# Chapter 1536: Soul-Holding Great Art
Wu Hao did not stop there. Instead, he burst forth with incredible speed and struck out with another palm.
Countless divine imprints danced through the air. Throughout heaven and earth, strands of Truth Rule merged into Wu Hao's palm as he struck toward Zhang Ruochen's face.
At this moment, even Su Qingling sensed something was wrong. She no longer looked as delighted as before; instead, worry crept into her expression.
Was this martial arts sparring?
This was a life-or-death duel.
Zhang Ruochen stood at the edge of the cliff, steadying himself. He quickly cycled the sacred qi within his body through a full great cycle, rapidly suppressing the surging blood qi inside him.
Faced with the overwhelming palm force pressing down from all directions, Zhang Ruochen showed no fear. His gaze grew sharp and fierce.
The Way of Truth was indeed an eternal path, capable of crushing other sacred paths. Yet, were the Way of Time and the Way of Space not also eternal paths?
Zhang Ruochen reached out with both hands, grasping at the void. The space before him immediately twisted slightly.
Wu Hao's palm force crashed against the distorted space. The immense power flew past Zhang Ruochen's side, plunging into the sea of clouds not far away, causing it to churn violently.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly, a hint of regret in his eyes.
"The spatial structure of the Heavenly Court realm is too stable. Even with my current mastery of space, I can only slightly distort it. If this were another major world, I could have reversed the force entirely—no matter how much power Wu Hao struck with, that same amount of force would have rebounded against him."
Still, Zhang Ruochen was satisfied.
Being able to use spatial power to neutralize Wu Hao's Way of Truth meant Zhang Ruochen had already secured an undefeatable position.
"Boom."
Zhang Ruochen passed through the distorted space and struck out with a palm.
Wu Hao's expression shifted slightly. He quickly mobilized the power of his sacred armor, turning both palms into blazing clouds of fire as he blocked the attack simultaneously.
Suddenly, space twisted again. Zhang Ruochen's palm force bypassed Wu Hao's double palms and struck him squarely in the chest.
However, Zhang Ruochen spared Wu Hao some face by withdrawing part of his palm force. Wu Hao fell from midair but quickly regained his balance and steadied himself on the ground. Aside from a sharp pain in his chest, he was unharmed.
"Both are eternal paths, so why can Zhang Ruochen's Way of Space completely suppress my Way of Truth?"
Wu Hao had always been the strongest among the sacred realm beings of Guanghan Realm, carrying a natural sense of superiority.
Even when Zhang Ruochen had rampaged through Zuling Realm, crushing enemies on all sides, Wu Hao had only thought that Zhang Ruochen relied on external forces to be so powerful. In a real fight, Wu Hao believed he might not be weaker.
What Wu Hao did not know was that he was merely a cultivator who had comprehended the Way of Truth, and his cultivation in the Way of Truth was still at a very superficial level.
Zhang Ruochen, on the other hand, was a Space Controller.
Only a Truth Controller could stand a chance of directly confronting Zhang Ruochen's spatial techniques.
Wu Hao was unwilling to accept this. He struck again.
"Souls of Ten Ancestors."
Behind Wu Hao, ten massive figures materialized, like ten mountain ranges, radiating ten ancient and sacred auras.
These were the ten Great Saint-level ancestors of the Wu Clan.
Wu Hao's talent was unparalleled, so he naturally received the protection of his clan's successive ancestors. The partial Great Saint soul power left by those Wu ancestors in the ancestral temple had merged into Wu Hao's body, growing alongside him.
Once he unleashed the Souls of Ten Ancestors, Wu Hao could contend with those possessing supreme perfect physiques.
Unfortunately, the moment the Souls of Ten Ancestors appeared, Zhang Ruochen executed a Space Teleportation. He teleported eight times in succession, leaving behind nine afterimages. When he stopped, he was already standing before Wu Hao.
Wu Hao's pupils were completely filled by Zhang Ruochen's figure. His mouth twitched as he prepared to strike.
"Roar!"
Zhang Ruochen struck like lightning. A golden dragon flew from his palm, slamming into Wu Hao. The blow shattered the Souls of Ten Ancestors, scattering them into wisps of residual mist.
Cracks appeared in Wu Hao's internal organs. He staggered backward in utter disarray, finally dropping to one knee dozens of zhang away. Sacred blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto the ground.
"Drip, drip."
Bloodstains dotted the earth.
Wu Hao's gaze was extremely sharp. He continued to circulate his sacred qi.
But the moment he channeled his energy, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen. Upon internal inspection, he discovered that his meridians and sacred veins had all suffered damage.
If he forced himself to continue fighting, his injuries would only worsen.
"Defeated just like that?"
Wu Hao clenched his ten fingers tightly, his emotions in turmoil. He felt humiliation, pain, and helplessness. At the same time, a trace of hatred toward Zhang Ruochen began to grow within him.
This battle had crushed all of Wu Hao's ambitions.
Wu Hao's aspirations were lofty. He had always wanted to revitalize the Guanghan Realm.
That was an incredibly difficult path, requiring immense talent and strength to support it.
Yet, before he could even spread his wings, he had already lost to a peer, making him realize that his talent and strength were insufficient to achieve his dreams.
