Chapter 2250: Zhang Ruochen's Ambition
At the Seven Star Divine Palace, sacred springs formed a lake, with a riot of colors in full bloom.
In the rear palace, inside one of the antique and elegant chambers, Zhang Ruochen's robust, masculine figure stepped down from the sacred wood bed. His muscles were well-proportioned, his chest and back broad, his gaze sharp yet wild, his features carved as if by divine craftsmanship. His entire being exuded an ultimate beauty and a captivating aura.
That night had been exhilarating, and afterward, he slept deeply.
He took the white sacred robe hanging at the head of the bed and put it on. Turning back, he stared at the jade-like delicate figure still lying on the bed and said, "From now on, this is where you will live. You may come and go freely."
Lianxi had long since awakened. Her jet-black hair was scattered messily. She opened her breathtakingly beautiful eyes, staring upward. Her fair, snow-like face showed no excessive emotion, appearing unusually calm.
On her pale white neck were traces of red marks, extending downward to the two snowy peaks hidden beneath the blanket.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to push open the door and leave, she spoke, "Last night, who did you take me for?"
Zhang Ruochen stopped in his tracks, his gaze deep and profound. "You are you, no one else. For now, you will serve as a maidservant. Do not ask about anything else; you are not qualified to."
Stepping out of the rear palace, Zhang Ruochen looked up into the sky, a fierce killing intent flashing in his eyes. He said coldly, "You've been watching all night. Haven't you seen enough?"
"Boom."
From within him surged a vast amount of Purifying Divine Flame, spreading like wildfire, transforming into a fiery tornado that shot into the sky, enveloping numerous divine thoughts.
There were seventeen such divine thoughts, each from a different deity.
Sensing Zhang Ruochen's murderous intent, the seventeen divine thoughts immediately tried to retreat, but it was too late.
"Bang, bang."
The Purifying Divine Flame annihilated all seventeen divine thoughts, burning them into nothingness.
Stepping out of the Seven Star Divine Palace and standing on the steps, Zhang Ruochen pointed a finger to the sky and roared, "Whoever dares to spy on me again, I will destroy as many divine thoughts as come!"
His voice traveled far, echoing across the Hanye City domain, startling countless cultivators.
In a manor within the Fate Divine Domain, a half-gray-haired old man stood under a shade peach tree, looking toward the Hanye City domain. He smiled, "What a character. He dares to annihilate the divine thoughts of the gods. Truly fearless."
A deity sat in a hall, muttering to himself, "Zhang Ruochen has weaknesses too. At least, he cannot overcome the temptation of lust. His control over his spiritual will is far inferior to Yan Wushen's. Moreover, there is a huge hidden danger within him; he is on the verge of falling into demonhood."
Another deity's voice rang out, "With weaknesses, he is easier to control. With hidden dangers, there are flaws. A blade without weaknesses or flaws, once it grows, will turn on its master. Now, I feel much more at ease."
...
In the Hanhai Manor, all cultivators were jolted awake from their cultivation, their gazes turning toward Zhang Ruochen.
Anyone could see that Zhang Ruochen's mood was very off. He had even declared he would destroy the gods' divine thoughts. Even if other Great Saints had such power, they wouldn't dare to do so.
Mo Yin approached and said, "Master, what happened?"
"Nothing."
Zhang Ruochen waved his hand and walked into a pavilion, remaining in a contemplative state.
Mo Yin said, "Yu Huang, Yixuan Great Saint, and Guchenzi came to visit again, wanting to see you."
"Alright, go and... never mind, they're already here."
Zhang Ruochen's gaze shifted toward the entrance.
Yu Huang, Yixuan Great Saint, Guchenzi, and Xueqi Great Saint strode in quickly, each wearing a look of extreme displeasure, their Great Saint auras fully unleashed.
From a distance, Yu Huang's sarcastic voice rang out, "I hear that Ruochen Great Saint has taken in the Heavenly Court's Wuying Fairy and is hiding in the Seven Star Divine Palace, reveling day and night. How enviable."
Zhang Ruochen said, "What happened to make the four of you so angry?"
Xueqi Great Saint's face was cold, and he spoke rudely, "Zhang Ruochen, do you truly not know, or are you pretending? Don't you know that the Blood Heaven Tribe, because of you, was humiliated at the banquet of the ten major tribes of the Undying Blood Clan? As the leader, do you just ignore it?"
"Oh? Wasn't that banquet attended by Yu Huang on my behalf? With Yu Huang's cultivation, who would dare to humiliate her?" Zhang Ruochen took out a flask of sacred spring and a set of tall bronze goblets, filling five cups.
Then, he made a gesture for them to sit down.
