Chapter 1651: Utterly Cowardly
"Swish, swish."
Five Angel Clan Saint Kings descended, landing on both banks of the river.
Seeing Mu Lingxi, Lance White's eyes lit up with joy.
However, when he saw Zhang Ruochen standing beside Mu Lingxi, his gaze instantly turned dark and gloomy.
The other four Angel Saint Kings stared at the Water Star Gourd floating in midair and the mysterious cave on the riverbed, their eyes burning with greed.
A beautiful female angel with sapphire-like eyes spoke in a shocked tone, "That gourd is a water-attribute sacred treasure, probably worth more than a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine."
Another angel with a fire pattern on his cheek revealed a covetous expression. After a moment's thought, he shouted, "We've stumbled upon this naturally formed gourd—it's our great fortune! Act quickly and seize it."
"Right, right, right. We mustn't let other cultivators discover it, or we'll inevitably face a major battle."
The five Angel Saint Kings exchanged glances and communicated rapidly through telepathy, acting as if Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi were invisible.
Mu Lingxi was furious. These five Angel Saint Kings were utterly shameless, clearly intending to steal the Water Star Gourd.
She pulled out the Phoenix Feather, ready to strike the first Angel Saint King who moved to take the gourd.
Zhang Ruochen grabbed Mu Lingxi's wrist, shook his head with a smile, and transmitted his voice, "Since they're pretending the Water Star Gourd is a natural treasure, I'll use this 'natural treasure' to teach them a lesson."
The Angel Saint King with the fire pattern flew above the Water Star Gourd. Wearing a crimson gauntlet, he pressed his palm downward from a distance, beginning to claim it.
The other four Angel Saint Kings fixed their gazes on Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi. If the two dared to make a single move, they would face a joint attack from all four.
"Since you've revealed the gourd treasure, you can only blame your bad luck," the four Angel Saint Kings thought to themselves.
Lance White's lips curled slightly as he pondered how to take advantage of this opportunity to capture the stunning Phoenix Clan beauty.
Yet, to the four Angel Saint Kings' confusion, the pair across from them showed no anger and made no move to stop Qiu Lan Saint King, who was collecting the gourd.
"Could it be they don't dare offend Paradise Realm and have chosen to swallow their pride?"
This thought had just crossed Lance White's mind...
"Ah—"
A terrified scream came from the direction of the gourd treasure.
It was Qiu Lan Saint King's voice.
The four Angel Saint Kings were startled, immediately shifting their attention from Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi to the gourd.
The gourd still hung in the air above the river, but Qiu Lan Saint King had vanished.
Such a strange occurrence alarmed the four Angel Saint Kings, suspicion flickering in their eyes.
Lance White thought of a possibility and said, "Could Qiu Lan Saint King have slipped into that cave while we weren't looking, trying to harvest the sacred medicine inside first?"
The five Angel Saint Kings weren't a united front; each had their own agenda and wanted to maximize their gains, leading to mutual suspicion.
The sole female Angel Saint King glanced at Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi on the bank and said, "Let's collect this gourd treasure first, before anything changes."
Lance White nodded. "Even if Qiu Lan really entered the cave first, with the four of us, he won't be able to monopolize the sacred medicine inside."
The beautiful female angel spread her two pairs of snow-white sacred light wings, flew to the same height as the Water Star Gourd, and pulled out a beast-hide pouch, aiming it at the gourd.
"Whoosh—"
The Water Star Gourd shook violently, and its pitch-black opening suddenly aimed at the female angel.
Below, Luo Qi Saint King, a three-step Saint King, roared, "Watch out!"
Zhang Ruochen activated all ten fingers, employing spatial distortion techniques on the female angel. Despite using every trick she knew, she couldn't escape and was sucked into the Water Star Gourd.
With Zhang Ruochen's current cultivation and powerful spiritual power, none of the Angel Saint Kings present could detect his use of spatial force.
But these Angel Saint Kings weren't fools; they guessed that Zhang Ruochen or Mu Lingxi was controlling the gourd treasure, having trapped Qiu Lan Saint King and Ji Ya Saint King inside one after another.
Luo Qi Saint King drew a sword brimming with sacred energy, pointed it at Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi, and commanded, "Release them immediately."
"Finally, you're not treating us like we're invisible," Zhang Ruochen thought with a hidden smile, feigning confusion. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."
Mu Lingxi wanted to laugh but held it in, adding, "We're just passing through. Who do you want us to release?"
"Don't play dumb with me. Qiu Lan Saint King and Ji Ya Saint King are no ordinary figures—you can't afford to offend them. Release them at once, and offer the gourd treasure as an apology, and this matter might be settled," Luo Qi Saint King said, his face as cold as iron.