If he could not even defeat Zhang Ruochen, what was the point of talking about revitalizing the Guanghan Realm?
This was a brutally harsh truth.
"Divine Envoy... truly remarkable skills. Today, I... concede defeat..."
Wu Hao tried his best to maintain a dignified demeanor. He wiped the blood from his lips and forced a smile.
To outsiders, it seemed as if Wu Hao did not care much about winning or losing this battle. He appeared quite carefree, remaining friendly with Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Just now, when the Realm Son unleashed the Souls of Ten Ancestors, it put immense pressure on me, forcing me to go all out. I couldn't control my strength properly..."
Wu Hao quickly stopped Zhang Ruochen from continuing, saying, "No need to explain. If you hadn't gone all out, that would have been an insult to me."
Su Qingling, Mu Lingxi, and the others were slightly relieved to see that Zhang Ruochen and Wu Hao had not openly fallen out.
Wu Hao added, "Although the Divine Envoy has cultivated the Way of Time and the Way of Space, the Way of Truth is also extremely powerful, and the quota is quite precious. I think the Divine Envoy should still visit the Truth Temple."
Without much thought, Zhang Ruochen immediately replied, "Mobilizing Truth Rules can increase the power of sacred techniques several times over. For that reason alone, I will definitely go to the Truth Temple."
Wu Hao smiled again. "Then it's settled. One month from now, we'll go to the Truth Temple together. For the next month, I'm going to train with all my might. If I make another breakthrough, I'll definitely fight you again."
"It's just sparring."
Zhang Ruochen nodded with a smile, about to see Wu Hao and the others off.
Suddenly, the hairs on Zhang Ruochen's body stood on end. His meridians tightened as he sensed two terrifying killing intents erupting, unleashing violent power fluctuations as they attacked him from behind.
"Who's there?"
Zhang Ruochen spun around. In an instant, the Abyssal Ancient Sword appeared in his hand.
The two killing intents came from two old men at the First-Step Saint King level. Their eyes had turned dark purple, as if they had suddenly transformed into two sinister, demonic beings.
"Die."
One of the old men wielded a blood saber, drawing a circle in front of him that completely enveloped Zhang Ruochen's body.
The other old man formed his hands into claws. A dark shadow materialized behind him, like a ghost king dancing.
"This is..."
The sudden turn of events shocked everyone present.
These two old men, both at the First-Step Saint King level, were renowned figures in the Guanghan Realm. They had been dispatched by Wu Zu to protect the talented youths of the Guanghan Realm.
Why had these two veteran predecessors suddenly changed, as if possessed, and launched a sneak attack on Zhang Ruochen?
Wu Hao knew the strength of these two old men well. They had become Saint Kings a hundred years ago and, though stuck at the First-Step Saint King level, their accumulated power was formidable.
At Wu Hao's current Half-Step Saint King level, he had no confidence in defeating either of them alone.
Seeing the two old men attack Zhang Ruochen, Wu Hao was naturally surprised, but deep down, a glimmer of hope arose: "With their strength, killing Zhang Ruochen shouldn't be difficult."
But...
No sooner had this thought crossed Wu Hao's mind than he saw Zhang Ruochen raise the Abyssal Ancient Sword and cleave one of the old men sideways, sending him flying.
"Whoosh—"
Zhang Ruochen struck again with his sword. Instantly, the entire Yuanxu Peak howled with fierce winds. Strands of wind force coiled around the sword body, slamming the other old man to the ground.
Without giving the two old men a chance to strike again, Zhang Ruochen shot out two Binding Saint Chains, binding their bodies.
"How is this possible?"
Wu Hao's eyes widened in disbelief. Zhang Ruochen had subdued two powerful First-Step Saint Kings in just a few moves.
"This is his true strength. Earlier, he was holding back against me."
Wu Hao's gaze grew dim. His fingers nearly dug into his own flesh, and he felt even more humiliated.
If Wu Hao had still harbored some hope earlier—believing that through hard work, he might one day defeat Zhang Ruochen—now, after witnessing Zhang Ruochen's true power, he was utterly despairing.
"Zhang Ruochen is too strong. Even if I train for a lifetime, I probably won't be able to defeat him."
Wu Hao swallowed a mouthful of saliva, a murderous intent rising within him.
But he concealed that killing intent deeply, not letting it show.
Zhang Ruochen locked the two First-Step Saint Kings to the stone statue of Manjian Great Saint. He stood below with his hands behind his back, observing them carefully. "These two predecessors seem to be controlled by some strange power."
Wen Shusheng, Ling Mi, Mu Lingxi, and Su Qingling used movement techniques, turning into four streaks of light as they landed beneath the stone statue.
Among those present, Wen Shusheng had the most extensive knowledge. He quickly noticed some clues, his face turning pale as he said in a trembling voice, "Could it be... the forbidden secret art of the Soul Realm, the Soul-Holding Great Art?"
...
(I originally planned to write only two chapters today, but during dinner, my wife told me that she posted on Weibo yesterday saying there would be three chapters today.
I was stunned...
Well, since my wife said so, the third chapter must be written, though it might be a bit late.)