Yu Huang's ethereal, immortal-like face showed a hint of shame and anger. She did not sit down. "The fault for what happened at the banquet lies with me, not you. But when faced with the provocations of Lan Ying and Wujiang, you made no response. How are the cultivators of our Blood Heaven Tribe supposed to hold their heads high in the Hell Realm from now on?"
Zhang Ruochen looked surprised. "What happened? How did they provoke us?"
Yixuan Great Saint said, "Lan Ying erected a large banner on the life-and-death platform, challenging the leader of the Blood Heaven Tribe, Zhang Ruochen, to a duel to the death. If you don't accept, you're a coward hiding in your shell."
"Such a childish tactic, and he uses it?" Zhang Ruochen shook his head with a smile.
"Don't care what tactic he uses. The fact that you didn't respond has already made you a laughingstock. Even the cultivators of the Blood Heaven Tribe are being mocked along with you," Xueqi Great Saint said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "And how did Wujiang provoke us?"
"Wujiang publicly said that the Blood Heaven Tribe has no one, which is why they let a half-breed be their leader. Even I couldn't tolerate such words, yet you endured it," Xueqi Great Saint said, his eyes fierce with dissatisfaction toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen sat up straight, playing with the bronze goblet in his fingers, and downed the sacred spring in one gulp.
After a long silence, Zhang Ruochen said, "Ignore them. We'll have our chance to clash during the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet."
"Clash?"
Guchenzi, who had been silent, spoke in a self-mocking tone. "Either Lan Ying or Wujiang alone has the power to crush most of the Blood Heaven Tribe. How can we clash? At the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet, our only way to survive is to avoid them as much as possible and not engage them head-on."
Though unwilling to admit it, the combat power of Lan Ying and Wujiang was undeniable, filling everyone present with a deep sense of helplessness.
At the same time, they could understand why Zhang Ruochen had not responded to their provocations.
It was simply because he couldn't win, so he had to back down.
Otherwise, he would face even greater humiliation.
For now, they had to endure.
Zhang Ruochen gave a noncommittal smile and asked, "You all attended the banquet of the ten major tribes of the Undying Blood Clan. What exactly happened? With your strength, Dao Yu Emperor shouldn't have gone too far, right?"
Yu Huang's face darkened, and she did not speak.
Xueqi Great Saint said, "The banquet of the ten major tribes of the Undying Blood Clan was originally meant for everyone to discuss how to handle the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet, so that the Undying Blood Clan could achieve better results in the competition among the ten clans."
"But the other nine tribes were all seated inside the hall, while the Blood Heaven Tribe's seats were placed outside. Their excuse was that there was no room inside."
"Yu Huang, Yixuan Great Saint, and Guchenzi angrily entered the hall to confront Dao Yu Emperor, only to be jointly ostracized and ridiculed by the other tribes."
"Dao Yu Emperor didn't speak, but the cultivators around him claimed that the Blood Heaven Tribe had become a target for the major powers and would drag down the entire Undying Blood Clan in the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet."
"Others said that the Blood Heaven Tribe was weak and dispensable. If they voluntarily withdrew from the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet, the Undying Blood Clan's results might even improve."
Hearing Xueqi Great Saint's account, Yu Huang, Yixuan Great Saint, and Guchenzi's expressions were extremely ugly, filled with intense pain and shame.
Xueqi Great Saint continued, "Yu Huang, Yixuan Great Saint, and Guchenzi naturally couldn't endure it any longer and challenged the cultivators who had mocked them. But no one expected that the cultivator actually accepted the challenge and directly challenged all three of them."
At this point, Zhang Ruochen finally showed a change in expression. "Challenged all three at once?"
"Exactly," Xueqi Great Saint said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Who has such boldness? Dao Yu Emperor? Feng Hou? Or Jin Kun Great Saint?"
In his view, only a cultivator who had achieved Great Perfection in the Hundred Shackles Realm would dare to do so. Otherwise, angering Yu Huang and the others would only bring shame upon themselves.
Xueqi Great Saint said, "That person was none of Dao Yu Emperor, Feng Hou, or Jin Kun Great Saint. He was an unknown cultivator from the Jingtian Tribe."
"And the result?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Xueqi Great Saint glanced at Yu Huang and the others and fell silent, clearly finding it hard to speak.
"Did you all lose?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Yixuan Great Saint clenched his fists, his eyes seeming to bulge from their sockets. "We lost badly! No one expected him to be a Great Perfection Hundred Shackles Realm powerhouse. He deliberately humiliated the Blood Heaven Tribe to provoke us, then used us as stepping stones to make a name for himself and shake the world."
