# Chapter 2409: Only Zhang Ruochen Remains in the World
(In the previous chapter, a mistake was made. Source Demon God Son should already be dead. Sigh, at the time I confused him with Ghost Lord's eighth son, mixing them up. They are both divine sons, and both have elder brothers, with very strong strength as well.)
……
"Blocked it, he actually... blocked it!"
Source Heavenly Lord's companions, Source Fei Great Saint and Yuan Li Great Saint, stood in a daze. The beam of light shot from the Divine Martial Mark between Zhang Ruochen's brows shattered the dark giant hand, as if it had also struck their hearts.
"Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen have grown so powerful. It seems that even if Wujiang, Yan Huangtu, and Lan Ying break through to the Thousand Questions Realm, they would have to avoid their sharp edge. The Heaven Hunting Battle limited the strength of these two." Source Fei Great Saint smiled bitterly.
Although Wujiang, Yan Huangtu, Lan Ying, and others also had trump cards they couldn't bring to the Heaven Hunting battlefield, when facing a dark star or a great world, those trump cards simply couldn't withstand them.
Source Heavenly Lord said, "Now do you still think Yan Wushen is unworthy of your sister?"
Source Fei Great Saint and Source Li Great Saint both shook their heads.
Yan Wushen, one who appears only once in an epoch, fighting at the Hundred Shackles Realm against the Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm—how astonishingly brilliant was that?
As Blood Absolute War God said, unless a Supreme Realm Great Saint appeared, no one in the Saint realm could suppress Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen.
Ghost Lord's body was covered in blazing ghost fire as he spoke repeatedly, "Unexpected, truly unexpected. What Zhang Ruochen has sealed inside his body is actually a great world. When he used his physical body to bear that great world, he shouldn't have even reached the Great Saint realm. How did he do it?"
Multiple gods had helped Zhang Ruochen conceal his heavenly secrets, so Ghost Lord couldn't calculate the secrets hidden within him.
Moreover, the walls of Zhang Ruochen's Qi Sea bore the marks of many gods. Even if an ordinary god captured him, they couldn't probe the secrets in his Qi Sea. At most, they could only kill him.
Green Deer God King narrowed his eyes and muttered to himself, "Relying solely on the Five Elements Chaos Body, at the Saint King realm, one absolutely couldn't bear a great world. Could it be that Zhang Ruochen inherited the mantle of Xumi Saint Monk and possesses Space Esoterica within his body? Yes, it must be so."
Yan Wushen could absorb the Dark Yuan Spirit and bear a dark star because he possessed a half-Buddha body and succeeded by borrowing the Six Paths Reincarnation Sacred Intent.
Luo Shengtian could refine two active Divine Throne Planets into his eyes because he was born with a pair of divine eyes. So-called divine eyes are no different from a god's eyes, containing enormous space within.
Even so, the two active Divine Throne Planets, comparable to stars, were sealed with multiple layers.
It's worth mentioning that Luo Shengtian was so powerful because, when he was born, his mother Tian Yin had already broken through to become a god. A child born from a god's flesh and blood body is born with divine blood, divine bones, and even a soul with divine nature.
Furthermore, his father was a great emperor of the Rakshasa Clan.
For example, the children born to two humans are human.
The children born to two gods, even if not gods themselves, can reach heights that are extraordinary.
This is why many cultivators only have children after becoming gods, or after surviving one Eon Calamity before having a single child.
The stronger you are, the stronger your children naturally become.
The children of female gods and male gods are on completely different levels.
The children of female gods are born with divine blood, divine bones, and divine souls, essentially being naturally divine fetuses, like divine beast cubs. As long as they aren't too useless, their future achievements will at least reach the False God level.
However, every time a female god bears a child, her cultivation suffers greatly. She might only have one or two children in her lifetime.
Moreover, the children born are too weak, with incomplete consciousness, unable to control the power within them. The divine-level power is sealed away, only gradually being unlocked when they reach the Great Saint realm.
