Chapter 1505: Nine Nether Proclaims Kingship
Dongliu Sword Venerable, Xue Lingfeng, and Limu stood at the edge of the Mingdong Cold Sea, watching the fierce battle that had just concluded, their expressions somewhat unnatural.
Limu said, "Four First-Class Marquises have already been killed. These First-Class Marquises really have bad luck running into Zhang Ruochen."
Limu was also ranked among the top three in Tianmu Realm, yet on the Merit Battlefield, he had only severely wounded two First-Class Marquises without actually killing any.
First, First-Class Marquises were inherently powerful, possessing the strength to escape from a One-Step Saint King. Even if they couldn't defeat Limu, they could still flee.
Second, the vitality of a First-Class Marquise was astonishing. Only by piercing their Qi Sea, digging out their Saint Source, or shattering their body into pieces and inflicting severe, irrecoverable injuries could they be killed.
However, Zhang Ruochen happened to master techniques like the Time Sword Art and Purifying Divine Flame. When encountering him, First-Class Marquises simply couldn't escape. Moreover, their formidable vitality proved utterly fragile in the face of Purifying Divine Flame.
Dongliu Sword Venerable frowned deeply, "Zhang Ruochen never uses the Time Sword Art lightly; he's always looking for the perfect moment to strike. When he unleashes the Time Sword Art, it's the moment he kills his opponent."
Xue Lingfeng said, "Perhaps it's because he fears that using it too often will allow his opponents to find a way to counter it. Or maybe the Time Sword Art itself has many limitations and can't be used freely. Dongliu, you're the only one who has survived the Time Sword Art twice, and you're also a top-tier expert in the Sword Dao. Have you found a way to break the Time Sword Art?"
Dongliu Sword Venerable said, "There are indeed some methods that might break the Time Sword Art. But Zhang Ruochen doesn't wait for you to be fully prepared before using it. Instead, he strikes when you're most flustered and least guarded, achieving a sure kill with his sword."
"So, in actual combat, unless your cultivation is far above Zhang Ruochen's, even if you know how to counter the Time Sword Art, you'll still end up being killed by it."
There was one thing Dongliu Sword Venerable didn't say out loud.
That was, the reason he had survived the Time Sword Art twice might very well be because Zhang Ruochen didn't want to kill him. If Zhang Ruochen had been determined to kill him, given the circumstances of his two defeats, Dongliu Sword Venerable would have had little chance of survival.
As for why Zhang Ruochen hadn't killed him, Dongliu Sword Venerable still couldn't quite figure it out.
Perhaps it was because there was no direct enmity between them.
Even though they had clashed many times, it was only because they came from different great worlds and had to fight for a way out for the billions of living beings in their respective home realms.
Or perhaps Zhang Ruochen had spared his life to use him against the Rakshasa Clan's experts.
"Only by returning to our peak state can we have a chance to seize the Merit Record Wall."
Dongliu Sword Venerable, Xue Lingfeng, and Limu said no more, swallowing healing sacred pills and focusing all their efforts on recovering from their injuries.
Zhang Ruochen's consecutive kills of Xueyu Hou and Xie Bai Hou had indeed intimidated the other six First-Class Marquises, forcing the severely injured Chengxuan Hou and Xianling Hou to refrain from battle.
To become a First-Class Marquis was no simple feat; they realized Zhang Ruochen's true target was the Merit Record Wall, so they all converged on it.
At the battle circle around the Merit Record Wall, Mo Yin was single-handedly suppressing two First-Class Marquises, even severely wounding one of them.
However, those two First-Class Marquises were also quite powerful, forcing Mo Yin to be unable to seize the Merit Record Wall so far.
Zhang Ruochen's speed was astonishing, allowing him to reach the vicinity of the Merit Record Wall ahead of the eight First-Class Marquises. He sent a burst of Purifying Divine Flame from his palm.
The Purifying Divine Flame condensed into a cloud of fire.
One of the First-Class Marquises guarding the Merit Record Wall watched the green fire cloud descending upon him, his expression turning startled. He had just witnessed how those other Marquises had been burned to death—how could he not be afraid?
That burly First-Class Marquis quickly dodged to the side.
"Shua."
A black sword light met him head-on, piercing through that First-Class Marquis's brow. In an instant, half his skull was shattered.
The next moment, Zhang Ruochen stepped on his shoulder, leaped up, and landed on top of the Merit Record Wall.
"Plop."
That First-Class Marquis's body plunged into the Mingdong Cold Sea, splashing up a large wave, his fate unknown.
By the time Chengxuan Hou, Xianling Hou, and the other eight First-Class Marquises arrived, they witnessed this scene.
"Juqing Hou."
Qianyu Hou shouted, then mobilized thousands of feathers into a feather river that surged into the Mingdong Cold Sea, trying to use the feathers' power to rescue the fallen Juqing Hou.
Although Juqing Hou's head had been half-shattered by Zhang Ruochen, Qianyu Hou knew his Qi Sea wasn't in his head, so he likely wasn't dead.
Zhang Ruochen flicked his arm, sending a golden light flying from his hand.
It was the Buddha Emperor Relic.
"Bang, bang."
One feather after another was shattered by the relic, turning into powder.
"Careful, Zhang Ruochen is using Juqing Hou as bait to lure us into saving him, so he can kill us."
The other First-Class Marquises quickly unleashed their sacred artifacts, colliding with the Buddha Emperor Relic. The relic was knocked back, averting the crisis Qianyu Hou faced.
Zhang Ruochen retrieved the Buddha Emperor Relic, holding it in his palm as he scanned the nine First-Class Marquises on the sea surface, a look of disdain in his eyes.
