Chapter 2117: The Legendary Ancestral Land
No matter how chaotic the outside world was, deep within the mountains of Wangshan, the valley remained quiet. Everyone was fully immersed in cultivation. In a chaotic era, strength was the foundation of survival.
"Whoosh."
Zhang Ruochen suddenly opened his eyes, and a pure white flame rose from the surface of his body.
By refining a King-grade Sacred Pill and a top-tier fire-attribute divine object, Zhang Ruochen had finally succeeded in transforming his Purifying Divine Flame from a Minister Flame into an Emperor Flame.
The Emperor Flame and the Minister Flame were fundamentally different, with incomparable power. Even a Monarch Sacred Artifact could potentially be completely refined by it.
The million divine rules within the Blazing God Leg had also been fully refined, containing terrifying divine power.
In addition, Zhang Ruochen had refined five top-tier Five Elements divine objects into his physical body, pushing the Five Elements Chaos Body to its limit. Except for his most vulnerable internal organs and brain, his body had almost achieved complete immortalization.
As long as he was willing, with a little time, he could forge an Immortal Sacred Body and break through to the Immortal Great Saint Realm.
Of course, Zhang Ruochen would not do that now. The deeper his accumulation in the Saint King Realm, the stronger he would become upon entering the Great Saint Realm. According to his plan, he wanted to reach the limits of the Saint King Realm in both his Sacred Dao rules and the immortalization of his physical body.
"The transformation of the Purifying Divine Flame was indeed not easy. Even with the help of a King-grade Sacred Pill and a top-tier fire-attribute divine object, it still took me twenty-eight years. Fortunately, I obtained enough divine stones on True Dragon Island; otherwise, I might have had to give up midway." Zhang Ruochen sighed.
In his plan, it should have taken about ten years for the Purifying Divine Flame to transform into an Emperor Flame, but it ended up taking nearly three times as long.
Withdrawing the Purifying Divine Flame back into his body, Zhang Ruochen murmured, "It's a pity that the Truth Realm Form still couldn't be successfully condensed. It's always lacking a bit. Without the secret transmission method of the Truth Divine Temple, it is indeed very difficult to condense."
Over these years, the Truth rules within Zhang Ruochen's body had increased to 680,000, still a full 200,000 short of achieving ten times attack power. However, if he couldn't condense the Truth Realm Form, even if the number of rules reached the requirement, he still wouldn't be able to unleash ten times attack power.
For any Sacred Dao, the total number of rules that could be cultivated in the Saint King Realm was one million. The further one went, the greater the difficulty of cultivation.
Because of this, even though Zhang Ruochen possessed 39/10,000 of the Truth Esoterica, the speed at which he cultivated Truth rules was far from what it used to be.
With the help of various auxiliary cultivation treasures and the influence of the World Gate Key, Zhang Ruochen had increased his total Sacred Dao rules by 15 million during this seclusion, reaching a total of 60 million.
Among them, Space rules had increased to 610,000, Time rules to 570,000, Sword Dao rules to 880,000, Palm Dao rules to 790,000, and Fist Dao rules to 770,000, all with considerable improvements.
With Zhang Ruochen's current strength, if he were to face Golden Radiance Great Saint again, he should be able to defeat him without needing to risk using the power of time and space.
Turning his gaze, Zhang Ruochen swept his eyes over the people around him and nodded inwardly.
Twenty-eight years, coupled with the abundant cultivation resources he had provided, had greatly improved everyone's cultivation and strength.
In particular, the Devouring Heaven Rabbit and the Demon Ape had both reached the Dao Domain Realm. In any major world, they could be considered strong.
During this time, Xiao Hei had also completed the arrangement of the formation, turning the valley into a true cultivation holy land while ensuring the World Gate Key was foolproof.
Zhang Ruochen did not disturb the others' cultivation. He put away the Sundial and left the valley alone.
He only had seven divine stones left. He would keep them for now; they might come in handy for other purposes.
A green sacred light flew out from Zhang Ruochen's sleeve, transforming into a green dragon over a hundred miles long, exuding a vast dragon might.
