# Chapter 1400: Hard to Leave One's Homeland
When news of the Fire Clan's great calamity reached the Moon Worship Demon Sect's headquarters, silence fell over the assembly.
Everyone felt that the Fire Clan had been terribly unlucky. If they had simply killed the Ghost King of Divine Beginning back then, how could such a great upheaval have occurred?
No one suspected Zhang Ruochen. All believed that the Ghost King of Divine Beginning was the source of the chaos.
That very day, the Demon Sect's leader, Shi Qianjue, sent the Mu Family's Saint Master to the Fire Domain to inquire whether the wedding scheduled for the seventh day of next month would still proceed.
Should they hold a funeral first, or a wedding first?
The Fire Clan responded that the wedding date would not change. On the seventh day of next month, the Fire Clan and Young Master Qiuyu would personally travel to Wuding Mountain to welcome the Little Saintess.
In the Central Domain's Yuan Mansion, Zhang Ruochen met again with Dead Zen Ancestor and Han Qiu, asking them about their journey to the Fire Domain.
After hearing their account, Zhang Ruochen's expression grew increasingly grave. "The Fire Clan's strength is truly terrifying. To have five Saint Kings appear in succession—even the Moon Worship Demon Sect might not possess such power."
"Unfortunately, three have already fallen. That's a serious loss of vitality."
Han Qiu let out a dark, cold laugh, looking quite pleased with herself.
Dead Zen Ancestor, however, sat motionless beside her, eyes closed, not a trace of a smile on his face.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Ancestor, it seems you have some concerns?"
"The legendary Fire Venerable truly exists. Benefactor Zhang, the situation is far from optimistic." Dead Zen Ancestor said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Fire Venerable?"
Han Qiu's expression changed. "Could it be that mysterious figure who made the final move to block the Divine Battle Corpse?"
Dead Zen Ancestor nodded. "About two hundred years ago, an incredibly powerful Sacred Dao fluctuation emanated from the Fire Domain, sweeping across the entire Southern Region. At that time, all the saints in the Southern Region felt that Sacred Dao fluctuation, and every one of them trembled in fear. All cultivators guessed that someone in the Fire Domain had cultivated to the Great Saint realm."
"Since then, behind every major event that erupted in the Southern Region, there has been the shadow of a mysterious existence. People call him the Fire Venerable."
Zhang Ruochen had also heard legends of the Fire Venerable, but had only considered him a Saint King.
Cultivating to the Great Saint realm—how could that be easy?
But hearing Dead Zen Ancestor's account, Zhang Ruochen fell into silence. After a long while, he asked, "Has that Fire Venerable truly reached the Great Saint realm?"
Dead Zen Ancestor shook his head. "The Great Saint realm is too lofty. One can proclaim oneself emperor and be crowned king. Without reaching that realm, it's impossible to see through them."
"Below the Great Saint realm, no matter how strong one is, they can at most withstand a few attacks from a Great Saint. Only the Tenth Emperor of eight hundred years ago, Yan Liren, relying on his powerful physical body, could fight a Great Saint for an extended period and remain undefeated. As for victory—that's impossible."
"Based on this humble monk's guess, that Fire Venerable has definitely reached the Great Saint level."
Zhang Ruochen drew in a cold breath. The Fire Clan actually had a Great Saint.
He remembered that back then, the Sacred Bright Central Empire had only one Great Saint—the Ming Emperor. Yet, as long as he sat in power, no force dared to oppose the Sacred Bright Central Empire.
The fury of a single Great Saint was enough to destroy an entire sect or annihilate an entire clan.
Let alone a Great Saint—even a single Saint could inflict incalculable casualties on a superpower.
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Can the Divine Battle Corpse fight the Fire Venerable?"
Dead Zen Ancestor said, "A god, after all, is already dead. Using the Divine Battle Corpse to deal with ordinary saints is naturally as easy as swatting flies. But to deal with a Great Saint... heh... do you think a god's corpse could deal with the Ming Emperor?"
Zhang Ruochen gently shook his head.
"Of course, relying on the Divine Battle Corpse's combat power, holding off the Fire Venerable for one or two hours is not difficult."
Dead Zen Ancestor's eyes suddenly opened wide. "Let's be clear from the start. On the seventh day of next month, this humble monk will exhaust all his strength to hold off the Fire Venerable for two hours. After that, I will no longer owe you anything. As for how to deal with the Moon Worship Demon Sect and Shi Qianjue, you'll have to rely on yourself."
"Good." Zhang Ruochen agreed.
Holding off a Great Saint for two hours was clearly no easy task. Dead Zen Ancestor immediately withdrew, beginning to devote all his energy to helping the Divine Battle Corpse refine the Ghost King of Divine Beginning.
Time passed like a white horse fleeting past a crack. Soon it was the fourth day, with only three days left until the seventh.
The major powers of the Kunlun Realm each sent representatives bearing invitation letters, hurrying to the Demon Sect's headquarters at Wuding Mountain, preparing to witness the marriage alliance between the number one ancient sect under heaven and the number one ancient clan under heaven.
The cultivators attending the banquet were all top-tier figures. They were well aware that the seventh day would not be peaceful.
