Chapter 2241: Shaking the Fate Divine Domain
"One hundred eighty thousand divine stones."
As soon as Blood Butcher shouted this price, a wave of curses erupted in the auction hall.
"This damn shill is jumping out to stir things up again."
"Is Star Sea World so shameless? Aren't they afraid the divine corpse will end up stuck in their own hands?"
"What's there to fear? It's only half a divine corpse. Star Sea World has plenty of ways to deal with it."
A Rakshasa Clan Great Saint said, "Blood Butcher might not be a shill. I think he simply wants to embarrass Blade Prison Emperor. Having obtained the Blood Flame War God Mark, he probably intends to step on Blade Prison Emperor to rise and claim the title of the Undying Blood Clan's number one of this millennium."
Most cultivators could tell that the Rakshasa Clan Great Saint was deliberately sowing discord.
But Blade Prison Emperor, already furious and losing reason from Blood Butcher's provocations, found the instigating words increasingly convincing.
Blood Butcher was deliberately opposing him.
"Having just broken through to Great Saint, he's this arrogant. Blood Butcher doesn't take you seriously at all, big brother. When the auction ends, I'll challenge him to a duel on the martial stage and crush his spirit," a Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saint from the Qitian Tribe said in a deep voice.
Blade Prison Emperor's expression flickered. His tightly clenched fists slowly relaxed. He let out a long breath, stood up, and said, "Let's go."
"Big brother, aren't we going to keep bidding? Are we really just letting Blood Butcher have it? I can't accept this," the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saint said.
"What can we do if we can't accept it? The bottom line given by the higher-ups is one hundred seventy thousand divine stones. If I keep raising the bid, how high do I go? Who makes up the extra divine stones?" Blade Prison Emperor demanded.
Did he accept it willingly?
But even a thousand divine stones would drain his resources. Where could he get tens of thousands to compete with Blood Butcher?
Even if he harbored hatred and anger, he could only silently remember it and make Blood Butcher pay back double in the future.
Every faction had a very precise estimate of the lower half of the divine corpse's value—around one hundred sixty thousand divine stones.
Not everyone was like Zhang Ruochen, treating divine stones as nothing.
"One hundred eighty thousand divine stones, sold."
Qi Luo Great Saint's announcement rang out, officially ending the Star Sea World auction.
Blood Butcher smiled and said to Zhang Ruochen, "Next, we should go to the Star Sea Palace on this planet to pay the divine stones and collect the auction items."
"Alright, you go first," Zhang Ruochen said with a nod.
Blood Butcher was stunned. "Senior brother, aren't we going together?"
"I'll go alone," Zhang Ruochen said.
Blood Butcher's heart sank. "Senior brother can't do this. I offended a lot of cultivators in this auction. What if they come after me?"
"I'm afraid they'll come after me too," Zhang Ruochen said helplessly.
Blood Butcher understood perfectly. Zhang Ruochen was simply disgusted with him, didn't want to travel together, and didn't want outsiders to know that Blood Butcher had someone backing him in this auction.
In other words, he was letting Blood Butcher take the fall alone.
Blood Butcher suspected that right now, a large group of cultivators was waiting for him outside the ring-shaped auction venue.
If he walked out, even if he didn't die, he'd lose a layer of skin.
Blood Butcher put on a look of reckless desperation. "If they come after me, I definitely won't take it alone. I might just spill everything."
Zhang Ruochen said, "You still owe me a Supreme Sacred Artifact, and now you dare threaten me? Do you really think I, Zhang Ruochen, am easy to bully?"
"You're the one bullying me," Blood Butcher muttered inwardly.
Now that he was a public enemy in the eyes of many Hell Realm cultivators, falling out with Zhang Ruochen would only make things worse. Moreover, he could forget about drinking divine blood or borrowing the Divine Illumination Lotus.
"A Great Saint must know when to bend. When it's time to yield, yield."
Blood Butcher sighed inwardly, not daring to confront Zhang Ruochen head-on. He quickly begged, "Senior brother, you have to save me this time. From now on, I'll go east if you say east, and I won't dare go west. But please don't abandon me. If I walk out alone, I'll really die horribly."
