# Chapter 1715: Qing Jin
Just as the Xuan Gang light shield was about to shatter, Zhang Ruochen suddenly thrust the Abyssal Ancient Sword into the ground. On his arms, the Flame God Armor released sparks of fire that condensed into two patches of fire clouds.
This was not ordinary flame, but the blue-white dual-colored Purifying Divine Flame.
"Gaga."
The Death God Hummingbirds, extremely afraid of the Purifying Divine Flame, fled into the distance.
But Zhang Ruochen pursued them, throwing a punch. A wave of fiery air flew out, instantly killing dozens of Death God Hummingbirds, while another large group caught fire and began to burn.
The situation shifted instantly.
The three assassin heavenly kings who were activating the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation sensed the ground melting and the entire world transforming into a sea of fire. Their expressions changed.
That was minister-level Purifying Divine Flame, a natural counter to the Death God Hummingbirds.
After throwing more than twenty punches, Zhang Ruochen had killed over half of the Death God Hummingbirds, which fell from the sky like a rain of fire.
The Second Death Envoy had not expected Zhang Ruochen to be so formidable. He hurriedly drove the Death God Hummingbirds to fly outside the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation.
However, at that moment, the Second Death Envoy felt a rolling wave of heat rushing toward him. His pupils were covered in flames, and a metal fist grew larger and larger before him, impossible to dodge.
"Bang."
Zhang Ruochen's fist struck him heavily.
The Second Death Envoy's chest caved in, all his ribs broken, his five organs and six viscera shattered. A large amount of flesh and blood flew out from his back. His sacred body was battered and broken as he fell a hundred zhang away.
Yet, as a Six-Step Saint King and a half-living, half-dead being, even with such severe injuries, he did not die. He still exuded a thick killing intent.
Zhang Ruochen knew well that so-called death envoys were merely slaves subdued by others, their spiritual will long since worn away.
What remained in a death envoy was only a will to kill.
The true formidable figure was the master behind the death envoy.
Zhang Ruochen wanted to use spatial power to kill the Second Death Envoy.
If he could completely kill the Second Death Envoy, the master behind him would also suffer a certain degree of damage.
But as soon as Zhang Ruochen began to mobilize spatial power, the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation activated rapidly, making him feel as if he were trapped in a swamp. Even mobilizing a wisp of spatial power was extremely difficult.
"Gongzi Yan is quite skilled, worthy of being a Space Controller."
Zhang Ruochen stopped mobilizing spatial power, burst forth with extreme speed, and charged directly at the Second Death Envoy.
At that moment, a pile of black chaotic stones surged from the edge of the sky. Some stones were only fist-sized, while others were as large as palaces. They blocked the path before the Second Death Envoy, stopping Zhang Ruochen.
Those black stones condensed together, forming a stone giant over thirty zhang tall, exuding a chilling, yin-cold aura.
"It's the First Death Envoy, my lord."
The three assassin heavenly kings were all mentally invigorated.
"Rumble."
The stone giant threw a punch. The fist force turned into clouds, and the air made sounds like thunder.
Zhang Ruochen clashed fists with it, feeling as if he had punched an iron mountain. His entire arm ached as if it were about to crack. His body flew backward, landing back at the center of the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation.
The stone giant's aura was overwhelming, like a divine mountain standing proudly between heaven and earth, capable of intimidating all beings in the heavens.
Zhang Ruochen flexed his arm, looked up at the stone giant, and found it unbelievable. "To be able to subdue a Saint King of the Stone Clan as a death envoy—could it be that the one who came to kill me today is an assassin heavenly king from the *Assassin Heavenly King Ranking*?"
The Stone Clan was one of the Upper Three Clans of the Hell Realm.
The aura emanating from the stone giant belonged to the Hell Realm, full of deathly energy and carrying a chilling, bone-piercing force.
Not far from the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation, several figures stood together, each exuding an imposing aura.
The leader of the Blood War Divine Hall, Xun Ya, sneered, "Baili, your First Death Envoy isn't that impressive either. Zhang Ruochen is probably only around the Fourth Step Saint King realm. After taking a punch from him, he doesn't even seem injured."
Liancheng Baili was extremely handsome, with four pairs of snow-white wings on his back. He clasped his hands behind him and said, "My First Death Envoy is a overlord of the Stone Clan, with a cultivation at the Seventh Step Saint King realm. If he went all out, how could Zhang Ruochen possibly block him?"
Xun Ya said, "Then let him go all out and finish this quickly, so we don't alert the powerful divine transmission disciples of the Truth Temple."
Beside Shang Zi stood a slender, graceful figure whose beauty could rival that of the Heavenly Beginning Immortal Luo Ji and the Hundred Flowers Immortal Ji Fanxin. She was a top-tier beauty among the myriad realms.
This woman was the leader of the Soul Realm, Lian Xi, also known as the Shadowless Immortal, one of the nine immortals on the *Nine Immortal Beauties Chart*.
The Shadowless Immortal said, "Wait. Zhang Ruochen possesses the Supreme Perfect Physique and the Time-Space Imprint, making him a Time-Space Controller. Killing him would be too great a pity."
Xun Ya frowned. "Immortal, do you intend to protect him?"
The Shadowless Immortal shook her head, took out a soul bottle engraved with ghost-face patterns, and said, "Wouldn't it be better if a Time-Space Controller became our friend?"
