Chapter 1461: Demanding an Accounting
The Rakshasa army completely withdrew, retreating from the southern side of the sacred mountain.
However, the saints from Purple Mansion Realm, Blade Prison Realm, and Kunlun Realm did not let down their guard. They dispatched a large number of saints to station in the southeast direction, preventing the Rakshasa army from launching a counterattack.
Among them, a group of saints walked toward Zhang Ruochen and the Rakshasa Princess with murderous intent, clearly looking to demand an accounting.
"Zhang Ruochen, get the hell out here!" Xu Zehai roared.
Xu Zehai was a Half-Saint King from Purple Mansion Realm, already over seven hundred years old. As he strode forward, dragon and tiger qi accompanied him, kicking up sand and stones.
Since Dongliu Sword Venerable was healing his injuries, Xu Zehai had temporarily become the leader of Purple Mansion Realm.
Zhang Ruochen stood calmly within the space maze formation. "Who goes there?"
"Purple Mansion Realm, Xu Zehai."
"Well, well, Xu Zehai. How dare you offend this Divine Envoy? Watch me shoot you dead."
Zhang Ruochen grabbed the Azure Sky Bow and drew the bowstring. Instantly, a vast expanse of azure saint light appeared above his head, while the Daylight Arrow resting on the bow bone emitted a dazzling white radiance.
The phenomenon of "Azure Sky and Daylight" actually manifested before their eyes.
Xu Zehai cursed Zhang Ruochen furiously in his heart. He had come to demand an accounting, yet after just one sentence, the other party was already threatening to kill him.
This Divine Envoy of Guanghan Realm had far too much killing intent. There was simply no reasoning with him.
Xu Zehai had witnessed the power of the Azure Sky Bow. If he got too close, even with his cultivation, he might not be able to dodge it. So he quickly activated his movement technique, retreating backward to create some distance.
Then, Zhang Ruochen aimed the Daylight Arrow at several other Supreme Saints from Purple Mansion Realm. They were all startled and, like Xu Zehai, retreated three hundred zhang away.
How humiliating. They had come to demand an accounting, yet they fled in panic. Even the saints of Purple Mansion Realm felt embarrassed.
Xu Zehai said in a deep voice, "Zhang Ruochen, don't be too arrogant! Opposing Purple Mansion Realm will not end well for you. If you know what's good for you, hand over the Rakshasa blood and remnant souls you collected earlier. Otherwise, you'll face the consequences."
"Should I interpret that as Purple Mansion Realm declaring war on Guanghan Realm?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Xu Zehai's heart tightened. "It's not that serious. Both Purple Mansion Realm and Guanghan Realm are subordinate mortal realms of the Heavenly Court. We should join forces to fight the Rakshasa Clan, not wage war against each other. However, you, Zhang Ruochen, first shot and killed Saint Yanshu, then snatched Purple Mansion Realm's spoils. You must pay a price."
"Saint Yanshu? Which Saint Yanshu?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
"The Supreme Saint of Purple Mansion Realm you shot dead earlier. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, are you going to deny it?" Xu Zehai roared angrily.
Purple Mansion Realm naturally wouldn't start a war with Guanghan Realm. If they wanted to deal with Zhang Ruochen and seize the Rakshasa blood and remnant souls on him, they needed a reason.
Zhang Ruochen showed a look of realization. "So she was a Supreme Saint of Purple Mansion Realm. She must be an important figure. This Divine Envoy will definitely settle this account with you."
Xu Zehai almost spat blood. "You want to settle accounts with us? Is there anyone with a thicker face than you?"
Zhang Ruochen's expression turned serious. "Your Purple Mansion Realm's Saint Yanshu was extremely greedy. Seeing that this Divine Envoy had obtained a large amount of Rakshasa blood and remnant souls, she wanted to kill me and take them. Fortunately, this Divine Envoy is powerful enough to keep my life. Are all the cultivators of Purple Mansion Realm bandits? Can't you collect Rakshasa blood and remnant souls with your own abilities? Why must you steal from others?"
Who was the one stealing from whom?
Xu Zehai's face flushed red. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
Even Su Qingling found it hard to watch, feeling that Zhang Ruochen was too shameless. No matter how you looked at it, they had indeed been unscrupulous this time, plundering the spoils of three major worlds through underhanded means.
But then again, this was just giving them a taste of their own medicine. Why reason with a bunch of thugs like the Purple Mansion Realm lot?
Within the Kunlun Realm camp, Eastern Domain King Chen Yin said, "When did Zhang Ruochen become so devoid of principles? He's disgracing the faces of Xuanji Sword Saint and Emperor Ming."
Wan Zhaoyi said, "A Zhang Ruochen with principles has weaknesses and can be dealt with. A Zhang Ruochen without principles is far more terrifying."
The saints of Purple Mansion Realm were all infuriated by Zhang Ruochen, their stomachs filled with rage. They roared, "Don't waste words with him. Attack together and destroy him."
Hundreds of saints simultaneously mobilized their saint qi, beginning to condense sacred arts.
A series of powerful saint force fluctuations erupted, causing the ground to tremble slightly. One could imagine that if hundreds of sacred arts were unleashed, the destructive power would be terrifying.
Xue Wuye frowned. "Zhang Ruochen has gone too far this time. He's completely enraged the saints of Purple Mansion Realm. If hundreds of sacred arts fall on them, how can just a few of them withstand it?"
"Serves him right," Chu Siyuan said with disdain.
