Chapter 1617: Zhang Ruochen's Conditions
Zhang Ruochen and Luo Xu stood facing each other, no longer carrying any trace of immaturity. Instead, they exuded an aura of mutual respect and rivalry. Both were now super-great figures capable of representing an entire realm.
Of course, Zhang Ruochen still felt gratitude and respect toward Luo Xu.
Luo Xu had helped Zhang Ruochen more than once and had even imparted his ultimate technique, the "Luo Water Fist Art," without reservation. It was precisely through practicing the "Luo Water Fist Art" that Zhang Ruochen had been able to balance the ten-thousand-fold masculine energy within his body, generated by cultivating the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm.
The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm and the Luo Water Fist Art—one hard, one soft—were both profound and unfathomable.
A faint smile hung on Luo Xu's face. "I know that after destroying the Yin Yang Hall, you still have many matters to attend to. So, I won't beat around the bush. You must have already guessed why the cultivators of the Kunlun Realm helped you annihilate the Yin Yang Hall."
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Kunlun Realm wants to cooperate with me?"
Luo Xu nodded. "Whether it's the Kunlun Realm or the Guanghan Realm, our influence in the Truth Heaven Domain is quite weak. Only by joining forces can we more easily reclaim the Dao Fields that rightfully belong to our two realms."
Although Zhang Ruochen and Luo Xu shared a deep friendship, this matter was not about the two of them alone. It involved the Guanghan Realm and the Kunlun Realm.
The interests at stake were far too great. How could Zhang Ruochen agree so easily?
Even if he were to agree, he would first lay out his conditions.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Guanghan Realm has a total of twenty-one Dao Fields in the Truth Heaven Domain. Among them, the Moon God Dao Field was the hardest to conquer, and I have already taken it. Do I still need the Kunlun Realm's help to attack the remaining nineteen Dao Fields?"
Luo Xu said, "You know very well that the reason you were able to capture the Moon God Dao Field today was not because your strength is truly invincible, nor because of the Kunlun Realm's assistance, but because the Yin Yang Realm had offended too many enemies."
Pausing, Luo Xu continued, "The Moon God must have told you that the Guanghan Realm and the Kunlun Realm share a common great enemy. That enemy is doing everything possible to prevent the rise of the Guanghan Realm and the Kunlun Realm. That enemy once brought calamity upon the Kunlun Realm and subjected the Guanghan Realm to enslavement and oppression. In the Truth Heaven Domain, that enemy has sent representatives specifically to deal with you and me. Do you have confidence in facing that enemy alone?"
After the battle at the Moon God Dao Field, Zhang Ruochen had come to a deeper realization of just how formidable the power Shang Zihong commanded was. It was not something that could be opposed by a single person alone.
A thoughtful expression appeared on Zhang Ruochen's face. "Cooperation is not impossible."
Luo Xu's eyes lit up. "You agree?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "If you want me to help the Kunlun Realm attack Dao Fields, you must agree to a few conditions."
Luo Xu seemed to have anticipated this and asked directly, "What conditions?"
"First, for every Dao Field we capture, I will take half of the treasures and sacred stones inside. If you can agree to the first condition, we can discuss the second," Zhang Ruochen said.
Luo Xu's expression turned serious.
Clearly, Zhang Ruochen's first condition had put him in a difficult position.
Luo Xu used his spiritual power to communicate with the cultivators of the Kunlun Realm.
Moments later, the Kunlun Realm cultivators in the distance showed expressions of indignation.
The Devouring Demon Dragon sneered coldly. "What a blatant extortion. Zhang Ruochen, do you think we have no choice but to cooperate with you? With our strength, we might not necessarily fail to capture the Kunlun Realm's Dao Fields."
"Forget it. Let's go." The Kun Clan Prince looked at Zhang Ruochen with great displeasure, his eyes filled with hostility.
Li Xian, the leader of the various barbarian beast clans, furrowed her delicate brows slightly, also feeling that Zhang Ruochen's conditions were too excessive. "Since we can't reach an agreement, please open the formation. We want to leave."