This was the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon that Zhou Yu had captured from the desolate secret realm with great effort. It was an ancient relic with extremely powerful bloodline, no less than the Devouring Demon Dragon, and its cultivation and strength far surpassed it.
However, Zhou Yu had never truly subdued the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon. It was Zhang Ruochen who had successfully tamed it.
There were two main reasons why the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon submitted.
First, naturally, it was because Zhang Ruochen's strength was great enough that the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon could not muster the will to resist.
Second, it was because of the Dragon Transformation Herb, which held a fatal allure for the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon.
After refining the Dragon Transformation Herb, the divine dragon bloodline within the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon was fully awakened, and it was on the verge of achieving a True Dragon physique.
The so-called True Dragon referred to a divine dragon that had not yet become a god. Since the Middle Ages, only Ao Xinyan in the Kunlun Realm had cultivated a pure True Dragon physique, which was why she was favored by that taboo figure of Yin-Yang Sea.
Although the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon had not yet cultivated a True Dragon body, its strength had still increased considerably. If it were to fight Zhou Yu again, it might not necessarily lose.
"Tap, tap."
Footsteps sounded.
A withered old man, as thin as a stick, emerged from nowhere, staring at the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon with gleaming green eyes.
"What a plump dragon. It must taste very good."
As he spoke, the old man licked his lips, almost drooling.
Hearing this, the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon became furious. It descended from the sky and landed in front of the old man, breathing out terrifying dragon breath.
The old man, though seemingly on the verge of death, was incredibly agile. He instantly retreated, putting distance between himself and the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon, then turned his gaze to Zhang Ruochen, shouting, "Zhang Ruochen, control your dragon! You've scared this old man!"
Zhang Ruochen frowned, looking at the old man with an unfriendly gaze. He wanted to beat him up but held back.
This was the third time he had seen the old man in Wangshan. The first time was when Wangshan underwent its mutation; the old man had just crawled out from underground, claiming to be a tomb raider. The second time, he had tried to drug a group of female saints, and even the Hundred Flowers Fairy had almost fallen victim.
Unfortunately, the old man was too slippery. Even with all his skills, Zhang Ruochen could not catch him.
Even now, Zhang Ruochen still could not see through the old man. He did not know his origin or what level his cultivation had reached.
"Old fellow, why are you still in Wangshan?" Zhang Ruochen asked with a hostile look.
The old man chuckled, "Didn't I tell you last time? I am the guardian of the Zhang Clan. The ancestral land of the Zhang Clan is here, so of course, I have to stay."
"Since you refuse to confess honestly, I'll have to resort to force." Zhang Ruochen's eyes suddenly turned sharp.
As he spoke, Zhang Ruochen mobilized Space rules, releasing a Space Domain that completely sealed off the space for hundreds of miles.
Times had changed. With his current cultivation, even against an Immortal Late Stage Great Saint, he could put up a fight.
"Roar."
The Azure Sky Sacred Dragon roared and attacked the old man.
A huge, sharp dragon claw shot out like lightning, condensing into a storm of wind and clouds, sealing off all the old man's escape routes.
"Wow, Zhang Ruochen, what are you trying to do?"
The old man shouted in surprise while dodging at lightning speed.
To Zhang Ruochen's surprise, even though the space for hundreds of miles was completely sealed, the old man could still move freely, seemingly unaffected.
Surprised, Zhang Ruochen mobilized a large number of Space rules, unleashing a Space Storm that swept toward the old man.
The Space Storm covered a wide area and arrived in an instant, leaving the old man no room to dodge.
The old man still did not use any Sacred Art. He used his physical body to withstand the Space Storm.
"Boom."
The Space Storm was torn apart by the old man and quickly subsided.
Seeing this, Zhang Ruochen's eyelids twitched violently. With his current mastery of space, even an ordinary Immortal Great Saint could not withstand a Space Storm, yet this old man had broken it so easily.
How was that possible?
Earlier, he had suspected the old man was a top-tier Nine-Step Saint King, but now it seemed he had severely underestimated him.
