Chapter 2287: Heaven Net Earth Trap
Yu Huang, who had been carving formation patterns in the outer region of their clan star, followed the meteor's flight path and descended to this sea area. Her robes fluttering, she landed on the island behind Zhang Ruochen.
Seeing the inscriptions on the meteor, her eyes darkened. "This is a trap. You can't go."
Zhang Ruochen sat on a reef, calm and composed. "Whether it's a trap or not, I have to go."
"Have you lost your mind? At the banquet, Xu suffered a huge loss at your hands and will surely hold a grudge. After that, you snatched his quasi-emperor-grade sacred intent pill. If I were him, I would never swallow that insult and would do everything to kill you."
Then Yu Huang added, "Going to the Ghost Clan's clan star is walking right into their net, seeking your own death. Whether you can defeat Xu or not, in the end, you won't leave alive."
Zhang Ruochen stood up. "You should have faith in me."
A pained expression appeared on Yu Huang's beautiful yet cold face. "Zhang Ruochen, you must understand that this is not just a contest of victory or defeat; it is a test from the gods themselves."
"You once belonged to the Heavenly Court and have countless ties with them. If you cannot sever these connections, how can the gods of the Hell Realm allow you to continue growing? The stronger you become, the less they will tolerate you."
"For the sake of a Heavenly Court Great Saint, to fight fiercely against cultivators of the Hell Realm—even if you win, what then? How will the gods view you?"
"By going, you have already lost."
"If Man Sword Great Saint truly regards you as a close friend, he will surely understand your predicament."
"Besides, since he has become a Heaven Slave in the Heaven Hunting Battlefield, his fate is already sealed. It is not something you can change. Why must you sacrifice your own future for a result that is already determined?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Must a Heaven Slave die?"
"If I were captured by the Heavenly Court and turned into their prey, do you think the gods of the Heavenly Court would give me a way out? Any cultivator trying to save me would be declaring war on the gods." Yu Huang said.
Zhang Ruochen fell silent, avoiding the topic, and asked, "In this Heaven Hunting Battle, what rank do you think the Undying Blood Clan can achieve?"
Yu Huang was puzzled as to why Zhang Ruochen suddenly asked this. After careful thought, she said seriously, "Now that the Undying Blood Clan has seven Hundred-Shackle Great Perfection powerhouses, plus you, that makes eight top-tier experts. Achieving sixth place should be easy, and we might even aim for fifth."
"My goal is first place." Zhang Ruochen said.
Yu Huang was stunned.
Was Zhang Ruochen's ambition too great?
First place!
In the entire Undying Blood Clan, only he would dare to think such a thing.
Zhang Ruochen continued, "This time, Xu has invited me to the Ghost Clan's clan star. It is indeed extremely dangerous. I will likely face not only the Ghost Clan's powerhouses but also the top Great Saints of the Bone Clan and Corpse Clan. But isn't this also an opportunity?"
Yu Huang guessed what Zhang Ruochen intended to do and was moved. "You want to take the chance to destroy the Ghost Clan's clan star?"
"For the Undying Blood Clan to take first place, the only way is to destroy the clan stars of the other nine clans while protecting our own. Since Xu has taken the initiative to invite me, I will turn his scheme against him."
Zhang Ruochen's expression was cold and ruthless. Speaking of annihilating the clan stars of nine clans, killing tens of billions of living beings and undead, his tone was as calm as still water, without a trace of pity.
The defensive formation of the Undying Blood Clan's clan star had already been completed. Now was the time to destroy the Ghost Clan's clan star, without fear of retaliation from Ghost Clan cultivators.
The timing for destroying the other nine clans' clan stars had to be chosen carefully.
Yu Huang felt Zhang Ruochen's resolve and knew he was not a reckless fool, so she stopped persuading him. "I'll go with you."
"You stay on the clan star and continue setting up formations. The stronger, the better. In the future, we might have to defend against attacks from the powerhouses of the nine clans here." Zhang Ruochen said.
"The first layer of the defensive formation is already complete. Even if ten Hundred-Shackle Great Perfection Great Saints attack, it can hold them off for now. That should be enough."
Then Yu Huang added, "Since Xu dares to invite you to the Ghost Clan's clan star, it means their defensive formation is also ready. If you can't break the formation, how will you destroy their clan star?"
Zhang Ruochen eventually agreed to take her along.
Yu Huang also suggested bringing Gu Chenzi, but Zhang Ruochen vetoed it.
The Blood Heaven Continent was the foundation of the Blood Heaven Tribe. A top-tier powerhouse had to be stationed there at all times, lest they be attacked by enemies and fail in their mission.
The Heaven Hunting Battle was of great importance; no carelessness was allowed.
...
The Ghost Clan's clan star was located in the northwestern part of the Heaven Hunting Battlefield. Thick black ghost mist covered the star, floating in space, almost invisible.
It was like a black cloud in the universe.