Luo Shengtian and Luo Sha are both like this.
When Zhang Ruochen bore a great world, he was neither a half-god body nor the child of a female god. He had no unique advantages. How could he be so heaven-defying?
Aside from Space Esoterica, Green Deer God King couldn't think of any other possibility.
Que, who had descended alone into the Void Space, watched Yan Wushen and Zhang Ruochen in battle, a trace of confusion appearing in his eyes.
His master taught him to be unattached to anything, with only himself and his sword, enough to sweep the world.
When his cultivation reached a certain level, he would even have to abandon the sword, truly achieving "only one under heaven" and "only me under heaven."
"Each has their own path, each has their own way."
The confusion in Que's eyes was soon cut away by his sword. He decisively left the Void Space, silently resolving not to emerge until he had cultivated a flawless, perfect Second-Rank Sacred Intent.
...
...
The dark power of the Third Dark Star could cover a million miles in the starry sky. Although it only covered ten thousand miles in the Void Space, it was still terrifying.
Zhang Ruochen's body seemed to transform into a five-colored stone, radiating five-colored light. Using the Yin-Yang Five Elements Sacred Intent, he mobilized the power of the Qiankun Realm, churning the ten-thousand-mile dark world upside down.
It was as if a boundless black ocean was being shattered by the five-colored light.
The Yin-Yang Five Elements Sacred Intent fused six types of Dao sacred intents from Zhang Ruochen.
The Six Paths Reincarnation Sacred Intent fused five types of Dao sacred intents from Yan Wushen, including the eternal Dao paths of "Origin," "Space," and "Darkness."
To construct the Six Paths Reincarnation, "Space" was the foundation, "Origin" was the essence of everything, "Darkness" was death, "Buddha" was creation, "Yellow Spring" was flow and change, and ultimately "Yama" governed the six paths.
Now, aside from the Yama Heavenly Dao, the other five paths had already merged into one.
This battle was a fight between Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen, a collision between a dark star and a great world, a clash of two types of Dao paths.
"Boom."
Zhang Ruochen mobilized more and more world power, his body glowing brighter, as if about to melt. He struck through the darkness with one palm, sending Yan Wushen flying, blood spilling from his mouth.
The power of this palm had reached the level of a Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm Great Saint.
"Again."
Yan Wushen roared, propping up the Six Paths Reincarnation once more, charging at Zhang Ruochen.
He pushed the dark star's power to its limit, reaching the strongest state he could control, breaking through Zhang Ruochen's Taiji Yin-Yang Five Elements Diagram Seal and sending Zhang Ruochen flying a thousand miles.
This collision was like being struck by a dark star.
Zhang Ruochen's body continuously cracked, seemingly about to shatter into bloody pieces.
But surprisingly, his physical recovery speed was extremely fast, and he endured it.
Yan Wushen's collision force finally exhausted.
Zhang Ruochen seized the opportunity to counterattack, throwing punch after punch like a string of pearls, hitting Yan Wushen's chest.
"Thump, thump."
Yan Wushen's chest cavity was caved in, blood gushing out, ribs and internal organs all shattered. Finally, Zhang Ruochen punched straight through him, even breaking his spine.
The shattered flesh and blood turned into Origin particles, reforming into a complete body.
Zhang Ruochen's expression was grave. After fusing the Dark Yuan Spirit and the fifth type of Sacred Intent, Yan Wushen's recovery ability had become so formidable.
Fighting like this would probably only end when both were devoured by the void.
Yan Wushen clearly realized this too. His eyes were pitch black as he used his spiritual power to pierce through the Void Space, shouting, "Zhang Ruochen, after fighting for so long, how much have you comprehended about Yin-Yang Five Elements?"
"Nothing at all." Zhang Ruochen shook his head.
Yan Wushen said, "Without entering a life-and-death desperate situation, how can one understand the Six Paths Reincarnation? One final strike. Once this strike is unleashed, life and death will be decided. Are you ready?"
