Chapter 1792: Dao Domain Realm?
"Big brother, you're really handsome! Are you also a cultivator from the Kunlun Realm?"
That fresh-faced young girl showed no fear or reverence at all, despite Zhang Ruochen's formidable cultivation. She remained lively and adorable, playfully punching him in the chest with her delicate fist.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze shifted to behind the young girl, then he grabbed her wrist and pulled her behind him, saying, "When you encounter evil people, never try to act tough. You'll end up getting hurt."
"Cripple, watch your mouth. Who are you calling evil people?"
Tianmingzi, Tianjuezi, and Tianshangzi stepped out of the private room and appeared in the main hall.
"Swish, swish."
The other two of the Tianyuan Six, Tianxuzi and Tianjinzi, transformed into streaks of white light, rushing out of the Virtual Saint Tower to check on Tianyuzi's condition.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Killing someone over a single disagreement—how is that not evil?"
"Are mere mortals even considered people?" Tianjuezi said.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen's eyes narrowed deeply.
"You humans are truly strange. You clearly cultivated from mortals to become saints yourselves, yet now you say mortals aren't people. Interesting, very interesting." The Black Phoenix seemed unafraid of the Tianyuan Six and made this sarcastic remark.
Tianmingzi shot Tianjuezi a glare and pulled him back.
Tianmingzi was the leader of the Tianyuan Six, appearing to be around forty years old, wearing a cyan Daoist crown with a somewhat refined demeanor. However, his eyes were quite sharp, with faint traces of electric light flowing across his pupils.
Zhang Ruochen activated the divine mark in his pupils, meeting Tianmingzi's gaze without yielding an inch in presence.
After a moment, Tianxuzi and Tianjinzi helped Tianyuzi back into the Virtual Saint Tower.
Tianyuzi's sacred robe was already shattered, hanging like strips of cloth. His chest was somewhat caved in, his lung lobes crushed by Zhang Ruochen's punch, and his sacred soul had suffered some damage. He stared at Zhang Ruochen with vicious eyes and said, "Senior brother, you must kill this scum and avenge me."
Tianmingzi remained composed and said, "For you to be able to injure my junior brother with a single punch, you must not be an unknown figure. Why not state your name and let everyone get to know you?"
"There's no need for that," Zhang Ruochen said.
Tianjuezi's eyes were fierce and menacing as he cracked his knuckles and said, "You're asking for trouble! Senior brother, don't stop me. Let me cripple him and avenge our junior brother."
The Black Phoenix's melodious voice rang out again: "The Heavenly Palace and Merit Divine Hall have decreed that saint realm cultivators are forbidden from fighting within human cities, or they will face heavenly punishment."
Tianmingzi's brow furrowed as he held back the hot-tempered Tianjuezi.
If only the Tianyuan Six and that cripple were present, Tianmingzi wouldn't be so restrained. Even if the shockwaves of battle would annihilate the entire city's mortal population, he would still avenge Tianyuzi.
In fact, he would exploit the cripple's weakness—his concern for mortal lives—to deal with him.
However, with so many saint realm cultivators present, if such an incident occurred, someone would surely gather evidence and report it to the Heavenly Palace, which would be extremely disadvantageous for the Tianyuan Six.
"Senior brother."
Tianjuezi was furious and transmitted to Tianmingzi: "Let's just take care of all the saint realm cultivators here, including the Black Phoenix and White Vermilion Bird. Capture them, plant saint gu worms in their bodies, and make them our slaves. Then we can do whatever we want with them. Heh heh."
Tianmingzi said, "The Black Phoenix and White Vermilion Bird are both powerhouses whose cultivation exceeds the Seven-Step Saint King realm. Capturing them won't be easy. Moreover, that cripple is also quite formidable and shouldn't be underestimated."
Finally, Tianmingzi's gaze fixed on the elegantly dressed old woman in the distance, who seemed to be the young girl's elder.
On the surface, that old woman appeared to be only at the ninth transformation of the Fish-Dragon realm. However, the saintly might released by Tianyuzi had no effect on her whatsoever.
This could only mean that the old woman had concealed her cultivation.
With Tianmingzi's level of cultivation, he couldn't see through her, which naturally made him somewhat wary.
"Let's leave Luo City first. When they leave the city alone, we'll strike one by one," Tianmingzi transmitted to the others.
"Wait a moment."
That elegantly dressed old woman coughed lightly twice, stood up, and walked toward the Tianyuan Six. Although she didn't emit powerful saintly might, the aura she carried naturally gave off a strong sense of pressure.
The Butcher and the Simpleton exchanged glances, a hint of wariness appearing in their eyes for the first time.
The Black Phoenix and White Vermilion Bird were slightly surprised, a trace of shock in their eyes. Clearly, their experience wasn't deep, and they had misjudged again.
"Grandmother."
The fresh-faced young girl walked over to the old woman and supported her.
Tianmingzi circulated his saint qi, gathering a large number of sacred dao rules toward his hands, and said calmly, "Does the elder have any advice?"
"No advice. I just want to kill someone," the old woman said flatly.
"Kill who?"
The old woman raised her finger, pointing at Tianyuzi, and said, "Xiao Li is the successor I've chosen as my mantle inheritor upon arriving in the Kunlun Realm. If someone wants to kill her, of course I must stand up for her."
"There might be a misunderstanding here," Tianmingzi said.
"There is no misunderstanding."
