Chapter 2221: Azure Deer Divine Temple
The second stage of refining the Water Star Gourd primarily involved combining it with the Annihilation Golden Sun.
The Annihilation Golden Sun was a supreme sacred artifact of the Blazing Sun Civilization, forged from the core essence of a star. If it could be combined with the Water Star Gourd, it would surely transform into an even more formidable battle weapon.
Zhang Ruochen took out the Annihilation Golden Sun, channeled sacred qi into it, causing the golden sun to expand and contract alternately as he carefully sensed the fluctuations in its power.
"Before fusing them, I must first completely subdue the artifact spirit of the Annihilation Golden Sun."
The artifact spirit of the Annihilation Golden Sun had reached the Great Saint level.
Back when Blazing Sun Heavenly Son brought it to the Kunlun Realm Merit Battlefield, the spirit inside had been sealed by a layer of divine power placed by Blazing Sun Heavenly Lord.
Both Blazing Sun Heavenly Son and Zhang Ruochen had been able to communicate with the Annihilation Golden Sun and unleash part of its supreme sacred artifact power only because they had refined the blood and soul of the ancient Golden Crow.
Zhang Ruochen released Purifying Divine Flame, condensing it into nine fire dragons, and continuously refined the layer of divine power within the Annihilation Golden Sun. Yet, after half a month, that divine layer remained as solid as ever, showing no change.
"Just a single layer of divine power, and I can't refine it even with my Great Saint realm cultivation."
Zhang Ruochen glanced sideways, fixing his gaze on Qingsheng Great Saint.
"What now?"
Qingsheng Great Saint grew wary, afraid of being tricked again.
Zhang Ruochen said thoughtfully, "I'm curious—how big is the gap between the Supreme Realm Great Saint and the Divine Realm?"
This question struck a chord with Qingsheng Great Saint.
His eyes grew distant, and he sighed, "You could say it's a gap of a single step, or you could say it's a gap between heaven and earth. Why do you ask?"
"I just want to know if a Supreme Realm Great Saint can refine a divine power barrier placed by a god within a supreme sacred artifact," Zhang Ruochen said.
Qingsheng Great Saint looked at the Annihilation Golden Sun and immediately understood Zhang Ruochen's intention.
After all that roundabout talk, he just wanted help refining it.
"Give it here. A mere divine power barrier is nothing to me," Qingsheng Great Saint said. He knew Zhang Ruochen's talent and how much the Three Blood Gods valued him.
And Qingsheng Great Saint cared more about Zhang Ruochen's sense of belonging to the Blood Absolute Clan. So helping with small favors was no issue at all.
Qingsheng Great Saint embraced the Annihilation Golden Sun between his hands, releasing streams of blood qi that surged into its interior.
"It's a divine power seal personally placed by Blazing Sun Heavenly Lord—refining it won't be easy." Even as he said this, a broad smile spread across Qingsheng Great Saint's face.
After spending most of a day refining it, the divine power barrier grew weaker. The Annihilation Golden Sun trembled violently, and loud cries echoed from within.
The sound was deafening, causing the air itself to vibrate.
Qingsheng Great Saint looked at Zhang Ruochen and said, "The power fluctuations from the Annihilation Golden Sun's artifact spirit have reached the Hundred Shackles realm. Can you subdue it yourself?"
"Shouldn't be a problem," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Good."
"Boom."
The divine power barrier shattered completely.
At the same time, Qingsheng Great Saint withdrew his hands and retreated rapidly. In the blink of an eye, he appeared a thousand miles away.
The Annihilation Golden Sun emitted blinding light, each ray like a golden arrow. Any being below the Saint King level who merely glanced at it would have their eyes ignite instantly, turning them blind.
"Caw!"
With a deafening cry, a Golden Crow flew out from the Annihilation Golden Sun.
The Golden Crow had three legs, its golden wings spanning tens of thousands of zhang. Its eyes gleamed with ferocity as it spoke human language: "I am a supreme sacred artifact under Blazing Sun Heavenly Lord! Quickly undo the divine patterns surrounding this space and let me return to the Blazing Sun Civilization. Otherwise, when the Heavenly Lord arrives, you will all die."
"It seems you've been sealed within divine power and have no idea where you are."
Zhang Ruochen wasted no words. The Flame God Armor blazed on his body as he raised his right hand, which grew larger and larger until his palm was several times bigger than the Golden Crow's body.
With a flip of his hand, he struck downward.
"Boom."
Under this blow, the light on the Golden Crow dimmed slightly.
Realizing that this human was a Great Saint and not to be trifled with, it quickly flew back into the Annihilation Golden Sun, activating the supreme sacred artifact's power.
"Rumble."
Inscription light threads emerged on the Annihilation Golden Sun.
Its volume grew larger and larger—ten li in diameter, a hundred li...
Though it didn't reach the size of a star, it became as large as a planet, golden and radiant. The supreme power and flames it released slightly distorted space.
