Chapter 1289: The Hand Behind the Curtain
"Since Zhang Ruochen has already been crippled and lost his potential for further growth, he should hand over the cultivation resources on him and contribute to the strengthening of humanity. The great upheaval has arrived, with savage beasts and the Undying Blood Clan rising continuously. Humanity must help each other and unite to survive this calamity."
Someone spoke these words, and immediately, countless cultivators responded.
In the Western Region, a holy monk from the Life and Extinction Temple, one of the three major branches of the Ten Thousand Buddha Path, appeared in the Heavenly Buddha Sacred City and released a message: "If Zhang Ruochen is willing to donate the Buddha Emperor Relic to the Life and Extinction Temple, from now on, he will be the most honored guest of the temple. Anyone who opposes him will be opposing the Life and Extinction Temple. For the Buddha Emperor Relic, the Life and Extinction Temple is willing to pay any price."
If the Buddha Emperor Relic had not been mentioned, and the Life and Extinction Temple had stood up to support Zhang Ruochen, people might have thought they were offering timely help. However, now any cultivator could tell that the Life and Extinction Temple was quite covetous of the Buddha Emperor Relic, even carrying a hint of threat. It was nothing short of kicking someone when they were down.
From the Moon Worship Demon Sect, another message spread: "If Zhang Ruochen voluntarily returns the Realm Son Seal, the Moon Worship Demon Sect will wipe the slate clean of all past grievances. Otherwise, the Moon Worship Demon Sect will send experts to the Central Imperial City, invite his mother to the Summitless Mountain, and discuss this matter with her."
As this news spread, all cultivators who had good relations with Zhang Ruochen stepped forward to condemn the Moon Worship Demon Sect's despicable methods. Grudges between cultivators should not involve family members, especially since Zhang Ruochen's mother was an ordinary person incapable of cultivation.
Second Senior Brother Zhu Hongtao rushed to the territory of the Moon Worship Demon Sect that very day. Standing at the foot of the Summitless Mountain, he cursed loudly: "Can the Moon Worship Demon Sect be any more shameless? Do you really think that just because Zhang Ruochen's three meridians are crippled, you can push him around? I'm laying it out here—if you dare touch Zhang Ruochen's mother, I'll destroy a hundred branch halls of the Moon Worship Demon Sect!"
Zhu Hongtao was a lone man without family or dependents to hold him back, so he had no fear of the Moon Worship Demon Sect. A saint, if unburdened by any concerns and given to mass slaughter, was a terrifying thing. With a saint's devastating power, destroying a city was not too difficult. Even a top-tier force like the Moon Worship Demon Sect would find a rampaging saint a major headache.
Painting Sect Master Chu Siyuan was quite displeased. Appearing in an ancient city, he condemned the Moon Worship Demon Sect for lacking the bearing of an ancient sect, showing no sense of righteousness, and being unworthy of calling itself a divine sect.
Given their different camps, Chu Siyuan did not provide Zhang Ruochen with direct help, but stepping forward to denounce those with ulterior motives was already no small feat.
That same day, the Moon Worship Demon Sect's Divine Son Ouyang Huan appeared in a public venue and said: "I do indeed want to reclaim the Realm Son Seal, but I only wish to do so through my own strength. I have never used his family to threaten him, nor have I sent other sect disciples to do so. There are malicious individuals lurking within the sect. This matter will be thoroughly investigated."
At the Moon Worship Demon Sect's Sacred Maiden Palace, Ling Feiyu had already emerged from seclusion, her cultivation having advanced to a higher level. Upon hearing of Zhang Ruochen's situation, she summoned Mu Lingxi and asked: "Zhang Ruochen is in a very dangerous position now. Has he sent you any message, telling you where he is hiding?"
"No."
Mu Lingxi was also deeply worried about Zhang Ruochen's plight, but she had received no message from him. Right now, she too wished she could find him as soon as possible. How badly was Zhang Ruochen injured? Was he enduring hardship out in the open? Had he been hunted down by his enemies?
Thinking of all this, Mu Lingxi's heart could not calm down. She wanted to leave the headquarters immediately to find him, but she had no idea where to look.
Ling Feiyu said: "Zhang Ruochen carries several treasures that would tempt even Saint Kings and Great Saints. Now, some people want to use his mother as bait to force him out. Go investigate which faction is behind this."
Ling Feiyu handed Mu Lingxi a token. With it, she could freely enter and exit all major restricted areas of the sect and mobilize all the experts of the Sacred Maiden Palace.
"Yes."
Mu Lingxi took the token and withdrew.
"Zhang Ruochen, where are you hiding?"
Ling Feiyu murmured to herself, then moved, vanishing from the Sacred Maiden Palace and appearing atop a spiritual mountain peak. She stood on the edge of a cliff, her figure straight and tall, her long hair fluttering in the cold wind. Her beautiful eyes gazed at the sea of clouds below, their light as sharp as a divine sword.
"Whoosh!"
Her form disappeared, turning into a streak of light that plunged into the sea of clouds, splitting the vast expanse and leaving a long trail of sword energy behind.
