Chapter 1652: Mysterious Cave
"Bang."
Zhang Ruochen swung his sword horizontally, striking Senyu Saint King on the left cheek, shattering his cheekbone, sending blood streaming from his mouth, and causing his spine to emit a "cracking" sound.
Senyu Saint King felt his saint soul tremble, his vision went dark, and all his spiritual power and saint qi were scattered.
After all, this was the God-Enthronement Platform Assembly hosted by the Truth Divine Temple. Zhang Ruochen did not kill Senyu Saint King or Luoqi Saint King. Instead, he used Binding Saint Ropes to trap them and tossed them into the Water Star Gourd.
Zhang Ruochen fixed his gaze on Xiang Chunan and asked curiously, "Chunan, how did you happen to show up here?"
"What do you mean 'happen'? I have clairvoyant eyes. From hundreds of miles away, I saw you and your wife being targeted by those five birdmen, so I rushed over immediately to lend a hand. Who knew those five birdmen would be so weak? I didn't even need to act; you could take them down yourselves." Xiang Chunan's face showed a look of great disappointment.
Zhang Ruochen said solemnly, "They are no birdmen. They are angels from Paradise Realm, one of the four ruling worlds. You should leave here quickly and not get involved in this matter, or you'll bring great trouble upon yourself."
Hearing this, Xiang Chunan's hair nearly stood on end, and he said angrily, "We agreed to share fortune and share hardship. Would I, Xiang Chunan, back down? A real man keeps his word, every spit a nail. So what if they're angels from Paradise Realm? I'm not afraid of them."
Zhang Ruochen stared deeply at Xiang Chunan, feeling as if a string in his heart had been plucked.
"Share fortune and share hardship"—what a rare saying, especially when heard in a time of great calamity. It was truly precious.
If before, Zhang Ruochen had thought his sworn brotherhood with Xiang Chunan and Feng Yan was somewhat frivolous, now he had to take this bond seriously.
The words "share fortune and share hardship" were engraved in Zhang Ruochen's heart.
"Alright, share fortune and share hardship."
Not wanting to prolong the matter, Zhang Ruochen retrieved the Water Star Gourd and, with Mu Lingxi and Xiang Chunan, charged into the cave on the riverbed.
"Boom, rumble."
The sacred spring from upstream surged down violently, filling the dry riverbed with rippling water once more.
"Whoosh, whoosh."
Figures of various beings flew in from all directions, appearing on both banks of the river, their eyes showing hesitation. They too wanted to charge into the cave, but they feared the formidable combat power of Zhang Ruochen and his group.
After all, five angelic clan saint kings had been easily suppressed. Who would dare compete with them for treasures?
...
In the Outer East Garden, within an ancient divine soil medicinal garden, Lansibai met the Four-Winged Scarlet Angel, Nie Zhan.
Nie Zhan was tall and broad-shouldered, with two pairs of scarlet wings spread behind him like two blood clouds enveloping his body, exuding a bloodthirsty aura.
Besides Nie Zhan, nearly a hundred powerful beings were present, all from major worlds allied with Paradise Realm.
Among them, a monk with no facial features stood shoulder to shoulder with Nie Zhan, emitting a saintly might no less than Nie Zhan's.
This monk was named "Wuxiang."
This group of beings surrounded the ancient divine soil medicinal garden, preventing cultivators from other major worlds from entering, monopolizing the sacred medicines in the garden. Cultivators from other worlds, fearing Paradise Realm's power, dared not speak out.
By the time Lansibai arrived, the sacred medicines in the garden had already been mostly harvested.
A beam of blood light surged from Nie Zhan's body, and he said in a deep voice, "They dared to attack the heavenly pride of Paradise Realm? What background do they have? Are they divine sons or grandsons from one of the top hundred major worlds?"
Generally, only cultivators from the top hundred major worlds would dare to contend with Paradise Realm. And even then, it was usually in self-defense, not active aggression.
Active aggression was a provocation, with severe consequences.
Lansibai gritted his teeth and said, "They definitely aren't from the top hundred major worlds. They're quite unfamiliar, probably top-tier experts cultivated by some unknown weak realm."
From Wuxiang's abdomen, a voice emerged: "You said earlier that they possess a gourd sacred treasure capable of taking in even saint kings?"
"Yes, that gourd must be an extraordinary treasure they found in the God-Enthronement Platform. Its power is immense, and the water-elemental aura it emits is even denser than that of a hundred-thousand-year sacred medicine." Lansibai's mind recalled the image of the Water Star Gourd floating in midair, and a strong desire to possess it arose within him.
Wuxiang continued, "And what about the cave at the bottom of the sacred spring river?"
Lansibai's expression turned indignant. "That cave emits divine light and a rich medicinal fragrance. It likely contains a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine. We discovered the cave first, but those three were utterly barbaric and domineering, and despicable. They attacked us without warning when we were off guard. Otherwise, with the five of us, how could we have lost so badly?"
Nie Zhan, as a Scarlet Four-Winged Angel, was naturally shrewd. He detected several inconsistencies and, from Lansibai's subtle expressions, roughly deduced the truth of the matter.
Lansibai and his group, relying on their strong backgrounds and status as cultivators from Paradise Realm, were accustomed to throwing their weight around in front of weak-realm cultivators, even resorting to plunder.
