Chapter 1691: Encounter with Tianchu
With the loss of power enhancement, the "Heaven Net Earth Trap" immediately dissipated. The white jade rabbit regained its freedom, its intelligent eyes spinning once before it transformed into a streak of white light, charging out of the ruins.
Zhang Ruochen reacted with incredible speed. The moment Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren was sent flying, he made a precise judgment, leaping onto the white jade rabbit's back first and grabbing hold of its long white fur.
No matter what, he absolutely could not let the Imperial Emperor Sacred Jade escape.
Yan Wang's arms formed a grasping motion as he charged beneath Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren, an expression of extreme excitement flashing in his eyes.
A hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine—once swallowed, he would immediately step into the ranks of the top-tier powerhouses of Truth Heaven Domain, and might even cross the sixth layer of the sea. As long as he crossed the sixth layer of the sea, he would gain the right to enter the Truth Divine Temple for thirty-two months of cultivation. After leaving seclusion, among those below the Great Saint realm, how many could still be his match?
The more Yan Wang thought about it, the more delighted he became, his blood boiling with excitement.
He was just about to have the hundred-thousand-year human-shaped sacred Lingzhi fall into his hands.
Suddenly, space trembled slightly, and the human-shaped sacred medicine vanished without a trace.
It was as if Yan Wang had suddenly fallen from heaven into hell.
Yan Wang was momentarily stunned, then erupted in extreme fury, glaring at the human man standing on the white jade rabbit's back. "A space cultivator—you're actually a space cultivator! Use the divine bones to stop him and the Imperial Emperor Sacred Jade!"
While Yan Wang was dealing with Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren, Lian Hou had already made her move, controlling the eight divine bones in an attempt to suppress the white jade rabbit again.
Unfortunately, the white jade rabbit was incredibly fast. In an instant, it had already rushed out of the ruins, escaped the Dao Garden, and was sprinting rapidly across the blood-soaked wilderness.
Zhang Ruochen sat on its back, feeling as if he might be thrown off at any moment. He quickly took out a chain-shaped Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact and looped it around the white jade rabbit's neck to stabilize himself.
"Is this the speed of a Great Saint-level creature? It's seven or eight times faster than my top speed. At this pace, I wouldn't even have time to use Space Teleportation before being subdued."
He knew the white jade rabbit was only running on instinct, without cultivating any speed-type sacred arts. Otherwise, its burst speed would be far greater than this.
Facing powerhouses like Yan Wang and Lian Hou, Zhang Ruochen dared not rashly use the *Space-Time Secret Scripture*. Unlike Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren, who lacked combat experience, these two were highly alert, with neural reaction speeds far beyond ordinary people. They could escape the area covered by the *Space-Time Secret Scripture* in an instant. If he failed to trap them, he would not only expose the *Space-Time Secret Scripture* as his trump card but also fall into a passive position where he could only be beaten.
After all, Yan Wang and Lian Hou's cultivation levels were far above his own.
"Zhenmiao! Zhenmiao!"
Zhang Ruochen used his spiritual power to call out to Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren, but received no response.
Unfortunately, Zhang Ruochen didn't understand the body of a sacred medicine well enough to examine its condition.
Truth be told, he and Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren had some history together, so he was naturally quite worried, afraid that Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren's soul had been shattered by Yan Wang.
Zhang Ruochen took out a small jar of Life Spring Water. After hesitating for a moment, he finally sprinkled it over Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren's body.
This Life Spring Water came from beneath the roots of the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree. Zhang Ruochen had only collected this one small jar, carrying it with him for emergencies.
Nourished by the Life Spring Water, the life force within Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren's body grew slightly stronger. The cracks on the sacred medicine's body emitted white light, slowly beginning to heal.
"I hope it can still wake up."
Suddenly, a fluctuating hot-and-cold air current came from behind, causing Zhang Ruochen's expression to change. He quickly tucked Zhenmiao Xiaodaoren into his chest and looked back.
Yan Wang and Lian Hou had caught up.
"How is this possible? Can their speed match a Great Saint-level creature?" Zhang Ruochen found it hard to believe.
Yan Wang and Lian Hou possessed a "Flowing Light Talisman" refined by a Great Saint-level Talisman Saint Master. Originally their trump card for survival, they were now forced to use it to seize the hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine and the Imperial Emperor Sacred Jade.
The Flowing Light Talisman not only contained talisman inscription patterns but also incorporated the power of a Great Saint and the rules of the Flowing Light Sacred Dao.
"You can't escape. If you surrender to us willingly, you might just keep your life," Lian Hou's voice transmitted into Zhang Ruochen's ear.
Their speed far exceeded the speed of sound, so Lian Hou was using spiritual power to transmit her voice.
In response, Zhang Ruochen took out the Azure Sky Bow and the Daylight Arrow and shot an arrow at them.
Lian Hou and Yan Wang's expressions changed slightly as they quickly dodged to the side.
This delay created a long distance between the two sides.
Yan Wang's face darkened as he shouted, "Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation!"
Under Yan Wang and Lian Hou's full-powered activation, the eight divine bones flew out, forming a circular Yin-Yang imprint that spun rapidly in the sky, moving faster than the Flowing Light Talisman as it chased after the white jade rabbit ahead.
As the Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation spun, the entire surrounding heaven and earth began to rotate with it, sometimes turning into daylight, sometimes into night. Fierce winds howled, thunder and fire intermingled, and it seemed about to catch up to Zhang Ruochen's head.
Just then, the white jade rabbit finally reached the edge of the blood-soaked wilderness. Ahead stood a towering ancient mountain.
