Chapter 1782: The Fool and the Butcher
Powerful surges of sacred dao force erupted, filling the entire Lin Mansion and spreading to its edges, where they were blocked by a faint, barely visible membrane of light.
More than half of the people within the Lin Mansion were shaken by the immense power fluctuations, blood streaming from their seven orifices as they collapsed unconscious.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen's figure, Lin Jingye first trembled with excitement, then let out a long sigh. "Chen'er... you... you shouldn't have come back..."
In Lin Jingye's eyes, those black-robed cultivators were each like demon kings or divine generals. Zhang Ruochen's return was nothing but walking into a trap.
"I had to come back and take a look, after all."
A series of sacred qi halos materialized around Zhang Ruochen, enveloping Lin Jingye and the others, shielding them from the saintly might of the assembled saints. He then took out a low-grade healing sacred pill and tossed it to Lin Lengshan, instructing her to give it to Lin Jingye.
"Whoosh—"
Ripples spread through the air above.
A gaunt, black-robed man stepped out from the center of the ripples, sneering, "Zhang Ruochen, you've finally shown yourself."
Zhang Ruochen said flatly, "Given your cultivation level, you shouldn't be hoping for me to appear."
"Three nine-step saint kings and over a dozen cultivators above the seven-step saint king level from my realm are within the territory of Yunwu Commandery. I've already sent word to them, and they'll arrive soon," the black-robed man said.
Zhang Ruochen remarked, "The Ruiya Realm has sent this many experts just to deal with me."
He sensed a familiar aura from the black-robed man, similar to that of Wang Xu and Wang Tian, confirming they were cultivators from the Ruiya Realm.
"If you have any self-awareness and don't want to harm the mortals in this mansion, you'd best surrender," the black-robed man said.
"Sizzle."
Zhang Ruochen couldn't be bothered to argue further. The sacred qi halos around him expanded outward, ring after ring, reaching a total of one hundred and eight rings, enveloping the entire Lin Mansion within their glow.
Such a powerful sacred dao presence alarmed all the martial artists and sacred cultivators in Yunwu Royal City.
The black-robed man hovering in midair changed expression sharply. "Zhang Ruochen, do you really intend to fight? Even if we're no match for you, once battle erupts, the destruction will wipe out every human in Yunwu Royal City."
The black-robed man had dared to show himself and speak with Zhang Ruochen precisely because he knew Zhang Ruochen wouldn't dare strike within the city.
"Dealing with you is a matter of a snap of the fingers," Zhang Ruochen said coldly.
Shi Shenghua burst forth from Zhang Ruochen's back, extending dozens of vines at lightning speed, piercing through the bodies of over a dozen black-robed cultivators and beginning to drain them.
"Hehe."
Mo Yin's seductive laughter echoed through the Lin Mansion.
The black-robed man hovering in midair struggled with all his might to break free from one of Shi Shenghua's vines, his face pale with terror. Zhang Ruochen's strength far exceeded his expectations, and he immediately flew toward the exit of the Lin Mansion.
Knowing it would be difficult to escape from Zhang Ruochen, he issued a threat: "Zhang Ruochen, you'd better not push me too far. Do you believe I'll make the entire population of Yunwu Royal City pay with their lives?"
"Boom."
Accompanied by a dragon's roar, the sky above Yunwu Royal City churned with wind and clouds. A massive dragon claw descended from the heavens, striking the black-robed man and shattering him into a mist of blood.
In the Lin Mansion, Zhang Ruochen withdrew his hand, now holding a sacred source, and said flatly, "No."
He then walked toward the ancestral hall.
"He was at least a three-step saint king—can't let that go to waste."
Shi Shenghua surged out from Zhang Ruochen's back, transforming into the female form of Mo Yin. She extended a vine covered in dense leaves to collect the blood qi and sacred soul fragments left behind by the black-robed man's death.
After the battle at Xumi's sacred site, Shi Shenghua had devoured a large number of saint kings from Paradise Realm, pushing her cultivation to the peak of the six-step saint king realm, just one step away from the seven-step saint king realm.
Now, she naturally wanted to absorb more nutrients to break through to the seven-step saint king realm as quickly as possible.
Zhang Ruochen approached the charred female spiritual power saint king lying nearby, clasping his hands behind his back. "Don't pretend to be dead in front of me. Tell me, is it the You God who wants me dead? Who's leading your group? Were the people in the royal palace taken by you?"
The female spiritual power saint king slowly raised her head, grinning viciously. "Zhang Ruochen, you won't live much longer. Once word spreads that you've appeared in Yunwu Commandery, those who want you dead will swarm in."
"Since you won't talk, I'll have to use some special methods to get the information I need." Pausing, Zhang Ruochen added, "You're not the only one who knows the soul-searching technique."
The female spiritual power saint king's face changed drastically, and she immediately tried to activate her spiritual power to self-destruct her sacred heart.
"Trying to self-destruct in front of me?"
Zhang Ruochen released his spiritual power, suppressing her spiritual will with the peak intensity of the fifty-eighth rank, preventing her from even self-destructing.
Then, he placed his hand on her head.
A quarter of an hour later, Zhang Ruochen killed the female spiritual power saint king, limped out of the ancestral hall, and tossed her corpse to Shi Shenghua.
His expression grew grave as he fell into thought.
