# Chapter 2004: Flame God Armor
The battle outside Peacock Manor was exceptionally fierce, with heavy casualties occurring in a very short time.
The twenty-six Nine-Step Saint Kings who had been controlled by Feng Feng Gu Dao using the Soul Holding Great Art were all extremely powerful, yet six had already fallen, and several others were severely wounded.
On the Heavenly Realm side, although some were injured, not a single person had been killed so far.
If things continued like this, the situation would undoubtedly become increasingly unfavorable for Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen was using all his strength to support the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele, but his body kept sinking downward.
If not for his powerful physical body, anyone else would have long been crushed into a bloody pulp by the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele.
Shang Zihong moved, appearing atop the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele, looking down at Zhang Ruochen with contempt.
"Get down."
With a loud shout, Shang Zihong released a terrifying force, adding it to the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele.
Instantly, the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele emitted even more dazzling five-colored sacred light, and a vast, heavy aura of merit power spread out.
Zhang Ruochen's body trembled violently, and fine cracks appeared on his arms, accompanied by faint sounds of bone cracking.
The next moment, the cracks on Zhang Ruochen's arms became more pronounced, and a large amount of sacred blood seeped out.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze suddenly turned extremely sharp.
All the seeping sacred blood gathered together, and he even forced out more sacred blood from within his body, turning it into a vast surge of blood qi.
At the same time, a mighty surge of sacred energy emerged, containing five hundred thousand palm path rules.
An enormous Nether King phantom coalesced into form, releasing overwhelming blood qi.
In that moment, Zhang Ruochen did not hesitate to consume a large amount of his own sacred blood, pushing the Seven Orifices Blood Nether Palm to its limit.
Furthermore, Zhang Ruochen did everything possible to mobilize nearly one hundred thousand truth rules within his body, amplifying the power of the Seven Orifices Blood Nether Palm.
The Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele was indeed miraculous, capable of restraining the eternal paths, but it was not an absolute suppression.
Zhang Ruochen's achievement in the Way of Truth was extremely high, especially since he possessed twelve ten-thousandths of the Truth Esoterica. Although he could not unleash the usual eightfold attack power while exerting himself with all his strength, he could barely manage two to three times the attack power.
"Boom."
The power within Zhang Ruochen's body erupted like a volcano, unstoppable, forcibly sending the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele flying.
Thus, he finally managed to temporarily escape.
However, this palm strike had cost him a considerable price. A large amount of sacred blood had been lost, and both arms were severely injured, nearly crippled.
"Despite being suppressed by the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele, you can still use the Way of Truth. Zhang Ruochen, you truly surprise me more and more. But precisely because of this, you must die." Shang Zihong's killing intent grew even stronger.
The more astonishing Zhang Ruochen's performance, the greater the threat Shang Zihong felt, and he had to eliminate him to remove the future hidden danger.
If it were him in that situation, he would probably find it extremely difficult to use the Way of Truth.
Speaking of which, Shang Zihong's talent in the Way of Truth was also very high. He could unleash sevenfold attack power, which, though inferior to Zhang Ruochen's, far surpassed most cultivators of the Way of Truth.
Just then, an unusual movement occurred at the edge of the battlefield.
A black shadow appeared abruptly, with lightning speed killing several Saint Kings of the Heavenly Realm faction and devouring all the essence laws within their bodies.
At the same time, a cold swordsman appeared, executing deadly sword techniques—one sword, one kill—instantly killing several more Saint Kings of the Heavenly Realm faction.
Zhang Ruochen was very familiar with these two—they were none other than Han Qiu and A Le, who had already joined the Death God Temple.
Soon, the powerful experts of the Heavenly Realm faction reacted, and top-tier strong ones stepped forward to intercept Han Qiu and A Le.
"Zhang Ruochen, do you see? Two more have come to die because of you." Shang Zihong sneered.
He actually hoped that more people related to Zhang Ruochen would come, so he could wipe them all out in one fell swoop, saving him the trouble of hunting them down one by one later.
As he spoke, Shang Zihong continued his attack, simultaneously unleashing the Ten Thousand Refining Tower and the Red Child Sword.
Zhang Ruochen had no time to look at Han Qiu and A Le; he had to quickly unleash the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror.
Unfortunately, the Azure Sky Floating Pagoda had already been taken away; otherwise, his current situation would not have become so difficult.
The Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror was, after all, only a damaged Supreme Sacred Artifact without an artifact spirit. No matter how well it resonated with him, it could not unleash very strong power.
"Boom."
The Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror flew back, crashing into Zhang Ruochen and sending him flying as well.
"Pfft."
Zhang Ruochen immediately spat out a large mouthful of blood, and his aura became much weaker.
Seeing this, a brilliant smile appeared on Shang Zihong's face. The feeling of suppressing Zhang Ruochen like this was exceptionally good, allowing him to vent the pent-up frustration in his chest.
As time passed, Shang Zihong's realm gradually stabilized, and his strength steadily increased.
The Earth Soul Liquid and the sacred pill he had swallowed earlier not only allowed him to break through and consolidate his cultivation but also greatly enhanced his cultivation. The sacred dao rules within his body had already reached twelve million.
In this situation, Shang Zihong was extremely confident in his own strength. Even casually launched attacks were beyond Zhang Ruochen's ability to withstand.
In another direction on the battlefield, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden was locked in a fierce struggle with the Demon Toad.
At a certain moment, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden revealed a slight opening.
The Demon Toad immediately seized the opportunity and struck out with a palm.
"Boom."
The Demon Toad's palm struck the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden's left shoulder, leaving a black palm print.
Just then, a sharp light flashed in the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden's eyes. The silver kitchen knife in her hand, like lightning, slashed at the nearby Demon Toad.
