# Chapter 1531: Figures of the Times
Merit Divine Temple.
Shang Zihong stood beneath two divine pillars, his feet planted on a circular stone platform. Gazing at the space between the two pillars, he bowed deeply. "Master has summoned your disciple. May I ask what matter requires my attention?"
The two pillars were as thick as mountains, extending up into the divine clouds.
Between the pillars, a three-colored sea of clouds floated. Divine qi flowed within the clouds, densely packed with patterned rule lines. A ethereal divine voice emerged from within: "What do you think of Zhang Ruochen?"
Shang Zihong replied, "A proud son of heaven, unparalleled in the world."
"Do you have the confidence to defeat him?"
Shang Zihong smiled slightly. "At the same cultivation level, it's hard to say. But for now, he is only at the Ultimate Saint realm. Compared to me, the gap is still vast."
Yan God's divine voice sounded again: "If you were sent to kill him, how would you do it?"
A lofty god wanting to kill a saint?
If any other cultivator heard this, they would surely be shocked.
Shang Zihong was extremely intelligent, so he was not surprised at all. In fact, he had already thought about this question long ago, and thus answered directly: "To kill Zhang Ruochen, there are three strategies: superior, middle, and inferior."
"Oh? Tell me about them." Yan God said.
Shang Zihong said, "Without needing to act personally, I could simply offer a high price, and a large number of assassins would come to kill him."
Yan God said, "You know Zhang Ruochen is a proud son of heaven, unparalleled in the world. Moon God and the Great Saints of Guanghan Realm will certainly protect him with all their strength. Even the most top-tier assassin organizations of the Heavenly Court Realm would find it difficult to get close to him."
Shang Zihong said, "That is why this is only the inferior strategy. I also have a middle strategy: using a borrowed knife to kill."
"Using a borrowed knife to kill?"
Yan God was somewhat surprised.
Shang Zihong smiled and said, "No matter how outstanding Zhang Ruochen is, he is ultimately an outsider. His appearance did save Guanghan Realm, but it also stole the limelight from Guanghan Realm's Realm Son and took away the glory that rightfully belonged to him. In the Merit Divine Temple, if a genius more outstanding than me appeared, I would absolutely not coexist peacefully with him. Instead, I would find ways to eliminate him."
Yan God said, "What if that Realm Son of Guanghan Realm doesn't care?"
"As long as one has ambition, they will certainly care. That Wu Hao is not someone willing to be mediocre; on the contrary, he has the ambition to revive Guanghan Realm. Unfortunately, his talent and strength cannot support his ambition. The current decline of Guanghan Realm is not something he can revive, but... I can give him a glimmer of hope." Shang Zihong said.
Yan God said, "If Wu Hao can help you, killing Zhang Ruochen would indeed become much easier. What is your superior strategy?"
Shang Zihong clasped his hands and bowed slightly. "Your disciple ventures to guess that the reason Master wants to eliminate Zhang Ruochen is probably because he holds the identity of the Heir of Time and Space. If he grows up, he would become a huge threat."
Yan God was silent for a moment, then said, "Your guess is correct. There is indeed this reason. One hundred thousand years ago, the Kunlun Realm gave birth to a great being who mastered time and space, known as Xumi Saint Monk. This Zhang Ruochen must have countless connections with him. Allowing him to grow might produce a second Xumi Saint Monk."
Shang Zihong said, "Why must we kill him? Wouldn't it be better if this Heir of Time and Space were under Master's control?"
"Your master has already tested him. Zhang Ruochen's spiritual will is unyielding; it is impossible for him to submit to anyone." Yan God said.
Shang Zihong said, "What about directly seizing his body and saint soul?"
"Seizing... haha, your master never thought of that. Zihong, you truly are my worthy disciple. However, wanting to seize Zhang Ruochen is definitely not an easy task." Yan God laughed.
Shang Zihong said, "Indeed, it is not easy. Therefore, I have decided to go to the Soul Realm and select a powerful soul spirit that can devour Zhang Ruochen's spiritual will."