Azure Sky Heavenly King, Saintly Scholar Talented Woman, Canglan Martial Saint, and several other saints all showed worried expressions.
After all, Zhang Ruochen's connection to Kunlun Realm could never be severed. There were his senior brothers, his close friends, his confidantes, and the remnants of the Holy Bright Central Empire.
Zhang Ruochen said, "What do you mean by this? Do you really want to kill this Divine Envoy and seize the Rakshasa blood and remnant souls on me? I advise you to exercise restraint, or the consequences will be severe."
"Kill him!"
Xu Zehai was the first to unleash a sacred art. Immediately, one hundred and eight sacred beast phantoms charged toward Zhang Ruochen. Each phantom contained terrifying destructive power. Manifesting together, it seemed they would crush even this sacred mountain.
At the same time, the hundreds of saints from Purple Mansion Realm also unleashed their sacred arts, raining down on Zhang Ruochen from all directions.
However, those attacks did not land on Zhang Ruochen. After entering the space maze formation, spatial reversal occurred, and the attacks flew back, striking the saints of Purple Mansion Realm.
"Boom, rumble."
Over forty saints from Purple Mansion Realm were killed by the sacred arts, and several hundred more suffered varying degrees of injury. The dead and wounded covered a large area, a scene of utter misery.
The saints of Kunlun Realm and Blade Prison Realm were all stunned.
Dongliu Sword Venerable, who was healing his injuries in the distance, was so angry that he spat out a mouthful of blood, worsening his internal injuries.
Xu Zehai crawled out from the scorched earth interwoven with thunder and fire. His skin was torn and bleeding, his saint robe riddled with holes, and his hair smoking with green fumes. He looked extremely disheveled, pointing a finger at Zhang Ruochen, unable to utter a single word for a long time.
"I told you the consequences would be severe and advised you to exercise restraint, but you just wouldn't listen," Zhang Ruochen said.
Canglan Martial Saint bit her crimson lips, staring at the space around Zhang Ruochen, and coldly spat, "What a treacherous fellow. He must have set up a space maze formation in advance."
Eastern Domain King Chen Yin also frowned. "What now? Can't we get our spoils back from him?"
"Get them back? How could we possibly get them back? Even if we could, it would cost a huge price," Wan Zhaoyi said.
Canglan Martial Saint said, "Blade Prison Realm and Purple Mansion Realm won't let this go. No matter how strong Zhang Ruochen is, he can't withstand the saints of two major worlds."
"Let them fight first. We'll go take the Merit Record Wall."
Wan Zhaoyi looked toward the summit of the sacred mountain, his gaze locking onto the Merit Record Wall. Then, together with Canglan Martial Saint and Jiuyou Sword Saint, he circled around the space maze formation and headed toward the mountaintop.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at them and said, "Let me warn you. The mountain path is extremely dangerous. One misstep, and you'll lose your life."
"Scaremongering."
Canglan Martial Saint had never feared danger and paid no attention to Zhang Ruochen's warning, striding upward.
Seeing that the saints of Kunlun Realm wanted to seize the Merit Record Wall, the saints of Purple Mansion Realm and Blade Prison Realm grew anxious. They temporarily stopped confronting Zhang Ruochen and dispatched over a dozen saint-level experts to intercept the three saints of Kunlun Realm.
Watching the saint-level experts of Kunlun Realm, Purple Mansion Realm, and Blade Prison Realm rush toward the summit, Zhang Ruochen merely sighed softly.
He had already warned them. If they wouldn't listen, what could he do?
Others might not understand Zhang Ruochen, but Saintly Scholar Talented Woman knew him well. Seeing him sigh, she had a bad feeling and quickly sent a spiritual power message. "Can you tell me what danger lies in the sacred mountain?"
Hearing Saintly Scholar Talented Woman's voice again felt like a lifetime ago.
Zhang Ruochen looked down at her clear, gentle, and lively eyes. "Time is the greatest killer. In an instant, one turns white-haired."
Saintly Scholar Talented Woman pondered Zhang Ruochen's words. In a moment, she understood his meaning. Her expression changed drastically, and she quickly sent a telepathic message to Wan Zhaoyi, Canglan Martial Saint, and Jiuyou Sword Saint, who were climbing the mountain.
On the sacred mountain, Purple Mansion Realm's Half-Saint King Xu Zehai burst forward at top speed, reaching ahead of Wan Zhaoyi and Jiuyou Sword Saint. He sneered, "You think Kunlun Realm can seize the Merit Record Wall? Don't you know your own strength?"
A Supreme Saint from Blade Prison Realm raised his voice. "Kunlun Realm ranks last among the Seven Realms of Shatuo. Even if you get the Merit Record Wall, you can't hold it. Why not join our two realms and deal with Guanghan Realm together?"
Seeing the arrogant demeanor of the saints from Purple Mansion Realm and Blade Prison Realm, Jiuyou Sword Saint was furious. If this were Kunlun Realm, who would dare speak to him like this?
Just as Jiuyou Sword Saint was about to thrust his sword forward, he received Saintly Scholar Talented Woman's telepathic message.
"What?"
Jiuyou Sword Saint shuddered. Without time for much thought, he turned and rushed down the mountain at full speed.
Wan Zhaoyi and Canglan Martial Saint also changed color, fleeing downhill even faster than Jiuyou Sword Saint.
Xu Zehai didn't know what was happening. He chuckled lightly. "I haven't even said I'm going to deal with you, and you're already scared into running away. With that kind of courage, you still want to seize the Merit Record Wall?"