"You..."
The Demon Toad was greatly alarmed and immediately tried to retreat.
It now understood that the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden had deliberately revealed that opening to lure it in.
But it realized this too late.
"Pfft."
A silver light flashed, and a gruesome wound appeared on the Demon Toad's chest, with black, foul-smelling blood spurting out.
With just this one slash, the Demon Toad was nearly split in two.
A tricky divine force burrowed into the Demon Toad's body, wreaking havoc and causing it unbearable pain.
This would have been a good opportunity to eliminate the Demon Toad, but the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden did not continue her attack. Instead, she flashed at top speed toward the central battlefield.
"Stop her."
Sensing the Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden's move, top-tier experts of the Heavenly Realm faction immediately moved to intercept.
The Nine Heavens Mysterious Maiden was extremely fast, instantly approaching Zhang Ruochen's location.
"Zhang Ruochen, this is the complete set of Flame God Armor. Consider yourself lucky." Canglan Wu Sheng's cold voice sounded in Zhang Ruochen's ear.
Then, Zhang Ruochen saw a ball of flame flying toward him at incredible speed, so fast that even Shang Zihong could not stop it.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes lit up. He immediately put away the Flowing Light Merit Armor and simultaneously released his own sacred energy to envelop the incoming flame.
The next moment, the flame attached to his body, transforming into a red armor that covered almost his entire body, including his head.
"Flame God Armor."
Zhang Ruochen was shocked.
This armor had an astonishing origin. It was personally refined by the Flame God in ancient times. Later, the Flame God, while cultivating the domineering Divine Flame, was burned to ashes by the divine fire, but this Flame God Armor was perfectly preserved.
The Flame God Armor was originally stored in the imperial treasury. It had remained sealed because no one could use it.
Wu Tong Qiu Yu was quite special, so Empress Chi Yao had bestowed the Flame God Arm Guards and Gauntlets upon him.
Later, Wu Tong Qiu Yu was killed by Zhang Ruochen, and the Flame God Arm Guards and Gauntlets fell into Zhang Ruochen's hands.
At first, Zhang Ruochen could not use the Flame God Arm Guards and Gauntlets either, until he activated them using the Truth Esoterica.
Zhang Ruochen figured that even ordinary gods probably could not use the Flame God Armor. Only powerful gods who had comprehended the Esoterica of the Way of Fire or the Esoterica of the Nine Eternal Paths could perfectly wield it.
Zhang Ruochen had always wanted to obtain the complete Flame God Armor, but he never expected to get it under these circumstances.
"This is a gift from Lord Di Xue. You don't need to return it to the imperial court. Lord Di Xue is currently held back by powerful enemies and cannot come to help you."
Just then, another voice sounded in Zhang Ruochen's ear.
This voice was very gentle and melodious, belonging to Shengshu Cainü.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen immediately understood. Now that Chi Yao was not in the Kunlun Realm, the highest authority in the imperial court was undoubtedly Di Xue Jian. Only Di Xue Jian had the authority to take out the complete Flame God Armor and give it to him.
Thus, he owed Di Xue Jian another favor.
"So it's the Flame God Armor. What a fine treasure. I want it." Looking at the Flame God Armor on Zhang Ruochen, Shang Zihong's eyes sparkled with light.
The Yama Clan strongman had taken his top-grade Flowing Light Merit Armor, and this Flame God Armor would serve as compensation.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze was sharp. "You want it? I'm afraid you won't have the fortune to enjoy it."
As he spoke, red flames rose from the surface of the Flame God Armor, forming a vast fire domain centered on Zhang Ruochen.
This flame was extremely terrifying, with a temperature so high that it twisted a large area of space, as if it would melt everything.
Shang Zihong snorted. "Zhang Ruochen, do you think that with the Flame God Armor, you can fight against me? Then let me show you what true despair is."
With the Red Child Sword in hand, Shang Zihong activated his vast sacred energy, stimulating the evil divine power within the Red Child Sword, forming a towering wave of fire that slashed toward Zhang Ruochen.
There was no fear in Zhang Ruochen's eyes. He shook his arms, and a dragon and an elephant manifested, both covered in blazing red flames.
"Dragon-Elephant Reaching Heaven."
He executed the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, and the Flame Divine Dragon and Flame Divine Elephant flew out together, both emitting powerful divine might.
"Boom."
The fire wave was unstoppable, instantly engulfing the Flame Divine Dragon and Flame Divine Elephant.
A terrifying ripple of power spread out, causing the formations outside Peacock Manor to shake violently.
"Retreat quickly."
The observing cultivators were greatly alarmed and rapidly retreated backward.
Zhang Ruochen bore the brunt of the impact, staggering back more than ten steps before barely managing to stabilize himself.
Although the blood qi within his body surged violently, he forcibly suppressed it and did not spit out blood.
"How is this possible?"
Shang Zihong showed surprise.
He had gone all out with this attack, thinking he could completely severely wound Zhang Ruochen and render him combat-incapable. He never expected Zhang Ruochen to withstand it—this was an extremely unbelievable thing.
...
(Regarding the new book, everyone might have some misunderstandings. First of all, "Eternal God Emperor" is a book that Xiaoyu is writing very seriously, having poured countless efforts into it. It will definitely continue to be written with dedication until the end, striving to maintain at least four thousand words per day.
Secondly, the new book only has some connections with "Eternal God Emperor." There is no such thing as who is the protagonist and who is the supporting character. It's like Yang Guo in "The Return of the Condor Heroes" and Zhang Wuji in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber." However, during the final decisive battle, during the heaven-defying campaign, the two protagonists will fight side by side, turning the world upside down.)
(End of chapter)