Chapter 1911: A Bountiful Harvest
The great battle had ended, and the ancestral land of the Prison Suppression Ancient Clan had been completely reduced to ruins. Their clansmen had also suffered heavy casualties, barely escaping total annihilation.
Of course, the Undying Blood Clan’s side had fared even worse. Hundreds of thousands of troops had marched in with great fanfare, yet in the end, only Xia Wenxin and the Blood Butcher Divine Son had escaped. It was practically a complete loss.
When the news spread, it would undoubtedly cause a massive uproar.
Immediately, many people began to act, cleaning up the battlefield.
Those who had fallen on their own side, as long as their bodies remained, needed to be found and properly buried. They must not be left to rot in the wilderness.
They were all heroes, and the Prison Suppression Ancient Clan would never forget them.
"Senior Brother, let us chant sutras together and liberate the souls of the dead," Er Sikong said.
Da Sikong’s eyes gleamed as he swept his gaze across the surroundings, speaking excitedly, "We can chant sutras and perform the liberation later. So many Undying Blood Clan members died on the battlefield—how many treasures must be left behind? Shouldn’t we collect the treasures first?"
Hundreds of thousands of Undying Blood Clan troops had been left on this battlefield, including some Divine Sons, Imperial Princes, and Imperial Princesses. The treasures they had left behind were staggering to imagine.
Da Sikong was already rubbing his hands together, worried that his space bracelet might not be able to hold everything.
However, since Zhang Ruochen hadn’t spoken, he didn’t dare act rashly. He could only look at Zhang Ruochen with hopeful eyes.
Zhang Ruochen let out a deep breath and said calmly, "Do whatever you want."
Hearing this, Da Sikong quickly said, "Uncle-Master, leave this to me. I’ll make sure to collect every single treasure the Undying Blood Clan left behind, not missing a single one."
With that, he immediately set to work. Though his figure was plump, his movements were incredibly agile.
As he stored one treasure after another into his space ring, Da Sikong’s round face was practically blooming with joy.
"Seven-Step Saint King’s sacred bone, Eight-Step Saint King’s sacred source, Five-Shining Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact... all good stuff." Da Sikong’s smile was radiant.
With treasures scattered everywhere for the taking, anyone would be grinning from ear to ear.
Unlike Da Sikong, Er Sikong sat down cross-legged on the spot, silently chanting sutras to liberate the souls of the dead.
Xiang Chunan, on the other hand, collapsed to the ground, not wanting to move an inch.
"Brother Xiang, how about we go rest in the Sword Tomb Palace?" Luo Yi said.
"Alright."
As soon as the battle ended, Shi Qiankun had placed the Sword Tomb Palace to the side, allowing the seriously injured to enter and recuperate.
Zhang Ruochen turned his gaze toward Luo Yi, watching his back. A flicker of strange light passed through his eyes. He was now even more suspicious of Luo Yi’s identity and background.
"Little Junior Brother, should we capture him?" Bao Lie came to Zhang Ruochen’s side and said in a low voice.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly and said quietly, "Don’t act rashly for now. The battle has just ended, and I don’t want to stir up more trouble. Just keep an eye on him in secret."
"Mm. By the way, I, your senior brother, am taking this war weapon." Bao Lie nodded, then reached out and pulled a silver long spear from a distance.
This silver long spear had belonged to the Wangqiu Divine Son. It was a Nine-Shining Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact, extremely rare.
Zhang Ruochen revealed a smile and said, "This long spear suits you well, Third Senior Brother. With it, your strength can also improve."
In truth, even if Bao Lie hadn’t spoken, Zhang Ruochen would have chosen an even better war weapon to give him.
A strong person should be equipped with a powerful war weapon.
With a flick of his wrist, Bao Lie tossed out the golden war spear and laughed, "Star Soul, the golden war spear is yours again. Use it well, and don’t embarrass your father."
Bao Xinghun reached out and caught the golden war spear. He was momentarily stunned, then a look of wild joy appeared on his face. "Father, rest assured, I won’t let you down."
Having the golden war spear returned to him, how could he not be excited?
With this Seven-Shining Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact, his strength would be greatly enhanced. As a Six-Step Saint King, wielding the golden war spear, he would be able to defeat or even kill a Seven-Step Saint King.
"Your Highness, I’ll go help Da Sikong." Murong Yue spoke up.
Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly. "Mm, go ahead."
With permission granted, Murong Yue immediately set to work.
Unlike Da Sikong, she didn’t collect just any treasure. Instead, she specifically targeted the truly valuable items.
The battlefield was vast, and too many had died. Cleaning it up would obviously take some time.
Shifting his thoughts, Zhang Ruochen took out the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror, intending to study it carefully.
This mirror was a Supreme Sacred Artifact. Though damaged, its power was still not to be underestimated.
After some observation, Zhang Ruochen made a discovery.
The Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror was not only missing its artifact spirit but also some extremely important parts. Otherwise, its power would be far greater than it was now.
The Blood-Dropping Sword’s sword spirit materialized, its gaze fixed on the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror. "I once heard a rumor that the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror and the Blood Sea Demon Mirror are a pair of Supreme Sacred Artifacts, forged by the same master refiner. One mountain, one sea—within the mirror, a world of its own is formed, capable of suppressing heaven and earth and slaying gods."
"Oh? The Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror is connected to the Blood Sea Demon Mirror?"
Zhang Ruochen’s expression turned serious as he asked.