Xun Ya said, "I have investigated Zhang Ruochen. His spiritual will is extremely strong. Even under the pressure of divine might, he cut off his own legs rather than kneel. I'm afraid no one can subdue him."
"Then we take over his body."
The Shadowless Immortal held up the soul bottle and said, "A year ago, Zi asked me to find a powerful sacred soul to take over Zhang Ruochen's physical body. Inside this bottle is the sacred soul I carefully selected—Qing Jin."
"Qing Jin!"
Hearing this name, Xun Ya and Gongzi Yan both exclaimed, their heartbeats quickening.
Even Liancheng Baili's pupils contracted sharply. He was clearly wary of this name.
The Shadowless Immortal said, "Back then, Qing Jin ranked first on the *Saint King Merit Ranking*. With his formidable combat power and the cultivation of a Nine-Step Saint King, he severely wounded a Great Saint. That battle shook cultivators across the myriad realms. Many senior experts believed he was already the number one powerhouse below the Great Saint realm."
"Unfortunately, on the Merit Battlefield, he encountered an even more terrifying enemy—Yan Wushen, the unparalleled hero of the Hell Realm's supreme clan, the Yama Clan."
"Yan Wushen was also at the Nine-Step Saint King realm, yet he killed Qing Jin, who was hailed as the number one below the Great Saint."
"Of course, Yan Wushen did not completely kill Qing Jin. One of Qing Jin's sacred souls escaped and fled to the Soul Realm."
Xun Ya was moved. "This time, Yan Wushen should also be going to the Kunlun Realm, right?"
Shang Zi said, "Yan Wushen has been suppressing his cultivation realm, not allowing himself to break through to the Great Saint realm, precisely because he intends to personally lead the Hell Realm's army to sweep through the Kunlun Realm and seize the opportunity to become a god."
Gongzi Yan sighed. "With Yan Wushen involved in this battle, I'm afraid the Heavenly Court Realm will fall into a disadvantage again."
The Shadowless Immortal said, "Not necessarily. As long as Zi's cultivation breaks through to the Nine-Step Saint King realm, he may be able to contend with Yan Wushen. Moreover, if Qing Jin can take over Zhang Ruochen's body and gain Zhang Ruochen's various abilities, there might even be a chance for a peak battle against Yan Wushen in the future."
The soul bottle shook.
Then, a green soul shadow flew out from the bottle, suspended in midair, exuding astonishing sacred might, almost indistinguishable from a descending Great Saint.
This was Qing Jin's sacred soul.
Qing Jin said, "Lian Xi, you claimed you would find a supreme physical body for me to take over and be reborn. Where is this supreme physical body?"
The Shadowless Immortal extended her slender jade finger, pointing at Zhang Ruochen in the distance. "That man is a controller of time and space. If Lord Qing Jin takes over his body, you will be able to control time and space."
The green soul shadow stared at Zhang Ruochen, who was locked in combat with the First Death Envoy, and laughed. "Not bad, not bad. This is indeed a supreme physical body. If I devour his sacred soul and spiritual will and take over his body, why worry about not having another chance to fight Yan Wushen?"
Xun Ya clasped his hands and said, "Lord Qing Jin, Zhang Ruochen's spiritual will is extremely strong. It may not be easy to devour."
The green soul shadow said, "It's good that his spiritual will is strong. If it weren't strong enough, I wouldn't even be interested."
Xun Ya nodded, finding this reasonable. Qing Jin was a figure of such caliber that he had severely wounded a Great Saint against all odds. How could his spiritual will be compared to that of a brat like Zhang Ruochen?
Every person present was a terrifying figure renowned across the myriad realms, but compared to Qing Jin, they could only be considered rising stars. Only the top ten divine transmission disciples of the Truth Temple could interact with Qing Jin as equals.
Inside the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation, Zhang Ruochen exchanged dozens of punches with the First Death Envoy, shattering the ground.
"This is unbelievable. Zhang Ruochen can actually contend with the First Death Envoy. Is he really only at the Fourth Step Saint King realm?" Gongzi Yan said.
It wasn't just Gongzi Yan—everyone present was astonished.
Shang Zi said, "Zhang Ruochen is using Truth Rules, while the First Death Envoy hasn't cultivated the Way of Truth. Moreover, Zhang Ruochen has actually cultivated over twenty thousand Truth Rules, allowing him to unleash six times the power. Achieving such a high level in just over a year is something worth examining."
"Truth Esoterica?" Xun Ya said.
Shang Zi said thoughtfully, "That possibility cannot be ruled out."
"Good, very good. If he really has obtained the Truth Esoterica, that would be even more perfect."
The green soul shadow laughed, then transformed into a gust of yin wind, flying straight toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen was going all out, but he could only fight the First Death Envoy to a standstill. His heart sank. "Just one death envoy's combat power is no less than Yan Wang's. How powerful must the master behind the death envoy be? I have to escape. I must escape immediately. This time, the Heavenly Realm Faction has come with overwhelming force, leaving me no way out. The only thing they miscalculated should be the *Space-Time Secret Scripture*."
With the assistance of the *Space-Time Secret Scripture*, Zhang Ruochen could easily mobilize spatial power. Even the Space Imprisonment Grand Formation could not bind him.
Earlier, Zhang Ruochen had only been unwilling to expose the *Space-Time Secret Scripture*.