Chapter 1543: Departure
Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine, ranked as the seventeenth strongest liquor in the Kunlun Realm, became even more potent after being brewed with the Buddha Emperor Relic. Ordinary Half-Saints could not drink it.
Only Zhang Ruochen, Xiao Hei, the Mad Drunkard, Gu Songzi, and Mo Yin could taste it together.
Taking a sip felt like swallowing scorching magma, with an intense burning sensation in the abdomen. Then, the wine’s energy quickly merged into the body, entering the blood, meridians, and saint veins.
After Zhang Ruochen drank three cups in succession, heat surged wildly from his pores. Every blood vessel felt like a great river in torrent, and the saint qi in his meridians and saint veins raced like ten thousand mad bulls.
Zhang Ruochen’s body seemed to erupt like a volcano. He leaped up from his seat, and the sounds of dragons roaring and elephants trumpeting echoed from within him. He began unleashing moves of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm to dissipate the fiery power of the wine.
“Boom, boom.”
Each palm strike sent shockwaves of energy through the entire Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground, creating a storm that swept across the sky and earth.
The Half-Saints cultivating in the sacred ground were all startled and rushed over, watching from a distance.
“The Crown Prince’s palm force is incredibly powerful.”
“The spatial structure of the Heavenly Court Realm is quite stable, suppressing cultivators’ power, yet the Crown Prince’s palm strikes still possess the might to overturn mountains and seas.”
…
…
Zhang Ruochen struck from the first palm all the way to the eleventh, repeating the cycle as if he had inexhaustible strength within him.
After countless repetitions, suddenly, the yang energy within Zhang Ruochen burst outward rapidly. Flames ignited across his entire body, and he roared, “Dragon-Elephant Piercing Heaven!”
He thrust both palms forward simultaneously.
His left hand unleashed a dragon shadow, and his right hand an elephant shadow. The two spun rapidly, then merged into a circle, striking toward the sky.
“Rumble.”
A series of air explosions rang out. The trees in the sacred ground shook violently, and a large number of leaves drifted down.
Gu Songzi and the Mad Drunkard exchanged glances, both seeing the astonishment in each other’s eyes.
At the Half-Step Saint King realm, Zhang Ruochen’s palm force had reached such a level. Even with the boost from the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine, this was still extremely abnormal.
“With such power, even if I go all out, I might not be able to defeat him,” the Mad Drunkard said solemnly.
Gu Songzi nodded. “From now on, we probably can’t consider ourselves his seniors anymore.”
Zhang Ruochen withdrew the dragon and elephant energies back into his arms, ceasing his palm practice. He let out a hearty laugh. “Good wine, such strong wine! It allowed me to break through to the elementary level of the eleventh palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm.”
In recent months, Zhang Ruochen had been studying and practicing the “Dragon-Elephant Piercing Heaven” palm, accumulating deep insights. Drinking the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine served as a catalyst, enabling his breakthrough.
This was only the elementary level.
To reach minor mastery, he still had a long way to go. He would first need to refine Saint King-level dragon and elephant souls into his arms.
As for major mastery, it was even more difficult.
The Mad Drunkard also took a sip of the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine, his face flushed red and a hint of madness in his eyes. “How much did your power increase?”
Zhang Ruochen savored the feeling. “At least double. If I drink more, with a stronger wine effect, the results should be even better.”
The Mad Drunkard slapped his thigh in excitement, as if he had found a path to wealth, and laughed, “Why don’t we brew more and sell it at the market in the Guanghan Realm?”
“Don’t even think about it,” Zhang Ruochen said.
Only when the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine was brewed with the Buddha Emperor Relic did it significantly boost a Saint’s combat power. Without the relic’s power, the wine would only be effective for Half-Saints.
Half-Saints were merely low-level cultivators in the Heavenly Court Realm. How much wealth could they have?
After deducting the brewing costs, there wouldn’t be much profit in sacred stones, and it would consume a lot of energy. Better to use that time for cultivation and improving one’s realm.
Zhang Ruochen used the Buddha Emperor Relic to brew high-grade Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine only to deal with the immediate crisis. He never intended to consume the relic’s power to earn sacred stones.
First, Zhang Ruochen wasn’t short of sacred stones.
Second, the Buddha Emperor Relic had a more important role for Zhang Ruochen.
The Mad Drunkard’s interest waned, but soon his eyes lit up again. “If you could find Great Saint-level mad bull marrow, the effect of the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine would become even more astonishing. Drinking it could potentially double or triple your combat power.”
Zhang Ruochen was tempted.
However, any treasure from a Great Saint was priceless, and no cultivator would sell it. Even if it appeared on the market, major powers would snatch it up immediately. How could Zhang Ruochen get it?
Unless he had incredible luck, no matter how many sacred stones he had, he couldn’t buy Great Saint-level mad bull marrow.
“Meow——”
A strange cry reached Zhang Ruochen’s ears.
Zhang Ruochen looked toward the source of the sound and saw an empty wine jar thrown by Xiao Hei, shattering into pieces.
“You… drank an entire jar! I’m going to kick you out of Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground…”
Zhang Ruochen trembled with anger, his heart aching.
The Mad Drunkard had brewed only seventeen jars of the first batch of high-grade Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine. Each jar was worth a fortune.
Originally, Zhang Ruochen had only planned to offer everyone three to five cups, but an owl had wasted an entire jar.
The Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine was extremely potent. Zhang Ruochen didn’t dare drink too much, but Xiao Hei gulped it down recklessly. Now, the wine’s power erupted. Xiao Hei clutched his stomach, howling in pain, burning with madness as he ran around Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground, sometimes meowing like a cat, sometimes chirping like a bird.
