Chapter 1591: All Evils
Ji Fanxin neither denied nor admitted it, speaking coldly, "You are the Divine Envoy chosen by the Moon God. Attacking the Yin-Yang Hall is your mission. However..."
"However what?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Ji Fanxin said, "Even without the intervention of that behind-the-scenes force, it would be nearly impossible for you alone to conquer the Yin-Yang Hall."
Zhang Ruochen possessed strong self-confidence but was not a blindly arrogant person. He humbly asked, "I was just about to seek your guidance, Fairy. What powerful evil cultivators are there in the Yin-Yang Hall?"
"There's no harm in telling you, so you can weigh your own chances."
Ji Fanxin began to explain, "If you attack the Yin-Yang Hall, you will definitely activate the Equality of All Living Beings. In that case, the greatest threats to you will be the strong ones among the Saint Kings and the young prodigies on the Sacred Merit Ranking."
"Let me first tell you about the Saint King realm experts in the Yin-Yang Hall."
"The Yin-Yang Hall is controlled by evil cultivators from three great worlds. The most powerful world is called the Yin-Yang Realm, ranked three hundred and seventy-second on the Myriad Worlds Merit Ranking."
"The two leaders of the Yin-Yang Realm are called Lian Hou and Yan Wang. Both are extremely powerful, far surpassing Shang Feng at her peak. If I were to face either of them alone, I am confident I could win. However, if they join forces and use their combined attack formation, the Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation, even if I used all my means, I would probably only manage a draw."
One must know that Ji Fanxin's true form was a Primordial Illumination Divine Lotus, an extremely rare lifeform in the universe with unfathomable power. Yet she was not confident she could defeat Lian Hou and Yan Wang. This showed just how formidable those two were.
Ji Fanxin continued, "The second great world is called the Black Demon Realm, ranked eight hundred and ninety-first on the Myriad Worlds Merit Ranking."
"The leader of the Black Demon Realm is named Qiong Lin. His strength is not inferior to either Lian Hou or Yan Wang, and he has a close relationship with Shang Zi of the Merit Divine Hall. It is said that Qiong Lin has absorbed a massive amount of merit power using a Merit Sacred Token to temper his demon body, making his strength unfathomable."
"The third great world is called the Myriad Evil Realm, ranked one thousand four hundred and fiftieth on the Myriad Worlds Merit Ranking. The leader of the Myriad Evil Realm is named Xie Chengzi, a rather sinister and eerie fellow. Few have heard of anyone fighting him, so it's hard to judge his strength. However, it is worth mentioning that he is the one refining evil sacred artifacts at the bottom of the Ten Thousand Corpse Pit."
To become the leader of a powerful world, these individuals must have been top-tier prodigies ranked in the top one thousand of the Sacred Merit Ranking before breaking through to Saint King. Now, Lian Hou, Yan Wang, Qiong Lin, and Xie Chengzi—these four leader-level experts—had advanced who knows how far in the Saint King realm. Each possessed the power to overturn rivers and seas. Without activating the Equality of All Living Beings, few below the Great Saint realm could restrain them.
In Zhang Ruochen's mind, four figures as towering as divine mountains emerged. Though he had never met them, their presence was already pressing down on his spiritual will.
Zhang Ruochen gently rubbed his chin, deep in thought, and asked, "Which evil experts are on the Sacred Merit Ranking?"
Ji Fanxin said, "Two pose the greatest threat to you: Qing Liaoya of the Yin-Yang Realm and Zhan Yu of the Black Demon Realm."
"Qing Liaoya ranks seventy-third on the Sacred Merit Ranking. He has already crossed the third sea of the Truth Sea and is very likely to cross the fourth sea before reaching the Saint King realm."
"Zhan Yu ranks nine hundred and seventieth on the Sacred Merit Ranking, and his strength is comparable to Qing Liaoya's."
"Besides those two, the four Song siblings of the Myriad Evil Realm are also a huge threat. Although none of them are on the Sacred Merit Ranking, they all have perfect physiques. When the four join forces, even Qing Liaoya and Zhan Yu have to retreat."
Zhang Ruochen knew well that the gap in strength among those ranked in the top one thousand of the Sacred Merit Ranking was not large. Figures like Qing Liaoya and Zhan Yu were probably only half a step weaker than Wang Xu. In a one-on-one life-or-death battle, that half-step gap would be fatal. But in a siege, that half-step difference was essentially no difference. The threat they posed to Zhang Ruochen was as great as Wang Xu's.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I want detailed information on these people, including the techniques and sacred arts they cultivate, the sacred artifacts they use, and each of their personalities. The more complete, the better."
"No problem. I'll give it to you first thing tomorrow morning."
Ji Fanxin was about to leave when she suddenly seemed reluctant, hesitated for a moment, and finally said, "Actually, you don't have to attack the Yin-Yang Hall right now. You could cultivate in the Truth Heaven Domain for another five or six years. When your cultivation reaches the Three-Step Saint King or even higher, your chances of success might be greater."
Zhang Ruochen said, "I won't do anything without certainty. If it truly isn't feasible, I'll wait until I break through to the Saint King realm before making plans."
