Chapter 1276: Stone Bridge
A Death Knight was beaten to death by Zhang Ruochen, and even wearing the Ten Saint Blood Armor was useless—it couldn't block Zhang Ruochen's palm strikes.
All the sacred realm beings present were terrified, seeing Zhang Ruochen as an invincible and ferocious god of slaughter.
They had thought that the three major forces joining hands against a single Zhang Ruochen would be as easy as crushing an ant, but they were gravely mistaken; all three forces had suffered heavy losses.
It was worth noting that not many sacred realm beings had managed to brave the obstacles and reach the glacier continent alive. Now, with Zhang Ruochen violently killing a large number of them, the combined sacred realm beings of the three forces numbered fewer than fifteen. Each death was no small matter.
The remaining few sacred realm beings fled in panic, rushing downward.
Zhang Ruochen, however, used Space Displacement to charge toward another Death Knight.
That Death Knight was locked in a fierce battle with the Abyssal Ancient Sword, evenly matched.
The sword spirit of the Abyssal Ancient Sword emerged, hovering at the hilt—a three-inch-tall man with a pair of black light wings on his back. It was the sword spirit controlling the war blade in its clash with the Death Knight.
Once the Abyssal Ancient Sword grew to the level of a Ten-Thousand Pattern Sacred Artifact, the sword spirit could condense a real body, even cultivate on its own, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth without needing Zhang Ruochen's sacred qi for support. As long as Zhang Ruochen's sword intent remained unextinguished, the sword spirit could wield the blade in continuous combat, even flying tens of thousands of miles to slay enemies with ease.
The Death Knight had personally witnessed Zhang Ruochen crush another Death Knight to death, knowing he was no match. So, when he saw Zhang Ruochen appear beside him, he snorted coldly: "Today, I will kill you and eliminate a great enemy for the Undying Blood Clan."
"What makes you so confident you can kill me?"
Zhang Ruochen grabbed the hilt of the Abyssal Ancient Sword and swung it down. The sword qi cascaded like a waterfall.
"Killing you is no great feat."
A cold, resolute look flashed in the Death Knight's eyes. In his heart, a blood-red pearl spun rapidly and burst apart with a crack.
Immediately, a blood-red Death Light surged from the Death Knight's body like a mountain collapse and a tsunami, forming wave after wave of bloody radiance that turned the entire ice cavern crimson.
The full-force slash of Zhang Ruochen's sword was slowed by the impact of the Death Light, and even the Thousand Ripple Annihilation Force on the blade was neutralized.
"Not good—the Death Knight has activated forbidden power."
Zhang Ruochen had long heard from Zangyue Sword Saint that every Death Knight harbored a treasure within their body, capable of unleashing terrifying power that even he found daunting.
However, that treasure was fused with the Death Knight's flesh and blood. Once activated, it would also kill the user. Thus, unless absolutely necessary, a Death Knight would never resort to that power.
How terrifying must a power be that even a Sword Saint feared it?
Without a moment's hesitation, Zhang Ruochen activated the Ten Saint Blood Armor to protect his entire body, then used Space Displacement to dive into the Water Star Gourd.
"Boom."
The Death Knight's war spear struck the Water Star Gourd.
Though the gourd appeared to be made of wood, the spear left not a single mark on it. The Water Star Gourd spun once, then slammed into the five-colored ice wall with a crash, causing a large section of the wall to collapse.
Zhang Ruochen landed on the jade island inside the Water Star Gourd, a large pool of sacred blood flowing from his back. Even though he had fled quickly and worn the Ten Saint Blood Armor for defense, a single strand of the spear's force had struck his back, nearly piercing through his body.
"What terrifying forbidden power—just a single wisp of released force, and I can't withstand it even now. No wonder no one has ever escaped a Death Knight's pursuit."
If it weren't for Zhang Ruochen, any other sacred realm overlord at the Thorough Earth Stage or even the Heaven-Connecting Stage would surely have been killed by the Death Knight.
That power could threaten a True Saint.
Of course, the stronger the power unleashed, the greater the price paid.
Zhang Ruochen believed the Death Knight couldn't sustain this state for long. After at most a few strikes, his power would plummet sharply, becoming even weaker than before, until he burned out completely.
"Boom."
The Death Knight unleashed his strongest attacks, hammering the Water Star Gourd repeatedly, trying to smash it open.
In his view, a mere gourd couldn't protect Zhang Ruochen's life.
Zhang Ruochen closed his eyes, circulating his technique without taking any healing pills. The wound on his back healed at a visible rate, soon restoring itself completely.
The Death Knight's attacks were weakening. Zhang Ruochen no longer waited, bursting out of the Water Star Gourd and appearing above the Death Knight's head, his voice cold: "Now, it's my turn."
"Swoosh."
A black sword light fell from above the Death Knight.
The Death Knight had already exhausted ninety percent of his power and couldn't block the Abyssal Ancient Sword. The sword tip pierced through the Ten Saint Blood Armor and drove down from the Death Knight's head.
With a splat, the Death Knight's body burst apart like a shattered watermelon.