“No, I have to put the wine away. These guys are too greedy and don’t know restraint.”
Just as Zhang Ruochen turned around, a soft and fiery body crashed into his arms.
Mo Yin had also drunk nearly half a jar. Her face was flushed, her eyes drunken and hazy, and she murmured indistinctly, exuding an alluring charm.
Zhang Ruochen tried to push her away, but her soft body clung tightly to him, refusing to let go.
“Master… why are you pushing me…”
Mo Yin’s voice was slurred and especially sweet and soft.
One of her snow-white jade arms hung around Zhang Ruochen’s neck, while her other delicate hand began to grope below his waist. Her bright red lips curled into a seductive smile.
To be honest, after drinking the Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine, Zhang Ruochen also felt a surge of inner fire. Mo Yin’s teasing stirred some wild thoughts in him.
But Gu Songzi and the Mad Drunkard were sitting nearby, watching with amusement. Further away, many Half-Saints were staring at him. If he didn’t want to make a fool of himself, he had to restrain himself.
“I really shouldn’t touch alcohol.”
Zhang Ruochen gave a bitter smile, took a deep breath to calm himself, then placed a hand on Mo Yin’s smooth back, transforming her back into her original form—a Devouring Saint Flower.
After doing this, Zhang Ruochen breathed a slight sigh of relief.
That day, Zhang Ruochen spent the rest of the time amid Xiao Hei’s howls. It wasn’t until late at night that the cries gradually stopped. Zhang Ruochen went down the mountain, picked up the limp owl, and carried it back to the saint hall on the mountainside.
The next morning, the Mad Drunkard and Gu Songzi bid Zhang Ruochen farewell. They had to return to Tongyou Saint Domain to continue refining Transformation Saint Pills and Six Saints Ascending to Heaven Wine for the Moon God.
The Mad Drunkard clasped his hands. “Zhang Ruochen, I’ll deliver the remaining eighty-three jars of Dragon Spirit Mad Bull Wine to you after you return from the Truth Divine Temple.”
Clearly, the Mad Drunkard now acknowledged Zhang Ruochen’s strength and no longer treated him as a junior, referring to himself as “I” instead of “this old man.”
The day before, Gu Songzi had already given Zhang Ruochen three Heavenly Nether Purple Fire Talismans.
At their parting, Gu Songzi’s aged eyes showed hesitation. Finally, he gritted his teeth and took out a metal iron ball, placing it in Zhang Ruochen’s hand.
“What is this?” Zhang Ruochen asked, puzzled.
Gu Songzi said, “This is something I refined using Nether King Blood Poison. If you encounter an enemy you cannot overcome, it might help you save your life.”
Gu Songzi was not a martial artist and had weak combat power, yet he was willing to give Zhang Ruochen his life-saving trump card. This was truly commendable.
Zhang Ruochen was deeply moved and bowed with his hands clasped. “Thank you. Be careful when you leave Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground. There may be powerful enemies lurking nearby, and they might try to harm you.”
“Don’t worry. We carry treasures that conceal our aura and form. The enemy doesn’t know when we’ll leave Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground. As long as no one reveals our whereabouts, even the strongest enemy won’t be a threat.”
As the Mad Drunkard spoke, his and Gu Songzi’s bodies grew increasingly transparent, until they vanished completely.
Of course, with Zhang Ruochen’s cultivation, he could still sense them nearby, slowly walking down the mountain. After they moved a hundred zhang away, even Zhang Ruochen could no longer detect their presence.
“The Mad Drunkard has a point. If I can conceal my form and use the twelve Buddha beads to mask my aura, no matter how powerful that expert from the Soul Realm is, he won’t know when I leave Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground, nor which path I’ll take to the Truth Divine Temple.”
Zhang Ruochen’s tense expression relaxed slightly, and a smile appeared on his face.
Just then, Mu Lingxi’s voice transmission reached his ears: “We’ve arrived outside Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground. Prepare quickly and set off for the Truth Divine Temple now.”
Zhang Ruochen had already prepared everything he needed. He only gave Xiao Hei a brief instruction before using spatial distortion to conceal his form, silently moving down the mountain.
Xiao Hei wanted to go to the Truth Divine Temple but didn’t have a spot, so he had to stay behind and guard Yuanxu Peak Sacred Ground.
The six cultivators selected from the Guanghan Realm to train in the Truth Divine Temple were Zhang Ruochen, Wu Hao, Mu Lingxi, Wen Shusheng, Ling Mi, and Su Qingling.
Additionally, a tall, middle-aged man escorted them to the Truth Divine Temple.
This middle-aged man had sharp eyes and a high nose bridge. He held an ancient iron saint lamp in his hand. The light emitted from the lamp formed an invisible barrier about twenty zhang in radius.
Cultivators standing inside the barrier were invisible to the outside world, and their auras were undetectable.
Zhang Ruochen stepped into the lamp’s light range, stopped using spatial power, and revealed his form.
“No wonder you’re a genius my father always praises. Your concealment technique is truly remarkable. Even I couldn’t detect your aura before you entered the lamp’s illumination range.”
The middle-aged man looked Zhang Ruochen up and down, offering a compliment.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze was also drawn to the man.
This person emitted no powerful aura, yet he gave Zhang Ruochen considerable pressure. It felt as if the man standing before him was not a person but a towering sacred mountain, a dragon that could swallow the sky and devour the earth, or a blazing sun burning fiercely.