Xu stood atop the highest peak on the star, one hand behind his back, gazing at the sky.
Beneath his feet, snow covered the ground.
The air was filled with howling yin winds.
Man Sword Great Saint was nailed to the northern cliff of the mountain by five ice pillars, his long hair disheveled, sacred blood flowing, and the sacred aura of his path continuously weakening.
"It's useless... I... am just a cripple who has lost his sacred source. Using me to threaten Zhang Ruochen... means nothing... He won't come," Man Sword Great Saint said weakly.
The corner of Xu's mouth curled up. "Whether he comes or not, he loses. But if he comes, he loses even more—and his life will be lost here."
The Ghost Clan's Eighth Prince, Ming, stood at the foot of the mountain and laughed. "If he doesn't come, this so-called Eon-level genius will be branded a coward, suffering endless ridicule."
Xu said, "If Zhang Ruochen doesn't come in three days, when your sacred blood runs dry, I will extract your sacred soul and refine you into a ghost slave. That way, my cultivation can advance further. When Zhang Ruochen fights me, his state of mind will be fatally affected. Either way, I don't lose."
Yan Hong Great Saint and White Jade Mad Lion stood in a hidden formation not far from that mountain.
Besides them, there were three other Hundred-Shackle Great Perfection Great Saints.
Night Changzai of Wuchang Ghost City.
Four-Eyed Ghost Emperor of Shenyue Ghost City.
Wing Ghost Emperor of Qingfeng Ghost City.
Half of the strongest Great Saints from the nine great ghost cities were present.
Killing Zhang Ruochen was a unified decision of the Ghost Clan.
The other Ghost Clan Hundred-Shackle Great Perfection Great Saints had not joined because they were out hunting Heaven Slaves in the starry sky and could not return in time.
Such a lineup showed how seriously they regarded Zhang Ruochen.
White Jade Mad Lion asked, "Your Highness, have the Bone Clan's Hundred-Shackle Great Perfection Great Saints truly arrived? Why can't I sense their aura at all?"
Yan Hong Great Saint smiled. "If you could sense them, wouldn't Zhang Ruochen be able to as well? Rest assured, the Bone Clan's Full Moon Bull Emperor and Heavenly Sparrow Divine Bone came with me. At the critical moment, they will deliver a fatal blow to Zhang Ruochen."
"Besides that, I have also invited the Corpse Clan's number one powerhouse, Purple Corpse Divine Chrysalis, to ambush a hidden location outside the Ghost Clan's clan star, cutting off Zhang Ruochen's escape route."
Four-Eyed Ghost Emperor, whose body was seventy-six zhang tall, with four eyes like demon lamps illuminating heaven and earth, laughed heartily. "With such a lineup, even if it were Lan Ying or Yan Huangtu, they would die without a doubt."
"If we don't strike, fine; but if we do, we must ensure he dies without a burial place." A shadow on the ground spoke in a hoarse voice.
It was Night Changzai.
Always present, yet rarely seen.
This man was the most mysterious powerhouse of the Ghost Clan. Even Xu, with all his strength, dared not provoke him lightly.
Wing Ghost Emperor, hanging upside down like a bat from a yin mulberry tree, his voice blending with the wind, said, "Have you brought the Bone Clan's supreme sacred artifact? Adding it to our Ghost Clan's supreme sacred artifact makes two. If Zhang Ruochen dares to come, we will reduce him to ashes."
White Jade Mad Lion was both excited and worried. "This is clearly a death trap. Anyone who comes will die. What if Zhang Ruochen doesn't come?"
Yan Hong Great Saint said, "We'll give him three days. If he doesn't come in three days, we'll go straight to the Undying Blood Clan's clan star. With our strength, we can destroy the Undying Blood Clan first."
White Jade Mad Lion was secretly pleased. If that happened, even better.
Yan Hong Great Saint glanced at White Jade Mad Lion without leaving a trace, seeing through his thoughts, and sneered inwardly, "He wants to use me as a blade, but he doesn't know I'm using this opportunity to eliminate the great enemy, Wind Queen. Before dealing with Wind Queen, I'll take care of you first. But for now, you still have some use."
The reason so many powerhouses responded to Yan Hong Great Saint's plan to deal with Zhang Ruochen was not just because he had many enemies, but also because he had many treasures.
Eight Derivative Dao Sacred Fruits, three quasi-emperor-grade sacred intent pills, and a large number of king-grade sacred intent pills, top-tier heavenly-grade sacred intent pills...
They all came for the benefits.
Yan Hong Great Saint could use this to complete her plan against Wind Queen.
At other times, gathering the top powerhouses of the middle three clans was not easy. After all, the middle three clans were also in competition with each other.
White Jade Mad Lion added, "We'd better be cautious. Zhang Ruochen is proficient in the way of space and time. If he sneaks in silently, he could catch us off guard."
