Chapter 2084: The Eccentric Old Fellow
In a hidden cave, beams of golden light flickered on and off, as if some rare treasure was emerging.
On a large green stone inside the cave, a figure sat cross-legged, radiating an extremely strong life force. Golden blood energy continuously surged from within his body, transforming into a golden divine sea.
This person was none other than Xiao Yang Wang, who had escaped alone.
Since fleeing to this place, Xiao Yang Wang had gone into seclusion, consuming large quantities of precious sacred medicines and sacred pills. This had strengthened his life force by more than double, and the vast blood energy generated all gathered into the golden divine sea before him.
Not only that, Xiao Yang Wang had also employed an incredible secret technique, generating tens of millions of sacred dao rules identical to his own. This was even more astonishing than refining the Five Yuan Emperor Flower.
The tens of millions of sacred dao rules interwove to form a golden sun, rising and falling within the golden divine sea.
As time passed, the golden divine sea gradually shrank until it finally took human form.
The person formed from the golden divine sea looked exactly like Xiao Yang Wang, radiating vibrant life force, and even the aura he emitted was indistinguishable from Xiao Yang Wang's.
"Shua."
The person before Xiao Yang Wang suddenly opened his eyes, unleashing a sharp and fierce gaze. A dense aura of murderous intent gathered between his brows.
"Big Brother, don't get excited yet. This physical body has just been shaped and isn't very stable," Xiao Yang Wang quickly spoke to calm him down.
Da Yang Wang, who had clearly already self-destructed, had reappeared in the world. If Zhang Ruochen and the others knew, they would undoubtedly be shocked.
The reason lay in the special ability of the Golden Sun Twin Kings: they shared a life bond. As long as one of them remained alive, the other could be resurrected.
Because of this, Xiao Yang Wang had unhesitatingly chosen to take the Golden Crow Ancient Cauldron and escape alone earlier.
However, although the shared life bond allowed Da Yang Wang to be reborn, his strength had greatly diminished. His physical body and sacred soul had become very fragile, requiring a considerable amount of time and a large number of heavenly materials and earthly treasures to recover to their former level.
Da Yang Wang was well aware of his current state, so he quickly calmed down, completely restraining his aura to prevent his fragile body from collapsing.
"I never thought that after all our careful planning, it would end like this. We brothers have never suffered such a miserable defeat," Xiao Yang Wang sighed.
A cold light flashed in Da Yang Wang's eyes as he let out a light breath. "Don't worry. There will be a chance to make Zhang Ruochen pay for this debt. My strength is greatly diminished now, so it's not suitable to fight him head-on. For now, we'll endure and focus on finding the Dragon God Temple's treasure and the World Gate Key. If we accomplish nothing, we truly won't be able to explain ourselves to the Old Heavenly Lord."
"Zhang Ruochen and the others don't know about our brothers' ability. They probably all think you're dead now, Big Brother. This is our opportunity. At the right moment, we can catch them off guard," Xiao Yang Wang said, his eyes gleaming with cunning.
Da Yang Wang nodded. "Next time, I'll give them a big surprise."
With that, Da Yang Wang sat down cross-legged on the spot, circulating his technique to familiarize himself with and strengthen this new physical body. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to fight at all.
Xiao Yang Wang also sat down, both to guard Da Yang Wang and to recover the energy he had consumed.
On a devastated battlefield, Zhang Ruochen was fully immersed in cultivation. The eight petals of the Five Yuan Emperor Flower were successively refined, causing the sacred dao rules within the Styx River to continuously increase.
In the blink of an eye, the total number of sacred dao rules Zhang Ruochen possessed reached 29,999,999, which was at the critical point for breaking through his cultivation. One more rule would allow him to enter the Threshold Dao Realm.
The Five Yuan Emperor Flower was incredibly miraculous. The sacred dao rules it added were all from the Great Dao and Supreme Sacred Dao.
As a result, the sacred dao rules cultivated from minor paths accounted for only a little over twenty percent of the total in Zhang Ruochen's body, nearly breaking the balance of the Styx River.
If not for the miraculous nature of the Five Yuan Emperor Flower, which tightly bound all the sacred dao rules in the Styx River together, the river might have already collapsed.
Cultivation was like building a tall building; the foundation must be solid. Minor path rules were indispensable.
According to the cultivation experience of predecessors, no matter how great one's fortune, the number of minor path rules must never fall below twenty percent.
Under normal circumstances, it was most reasonable for minor path rules to account for thirty to forty percent of the total, making cultivation difficulty manageable.
Of course, for the vast majority of cultivators, this was unimaginable. Even keeping minor path rules below fifty percent was rare, achievable only by the most top-tier geniuses.
