「Five days later, within the Imperial City’s Saint Institute.」

The Central Courtyard Plaza was bustling with activity, as the Saint Institute disciples sent to reinforce Jumo City had all returned.

The moment they returned, they alarmed the Saint Institute’s Vice Dean, Duan Wushuang, as well as several other high-ranking members.

The reason, of course, was that Duan Mushuang was currently in the Mo Yun Kingdom.

"Ling Xiao, is everything Tian Gou just said the truth?" Duan Wushuang asked, after quietly listening to one disciple’s account.

Ling Xiao shook his head.

Eight days ago, this group of Saint Institute probationary disciples had somehow gotten wind of a rumor. They became convinced that the Ten Thousand Blood Demon Emperor’s inheritance was a complete fabrication. This caused a massive uproar, and it was only after Chen Tianyu stepped in that they were finally brought under control.

It was on that day that this group of probationary disciples decided to return to the capital.

Ling Xiao and Yang Peng had originally planned to wait for Lin Hao in Jumo City, but seeing the situation, they had no choice but to leave with the other probationary disciples.

Having been lured from Imperial City to Jumo City by Lin Hao only to end up with nothing, the probationary disciples’ fury was palpable. They had forcibly completed a journey that should have taken ten days in just eight.

And upon returning to the Saint Institute, the very first thing they did was band together to denounce Lin Hao.

Tian Gou was the representative of this group, and he had just finished speaking, pinning all the blame on Lin Hao.

Ling Xiao had anticipated this. He shook his head and said, "Vice Dean, what Tian Gou said is false. General Chen Tianyu can serve as a witness."

"Hahaha, Ling Xiao, you can’t even lie properly. Oh, right, Vice Dean, there’s one more thing I forgot to mention. The Chen family’s young marquis also perished outside Jumo City. Lin Hao is equally to blame for his death," Tian Gou said respectfully to Duan Wushuang.

The implication was clear: with the young marquis of the Chen family dead, how could Chen Tianyu possibly testify on Lin Hao’s behalf?

"What?!" Hearing this news, everyone was stunned, including Duan Wushuang.

Although Chen Xiao, the young marquis of the Chen family, did not have a high cultivation level, he was an influential figure in the capital. He was not only a marquis personally enfeoffed by the Sovereign but also one of the few remaining heirs of the Chen family’s bloodline. And now, he had actually perished outside Jumo City.

’This time, Lin Hao is surely done for!’

Smiles spread across the faces of the disciples from the Lin and Hu families.

Lin Hao had offended the Lin family and the Hu family, and now with the Chen family added to the list, there was absolutely no place left for him in Imperial City.

Many people wore gloating expressions, reveling in his misfortune.

"No wonder Lin Hao hasn’t shown up. He must have skipped town."

"The Vice Dean personally gave him this mission. He not only let Master Duan get captured but also got the Chen family’s young marquis killed. If I were him, I’d run too."

"What do you expect from someone from a backwater town? He’s not cut out for great responsibility."

Whispers rippled through the crowd.

"Vice Dean, I have a letter from General Chen Tianyu. He asked me to deliver it to you personally." Ling Xiao spoke, pulling a letter from within his robes.

Ling Xiao had foreseen that something like this would happen, so he had sought out Chen Tianyu to discuss it. This letter was the result of that conversation.

The moment the letter appeared, the murmuring crowd fell silent. The probationary disciples’ eyes went wide, finding it utterly unbelievable that Chen Tianyu would personally write a letter on Lin Hao’s behalf.

After receiving the letter and reading it, Duan Wushuang passed it to the other senior members of the Saint Institute.

"Vice Dean, Your Excellencies, this letter must be a forgery by Ling Xiao! With the young marquis Chen Xiao dead outside Jumo City, there is no way General Chen Tianyu would write such a letter," Tian Gou cried out, dead set on sealing Lin Hao’s fate.

