Chapter 2229: Divine Prince
The Blood Demon had returned to the Hell Realm together with Xue Hou, Zhang Ruochen, and the others from the Kunlun Realm Merit Battlefield.
However, he belonged to the Demon Heaven Tribe.
The Blood Demon was not well-known in the Hell Realm, and few cultivators recognized him. But in the Kunlun Realm, his reputation was fearsome. Having simultaneously cultivated nine volumes of the Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription, his combat power at the same cultivation level was not inferior to Xue Hou's.
During the Saint King Realm, he could contend with Yan Wushen's benevolent incarnation.
Now, he had broken through to become a Great Saint. As he walked beneath the Life-and-Death Platform, his strides were vigorous like a dragon's or tiger's, and the saintly might erupting from his body intimidated the surrounding cultivators, forcing them to make way.
"Daring to buy the blood of six Great Saints—is he not afraid of offending the Moro Clan?"
"What background does this fellow have?"
"Blood Demon? What Blood Demon? Never heard of him."
……
The Hell Realm cultivators all buzzed with discussion.
The Blood Demon waved his hand, and ten clusters of dazzling divine-light crystals, wrapped in Blood Fiend Qi, flew onto the Life-and-Death Platform, suspending themselves before Zhang Ruochen.
"Ten Divine Stones—should be enough to buy the Great Saint blood from them, right?" the Blood Demon said.
"Enough, certainly enough."
Zhang Ruochen stored the ten Divine Stones into his Space Ring, then fixed his gaze on Xue Tu. "Drain ninety percent of their Great Saint blood, preserve it carefully, and hand it over to the Blood Demon."
Great Saint blood could be sold more than once. Ten Divine Stones was already a good price.
As long as the six Great Saints of the Moro Clan were kept alive, they could continuously produce new Great Saint blood.
This was far more profitable than a one-time deal like selling fiefs.
"Just one round, and it sells for ten Divine Stones."
Xue Tu licked his lips, his eyes lighting up. He felt Zhang Ruochen was a genius for coming up with such a trade—no wonder he was so wealthy.
"Fresh Great Saint blood has boundless uses for the Undying Blood Clan. Drinking the blood of six Great Saints is like absorbing the cultivation of six Great Saints. That Blood Demon's cultivation will surely skyrocket in a short time."
"Does he really dare to sell Great Saint blood? Isn't there any strong expert to step in and stop this?"
"Very strange. At this Hunting Heaven Banquet, the Di Shang Divine Kingdom did send Thousand Questions Realm and Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm cultivators to the Han Ye City Domain. Why haven't they acted?"
……
All the Hell Realm cultivators felt something was off.
Logically, with such humiliation inflicted on Great Saints, the Di Shang Divine Kingdom and the Moro Clan could not tolerate it. Even if cultivators below the Thousand Questions Realm couldn't defeat Zhang Ruochen, why had the Great Saints above that level collectively vanished?
"Stop."
Just as Xue Tu was about to act, Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi of the Blood Heaven Three Supremes arrived, turning into two beams of saintly light that shot onto the Life-and-Death Platform.
Seeing the six Moro Clan Great Saints kneeling on the ground, both of them found it a headache. They felt Zhang Ruochen and Xue Tu were audacious to the extreme, utterly reckless and fearing nothing.
Were they worried they didn't have enough enemies?
Gu Chenzi said, "Let it end here. There's no need to continue humiliating them. After all, they are Great Saints—leave them some dignity."
Yi Xuan Great Saint nodded and advised, "I've looked into this matter. Indeed, Moro War Emperor was in the wrong first. But he and the Moro Clan's Great Saints have already paid the price they deserve. Let your anger subside and spare them this time."
Because of Zhang Ruochen, the Blood Heaven Tribe had become a target of public criticism at this Hunting Heaven Banquet. Both Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi were under immense pressure.
If Zhang Ruochen continued to be so arrogant and reckless, treating the Hell Realm's unspoken rules as nothing, he would surely provoke public outrage.
Zhang Ruochen understood their concerns, but he had his own thoughts.