Zhang Ruochen did not try to stop them. As he led them out, he said, "The Kunlun Realm did contribute significantly to this attack on the Moon God Dao Field. If the Kunlun Realm plans to attack a certain Dao Field, notify me in advance, and I should come to lend a hand. Of course, I will only act once."
Just as they were about to step out of the formation, Zhang Ruochen seemed to remember something. He took out a jar of Dragon Spirit Mad Cow Wine from his space ring and pressed it into Luo Xu's hands, laughing. "This is a fine wine, truly priceless."
Luo Xu was momentarily surprised, then a smile appeared on his face. "I have something for you as well."
With that, Luo Xu took out a fist technique manual and handed it to Zhang Ruochen.
"This is?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Luo Xu said, "Some insights on the tenth level of the Luo Water Fist Art. Lately, I've been studying the eleventh level, but I haven't been able to perfect it yet."
The ninth level of the Luo Water Fist Art had already reached the level of a sacred art.
The tenth level should have reached the level of a mid-rank sacred art.
Cultivating the Luo Water Fist Art could indeed, to some extent, balance the masculine energy within Zhang Ruochen's body. Naturally, Zhang Ruochen did not stand on ceremony and accepted the manual.
In terms of fist techniques, Zhang Ruochen still had a considerable gap to close with Luo Xu, and it was worth learning humbly.
Moreover, a mid-rank sacred art was not of low value. Exquisite mid-rank sacred arts and profound mid-rank sacred arts were extremely rare, each being an unshared secret. If sold, they could fetch a sky-high price.
Luo Xu casually gifted Zhang Ruochen a mid-rank sacred art-level fist technique, and Zhang Ruochen casually gifted him a jar of priceless Dragon Spirit Mad Cow Wine.
This was their personal friendship, unrelated to grudges or interests.
Because Luo Xu knew that Zhang Ruochen could make use of the Luo Water Fist Art. And Zhang Ruochen knew that Luo Xu could make use of the Dragon Spirit Mad Cow Wine.
After seeing off the Kunlun Realm group, Zhang Ruochen returned to the Moon God Dao Field. Looking at the numerous female cultivators of remarkable appearance standing amidst the ruins, he felt a headache coming on.
Those female cultivators were all trembling with fear, clearly quite intimidated by Zhang Ruochen.
"Greetings, Master."
Nearly a thousand female cultivators knelt before Zhang Ruochen simultaneously.
Unlike the women imprisoned in the Extreme Pleasure Underground Palace, they had long been trained by the Yin Yang Hall into tools for earning sacred stones, subjected to endless torment, their spiritual wills nearly shattered.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen destroy the Yin Yang Hall, they felt both excitement and some unease. Who knew how this new master would treat them?
Zhang Ruochen couldn't be bothered with these troublesome matters. He turned his gaze to Ling Feiyu. "You handle their arrangements."
"Mm."
Ling Feiyu nodded.
The current Moon God Dao Field was in chaos and disrepair, practically a ruin.
Zhang Ruochen spent a great deal of time collecting valuable treasures from the rubble one by one.
What infuriated Zhang Ruochen was that when he finally managed to open the treasure vault built by the Yin Yang Hall, it was completely empty—not a single sacred stone remained.
Of course, the heretical cultivators themselves were all extremely wealthy. The treasures and sacred stones from their various storage vessels, when added together, amounted to a considerable fortune.
Now, the Moon God Dao Field was severely understaffed. Ling Feiyu mobilized all the female cultivators just to clean up the ruins.
Zhang Ruochen took out a delicate tower the size of a fist and tossed it out.
With a loud crash, a building over ten zhang tall appeared in the northeastern corner of the Moon God Dao Field.
This was the "Refining Artifact Pavilion," itself a thousand-mark sacred artifact that could expand or shrink, be carried around, and possessed considerable defensive and offensive power.
Following that, Zhang Ruochen threw out over a dozen more refining artifact pavilions, including towers, pagodas, and halls. Soon, the Moon God Dao Field looked vastly different.
