Chapter 2176: Each Has Their Own Aspirations
Yin Yuanchen's desperate act of revealing his true intentions left Zhang Ruochen feeling pained. In the end, they were not on the same path.
Zhang Ruochen believed that many of the words Yin Yuanchen had spoken in the past were not false, that they were genuine expressions of emotion; otherwise, they would not have fooled him. However, Yin Yuanchen had ultimately chosen a different path.
Just as the talisman was about to touch Zhang Ruochen's body, time and space suddenly fell into stillness, a momentary pause.
In that instant, Zhang Ruochen extended a hand and grabbed Yin Yuanchen's arm. His five fingers were like divine iron, shimmering with a five-colored chaotic light, almost pinning Yin Yuanchen in place.
Immediately after, Zhang Ruochen pressed the talisman back against him.
"Hm? No."
Zhang Ruochen's expression shifted slightly as he sensed something amiss.
He quickly released the arm, and Yin Yuanchen took the opportunity to retreat rapidly, putting distance between them.
Yin Yuanchen's face showed pain as he used a secret technique to peel off the talisman stuck to his body as quickly as possible.
Fortunately, he had been prepared, having set up countermeasures against talismans on his body just in case.
However, in that brief moment, part of the talisman's power had already seeped into his body. For the time being, he could not completely expel it and would inevitably suffer some hardship.
Yet a smile still appeared on Yin Yuanchen's face. No matter how formidable Zhang Ruochen was, he had still been ambushed.
Zhang Ruochen stood still, his gaze fixed on his hand, which had been as smooth as jade but was now a greenish-black color. Strange patterns flickered faintly, frantically eroding his life force.
A Le said, "You've been poisoned. It's the Death God's Edict from the Heavenly Kill Organization."
The Heavenly Kill Organization was one of the three most feared assassin organizations in the Heavenly Court Realm, originating from the Paradise Realm.
The Death God's Edict was a unique poison concocted by the Heavenly Kill Organization, meaning a decree from the God of Death. Those who were hit by it were doomed to die, potent enough to kill a Great Saint.
Cultivators below the Great Saint realm who were struck by the Death God's Edict had almost no cure and were certain to die.
Since the establishment of the Heavenly Kill Organization, countless powerful figures had been poisoned to death by the Death God's Edict.
The fact that the Heavenly Kill Organization could inspire such fear was largely due to this deadly poison.
Zhang Ruochen had truly not expected Yin Yuanchen to have refined the Death God's Edict onto the surface of his body, so that any contact would result in poisoning.
It had to be said that Yin Yuanchen was deeply calculating, his schemes interlocking like a chain.
Yin Yuanchen suppressed the power of the talisman, his entire demeanor becoming sharp and aggressive, losing all traces of gentleness. He fixed a piercing gaze on Zhang Ruochen and said, "We really are very alike. I truly don't want to kill you, but unfortunately, you oppose the Paradise Realm at every turn. Your fate was sealed long ago."
"Did you know that from the very beginning, the Paradise Realm arranged for me to be your opponent? I've been waiting for this day."
As he spoke, Yin Yuanchen released an immensely profound aura, as if a chaotic heaven and earth were seated there, majestic and vast, far more powerful than when he had struck at Yan Wushen.
In fact, Zhang Ruochen sensed that his aura even surpassed that of Archangel Michael.
"I underestimated how much the Paradise Realm values me," Zhang Ruochen sighed inwardly.
The Paradise Realm had gone to great lengths to deal with him, making Yin Yuanchen conceal his true cultivation and strength all along, while also finding ways to get close to him and earn his trust.
It could only be said that the Paradise Realm felt threatened by Zhang Ruochen.
And Yin Yuanchen was indeed a very good blade.
"Must have been exhausting to fabricate so many lies," Zhang Ruochen said.
Yin Yuanchen let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Do you think those were all lies? No, they were all true. But that person wasn't me; it was my father, a hopeless goody-two-shoes who always pined for the Kunlun Realm."
"After the Middle Ages Cataclysm, my grandmother was imprisoned by my grandfather in the Nether Soul Sea, isolated from the world for a full hundred thousand years. No one could approach her, and she was gradually forgotten. Only my father never stopped thinking about her."