This time, they had likely coveted someone else's gourd sacred treasure and tried to seize it, only to suffer a heavy loss.
Of course, regardless of the reason, Luoqi Saint King, Jiya Saint King, and the others had extraordinary identities. As the top powerhouse stationed by Paradise Realm in the Outer Four Gardens, Nie Zhan naturally could not stand idly by.
Right or wrong, as one of the ruling worlds, Paradise Realm could not afford to suffer a loss.
Moreover, Nie Zhan was quite interested in the gourd sacred treasure and the mysterious cave.
Nie Zhan let out a deep snort. "To dare strike so ruthlessly against cultivators of Paradise Realm, no matter who they are, they must pay a painful price. Otherwise, where would Paradise Realm's prestige be? Lansibai, lead the way."
Lansibai was overjoyed. With Nie Zhan taking action, that human scholar and that dark fool were doomed. The gourd sacred treasure would likely fall into Nie Zhan's hands, but that beautiful Phoenix Clan woman—he could take the opportunity to subdue her and make her his concubine.
Earlier, that Phoenix Clan beauty had nearly wounded him with a single strike. Lansibai held a grudge and planned to make her beg for mercy later.
At the thought, a sinister smile curled at the corner of Lansibai's mouth.
With Lansibai leading the way, Nie Zhan and Wuxiang brought over a dozen saint king-level experts and rushed straight toward the sacred spring river.
...
Zhang Ruochen was the first to enter the cave. The rich medicinal fragrance was almost condensed into liquid form. With a single breath, his internal organs felt as if they had been refined.
"Could there really be a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine?" Zhang Ruochen's heart pounded violently.
The deeper they went into the cave, the larger the space became. Divine light flowed over the stone walls on all sides. It seemed that, having been nourished by divine qi for years, the stone walls were harder than sacred iron.
Mu Lingxi looked puzzled. "Was this cave formed naturally or carved by human hands?"
"Slap."
Zhang Ruochen swung his sword, striking the stone wall.
A three-foot-deep sword mark appeared on the wall. Purple qi surged from the mark, and before long, the mark vanished.
"It can even repair itself."
Xiang Chunan licked his thick lips and grew vigilant, feeling that this cave was too eerie. There might be unpredictable dangers within.
The cave was filled with purple, red, and blue light mists, growing denser by the moment.
The thick light mists could block a cultivator's vision and spiritual power. Even with Zhang Ruochen's celestial eye, looking ahead, he could only see a blurry haze.
The denser it became, the greater the likelihood of encountering danger.
Just then, Xiang Chunan, who was at the rear, let out a howl: "Sacred medicine! Ten-thousand-year sacred medicine!"
Then, the dark fool rushed past Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi, charging forward wildly.
"His clairvoyant eyes are that powerful?"
Zhang Ruochen didn't see any sacred medicine, but he trusted Xiang Chunan's eyes. So, he quickened his pace and followed.
Ahead, the cave opened up further, reaching a width of over fifty meters. In the light mist, many purple, red, and blue specks of light flickered.
Each speck of light was a sacred medicine.
Xiang Chunan kept howling, ecstatic: "This really is a peerless treasure land! Brother Ruochen, sister-in-law, hurry up and harvest! We've hit the jackpot this time!"
Xiang Chunan turned back and was startled to see sixty-four Zhang Ruochens in the cave, frantically gathering sacred medicines.
"Using spiritual power clones to harvest medicine? That's not fair!"
Xiang Chunan broke out in a cold sweat and immediately began frantically picking sacred medicines, afraid of falling behind Zhang Ruochen. However, two hands were no match for one hundred and twenty-eight hands. Zhang Ruochen's harvesting speed was far beyond Xiang Chunan's.
"Don't rush. We'll split the sacred medicines harvested in this cave three ways," Zhang Ruochen said.
Hearing this, Xiang Chunan was overjoyed. "Brother Ruochen is generous. This is what it means to share fortune and share hardship, haha!"
Mu Lingxi did not join in the harvesting. Instead, she stood guard, pressing her ear against the stone wall to listen. Suddenly, her beautiful face changed drastically. "A large group of cultivators has entered the cave and is rushing this way at high speed."
Xiang Chunan raised his large iron hammer and bellowed, "There are plenty of people who don't value their lives. I'll go suppress them now."
Zhang Ruochen, who was still harvesting, frowned. "Come back. Earlier, the three of us easily defeated five saint kings from Paradise Realm. Ordinary cultivators wouldn't dare to barge in. I suspect the cultivators entering the cave are experts from Paradise Realm summoned by Lansibai."
Paradise Realm and the major worlds allied with it were teeming with experts. Even if Xiang Chunan's combat power was formidable, he couldn't fight a group alone.
"Fine, I'll let them off for now."
Xiang Chunan's muscles bulged, emitting a black glow. He swung his large iron hammer, smashing it against the cave's stone wall. The hard wall crumbled continuously, quickly blocking the entrance.
Seeing this, Zhang Ruochen was inwardly startled. "This dark fool's strength is monstrous. I underestimated him before."
Mu Lingxi frowned slightly. "Brother Xiang, if you block the entrance, how will we get out?"
"Ah?"
Xiang Chunan was momentarily stunned, clearly not having considered that question.
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen's voice reached both of their ears, tinged with surprise and joy: "There really is a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine."