Chapter 2323: Invincible Momentum
The Divine Fire Millstone rotated through the void like a blazing sun, crushing all the curse power into nothingness.
"How can this power be... possible?"
Wu Jiang's face was pale as paper under the reflection of the divine fire, his robes burning, and his heart filled with disbelief.
This technique was clearly a Thousand Questions-level high-rank sacred art, and it had been combined with Zhang Ruochen's second-rank sacred intent.
Zhang Ruochen had clearly lost most of his Great Saint blood—how could he still have the strength to unleash such a powerful technique?
Wu Jiang gritted his teeth, refusing to yield, and poured all his power into the Ten Thousand Curse Heavenly Bead to resist the Divine Fire Millstone.
"Crack, crack."
The wounds that had already healed split open again, blood dripping down, the pain piercing to the bone.
"Boom."
The Divine Fire Millstone exploded, turning into a rain of fire across the sky.
Wu Jiang was struck by the shockwave of this power, flying backward like a cannonball. A third of his flesh was shattered, torn from his bones and sent flying, leaving him in an utterly miserable state.
This scene left Yu Huang, Mo Yin, and Zuo Mu Shengjun utterly stunned.
How had Zhang Ruochen suddenly become so powerful? Even Wu Jiang, wielding a supreme sacred artifact, could not withstand a single blow?
Bore, who had fled far away, transmitted a message to Wu Jiang: "Zhang Ruochen's injuries have fully healed. Flee immediately—you are no match for him now."
Wu Jiang released a massive amount of Nether Qi from his body, forming a bridge of energy, and fled rapidly away from the third Dark Star, leaving behind a harsh parting remark: "Zhang Ruochen, once my injuries heal, we will settle this."
"Bow, come."
Zhang Ruochen extended his right hand.
Mo Yin took out the Ice Wood Divine Bow and placed it in Zhang Ruochen's hand.
The moment Zhang Ruochen grasped the bow's frame, all the inscription patterns within it emerged, releasing astonishing cold energy. Flakes of snow danced within a thousand miles.
"Hiss, hiss."
Zhang Ruochen mobilized tens of millions of Water Dao rules, condensing them into an ice arrow, and drew the Ice Wood Divine Bow.
The ice arrow, imbued with his killing will, left the bow and flew out, leaving a trail dozens of miles long.
"Pfft."
The ice arrow struck Wu Jiang, who had fled a thousand miles away, hitting him in the back and piercing through his body.
A mournful cry of rage echoed through the void.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to shoot a second arrow, Bore appeared beside Wu Jiang, dragging him into the darkness. Their figures vanished without a trace.
Zhang Ruochen's eyelids narrowed, and he had no choice but to aim the second arrow at Zuo Mu Shengjun.
When Zuo Mu Shengjun saw Zhang Ruochen defeat Wu Jiang with a single blow, he knew the situation was dire. He circumvented Zhang Ruochen and fled rapidly in another direction.
Behind him, a chill approached.
Zuo Mu Shengjun glanced back and saw the ice arrow was already within inches.
"Damn it, how did Zhang Ruochen suddenly become so powerful? Even if I weren't injured and at my peak, I might not have an easy time against him."
Zuo Mu Shengjun turned and struck out with a palm. With a crack, he shattered the ice arrow.
However, his liquid hand was struck by countless ice shards. The shards, infused with Zhang Ruochen's killing will, not only attacked his sacred soul but also froze his entire right arm solid.
Zhang Ruochen shot a second arrow, a third...
After the seventh arrow, most of Zuo Mu Shengjun's body was encased in ice.
"Still trying to escape? Do you really think you can get away today?"
Zhang Ruochen returned the Ice Wood Divine Bow to Mo Yin, spread his ten wings, and the Ancestor Divine Patterns on his golden wings emitted an eerie blood-red light. He turned into a golden streak of light and shot forward.
His speed was so great that he crossed a thousand miles in an instant.
Yu Huang was slightly stunned. Zhang Ruochen was far too powerful. After emerging from the underground cavern, it was as if he had undergone some transformation, displaying an utterly invincible demeanor.
Mo Yin glanced at her with a smile and said, "Don't just stand there in a daze. Even if you want to worship the master, wait until the battle is over. The master just transmitted a message telling us to follow him immediately and stay away from the third Dark Star."
Zuo Mu Shengjun was born in the origin place of the universe, "Hai Shi Xing Wu." He had roamed the world, clashing with the Star Cloud Divine Temple and challenging the Destiny Temple. Even when he was finally captured, it was because the Heavenly Fate Saint Guard of the Destiny Temple had a cultivation level far above his, reaching the Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm.
He had never imagined that one day, he would be hunted so miserably by a cultivator far weaker than himself.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen closing in, Zuo Mu Shengjun felt a sense of desperation. He flew out of the darkness, and before him was a six-colored, brilliant starry sky that dyed his pupils in rainbow hues.
Suddenly, he decided not to flee anymore. He resolved to fight Zhang Ruochen to the death.
Zhang Ruochen caught up to him, slowing down. White divine fire appeared beneath his feet, quickly spreading into a sea of flames that enveloped Zuo Mu Shengjun.
Zuo Mu Shengjun turned around, staring at Zhang Ruochen's young and handsome face, and laughed, "This universe has a long and profound history, giving birth to countless gods with great achievements, all nurtured by space. But they are all killed by time, returning to dust, unable to achieve eternity."
"Many cultivators say that nothingness is the most terrifying—whether living beings, dead spirits, or strange entities, if they fall into the void world, they are doomed."
"But I believe that time and space are the most terrifying."
"No matter how powerful a god is, they are born in space, grow in space, and are eventually killed by time. Time and space toy with them—letting them live when they will, and forcing them to die when they must."
"Zhang Ruochen, you are the third cultivator in the universe to simultaneously master time and space. If you have the time, you must visit Hai Shi Xing Wu. Only there can you understand the true essence of time and space."
"I will remember what you said today," Zhang Ruochen replied.
Zuo Mu Shengjun's liquid body quickly solidified, returning to human form, clad in a purple meteorite armor. He said, "Do you dare to fight me without using space power?"
Zhang Ruochen did not respond, clearly seeing no need to agree to Zuo Mu Shengjun's condition.
Yu Huang and Mo Yin caught up, taking positions on two other sides, forming a triangular formation with Zhang Ruochen to surround Zuo Mu Shengjun.
Zuo Mu Shengjun did not look at them, keeping his eyes on Zhang Ruochen. "To be honest, if any other cultivator were hunting me—no matter who they were or how many they brought—I would have been confident in escaping using space power. But with you, Zhang Ruochen, the master of time and space, taking action, I know that escape is impossible today."
"Before I die, I have only this small request. I just want to know how great the gap is between me and the most top-tier geniuses of the universe."
Zhang Ruochen gave him a cold stare and said, "On the brink of death, why so many useless words?"
He slapped the Purple Gold Gourd, and it flew up, hovering above his head.
"Whoosh."
The gourd's mouth activated seventy-two million spatial array inscription patterns, forming a massive spatial array covering an area eight hundred miles in radius.
Yu Huang and Mo Yin received Zhang Ruochen's transmission and immediately retreated, pulling back beyond eight hundred miles. Zuo Mu Shengjun also tried to flee but failed to escape the spatial array.
"Boom."
As the area covered by the array underwent spatial collapse, Zuo Mu Shengjun was sucked into the gourd. The void echoed with his venomous curses and furious roars.
Zhang Ruochen retrieved the Purple Gold Gourd, holding it in his palm, his eyes devoid of any emotion.
In the past, Zhang Ruochen might have actually granted the final request of a dying man.
But after experiencing so much, how could he still be so naive and soft-hearted?
Zuo Mu Shengjun was no weakling—he was a top-tier powerhouse. Even with his severe injuries, if Zhang Ruochen had not used space power to counter him, the outcome would still have been uncertain.
A figure like Zuo Mu Shengjun, who had hidden in the Falling Star Divine Temple for centuries and repeatedly evaded capture by both the Falling Star Divine Temple and the Destiny Temple, was undoubtedly cunning and treacherous.
From the start, Zuo Mu Shengjun had been feeding Zhang Ruochen sweet talk, praising time and space to the heavens, putting on the act of a man whose words were kind at the end of his life.
In reality, he was constantly thinking of ways to kill Zhang Ruochen and turn the tables.
His only chance to turn things around was to enter Zhang Ruochen's body and seize his physical form.
If Zhang Ruochen had agreed to fight without using space power, Zuo Mu Shengjun would have had a real chance—and a significant one at that.
"Your true form is Space Purple Rain. If I refine you together with the Purple Gold Gourd, it should greatly expand the gourd's internal space," Zhang Ruochen said, looking at the gourd.
From within the gourd came Zuo Mu Shengjun's venomous voice: "Zhang Ruochen, there are many gods in the Hell Realm who will not allow a master of time and space to grow. Once you reach a certain level, they will become afraid. And once they fear you, they will kill you. Don't be too smug—you'll soon come to keep me company."
Unmoved, Zhang Ruochen channeled sacred Qi into the gourd, activating the power of the Annihilating Golden Sun to refine Zuo Mu Shengjun.
Mo Yin's graceful figure descended from the sky, landing before Zhang Ruochen. She bowed deeply and said, "Congratulations, master, for subduing Zuo Mu Shengjun."
Yu Huang flew above the sea of fire, her breathtakingly beautiful eyes filled with astonishment. "Your Purple Gold Gourd seems even more powerful now."
Having seen a Thousand Questions Middle Stage cultivator like Zuo Mu Shengjun sucked in instantly, how could she remain calm?
This was utterly shocking!
"It's nothing special. Zuo Mu Shengjun was already severely injured, and he happened to be countered by space, so he couldn't resist the Purple Gold Gourd," Zhang Ruochen said calmly.
Inside the Dark Star, Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power had been elevated to the sixty-fifth rank, allowing him to modify the spatial inscriptions on the gourd's mouth, increasing them from thirty-six million to seventy-two million.
Moreover, the Purple Gold Gourd had also refined the Blue Marrow Star.
The gourd's devouring and absorbing capabilities were naturally far beyond what they had been.
Mo Yin said, "It's a pity that Wu Jiang escaped."
"Escaping is fine. From today onward, Wu Jiang will never be my match again. If he continues to oppose me, the next time we fight will be the moment of his complete annihilation. Even the Dark Abyss Temple cannot stop my will to kill him."
Zhang Ruochen's gaze once again fixed on the boundless darkness behind him, a hint of worry appearing on his brow.
If something truly terrifying had emerged from inside the Dark Star and entered the Heaven Hunting Battlefield, would the gods continue to follow the established rules and refrain from interfering within the battlefield?
"Master, what are your plans next? Should we continue hunting the heavenly slaves in the star region near the third Dark Star?" Mo Yin asked.
Zhang Ruochen said, "No need. A bunch of minor fry—not worth many points. Chasing them is just a waste of time. Let's return to our home star first. I have more important matters to attend to."
Three figures flew over from the distance.
"Fang Mofeng of the Falling Star Divine Temple pays respects to Ruochen Great Saint."