Unlike before, the Moon God Dao Field was no longer shrouded in evil energy. Bathed in the light of the Moon God statue, it appeared especially serene, with an added touch of sacredness.
These refining artifact pavilions were found by Zhang Ruochen in the storage bag of a heretical cultivator skilled in artifact refining. According to him, they were just ordinary refining artifact pavilions.
A truly powerful refining artifact pavilion could give birth to a strong artifact spirit, fly on its own, and even form its own world, nurturing a cultivation holy land within.
Zhang Ruochen did not immediately tally the gains from this expedition. Instead, he spent time setting up a space teleportation array within the Moon God Dao Field. Then, using the array, he left the Tiantu Mountain.
...
At the Mirror Fragrance Cliff Dao Field.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden, Qing Xiao, and several cultivators from the Guanghan Realm were all trapped inside the Dao Field, their hearts heavy. No one could calm down enough to study the Truth Dao diagrams.
Even the highly cultivated Su Jing was anxious.
In his view, Zhang Ruochen was still too young and acted too rashly. If something unexpected happened, it would be a heavy blow to the entire Guanghan Realm.
"What a pity. I couldn't stop him back then." Su Jing gritted his teeth.
The longer they waited, the more grim their expressions became. They were terrified that the news they received would be an unbearable tragedy.
This was a form of torment.
Mu Lingxi stood on the steps at the entrance of the Dao Field, her red lips tightly pressed together. Every few moments, her beautiful eyes would lift to look outside the Dao Field. She was almost turning into a waiting stone.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden stood beside Mu Lingxi with her hands behind her back, her expression relatively calm. "Do you have no confidence in Zhang Ruochen?"
"Aren't you worried about him?" Mu Lingxi countered.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden was not just one person but nine, possessing nine different minds. However, upon hearing Mu Lingxi's question, she fell silent for a moment.
Because the mind dominating the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden's body was Shengshu Cainü. The other eight Mysterious Maidens were all immersed in comprehending the sacred path, in a state of cultivation akin to a closed-door retreat.
Mu Lingxi's gaze was complicated, as if she were pondering something, hesitating all along.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden saw through her thoughts. "If you want to ask, then ask. Why keep hesitating?"
Mu Lingxi lifted her head, as if she had finally made up her mind. She asked, "Why did Sister Chen stand on the Empress's side? Why did she help the Empress? Why did she hurt Zhang Ruochen? Is the Empress threatening her with Zhang Ruochen's life?"
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden's gaze turned solemn. "The Empress's heart is vast enough to embrace all things. She would not threaten her own disciple."
Mu Lingxi said, "Impossible. I know Sister Chen's personality. She is stubborn and strong-willed. Once she set her heart on Zhang Ruochen, she would never change. If the Empress hadn't forced her, she would never have done that. Back then, when everyone thought Zhang Ruochen had been killed by the Jiuyou Sword Saint, she was the only one who stayed by Zhang Ruochen's mother's side, treating her like her own mother."
"Xue Wuye, a brilliant heavenly proud son, actively pursued her, but she never showed the slightest hint of attraction."
"And... the last time I saw her at the Demon Sect's headquarters, I could tell she was in great pain."
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden let out a long sigh. "Everyone's fate is different. No one can control their own destiny. Even gods feel helpless in the face of fate."
Mu Lingxi said, "Where did she go? Was she killed by the Empress?"
"Just consider her dead. After all, because of Zhang Ruochen, her clan and loved ones have almost all perished." There were some things the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden did not want to tell Mu Lingxi, nor could she.
Silence.
A long silence.
Mu Lingxi's eyes turned red. She had a feeling that Sister Chen might truly be dead, most likely killed by the Empress.
"Whoosh—"
Suddenly, a fluctuation of time and space came from within the formation.
All the cultivators in the Dao Field were startled. Turning into streaks of light, they rushed to the entrance of the Dao Field and looked into the distance.
There, Zhang Ruochen's figure emerged from the formation, striding toward the Mirror Fragrance Cliff Dao Field.