Tianjuezi sneered, "Old woman, do you think we, the Tianyuan Six, are soft persimmons that you can kill whoever you want?"
The old woman raised her head, revealing a pair of gray eyes.
Those eyes possessed some kind of strange power. Just by glancing at Tianjuezi, he trembled slightly, as if seeing a ghost or god, and dared not say another word.
Tianmingzi realized that this old woman was definitely a terrifying figure and quickly said, "The Heavenly Palace has decreed..."
Before he could finish, a scream came from behind Tianmingzi.
Tianmingzi turned around and saw a bloody hole in Tianyuzi's forehead, with wisps of black mist seeping out from it.
In an instant, a Seven-Step Saint King had lost all signs of life, dissolving into a pool of black blood.
Even Zhang Ruochen drew in a sharp breath. With his eyesight, he hadn't seen how the old woman had struck.
The old woman and the fresh-faced young girl walked outside, saying as if to herself, "When you make a mistake, you should be punished."
Tianmingzi had the cultivation of a Nine-Step Saint King at the "Rule Small World" level, but at this moment, he dared not make a move. Cold sweat dripped from his forehead, and he strongly suspected that the old woman had already cultivated a Dao Domain.
Once a Dao Domain was formed, one had already touched the threshold of the Great Saint realm.
The old woman and the fresh-faced young girl left Luo City.
The Tianyuan Six—or rather, now the Tianyuan Five—headed in another direction.
Night fell, and there was no moon that night.
Luo City was soon swallowed by darkness. The wind from the Luo River blew into the city, feeling especially cold.
Perhaps because they recognized Zhang Ruochen as a Saint King realm expert, the saint realm cultivators in the Virtual Saint Tower quickly became friendly with him. From their conversations, Zhang Ruochen learned some things.
It turned out that they had gathered in Luo City to try their luck in the deep waters of the Luo River, searching for sacred medicine and seeking supreme opportunities.
"It's said that on starry, moonless nights, the spots formed by stars reflecting on the water's surface can guide cultivators into the depths of the Luo River. Normally, the deep waters of the Luo River are covered by ancient inscriptions and can't be entered at all," said a cultivator named Lin Shuo, who was at the One-Step Saint King realm.
"Starry, moonless," Zhang Ruochen muttered, committing it to memory.
Another cultivator at the Half-Saint King realm said, "The Tianyuan Six are all formidable figures, especially Tianmingzi, who has reached the Nine-Step Saint King realm. You've offended them, brother, so you must be extremely careful from now on."
The Black Phoenix, with her delicate jade-like hand, raised a luminous cup and extended an invitation to Zhang Ruochen, smiling, "Cripple, I have fine wine brewed from ten-thousand-year golden grapes. Care for a drink and make friends?"
The saint realm cultivators present all showed envious expressions, urging Zhang Ruochen to go over quickly.
The Black and White Dual Beauties of the Taibai Realm were famous proud daughters of heaven. While their beauty might fall slightly short of the several on the "Nine Immortal Beauties Painting," they were still the top beauties of their realm. When did ordinary cultivators ever have the privilege of receiving such an invitation?
Zhang Ruochen's strength was sufficient, and his character had earned their recognition, granting him such an honor.
Zhang Ruochen had some favorable impressions of the Black Phoenix, so he walked over and smiled, "Is the Phoenix Fairy also here to seek opportunities in the Luo River?"
Hearing the title "Phoenix Fairy," the Black Phoenix revealed a smile and said, "Yes and no. By the way, have you trained in the Truth Heaven Domain?"
Zhang Ruochen was slightly surprised inwardly and said, "How does the fairy know?"
"If you hadn't trained in the Truth Heaven Domain, how could your control over power reach such a level?" the Black Phoenix said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Then have the two fairies also trained in the Truth Heaven Domain?"
The Black Phoenix nodded and said, "Those who can train in the Truth Heaven Domain are bound to be the top talents of their realm, with the ability to fight across realms. Did you participate in the Fengshen Platform Assembly?"
Just as Zhang Ruochen was pondering how to answer, the ground trembled slightly.
"Boom, rumble."
Outside Luo City, continuous loud noises rang out, and the earth's vibrations grew increasingly intense.
The White Vermilion Bird softly uttered two words: "It's here."
The two women stopped conversing with Zhang Ruochen, transforming into streaks of white and black light, breaking through the roof and appearing atop the Virtual Saint Tower.
The saint realm cultivators inside the building rushed out, flying to higher ground within the city.
Zhang Ruochen held the restrained Eight Dragon Umbrella, using it to support himself as he stood on the street, looking up. He saw layers upon layers of black clouds surging in from all directions above Luo City.
A mass of dark red light flickered within the black clouds.
Outside Luo City, massive boulders burst forth from the ground, forming a circular stone mountain hundreds of meters high that enveloped the entire city.
"Sure enough, it's the aura of the Hell Realm's Stone Clan."
Zhang Ruochen took a deep breath, a faint killing intent emanating from him.
"Roar!"
The stones within the circular mountain range began to roll and combine, forming one stone man after another. Soon, an army of stone men had formed, surrounding Luo City.
The Black Phoenix's back manifested a pair of black wing phantoms dozens of feet long, her entire body erupting with powerful saintly might. Pointing her sword at a direction in the night sky, she said, "Shi Kai, we two sisters have been waiting for you for a long time. Why don't you show yourself?"
...
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