Chapter 1773: Old Friend
A hundred thousand years ago, the young Second-Class Blood Ancestor was undoubtedly a benchmark figure of his era. It was precisely for this reason that, when he was only at the Saint King realm, he received an extremely high evaluation from the Moon God.
The Moon God's vision was exceedingly lofty. The number of young juniors who could catch her eye, including Zhang Ruochen, would not exceed five.
For a heavenly prodigy like the Second-Class Blood Ancestor to reach the God realm and cultivate for a hundred thousand years, his combat power was naturally terrifying beyond compare.
The Moon God said, "To deal with you, thirty percent of my power is sufficient."
"Moon God, you are far too confident. This is no longer the era of a hundred thousand years ago; heaven and earth have changed. Over these hundred thousand years, outstanding talents have emerged in succession, and the winds and clouds have shifted. Who knows how many mighty beings who once shook the cosmos have fallen, while a new generation of supreme true gods has risen. I am one of them. Now, only one battle remains for me to stand at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Court."
Standing at the center of the blood qi vortex, the Second-Class Blood Ancestor took a step forward.
With that step, he crossed an immeasurably vast distance and directly descended upon the Shatuo Heaven Domain.
Clearly, the "one battle" the Second-Class Blood Ancestor spoke of referred to this fight with the Moon God. By defeating her, he could shake off the shadow of Jia Tianxia, transcend himself, and become one of the chess players capable of manipulating the grand game board of the Heavenly Court.
"Swish, swish."
The horsetail whisk in the Second-Class Blood Ancestor's hand spun rapidly, each white strand possessing the power to slice apart heaven and earth. In an instant, the ground beneath the Moon God's feet was cut into a tattered chaotic zone.
Within this chaotic zone, the rules of heaven and earth were completely severed, and tens of millions of sharp forces surged toward the Moon God.
The Moon God extended a crystalline jade finger and pointed forward. A ring of light spread outward from her fingertip.
Sensing the terrifying power of that finger strike, the Second-Class Blood Ancestor channeled all his strength into the whisk. The rules flying from his body filled the heavens and earth before converging toward the whisk.
"Bang."
The rules shattered, and the whisk was broken.
The Second-Class Blood Ancestor's hands were covered in blood as he rapidly retreated, his eyes filled with shock.
He withdrew several thousand miles before finally using an ancient shield to neutralize the Moon God's finger force.
"So strong."
The Second-Class Blood Ancestor's expression shifted slightly. He immediately turned around and discovered that the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin had somehow appeared behind him, resembling a blazing sun and a divine moon, hurtling toward him.
"Blood Battle Nine Heavens."
The Second-Class Blood Ancestor spun his body once, transforming into a blood spring.
The blood spring erupted violently, quickly turning the sky and earth into a boundless sea of blood. On the surface of the blood sea, massive handprints struck out repeatedly, clashing with the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin, causing heaven and earth to tremble incessantly.
"Boom."
No one knew how many exchanges occurred before the blood sea was torn apart by the power of the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin, splitting into two halves.
Standing atop the Sun-Moon Crystal Coffin, the Moon God appeared at the center of the blood sea's rift, suppressing the true body of the Second-Class Blood Ancestor. She rapidly descended, plunging into the void space and disappearing from everyone's sight.
Even though the spatial rift had closed, the observing cultivators remained shaken.
In that final scene, the Moon God's heroic bearing was truly unparalleled, even as she trampled the Second-Class Blood Ancestor beneath her feet.
The Yan God and You Shen, who had fled the Shatuo Heaven Domain, were both terrified. They knew better than anyone how powerful the Second-Class Blood Ancestor was, yet before the Moon God, he was utterly helpless.
The Fourth-Class Blood Ancestor said, "Rest assured, the Second-Class Blood Ancestor never fights an unprepared battle. Since he dares to challenge the Moon God, he must have brought that town-suppressing heavy artifact from the Blood War Divine Temple. With that artifact, defeating the Moon God might not be too difficult."
Even as he said this, the Fourth-Class Blood Ancestor did not dare to re-enter the Shatuo Heaven Domain. What if something went wrong and the Moon God returned after defeating the Second-Class Blood Ancestor?
He dared not imagine the consequences.
Besides, with the Second-Class Blood Ancestor and the Black Heart Demon Lord taking action, the situation was already settled. There was no need for them to take risks.
Moon God Mountain.
The demon god figure formed by the Black Heart Demon Lord's divine thought clone unleashed over thirty hammer strikes in succession, finally tearing a crack in the divine rune circle.
"No!"
The Man Sword Great Saint roared in extreme unwillingness.
"Bang."
A domineering divine force surged into the divine rune circle, striking the Man Sword Great Saint's body.
The giant sword on the Man Sword Great Saint's back flew out on its own to protect its master, clashing with the divine force and holding it back for a moment. The next instant, the giant sword and the Man Sword Great Saint were both sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the wall of the Guanghan Divine Palace.
"Ha ha!"
The demon god figure laughed heartily. "The divine rune circle and the Blood Moon Swallowing Heaven Grand Formation are indeed formidable, holding me off for this long."
An immense divine might surged into the shattered divine rune circle, pressing down on Zhang Ruochen until his face turned pale. His meridians bulged, and his body felt as if it were about to explode.
"Whoosh—"
On the ground, the Man Sword Great Saint's giant sword trembled, then flew up, forcibly seized by the demon god figure's hand.
The demon god figure's palm swept across the sword's body, and a layer of divine light sealed the sword's artifact spirit.