Four-Eyed Ghost Emperor laughed loudly, pointing upward. "See those seven stars? They are the seven nodes of the Ghost Clan's clan star protective formation, and also the supreme sacred artifact, Seven-Star Ghost Lotus."
"With Xu wielding the supreme sacred artifact, and the artifact combined with the protective formation, any slightest movement on the entire planet cannot escape his perception."
White Jade Mad Lion looked up, his pupils contracting sharply. "How come there are eight stars?"
"Eight?"
Yan Hong Great Saint, Four-Eyed Ghost Emperor, and Wing Ghost Emperor all looked up. In the pitch-black ghost mist, an eighth star indeed appeared. Moreover, that star grew larger and larger, becoming the size of a plate, a winnowing basket, a millstone...
Finally, it covered half the sky, magnificent and grand.
A massive planet was hurtling toward the Ghost Clan's clan star at high speed. The planet's powerful gravity caused winds and clouds to surge on the Ghost Clan's clan star, mountains to collapse, rivers to burst their banks, and seas to churn.
"He's here!"
Yan Hong Great Saint was not alarmed but delighted.
Standing on the mountain peak, Xu squinted his eyes, revealing a joyful smile. He raised his palm. The yin winds of heaven and earth all converged into his palm, condensing into a biting cold aura.
He struck out with a palm toward the sky.
This palm contained boundless ghost qi, interwoven with hundreds of millions of rules.
After breaking through the Ghost Clan's clan star's atmosphere, the palm print had grown to half the size of the clan star, like a hand of the heavens.
"Boom."
In the outer starry sky, the colliding planet was struck by the palm print, dented, and shattered.
Dense fragments of the star, like a rain of fire meteors, continued flying toward the Ghost Clan's clan star, activating the clan star's protective formation, forming a layer of black ghost mist light shield.
"Bang, bang."
All the fire meteors were annihilated, turning into dust.
The Ghost Clan's clan star trembled incessantly. The ghosts on the planet were all terrified, letting out heart-rending howls.
When the world calmed down, Zhang Ruochen, clad in a blood robe, appeared above the Ghost Clan's clan star. His figure was upright, his features heroic, his long hair flowing, exuding a majestic aura of ruling heaven and earth.
The Myriad Realms Divine Eye locked onto him once again, projecting the scene of the starry sky near the Ghost Clan's clan star to various places in the Hell Realm.
At this moment, countless gazes were fixed on the image in the sky.
One man and one star.
Many cultivators did not know what was happening, nor why Zhang Ruochen had come alone to the Ghost Clan's clan star, leading to various speculations.
Regardless, the projection in the sky attracted all cultivators.
They were eager to know what would happen next.
Xu used his spiritual power to probe the surrounding starry sky and laughed. "As expected of the Heir of Time and Space, you keep your word. You really came alone. But do you dare to enter the Ghost Clan's clan star?"
As he spoke, Xu's finger traced across the sky.
"Whoosh—"
The protective formation split open a gap dozens of miles long. The black clouds parted, appearing like a heavenly river in the sky.
"The Ghost Clan's clan star has hundreds of millions of ghosts, and I am but one man. Since you dare to invite me in, why would I not dare to accept?"
Zhang Ruochen took a step forward. Space twisted, a thousand miles shrinking to an inch. His figure instantly appeared on the planet.
Earlier, Zhang Ruochen had pushed a planet a thousand miles in diameter from the universe to crash into the Ghost Clan's clan star, testing the strength of the planet's defensive formation. He now had a certain degree of confidence.
That was why he dared to descend onto the planet without hesitation.
Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power spread out, discovering that not a single ghost existed on the continent beneath his feet. Thousands of miles around were deathly still.
It seemed Xu had already cleared the battlefield.
When Zhang Ruochen's gaze fell on Man Sword Great Saint, nailed to the cliff by five ice pillars, the killing intent in his cold, ruthless eyes deepened.
"You... you shouldn't have come."
Man Sword Great Saint's turbid eyes showed a sorrowful and bitter light. The emotion in his heart was beyond words.
Even though Zhang Ruochen had become a member of the Hell Realm, even though he knew this place was a heaven net earth trap, he still came without hesitation.
Man Sword Great Saint felt deep guilt, believing he had dragged Zhang Ruochen down.
"Hurry..."
Man Sword Great Saint tried to speak, but the ice pillar nailed into his head immediately pierced deeper. The cold numbed his will, and the pain made him scream.
Zhang Ruochen clenched his fists tightly, controlling his emotions. His gaze swept around. "Call out all the powerhouses hiding on this continent. What's the point of continuing to hide?"
"Zhang Ruochen, I truly want to fight you one-on-one, to defeat you with my own hands—no, to kill you, to refine your sacred soul into my ghost slave. So, in this battle, no outsiders will interfere." Xu said.
Zhang Ruochen certainly did not believe him. Pointing at the mountain peak, he said decisively, "If you think you can fight me alone, that will be the stupidest decision you will ever make in your life."