Chapter 1404: Two Great Saints
"Elder Yan is joking! For them to dare attack Wuding Mountain is a deliberate provocation. For the dignity of the Divine Cult, how could I, the Cult Leader, let them off lightly?"
Shi Qianjue understood that the Fire Clan was using the Moon-Worshipping Cult to deal with the Sacred Bright Remnants. However, at the Cult's headquarters, it was certainly impossible to let the Fire Clan handle the Sacred Bright Remnants; the Cult itself had to make the move.
That Fire Clan Saint Ancestor cupped his hands, then withdrew.
Shi Qianjue said, "Zhang Ruochen, will you really not retreat?"
"I will not."
Facing a Great Saint, Zhang Ruochen was also very decisive.
"Very well. Today, I, the Cult Leader, will discipline you on behalf of Emperor Ming," Shi Qianjue said.
Just then, Drunkard and Gu Songzi transformed into two streaks of light, charging forward until they reached the vicinity of the second-layer mountain-protecting formation.
Drunkard no longer looked disheveled; instead, he was extremely fierce, cursing, "Shi Qianjue, as the Cult Leader, you should protect every disciple of the Cult. Yet, to curry favor with the Fire Clan and the Parasol Tree Divine Tree, you forced a Sacred Maiden of the Cult to marry an outsider. Since when did our Moon-Worshipping Cult need to sacrifice its Sacred Maidens to stabilize its position and expand its power? Our master's lifelong reputation has been completely ruined by you."
Drunkard's voice was very loud, reaching the ears of all the Cult cultivators.
Some of those cultivators shared Drunkard's feelings, feeling deeply resentful inside, but dared not speak out.
Of course, there were also other Cult cultivators who thought Drunkard was being reckless and presumptuous.
"Where did this old madman come from, daring to insult the Cult Leader? He really doesn't know how to live!"
"You don't even know him? He is a renowned elder of the Divine Cult, the Cult Leader's junior brother, Feng Zuisheng. He is several generations above you, and you dare call him an old madman?"
...
Hearing Drunkard's string of curses, the Moon-Worshipping Cult showed faint signs of internal division.
An extremely old Cult elder said, "When the previous Cult Leader was alive, the Sacred Maidens of the Divine Cult held a very high status; they were true Sacred Maidens. Since Shi Qianjue became Cult Leader, the Sacred Maidens have become nothing but tools for him to win people's hearts and expand his power. What difference is there between them and prostitutes in a brothel? I, this old man, have long been unable to tolerate this. Since Uncle Feng has returned to the Cult, let Uncle Feng preside over justice for everyone."
"Nie Beiyi, you dare question the Cult Leader? Are you trying to rebel?"
The Lord of the Dark Night Palace, Ye Xiaoxiang, stepped out from the void.
Her figure flickered, and with a single sword strike, she severed the head of the Cult elder who had just spoken, leaving a pool of blood on the ground.
Seeing this, the anger in Drunkard's eyes burned even more fiercely.
"Haha, haha."
A hearty laugh echoed through the heavens and earth.
On the horizon, a spirited figure appeared, walking across the water.
Tonglu Plain was originally a vast wilderness, but beneath that young figure's feet, there were thousands of miles of blue waves, as if a great sea followed him.
It was a cultivator in green robes, standing atop the waves, hands clasped behind his back. "Well said. The Sacred Maidens of the Moon-Worshipping Cult sound glorious, but in reality, they are the most pitiable women under heaven."
Ye Xiaoxiang stood beneath Shi Qianjue's shadow, staring at the green-robed scholar on the waves, and said coldly, "Luo Xu, you still dare to come to Wuding Mountain? What benefit did Zhang Ruochen promise you, that you are willing to come and die?"
Zhang Ruochen was also somewhat surprised, not expecting Luo Xu to come.
Luo Xu stood on a vast expanse of water spanning thousands of miles, like a great lake. That water was not an illusion but was condensed from his Sacred Dao rules.
From this, it could be seen that Luo Xu's cultivation had probably already reached the Saint King realm.
Luo Xu's gaze was somewhat distant. "Benefit? There is no benefit in the world that can move Luo Xu. It's just that two hundred years ago, I left my life's greatest regret here. Two hundred years later, I don't want the same tragedy to repeat itself. Zhang Ruochen, you won't blame me for coming uninvited, will you?"
"Senior Luo Xu has come to help; this junior is deeply grateful," Zhang Ruochen said.
Gu Songzi said, "Shi Qianjue, even though you have broken through to the Great Saint realm, one-on-one, none of us is your match. But with so many of us strong ones here, if we activate the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron together, can you withstand it?"
Drunkard said, "Once the second-layer mountain-protecting formation is breached, at least half of the Cult's disciples will lose their protection. If a Saint-level battle breaks out, how many Cult disciples will be crushed?"
Shi Qianjue's figure let out a long laugh. "Without reaching the Great Saint realm, you can never know how mysterious that realm is. Even if I, the Cult Leader, walk out of the mountain-protecting formation, what can you do to me?"
The world's spiritual energy trembled violently, and then a tall figure in black robes flew out of the formation, standing at the same height as the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron.
Shi Qianjue looked to be in his fifties, his robes like black iron cloth. Above his head were layers of demonic clouds, like a world-shrouding demon lord emerging.
"Cult Leader, invincible under heaven, revered by all five domains."
"Cult Leader, invincible under heaven, revered by all five domains."