Zhang Ruochen frowned. "You're a Great Saint. How can you be so cowardly? Those with the heart to become gods should be indomitable."
Blood Butcher shook his head, a pitiful look in his eyes. "The mind can be tempered slowly, but to become a god, one must first stay alive."
Zhang Ruochen sighed deeply and took out a Space Exquisite Sphere. "You are my junior brother. Of course, I won't let you walk to your death. Since that's the case, I'll bear all the danger myself. Hide in here first."
"Senior brother..."
Blood Butcher's body trembled. He hadn't expected that the devil Zhang Ruochen would actually have a moment of conscience.
"Stop dawdling. Get in. And remember, you must never tell anyone about what happened at the auction," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Don't worry, senior brother. Since you're treating me with such loyalty, how could I betray you? I swear to the heavens—if I leak a single word, may I die a miserable death."
After Blood Butcher entered the Space Exquisite Sphere, Zhang Ruochen used the Thirty-Six Transformations to change into his appearance.
"Blood Butcher, Blood Butcher. You dug this pit yourself, so you'll have to fill it yourself."
Zhang Ruochen muttered to himself, pushed open the door of the VIP room, and walked out.
Earlier, although Zhang Ruochen was condensing Sacred Intent, he wasn't completely unaware of the outside world. How could he not know that Blood Butcher had deliberately tried to trap him?
But Blood Butcher had stumbled into success. Although he had spent a few thousand extra divine stones on the Seven Cauldron Divine Travel Pills, when bidding on the Divine Illumination Lotus, everyone thought he was a shill and didn't dare raise the price. Zhang Ruochen secured it for one hundred thousand divine stones, saving a large amount.
Otherwise, competing with the gods would have required at least one hundred fifty thousand divine stones to win the Divine Illumination Lotus.
Zhang Ruochen, in Blood Butcher's appearance, walked out of the VIP room and immediately drew countless murderous gazes.
"Do you want to make a move inside the auction hall? You'd better restrain yourselves. I'm a major client of Star Sea World. They'll protect me until I've paid the divine stones."
Zhang Ruochen mimicked Blood Butcher's expression, sneered, and flew away from the ring-shaped world, heading to the Star Sea Palace.
"So arrogant. He just became an Immortal Realm Great Saint and already thinks he's untouchable."
"Just a shill. He really thinks he's someone."
"Blade Prison Emperor has already declared he'll take one of his arms. Let's see how he leaves Star Sea World intact."
...
Arriving at the Star Sea Palace, Zhang Ruochen met with a Spiritual Power avatar of Qi Luo Great Saint.
Although the Nether Sun Divine Wheel had sold for a sky-high price of three hundred thousand divine stones, after paying Star Sea World's three percent commission, he only received two hundred ninety-one thousand.
The eight Monarch Sacred Artifacts sold for three hundred two divine stones.
Blood Butcher's planet fief sold for ninety-six divine stones.
According to Qi Luo Great Saint, because he was a major client, there was no commission taken from the eight Monarch Sacred Artifacts or the planet fief.
Purchasing the Divine Illumination Lotus, Spiritual Saint Pill, Artifact Pill, Divine Travel Pill, divine corpse, and so on cost a total of two hundred ninety thousand three hundred seventy-seven divine stones.
So after payment, Zhang Ruochen was left with only one thousand twenty-one divine stones.
When bidding on the divine corpse, having Blood Butcher offer one hundred eighty thousand divine stones was a decision Zhang Ruochen made after calculation. That way, he didn't need to sell more treasures to make up the difference.
Zhang Ruochen stored away the divine corpse, Divine Travel Pill, and Divine Illumination Lotus, then asked, "Star Sea World can guarantee the confidentiality of client information, right?"
"Of course. Ruochen Great Saint is now a platinum-level client of Star Sea World. We will never disclose your information to any faction."
As he spoke, Qi Luo Great Saint handed a platinum token to Zhang Ruochen and added, "Next time, if Ruochen Great Saint has items for Star Sea World to auction, you only need to pay a one percent fee. Moreover, you'll receive discounts on all purchases at Star Sea World."
Zhang Ruochen took the platinum token. "No need to wait for next time. Take me to see the top-grade talismans."
At Star Sea World, Zhang Ruochen spent three hundred divine stones to buy three Dark Prison Realm Talismans before leaving the Star Sea Palace.
Although expensive, their power was formidable. According to Qi Luo Great Saint, each Dark Prison Realm Talisman could trap a Thousand Questions Realm Great Saint. Even a Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm Great Saint would need a single strike to break the dark prison formed by the talisman.
Blood Butcher had said one thing right: "To become a god, one must first stay alive."
Zhang Ruochen had wanted to buy more powerful talismans—ones that could kill Thousand Questions Realm Great Saints—but the prices were terrifyingly high.
Moreover, talismans of that level unleashed power that, with his Immortal Realm cultivation, would be hard to control and might hurt him.
So he had to give up.
Still in Blood Butcher's appearance, Zhang Ruochen boarded a sacred ship arranged by Star Sea World, sailing across the lake, planning to return to the Cold Page City Domain to study the divine corpse carefully.
A sacred vessel forged with ten blood-colored wings broke through the waves, towering like a mountain, radiating immense sacred might, blocking the path of Zhang Ruochen's ship.
Blade Prison Emperor stood imposingly on the deck, clad in a gleaming blood armor. Above his head, blood clouds churned, condensing into a giant shadow dozens of feet tall behind him.
An overwhelming oppressive aura surged toward Zhang Ruochen.
Three other Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saints from the Qitian Tribe stood on either side of Blade Prison Emperor.
Cang Ye Great Saint, who had broken ninety-nine shackles and was the Qitian Tribe's second-strongest after Blade Prison Emperor, said in a deep voice, "Blood Butcher, you showed off plenty at the auction, opposing my big brother at every turn. Who gave you the guts?"
Zhang Ruochen ignored him, fixing his gaze directly on Blade Prison Emperor. "The competition at the auction is about financial strength. If you lose, you can only blame yourself for being too poor. How can you blame the winner?"
Many cultivators who had attended the auction hadn't left Star Sea World yet. They stood on different sacred vessels, watching their confrontation.
"Facing Blade Prison Emperor, Blood Butcher remains calm and composed. His mental fortitude is impressive."
"But the gap in cultivation is there. No matter how calm he is, what use is it? Blade Prison Emperor is notoriously narrow-minded. He won't let him off."
...
On one of the sacred vessels, Luo Sha and Luo Sheng Tian stood side by side, watching ahead.
Luo Sheng Tian laughed. "This Blood Butcher is tougher than I thought. Alone, he dares to challenge Blade Prison Emperor and the Qitian Tribe. He has guts."
But a strange light flickered in Luo Sha's almond-shaped eyes.
She had dual-cultivated spiritually with Zhang Ruochen, and there was a peculiar resonance between them. Appearances couldn't fool her.
"So it's him. No wonder he was so high-profile and unrestrained at the auction." A smile curled at the corner of Luo Sha's lips.
Soon, a hint of worry arose in her heart.
Blade Prison Emperor was a top-tier expert among Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saints. Since he had declared he would take one of Blood Butcher's arms, he would follow through.
"Royal brother, how strong is Blade Prison Emperor? If you faced him, what are your chances?" Luo Sha asked.
Luo Sheng Tian said, "When he was a Saint King, Blade Prison Emperor cultivated his Blade Dao rules to perfection. After becoming an Immortal Realm Great Saint, he became even more formidable, cultivating two types of sixth-rank Sacred Intent and one fourth-rank Blade Dao Sacred Intent—three in total."
"Most Great Saints can't even condense two Sacred Intents, yet he cultivated three." Luo Sha's heart sank, her worry for Zhang Ruochen growing.
Luo Sheng Tian laughed. "If that were all, Blade Prison Emperor wouldn't qualify to be in the top ten of Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saints. His greatest strength is fusing his sixth-rank Sealing Path Sacred Intent with his fourth-rank Blade Dao Sacred Intent into the Blade Prison Sacred Intent, which has reached third-rank."