"This is the true power of the Annihilation Golden Sun. Even with just the artifact spirit controlling it, a single random strike could shatter stars and annihilate void realms."
"If any of the Three Blood Gods of the Blood Heaven Tribe faced the Annihilation Golden Sun alone, they'd have to flee immediately."
Qingsheng Great Saint grew worried, thinking that Zhang Ruochen might not be able to subdue it at his current cultivation level.
Instead of fear, Zhang Ruochen felt joy. He understood that with the artifact spirit fully unleashed, the Annihilation Golden Sun was truly a supreme sacred artifact. If he wielded it, even against a Hundred Shackles Great Perfection powerhouse, he could fight to the heavens and earth.
"Truth Realm Form."
Zhang Ruochen spread his hands, and dense starry light dots appeared around him, forming a vast starry sky.
The starry sky spread a thousand miles, even giving Qingsheng Great Saint subtle sensations, as if he had touched truth and resolved some previously unsolvable cultivation puzzles.
It was the power of the Heart of Truth.
"Rumble."
From afar, Zhang Ruochen's Truth Realm Form turned into a thousand-mile starry sky, violently clashing with a golden fireball a thousand miles in diameter. The energy waves surged like mountains and seas.
Above the Heaven and Earth Divine Furnace, fire spirits roared like dragons and lions, eager to join the battle, but Qingsheng Great Saint held them back.
Zhang Ruochen mobilized Truth Rules, striking out with both palms, executing the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm.
Ten times the attack power merged with his palm force.
"Boom."
His palms collided with the Annihilation Golden Sun, sending it flying backward with a violent tremor.
The light on the Annihilation Golden Sun dimmed further.
When an artifact spirit controlled a supreme sacred artifact, it could unleash formidable power, but it couldn't sustain it. Once the energy within the artifact was depleted, it would lose its attack capability.
Zhang Ruochen struck dozens of palm prints, each with ten times the attack power. The Annihilation Golden Sun shrank continuously until it was the size of a house, then flew off rapidly, trying to escape.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Zhang Ruochen pointed a finger.
In front of the Annihilation Golden Sun, space twisted into a massive vortex.
After rushing into the vortex, the Annihilation Golden Sun appeared above Zhang Ruochen's palm, trembling violently and spinning rapidly.
"Since you're so loyal to Blazing Sun Heavenly Lord, I'll have to erase your consciousness," Zhang Ruochen said.
The Golden Crow's voice came from within the Annihilation Golden Sun, pleading, "No! Master, master, please spare me! I... I'm just an artifact spirit of a supreme sacred artifact. I've served countless masters. Whoever can suppress me with absolute power, I submit to them. Master, master, can you hear me?"
"..." Zhang Ruochen was speechless, stunned for a long moment.
A Great Saint-level artifact spirit, and it was this cowardly?
Was there no such thing as integrity?
Zhang Ruochen didn't fully trust the Golden Crow artifact spirit, so he took half of its sacred soul and stored it in his Divine Light Qi Sea.
Next, he flew to the edge of the Heaven and Earth Divine Furnace's opening, holding the Water Star Gourd in one hand and the Annihilation Golden Sun in the other, ready to begin the formal fusion.
"Now that the Annihilation Golden Sun's artifact spirit is fully released, it's far more powerful than before. The Water Star Gourd's water-attributed power might not withstand it."
"I need to prepare more water-attributed and yin-cold treasures to balance the two."
Zhang Ruochen was never short of materials.
Soon, he dragged out a piece of purple crystal over seventy meters long from his space ring.
The purple light emitted by the crystal was as dazzling as the Annihilation Golden Sun's golden light. The difference was that the former released a bone-chilling yin-cold aura.
Even sitting beside the Heaven and Earth Divine Furnace, Zhang Ruochen felt his skin ache from the cold.
In the distance, Qingsheng Great Saint couldn't maintain his composure. He trembled with excitement, saying, "That's Cosmic Void Ice Stone... no, Cosmic Void Ice Stone is a divine material for forging supreme sacred artifacts. Even a small piece is priceless. How can there be a mountain-sized piece like this?"
The purple crystal beside Zhang Ruochen was no different from a small stone mountain.
Cosmic Void Ice Stone was a forging material born in the universe's most extreme cold regions, belonging to one of the ten divine-level substances, the "Five Elements Extreme Substances."
It could be bought in the Hell Realm too.
But it was sold by the gram.
Qingsheng Great Saint's heart grew increasingly unbalanced. He wished he could hug that Cosmic Void Ice Stone and smash his head against it. He was a Supreme Realm Great Saint, standing at the pinnacle of the sacred path, yet he was being brutally outclassed by Zhang Ruochen, an Immortal Realm Great Saint.
Compared to Zhang Ruochen, he was no different from a pauper.
Zhang Ruochen casually pulled out the Water Star Gourd, the Annihilation Golden Sun, and the Cosmic Void Ice Stone—any one of which Qingsheng Great Saint felt he would need a lifetime of effort to obtain.
