# Chapter 2329: Blood Shadow Ghost Seed
Yue Tinghai still knelt outside the city, firmly suppressed by a large hand seal woven from lightning, the ground beneath him a scene of devastation.
Nearly two hundred Great Saints from the ten major tribes gathered in the Cloud City Lord's Mansion.
At the highest position, seven chairs were arranged. Seated on them, in order, were Yu Huang, Feng Hou, Dao Yu Huang, Jin Kun Great Saint, Gu Chenzi, and Yi Hui Saint Lord.
Zhang Ruochen sat at the very center of the seven chairs, appearing like the overall leader.
Yi Hui Saint Lord of the Demon Heaven Tribe was a Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saint hidden within the Undying Blood Clan. He had only been listed on the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Ranking after entering the Heaven Hunting Battlefield.
Of course, the gazes of the assembled Great Saints were mostly fixed on Da Sen Luo Huang, who stood behind Zhang Ruochen.
They were all astonished. How could a top-tier expert of the Death Clan have come to the Undying Blood Clan's home planet, and moreover, stand behind Zhang Ruochen like a guard?
Zhang Ruochen's saintly might was strong, but his tone was calm. "I've called everyone here today mainly to discuss one matter. To negotiate combining all the power of the Undying Blood Clan to win the Heaven Hunting Battle."
"I believe the ten major tribes can no longer allow rifts to grow. Those with grudges should set aside their enmity first; those with conflicts should restrain themselves. This Heaven Hunting Battle is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity, a moment for the Undying Blood Clan to display its might in the Hell Realm. We must unite and strive for first place among the ten clans."
First among the ten clans?
Those present were all Great Saints with steady minds, yet many were still startled.
They had guessed the purpose of Zhang Ruochen summoning the cultivators of the ten major tribes here, but they never imagined his ambition was so great.
A Great Saint stood up, his expression grave. "Striving for first among the ten clans is no easy task. The Yama Clan and the Shura Clan are both immensely powerful. In terms of top-tier combat strength, we might not be inferior to them. However, there is still a considerable gap in the number of Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saints. That is the first point."
"Secondly, if the Undying Blood Clan is too aggressive, it is very likely to become a target for all, suffering joint suppression."
"Against a single clan, we naturally have no fear. But if two or three clans unite, we would certainly not be their match."
"Therefore, I wish to know how Ruochen Great Saint plans to resolve these two issues."
Striving for first among the ten clans was not just a slogan. Once this action was taken, they would face immense challenges and resistance. It was very possible that some Great Saints among them would die in battle.
Dying in battle was not frightening. As long as there was a chance to take first place among the ten clans, they did not fear fighting, nor did they fear death.
What they feared was blind combat and dying for nothing.
Zhang Ruochen had already done meticulous thinking and deduction. "First of all, my only opponent is the Yama Clan. As for the Shura Clan, they are indeed powerful, but their internal factions are too numerous, divided into twenty-four divine halls. The hatred between the major divine halls runs deep, and contradictions are severe. Unity is impossible."
"A Shura Clan that cannot achieve unity is nothing to fear."
"To defeat the Yama Clan, two steps are needed."
"First, it depends on ourselves. We must unite and combine all our strength to hunt the Heavenly Slaves and obtain higher points."
"The vast majority of Heavenly Slaves are hidden in the star regions near the seven dark stars. Apart from the third dark star, which Yu Huang and I have already swept once, we must campaign against the other six dark stars as well."
"Second, I will personally go to the Yama Clan's home planet and annihilate more than half of their clansmen. That is my promise to all of you."
The Great Saints present were all visibly moved.
Zhang Ruochen's promise was no small matter. The Yama Clan's home planet was a true dragon's pool and tiger's den, incomparable to the Ghost Clan's home planet.
Just breaking into the Yama Clan's home planet was nearly impossible.
The Yama Clan possessed not only their dozen or so Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saints but also many powerful formation masters, talisman masters, illusion masters, life masters, and death masters—all at the Earth Master level.
Some of these Earth Masters possessed strength capable of contending with Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saints.
The Undying Blood Clan had four top-tier experts—Zhang Ruochen, Yu Huang, Dao Yu Huang, and Feng Hou—each capable of contending with several Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saints on their own. Only thus did they dare challenge the Yama Clan's supreme status; otherwise, it would be like striking a rock with an egg.
Zhang Ruochen continued, "If the Undying Blood Clan truly goes all out to strive for first among the ten clans, we will certainly face joint suppression. But that presupposes we can defeat the Yama Clan."