The woman in red neither confirmed nor denied it. She only said lightly, "It’s just a rumor. After such a long time, many things can no longer be clearly explained."
"However, one thing is certain: this mirror is very unusual. If it were complete, it should be a top-tier Supreme Sacred Artifact."
"Also, I need to warn you. I faintly sense that the artifact spirit of the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror has not been destroyed. If it appears, you may not be able to handle it."
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen couldn’t help but frown slightly, his thoughts racing.
But soon, his brow relaxed. As the saying goes, when the soldiers come, we block them; when the water rises, we dam it. There was no need to overthink things.
Moreover, he couldn’t possibly discard the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror just because its artifact spirit still existed in the world. Destroying it was even more out of the question.
The woman in red turned to look at the Abyssal Ancient Sword’s sword spirit, her eyes filled with reluctance. She whispered, "Abyssal, I came to the Sword Grave because I sensed that you needed me. Now, I must go. The Kunlun Realm’s situation is difficult. The Central Imperial City needs me to hold it down and deal with the strong ones from the various realms of the Heavenly Court."
The Abyssal Sword Spirit was deeply reluctant. He couldn’t help but step forward and tightly embrace the woman in red.
They had only just met, and now they had to part again.
In the face of the greater situation, all personal feelings had to be set aside.
"Blood-Dropping, I will continue to make myself stronger. One day, I will become more powerful than you. Then, it will be my turn to protect you."
The Abyssal Sword Spirit released the woman in red and spoke with unwavering determination.
The woman in red reached out and gently stroked the Abyssal Sword Spirit’s cheek, revealing a breathtakingly beautiful smile. She said softly, "I believe that day will come."
Beside them, Zhang Ruochen felt a bit awkward. Two swords were being all lovey-dovey with each other, while he, a human, felt like a lonely bachelor.
"Ah..."
Hearing Zhang Ruochen’s long sigh, the two swords quickly separated. The Blood-Dropping Sword transformed into a streak of blood-red light and vanished into the distance in an instant.
Before it, the Middle Ages Divine Patterns were completely useless, as if they didn’t exist.
Watching the Blood-Dropping Sword leave, Zhang Ruochen couldn’t help but reach out and pat Abyssal’s shoulder. "You’ll see her again. This time, it won’t take another eight hundred years."
The Abyssal Sword Spirit nodded. "Mm. But before I become strong enough, I won’t go see Blood-Dropping again."
"The battlefield is full of sacred artifacts. You can absorb and refine them freely. Now that your Dao Body has been successfully formed, your efficiency in refining sacred artifacts should have greatly improved." Zhang Ruochen spoke.
Hearing this, the Abyssal Ancient Sword didn’t hesitate. It immediately flew out, ready to feast and absorb and refine sacred artifacts to its heart’s content.
During the formation of its Dao Body earlier, the Abyssal Ancient Sword had absorbed a massive amount of sword qi and sword dao rules, significantly improving its quality. By absorbing and refining a few more sacred artifacts, advancing to an Eight-Shining Ten-Thousand-Pattern Sacred Artifact would be no problem.
After seeing the Blood-Dropping Sword, it was undoubtedly even more eager to become strong.
After some time, the battlefield was cleaned up.
"Uncle-Master, what a harvest! I’ve never seen so many treasures in my life."
Da Sikong came running back, his face full of excitement.
With a wave of his hand, a large number of treasures flew out from his space bracelet, piling up into a mountain.
It had to be said, Da Sikong had cleaned up thoroughly. He hadn’t even left behind a single piece of war weapon fragment.
Zhang Ruochen’s gaze swept over this mountain of treasures. It was mainly composed of sacred sources, sacred bones, and sacred artifacts. Most of the sacred bones and sacred artifacts were broken and incomplete, a result of the fierce battle earlier.
The hundreds of thousands of troops the Undying Blood Clan had mobilized this time all had cultivations at least at the Half-Saint level. So, the treasures left behind were numerous and valuable.
"Pick out some things you like. I’ll use the rest to strengthen the Bright Clan."
After a moment of thought, Zhang Ruochen spoke.
"Hehe, then I won’t be polite." Da Sikong chuckled.
Immediately, he selected some treasures from this mountain and stored them back into his space bracelet.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t mind what he chose. He casually stored the remaining treasures into the Qiankun Realm.
Sacred sources were very important. They could help the Bright Clan cultivate a large number of strong individuals in a short time.
Those broken sacred artifacts could serve as food for Abyssal. No matter how many there were, he wouldn’t complain.
"Your Highness, the treasures from those top-tier strong ones are all inside."
Murong Yue flashed back and handed a space ring to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen immediately released his spiritual power and probed into the space ring.
He was quite looking forward to the treasures Murong Yue had collected.
Compared to quantity, what Murong Yue brought back was far less than what Da Sikong had, but they were all high-quality items, each one priceless.
For example, the Nine-Eyed Heavenly King’s White Bone Sacred Mountain. Though severely damaged, it still left behind some precious sacred bones, and even a large piece of divine bone. All were excellent materials for refining blood-suppressing talismans.
Then there were the three Saint-Annihilating Warships. Two were half-destroyed, and one was largely intact. If they could be repaired, they would be devastating weapons.
"Unexpectedly, there are even six divine stones embedded in the divine bone. They can power the Sundial for six days. My cultivation should be able to advance another step. This Nine-Eyed Heavenly King really had a lot of good stuff."
Zhang Ruochen revealed a smile, his mood greatly improving.
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