The further one progressed, especially after reaching the Threshold Dao Realm, the more difficult it became to increase sacred dao rules. Who could afford to be picky about which sacred dao rules they cultivated?
Although Zhang Ruochen's sacred dao rules currently consisted of only a little over twenty percent from minor paths, later on, it would be perfectly normal for minor path rules to account for forty to fifty percent, or even sixty percent.
At a certain moment, the flow of the Styx River within Zhang Ruochen suddenly accelerated, rushing like a heavenly river, its momentum vast and mighty.
Instantly, the surrounding heaven and earth energy madly surged toward Zhang Ruochen, and the heaven and earth rules became active.
Without hesitation, Zhang Ruochen took out a large number of sacred stones, absorbing the sacred energy contained within them.
He was now breaking through to the Threshold Dao Realm and needed a massive amount of energy. Directly absorbing it from the heaven and earth would be far too inefficient. Using sacred stones could greatly save time.
The battles at the Sword Grave, Xianji Mountain, and the Blood God Sect had all yielded Zhang Ruochen a vast hoard of sacred stones, making his wealth comparable to that of many Great Saints.
After a relatively short time, the Styx River calmed down, and the total number of sacred dao rules within it had exceeded thirty million.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to end his cultivation, he faintly sensed something.
Involuntarily, one of the fingers on Zhang Ruochen's right hand moved slightly. A surge of space power was released, condensing into an invisible thread that silently extended in one direction.
In the blink of an eye, this space thread had stretched several hundred miles away.
At that moment, under a rock several hundred miles away, a figure was crouching, furtively watching Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei.
This was a short, thin old man, only about one and a half meters tall, with dark, wrinkled skin and small, bean-like eyes that were incredibly lively and carried a hint of cunning.
He was extremely well-hidden, not emitting the slightest aura, almost completely blending into the surrounding environment. Even someone right next to him would find it hard to detect his presence.
"This guy is amazing. He can condense sacred dao rules into a river without any restrictions, and most of the rules are cultivated from the Great Dao and Supreme Sacred Dao, including three Supreme Sacred Daos. Who is he?"
The short, thin old man muttered to himself, his small eyes darting around.
What he didn't notice was that an invisible space thread had suddenly appeared beside him.
Before the short, thin old man could react, the space thread had already bound him like lightning, wrapping around him hundreds of times.
"What's going on? How could he have found me?"
A look of shock appeared in the short, thin old man's eyes.
Just as he was struggling desperately to break free, Zhang Ruochen pulled the space thread.
"Bang."
The rock was sent flying, and the short, thin old man was yanked out, rapidly moving toward Zhang Ruochen.
In the blink of an eye, the short, thin old man appeared before Zhang Ruochen, bound tightly by the invisible space thread, completely unable to move.
Xiao Hei looked at the short, thin old man with surprise. "Where did this old fellow come from?"
"When I broke through my cultivation and resonated with the heaven and earth rules, I faintly sensed a slight disturbance over two hundred miles away. So I secretly sent out a space thread, and it turns out I actually caught something," Zhang Ruochen said with a faint smile.
Hearing this, the short, thin old man couldn't help but curse his bad luck. He had been careful enough, but he never expected Zhang Ruochen to be so alert that he could detect even the slightest disturbance.
If he had known, he would have retreated even farther.
Xiao Hei extended a claw, lifting the thin old man up, putting on a fierce expression. "Old fellow, who are you? Why were you hiding and spying? If you don't explain clearly, this emperor will eat you in one bite."
Hearing this, the short, thin old man couldn't help but shiver. His small eyes darted around nervously. "Don't eat me! My meat is too old and doesn't taste good. I'm just a rogue cultivator, here on True Dragon Island to search for treasures. I happened to pass by and saw you fighting with others. I was scared, so I hid. I definitely didn't mean to spy on you."
"Look at my cultivation—it's so weak, and I'm a coward. I can't pose any threat to you. Please, have mercy and let me go!"
By the end, the short, thin old man put on a pitiful expression, almost on the verge of tears.
"Passing by? What a coincidence. And our fight ended a while ago. Why were you still hiding? Were you planning something?" Xiao Hei bared its sharp teeth, a fierce glint in its eyes.
The short, thin old man's face fell. "Your battle was too terrifying. I was so scared my hands and feet went weak, and I couldn't move. That's why I didn't leave. I really had no ulterior motives. Look at my eyes—pure and flawless. Do you see any impurity?"
Seeing the short, thin old man like this, Xiao Hei released its claw and dropped him to the ground, sneering disdainfully. "I've never seen a Saint King as cowardly as you. You don't even interest this emperor."
