Nine Nether Dragon Emperor-Chapter 270: You Really Have Some Nerve, Even Wanting to Pull Wool from the Dead!

"Saintess, business first."

Beside the young woman, an old crone's lips moved, but she made no sound. Ning Xuan, however, instantly discerned her words.

"Let's see... who was it, now? The one who died in Burial Sand City. I never expected you to take her place," Ning Xuan remarked nonchalantly.

The young woman opposite him was quite clever. Her beautiful eyes widened in astonishment. "You haven't forgotten my name, have you?"

Ning Xuan flatly denied it. "Of course not. You're from Su Yue Zhuai. After we parted at the Pride Hunting Ground, you even gave me a Storage Ring from the Martial God Temple."

Yuan Yurong was utterly mortified. This guy clearly has no idea what my name is! If you don't know, why can't you just admit it? What he just said... is he trying to provoke a conflict between two top-tier sects?!

The experts from the Martial God Temple were all looking their way, but Yuan Yurong's expression remained unchanged as she smiled at Ning Xuan. "It's fine if you forgot. I'll just tell you again! Remember, my surname is Yuan, and my given name is Yurong."

A masterful deflection! Ning Xuan praised her internally. This Saintess is far more intelligent than the one who died in Burial Sand City... that Fan, uh, Xue Yan, or whatever her name was.

"Alright, I admit it. I really didn't remember your name." After nodding in acknowledgment, Ning Xuan turned to whisper to Si Lanyi.

Yuan Yurong was left fuming. Although Ning Xuan hadn't said it outright, his every action conveyed a single message: he looked down on her. Looking at the three women around Ning Xuan, she really didn't have much confidence in herself.

Meanwhile, Ning Xuan confirmed with Si Lanyi the news several people had relayed to him via voice transmission outside the royal palace.

"There's something fishy about this. Would he really be that kind?" Ning Xuan immediately cautioned Si Lanyi.

Si Lanyi shared her view. "It's very strange. That's why everyone who came this time is an expert. If something goes wrong, we should be able to retreat at a moment's notice."

Ning Xuan nodded slightly. In truth, he wasn't nearly as optimistic as Si Lanyi. He feared their host only wanted one thing: for everyone to enter the Imperial Tomb. There had to be something terrifying inside!

As Ning Xuan was lost in thought, a hearty laugh rang out.

"HAHAHA! I hear someone wants to sit on my Dragon Throne?"

A moment later, King Dong Cang appeared in Ning Xuan's line of sight.

"Ning Xuan? You're still alive? That's wonderful!" Upon seeing Ning Xuan, King Dong Cang was momentarily startled before his face filled with joy.

His expression was like that of an orphan who had just found his long-lost father.

Many onlookers wore strange expressions, while the eyes of others flickered with suspicion. Ning Xuan had killed two of King Dong Cang's children, including his most beloved daughter, Princess Mingzhu. Yet now, the King was acting so warmly toward him. It seemed this trip to the Imperial Tomb was all but certain to be a fatal one.

However, no one showed any sign of backing down.

King Dong Cang took in everyone's expressions. With a shift of his eyes, he sighed. "Everyone, the truth is, I deceived you."

No one spoke, all of them staring at him, waiting for what would come next.

"Now that Young Master Ning has appeared, I might as well be straightforward. In the Imperial Tomb, the first Human Emperor has regained consciousness, and he wishes to reign over the world again! But to revive, he requires a vast amount of Essence Blood from powerful experts! As his descendant, I cannot defy him, so I had to resort to this desperate measure."

King Dong Cang had laid his cards on the table. This took everyone by surprise.

Just then, a voice cut through the silence. "What's that supposed to mean? Are you looking down on us?"

The speaker was none other than Yuan Yurong. Everyone else quickly caught on.

"Exactly! What do you mean, 'now that Young Master Ning has appeared'?! Are you saying all of us here combined can't compare to him?!"

"You've gone too far! The first Human Emperor hasn't even been revived yet!"

"I admit the first Human Emperor made immense contributions to the Human Race. He was the one who established order and founded Dong Cang. But he's been dead for seven hundred years, hasn't he? Does regaining consciousness give him the right to be so arrogant?!"

"It would have been better if you hadn't said anything! Now that you have, I'm even more determined to explore this Imperial Tomb! Legend says countless ultimate treasures were buried with the first Human Emperor, including the supreme scripture, the Human Emperor Scripture! I'd like to borrow it for a look!"

"..."

Many of the powerful experts voiced their intent to enter the Imperial Tomb. King Dong Cang ignored them all, his gaze fixed solely on Ning Xuan.

"What a clever scheme. I'm not interested in the Human Emperor Scripture or whatever, but I have yet to set foot inside an Imperial Tomb," Ning Xuan said, a glint of excitement in his eyes.

The first Human Emperor has regained consciousness? This is fantastic news for me. If he's conscious, he can communicate. And if we can communicate... it shouldn't be too hard to borrow a little spending money from him, right?

Across from him, King Dong Cang shivered for no apparent reason. He could never have guessed what Ning Xuan was thinking at that moment. If he had, he surely would have lost his composure.

Beside Ning Xuan, however, Yun Wangshu's beautiful eyes flew wide open. Having spent a good deal of time with him, she knew exactly what he was planning. He even wants to fleece a dead man! That's just like him! 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"The first Human Emperor was the first King of Dong Cang. They say seven hundred years ago, when bandits ran rampant and the people suffered terribly, he appeared as if from nowhere and unified the entire land in just three short years!" Fearing Ning Xuan would underestimate his foe, Yun Wangshu couldn't help but send him a voice transmission.

Ning Xuan glanced at her and blinked. He had no intention of being careless. King Dong Cang had gone to great lengths to gather so many powerful individuals here; the Imperial Tomb was clearly no simple matter.

"I'm going as well. Shall we go together?" King Dong Cang replied to Ning Xuan, extending an invitation.

Originally, he had wanted the other person named Ning to return. Unfortunately, that was clearly no longer possible. But then Ning Xuan showed up. Perfect! To avoid any unforeseen complications, he would settle for the next best thing and take Ning Xuan's Essence Blood first!

"Lead the way," Ning Xuan said simply.

The King was playing his hand openly, employing a straightforward scheme. He was betting that no one present would back down. Furthermore, even if everyone who entered the Imperial Tomb was annihilated, he would have an excuse. After all, he had warned them in advance. He had truly played his hand well.

"Oh, right. Do the rest of you want to come along?" King Dong Cang, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and looked back at the others. Before they could reply, he added another warning, "I would still advise you all to stop here. Ning Xuan alone is enough."

"Let's go."

This time, the crowd was perfectly calm. He keeps using Ning Xuan to provoke us, just to make sure we follow, doesn't he? Fine. We'll give him exactly what he wants!

King Dong Cang nodded and started walking ahead, his face wreathed in smiles and flames dancing deep within his eyes. Everything would be different after this! He was bursting with anticipation and quickened his pace.

After the group entered the grand palace hall, King Dong Cang headed straight for the high and mighty Dragon Throne.

"So that's the Dragon Throne? It looks so shabby!" a sharp-eyed girl exclaimed in disappointment, being the first to see it.

King Dong Cang stumbled, nearly falling flat on his face. It was the first time he had ever heard someone call the Dragon Throne shabby! But that was no longer important. He didn't argue and instead began to tamper with it.

The Dragon Throne suddenly moved aside, revealing a hidden passage underneath.