"He always wanted to rescue her and return to the Kunlun Realm with her. To that end, he endured endlessly. Even after becoming a god, he didn't act rashly. He devoted all his time and energy to cultivation, making himself stronger while waiting for an opportunity. It wasn't until a few hundred years ago that he married my mother and had me."
"But even so, he never gave up the idea of rescuing my grandmother. He was too foolish. For the sake of filial piety and blood ties, he didn't hesitate to make enemies of the entire Paradise Realm. But he failed and was killed by my grandfather's own hand."
"At that time, I was only seven years old. I saw my father killed with my own eyes. Do you know how scared I was? Do you know how much pain I was in? I lived in fear every day, in pain every day. What if I was next? What then?"
The last sentence was completely roared out by Yin Yuanchen. His emotions became extremely agitated, impossible to suppress.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen's heart couldn't help but stir. He truly hadn't expected Yin Yuanchen to have such an experience.
Without a doubt, Yin Yuanchen's father was a god, and likely a powerful one at that. In the end, he was killed by Yin Yuanchen's grandfather for trying to save his mother.
It had to be said that Yin Yuanchen's grandfather was truly ruthless and extremely powerful.
"After my father died, everyone in the clan ostracized me, bullied me. No one acknowledged me."
Yin Yuanchen laughed uproariously, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, but tears streamed from his eyes as he roared like a wild beast, "Why did they treat me like that? What did I do wrong? Was it just because I carry the bloodline of Ten Calamities Wen Tianjun?"
"No, I did nothing wrong. I just wanted to survive. I just wanted to live with dignity. I've always been the best. I am the number one genius of the Paradise Realm. The glory that Michael enjoys should have been mine."
"I refuse to become like my father, always enduring, always living in pain, only to end up like that. I want to change all of this."
Yin Yuanchen fell into a state of frenzy. These words had been buried in his heart for a long time, suppressed for too long. Today, he could finally speak them to someone.
The next moment, Yin Yuanchen's eyes turned bloodshot, his body trembling violently as he laughed wildly, "Now the opportunity has finally come. As long as I kill you, I can gain my grandfather's recognition and become a true cultivator of the Paradise Realm. So you must die."
The chance to change everything was right before him. No matter who stood in his way, he would kill them without hesitation. He had had enough of being ostracized and bullied everywhere.
Once, he had wanted to be like his father, but the cruelty of reality forced him to choose another path.
"Since your grandmother was imprisoned, how did you receive the baptism of the secret technique from the *Tongtian Record*?" Zhang Ruochen asked curiously.
If the *Tongtian Record*, the peerless divine skill cultivated by Ten Calamities Wen Tianjun, had fallen into the hands of the Paradise Realm, that would indeed be a bad thing.
Yin Yuanchen sneered, "Do you know what happens to a person imprisoned for a hundred thousand years without contact with anyone? In that situation, when she saw her own grandson, she would believe whatever I said."
"She hoped I would visit her often, placed all her hopes on me, and even wanted me to find Ten Calamities Wen Tianjun to revive the Kunlun Realm. Isn't that laughable?"
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen couldn't help but frown. A hundred thousand years of imprisonment—that kind of loneliness and isolation would drive anyone mad.
That the daughter of Ten Calamities Wen Tianjun could end up like this was truly unimaginable.
"It is laughable, but the laughable one is you. In my eyes, you are just a coward, running from reality. How pathetic," Zhang Ruochen said coldly.
Yin Yuanchen's face twisted with ferocity. He pointed at Zhang Ruochen and roared, "You have no right to say that to me. You don't understand what I've been through at all. If anyone is pathetic, it's you. You've done so much for the Kunlun Realm, and what have you gotten? In the end, you're just someone abandoned by the Kunlun Realm."
"You have no idea how powerful the Paradise Realm is. In a hundred thousand years, the Paradise Realm has birthed many gods, becoming even stronger than before the Middle Ages Cataclysm. It has long stood at the true pinnacle, while the Kunlun Realm has steadily declined. The gap between them is like heaven and earth."
"The gods of the Kunlun Realm did leave some contingencies, but they can't change anything. I've already killed over a dozen awakeners with my own hands. This time, the Kunlun Realm will surely be destroyed. Zhang Ruochen, this is the tide of the times. You can't stop it. Blocking the way will only lead to death."