From the female spiritual power saint king's memories, Zhang Ruochen found no information about his mother, fourth brother, or ninth sister. He didn't know whether to be relieved or worried.
However, he did uncover some useful details. For instance, they were indeed cultivators under the You God Temple.
The black-robed man had also spoken the truth: the You God Temple had sent over a dozen saint king-level super experts to Yunwu Commandery specifically to deal with him.
Not long ago, they had discovered a treasure site within Yunwu Commandery's territory and had all rushed there, leaving only a dozen or so lower-level cultivators to capture humans connected to Zhang Ruochen and force him to show himself.
Those experts from the You God Temple likely hadn't expected Zhang Ruochen to return to Yunwu Commandery so quickly.
"Coming after me is one thing, but targeting those close to me—I'll make you die horribly." Zhang Ruochen's eyes blazed with cold light.
After taking the healing sacred pill, Lin Jingye's severed legs regrew.
As a martial artist at the Heavenly Extreme Realm, a single sacred pill was enough to regenerate his legs. But for a saint, losing a leg wouldn't be so easily fixed.
To his astonishment, Lin Jingye found that his cultivation had instantly risen to the Great Perfection of the Heavenly Extreme Realm.
Moreover, a large portion of the sacred pill's medicinal power remained undigested in his body.
Was this really just a healing pill?
All the Lin clan members and servants remained kneeling, not daring to rise. Their gazes fixed on Zhang Ruochen as if he were a heavenly god, too awed to show any disrespect.
Back when Zhang Ruochen and Consort Lin first visited the Lin Mansion, they had endured nothing but disdain.
Power!
It was all because Zhang Ruochen now possessed the power to control the life and death of many that he had earned this status and position.
Zhang Ruochen said, "All of you, rise. Later, Yunwu Royal City might face a devastating attack. I can take you to another world. Are you willing?"
Lin Lengshan asked softly, "Is it leaving Kunlun Realm?"
"Something like that," Zhang Ruochen replied.
The Lin clan members hesitated. In Yunwu Commandery, they had built up considerable assets and influence, with clan members spread across the entire commandery. How could they simply leave?
Lin Fengxian, the Lin family head, clasped his hands and said, "I've heard that the Heavenly Court has decreed that saint-level battles cannot erupt within human cities. If discovered by a patrol envoy, heavenly punishment will befall."
The battlefield of Kunlun Realm was quite different from the former Zuling Realm battlefield.
It wasn't dominated by the Merit God Hall but jointly supervised by the Merit God Hall, the Heavenly Palace, and Kunlun Realm, with strict rules prohibiting saint-level cultivators from fighting within human cities.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The relationships between the various major worlds under the Heavenly Court are more complicated than you imagine. As long as they aren't caught by a patrol envoy, destroying a city is as easy as lifting a hand or a foot for them. Besides, even if the major worlds of the Heavenly Court can't act recklessly, what about Hell Realm?"
"The cultivators of Hell Realm came to Kunlun Realm to destroy."
In the end, Lin Jingye spoke up: "Lin clan members, hear my order. Immediately pack your valuables and prepare to leave Kunlun Realm."
After most of the Lin clan members had withdrawn, Zhang Ruochen asked Lin Jingye about Consort Lin.
Consort Lin valued family ties deeply. Even if the Lin clan had treated her poorly, she had certainly maintained contact with them during her years in Yunwu Commandery.
"She was taken away by a woman a long time ago?"
Zhang Ruochen was surprised and pressed for details: "When did this happen?"
"About four months ago," Lin Jingye said.
He then described the woman's figure and appearance to Zhang Ruochen. After hearing it, Zhang Ruochen smiled faintly. "It seems Lingxi truly understands me. She took Mother and the others away right away."
With his mother, fourth brother, and ninth sister safely taken away by Lingxi, Zhang Ruochen had no more worries, and his mood improved considerably.
The You God Temple, instead of focusing on dealing with Hell Realm, was resorting to any means to kill him. How could Zhang Ruochen not feel some anger? He decided to stay in Yunwu Commandery for now and have some fun with them.
...
Though the battle had been brief, the black-robed man's loud shout had made it known to nearly everyone that the Ninth Prince of Yunwu Commandery had returned.
In a tavern in Yunwu Royal City.
A dull-witted, pudgy man held a wine bowl, staring toward the Lin Mansion. "That demon Zhang Ruochen has actually returned to Yunwu Commandery. What do we do? What do we do? What do we do?"
Across from him sat a burly, muscular man with a bare chest, a red headband on his head, and a broad cleaver strapped to his back. He looked every bit a butcher.
The butcher's face was covered in thick, fierce flesh, giving him a menacing air. "Why are you so nervous? Sure, Zhang Ruochen brings trouble wherever he goes, but it's none of our business, right? Even if he and the You God Temple fight to the death, we'll just watch the show. It'd be even better if a few more factions show up—that would be interesting."
The pale, plump fool was still worried. "The Heavenly Maiden is still comprehending the Dao by the Luo River. With such a big incident happening, shouldn't we go back and report it?"
"The ones coming are just a bunch of useless old-timers. Sure, some of them have been cultivating for over two thousand years, but they can't fight. It's not like Cang Long or Ruan Ling have descended on Yunwu Commandery... Ah, fine, fine. Since you're so afraid of trouble, we'll head back once we finish our shopping."
The butcher found the fool utterly boring and wore a look of displeasure.