Chapter 1868: Identity Exposed
As the Blood Emperor Bees were released and joined the battle alongside the Ghost King and Corpse King, the situation for the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, Imperial Ancestor Crown Prince, and other sacred path cultivators became increasingly precarious.
"Celestial Maiden, you leave first. We will hold off the Blood Bee Shura King."
The Butcher let out a loud roar, blindfolded his eyes, and raised his large cleaver. His entire body swelled with muscle, golden fur sprouted from his skin, and a wild, violent aura like that of an ancient barbarian beast radiated from him.
The cleaver slashed diagonally, clashing against the Blood Bee Shura King's war sword.
"Boom."
Blade and sword met, sparks flying.
Powerful sacred path force rippled outward like waves.
After activating his half-beast form, the Butcher's physical strength surged dramatically, comparable to a peak Domain Realm expert. However, compared to the Blood Bee Shura King, the gap was still too vast. He was sent staggering backward by the immense sword force, coughing up mouthful after mouthful of blood.
"Strength… not bad. Submit to this king, and you may yet live today."
The Blood Bee Shura King dragged a sword aura dozens of zhang long, slashing it down on the Butcher's shoulder. Though blocked by the cleaver, it pressed down on the Butcher, rendering him unable to move.
At this moment, the Butcher had only two paths: die or submit.
"Submit to your… mother…"
The Butcher cursed, straining with all his might in both arms, gritting his teeth, and letting out a roar.
Yet the war sword in the Blood Bee Shura King's hand remained utterly still.
"Since you choose death, this king will grant it."
The Blood Bee Shura King was cold and merciless. With a twist of his wrist, the war sword swept horizontally toward the Butcher's head.
"Butcher…"
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden shot out her Rain Silk Divine Sword, wrapping it around the Blood Bee Shura King's neck, but it could not harm him in the slightest. A layer of blood light emerged on his neck, condensing into scale-like shapes.
The Blood Bee Shura King's war sword stopped abruptly, just an inch from the Butcher's throat.
Time, in that instant, came to a halt.
Zhang Ruochen appeared like lightning before the Blood Bee Shura King, striking the sword's edge with one palm and driving the other toward the Shura King's chest.
"Boom."
Taking Zhang Ruochen's palm strike, the Blood Bee Shura King was not injured but merely retreated three steps, landing over twenty zhang away.
"You go first. I'll hold the rear."
Zhang Ruochen pulled out a large handful of talismans, clutching them in his left hand, staring intently at the Blood Bee Shura King, fully alert.
The Butcher had thought himself doomed, but he never expected that at such a critical moment, Zhang Ruochen would come to his rescue. Naturally, he was deeply moved.
The Butcher raised his cleaver, standing sideways beside Zhang Ruochen, and said, "If we go, we go together. If we die, we die together."
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden withdrew her Rain Silk Divine Sword, standing on Zhang Ruochen's other side, and said, "Well said."
The Fool and another elder from Heavenly Beginning Civilization appeared beside Zhang Ruochen, joining forces with them.
The Blood Bee Shura King's gaze fell on Zhang Ruochen. "No wonder this king always found you strange. So you're a time cultivator. Pity your cultivation is too low; otherwise, you'd be a formidable opponent."
Before he finished speaking, the Blood Bee Shura King's war sword had already flown before Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen was no stranger to battle, having fought his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. His combat experience was rich, and his reaction speed was no slower than the Blood Bee Shura King's.
Almost simultaneously with the Shura King's sword strike, he unleashed over a dozen talismans.
All the talismans exploded, releasing violent energy. Not only did they block the Blood Bee Shura King's war sword, but they also completely engulfed him.
When the talisman's power dissipated, the Blood Bee Shura King found that Zhang Ruochen and the others had vanished.
"Who is this person? How does he have so many powerful talismans? Pity talismans are ultimately external objects; they cannot change the fact that you will die by my sword."
The Blood Bee Shura King received a message from a queen bee: the Blood Emperor Bee swarm was chasing Zhang Ruochen and the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, not letting them escape.