"Before we completely defeat the Yama Clan, the other clans will only sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight."
"What I want to say here is this: all of you are the most outstanding experts of the Undying Blood Clan in the past thousand years. If we can even defeat the supreme clan, why should we fear the challenge of a group of weaklings?"
"Of course, we must be fully prepared. If we truly face joint suppression from multiple clans, we must be able to withstand it."
"Therefore, defense is of utmost importance. This matter is entrusted to Yu Huang. She is one of the most powerful formation Earth Masters in this Heaven Hunting Battle and has mastered the supreme sacred artifact, the Seven-Star Ghost Lotus. The defensive formations she arranges can make our home planet as solid as gold and iron."
Yao Bing, the leader of the Fengtian Tribe, stood up. "Ruochen Great Saint, I have a question."
"Speak," Zhang Ruochen said.
Yao Bing said, "Among the Heavenly Slaves, there is a Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm Great Saint, Chi Di. No one knows where he is hiding. If we launch a large-scale campaign against the six dark stars and encounter him, we will surely suffer heavy losses. How should we guard against this?"
"Before the large-scale campaign against the six dark stars, I will go ahead to scout the path. If I discover Chi Di, I will strike at him first. I may not be able to defeat him, but containing him should not be too difficult."
Zhang Ruochen exuded a powerful confidence.
This confidence was unshakable even by the greatest dangers, and it invisibly infected the Undying Blood Clan Great Saints in the mansion, giving them faith and reducing their worries and concerns.
Yao Bing gazed into Zhang Ruochen's eyes and nodded deeply. "If Ruochen Great Saint truly leads from the front, Yao Bing will lead the Fengtian Tribe to follow closely in your footsteps."
Immediately after, several more Great Saints stood up and voiced their concerns. Zhang Ruochen answered fluently, showing that his decision to strive for first among the ten clans was not a momentary impulse but the result of careful consideration.
"The Qingtian Tribe will follow Ruochen Great Saint's orders completely."
"The Butian Tribe's cultivators will obey Ruochen Great Saint's commands."
...
When all the cultivators had no further objections, Zhang Ruochen spoke again. "There is one matter that everyone should have guessed. The home planets of the ten major tribes are not ordinary planets."
"Inside the Ghost Clan's home planet, there is a tremendous opportunity. Inside the Undying Blood Clan's home planet, there should also be something extraordinary. Has any cultivator gone to explore the underground?"
News from the Ghost Clan's home planet had long since spread back to the Undying Blood Clan's home planet. Those who could cultivate to the Great Saint realm were no fools; they could certainly deduce the clues about the ten home planets.
How could the Destiny Temple and the gods play favorites?
A rather pale-faced Immortal Realm Great Saint shook his head. "This Saint has explored underground. I found that the entire home planet is like a huge living creature."
"What do you mean?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
That Immortal Realm Great Saint said, "A thousand meters below the surface, there are countless underground blood rivers, crisscrossing with innumerable tributaries. It is exactly like the blood vessels inside a human body."
"Moreover, the river channels are extremely sturdy, difficult to destroy even with the power of a Great Saint."
"This Saint once followed a river channel downstream, wanting to explore the final convergence point of the blood river water. However, I encountered a very strange phenomenon. The blood in my body gradually decreased without my noticing. Fortunately, I retreated quickly; otherwise, I would have turned into a dried corpse."
More than one person present had entered the underground blood rivers, and all had suffered a significant loss of blood energy.
The most severe case had half his body withered and dead, his skin like tree bark, with the outline of bones visible. Moreover, with his Great Saint realm cultivation, recovery was extremely difficult.
"Could it be the Blood Devouring Curse?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Great Saints who had entered the underground all shook their heads. One of them said, "No, certainly not. When struck by the Blood Devouring Curse, the blood in the body disappears evenly."
"But underground, the blood drains from the body's surface or concentrates in a specific area."
Being able to silently drain the blood of a Great Saint, and one from the Undying Blood Clan who were masters of blood, was truly horrifying.
Zhang Ruochen pondered. "Although there is a great opportunity inside the Ghost Clan's home planet, there is also great danger. If I didn't have the Purple Gold Gourd, hadn't cultivated the Five Elements Chaos Immortal Sacred Body, and didn't have a powerful demigod body, forcing my way in would have been fraught with peril."
"There should also be a great opportunity inside the Undying Blood Clan's home planet, but passing the trial will certainly involve immense danger."
Having experienced the Ghost Clan's home planet, Zhang Ruochen approached the interior of the Undying Blood Clan's home planet with a certain reverence and did not dare to covet the opportunity within the planet.