No wonder the old man said he could not leave Wangshan for fear of being discovered. With his strength, he would indeed not be allowed to stay in the Kunlun Realm.
Zhang Ruochen stopped and asked very seriously, "You are not a Saint King, nor a person of this era. Tell me, who are you?"
He had already realized that the old man was probably an Awakener. When they first met, he had just awakened from underground.
Moreover, the old man was not an ordinary Awakener. His strength was formidable, at least at the Great Saint level.
The once-insignificant Wangshan had become a place of awakening, and even an Awakener had emerged. It was truly unbelievable.
"I am like you, a member of the Zhang Clan. Let's talk nicely. Why resort to violence? This old man's bones are old and brittle; they can't take much." The old man said with a smile while rubbing his waist.
The Azure Sky Sacred Dragon also sensed the old man's strength and retreated to Zhang Ruochen's side, watching him warily.
"Rumble."
Just as the two sides were confronting each other, a huge commotion suddenly came from deep within Wangshan.
Zhang Ruochen immediately turned to look, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "The folded space is opening further. Wangshan is becoming even more vast."
In the blink of an eye, the old man had vanished without a trace, nowhere to be found.
Zhang Ruochen used his Space Domain to sense but could not detect the old man's presence.
After a moment of thought, Zhang Ruochen put the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon back into his sleeve and used Spatial Displacement to head deep into Wangshan.
With his current strength, he was qualified to explore this folded space. Even if there was danger, he had the confidence to protect himself.
The sacred energy of heaven and earth deep in Wangshan was even denser, almost to the point of being unbreakable, mixed with a great deal of divine energy, presenting a sacred scene.
As soon as he entered the depths of Wangshan, Zhang Ruochen was attracted by something.
On a cliff face, a huge green dragon coiled, hundreds of feet long, breathing in the sacred energy of heaven and earth.
"This is... a Coiling Dragon Vine." Zhang Ruochen's eyes lit up.
That green dragon was not a real dragon but a sacred medicine.
If it were an ordinary sacred medicine, even a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine, it would hardly catch Zhang Ruochen's attention. But this Coiling Dragon Vine was different; it was an Eon Sacred Medicine.
As if sensing the Coiling Dragon Vine's aura, the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon immediately poked its head out of Zhang Ruochen's sleeve, staring at the vine with burning eyes.
"Master, I want it." The Azure Sky Sacred Dragon said excitedly.
Zhang Ruochen naturally knew that the Coiling Dragon Vine was most useful to the dragon clan, allowing them to improve in all aspects.
However, the Coiling Dragon Vine was a highly aggressive Eon Sacred Medicine, and ordinary people could not handle it.
Zhang Ruochen had already sensed that this Coiling Dragon Vine's aura was extremely powerful, with overwhelming ferocity. It would not be easy to deal with.
"Roar."
Just then, the Coiling Dragon Vine suddenly let out a earth-shaking dragon roar, lunging at Zhang Ruochen with claws bared.
"Whoosh."
The Azure Sky Sacred Dragon immediately flew out of Zhang Ruochen's sleeve, growing larger as it went, colliding with the charging Coiling Dragon Vine.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen walked deeper into the folded space, not worried at all that the Azure Sky Sacred Dragon could not handle the Coiling Dragon Vine.
Along the way, a large number of sacred medicines grew, most of which were very old, top-grade sacred medicines that even Saint Kings could use.
In fact, Zhang Ruochen even discovered three hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicines, each extremely rare and priceless, coveted even by Nine-Step Saint Kings.
However, Zhang Ruochen did not pick them. Since Wangshan was sealed, he was not afraid they would escape.
Zhang Ruochen had already given the Seven Dragon Alchemy Cauldron to Xiao Hei. With these high-quality sacred medicines, he should be able to refine many high-grade pills.
After passing through several sacred mountains, Zhang Ruochen stopped.
Ahead of him lay a very special area, shrouded in brilliant nine-colored divine light, extremely sacred, like a pure land.
For some reason, as soon as he approached, Zhang Ruochen's heart became extremely calm, filled with a sense of tranquility.