"Hua—"
Mo Yin transformed into a fragrant breeze, flying over to land beside Zhang Ruochen, smiling sweetly as she stared at them.
On the surface, the two seemed surrounded and trapped in a deathly situation, but the nine First-Class Marquises encircling them looked even more grim, as if facing a great enemy.
There was no helping it. Zhang Ruochen had already killed four First-Class Marquises in a row, with another having fallen into the sea, his fate unknown. Such achievements—who wouldn't fear them?
One man, clashing with nearly ten First-Class Marquises, moved through them as if through an empty space, with no one even able to touch a corner of his robe. Such strength, even if told, no one would believe.
At first, those First-Class Marquises thought they held the absolute advantage and could crush Zhang Ruochen. But after actually engaging him, they realized this enemy was far more terrifying than they had imagined.
In the distance, Lingquan Shaojun watched this scene, his lungs nearly bursting with rage. He cursed, "A bunch of useless trash! Can't even handle a single human True Saint, and instead you're being suppressed by him. Do you even deserve the title of First-Class Marquis?"
Lingquan Shaojun wanted to charge over and deal with Zhang Ruochen himself, but he was intercepted by Nine Nether Sword Saint.
"Your opponent is this old man."
Having fought Lingquan Shaojun for so long, Nine Nether Sword Saint had suffered severe injuries, his whole body bleeding and several bones broken, yet he remained spirited and brimming with battle intent.
"Annoying old geezer, go die! Chaos Six Killing Fist, Heaven Kill."
Lingquan Shaojun was furious. If not for this old codger Nine Nether Sword Saint stubbornly holding him back, how could Zhang Ruochen have had the chance to kill two First-Class Marquises in a row?
"Heaven Kill" was the most powerful move in the Chaos Six Killing Fist. As he executed the fist technique, not only did the fist rules within Lingquan Shaojun's body fully mobilize, but the sacred qi of heaven and earth also converged toward him endlessly.
One punch of Heaven Kill was like divine punishment.
"Boom."
As Lingquan Shaojun unleashed his fist technique, the resulting fist force caused the entire sea surface and sky to tremble, emitting a deep, thunderous roar.
In the distance, Zhang Ruochen, Mo Yin, and the nine First-Class Marquises couldn't help but look over, feeling that fist force impact their bodies, making it hard to keep their footing.
One could imagine the immense pressure Nine Nether Sword Saint was under, standing opposite Lingquan Shaojun.
"Heaven Kill is the foremost of the six killing moves, unleashing power comparable to a Mid-rank Sacred Art. If it were me, the Shaojun could probably kill me with one punch." Qianyu Hou's beautiful eyes showed a look of admiration.
What woman wouldn't admire a figure like Lingquan Shaojun, who seemed invincible on the battlefield?
"This punch..."
Zhang Ruochen's expression turned very serious, because he knew that with Nine Nether Sword Saint's current cultivation, he absolutely couldn't withstand Lingquan Shaojun's blow.
Was he truly doomed?
At this moment, Nine Nether Sword Saint seemed utterly unaware that death was imminent. Instead, he was wildly ecstatic, letting out loud laughter: "Haha, exhilarating! Kill, kill, kill..."
Nine Nether Sword Saint's blood-soaked body flew close to the sea surface, with nine sacred swords flying around him. The sword qi force they generated caused the seawater to roll up.
His body merged with the nine swords, flying and stabbing toward Lingquan Shaojun.
With each "kill" he shouted, his aura grew stronger.
When he shouted the ninth "kill," a loud explosion erupted around Nine Nether Sword Saint's body. His speed surged, and his aura suddenly increased by a large margin, with a thicker sword dao profound energy condensing.
Seeing this, a smile appeared at the corner of Zhang Ruochen's mouth. "Now this is going to be interesting."
"Bang."
The Heaven Kill fist seal Lingquan Shaojun had unleashed was pierced through in an instant upon meeting Nine Nether Sword Saint.
"Breaking through to a new realm?"
Lingquan Shaojun's face turned extremely ugly. He quickly spread his arms, brought his palms together, and activated the array divine mark on his back.
"Hua—"
A circular array imprint passed through his body, emerging from Lingquan Shaojun's chest, and collided with the sword dao profound energy Nine Nether Sword Saint had unleashed.
With a bang, Lingquan Shaojun was sent flying backward like a scarecrow, stopping only after flying over twenty miles away. Even with the array's protection, he was shaken, his blood qi churning and his internal organs aching.
One could imagine that without the array imprint's protection, relying solely on his own strength, he probably couldn't have blocked that sword strike.
The nine First-Class Marquises surrounding the Merit Record Wall were all stunned.
That human old man had actually broken through to the Saint King realm during battle.
"Let's go."
Lingquan Shaojun issued an order, then rushed to the top of the Xuanwu Shell, steering it toward the Phoenix Nest.
The nine First-Class Marquises also realized that Nine Nether Sword Saint, having broken through to the Saint King realm, had become terrifyingly powerful, far beyond what they could contend with. So they all charged onto the Xuanwu Shell, joining Lingquan Shaojun in seizing the Phoenix Nest.
"Not even taking back the Purple Divine Mountain, just fleeing like that?"
Zhang Ruochen shook his head lightly, but after glancing in Nine Nether Sword Saint's direction, a bad feeling arose in his heart. Then, Zhang Ruochen and Mo Yin steered the Merit Record Wall and also rushed toward the Phoenix Nest.
"Zhang Ruochen, leave the Merit Record Wall."
Nine Nether Sword Saint retrieved the Purple Divine Mountain and, ignoring his injuries, gave chase.