Chapter 2060: Space Rift Above Yin-Yang Sea
Any cultivator who had entered the Yin-Yang Sea back then remembered the events clearly. When the Divine Dragon Sun-Moon Chaos Tower, one of the ten great divine artifacts, emerged, top-tier powerhouses from all sides made their moves, only to flee in disgrace by the end.
According to Xiao Hei, if that taboo figure had not been unwilling to take lives, no one would have survived the Yin-Yang Sea at all.
Since then, the Yin-Yang Sea had become a true forbidden zone, with no one daring to intrude.
Years later, however, someone emerged from the Yin-Yang Sea—someone who should have died hundreds of thousands of years ago. This was undoubtedly fraught with strangeness.
"Shua."
Just as Zhang Ruochen was deep in thought, a beam of sacred light suddenly flew in from beyond the sky.
Zhang Ruochen snapped back to reality and reached out to catch it.
"A message from Ao Xinyan."
Glancing at the message light talisman in his hand, Zhang Ruochen's expression tightened slightly.
Ao Xinyan's message was simple, containing only one sentence: "Captain, come to the Yin-Yang Sea immediately. There is an important matter that requires your help."
"With that taboo figure stationed at the Yin-Yang Sea and awakened beings present, what could possibly require my help?" Zhang Ruochen felt a surge of curiosity.
Without hesitation, Zhang Ruochen inscribed a message light talisman and sent it out, asking Ao Xinyan for specifics.
Back then, when Zhang Ruochen's three meridians were destroyed and he left the Divine Dragon Half-Human Clan, he had planned to return after recovering to retrieve the space teleportation array from Ao Xinyan.
But later, Ao Xinyan had sent him a message, saying that the taboo figure from the Yin-Yang Sea had stepped in to relocate the entire Divine Dragon Half-Human Clan to the ancestral land of the Divine Dragon Clan. That place was isolated from the world, making outside contact difficult.
Given such an opportunity, Zhang Ruochen was genuinely happy for Ao Xinyan and no longer rushed to reclaim the space teleportation array. After all, he trusted her to keep it safe.
Unexpectedly, several years had passed in the blink of an eye before he finally heard from Ao Xinyan again.
Not long after, Ao Xinyan replied.
"The situation at the Yin-Yang Sea is very unusual right now. It's hard to explain in a message talisman. I have no choice but to turn to you, Captain."
After reading the contents of the message light talisman, Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly. What could be so urgent that Ao Xinyan was this anxious?
But at this moment, he could not refuse her under any circumstances.
Immediately, Zhang Ruochen sent a message to Ao Xinyan, stating that he would set out for the Yin-Yang Sea at once.
After a moment's thought, Zhang Ruochen sent another message light talisman—this time to Bai Li Princess, who was in the Jiuli Palace—asking about the situation at the Yin-Yang Sea.
"I just received news that the Hell Realm has opened a space rift near the Yin-Yang Sea. The Hell Realm army is gathering on a large scale, likely plotting something significant."
Bai Li Princess quickly relayed the information.
Upon learning this, Zhang Ruochen felt a sense of clarity. Ao Xinyan's request for help must be related to the Hell Realm, but there was probably a deeper reason behind it.
"Zhang Ruochen, what do you want from me? I'm busy studying the divine patterns of Phoenix Lake."
Xiao Hei's figure appeared, looking quite displeased.
Zhang Ruochen's expression turned serious. "Come with me to the Yin-Yang Sea. Something big might be happening there."
He then shared the intelligence he had just received, along with some of his own speculations, with Xiao Hei.
"The Hell Realm really has some skill, opening a space rift near the Yin-Yang Sea. The resources spent must be enormous. What's their goal? Could they have discovered some hidden secret of the Yin-Yang Sea?"
"And how could that taboo figure allow the Hell Realm to extend its reach into the Yin-Yang Sea? Has he left? Or fallen into slumber again?"
"Also, why is Ao Xinyan calling you to the Yin-Yang Sea now? What help does she need? Is it related to the Hell Realm, or something else?"
Xiao Hei fired off a barrage of questions.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen fell into thought. These were the same questions he was pondering, but answers were hard to come by.
To figure things out, he would likely have to go to the Yin-Yang Sea himself.
With his current strength, he had few concerns.
Even if he ran into trouble, he was confident he could protect himself.
"I feel like the Yin-Yang Sea is deep waters. Getting involved will bring no shortage of trouble. Zhang Ruochen, are you sure you want to wade into this mess?"
Xiao Hei said gravely.