Saying these words, Yin Yuanchen undoubtedly wanted to shake Zhang Ruochen's conviction, to see a look of despair on his face.
In truth, he very much hoped Zhang Ruochen would defect to the Paradise Realm. Then they might become true kindred spirits, writing a legend together.
Unfortunately, they had chosen different paths, ending up on opposite sides, destined for a life-and-death conclusion.
However, to Yin Yuanchen's disappointment, Zhang Ruochen remained calm throughout, as still as an ancient well, as if he didn't realize how dangerous his situation was.
"Since you have completely sided against the Kunlun Realm, I no longer need to show you any mercy," Zhang Ruochen said in a low voice.
Yin Yuanchen's eyes turned icy cold, and a terrifying killing intent emanated from him. "Let me send you on your way and ease your pain."
As he spoke, Yin Yuanchen immediately made his move, unwilling to drag things out any longer to avoid unexpected developments.
Although Zhang Ruochen had been poisoned by the Death God's Edict and was theoretically doomed to die, Zhang Ruochen was no ordinary person. No one could say for sure that he had no way to detoxify.
Yin Yuanchen spread open a palm, and in the center of his hand was all water.
An extremely terrifying force enveloped Zhang Ruochen and A Le, impossible to resist.
In an instant, the two were pulled into a boundless sea, with towering waves all around, endless and vast, like a chaotic ocean.
Yin Yuanchen stood at the horizon, his body as immense as the universe, like a supreme heavenly god, looking down on the two of them.
This chaotic sea was in the palm of Yin Yuanchen's hand.
More precisely, it was inside the glove Yin Yuanchen was wearing.
This glove was refined from a sea world, containing immensely vast power. Although it couldn't compare to Bian Zhuang War God's Heavenly Peng Bell, it was still extraordinary.
It seemed ordinary on the surface, but it held a universe within. As long as one was powerful enough to activate the glove, it could trap even a Great Saint inside.
If not for this glove, how would Yin Yuanchen have dared to use his hand to pick up that terrifying talisman?
Above the sea, two enormous bright moons suddenly rose, both releasing terrifying lunar force that filled the entire world.
In an instant, tens of thousands of miles of sea were completely frozen, the temperature dropping to an extreme low.
The lunar force turned into a tide, sweeping toward Zhang Ruochen and A Le from all directions.
Not only that, but a powerful spiritual force also swept in, approaching the sixtieth level, and of extremely high quality, turning into a spiritual storm that was unstoppable and irresistible.
A gleam of light flashed in Zhang Ruochen's eyes as he instantly saw through the reality of the two moons. They were actually a colossal creature.
"It's a Kun."
A Kun was a massive fish that lived in vast oceans, its body incredibly huge. It was a creature on the same level as a divine dragon and could grow into a powerful divine beast.
Yin Yuanchen was a lover of fish, fond of keeping them, but Zhang Ruochen hadn't expected him to also raise a real big fish.
A Kun was born with mastery over lunar force. If it could generate solar force, it might transform into a Peng, soaring ninety thousand miles into the sky.
Moreover, a Kun possessed a terrifying innate ability: devouring. Its belly held a universe, capable of swallowing all things. A Kun that grew to its peak could even swallow an entire major world in one gulp.
The Kun before them emitted an extremely powerful aura. Even swallowing a Nine-Step Saint King would be effortless.
Zhang Ruochen moved his mind, immediately releasing his own spiritual power to block the attack.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen mobilized his palm path rules and struck out with a palm.
"Roar."
Accompanied by a dragon roar that shook heaven and earth, a golden divine dragon a thousand miles long flew out from Zhang Ruochen's palm. It was solid and lifelike, radiating vast dragon might as it soared into the nine heavens.
The divine dragon emerged from the sea, its unmatched power shattering all the ice on the surface.
"Boom."
The dragon collided with the two moons, directly shattering them.
"Bang."
The Kun's massive form was revealed, falling from midair into the sea.
Its body was hundreds of miles long, looking quite similar to a whale.
Pain was evident in the Kun's eyes; it had clearly been seriously injured, but it had survived.
In that palm strike, Zhang Ruochen hadn't used the Way of Truth or any other power, only palm techniques.
But with his current strength, even a casual palm strike could kill a Nine-Step Saint King.