If he could easily let an enemy who had schemed against him go, wouldn't more enemies try to scheme against him in the future?
"Do you know how Moro War Emperor evaluated the two of you?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Yi Xuan Great Saint was curious. "What do you mean?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Moro War Emperor said that the Blood Heaven Three Supremes are nothing but three wastes."
"That's right, I can testify—he really said that," Xue Tu quickly chimed in.
Since he was already on Zhang Ruochen's pirate ship, if there was a chance, he naturally wanted to drag two more people aboard.
Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi had come to mediate, but upon hearing this, their expressions turned extremely ugly, and their eyes grew cold.
They were, after all, top-tier talents and overlords at the Great Saint level, with the potential to become gods. If they were called wastes by Moro War Emperor and still went to rescue him, how would the world's cultivators view them?
Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi simply didn't want to invite more trouble; they weren't afraid of it.
Yi Xuan Great Saint coughed dryly twice. "How much for Moro War Emperor's Great Saint Heart? If we dig it out and refine it into a pill, it might help me break ten shackles."
Gu Chenzi said, "Sell me a share of Moro War Emperor's Great Saint blood and Great Saint Heart too."
Xue Tu licked his lips, also tempted.
The six Great Saints were treasures all over. If he could drink their blood daily, he would surely reach the peak of the Immortal Realm quickly.
Carrying the Qi Xin War Axe, Xue Tu walked up to Moro War Emperor.
Even though Moro War Emperor was tough, fear flickered in his eyes at this moment. He wished he could die on the spot rather than endure such humiliation.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Still unwilling to speak? If you tell me where the owner of the Space Jade Bracelet is, I'll grant you a dignified death."
"I have a divine heart, unyielding and indomitable. I will not submit to you," Moro War Emperor said.
Zhang Ruochen frowned deeply, regretting having taught him the principle of "having a divine heart, unyielding and indomitable." At the time, he had only been worried that Moro War Emperor would kill himself.
Now, it had become his excuse for stubbornness.
"Senior Brother, don't waste words with him. Let him bleed a few times, and he'll behave."
Xue Tu raised the Qi Xin War Axe, about to slash open Moro War Emperor's blood vessels, but the moment he lifted the axe, his entire body froze, as if petrified.
Zhang Ruochen sensed something amiss and looked toward the edge of the Life-and-Death Platform.
A tall Rakshasa man stepped through the black light barrier, walking over slowly.
Rakshasa men were notoriously ugly, but this one was rather rugged and handsome. By other races' standards, he might not be remarkable, but among the Rakshasa, he was undoubtedly a top-tier handsome man.
It was the power emanating from this man that had immobilized Xue Tu.
The five Moro Clan Great Saints showed joy upon seeing the man's arrival. Only Moro War Emperor, filled with humiliation, kept his head down and didn't look at him.
Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi, upon seeing the Rakshasa man, grew solemn, their eyes filled with wariness.
The Rakshasa man said, "Zhang Ruochen, you've vented your anger enough. Give me, this Divine Prince, some face. Let it end here today, and spare the six of them. How about it?"
Zhang Ruochen sensed an extremely dangerous aura from this man. "If you want me to spare them, it depends on whether your face is big enough."
Yi Xuan Great Saint sent a telepathic message to Zhang Ruochen. "He is a prince of the Rakshasa Clan's number one divine kingdom, the Tian Luo Divine Kingdom. His name is Luo Shengtian, known as the Divine Prince, and reputed to be the strongest below the Thousand Questions Realm in the Rakshasa Clan. Since he's stepped in, it's best to give him some face."
Gu Chenzi said, "Luo Shengtian is not comparable to Moro War Emperor. If you can avoid making an enemy of him, don't."
The Hell Realm cultivators below the Life-and-Death Platform were already in an uproar.
"Luo Shengtian has never been defeated at the same cultivation level. With his Hundred Shackles Great Perfection cultivation, if Zhang Ruochen still doesn't know when to yield, he'll definitely suffer a great loss."