Zhang Ruochen knew what Xiao Hei was thinking and replied firmly, "This matter is no small thing. It could pose a major threat to the entire Kunlun Realm. It's necessary to investigate."
"Besides, I've already promised Ao Xinyan I'd help. So, this mess is unavoidable."
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen had made up his mind, Xiao Hei thought for a moment and then said, "Fine, I'll go with you."
With the decision made, the two did not linger and set off immediately.
To reach the Yin-Yang Sea, one usually started from the Eastern Domain, entered the Wild Desolate Secret Realm, and then used the space wormhole of the Divine Dragon Half-Human Clan.
But that would be too slow.
Zhang Ruochen thought of the three-eyed ancient clan woman. Since she had appeared in the Central Domain, she might know a more convenient route.
So, Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei tracked the three-eyed ancient clan woman's aura, chasing her for tens of thousands of miles before finally catching up.
"Please, stop."
Zhang Ruochen used Great Space Teleportation, appearing in front of the three-eyed ancient clan woman, hovering above the clouds to block her path.
The purple-robed woman halted, layers of sacred light rising around her, carrying an ancient, powerful energy as she prepared for battle. Her eyes were cold. "Chased me this far. What, do you want to snatch the Three-Leaf Nine-Life Flower back?"
As she spoke, a formidable aura emanated from her, tinged with killing intent and hostility.
Zhang Ruochen chuckled lightly. "Don't misunderstand. I mean no harm. I only wish to go to the Yin-Yang Sea with you."
"What do you want at the Yin-Yang Sea?"
The purple-robed woman's eyes showed a hint of wariness, not believing Zhang Ruochen.
"I won't know what I need to do until I get there."
Zhang Ruochen was not lying, as he truly did not yet know what Ao Xinyan needed his help with.
How could he not even know what he was going to do?
The purple-robed woman sneered, even more skeptical of Zhang Ruochen's words.
She saw through his cultivation level at a glance—"Heaven-Connecting Realm"—which was indeed top-tier. But she did not take him seriously.
"The Yin-Yang Sea is in a complicated state right now. Your strength is decent, but going there might mean you won't come back. I advise you to drop the idea."
Clearly, the purple-robed woman did not recognize Zhang Ruochen or know of his recent exploits in the Kunlun Realm, where he had cut down enemies left and right. Otherwise, she would not have underestimated him.
It made sense. After awakening, she had likely stayed in the Yin-Yang Sea, unfamiliar with the outside world.
Zhang Ruochen did not argue, insisting, "Thank you for the warning, but I have reasons I cannot ignore. Please, lead the way."
"Since you're looking for death, follow along then." The purple-robed woman snorted.
With that, she darted straight into the deep mountains.
She had already warned him. If Zhang Ruochen insisted on going to the Yin-Yang Sea, she would say no more. If he died there, it would be no one's fault but his own.
Seeing this, Zhang Ruochen did not hesitate. He immediately took Xiao Hei and followed quickly.
As Zhang Ruochen had guessed, the purple-robed woman indeed knew a shortcut to the Yin-Yang Sea. Deep in the mountains, there was an ancient space teleportation array that could teleport directly to the vicinity of the Yin-Yang Sea.
To cover such a vast distance, it must have been a realm-crossing space teleportation array, something no ordinary space cultivator could set up.
Using this array, Zhang Ruochen, Xiao Hei, and the purple-robed woman quickly teleported from the Central Domain to the Wild Desolate Secret Realm.
"Hiss, it's really cold!"
Standing at the edge of the Yin-Yang Sea, Xiao Hei shivered.
"The Yin-Yang Sea has become colder than before!"
Zhang Ruochen could clearly sense it too. In the past, the Yin-Yang Sea was cold, but the outer areas only threatened cultivators below the Half-Saint level.
Now, it was completely different. Even the periphery could threaten top-tier Saints, even Saint Kings. He could only imagine how terrifying it would be deeper inside.
Zhang Ruochen figured that this change was likely the work of that taboo figure, making it impossible for ordinary cultivators to set foot there.
"The forbidden formations of the Yin-Yang Sea are fully activated. Even those with Great Saint-level strength could fall here."
"Besides the dangers of the Yin-Yang Sea itself, there's the threat from the Hell Realm. See that space rift? The armies of the Hell Realm's Underworld Clan and Bone Clan are pouring into the Kunlun Realm from there."
"Among them are top-tier powerhouses. If you run into them, the outcome won't be good."