Yu Huang, Guchenzi, and Yixuan Great Saint were all top-tier experts. With their leadership, the Blood Heaven Tribe's strength among the ten major tribes of the Undying Blood Clan would not be at the bottom; they had the potential to compete for the top five.
But encountering a Great Perfection Hundred Shackles Realm cultivator, they were severely humiliated.
One could imagine how stifled they felt.
Yu Huang, clearly deeply affected, said, "Zhang Ruochen, you once said you had a way to help me break through to Great Perfection in the Hundred Shackles Realm before the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet. Does that still count?"
"Of course it counts," Zhang Ruochen said.
Yixuan Great Saint, Guchenzi, and Xueqi Great Saint exchanged glances, a glimmer of joy appearing in their eyes.
If Yu Huang could break through and become a Great Perfection Hundred Shackles Realm cultivator, her strength would skyrocket.
Then who would dare to look down on the Blood Heaven Tribe?
Which of the other tribes of the Undying Blood Clan would dare to say the Blood Heaven Tribe was dispensable?
At the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet, a Great Perfection Hundred Shackles Realm powerhouse could play a crucial role, like a pillar supporting the sky. It could also uphold the dignity and glory of a faction.
But how many Great Saints were stuck at the ninety-nine shackles level, unable to break through? Even deities had no effective way to help.
Did Zhang Ruochen have that ability?
Yu Huang herself had little confidence in Zhang Ruochen, which was why she had refused last time.
But after the humiliation at the banquet, she was willing to try anything, even if there was only a glimmer of hope. She would treat it as a last resort.
Zhang Ruochen's gaze shifted to Yixuan Great Saint and the others. "Don't leave either. Come along. How much you can improve depends on your own ability."
In Zhang Ruochen's plan, he hoped to help Yixuan Great Saint and Guchenzi also reach Great Perfection in the Hundred Shackles Realm before the Heaven Hunting Grand Banquet.
With three Great Perfection Hundred Shackles Realm cultivators, plus himself, Zhang Ruochen would have enough confidence to compete for the overall first place among the ten clans of the Hell Realm.
Of course, at this moment, Yixuan Great Saint and Guchenzi had no idea of Zhang Ruochen's grand ambition. They were purely curious and followed along, wanting to see what miraculous ability Zhang Ruochen possessed to help Yu Huang break through.
Just as they stepped through the gates of the Seven Star Divine Palace, they encountered Lianxi coming out from inside.
Seeing the five Great Saints, Lianxi quickly stepped aside, her gaze fixed on the ground, exuding a pitiable and delicate aura.
"Is this the Wuying Fairy? Truly a peerless beauty."
"A fairy falling into the Hell Realm can only survive by staying by Zhang Ruochen's side. Otherwise, some deity might take her away and keep her as a concubine."
Yixuan Great Saint and Guchenzi both showed looks of admiration. They had seen Lianxi emerge from the rear palace and understood everything.
Looking at Zhang Ruochen again, they felt immense envy.
No wonder Zhang Ruochen had been hiding in the Seven Star Divine Palace to cultivate. If they had such a fairy-like beauty serving them, they too would revel day and night and ignore the troubles of the outside world.
Xueqi Great Saint sighed deeply, completely resigned, feeling both envy and jealousy toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Lianxi and said, "Go to the divine corpse and extract some divine blood that hasn't been contaminated by poison. Send it to the Xingzhou Palace."
"Yes."
Lianxi bowed gracefully to Zhang Ruochen and walked outside.
The Xingzhou Palace was the hall where Xue Jue War God cultivated. It was vast, a hundred zhang long, with walls and ceilings inlaid with numerous precious crystals, sparkling like a sky full of stars.
This was a place where other cultivators could not probe or deduce.
Zhang Ruochen had brought them here to help them improve their cultivation, intending to make them the Blood Heaven Tribe's trump card, so that at the critical moment, they could catch their enemies off guard.
"Whoosh."
Zhang Ruochen took out a cauldron of Shenyou Dan and placed it on the ground.
"These hundred Shenyou Dan are all for your use. But for each one, I will charge twenty divine stones. Any objections?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Seeing the Shenyou Dan, Yu Huang and the others showed expressions of sudden realization.
No wonder when they went to Xue Tu to buy Shenyou Dan, he made all sorts of excuses. It turned out that the one who had bid for the Shenyou Dan was not him at all.
Twenty divine stones per pill was expensive, but still within their means. After all, when they had approached Xue Tu to buy, they had offered up to thirty divine stones per pill.
Yu Huang said, "Even with Shenyou Dan, it's useless. The hardest part of breaking shackles is finding them. If you can't find the shackles within your body, no amount of Shenyou Dan will help."
"Finding shackles is difficult for other Great Saints, but for me, it's a piece of cake," Zhang Ruochen said.