"The six Great Saints of the Di Shang Divine Kingdom disgraced the Rakshasa Clan, but in the end, it's the Divine Prince who steps in to salvage Rakshasa's dignity."
……
Luo Shengtian stared at Zhang Ruochen for a long moment, then revealed a smile. "Good. You want to see how big my face is? I'll give you that chance."
"Whoosh—"
Behind Luo Shengtian, ten bone wings suddenly unfurled. Instantly, ten surging, mountain-toppling forces surged from the wings, swirling around his body.
Rakshasa bone wings, like the Undying Blood Clan's blood wings, normally numbered six for an ordinary Great Saint.
Being able to cultivate ten bone wings at the Hundred Shackles Realm marked him as an extraordinary being.
Zhang Ruochen felt his Truth Realm Form, Space Domain, and Virtual Time Domain violently shaking. He quickly mobilized greater power to stabilize the three Eternal Paths.
"Sizzle, sizzle."
Flame-like light threads appeared in Luo Shengtian's pupils.
Meeting his gaze, Zhang Ruochen felt the world shift, as if yanked into a pitch-black, boundless universe. Luo Shengtian's two pupils were like twin stars, exuding an overbearing, heavy might.
Before these two stars, Zhang Ruochen's body was as insignificant as dust.
"Break."
Zhang Ruochen mobilized the power of his Truth Heart to shatter the illusion and return to the Life-and-Death Platform.
But at that moment, two light shuttles flew from Luo Shengtian's pupils, tearing through the Truth Realm Form, Space Domain, and Virtual Time Domain, shattering them into fragments.
Zhang Ruochen summoned the Mountain-Hiding Demon Mirror, which clashed with the light shuttles from his pupils.
"Boom, rumble."
Space violently trembled. Yi Xuan Great Saint and Gu Chenzi were sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the black light barrier.
The Life-and-Death Platform, which had expanded to a thousand miles in size, collapsed in space, reverting to a battle platform of just over ten thousand meters in length and width.
Zhang Ruochen retreated seven steps before steadying himself.
Luo Shengtian's pupils returned to normal, and he became calm and composed again.
"These eyes of mine are a pair of innate divine eyes. Later, I refined two active Divine Throne Planets into them, as if nurturing the immense power of two stars. Do you think their face is big enough?" Luo Shengtian said, pointing at his own eyes.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Once a god falls, their Divine Throne Planet becomes dead and silent. Only when the god lives is the Divine Throne Planet active. How could you refine two active Divine Throne Planets into your eyes?"
A melodious female voice rang out on the Life-and-Death Platform.
"Isn't that simple? The owners of those two Divine Throne Planets are still alive—they've just become prisoners of the Tian Luo Divine Kingdom. Their connection to the Divine Throne Planets has been severed."
Zhang Ruochen followed the voice and saw a stunningly beautiful Rakshasa woman walking over gracefully.
She was a full 1.8 meters tall, wearing a divine crystal crown, with hair like silk and a waterfall. Dressed in a light green Ten Thousand Saints Plain Robe, her face was breathtakingly beautiful, and her bearing was noble and elegant.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen looking at her, Luo Sha's celestial eyes blinked, full of seductive charm.
The saintly maid Yao Li followed behind Luo Sha, her face pale, walking unsteadily.
Luo Shengtian stood with his hands behind his back, poised and upright. "Zhang Ruochen, at the Immortal Realm, you may be unmatched, including Yan Wushen, who might not be your opponent. But the Hell Realm is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers. At the Hundred Shackles Realm, there are still some who can defeat you."
"This is the Life-and-Death Platform. If you want to kill the six Great Saints of the Moro Clan, I won't interfere. You captured them and forced them to kneel—I won't interfere either."
"But everything has a bottom line. If you go too far, it's equivalent to humiliating the entire Rakshasa Clan. I, this Divine Prince, will not stand idly by."
Zhang Ruochen was not intimidated by Luo Shengtian's formidable strength. "That's the problem. I actually want to give the Divine Prince face, but what Moro War Emperor did crossed my bottom line. He was too despicable—not only did he lure me onto the Life-and-Death Platform to kill me, but he also threatened me with my woman. How can I let him off?"