"Hmph! And I suppose the Chen family’s official seal can also be forged?" An elder currently holding the letter flipped it over, revealing the large, strikingly conspicuous red seal at the bottom.

Tian Gou was instantly speechless, and large beads of sweat trickled down his face as he began to tremble.

"I am aware of this matter. All of you, go and rest for now," Duan Wushuang said calmly, but her words carried an authority that could not be defied.

After speaking, Duan Wushuang turned to leave, but then she stopped and called out to the disciples who were about to depart.

In the plaza, the disciples all exchanged confused glances, unsure of what Duan Wushuang intended to do.

Some of the probationary disciples’ legs began to tremble.

If the Vice Dean decided to punish them, they wouldn’t have the slightest chance to resist.

Duan Wushuang remained silent, and no one dared to utter a word. In an instant, the atmosphere became unbearably oppressive.

The probationary disciples trembled, sweat beading on their foreheads. As the silence stretched on, their expressions grew increasingly terrified.

’The Vice Dean has been silent for so long. She’s clearly thinking of a way to punish us. The longer it takes, the more terrifying the punishment will be.’

Every second felt like an eternity to them.

THUD!

Barely a minute had passed before one of the probationary disciples could no longer bear the pressure. He fell to his knees with a thud and pleaded with Duan Wushuang, "Vice Dean, it wasn’t my fault! I was forced to falsely accuse Lin Hao! Please, spare me!"

With one person taking the lead, many other disciples who hadn’t yet reached their breaking point also panicked. Several more dropped to their knees and began begging Duan Wushuang for mercy.

"Well, look at that. Everyone’s here. How lively." Just then, a voice suddenly drifted in from the edge of the plaza.

Everyone turned toward the voice, their expressions stunned. The probationary disciples, in particular, stared with wide eyes.

They saw Lin Hao!

He wasn’t alone. Two people stood beside him, a man and a woman. They recognized the man—it was Marquis Mo, the Crown Prince of the Mo Yun Kingdom, whom they had seen on the Cangyun Battlefield! The woman’s features were exquisite and breathtakingly beautiful. Her eyes, in particular, were like brilliant blue sapphires, full of an exotic allure.

"Senior Brother, you captured the Crown Prince of the Mo Yun Kingdom?!" Ling Xiao cried out in shock upon seeing Lin Hao with Marquis Mo.

Lin Hao had gone deep into the Mo Yun Kingdom all by himself. Ling Xiao had thought he’d be facing impossible odds with only a slim chance of survival. He never expected Lin Hao to reappear at the Saint Institute so quickly, let alone with Marquis Mo in tow.

After all, the Mo Yun Kingdom was Marquis Mo’s home turf. For Lin Hao to capture him in his own territory was a heaven-defying feat!

Only after hearing Ling Xiao’s words did the others realize Marquis Mo’s identity, and they were shocked beyond measure.

It wasn’t just the disciples; even the senior members of the Saint Institute were stunned.

They had just read Chen Tianyu’s personal letter, so they knew that Lin Hao had entered the Mo Yun Kingdom alone.

To be honest, when they first read that news, they all had the same thought: ’Lin Hao is finished.’

Never mind that Lin Hao was only at the Eighth Layer of the Elemental Realm; even if he had reached the Eighth Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm, barging into the Mo Yun Kingdom alone would have been suicide. Even an elephant cannot withstand a swarm of ants, let alone a single person.

But now...

A Martial Artist at the Eighth Layer of the Elemental Realm had captured the Crown Prince in the Mo Yun Kingdom. Even they had to admit it was nothing short of a miracle!

As this thought crossed their minds, they suddenly realized with a jolt that Lin Hao had already reached the First Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm.

This gave them yet another reason to be shocked.

In just a little over ten days, Lin Hao had actually advanced from the Eighth Layer of the Elemental Realm to the First Layer of the Soul Gathering Realm. Such a cultivation speed was unheard of; not a single person in the entire Saint Institute could match it!