Empress Ming responded with a faint smile, also helpless. At the very moment Yang Hao rushed to Empress Dan Zhen’s palace to uncover the truth, Wang Tao knocked on Empress Ming’s door and took her hostage.
This had originally been Wang Tao’s last resort, just in case things went wrong, but unexpectedly, it turned out to be his best decision of the day. When Yang Hao led a counterattack, Wang Tao used Empress Ming as a shield, retreating into the main palace hall. Initially, he had intended to hold out, but after all his swordsmen had been killed, Wang Tao realized the battle was already lost.
“Let me go!” Wang Tao stood in a relaxed posture. Although he had lost everything, the card he now held was a true trump—he was certain no one would dare sacrifice Empress Ming. “Let me go, or she dies.”
“Kill him,” Empress Ming said with a gentle smile. “We must avenge Empress Dan Zhen. Enemies of the Realm must never be allowed to escape. Don’t worry about me—kill him.”
Yang Hao remained stunned; this was a situation he had never encountered before.
“What a spectacle!” Hun Yuan Zi seemed to have just woken up, clearly enjoying the chaos. “Sigh, that woman wants you to kill him, but it’s a bit of a shame, isn’t it?”
“Shut up! What should I do?” Yang Hao whispered anxiously.
“Kill him, of course. What else can you do? If you want to achieve great things, don’t get bogged down by one woman. Besides, you’ve already slept with her. Forget it.” Hun Yuan Zi was truly despicable to the extreme.
Yang Hao naturally wouldn’t listen to him. He forcefully drove his sword into the ground. “Let her go!”
“Let her go?” Wang Tao said. “Are you serious? Do you think I’m that stupid? I’ll release her once I return to the Empire.”
“Yang Hao!” Empress Ming spoke up. She dropped her smile and fixed him with a steady gaze. “Kill me. Do you understand? Kill me.” Empress Ming naturally noticed the hesitation in Yang Hao’s eyes, and a warm feeling stirred in her heart. She clearly understood that if it had been Empress Dan Zhen standing in her place, he would have struck without hesitation, letting the sword pierce through her chest and into Wang Tao’s heart.
But Yang Hao hesitated. Perhaps that was the difference between men.
Wang Tao, however, believed he understood Yang Hao well. Since their days at the advanced academy on Lamon Star, he had been in conflict with Yang Hao, watching helplessly as this nobody gradually rose to prominence. Although Wang Tao had suffered a crushing defeat, the current situation wasn’t entirely unfavorable. General Long was incapacitated, and the entire royal guard followed Yang Hao’s command. Moreover, Yang Hao lacked experience and would certainly hesitate to kill both Wang Tao and Empress Ming together. Therefore, Wang Tao was convinced he would successfully escape from here. As long as he could return to the Empire, everything would be up to him to decide—whether it was he who had killed Empress Dan Zhen or a rebellion on Lamon Star, the Empire would believe only his version of events.
Wang Tao was very confident, already calculating which spaceship he should take to return more quickly to the Empire’s military base.
But he was also wrong. Neither Wang Tao nor Empress Ming truly understood Yang Hao. At this moment, Yang Hao neither moved to kill nor prepared to let Wang Tao escape. Instead, he was doing something extremely strange.
He was taking off his clothes.
In front of everyone, Yang Hao removed his upper garment and began applying a strange ointment vigorously all over his body. The bizarre sight left everyone present stunned.
Only Hun Yuan Zi understood what his apprentice was doing. He sighed helplessly, “Use it sparingly, will you? The Ice Muscle Iron Skin Cream isn’t easy to make. Just a little is enough. Do you think it’s sunscreen?”
Yang Hao ignored him completely, continuing to smear the ointment all over his upper body. Glaring at Wang Tao with a fierce expression, he said, “After coming this far, can I really let you go?”
“You won’t let me go?” Wang Tao looked at Yang Hao as if he were a clown.
“I won’t let you go!” Yang Hao declared bravely.
“Fine!” Wang Tao nodded and, with a swift motion, turned his sword toward Empress Ming’s neck.
“Calm down!!” Yang Hao shouted, instantly softening his stance. A forced smile appeared on his pale face. “Haha, let’s talk reasonably, okay? Don’t be so impulsive.”
“Whether I’m impulsive or not depends on you,” Wang Tao had anticipated Yang Hao’s reaction. “So, have you made up your mind? Do you want your lover, or do you want me dead?”
“How about a bet?” Yang Hao suddenly proposed, challenging Wang Tao with a provocative look. “Let’s have a one-on-one duel. Whoever wins walks away. What do you say?”
“You?” Wang Tao burst into laughter, shaking so hard that he seemed barely able to hold his sword. “You must be kidding! Do you really want to die? Who do you think you are, challenging me? Do you think defeating Jinde makes you great? Without the reputation of the Light Sword School, could he even survive in my swordsmen group?”
Wang Tao’s words were indeed reasonable. Yang Hao’s sudden challenge was practically a suicide declaration. Although Yang Hao had improved somewhat, he had not yet reached the ranks of the top experts. His sword techniques were still rough, and his cultivation was not refined enough—probably at most around the sixth level of combat power.
“Apprentice, are you really ready to die!” Even Hun Yuan Zi grew anxious. “I’ve told you before: never provoke someone like Wang Tao. He might have already broken through to the eighth level of combat power, and with the Wang family’s sword techniques, you’d only be walking to your death.”
But Yang Hao ignored everyone. He was stubbornly determined. “Are you afraid or not? If you’re brave enough, release Empress Ming, and let’s have a fair fight. Let’s settle this cleanly.”
“I’m not that stupid,” Wang Tao replied, still holding Empress Ming hostage as he slowly approached Yang Hao. “What if you all rush me after I let her go?”
“I’m not as shameless as you. As long as you agree to duel me, I guarantee you can walk away safely,” Yang Hao promised. “You’re not scared, are you? Isn’t your Wang family so powerful? Why are you begging for mercy now? Your younger brother lost to me, and now you will too. Hopeless.”
Wang Tao said nothing, dragging Empress Ming until he stood just three steps away from Yang Hao. “You want to die, but you should at least choose a better place. How can someone be so foolish? When you already have the advantage, why still insist on fighting to the death?”
“I like it. I want to. Who are you to stop me?” Yang Hao smiled cheerfully, his body completely relaxed. “I’m fearless because of my skills. With my abilities, defeating you should be simple. Just a few quick moves and—”
Before Yang Hao could finish his boastful declaration, everything changed. Wang Tao struck.
Without warning, without even the slightest hint, Wang Tao’s sword moved so fast that it seemed invisible. Like a white venomous snake, it shot straight toward Yang Hao.
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