"Specifically, what do you plan to do?" Yan God asked.
Shang Zihong said, "Push all three strategies simultaneously. The inferior and middle strategies are just to numb Zhang Ruochen and the big shots of Guanghan Realm. The superior strategy is my ultimate goal."
"Good. You have always been meticulous in your work. Your master has confidence in you. This matter will be entrusted to you." Yan God let out another laugh.
...
Mu Lingxi stayed on Moon God Mountain, cultivating under Moon God.
After personally witnessing her perform the apprenticeship ceremony, Zhang Ruochen left alone and returned to Yuanxu Peak Holy Land in the Crimson Dragon Saint Domain.
The Crimson Dragon Saint Domain was the territory of Manjian Great Saint, and Yuanxu Peak Holy Land was one of the fourteen holy lands within the Crimson Dragon Saint Domain.
Zhang Ruochen was the Holy Master of Yuanxu Peak Holy Land.
Just as he arrived outside the holy land, Zhang Ruochen saw densely packed figures gathered at the foot of the peak, including both humans and barbarian beasts of various forms.
Their cultivation levels varied, including Half-Saints, Saints, and even Saint Kings.
"What's going on?" Zhang Ruochen felt surprised.
If not for Manjian Great Saint overseeing the Crimson Dragon Saint Domain, Zhang Ruochen would have thought Yuanxu Peak Holy Land was under siege by a large number of external enemies. However, those cultivators were very orderly, not like they were attacking the holy land.
A beautiful young female saint walked to the front and called out, "I am Yue Zhao, disciple of Yuhang Great Saint. By my master's order, I bring an invitation and gifts, hoping the Divine Envoy will visit Linjin Saint Domain for a discussion. My master has prepared a sacred feast."
The surrounding cultivators all gasped in shock. They didn't expect even a Great Saint to send someone to invite Zhang Ruochen.
Did this mean Zhang Ruochen had already qualified to be a guest at a Great Saint's table?
A fat, round owl sacred beast walked out from the holy land. Its body was as large as a small elephant, and it stood proudly above. "Leave the gifts and invitation. This Emperor will pass them to Zhang Ruochen. As for whether Zhang Ruochen will go to pay respects to Yuhang Great Saint, that depends on his mood. After all, Jiemie Dadi, Jiuling Great Saint, and Wu Zu have also sent invitations before."
The owl sacred beast lightly flapped its wings, and behind it, more than ten Half-Saints walked out, carrying all the gifts Yue Zhao had brought into the holy land.
As for the invitation, the owl sacred beast casually placed it on a nearby bronze plate. In the plate, invitations had piled up into a thick layer, over a hundred in total.
A young man at the Ninth-Rank Half-Saint realm walked to the opposite side of the owl sacred beast and said with utmost respect, "Black Lord, I want to join Yuanxu Peak Holy Land and cultivate under the Divine Envoy."
After a pause, he added, "The Divine Envoy is the most admired outstanding talent I have ever seen. As long as I can join Yuanxu Peak Holy Land, I am willing to pay any price."
The owl sacred beast said impatiently, "Wanting to join Yuanxu Peak Holy Land is not that easy. Go queue over there. After this Emperor finishes receiving gifts, I will test you one by one. Only those who pass the test can become a member of the holy land."
That Ninth-Rank Half-Saint showed a delighted expression, clenched his fists, and walked to the side, muttering to himself, "I must do my utmost to pass the test. Being able to enter Yuanxu Peak Holy Land to cultivate is a great honor. Yurou, you must wait for my good news. I won't let you down. I will also strive to become a man who stands tall between heaven and earth, just like the Divine Envoy."
Zhang Ruochen restrained his aura, concealed his figure, and stood not far away.
Through his observation, he found that the cultivators who came to Yuanxu Peak Holy Land were either delivering invitations, sending visiting cards, or, more commonly, seeking to join.
"Has my influence in Guanghan Realm grown this much?" Zhang Ruochen touched the tip of his nose and shook his head with a light laugh.
In just one night, he was already able to sit on equal footing with Great Saints.