"He can fuse Sacred Intents?" Luo Sha was even more shocked.
Luo Sheng Tian said, "Yes. In this millennium across the entire Hell Realm, the number of Great Saints who can fuse Sacred Intents doesn't exceed a hundred. That he's one of them shows how terrifying his strength is. If his temperament weren't so poor, his ranking among the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection wouldn't be just ninth."
Refining a third-rank Sacred Intent meant a greatly increased chance of becoming a god and the future possibility of mastering Esoterica to become a powerful deity.
Luo Sha was puzzled. "Blade Prison Emperor can fuse Sacred Intents. He's no ordinary person. His temperament can't be this bad. Royal brother, could he be deliberately pretending to be narrow-minded to make all cultivators underestimate him?"
"That's possible."
Luo Sheng Tian pondered deeply, then added, "If Blade Prison Emperor truly has such deep schemes and cunning, he will be a formidable enemy at the Hunting Heaven Grand Banquet."
...
Zhang Ruochen appeared impatient and added, "Are you blocking my ship because you're furious and want to attack me without regard for face? With so many cultivators watching, Blade Prison Emperor, don't you find this embarrassing? You've lost the bid and lost your dignity."
Cang Ye Great Saint, standing beside Blade Prison Emperor, said coldly, "Blood Butcher, do you dare step onto the martial stage with me and settle this? If I lose, I'll cut off my own arm. If you lose, you cut off yours. How about it?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "I never gamble with my arms. Besides, with your cultivation, you're not qualified to challenge me."
"What did you say?"
Cang Ye Great Saint had long been displeased with Blood Butcher. Now, this Immortal Realm Great Saint dared to speak so arrogantly. If he didn't teach him a lesson, countless Great Saints would mock Cang Ye Great Saint with the words "You're not qualified to challenge me" in the future.
"Boom."
Cang Ye Great Saint shot up from the sacred vessel's deck, radiating ten thousand feet of blood light. The vast blood fiend Qi condensed into a palace-sized hand seal, pressing down toward Zhang Ruochen below.
Even with the suppression of heaven and earth rules, Cang Ye Great Saint's palm force still pressed the water surface beneath Zhang Ruochen's feet downward, forming a huge liquid basin.
Zhang Ruochen stood on the ship, watching calmly.
Shi Huang flew out, his massive body appearing behind Zhang Ruochen. He swung a stone palm like a five-finger mountain, shattering the blood fiend Qi hand seal and striking Cang Ye Great Saint's sacred body.
"Pfft."
Cang Ye Great Saint spat blood, flung away like a fly, flying out of the space where Star Sea World was located.
Zhang Ruochen stared at the blood-light parabola in the sky. "Ant-like."
He didn't know that countless cultivators were petrified by this scene.
A Great Saint who had broken ninety-nine shackles had been sent flying like that? And Blood Butcher called him an ant?
The Qitian Tribe cultivators were all furious.
"So you have a Stone Clan Great Saint protecting you, which is why you're so swollen. I wonder if this Stone Clan Great Saint can withstand my blade?"
Just as Blade Prison Emperor uttered this threat and before he could act, Zhang Ruochen had already thrown out a Dark Prison Realm Talisman.
"Whoosh."
A dark prison enveloped Blade Prison Emperor's ten-winged sacred vessel, trapping all the Qitian Tribe Great Saints inside. Even as they launched continuous attacks, they couldn't break the talisman's binding power.
"I don't want to bother with you today, but I must warn you: don't provoke me again. The consequences are not something you can bear."
Amid their curses, Zhang Ruochen left this light remark, steered the sacred ship around the ten-winged vessel, and leisurely and calmly left Star Sea World.
Watching his departing figure, the Hell Realm cultivators who had been watching exchanged glances, shocked and uncertain.
"The Blood Heaven Tribe has produced an extraordinary young Great Saint." A passing demigod sighed like this.
That day, Blood Butcher's fame shook the entire Fate Divine Domain.