...
All the Cult cultivators knelt respectfully to Shi Qianjue, and even some of the banquet guests prostrated themselves on the ground.
That was the spiritual suppression a Great Saint exerted over Saints.
It was like a commoner seeing an emperor, instinctively wanting to kneel and kowtow.
"Not good."
Seeing Shi Qianjue appear near the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron, all the Saints of the Sacred Bright Remnants changed color.
Under Zhang Ruochen's direction, they poured all their Saint Qi into the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron.
"Hua—"
Golden ancient characters flew out from the body of the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron.
However, Shi Qianjue acted first, extending his arm. A demonic hand formed from Sacred Dao rules struck the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron, sending it flying.
The Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron was out of control, flying to the horizon, becoming a small black dot, and finally disappearing completely.
"Excellent! Without the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron, what can those Sacred Bright rebels use to contend with a Great Saint?"
Qiu Yu and the Fire Clan cultivators all showed smiles.
Shi Qianjue was absolutely a decisive and ruthless overlord. After sending the Kaiyuan Deer Cauldron flying, he mobilized his Saint Qi again, condensing a black demonic sphere between his hands.
The light of the demonic sphere was extremely deep, like a black hole, devouring all energy between heaven and earth.
"Zhang Ruochen, I, the Cult Leader, gave you a chance earlier. Since you didn't cherish it, then you and the remaining ministers of Sacred Bright will all die here."
Shi Qianjue pressed his hands downward.
That black demonic sphere fell.
In an instant, the wilderness at the foot of Wuding Mountain was sealed by ice, turning into a dead zone.
The Battle Heavenly King, who was already at the peak of the Saint King realm, gasped. "A casual strike from a Great Saint is ten times stronger than mine."
A Saint said, "Finally seeing a Great Saint in action. Is this the power a human can unleash? Even the legendary gods might not be this powerful, right? Even standing on Saint Wood Peak, I feel unable to move."
Mu Lingxi was extremely worried, biting her lip until she tasted a coppery sweetness.
Ling Feiyu stood straight, her ten fingers clenched tightly. "Zhang Ruochen, Zhang Ruochen, you must have a trump card, right?"
Qiu Yu nodded, the smile in his eyes deepening. "As expected of a Great Saint. This one strike alone should wipe out a large portion of the Sacred Bright rebels!"
On Saint Wood Peak, the expressions of the various cultivators varied—some worried, some smug, some anxious, and some showing schadenfreude smiles.
Just then, a crack opened in the earth, and a divine hand extended from the ground.
The palm of that divine hand was several hundred zhang long, like a five-fingered cloud, colliding with the demonic sphere falling from the sky. Instantly, ripples of energy surged in all directions, even causing the second-layer mountain-protecting formation to tremble slightly.
The Great Saint's attack had actually been blocked.
All the cultivators in Wuding Mountain were dumbfounded, as if time had stopped.
"Boom."
"Boom, rumble."
...
Then, the Divine Battle Corpse walked out from the earth fissure, its massive body standing on the vast plain, roaring angrily at Shi Qianjue.
Death Zen Ancestor sat cross-legged atop the Divine Battle Corpse's head, his whole body radiating brilliant Buddha light.
"It's Death Zen Ancestor! How could it be Death Zen Ancestor?"
"Why would Death Zen Ancestor help Zhang Ruochen? Given Death Zen Ancestor's status, even if Zhang Ruochen offered him the greatest benefits, he probably couldn't have invited him."
Death Zen Ancestor's appearance surprised all the cultivators.
Shi Qianjue was also clearly taken aback. "Death Zen, you are making an enemy of the Moon-Worshipping Cult. That is not a wise move."
"Amitabha! This poor monk owes Benefactor Zhang a favor, so today, I naturally must go all out to help him," Death Zen Ancestor said.
On Saint Wood Peak, Qiu Yu's eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had figured something out. "So that's it. So Zhang Ruochen is the real culprit behind the scenes. He was the one who killed millions of the Fire Clan's people. Damnable, truly damnable."
"Death Zen Ancestor has no deep grudge against our Fire Clan and wouldn't offend us for no reason. It must be Zhang Ruochen."
A Fire Clan Saint Ancestor cupped his hands and bowed to the south. "Death Zen Ancestor and Zhang Ruochen are the Fire Clan's irreconcilable enemies. I beg the Fire Venerable to take action and suppress them."
In the southern sky, a patch of red-golden fire clouds appeared.
Within the fire clouds, a figure in golden armor emerged.
The power fluctuations emanating from him were even stronger than Shi Qianjue's. This person spoke, "Death Zen, if you had fled to the outer domains, you might have been able to save your life. Why did you stay in the Kunlun Realm? Do you really think I cannot kill you?"
The appearance of the Fire Venerable undoubtedly made this battle, which had still held some suspense, rather boring.
With two Great Saints appearing, it was an overwhelming advantage. How could they still fight?
Of course, even if the Sacred Bright Remnants were completely annihilated today, it would be enough to be recorded in history. Being able to draw out two Great Saints was already an impressive feat.
"Oh!"
Suddenly, both the Fire Venerable and Shi Qianjue sensed something and simultaneously turned their gazes toward the northern sky.
...
(Sigh! I've been sleeping too late these past few days, and my headache is unbearable. I really can't take it anymore. I plan to rest early tonight. As for the chapter update at midnight, it will be postponed until tomorrow noon.)