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen was very rational, Ji Fanxin nodded slightly and said, "I must also remind you that the greatest threats when attacking the Yin-Yang Hall are not these evil experts. It's the Yin-Yang Hall's formations, the attack talismans in the hands of those evil cultivators, and their insidious methods."
"Everyone knows that Zhang Ruochen has come to the Truth Heaven Domain and will definitely attack the Yin-Yang Hall. How could those evil cultivators in the Yin-Yang Hall not be fully prepared? Even if you activate the Equality of All Living Beings, a single attack talisman from the enemy could kill you."
"Honestly, I don't think highly of you at all. With your current cultivation, attacking the Yin-Yang Hall is practically a death sentence."
"Since you don't think highly of me, why did you take the initiative to appear and talk to me so much?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Ji Fanxin stared at Zhang Ruochen for a long time, her beautiful eyes unblinking, and said, "It's just that there is no second person in the Truth Heaven Domain as arrogant and fearless as you. Perhaps it's precisely because you are arrogant enough and unafraid to stir up trouble that I still hold onto a sliver of hope."
Zhang Ruochen was truly speechless. He reflected on what had caused this holy and unparalleled Hundred Flowers Fairy to form such a bad impression of him. Was it because he had been too conspicuous in the Ancestral Spirit Realm? Or because, upon arriving in the Truth Heaven Domain, he had killed many powerful figures from various worlds to establish his authority too forcefully?
Zhang Ruochen felt that he had carefully considered every action before taking it, ensuring he had enough certainty before striking. How had he earned the reputation of being "arrogant and self-righteous"?
Zhang Ruochen was somewhat annoyed by Ji Fanxin's condescending and slightly disdainful attitude. His emotions fluctuated greatly, and a surge of anger rose within him. He said, "Actually, there is one more thing I want to tell you."
"What is it?" Ji Fanxin asked indifferently.
Zhang Ruochen said with some malice, "Women at the Half-Saint and Saint realms have a very thick yin energy inside them. Just constantly having intercourse with men shouldn't cause them to lose their yin. So, their deaths probably have another hidden reason."
Ji Fanxin was very sensitive to this topic. Her pretty face instantly flushed bright red. She glared coldly at Zhang Ruochen, then turned into a shower of light and disappeared into the night, as if fleeing.
Recalling Ji Fanxin's gaze just now, although she was glaring at him, there was not only anger in her eyes but also a hint of embarrassment and shyness.
Thinking about it, Zhang Ruochen felt a sense of vengeful satisfaction.
Soon, Zhang Ruochen suppressed his emotions and became calm. He began to carefully consider what Ji Fanxin had said earlier, muttering to himself, "The Yin-Yang Hall's formations and the attack talismans in the hands of those evil cultivators are indeed a big problem. Using space power might not avoid all of them. I must also have one or two protective treasures."
Previously, Zhang Ruochen relied on his ability to manipulate space power, his strong physical body, and the Hundred Saint Blood Armor, so he disdained using protective talismans or similar items. But this trip to the Yin-Yang Hall would be extremely dangerous. He needed to prepare several more trump cards.
"Bang!"
As soon as Zhang Ruochen turned around, he collided with an invisible wall. A large amount of electric light surged out, enveloping his head, shocking him so much that he nearly fell off the Heavenly Capital Mountain. However, those lightning forces were very weak, and Zhang Ruochen was not injured, though it was quite embarrassing.
Zhang Ruochen shattered the spiritual power wall with a palm strike, anger rising in his heart: "So-called fairies can be so narrow-minded and vengeful?"
This move was definitely Ji Fanxin's deliberate prank on him.
In the distance, Ji Fanxin stood on a wutong tree several dozen zhang tall. Seeing Zhang Ruochen's furious expression, her red lips curled up slightly under her veil, looking quite pleased.
For Ji Fanxin, who had drifted through the silent, dark, and cold universe for who knows how many years, this was the first time she had used such a petty trick to mess with someone, and she found it quite amusing.
"Use the Illusory Pearl refined by the Western Buddha Realm to block the Yin-Yang Mirror."
After saying this final sentence, Ji Fanxin disappeared from the wutong tree, truly leaving this place.
Returning to the Heavenly Capital Sacred Market, Zhang Ruochen adjusted his mindset again, thinking to himself, "The side effects of the Joy-Anger Pill are too great. My emotions are easily affected. I hope I don't make a big mistake because of this."
Zhang Ruochen first went to the sacred shop run by the Time Divine Temple but left disappointed. That sacred shop only had one piece of Time-Space Agate, which he had already bought. No new stock had arrived yet, and they asked him to wait.
Afterward, Zhang Ruochen headed toward the sacred hall of the Western Buddha Realm, intending to buy the Illusory Pearl that Ji Fanxin had mentioned. Before attacking the Yin-Yang Hall, he would definitely need to scout it out first, so the Illusory Pearl was a necessary treasure. Moreover, the defensive talismans refined by the Western Buddha Realm were unparalleled, so he planned to buy a few.
The sacred hall of the Western Buddha Realm was grand and imposing, with towering pagodas, resplendent temples, and many treasure halls shrouded in golden Buddha light.
This was not Zhang Ruochen's first time visiting this sacred hall. He walked in with familiarity.