountains, rivers, and the realm appeared.

Nine strands of imperial dragon qi coiled around his palm center, as if the entire land of Great Xia were pressed into this single strike.

Wang Hao looked at Ji Wushang, his smile ice-cold.

"Ji Wushang."

"Eat slowly."

"Your emperor is afraid you won't live to pay the bill."