He added, "Besides, I've already accepted the deposit. I have to take their Great Saint blood whether I want to or not."
Luo Shengtian grew angry, flames flickering in his eyes once more.
In the Hell Realm, no one dared to refuse him face.
"Royal Brother, how about letting me handle this?" Luo Sha said, stroking her chin with a jade finger and smiling charmingly.
Luo Shengtian knew of the enmity between Luo Sha and Zhang Ruochen. His brilliantly intelligent sister had formed a life-or-death grudge with Zhang Ruochen from the Ancestral Spirit Realm, to the Truth Heaven Domain, and then to the Kunlun Realm battlefield.
Enemies meeting face to face, their eyes would burn red.
She probably wanted to use this opportunity to kill Zhang Ruochen.
Luo Shengtian sent a telepathic message to Luo Sha. "Don't blame your royal brother for not helping you this time. Father has revealed some information—Zhang Ruochen cannot be killed now. The gods intend to grind him into a blade, specifically to deal with the new generation of Great Saints in the Hell Realm. All Great Saints above the Thousand Questions Realm from every clan have been warned not to lay a hand on Zhang Ruochen."
Luo Sha, exceptionally intelligent, immediately understood many things. "So, Zhang Ruochen is effectively immortal now?"
"Not exactly. It depends on whether he has the skill to be a blade. If a Great Saint below the Thousand Questions Realm kills him, it means he's useless to the Hell Realm and unworthy of being the gods' blade. Besides, they need to test his sense of belonging to the Hell Realm."
Luo Sha asked, "Royal Brother, can you kill him?"
"Defeating him is not hard. But the Space-Time Controller's escape skills are unmatched. By myself, killing him would be quite difficult."
After saying this, Luo Shengtian added, "If you want him dead, your royal brother can find two other Hundred Shackles Great Perfection experts from the Rakshasa Clan to ensure Zhang Ruochen's soul is scattered. Eating his flesh and drinking his blood wouldn't be impossible."
Luo Sha was slightly startled and quickly stopped him. "No... Royal Brother doesn't need to force the issue. Zhang Ruochen has enemies everywhere in the Hell Realm; naturally, some strong expert will deal with him."
"You've been humiliated by Zhang Ruochen many times, yet you can still suppress your hatred and think rationally. Truly worthy of being our royal clan's strategist—remarkably calm and composed," Luo Shengtian praised.
Zhang Ruochen had long known that Luo Sha held a high status in the Hell Realm, but he hadn't expected her to be the sister of Divine Prince Luo Shengtian.
Luo Sha walked over to Zhang Ruochen, circling him half a turn, her beautiful eyes wide open as she smiled. "Aren't you the one who hates Hell Realm cultivators the most? How did you become a member of the Hell Realm yourself?"
Zhang Ruochen's face was stern, and he didn't answer her. "Luo Sha, that saintly maid who lured me to the Life-and-Death Platform—she's your subordinate, isn't she? You wanted me dead. Have you thought about what price you'll pay?"
Luo Sha didn't answer him either. "You just said Moro War Emperor threatened you with your woman. Who is that woman?"
Zhang Ruochen's patience had run out. Between the fingers of his right hand, a small space vortex condensed.
Not far away, Luo Shengtian was also mobilizing his power.
Luo Sha sensed that battle was imminent and found it boring. She thought to herself, "I need to find a way to lure Zhang Ruochen off the Life-and-Death Platform first."
No longer teasing Zhang Ruochen, Luo Sha flicked her sleeves and turned to walk off the platform. "This is not the place to talk. If you want to know about Mu Lingxi, follow me, this princess. Let the six of them, including Moro War Emperor, go. You should be able to judge what's important and what's not. Killing them would do you more harm than good."
"So it is related to her."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes darkened.
However, there were many suspicious aspects to this matter that he couldn't quite figure out, as if it wasn't as simple as it appeared on the surface.