Zhang Ruochen rushed downward toward the bottom of the ice cavern. Before long, a hundred-zhang-wide ancient stone bridge appeared below, spanning the entire cavern, suspended in midair. Only part of the bridge was visible; more of it was shrouded in five-colored radiance, completely hidden.
On the surface of the glacier continent, the mouth of the ice cavern was a hundred miles in diameter, and the cavern grew larger as it descended. That meant the stone bridge suspended in the air stretched far beyond a hundred miles—just thinking about it was awe-inspiring. Building such a majestic stone bridge at the yin eye of the Yin-Yang Sea was impossible even for a saint.
Zhang Ruochen landed at the head of the stone bridge, immediately hit by an ancient aura. The sensation was strange, creating an illusion of being transported back to the distant past.
Every pattern carved on the ancient bridge was filled with wondrous sacred power. If one meditated on them deeply, they might even comprehend a King-rank technique.
Though inside an ice cavern, Zhang Ruochen felt the world around him was vast and boundless, as if standing in the universe itself. This feeling didn't last long, however, before he felt the world shrink to an extreme, as if trapped inside a grain of sand, making even breathing difficult.
At that moment, the sacred realm beings of the Undying Blood Clan, Zu Longshan, and Jiuli Palace all stood on the stone bridge.
Their expressions were fervent as they fully activated their techniques, absorbing the five-colored gas on the bridge.
"That's... Chaos Qi. There's Chaos Qi here."
Zhang Ruochen was secretly startled, a strange thought forming in his mind: Could the five-colored radiance escaping from the ice cavern be Chaos Qi and Extreme Yin Heavenly Dragon Qi?
Both were priceless treasures.
The stone bridge seemed to be a special place. Only Chaos Qi covered its surface, no Extreme Yin Heavenly Dragon Qi, and any being could absorb it here.
Even absorbing a single wisp of Chaos Qi brought countless benefits to post-natal beings. Even ancient relics like the Devouring Demon Dragon and Prince Bai Li, who had absorbed Chaos Qi in their eggshells, wouldn't mind taking in more.
Zhang Ruochen's appearance shattered the peace on the stone bridge.
The Devouring Demon Dragon, in human form, stood on the bridge, with over a hundred dragon shadows flying around him, continuously drawing Chaos Qi into his body. He opened one demonic eye and said coldly: "Zhang Ruochen, barging in here alone—are you looking for death?"
The other sacred realm beings on the bridge also exuded chilling killing intent.
The killing intent was so thick it condensed into a blood-red cloud, within which phantom images of thousands of troops and countless blades and swords appeared. That tangible killing intent could frighten even sacred realm beings.
Zhang Ruochen showed no fear. Holding his war sword, he stepped onto the stone bridge and walked toward them, one step at a time. "Where are Huang Yanchen and Qing Mo?"
The Devouring Demon Dragon sneered: "You're too late—they're already dead."
"If they are dead, then all of you will be buried with them."
Every word Zhang Ruochen spoke carried a freezing chill. The killing intent surging from his body also formed phantom images of thousands of troops, clashing with the saints' killing intent on the bridge, producing a rumbling sound.
All the saints on the bridge sneered, thinking Zhang Ruochen was overestimating himself.
With their combined strength, a single coordinated strike would reduce him to ashes, even if he had three heads and six arms.
Qi Sheng's expression was calm as he said: "We won't be buried with them—only you will. I'm truly surprised you managed to kill two Death Knights, but human strength has its limits; you can't defy heaven. The saints here are no rabble. We don't need everyone to join forces—just two or three working together can send you to your grave. Even if you use space power, you won't escape."
Clearly, Qi Sheng admitted that alone, he might not be Zhang Ruochen's match and would need to team up with others to kill him.
Yinghuo was wrapped in only a thin layer of red gauze, her curves soft and graceful. Standing within a cloud of blood mist, her snow-white skin was faintly visible, making her appear incredibly alluring and mysterious, tempting one to step into the mist and tear away her veil.
Few men could resist such temptation.
Her starry eyes locked onto Zhang Ruochen, and she let out a charming laugh: "The Devouring Demon Dragon isn't lying to you—your fiancée is indeed dead."
Then, Yinghuo extended a slender jade finger, pointing to the right side of the bridge.
Zhang Ruochen's heart pounded violently, a sense of foreboding rising within him. Following the direction of her finger, he looked and indeed saw Huang Yanchen and Qing Mo.
About five hundred meters to the right of the bridge, an iceberg floated suspended. Huang Yanchen and Qing Mo were covered in blood, their bodies battered and broken, sealed inside the iceberg. The scene was indescribably tragic, making Zhang Ruochen's heart feel as if it had turned to ice.
The cold in the five-colored ice cavern was far more intense than that of the Abandoned Deep Sea. Once frozen, it meant death.
"No..."
Zhang Ruochen's teeth nearly shattered, his fingers almost breaking, unable to contain the fury and grief within him.
When he learned that Huang Yanchen and Qing Mo had been knocked into the ice cavern, he had already prepared himself mentally. But seeing it with his own eyes was still heart-wrenching, impossible to accept.