# Chapter 1978: A Show of Authority
"This time, Master has dispatched 10,100 cultivators from Guanghan Realm to enter Kunlun Realm, including 10,000 Saints and 100 Saint Kings, all of whom are elites of Guanghan Realm," Mu Lingxi said.
The number of cultivators dispatched by each realm to enter Kunlun Realm was generally not large, but all were elites.
Only elite experts could survive better and also obtain opportunities from Kunlun Realm.
As an undying ancient great world that was now fully reviving, Kunlun Realm possessed too many opportunities, making any great world unable to resist being tempted. Resisting the invasion of Hell Realm was merely a pretense; plundering the resources of Kunlun Realm was the true goal.
Guanghan Realm had a close relationship with Kunlun Realm, so naturally, it also wanted to take this opportunity to strengthen its power. Only then could it help Kunlun Realm survive the calamity.
Back then, Moon God had borrowed a million Sacred Sources from Zhang Ruochen, allowing Guanghan Realm to produce hundreds of thousands of Saints in an extremely short time. In terms of the number of Saints alone, it had already surpassed the strongest among the seven realms of Shatuo, the Great Demon Ten Directions Realm.
However, having Saints alone was not enough. The key was to cultivate more Saint Kings and Great Saints, as Saint Kings and Great Saints were the backbone of a great world.
"Are all the Saints of Guanghan Realm present now?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Mu Lingxi shook her head. "For now, only one-third remain at Phoenix Lake. The other two-thirds are at another awakened sacred land."
"Another awakened sacred land?" Zhang Ruochen showed a surprised expression.
Mu Lingxi said, "It's an awakened sacred land that was discovered not long ago by accident. Not only has it produced many sacred medicines, but it's also adjacent to an ancient mine. That's why two-thirds of our forces were transferred there."
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen couldn't help but nod slightly. Being able to control another awakened sacred land naturally brought many benefits.
Moreover, it was better for Kunlun Realm's awakened sacred lands to be controlled by Guanghan Realm cultivators than by those of the Heavenly Realm Faction.
"Who is stationed at the other awakened sacred land?" Zhang Ruochen asked again.
Drunkard approached with a smile. "Don't worry. Ji Kongyuan has personally gone to guard that awakened sacred land. There won't be any problems."
"Then who is stationed here at Phoenix Lake?" Zhang Ruochen asked with slight surprise.
He had thought Ji Kongyuan was stationed at Phoenix Lake to ensure its safety. He didn't believe no one would covet Phoenix Lake.
Gu Songzi said, "It seems you don't have a very good understanding of Guanghan Realm's experts. Although Ji Kongyuan is the only one from Guanghan Realm to have made it onto the Heavenly Court Realm's Saint King Merit Ranking, that doesn't mean Guanghan Realm has no other powerful experts. In fact, there are two others in Guanghan Realm who are not much weaker than Ji Kongyuan."
"Oh? Who are they?" Zhang Ruochen suddenly became interested.
Actually, he had already thought about these matters but hadn't paid much attention to them.
As for why Ji Kongyuan had made it onto the Heavenly Court Realm's Saint King Merit Ranking, the reason was actually very simple. Naturally, it was because of Ji Mie Great Emperor's influence in Guanghan Realm. Countless of his children had cultivated to the Saint Realm, and no one else could compare.
"Aren't they coming now? As Guanghan Realm's Divine Envoy, your presence carries considerable weight," Gu Songzi teased.
Zhang Ruochen immediately turned his head to look ahead. A team of several dozen people came into view.
Among the team were both unfamiliar faces and some he recognized, such as Bu Ji, Su Qingling, Wen Shusheng, and others. They had all become figures who could stand on their own in Guanghan Realm.
Leading them was a woman with a graceful figure, delicate features, and skin like solidified fat and congealed cream, truly stunningly beautiful. However, she emitted an extremely cold aura, and her gaze was indifferent, like an iceberg, making people want to keep their distance.
The aura emanating from this woman was extremely powerful, vast as the ocean, unfathomable.
"Greetings, Divine Envoy."
The group approached and all cupped their hands to bow to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen showed a slight smile. "Everyone, no need for formalities."
"The Divine Envoy has arrived, and we failed to welcome you from afar. Please forgive us, Divine Envoy," the iceberg-like graceful woman said indifferently.
Mu Lingxi quickly smiled and introduced, "This is Tianyue Saint King, the daughter of Jiuling Great Saint. She had already cultivated to the Lin Dao Realm several hundred years ago. If not for Guanghan Realm, she would have broken through to the Great Saint Realm long ago. She is an object of admiration for countless female cultivators in Guanghan Realm."
"Goddess, you flatter me," Tianyue Saint King said coldly.
After hearing Mu Lingxi's introduction, Zhang Ruochen's heart stirred. The daughter of Jiuling Great Saint meant that Tianyue Saint King also came from the Jiuling Divine Bird Clan. In terms of background and status, she was in no way inferior to Ji Kongyuan.
It seemed that although Jiuling Great Saint's offspring were far fewer than Ji Mie Great Emperor's, their achievements were extremely high. Zhang Ruochen had already seen two who had reached the Saint King Realm.
From the aura emitted by Tianyue Saint King, Zhang Ruochen could roughly judge that the number of Sacred Dao Rules she had cultivated should be around fifty million, which was considered mid-to-upper level among Lin Dao Realm experts.
As for Tianyue Saint King's actual strength, it would depend on how large an area of Heaven and Earth Rules she could mobilize, what powerful sacred arts she had cultivated, and what sacred artifacts she possessed.
Given Guanghan Realm's current foundation, being able to cultivate a Saint King expert of this level was already quite remarkable.