Lance White thought for a moment, a strange light flashing in his eyes, then transmitted to Mu Lingxi, "Miss, you've stirred up serious trouble this time. Qiu Lan Saint King is the only son of an Emperor Angel, and Ji Ya Saint King is the beloved granddaughter of a god. Being trapped in that gourd is a great humiliation to them. Even if released, they won't let this go."
After saying this, Lance White watched Mu Lingxi's expression, hoping to see fear and dread.
To his disappointment, Mu Lingxi remained calm, though he couldn't tell if she was just putting on a brave face.
Lance White continued his telepathic message, "If you release them, I'll mediate and ensure your safety. But that gourd treasure... I'm afraid it won't be saved."
Hearing this, Mu Lingxi finally couldn't help but let out a silvery laugh. "Why are you so long-winded? This really has nothing to do with us. Blame their own greed and incompetence—they couldn't even subdue a gourd and got trapped inside instead."
Luo Qi Saint King's eyes narrowed. "Since they dared to attack us and used underhanded means to trap Qiu Lan Saint King and Ji Ya Saint King, we don't need to be polite. Let's subdue them first."
Even at the Saint King realm, they were this shameless—Zhang Ruochen had to admire them.
"Not good. More cultivators are lurking nearby. I need to deal with these three Angel Saint Kings quickly, or else, as more arrive, it'll be harder to monopolize the sacred medicine in the cave."
Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power covered a ten-mile radius, detecting six or seven auras.
Those cultivators hadn't acted rashly, choosing to lie low—perhaps out of fear of Paradise Realm's cultivators, or maybe they were waiting for the right moment to strike.
Either way, the situation was deteriorating.
Luo Qi Saint King, Sen Yu Saint King, and Lance White each produced a sacred artifact, attacking Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi from three different directions.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to strike, a roar erupted from the distant forest: "Where did these birdmen come from, daring to attack my brother? Are you asking for death?"
"Boom."
The ground trembled violently.
Xiang Chunan, like a black gorilla, wielded a millstone-sized iron hammer. He leaped over a hundred meters high from the forest, then crashed down, slamming the hammer onto Luo Qi Saint King's back.
"Bang."
A protective talisman on Luo Qi Saint King shattered. His body plummeted, smashing a deep pit into the ground.
This three-step Saint King Angel Clan powerhouse lay at the bottom of the pit, his back bloodied, trembling uncontrollably, unable to get up.
On the other side, Zhang Ruochen held a heavy sword and swung it. With a single strike, he pinned Sen Yu Saint King beneath the blade.
"Bang."
Sen Yu Saint King knelt on one knee, supporting himself with one hand on the ground, using all his strength to resist the weight of Zhang Ruochen's sword. Yet Zhang Ruochen looked relaxed, clearly not using his full power.
"Whoosh—"
Mu Lingxi swung the Phoenix Feather, striking Lance White back.
The power of Extreme Yin Nether Ice emanated from the Phoenix Feather, covering Lance White's entire body with a thin layer of frost.
Lance White retreated to the opposite bank of the small river, stumbling, his face pale. He quickly activated a set of ten-thousand-pattern sacred armor and pinched a talisman between two fingers.
At that moment, Lance White finally realized that this man and woman were not to be trifled with.
Especially the human man—he had severely underestimated him. He was no half-step Saint King; he was a ruthless character, just pretending to be weak.
And who was that dark, brutish fellow? One hammer had severely injured Luo Qi?
Lance White looked at the three across from him, a chill running down his spine. Filled with fear and unease, he activated his movement technique and fled into the distance. As he ran, he shouted, "You've brought disaster upon yourselves! Laying hands on Paradise Realm cultivators—there will be no place for you on the Divine Enshrinement Platform!"
Xiang Chunan raised his iron hammer and roared, "Why are you running? Take one more hammer before you go!"
Xiang Chunan's voice was thunderous, ringing in Lance White's ears like a clap of thunder, making his whole body spasm. He fled even faster into the distance.
"Sigh, utterly cowardly!" Xiang Chunan shook his head in disappointment.
The cultivators hidden in the shadows were all shocked. They hadn't expected this group to be so formidable, easily crushing several four-winged angels of Paradise Realm—suppressing some, injuring another, and scaring one off.
Of course, they didn't see this as something to be proud of. Instead, they thought Zhang Ruochen and his companions had acted too rashly and would face dire consequences.
"Paradise Realm is one of the four ruling worlds. When cultivators from other major worlds encounter Paradise Realm angels, they either flatter them or steer clear. But these three actually suppressed Paradise Realm's four-winged angels—what nerve! They're slapping Paradise Realm in the face."
"What good is nerve? They'd be better off enduring, at least avoiding offending Paradise Realm."
"I hear a four-winged Scarlet Angel from Paradise Realm is in the Outer East Garden. If Lance White brings him here, these three will be in for a world of pain."
"A four-winged Scarlet Angel? Really? Someone of that caliber didn't go to the Inner Four Courts?"