Chapter 2009: Han Xue Returns
Zhang Ruochen struck out swiftly with his palm, condensing a cloud of fire that engulfed the two halves of Shang Zihong's Cold Corpse.
"Boom."
The two halves of Shang Zihong's Cold Corpse instantly exploded, then were burned to nothingness by the fire cloud, leaving nothing behind.
Following that, Zhang Ruochen took out the Space-Time Secret Scripture and collected the Ten-Thousand Refinement Tower that was trying to fly away, suppressing it with full force.
With the loss of one Ten-Thousand Refinement Tower, the Heavenly Realm Faction lost a complete Supreme Sacred Artifact.
After all, the Ten-Thousand Refinement Tower consisted of seven towers in total, which together formed a complete and powerful Supreme Sacred Artifact.
"The second one, just one more left."
Zhang Ruochen muttered coldly.
Now that the power released by the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele had weakened, it could no longer fully restrict him from using his space-time techniques.
Of course, this was also because his achievements in the Way of Space-Time were now extremely high; anyone else would not have been able to break through the suppression of the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele.
It was precisely by relying on the Way of Space that Zhang Ruochen had not been trapped by the cage constructed by Shang Zihong with the Bone Talisman, and had taken the opportunity to kill another Shang Zihong.
In the blink of an eye, two of the three Shang Zihongs had been killed, leaving only one severely injured Flame Corpse.
In comparison, the Flame Corpse wore a three-colored divine armor, had too strong a defense, and was somewhat harder to kill than the Primordial Corpse and Cold Corpse, so Zhang Ruochen had left it for last.
"Damn it, Zihong is in danger, Flame Forest Saint King, act quickly."
Seeing Shang Zihong fall into danger, Si Han immediately spoke to a powerful expert of the Angel Clan.
This Angel Clan expert had a handsome appearance, carried four snow-white wings on his back, and emitted a sacred radiance from his body.
Although his cultivation had not reached the Threshold Dao Realm, the aura he emitted was far stronger than many Threshold Dao Realm experts.
Flame Forest Saint King held a broad-bladed sacred sword in his hand, his face expressionless.
"Hum."
Just as Flame Forest Saint King was about to make a move to rescue Shang Zihong, the broad-bladed sacred sword he was holding suddenly trembled, as if pulled by some force.
Feeling the sword's tremor, Flame Forest Saint King immediately dared not act rashly, scanning his surroundings to find the source of this force.
Somehow, he inexplicably felt a great threat.
"Rumble."
Suddenly, divine clouds rolled in the pitch-black sky, and a sword cry that shook heaven and earth resounded, as if billions of divine swords were flying from beyond the sky.
Such a huge commotion immediately alerted everyone present, and they all turned their gazes toward the direction from which the sword cry came.
The sky was torn open at that moment, and a massive black creature flew out, emitting a suffocating and terrifying pressure.
"Huh? A black cat head? What kind of bird is this? A new breed of owl?"
After seeing the appearance of the massive creature, many people couldn't help but show strange expressions.
Next, everyone's gaze locked onto the source of the sword cry—a silver long sword held in the hand of a beautiful young girl.
The beautiful young girl looked about fifteen or sixteen years old, appearing somewhat green and immature, but between her brows, there was a compelling heroic spirit, as sharp as the silver long sword in her hand.
She wore a very form-fitting battle armor that fully displayed her curvaceous figure. Her delicate features had no flaws, and her skin was white and fine, like the finest suet jade, making her look like a jade figure.
"That owl looks familiar. I remember now, it seems to be the one that follows Zhang Ruochen."
Some cultivators recognized it and revealed the origin of the owl.
Thus, everyone understood one thing: the newcomer certainly belonged to Zhang Ruochen's side, otherwise, why would they travel with the owl that was by Zhang Ruochen's side?
However, with so many powerful experts present, no one actually knew the identity of the beautiful young girl; she seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
"Hehe, it's really lively here. Looks like we haven't arrived too late." Scanning the entire battlefield, Xiao Hei couldn't help but chuckle.
Hearing someone mention "owl," Xiao Hei immediately shouted, "This emperor is an Undying Bird, the invincible Emperor Who Slays Heaven and Earth from a hundred thousand years ago! You're the owl! Your whole family are owls!"
Upon hearing this, the person who had just spoken immediately shut their mouth and dared not say anything more.
There was no helping it; regardless of Xiao Hei's actual strength, the aura it emitted was indeed very intimidating, making people unwilling to provoke it.
"No matter who you are, daring to come here means only death."
Flame Forest Saint King shouted coldly.
Xiao Hei turned his gaze to Flame Forest Saint King, squinting his eyes disdainfully, and said, "Do you think this emperor was raised on threats? Just a birdman like you wants this emperor's life?"
Hearing the word "birdman," Flame Forest Saint King's expression immediately turned very ugly. He said in a low voice, "Since you're so eager to die, this king will grant your wish."
As he spoke, Flame Forest Saint King immediately made his move, lifting his broad-bladed sacred sword and slashing it through the air toward Xiao Hei.