"Greetings, Tianyue Saint King." Zhang Ruochen cupped his hands in salute.
After all, Tianyue Saint King was a leading figure among Guanghan Realm's Saint Kings, so he naturally couldn't be negligent.
"You're too polite, Divine Envoy. Please," Tianyue Saint King said, making a gesture of invitation.
Zhang Ruochen nodded and stepped forward.
As Moon God's Divine Envoy, he naturally needed to maintain the dignity befitting a Divine Envoy. Otherwise, it wouldn't just be his own face that was lost, but also Moon God's.
Before long, the group arrived before an imposing grand hall.
Usually, only Saint King-level experts were qualified to enter this sacred hall.
"Hmm?" As soon as she reached the sacred hall, a strange look appeared in Mu Lingxi's eyes.
The reason was that there was someone in the sacred hall, sitting in the main seat. Even when he saw them arrive, he showed no intention of standing up.
Zhang Ruochen also cast his gaze toward the main seat, secretly sizing up this man.
The man was of medium build, wearing a red battle armor, with a handsome face. Flames seemed to be dancing in his eyes, making people dare not meet his gaze.
A scorching aura emanated from the man's body, making the entire sacred hall extremely hot, like a great furnace.
At this moment, many of the accompanying Guanghan Realm Saint Kings showed strange expressions, looking at the man sitting in the main seat, then at Zhang Ruochen. Each of them had some bad premonitions.
Even Tianyue Saint King couldn't help but slightly furrow her brows, clearly not having anticipated this.
"He is Xingyun Saint King, the eldest son of Wu Zu. He has a fiery temper and is unpredictable in his moods," Mu Lingxi secretly transmitted to Zhang Ruochen.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood. So it was someone from the Wu Clan. Meeting him with such a posture was clearly meant to give him a show of authority.
The reason was nothing more than Wu Hao dying at his hands, which had caused the Wu Clan to lose face.
Moreover, Wu Hao was a top-tier genius that the Wu Clan had invested heavily in cultivating. The Wu Clan had high hopes for him, and even Wu Zu doted on Wu Hao. With Wu Hao dead, the entire Wu Clan was dissatisfied with Zhang Ruochen, even harboring resentment.
Unfortunately, Wu Hao was indeed at fault, and since Zhang Ruochen was the Divine Envoy, the Wu Clan could do nothing about him.
Xingyun Saint King sat upright in the main seat, like a supreme emperor overlooking everything.
Zhang Ruochen met Xingyun Saint King's gaze, his expression calm, without a trace of fear.
Although this Xingyun Saint King was very aggressive, in Zhang Ruochen's estimation, his strength should be inferior to Tianyue Saint King's. The number of Sacred Dao Rules he had cultivated definitely hadn't reached fifty million yet.
Among the three giants and titans of Guanghan Realm's Saint Kings, Xingyun Saint King should be ranked last.
"Divine Envoy, Xingyun Saint King hadn't come out of seclusion before and didn't come with us to welcome you. We don't know how this happened either," Wen Shusheng secretly transmitted to Zhang Ruochen.
He felt it necessary to explain this matter to Zhang Ruochen to avoid any misunderstandings.
"I understand," Zhang Ruochen transmitted back.
How could he not see what was happening now? It was clearly Xingyun Saint King deliberately targeting him to make him lose face. It had nothing to do with the others.
After all, his relationships with the Jiuling Great Saint lineage, Bu Ji, Wen Shusheng, and others were all good. They wouldn't scheme against him like this.
"Zhang Ruochen, you've finally arrived. You've kept us waiting quite a while. Perhaps you've already forgotten that you are Guanghan Realm's Divine Envoy?"
Xingyun Saint King spoke, his tone very unfriendly.
Zhang Ruochen's expression was calm. "This Divine Envoy's affairs are not subject to anyone's interference. Moreover, every matter I have handled has been to uphold Guanghan Realm's dignity."
"Uphold Guanghan Realm's dignity? I think you're making enemies for Guanghan Realm. In the Eastern Domain, you provoked the people of Nether God Hall, Blood Battle God Hall, and Soul Realm, and even made an enemy of Divine Cliff Master. In the Northern Domain, you had unpleasant encounters with Xuanyuan Liekong, Lei Juexing, and others. Biyun Sea's death is also inseparable from you. You've made so many enemies—are you trying to make Guanghan Realm's situation even more difficult?" Xingyun Saint King demanded loudly.
Back then, when Divine Cliff Master was killed at Luo River, very few people knew about it, and no one had spread the news. So in the outside world, many people believed Divine Cliff Master was still alive, lying low somewhere to recover from his injuries.
Zhang Ruochen didn't get angry. His tone remained calm. "No matter how many enemies I make, they are only my personal matters, unrelated to Guanghan Realm. I have never thought of asking Guanghan Realm to stand up for me."
Pausing slightly, Zhang Ruochen continued, "On the contrary, Xingyun Saint King, you are far too disrespectful toward me, the Divine Envoy personally appointed by Moon God. When this Divine Envoy arrived, you not only failed to come out to welcome me but instead dared to interrogate me so boldly. Who gave you the audacity?"
"With my status, why should I welcome you? Not to mention interrogating you—even if I were to suppress you, what could you do about it?" Xingyun Saint King sneered.
Others might fear Zhang Ruochen's status as Divine Envoy, but he couldn't care less.
If Moon God had openly chosen a Divine Envoy from among those below the Great Saint level in Guanghan Realm, how could it have been Zhang Ruochen's turn?
From the very beginning, Xingyun Saint King had been dissatisfied with Zhang Ruochen becoming Guanghan Realm's Divine Envoy. A junior actually dared to try to step on his head.