The purple-robed woman's demeanor was cold and distant, layers of sacred light always present, never letting down her guard against Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei both looked up, gazing at the distant horizon. A massive space rift was clearly visible to them.
This space rift was over a thousand zhang long, like a terrifying beast opening its bloody maw, ready to devour everything.
Thick yin energy and dark force emanated from the space rift, filling the sky for ten thousand li, causing dark clouds to roll overhead, blotting out the sun.
Large numbers of Underworld Clan and Bone Clan cultivators guarded the space rift, not allowing anyone near. A mountain-sized skeleton floated in midair, its eyes blazing with divine light as bright as the sun.
Huge palaces floated within the dark clouds, banners fluttering in the sky, figures flickering. Each palace was like a star in the universe, releasing immense power fluctuations, clearly housing formidable experts.
Standing hundreds of li away, Zhang Ruochen could feel waves of terrifying, powerful energy.
"Bang."
Suddenly, several massive figures crashed down from the sky, shaking the ground violently.
They were enormous dragons of various forms, each exuding powerful auras. But they were all severely injured, unable to move, let alone fight back.
"Shua."
Several figures descended from a palace, stepping on one of the dragons. The dragon let out a painful roar, its steel-like body nearly crushed in two, a gruesome sight.
"The dragons that escaped earlier have all been captured. With them, we should be able to break part of the Yin-Yang Sea's seal."
A powerful figure from the Underworld Clan said coldly.
He had horns on his head, wore dragon-scale battle armor, and exuded an intense aura of dark curses.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze locked onto a black demon dragon, his eyes flickering with strange light. He was all too familiar with this dragon—it was the Devouring Demon Dragon, an old enemy of his.
The Devouring Demon Dragon was an ancient relic, once the top prodigy of the Kunlun Realm's Dragon Clan, even stronger than the nine realm sons chosen by Shengshu Cainü.
Though Zhang Ruochen did not recognize the other dragons, their powerful auras suggested they were top experts from the Ancestral Dragon Mountain.
From the Underworld Clan expert's words, it seemed the Ancestral Dragon Mountain had already fallen, and none of the dragons had escaped.
"I get it now. They're trying to extract the divine dragon blood from these dragons to break the Yin-Yang Sea's seal."
"Every dragon has some divine dragon blood in them. Combined, the bloodline power of the entire Ancestral Dragon Mountain is no small matter."
Xiao Hei realized.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen frowned. The Hell Realm had gone to such lengths—forcibly opening a space rift, capturing all the dragons from the Ancestral Dragon Mountain—what were they after?
As he pondered, a pitch-black warship emerged from the Yin-Yang Sea. It was enormous, shaped like a taotie, ferocious and menacing.
On this warship were many Underworld Clan cultivators, all at the Saint King realm or above, none weak.
On the deck, several massive dragon corpses were highly conspicuous.
All the dragon corpses were shriveled, with no blood left in them.
"These dragons are low-grade, far inferior to the Divine Dragon Clan, but they still have some use. With their thin divine dragon blood, we managed to break the seal on one island. The harvest was good. We're on track to attack True Dragon Island."
An elderly-looking Underworld Clan expert laughed heartily.
"If it works, then take all the dragons to True Dragon Island and rendezvous with the several great ones." The horned Underworld Clan expert said solemnly.
As he spoke, he grabbed several severely injured dragons and threw them onto the black warship.
The Devouring Demon Dragon's eyes were filled with grief and fury, nearly mad with hatred, but powerless to do anything. As the heir of the Ancestral Dragon Mountain, watching it fall was too cruel.
"Damn it, they're after True Dragon Island." The purple-robed woman's face turned cold.
Xiao Hei thought for a moment, then said, "True Dragon Island is said to be the ancestral land of the Divine Dragon Clan, holding countless treasures of the True Dragon Clan, including a rare supreme treasure. Could the Hell Realm be after that?"
Stories about the Divine Dragon Clan were mostly legends, with no way to confirm their truth. Xiao Hei had only heard that the Divine Dragon Clan possessed a rare treasure that even gods would covet.
"We absolutely cannot let them break into True Dragon Island. I wonder if Ao Xinyan has contacted the top experts of the Kunlun Realm." The purple-robed woman's eyes showed a hint of anxiety.
She wanted to strike at these Hell Realm experts but was clearly hesitant.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen's heart stirred. So Ao Xinyan had contacted others besides him? What was really going on?
...
I slept too late last night, finishing writing at four in the morning. I didn't sleep until nearly six! So today's update is late. My apologies.