Through the nine-colored divine light, Zhang Ruochen saw countless low hills, densely packed, stretching endlessly. He could not see how many there were.
Each hill was very special, with a huge tombstone in front, shrouded in extremely ancient Great Saint rules, making it impossible to see their true form, and emitting a very strong Great Saint aura.
"Could these be the tombs of Great Saints?"
Zhang Ruochen's heart shook violently.
In the imperial tomb forest of the Sacred Bright Zhang Clan, the nine tombs of the Great Saint ancestors were similar to these hills.
Thinking of this possibility, Zhang Ruochen could no longer remain calm, because just the tombs he could see numbered over a thousand.
Did that mean at least a thousand Great Saints were buried here?
Had all the Great Saints of the Kunlun Realm from a certain era died here, buried in this place? But that was simply impossible.
The aura of a Great Saint was powerful, and even after death, it remained strong, not dissipating for a long time.
Filled with doubts, Zhang Ruochen walked forward. But as soon as he approached the nine-colored divine light, ripples of space appeared under his feet, and waves of terrifying sacred might surged toward him, as if to tear him apart.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to resist, his own bloodline suddenly stirred, and the incoming sacred might inexplicably dissipated.
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen felt a great reduction in pressure, much more relaxed.
"What happened? Why did the Great Saint's pressure recede like a tide? Just now, my bloodline seemed to experience an unprecedented tremor." Zhang Ruochen had a vague guess.
He stepped forward again, expending great effort, and finally arrived at a low hill.
In front of this hill stood a stone tablet, engraved with some complex characters, not of this era.
"Such an ancient aura. The characters should be from the Middle Ages, containing the Dao rhythm of a Great Saint. However, the surface of the characters is shrouded in an invisible force. Even with my sacred eyes, I can only see a rough outline, somewhat blurry and hard to read."
Looking at the stone tablet before him, Zhang Ruochen could not calm down.
He immediately released his powerful spiritual power, touching the characters on the stone tablet, and began to decipher them.
To Zhang Ruochen's surprise, this script was even more obscure than he had anticipated. Even with his current spiritual power, deciphering it was extremely difficult.
Mobilizing his spiritual power to the fullest, Zhang Ruochen finally managed to decipher the characters on the stone tablet.
"Tomb of Northern Bright Sacred Lord Zhang Lin."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes narrowed. "It really is a Great Saint's tomb. This..."
Over a thousand Great Saint tombs—how astonishing! If he told anyone, they probably wouldn't believe it.
"Northern Bright Sacred Lord, Zhang Lin. Why does this name feel familiar?" Zhang Ruochen looked puzzled.
He moved to a nearby tomb and mobilized his spiritual power to envelop the tombstone in front.
"Tomb of Profound Shadow Great Emperor Zhang Tianshu."
Zhang Ruochen looked thoughtful and murmured, "Zhang Lin, Zhang Tianshu..."
"Zhang Lin, Zhang Tianshu—aren't these the names of two Great Saint ancestors from the Middle Ages recorded in my Zhang Clan's genealogy?" Zhang Ruochen suddenly remembered.
The Zhang Clan of the Central Domain had a very glorious history, with Great Saint-level experts born in every generation. Even now, dozens of statues of Great Saint ancestors were enshrined in the Ancestral Temple.
With a flip of his hand, Zhang Ruochen took out an item—the Zhang Clan's long-standing genealogy.
The genealogy was incomplete, only half a book.
Soon, he found the names Zhang Lin and Zhang Tianshu in the genealogy, both leaving a significant mark in the Zhang Clan's history.
"Could this really be the legendary ancestral land of the Zhang Clan?" Zhang Ruochen's heart shook violently, unable to remain calm.
He had once read an ancient book that mentioned the Zhang Clan had an ancestral land, but it was destroyed at the end of the Middle Ages, and later generations could never find it.
If so, did the Zhang Clan of Yunwu Commandery and the Sacred Bright Zhang Clan of the Central Domain truly belong to the same lineage?
But with so many Great Saint tombs here, were they all ancestors of the Zhang Clan?