Seeing the massive sword light coming toward him, Xiao Hei let out a strange cry and said, "Han Xue, quickly take your sword and cut him down, chop off this birdman!"
Upon hearing this, the beautiful young girl standing on his back immediately swung the silver long sword in her hand.
This sword strike seemed very casual, but a sword cry that shook heaven and earth resounded.
A silver sword light only a foot long flew out, like a curved crescent moon.
"Crack."
The massive sword light slashed out by Flame Forest Saint King was cut in half from the middle, then exploded with a bang.
The crescent-shaped silver sword light did not dissipate and continued unabated toward Flame Forest Saint King.
Flame Forest Saint King was greatly alarmed and quickly raised his broad-bladed sacred sword to block in front of him.
"Pfft."
The broad-bladed sacred sword did block the silver sword light, but several invisible sword energies struck Flame Forest Saint King's body, leaving several gruesome wounds.
One of the wounds was on Flame Forest Saint King's neck, nearly cutting off his head.
"How can she be so strong?"
Flame Forest Saint King was shocked in his heart.
He could see that Han Xue was truly very young, with a short cultivation time, but her strength was terrifyingly powerful.
"Hahaha, how about that? Birdman, you're not up to it." Seeing Flame Forest Saint King suffer a loss, Xiao Hei immediately laughed wildly.
The beautiful young girl did not continue to attack Flame Forest Saint King but instead turned her gaze to Zhang Ruochen, who was confronting Shang Zihong.
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen also turned his gaze over, meeting the young girl's eyes.
Although the young girl had changed quite a bit, Zhang Ruochen still recognized her at first glance.
"Han Xue."
The beautiful young girl was none other than Zhang Ruochen's only disciple, Han Xue, who possessed the Thousand Bone Constitution.
Back then, Zhang Ruochen had entered the Underworld from the Fallen God Tomb Forest in the Eastern Domain to revive Xuanji Sword Saint. Afterward, Xuanji Sword Saint wanted to explore some matters deep in the Underworld and took Han Xue, who was still a little girl, along on the journey.
Years later, Han Xue had grown into a graceful young woman, and her strength had also reached the top tier.
Han Xue's appearance here truly surprised Zhang Ruochen, and it also delighted him. Seeing her return safely from the Underworld, the worry in Zhang Ruochen's heart could finally be put to rest.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen was also amazed by Han Xue's formidable strength, which was also a source of comfort for him.
There was no need to think too much; to achieve what she had today, Han Xue must have endured many hardships.
"The Thousand Bone Constitution is indeed remarkable. Han Xue might really become the second Thousand Bone Female Emperor. Since Han Xue has returned, where is Master?" For a moment, many thoughts surged in Zhang Ruochen's mind.
Han Xue moved, appearing directly beside Zhang Ruochen. Many powerful experts of the Heavenly Realm Faction were unable to stop her in time.
"Disciple pays respects to Master."
Han Xue bowed respectfully to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen quickly reached out to help Han Xue up, smiling, "Not bad. In just a few years, your cultivation has reached such a level, putting pressure on me, your master."
"Master, you need to work hard. I had a great opportunity in the Underworld, and I might really surpass you." Han Xue showed a bright smile.
Zhang Ruochen nodded with a smile, "Good, I look forward to that day."
Han Xue's smile faded, and she suddenly turned around, pointing her sword at Shang Zihong, her face as cold as frost. "Shang Zihong, right? Xiao Hei mentioned you. Normally, you are Master's opponent, so I shouldn't interfere. But Master is injured, and as a disciple, it is my duty to fight in his place. Do you dare to accept the challenge?"
Hearing this, Shang Zihong took a deep breath and was enraged. "Little girl, you don't know your place! With your current cultivation, you're still far off."
"Whether I'm far off or not, we'll only know after the fight." Han Xue refused to back down.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly and said, "Xue'er, I appreciate your intention, but he is my enemy, and I must kill him with my own hands. Go help the others."
Han Xue hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "Disciple understands."
Han Xue immediately flashed away, landing back on Xiao Hei's back, and locked her target onto Flame Forest Saint King, whom she had just wounded.
"Shang Zihong, come on. It's time to settle the grievances between us."
Zhang Ruochen slowly raised his sword, his killing intent growing stronger.
All past grievances and new hatreds would be settled tonight.
With such a rare opportunity, he could not let Shang Zihong escape.
The only remaining Shang Zihong had a face as dark as water, with raging fire burning in his eyes. He no longer cared about any pretense of composure.
At this moment, he had already taken back both the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele and the Bone Talisman, intending to use all his treasures to protect himself.
"How could this be? Why am I losing to Zhang Ruochen? I won't accept this." Shang Zihong clenched his fists, unable to accept this reality.
He had always been proud, believing himself to be perfectly flawless, without any shortcomings. Even when facing Yan Wushen or the Four Heavenly Kings of the Heavenly Palace, he was confident he would not be inferior in a battle of the same level.
But now, he had been defeated by Zhang Ruochen, with two of his bodies killed in succession. He didn't understand why Zhang Ruochen was so powerful.