"Shua."
The Blood Bee Shura King flew out, charging into the blood mist.
The flight speed of the Blood Emperor Bees exceeded Zhang Ruochen's expectations. They were like shadows, impossible to shake off.
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden used the "Red Sun Divine River Diagram," activating the power of the red sun and divine river to block the Blood Emperor Bees' attacks, preventing them from getting close.
"As long as we escape this blood mist, we can use a space teleportation scroll to leave," Zhang Ruochen said to them.
The space structure in the area shrouded by blood mist was too stable. Not even space displacement, let alone a space teleportation scroll, could function.
They had to escape first.
The blood mist grew thinner, and visibility gradually became clearer.
Joy appeared on the faces of the Butcher, the Fool, Zhang Ruochen, and the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden.
But the joy did not last long. In the next moment, their expressions turned heavy again.
At the edge of the blood mist stood two figures with formidable auras, blocking their path.
"It's them… So Divine Cliff Gentleman has indeed come to War Soul Star…" Zhang Ruochen's heart sank to the depths.
Ahead, Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe caught sight of the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden's beautiful figure. They exchanged glances, smiles spreading across their faces.
Qu Xingzhe said, "I knew the Celestial Maiden of Heavenly Beginning Civilization would have many life-saving measures. How could she die so easily at the hands of the Blood Bee Shura King?"
Lai Wangren nodded, then raised his voice, "Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, come with us. We can spare your life. Otherwise, when the Blood Bee Shura King catches up, you and your subordinates will all die."
"How infuriating. Why are they here?"
The Fool and another elder from Heavenly Beginning Civilization flew out, each unleashing a mid-rank sacred art, targeting Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe respectively.
"Boom."
"Boom."
The Fool and the elder both spat blood, flying backward and crashing to the ground.
The Fool climbed up, clutching his bloody chest, his face filled with disbelief. "Your cultivation… you've actually reached the Domain Realm…"
"Buzz buzz."
Sensing the blood scent, the Blood Emperor Bee swarm flew toward the Fool and the elder, surrounding them.
The Butcher gritted his teeth, furious. "Those two bastards. Instead of joining forces to fight the Hell Realm's powerful enemies, they're taking advantage of the chaos. I wish I could chop them to pieces with my cleaver."
Zhang Ruochen remained quite calm. "Celestial Maiden, go rescue the two elders. The Butcher and I will deal with Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe."
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden warned, "Be careful. They've already reached the Domain Realm. Don't underestimate them."
If not for the "Red Sun Divine River Diagram" being able to counter the Blood Emperor Bees, the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden would have wanted to deal with Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe herself.
In her view, although Zhang Ruochen could contend with Domain Realm experts using various powerful trump cards, his cultivation was still too low. Fighting a true Domain Realm cultivator would be very dangerous.
"Celestial Maiden, rest assured. As long as Brother Ruochen holds off Qu Xingzhe for a moment, I'll kill Lai Wangren and then come to help him."
The Butcher had already engaged Lai Wangren. Both activated their domains, clashing violently, causing the surrounding area to tremble intensely, dust churning and thickening.
Qu Xingzhe did not recognize Zhang Ruochen. Hearing the Butcher's words, he merely took him for a young expert from Heavenly Beginning Civilization and did not take this opponent seriously.
Zhang Ruochen wanted a quick resolution. He stopped hiding and summoned the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda.
Qu Xingzhe wore a monk's robe, fingering a prayer bead necklace, a smile on his face. "Why must you seek death, benefactor? Why not capture the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden and surrender to the Nether Divine Hall… Supreme Power…"
The Azure Sky Floating Pagoda grew to dozens of zhang in height, emitting ten thousand zhang of azure light. It spun rapidly in the air, like a divine peak pressing down toward Qu Xingzhe.
Qu Xingzhe's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, as if he had seen a ghost. He hurriedly activated his domain and shot out his prayer bead necklace.
"Crack."
The necklace scattered, flying in all directions, transforming into thirty-six brilliant Buddhist beads.