"The Kunlun Realm is indeed full of treasures. Why haven't Xue Chen and Xiaoxiao found anything? Did they secretly hide things?"
"This won't do. I've struggled for the clan for over ten thousand years, yet my wealth doesn't match an Immortal Realm Great Saint. I need to report to the War God and demand a raise in the clan leader's treatment. Otherwise, whoever wants to be clan leader can be it—I'll go earn on the merit battlefield too."
"I helped Zhang Ruochen test the gourd's power earlier and lost three hundred years of lifespan. Should I ask for some compensation? Even a piece of Cosmic Void Ice Stone would do."
"I also helped him refine Blazing Sun Heavenly Lord's divine power barrier—that's no small favor. I should collect some reward."
Countless thoughts raced through Qingsheng Great Saint's mind.
But burdened by his status as a Supreme Realm Great Saint and acting clan leader, he couldn't bring himself to act, unsure whether to do so.
...
...
While Zhang Ruochen was fully immersed in artifact forging, the various forces of the ten clans of the Hell Realm were all preparing for the "Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet." Cultivators on the merit battlefield, upon receiving invitations to the grand banquet, were also returning one after another.
The Shura Clan had twenty-four divine temples, representing the twenty-four most powerful forces. Including the peripheral families, nations, and planets of each divine temple, they encompassed over seventy percent of the Shura Clan's cultivators.
Among them, the Azure Deer Divine Temple ranked second among the twenty-four divine temples, second only to the "Shura Divine Temple."
The Shura Divine Temple represented the Shura Clan's most ancient heritage, its soul and banner, and was naturally undeniably first.
However, in the ninety-nine Heaven Hunting Grand Banquets held since the Middle Ages, the Azure Deer Divine Temple had surpassed the Shura Divine Temple seven times, becoming the first among the twenty-four Shura divine temples.
The Azure Deer Divine Temple had only a history of four eons. Its ability to be so aggressive and increasingly renowned was inseparable from its founding ancestor, "Azure Deer Divine King."
At this moment, Azure Deer Divine King and Xiu Chen Heavenly God sat side by side at the top of the divine temple.
Azure Deer Divine King's body was a blur of chaos, manifesting only as the form of an azure deer. His voice was distant as he said, "Xiu Chen, if you had thought it through earlier and joined our Azure Deer Divine Temple, how could you have suffered the humiliation from Blood Jue War God?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God's face twisted with ferocity, and he said coldly, "If I hadn't been injured by Moon God's divine artifact first, and in the critical period of seizing a body, how could that Blood Jue brat have bullied me?"
Xiu Chen Heavenly God did not belong to any of the twenty-four Shura divine temples. In the previous eon, when his cultivation was at its peak, he had nearly developed the Xiu Chen Heavenly God Temple into the twenty-fifth Shura divine temple.
Unfortunately, after suffering severe injuries in a divine battle, the Xiu Chen Heavenly God Temple had declined.
Azure Deer Divine King had once invited Xiu Chen Heavenly God to join the Azure Deer Divine Temple, but he had declined.
After all, in the previous eon, Xiu Chen Heavenly God's combat power had slightly surpassed Azure Deer Divine King's—how could he be willing to serve under him?
After the battle with Blood Jue War God, Xiu Chen Heavenly God suffered unprecedented humiliation and suddenly woke up. The times had changed; he was no longer the Xiu Chen Heavenly God who could spar with Xumi Saint Monk.
So, burning with hatred, Xiu Chen Heavenly God decided to join the Azure Deer Divine Temple.
"I have no other conditions. In this Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet, the Azure Deer Divine Temple must go all out to humiliate the Blood Heaven Tribe. Every member of the Blood Absolute Clan must die. As for Zhang Ruochen, I want his soul scattered and his body turned to ash."
Xiu Chen Heavenly God's tone was as cold as frost, and his divine might unconsciously burst forth, causing lightning and thunder to flash above the Azure Deer Divine Temple.
Azure Deer Divine King said, "The Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet is watched by all the gods. How can we kill freely? This is expressly forbidden by the Destiny Temple and the Yama Divine Temple."
"Which Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet hasn't seen cultivators accidentally fall?" Xiu Chen Heavenly God said.
Azure Deer Divine King was silent for a long time, weighing the pros and cons. Finally, he spoke, "Killing off all the most outstanding Saint Kings and Great Saints of the Blood Absolute Clan in this millennium is unrealistic—it simply can't be done. But if it's just killing one Zhang Ruochen, there's still a chance."
Then, Azure Deer Divine King released two divine thoughts, summoning the two top Great Saints under a thousand years old cultivated by the Azure Deer Divine Temple.
One was four meters tall, humanoid, with a bald head and no skin—his blood-red muscles exposed. On top of his head grew a pagoda-shaped antenna.
His name was Hong Futu, and he had already broken ninety-eight shackles.
The other was a child who looked eight or nine years old, carrying six sacred swords on his back. His entire body radiated silver light, as if forged from silver.
His name was Lan Ying, only three hundred years old, and he had already reached the Hundred Shackles Great Perfection.