Was this the influence of being ranked first on the Sacred Merit Ranking?
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Zhang Ruochen continued to conceal his figure, avoiding the crowd, and quietly sneaked into Yuanxu Peak Holy Land.
"Come see me."
Hearing Zhang Ruochen's transmission, the owl sacred beast's round eyes involuntarily rolled, revealing a joyful expression. "Finally back!"
The owl sacred beast gave instructions to the disciples of Yuanxu Peak Holy Land, then spread its wings and flew toward the depths of the holy land.
Deep within the holy land, white mist filled the air.
Below a cliff, a sacred spring flowed, like a stream irrigating this sacred land. On both sides of the sacred spring, colorful spiritual medicines and sacred medicines were planted, emitting a fragrant aroma.
Zhang Ruochen stood with his hands behind his back by the sacred spring, his body still as a pine. The surrounding space seemed to be affected by his aura, becoming somewhat frozen.
"Splash."
The owl sacred beast flew down from midair and laughed loudly, "Zhang Ruochen, you're finally back! You have no idea how many saint-level cultivators came to pay respects these past two days, bringing large amounts of precious treasures. Even Jiuling Great Saint and Jiemie Dadi hinted in their invitations that they wanted to marry their granddaughters and daughters to you."
Suddenly...
Zhang Ruochen turned abruptly, spread his arms, and embraced the void. Thick saint qi appeared between his arms, condensing into a golden dragon.
"Roar!"
The golden dragon spun rapidly, its head and tail connected, forming a golden circle.
"Go."
Zhang Ruochen exerted force with his arms, and the golden circle, five feet in diameter, flew out, striking toward the owl sacred beast.
"What are you doing? It's me, Xiao Hei, Xiao Hei..."
The owl sacred beast was startled and quickly spread its wings, flapping them forward with force. Two vast hurricanes condensed, colliding with the golden circle.
"Boom."
The golden circle shattered, turning into wisps of dragon qi that dissipated into the air.
However, the two hurricanes did not dissipate. They crashed into Zhang Ruochen's body, shaking him off the ground. Each wind blade struck Zhang Ruochen like a blade slashing down, producing the sound of metal striking stone.
Zhang Ruochen's defense was very strong. He withstood the hurricanes and landed back on the ground, a smile appearing on his face. "Just as I guessed, your strength has recovered quite a bit, hasn't it?"
Xiao Hei retracted its wings and raised its head. "Of course. Not to brag, but with my current strength, even if I face three to five Saint Kings alone, I can easily deal with them."
Zhang Ruochen couldn't see through Xiao Hei's true strength, so he didn't know if it was bragging.
Zhang Ruochen withdrew his outward-spreading saint power, his expression turning serious. "Your formation skills are quite high. Why haven't you set up a mountain-protecting defensive formation at Yuanxu Peak Holy Land?"
"Of course, I have set up a very powerful mountain-protecting defensive formation. It's just not activated. If I activated that formation, do you think you could enter the mountain so silently?"
Xiao Hei rolled its eyes, seemingly looking down on Zhang Ruochen's current strength while also being confident in its own formation skills.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Stop accepting gifts and people. Immediately activate the mountain-protecting defensive formation. Announce to the outside that I will not see anyone for the time being. From today onward, Yuanxu Peak Holy Land will be sealed off."
"Sealed off? What's going on?" Xiao Hei asked in confusion.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Being at the forefront of the storm will inevitably attract jealousy. It's better to keep a low profile. Moreover... there are some things I can't tell you yet. But I suspect that in the coming period, quite a few assassins will come to kill me. Sealing the mountain is the best way to protect ourselves."
"Also, I plan to take this opportunity to go into seclusion for a while, digest the gains from this Merit Battlefield, and strive to elevate my strength to another level."
"Alright, I'll listen to you. This Emperor will go activate the mountain-protecting defensive formation now."
Xiao Hei knew that Zhang Ruochen was always cautious. Since he ordered the mountain to be sealed, he must have received some wind of it or sensed a dangerous aura.
(Chapter End)