Originally, not many cultivators knew that Zhang Ruochen's mother was in the Central Imperial City. But after this uproar, almost everyone knew about it. Even if the Moon Worship Demon Sect truly had no intention of using Lin Fei to lure Zhang Ruochen out, other forces and cultivators would surely do so.
The purpose of the entire incident was to incite greedy people and point them in a direction.
Lin Fei was Zhang Ruochen's weak spot.
If Lin Fei were captured, Zhang Ruochen would certainly show himself.
Ling Feiyu saw the situation clearly, knowing that behind all this was likely a very formidable figure orchestrating things. After all, the items Zhang Ruochen carried were too tempting—Saint Kings would covet them, and Great Saints would be moved.
Who was the one manipulating everything from the shadows? Was it someone from within the Moon Worship Demon Sect, the imperial court, or another force?
Since that person was using Lin Fei as bait, they would surely be personally stationed in the Central Imperial City, controlling the entire situation, waiting only for Zhang Ruochen to appear.
Ling Feiyu left the demon sect's headquarters, intending to go to the Central Imperial City herself to meet this hidden hand that had been stirring the pot without ever revealing itself.
The Bright Hall's headquarters were built in an extremely secret place—not on the ground, but in the sky, on a small planetoid at an altitude of one hundred thousand zhang, hidden within the clouds. Normally, a small planetoid could not exist so close to the ground. In reality, that planetoid was an ancient divine relic, once the dwelling place of a god, full of mysteries. Without guidance from an insider of the Bright Hall, even a saint could not find it, let alone set foot on it.
At that moment, within a magnificent vermilion building on the planetoid, violent fluctuations of sacred qi erupted, forming ripples like water rings that shook the entire region.
"Zhongying King, you are asking for death!"
A seven-colored peacock burst out of the planetoid, spreading its sky-covering wings, and flew northward with murderous intent. All the cultivators of the Bright Hall trembled in fear, not understanding why the Saint Ancestor was so enraged.
Only when the seven-colored peacock's figure disappeared at the horizon did the pressure on them ease. They stood up from the ground, still feeling a lingering dread.
In the following days, the treasures on Zhang Ruochen, amplified by those with ulterior motives, drove countless greedy cultivators to madness.
"The Buddha Emperor Relic contains the lifelong cultivation and knowledge of two Buddhist Great Saints, the Buddha Emperor and the Golden Dragon. Refining it will surely allow one to become a human Great Emperor in the future."
"Zhang Ruochen possesses a cauldron-shaped ancient divine relic of immense power, even stronger than the Undying Blood Clan's God-Slaying Cross Shield. Obtaining it would allow a sect to endure for ten thousand generations."
"The Abyssal Ancient Sword is forged from the same material as the Blood Drop Sword. It can devour other weapons and continuously evolve, potentially becoming a divine artifact in the future."
"Zhang Ruochen obtained the treasury of the Azure Dragon Dynasty and controls the World Spirit of the Azure Dragon Ruins Realm. Find him, and you'll have inexhaustible wealth."
...
The cultivators of the Kunlun Realm had all gone mad, eager to drag Zhang Ruochen out and divide everything he had. Even his flesh and blood were described as treasures—eating a bite would enhance a cultivator's physique.
Anyone with even a shred of wisdom could see that a hidden hand was fanning the flames, trying to mobilize the entire Kunlun Realm's cultivators to find Zhang Ruochen. In their eyes, Zhang Ruochen was now a powerless cripple. If they found him, even an ordinary martial artist could take him down, seize his treasures, and quickly become a peerless expert.
Once such a thought took root, it was enough to drive a sane person mad. Who wouldn't want to dominate the younger generation like Zhang Ruochen, laughing at an era, defeating divine sons, subduing sacred maidens, and becoming a great figure admired and worshipped by all?
Zhang Ruochen, who was in the midst of cultivation, knew nothing of these events outside.
After seven consecutive days of taking large amounts of Azure Dragon Divine Dew, Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power had reached a new level, advancing to the fifty-second rank.
Every increase in spiritual power rank was a huge leap forward.
A cultivator with fifty-second-rank spiritual power could, in theory, at least contend with Upper Realm Saints. Some who had mastered high-level spells or possessed powerful spiritual power sacred artifacts could even kill Xuanhuang Realm Saints.
For reference, even the Life Goddess Xian Feizi of the Earth Divine Temple and the Undying Goddess Yinghuo of the Undying Divine Temple only had spiritual power at the fifty-third rank. However, they both possessed extraordinary treasures and could crush any opponent as long as they didn't encounter True Saint-level beings.
"With spiritual power at the fifty-second rank, I can use it to reconstruct fifty percent of the entire blood vessel system within my body."
Zhang Ruochen's blood vessel system became more complete, and his body regained some vitality. Nourished by chaotic qi, his physical body grew stronger with every moment.
It could be predicted that if he could fully reconstruct the blood vessel system and form true blood vessels, Zhang Ruochen's physical realm and the power he could unleash would surely reach another level.