From within each bead, a white-robed Buddha statue emerged.
Thirty-six statues sat cross-legged, forming different hand seals, clashing with the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda in the sky.
The Azure Sky Floating Pagoda was a complete supreme sacred artifact, several times more powerful than True Wonderful Little Daoist's Purple Gold Bagua Mirror. Upon contact, the thirty-six beads shattered one after another, turning into tiny white fragments.
"Boom," the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda struck the ground, causing the earth to sink, forming a massive crater.
The powerful force surged outward, sending the Butcher, Lai Wangren, the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, and others staggering backward.
Having reached the Eight-Step Saint King realm, the power Zhang Ruochen could unleash with the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda was naturally incomparable to before.
Unfortunately, Qu Xingzhe was not killed. He had retreated a thousand zhang in advance, only suffering minor injuries.
The destruction of the thirty-six Buddhist beads by the supreme sacred artifact pained Qu Xingzhe deeply. "How do you have the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda? Who exactly are you?"
Zhang Ruochen retracted the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda, holding it in his palm, and locked eyes with Qu Xingzhe. Deliberately trying to anger him, he said, "If you want to know who I am, let Divine Cliff Gentleman ask me himself. With your cultivation, you're not worthy."
"You…"
Qu Xingzhe was now certain that the man before him was undoubtedly Zhang Ruochen.
Just then, a long, ethereal laugh rang out: "Zhang Ruochen, if you had stayed in the Eastern Domain Sacred City, you wouldn't be seeking death at Luo River. Haha, rest assured, old man won't kill you. I'll only make your life worse than death."
It was Divine Cliff Gentleman's voice, coming from a thousand li away, growing closer.
"We must break out of the blood mist immediately. Everyone, lend me your strength and jointly activate the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda." Zhang Ruochen knew they had to leave before Divine Cliff Gentleman arrived, or they wouldn't get away today.
The Butcher, the Fool, and the elder from Heavenly Beginning Civilization at the Rule Grand Heaven Realm all mobilized their sacred qi, channeling it into the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda.
"Sizzle sizzle."
On the pagoda's body, numerous inscriptions emerged, emitting a supreme power more than twice as strong as before.
Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe sensed the fluctuations of supreme power, their faces changing drastically as they rapidly retreated.
On the other side, the Blood Bee Shura King flew out from the blood mist, staring at the increasingly radiant Azure Sky Floating Pagoda. Instead of fear, excitement appeared on his face. "Another supreme sacred artifact. The Kunlun Realm truly is full of opportunities. If I can seize this artifact, this king's combat power will surely reach new heights."
"Whoosh—"
The Blood Bee Shura King's wings spread flat, turning into a black light shuttle, charging toward Zhang Ruochen beneath the pagoda.
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden sensed the Blood Bee Shura King's aura. With a flick of her jade finger, a crystalline jade talisman flew out, transforming into a jade stele in midair.
On the jade stele, over three hundred thousand talisman patterns surged, forming a semicircular light shield.
"Boom."
The Blood Bee Shura King collided with the light shield, only to be sent flying backward by its force.
All along, the Blood Bee Shura King had believed that only one's own strength was truly powerful. Thus, he disdained using talismans, formation diagrams, and similar treasures.
But today, encountering Zhang Ruochen and the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, who possessed numerous talismans, caused him no small trouble.
The Azure Sky Floating Pagoda rose, releasing a layer of supreme power dozens of zhang thick, dispersing the blood mist in the sky. Zhang Ruochen did not attack Lai Wangren and Qu Xingzhe but instead directed the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda at the Blood Bee Shura King.
The Blood Bee Shura King showed no fear. Gripping his sword with both hands, he slashed straight at it, clashing head-on with the supreme sacred artifact.
"Boom."
The Azure Sky Floating Pagoda sent the Blood Bee Shura King flying, crashing to the ground, causing a large area of earth to collapse. Behind the collapsed area, a small hill hundreds of meters high rose up.
(Chapter End)