At Wuding Mountain, the gathered saints were even more numerous than at the Realm Son Banquet or the Sword Discussion Assembly. Yet at the same time, it gave people a feeling of an approaching storm. The atmosphere was very strange.
Zhang Ruochen, Qiuyu, Mu Lingxi, and even Huang Yanchen's names were spreading more and more widely.
Over the past half month, Zhang Ruochen had been extremely busy, traveling every day to guide the remnants of the Sacred Bright Empire into the Qiankun Realm.
On this day, Zhang Ruochen arrived at Cangshu Commandery in Linjian Prefecture.
Throughout the entire Cangshu Commandery, nearly a million remnants of the Sacred Bright Empire had gathered. Some were cultivators and martial artists, but more were ordinary commoners who had never practiced martial arts.
"Hurry up, hurry up! What are you dawdling for? His Highness the Crown Prince still has important matters to attend to. His time is precious—can you afford to delay it?"
"If you don't move, we'll tie you up and drag you away!"
...
A burly man at the Fish-Dragon realm, riding on the back of a barbarian beast, was shouting at a group of commoners walking very slowly.
Those commoners were mostly family members of the Sacred Bright Empire remnants. They kept looking back, unwilling to leave the homeland where they had grown up.
The Fish-Dragon realm man jumped down from the barbarian beast, pushed an old man with graying hair in the back, and roared, "What are you looking at? The Qiankun Realm is a hundred times better than here! What's there to be reluctant about?"
"No matter how good it is, I won't go. Just let this old man die here. Don't force me anymore."
"If I leave, I'll never come back. My son's bones are still buried in the mountains. Who will burn incense for him every year? Who will repair his grave?"
"This is where I know the mountains, where I know the rivers. Even if the imperial court finds me, even if they kill me, I won't leave."
...
The lifestyle of those ordinary commoners was different from that of cultivators. They did not blindly pursue greater power. Instead, they lived the most simple lives, with special feelings for their homeland and their people, unwilling to give them up.
"You ungrateful bastards! You're nothing but a burden. What use is there in keeping you?"
The Fish-Dragon realm man drew a four-foot-long war blade and swung it toward them.
Recently, aside from traveling, Zhang Ruochen had been devoting all his time to cultivation. Only today did he witness this scene, discovering that not everyone was willing to leave their homeland for a strange world.
This scene deeply touched his heart, as if he had suddenly realized something.
"Whoosh—"
Seeing the Fish-Dragon realm man draw his blade, Zhang Ruochen's figure flickered. The next moment, he appeared before that group of commoners.
The Fish-Dragon realm man hastily withdrew his war blade, his legs giving way as he knelt on the ground. "Greetings... greetings, Your Highness."
"Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
The surrounding commoners were even more panicked and fearful, kneeling in a large crowd.
"Everyone, no need to bow. Please rise."
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen quickly helped up the nearest white-haired old man. "Elder, why are you unwilling to go to the Qiankun Realm?"
That white-haired old man immediately burst into tears, trying to kneel again. "Your Highness, please spare these old bones. My son was killed by the imperial court and buried in the mountains. If I leave, he'll become a lonely ghost!"
Beside him, another old woman also knelt before Zhang Ruochen, pleading, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, we all know you mean well for us, wanting us to go to a safer and more prosperous place to live. But this is our homeland. Here are our fields, our familiar people, and the memories of our youth."
"Your Highness, just let us wait for death here. We don't want to leave."
...
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen's emotions were incredibly complex.
Facing even the most powerful enemy, Zhang Ruochen could raise his sword without fear. But facing the pleas of a group of old, weak, women, and children, he had to ask himself—had he done something wrong?
He had thought everything he did was for their good.
But had he ever asked for their wishes?
Forcing his will upon them—what difference was there between that and imprisoning them, enslaving them, torturing them?
The Fish-Dragon realm man said fearfully, "Your Highness, I was just trying to scare them earlier. I wouldn't dare actually harm them. There are too many people like them. If I don't scare them a little, they simply won't leave. And if they stay in the Kunlun Realm, how could the imperial court possibly let them go?"
Zhang Ruochen looked somewhat lost. After a long while, he said, "Ask them about their own wishes. If they are unwilling to leave, do not force them. I will find other ways to protect them."
Hearing Zhang Ruochen's words, the commoners present all cheered.
That white-haired old man knelt on the ground, staring at Zhang Ruochen's back, and said, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, will you ever return to the Kunlun Realm?"
Even a fool could see that the Sacred Bright Crown Prince would soon leave the Kunlun Realm, and might never return.
After all, the Empress had already become a god. Who would dare to clash head-on with a god?
Zhang Ruochen's body trembled. He stopped in his tracks and revealed a faint smile. "Yes, I will definitely return. As long as you still live on this land, I will definitely come back to see you. The Kunlun Realm does not belong to that Empress alone. It belongs to all of us."
Leaving was only a last resort.
If there were a choice, who would be willing to leave their homeland? Who would be willing to leave the place where they were born and raised, to go to a completely strange world?
It was true—hard to leave one's homeland.
After all, humans were not cold-blooded animals, nor were they stones or grass and trees. They had feelings, thoughts, and memories.
Zhang Ruochen thought of his mother, Lin Fei. He had always kept her by his side, yet rarely spent time with her, taking her from one strange place to another. Was she truly happy in her heart?