Chapter 328: Volume-3 Chapter-30!
Since the Dragon Emperor was engulfed in pure white flames, his vision was not clear.
It was because of that that he could only sense the second figure but not see it.
And when the impact of the kick came in, his grip loosened for a fraction of a second.
And that fraction of a second was enough for the second figure to grab Mao Lang and push him out of his grip.
He carried Mao Lang on his shoulder, running away before the white flames receded.
It was at this moment that Shang Long felt the empty grip of his hands, knowing that Mao Lang had been saved at the last second.
A threatening, almost palpable pressure erupted out of the Dragon Emperor.
He slammed his right leg on the ground, sending a shockwave of sheer force exploding outward.
The shockwave instantly extinguished the white flames, revealing the expression on his face.
The two figures stopped at a distance and turned back, looking at Shang Long with dread in their eyes.
They could see the scales on his armor that had turned scorching red from the heat of the white flames as well as the black scales on his claw, a result of Mao Lang's lightning.
However, the thing that shook them to the core was his expression—calm and indifferent.
With that expression, he eyed them.
They felt shivers run down their spines under his scrutinizing gaze.
Mao Lang was also coming back to his senses.
Meanwhile, Ashen and the others also saw the two figures appearing out of nowhere at the last moment to save Lin Feng.
Though it was dark, they could see the figures quite well.
One was male, and another was female.
The female was the one who used the white flame, while the man was the one who kicked Shang Long's arm.
They wore royal robes of the mother phoenix empire.
Shang Long recognized them and laughed:
"Hahaha, to think the White Flame Empress and the Martial Emperor will appear together to save a criminal from me!"
Yes, they both were upper-stage emperor realm cultivators from the Mother Phoenix Empire.
The Dragon Emperor then glanced at his right arm, opening and closing his ethereal claw.
Afterward, he turned his gaze to the male figure and said:
"I was surprised at first to see my grip losing its strength from a simple kick, but now I understand it was you, martial emperor."
He paused and, as if looking down on him, Shang Long continued:
"Your attack was weaker than I expected. It seems the rumors about you are exaggerated."
The martial emperor was a man with bulging muscles; however, his muscles weren't too big. He was on the leaner side, giving him a sophisticated appearance. His hair fell on his back, revealing his forehead.
He released Mao Lang, putting him on the ground before stepping forward and bowing:
"I, Martial Emperor, greet the Dragon Emperor!"
He rose, straightening his back before adding:
"I request you to let us take Lin Feng with us."
Shang Long almost couldn't believe his ears.
First, two of the most powerful cultivators of the Mother Phoenix empire comes to save Lin Feng, and now they even had the audacity to demand his freedom?
A threatening pressure oozed out of Shang Long's body as he narrowed his eyes, his gaze cold as he asked:
"Do you even know what you are asking? If you don't want to make me your enemy, leave this instant!"
A bead of sweat rolled down the martial emperor's temple as he said respectfully:
"Dragon Emperor, we both do not have a choice. This is an order from the crown princess!"
In the mother phoenix empire, the upper-stage emperor realm cultivators weren't as free as the ones in other empires.
They could be commanded by the royal emperor or the crown prince/princess.
As for their succession battle, the emperor didn't have any other children other than the princess, so she held the power to command upper-stage emperor realm cultivators.
Shang Long also understood this; however, he couldn't wrap his head around the reason as to why the crown princess would ask for Lin Feng's safety.
He decided to ask them directly:
"Why would your crown princess order you something like that? What is Lin Feng's relation with her?"
The Martial Emperor glanced at the White Flame Empress, inviting her to answer.
She was closer to the crown princess, as they both were female. Thus, she was more informed than him.
The White Flame Empress skipped the greetings and replied:
"Lin Feng is her benefactor. He saved her life when she was in the Mu Feng sect. I don't know the details, but this is what she told me."
She paused and then added:
"She was just worried for Lin Feng's safety since he had been gone for more than twenty days, and that was when she ordered us to bring him back safely."
She then smiled embarrassingly and revealed:
"We have been watching his battle from the start and were not planning to intervene. But since the princess wanted him to return safely, we had to come to his rescue when we realized that he wasn't able to escape you."
Shang Long nodded in understanding, his voice stern and deep as he asked:
"Then you must be aware of how many cultivators he killed, right?"
Narrowing his eyes coldly, he questioned:
"Do you believe I can let him go despite that?"
Under his cold gaze, both of them felt their skin crawl; however, they had planned their reply beforehand.
She shook her head and said:
"No. I know that you will not let him go so easily; however, there is something that forces someone as mighty as you to yield the victory to us and accept our request."
Shang Long's expression turned grave, understanding what they were talking about.
She still smiled and revealed it through her own mouth:
"It's numbers. We outnumber you!"
Her smile widened as she added:
"I know that numbers aren't enough to defeat someone like you, but..."
She paused and then continued, her finger pointing in a certain direction:
"We can still easily kill your grandson. You wouldn't want that to happen, right?"
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