"Pfft."
The giant sword then flew out, striking the Man Sword Great Saint's neck and severing his head, which embedded itself into the wall of the Guanghan Divine Palace. The Man Sword Great Saint's headless body fell heavily, landing beside Zhang Ruochen.
Only then did the demon god figure's gaze fix on Zhang Ruochen. His eyes narrowed slightly, and then he laughed. "I knew there was a familiar aura about you. So it's the undying bird from the side of the Qiangu Nüdi. Meeting an old friend—why hide?"
Xiao Hei emerged from Zhang Ruochen's robe, snarling viciously, "Old friend, my ass! Back in the day, the Nüdi treated you well, yet you turned out to be an ungrateful wolf. If I hadn't been sealed for these hundred thousand years, I could take on ten of you alone."
The demon god figure said, "The Nüdi has always been the one I most admire and respect. If not for her promotion and regard, I would never have been able to join the many heavenly prodigies of the Kunlun Realm to listen to the Sky-Connecting Divine Wood's teachings. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I cultivated, I was always left far behind by her, unable to even see her dust."
"Although she always treated me as a close friend, she never intended for our relationship to go further. I know—she thought I wasn't worthy of her."
Mentioning the "Qiangu Nüdi," the demon god figure's emotions became agitated, and his demon-qi-shrouded face twisted grotesquely.
Xiao Hei cursed, "Why don't you take a piss and look at yourself in the reflection? You dare to covet the Nüdi? You're not even worthy of her pinky finger! A backstabbing scumbag like you—if the Nüdi were still alive, with her unparalleled talent, a single glance from her could kill you a hundred times over."
"Is the Nüdi still alive?" the demon god figure roared.
Xiao Hei said coldly, "Beg me. Beg me, and I'll tell you."
"A beast dares to be so reckless? Do you really think this is still a hundred thousand years ago? Now, I have become a god, ruling the world. What are you? I'll just refine your sacred soul directly, and I'll naturally learn what I want to know."
The demon god figure strode forward, extending a demonic claw to seize Xiao Hei.
Before the claw even descended, Xiao Hei's body was crushed into a ball. The gap in their strength was too vast; there was no power to fight back.
Yet Xiao Hei's mouth kept muttering something, his eyes venomous, tears streaming from his eye sockets.
Zhang Ruochen vaguely caught fragments of what Xiao Hei was saying—something about the "Sky-Connecting Divine Wood" and the "Qiangu Nüdi."
Could it be... that the severing of the Sky-Connecting Divine Wood was related to this demon god before him?
But then he thought it impossible. At that time, even the Qiangu Nüdi had not broken through to the God realm. This demon god would have been even less capable of possessing the power to sever the Sky-Connecting Divine Wood.
Just as Xiao Hei was about to be captured, Zhang Ruochen shifted sideways, placing himself in front of Xiao Hei.
"Since you want to die, I'll send you on your way first."
The demon god figure's palm pressed down toward Zhang Ruochen's head.
Just as every cultivator thought Zhang Ruochen was doomed, Zhang Ruochen raised an arm and clashed with the demon god figure's palm, actually blocking that overwhelming force.
"Boom."
The entire Moon God Mountain sank sharply.
White and black light formed a ring, spreading tens of thousands of miles away.
"This... how is this possible..." Countless cultivators were stunned.
"It's the Moon God's power."
Some cultivators detected the clue, seeing a wooden staff in Zhang Ruochen's hand.
From the staff, dazzling radiance surged, completely enveloping Zhang Ruochen's body.
"Did the Moon God really make Zhang Ruochen her divine envoy? Isn't a divine envoy supposed to be at least a Great Saint?"
"Can Zhang Ruochen's Saint King-level physical body and sacred soul withstand the power of a god?"
The Divine Envoy Staff would activate when attacked by power above the Great Saint level. Holding it, Zhang Ruochen could borrow part of the Moon God's power.
Zhang Ruochen said in a deep voice, "Although I have left the Kunlun Realm, I hate traitors the most. I don't know what treacherous thing you did a hundred thousand years ago, but since Xiao Hei says you are a backstabber, then you deserve to die."
Zhang Ruochen struck out with his other hand, sending a vast, boundless divine force surging into the demon god figure's chest, sending him flying backward.
However, after delivering this blow, Zhang Ruochen's arm ached terribly, covered in bloodstains.
There was no help for it. The Moon God's power was too strong; his physical body simply couldn't withstand it.
"Finish this quickly."
Zhang Ruochen leaped up, swinging the Divine Envoy Staff to strike at the demon god figure, sending him flying once more. A scroll fell from the demon god figure's body, containing the many kings of the Paradise Realm.
Zhang Ruochen charged toward the scroll and punched it.
It was clear that if this punch landed, all the kings of the Paradise Realm inside the scroll would be crushed to death.
"Bang."
Before the fist even touched the scroll, it was torn apart by divine force, shattering into pieces. The kings of the Paradise Realm flew out from within, all exploding in midair, turning into clusters of vivid blood mist.
Heaven and earth fell silent. Every cultivator in the Shatuo Heaven Domain stood frozen in place, clearly terrified.
Several gods of the Paradise Realm had descended upon the Shatuo Heaven Domain together to save those Saint Kings, only to have Zhang Ruochen kill them all with a single punch before the gods' very eyes.
This was undoubtedly a harsh slap to the faces of the several gods present. Not only did their faces sting, but their hearts ached even more.