In terms of background and connections, he was superior to Zhang Ruochen in every way, so why couldn't he defeat him?
After this battle, Shang Zihong's confidence had been almost completely shattered by Zhang Ruochen.
"Zhang Ruochen, I will never lose to you."
Shang Zihong roared.
Violent sacred qi surged out from Shang Zihong's body, pouring into the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele and the Red Child Sword, while also condensing a massive flame giant.
The Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele rapidly expanded, turning into a five-colored divine mountain a thousand zhang tall, with countless secret patterns emerging on its surface.
"Pfft."
Shang Zihong spat out a mouthful of essence blood, spraying it onto the Red Child Sword.
The Red Child Sword instantly absorbed the essence blood, then emitted an eerie blood light. The originally golden light spots had now all turned blood-red.
Drawn by the essence blood, the vast divine power stored in the Red Child Sword was released, combining with the red flame to condense tens of thousands of blood-colored infant figures, all solid and indistinguishable from real infants.
These infant figures emitted terrible resentment, killing intent, and evil qi, gathering together to surge into the sky, forming an extremely terrifying phenomenon.
Seeing this, a hint of solemnity appeared in Zhang Ruochen's eyes, clearly sensing some threat.
Without hesitation, Zhang Ruochen mobilized his vast sacred qi, frantically pouring it into the Flame God Armor, while also releasing sacred qi to fully activate the Abyssal Ancient Sword and the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror.
Having swallowed all the ghost fire and used the divine sun to eliminate the harmful substances within, leaving a large amount of pure vitality, Zhang Ruochen's internal sacred qi had almost fully recovered and could be used without restraint.
The Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror flew out to meet the Five-Colored Merit Divine Stele.
The Flame God Armor released a torrent of divine fire, condensing a flame divine dragon and a flame divine elephant to meet the flame giant condensed by Shang Zihong.
As for Zhang Ruochen himself, he lifted the Abyssal Ancient Sword and charged straight at Shang Zihong.
"Die."
Shang Zihong roared.
The Red Child Sword swung, and tens of thousands of blood-colored infant figures flew out, all letting out piercing cries, like little ghosts crawling out of hell, trying to drag Zhang Ruochen down with them.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze was firm, unaffected. He entered a wonderful state of unity between man and sword, fully executing his strongest sword strike.
"Sword Ten."
After a series of fierce battles, Zhang Ruochen's understanding of Sword Ten had become increasingly profound, and each time he used it, its power increased.
"Boom."
No matter how powerful the force released by the Red Child Sword was, it rapidly collapsed in the face of the Abyssal Ancient Sword's attack. The blood-colored infant figures exploded one after another, and the resentment, killing intent, and evil qi they carried dissipated like smoke.
Even if some of it impacted Zhang Ruochen, it was all blocked by the Flame God Armor, unable to cause him much harm.
Finally, Zhang Ruochen charged with his sword to Shang Zihong's front, the sword tip pointing directly at Shang Zihong's brow.
Horror appeared in Shang Zihong's eyes, and he quickly retreated with all his might.
But no matter how far he retreated, Zhang Ruochen followed closely, like a clinging bone, impossible to shake off.
"Chi."
The Abyssal Ancient Sword pressed against Shang Zihong's brow but failed to pierce it.
The reason was that Shang Zihong had timely placed the Bone Talisman on his brow, precisely blocking the Abyssal Ancient Sword.
A large number of complex talisman patterns emerged on the surface of the Bone Talisman, trying to entangle the Abyssal Ancient Sword.
"Hmph."
Zhang Ruochen let out a heavy snort, and the purple divine stone embedded in the sword hilt suddenly released a terrifying secret force.
"Crack."
Before the power of the Bone Talisman could be released, it was forcibly shattered by the secret force from the purple divine stone.
Under the impact of this terrifying secret force, Shang Zihong's head nearly exploded, and he flew out like a cannonball.
...
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"The Legend of the Heavenly Emperor" synopsis: People are divided into three, six, and nine classes.
Below the seventh class are mortals.
The fourth to sixth classes are the superior ones.
The superior ones breathe and absorb the primordial qi of heaven and earth, refining their flesh and blood to transform their bones, extending their lifespan, living for a hundred years without dying.
Above the third class are the true ones.
Every word of the true ones is a supreme truth, allowing them to attain immortality.
Once, Lin Ke, who had become a fourth-class superior, was only one step away from becoming a true one and achieving immortality, but his master, Yi Yi True One, branded the character "nine" on his face, demoting him to the lowest ninth-class lowborn, on par with prostitutes, beggars, slaves, and prisoners.
"Murdering the sect master."
"Defiling the sect master's wife, Lady Qinglian."
"Cultivation abolished, expelled from Cloud Mirror Sect."
"Demoted to ninth-class lowborn."
In just three days, the drastic changes that happened to Lin Ke turned him from the number one genius and top ten expert of Cloud Mirror Sect into a fallen, reviled, and unrighteous person.
And these charges were all imposed on him by his master, Yi Yi True One.
(End of chapter)
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