Of course, not daring to covet did not mean not daring to try.
Zhang Ruochen turned his gaze to Feng Hou, wanting to learn more.
Feng Hou had been stationed on the home planet all along; she could not have avoided going underground. With her cultivation, she might have already uncovered some clues.
Just as Feng Hou hesitated, Zhang Ruochen said, "The opportunity on the home planet belongs to every Great Saint of the Undying Blood Clan. As I said earlier, we must unite. The information we obtain should naturally be shared. There is nothing to hide."
Hearing this, everyone present nodded in agreement, their recognition of Zhang Ruochen growing even higher.
Feng Hou shook her head. "The underground is dangerous—indeed, very dangerous. Great Saints below the Hundred Shackles Realm who force their way in will surely die. Those who are not Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saints who venture deep will face nine deaths and one chance of life."
"I have indeed made some discoveries. The reason everyone's blood drains away may be related to the legendary Blood Shadow Ghost Seed."
"Blood Shadow Ghost Seed?"
The Great Saints present all showed puzzled expressions. Not a single one had heard of it.
Some even suspected that Feng Hou had fabricated this to conceal the truth.
Zhang Ruochen, however, did not doubt it. After refining part of the Divine Wood Heart, he had inherited a vast amount of knowledge and experience from the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree and had some impression of the "Blood Shadow Ghost Seed."
The Destiny Temple's collection of books was arguably the greatest in the universe, gathering scriptures from countless major worlds. As candidates for the Divine Maiden, each was well-read and knowledgeable about all kinds of secrets and strange tales in the world.
Feng Hou said, "The legend of the Blood Shadow Ghost Seed is very ancient, traceable back to the very birth of the Undying Blood Clan."
"Some texts record it as a tree; others as a humanoid creature; still others as a soul-body death spirit. There are too many records, but no unified account. Even whether it truly exists is an unknown."
"One of the most crucial legends is that the Blood Shadow Ghost Seed grew from White Pale Blood Soil. With the disappearance of White Pale Blood Soil, it also became extinct."
A cry of surprise rang out: "White Pale Blood Soil! Something that grew from White Pale Blood Soil—what kind of supreme treasure is that?"
The other Undying Blood Clan Great Saints were also excited, their eyes shining, unable to remain calm.
White Pale Blood Soil was the foremost sacred object of the Undying Blood Clan.
The Undying Blood Clan was not a race born from heaven and earth but originated from the human race.
The first ancestor of the Undying Blood Clan was named "Yin." He was once a human who, after death, was buried in a patch of White Pale Blood Soil. Countless years later, he came back to life from that soil, giving rise to the present Undying Blood Clan.
Yin's era was even more ancient than the ten ancestors who founded the ten major tribes. He belonged to myth and legend. Even the gods of the Undying Blood Clan were uncertain whether he had ever truly existed.
Yin was also called the "Ancestor of Ancestors."
White Pale Blood Soil was known as the "Undying Soil," the "Resurrection Soil," the "Rebirth Soil." There were even rumors that White Pale Blood Soil was connected to the secret of eternal life.
Unfortunately, after endless ages, White Pale Blood Soil had been completely consumed.
Of course, many cultivators suspected that the Undying Divine Temple still contained White Pale Blood Soil, serving as a resting place for gods nearing the end of their lifespans. Perhaps one day, they could be awakened from the soil.
Feng Hou said, "Everyone had best not hold too much hope. All of this is merely my speculation. Moreover, although the Blood Shadow Ghost Seed has marvelous uses, it also poses great danger. Great Saints who have not reached the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection should not enter the underground."
Since it was already connected to White Pale Blood Soil, how could the Undying Blood Clan's saints remain calm?
Even if it meant nine deaths and one chance of life, many Great Saints were willing to take the risk.
Zhang Ruochen looked at the excitement in their eyes and frowned, somewhat regretting letting Feng Hou reveal this secret in front of everyone.
Those who could not control their desires would die faster the more they knew.
"How about this: I, Feng Hou, and Dao Yu Huang will enter first to scout and gain a deeper understanding of the situation inside the home planet. If we can control the danger, everyone can then go in and try to seize the opportunity," Zhang Ruochen said.
...
These past two days, I've been delayed by a Writers' Association meeting. Over the next few days, I'll see if I can manage two chapters a day to make up for it. Borrowing Feng Hou's words, everyone should not hold too much hope. This little fish just wants to try hard; trying hard doesn't necessarily mean success.