The fact that the Kun could withstand one palm and survive showed just how powerful it was, likely not inferior to the Azure Heaven Sacred Dragon.
Before Zhang Ruochen could strike again, A Le moved. He drew his sword in an instant, the speed of the blade beyond imagination.
A peerless sword qi slashed out, connecting heaven and earth, cutting through the sky.
"Swish."
The sea split open, revealing an extremely deep trench. Under the sword qi, it became a vacuum zone where seawater couldn't merge.
The Kun reacted quickly, releasing immense lunar force to condense a solid ice wall, trying to block A Le's sword strike.
"Crack."
The ice wall shattered directly, unable to withstand A Le's ultimate sword qi.
The Kun's eyes widened, and its massive body split apart. Blood gushed out, instantly dyeing a large area of the sea red. It died on the spot.
It wasn't that the Kun wasn't strong enough, but that A Le's sword was too sharp.
Unlike Zhang Ruochen, A Le's sword dao emphasized the principle of the extraordinary. His sword took a unique path, focused solely on killing. When the sword was drawn, blood was inevitable. It was often a matter of life or death.
Because of this, even when facing opponents stronger than himself, A Le could still win.
"Buzz."
Countless tiny black particles flew out from the Kun's body, covering the sky.
"Gu worms."
Zhang Ruochen's pupils contracted.
He could tell that these gu worms were far from ordinary. The key was their staggering number—over a hundred million.
The art of gu and witchcraft had flourished in the Primordial Era. After countless ages, it had long been lost. Zhang Ruochen hadn't expected Yin Yuanchen to master it and cultivate so many terrifying gu worms.
It had to be said that Yin Yuanchen had hidden himself deeply. Before this, he had never revealed any of this in front of others.
Talismans, deadly poisons, world gloves, Kun, gu worms—a series of endless tricks, interlocking one after another. Yin Yuanchen's scheming was truly terrifying. He had calculated everything long ago.
Faced with Yin Yuanchen's various schemes, it seemed unlikely that anyone could avoid falling into his trap.
"These soul-devouring gu worms were originally cultivated by my father. After he died, I continued to feed them with his divine blood. They were hidden inside the Kun's body. No one knew. Zhang Ruochen, enjoy yourself!"
Yin Yuanchen's sinister laughter suddenly rang out.
Zhang Ruochen's heart stirred. He had heard of soul-devouring gu worms. They were among the most terrifying gu worms cultivated in the Primordial Era. When they grew to their peak, they could threaten even gods.
The Primordial Era was too mysterious, at its zenith of brilliance, giving birth to many powers that could rival the Eternal Dao, such as the power of witchcraft, the power of vajra, the power of derivative realms, and so on.
It was hard to imagine under what circumstances these powerful forces had been born.
That Yin Yuanchen's father could cultivate such a massive number of soul-devouring gu worms showed that his methods were extraordinary. He must have obtained the top-tier inheritance of the Primordial Era.
But for Yin Yuanchen to use his own father's divine blood to feed the gu worms was utterly unfilial. His heart had truly gone completely mad.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at his hand, which had been contaminated by the deadly poison. Pure white Purifying Divine Flame was now burning fiercely, rapidly refining the toxins of the Death God's Edict.
The Death God's Edict was indeed terrifying. Fortunately, Zhang Ruochen had been on guard. Additionally, the divine patterns inscribed by the Moon God on his body and the rejection of the Seven-Star Divine Ling's Sun Leaf essence had greatly hindered the poison's erosion.
This allowed Zhang Ruochen to refine it in time with the Purifying Divine Flame.
His fire path had been cultivated to Great Perfection. Using the imperial-level Purifying Divine Flame, he could refine all things.
Nevertheless, refining the Death God's Edict still cost Zhang Ruochen a great deal of effort, and he lost some of his primordial energy.
Finally, the toxins of the Death God's Edict were completely refined, and Zhang Ruochen's hand became fair and jade-like again.
With a thought, Zhang Ruochen summoned the Flame God Armor and put it on.
If he had been wearing the Flame God Armor earlier, Yin Yuanchen's Death God's Edict poison would never have been able to ambush him.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen took out the two-thousand-times-speed Radiant Merit Armor and handed it to A Le.
A Le didn't refuse and put it on without hesitation.
From now on, they might face many powerful enemies, so their own defense would be especially important.