Then, Xiao Hei looked at Zhang Ruochen. "This old fellow is clearly a coward. He probably wouldn't dare to plot against us."
Hearing this, a flicker of joy passed through the short, thin old man's eyes, thinking he might escape.
However, Zhang Ruochen didn't undo the space thread. Instead, he tightened it.
While Xiao Hei was talking to the short, thin old man, Zhang Ruochen had been carefully observing. He noticed that the old man's aura was extremely peculiar—faint and elusive, yet strangely in tune with the surrounding heaven and earth rules.
When the short, thin old man was chattering away, the heaven and earth rules around him became very active, as if they were changing with his emotions.
This situation was highly unusual, as if all the heaven and earth rules were derived from the short, thin old man himself.
Just this one point was enough to confirm that the short, thin old man was no ordinary person, certainly not the weak rogue cultivator he claimed to be.
"Who are you really? And why have you been living on True Dragon Island for a long time?" Zhang Ruochen's expression turned very serious.
Xiao Hei looked puzzled. "The restriction formation on True Dragon Island was only broken not long ago. How could this old fellow have lived here for a long time?"
"Take a good look. He carries a very strong aura of True Dragon Island, and he is incredibly in tune with the heaven and earth rules here. The heaven and earth rules almost revolve around him. If he hadn't lived on True Dragon Island for an extremely long time, this would be impossible," Zhang Ruochen said solemnly.
Hearing this, Xiao Hei carefully sensed it and couldn't help but show surprise. "You old rascal, you dared to deceive this emperor! It seems I need to teach you a lesson before you'll talk honestly."
Feeling insulted in his intelligence, Xiao Hei was about to lose his temper. He flapped his wings and released a ball of Undying Divine Fire, which landed on the short, thin old man.
"You can't bully an honest old man... Ah, help!"
The short, thin old man screamed loudly, his cries earth-shattering.
Zhang Ruochen wanted to stop him, as he still hoped to get some valuable information from the old man.
But he soon discovered that although the short, thin old man was screaming loudly, he wasn't actually hurt. Even his linen clothes weren't burned, and Zhang Ruochen couldn't tell what material they were made of.
Xiao Hei also noticed this. Although he hadn't used his full power, the Undying Divine Fire was no ordinary flame. It should have at least made the old man suffer a bit.
So, Xiao Hei added more fire, unwilling to believe he couldn't handle this old fellow.
"So hot! I'm almost roasted! Stop, help... You can't treat an unarmed old man like this!" The short, thin old man screamed even louder.
At the same time, the heaven and earth rules around him became extremely active.
A strange look appeared in Xiao Hei's eyes. He had almost fully released the Undying Divine Fire, yet it couldn't harm the short, thin old man in the slightest—not even a single hair was singed.
With a flap of his wings, Xiao Hei condensed a ball of Undying Divine Fire and shot it at Zhang Ruochen.
"Bang."
Zhang Ruochen acted instantly, punching out and dispersing the incoming Undying Divine Fire.
"Have you gone mad?" Zhang Ruochen glared at Xiao Hei.
A flicker of embarrassment passed through Xiao Hei's eyes. "This emperor just wanted to see if there was something wrong with the Undying Divine Fire. This old fellow's aura is at most equivalent to a First or Second Step Saint King. There's no way he should be able to withstand the burning of this emperor's Undying Divine Fire."
This situation was so unexpected that even Xiao Hei began to doubt the power of his own Undying Divine Fire.
Seeing that he couldn't do anything to the short, thin old man, Xiao Hei had no choice but to withdraw the Undying Divine Fire, though he was already thinking of other methods.
Just then, the short, thin old man somehow broke free from the space thread's binding and directly burrowed into the ground, disappearing in an instant.
"What's going on? Is this old fellow a ground rat?" Xiao Hei's eyes widened in shock.
A sharp light flashed in Zhang Ruochen's eyes. He suddenly shot forward, waving his hand to release a powerful space force that condensed into a transparent silver chain, piercing through the rock and deep into the ground.
"Boom."
The hard rock shattered, and the ground split open with a crack extending for a hundred miles.
When the silver chain straightened, the short, thin old man who had just fled was pulled back out of the ground.
Then, the silver chain crisscrossed to form a space cage, trapping the short, thin old man inside.
"Bang."
Zhang Ruochen pulled the silver chain, and the space cage flew back, crashing heavily to the ground.
The intense impact left the short, thin old man dizzy and disoriented.
Zhang Ruochen's expression turned very serious as he truly began to regard the short, thin old man with caution. Being able to break free from the space thread's binding, burrow into the ground, and travel a hundred miles in an instant—such methods were not something an ordinary Saint King could possess.
(Chapter End)