A small half of the ancient mountain was shrouded in darkness, where lightning flashed and thunder roared, like a Shura hell. The other half, existing in the light, was built with numerous celestial palaces and divine halls, radiating brilliant light and surging sacred energy, giving an indescribable sense of sanctity.
A look of joy appeared on Zhang Ruochen's face. He grabbed the chain and used the white jade rabbit as a mount, trying to steer it toward the ancient mountain.
If he could enter there, he might be able to escape Yan Wang and Lian Hou's pursuit.
A familiar yet extremely pleasant voice reached Zhang Ruochen's ears: "Be careful—that's an extremely dangerous ancient ruin, with inscription patterns left by ancient gods. Rushing in recklessly would mean certain death."
At the foot of the ancient mountain, amidst a sea of colorful flowers, a sacred carriage was parked.
In front of the sacred carriage stood eight white-feathered peacocks, arranged in a fan shape. Each was spotless, radiating pure sacred light.
It was Tianchu Xianzi's carriage.
Zhang Ruochen's mind raced. He immediately used the *Space-Time Secret Scripture* to store the white jade rabbit away, then activated his movement technique and rushed toward the white-feathered peacock carriage. "Xianzi, Yan Wang and Lian Hou want to kill me. Save my life, and I'll help you collect the divine spring."
In the blink of an eye, the Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation had already flown above Zhang Ruochen's head and was pressing down. The soil on the ground was swept up, producing a piercing wind howl.
From within the sacred carriage, Tianchu Xianzi's voice rang out again: "Peacock spreads its tail."
The eight white-feathered peacocks lying on the ground simultaneously flew up, spreading their tails like a fan, unleashing eight surges of surging power that collided with the Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation in the sky.
It was worth noting that the white-feathered peacock carriage was an Eight-Yao Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact. With a powerhouse like Tianchu Xianzi channeling its power, the force it could unleash was unimaginably formidable.
Zhang Ruochen stood on the ground, looking up. The eight peacocks' bodies were as massive as small mountains, with countless inscription patterns interweaving across them.
"Boom."
The eight divine bones and the eight peacocks clashed, stalemating for about a breath's time.
The Yin-Yang Life-Death Formation was shattered, and the eight divine bones were sent flying.
Just then, Yan Wang and Lian Hou descended, stopping about seven or eight li away and retrieving the eight divine bones.
Seeing the white-feathered peacock carriage parked in the flower sea, both of them frowned.
Yan Wang said, "That human boy is my prey, Xianzi. Surely you wouldn't fall out with me and Lian Hou over him?"
From within the carriage, Tianchu Xianzi's voice sounded: "He is a member of our Ancient Civilization Faction. Since I, this Heavenly Maiden, am here, naturally I must protect him. The two of you—give me face and let him go this once, how about it?"
Under normal circumstances, Yan Wang and Lian Hou would not want to antagonize Tianchu Xianzi. Setting aside her own formidable cultivation, several of her suitors possessed strength no less than their own.
But this human boy had both the Imperial Emperor Sacred Jade and a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine, and they had already used a precious Flowing Light Talisman. How could they simply retreat because of Tianchu Xianzi's words?
Yan Wang said in a deep voice, "We are determined to have that human boy. Xianzi, you'd better think carefully—don't offend two powerful enemies over him."
Lian Hou's expression was charming and coquettish as she smiled, "We don't want to fall out with you, Xianzi. If you stay out of this, consider it a favor we owe you."
Zhang Ruochen stood not far from the white-feathered peacock carriage, a hint of worry rising in his heart. After all, he and Tianchu Xianzi didn't have a deep friendship, while Yan Wang and Lian Hou were top-tier powerhouses. Under pressure, Tianchu Xianzi might very well stand by and do nothing.
Zhang Ruochen released his spiritual power to probe toward the ancient mountain, secretly searching for an escape route.
If things went wrong, he would immediately flee into the ancient mountain. Even if it contained inscription patterns left by ancient gods, it was still better than facing both Yan Wang and Lian Hou alone.
After a moment of silence, Tianchu Xianzi's voice sounded again from the sacred carriage: "Since you won't retreat, then let's fight."
Yan Wang's thick brows furrowed deeply, and he exchanged a glance with Lian Hou.
The two of them charged forward simultaneously, but in different directions.
From within Yan Wang's body surged nine types of flames, turning the surrounding dozen or so li into a sea of fire. The form of a flame giant with two horns on its head materialized, extending a fist over twenty meters long to smash down at the white-feathered peacock carriage below.
Lian Hou, meanwhile, burst forth with extreme speed, using the eight divine bones to suppress Zhang Ruochen.
"Boom."
Before Lian Hou could reach Zhang Ruochen, a deafening explosion came from behind her.
The flame giant was shattered by a force flying out of the white-feathered peacock carriage, turning into fist-sized fiery rain falling from the sky. Even Yan Wang was sent flying backward, retreating all the way to ten li away.
Lian Hou was greatly shocked, not expecting Yan Wang to lose so quickly.
"Whoosh."
An extremely thin white light thread flew out from the sacred carriage, extending thirty zhang outward, forming rings of light patterns that coiled toward Lian Hou.
"Rain Silk Divine Sword."
Recognizing the origin of that light thread, Lian Hou's pretty face changed dramatically.
Lian Hou had no choice but to abandon capturing Zhang Ruochen. She executed a mid-rank sacred art-level movement technique, displaying dozens of graceful and unparalleled figures as she continuously dodged the white light thread.
But after only dozens of exchanges, the white light thread wrapped around her waist and flung her away.
After landing, Lian Hou checked her waist. Only after confirming that the Rain Silk Divine Sword hadn't cut her in half did she breathe a slight sigh of relief.