"Yes, without entering a life-and-death desperate situation, how can one communicate with heaven and earth and grasp the true essence of Yin-Yang Five Elements? One final strike. Let's see if you can truly push me into a life-and-death desperate situation and let me see the future path of Yin-Yang fusion and Five Elements unity." Zhang Ruochen said.
"Dark Star, emerge."
A strange mark appeared on Yan Wushen's brow. Dark energy surged out like ink, spreading into a light curtain ten thousand miles in diameter.
Like a black mirror standing before Yan Wushen.
A terrible sense of crisis enveloped Zhang Ruochen's entire body.
The light curtain ahead was like a gate of death, desperately pulling at him, causing his body to ache as if splitting, slightly deforming.
With a thunderous roar, the massive dark star flew out from Yan Wushen's Qi Sea, rushing hundreds of miles onto the black light curtain, like a fishhook-shaped crescent moon.
Only one-tenth of the dark star's main body was manifested, but the power fluctuation Yan Wushen unleashed far surpassed before.
"Crack."
Yan Wushen's half-Buddha body couldn't withstand the dark star's power, a crack appearing on his brow.
The dark star surged out another tenth.
"Crack, crack, crack..."
Several more cracks appeared on Yan Wushen's brow, blood streaming down.
...
...
The divine figures watching from afar were all astonished and uncertain.
"What is he trying to do? Is he trying to summon the dark star from his Qi Sea? Can he control such terrifying power? Isn't he afraid the dark star will suppress and kill him instead?" Blood Queen said.
A person can carry a stone weighing hundreds of pounds, but that doesn't mean they can use it as a weapon to fight.
If they can't swing it, it will crush them.
More and more of the dark star's body emerged, and the might radiating from Yan Wushen reached a level that even a peak Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm Great Saint could hardly match. But Yan Wushen's entire body was covered in cracks, his skin like a spiderweb, shocking to behold, as if it could shatter at any moment.
"Endure the strike of my dark star, and it will surely crush your physical body and saint soul, annihilating your divine form."
Yan Wushen roared, using the Six Paths Reincarnation Sacred Intent to control nearly half the dark star, pressing it down toward Zhang Ruochen.
The weight of the Third Dark Star was comparable to hundreds of thousands of planets. Although only a small portion was manifested, when it pressed down, it sent rolling waves of energy, temporarily forcing the void power to retreat.
Zhang Ruochen stared ahead, seeing not a star, but boundless darkness.
A great terror, great might, and great momentum rolled toward him, crushing everything.
If he couldn't withstand it, he would surely turn to dust.
"Qiankun Realm, lend me your power."
Streams of power surged from the Qiankun Realm in his Qi Sea into Zhang Ruochen's body.
The five-colored light on Zhang Ruochen's body increased several times over. He charged forward, both hands holding up the Taiji Yin-Yang Five Elements Diagram Seal, attacking the boundless darkness.
Even the gods watched without blinking, staring intently.
Victory or defeat would be decided in an instant. Today, one peerless prodigy would surely fall, while the other would ride the wind upward, becoming the hottest rising star in the entire Hell Realm.
Who would survive?
"Boom."
The moment he collided with the dark star, Zhang Ruochen's arms exploded into two clouds of blood mist, leaving only white bones. Even the Flame God Armor was corroded dim by the dark power.
Then, blood-colored cracks appeared on Zhang Ruochen's neck, head, chest, and legs.
"Has Zhang Ruochen lost?" Source Fei Great Saint asked.
Source Shu True Emperor focused his mind and said, "The dark star's power attacks Zhang Ruochen, but also backlashes against Yan Wushen. Who lives and who dies is still unknown."
Source Heavenly Lord said, "If Zhang Ruochen has no other means, he will most likely be the one to die."
"Boom."
Zhang Ruochen's arms completely snapped, bones turning to powder. He could only rely on his body to withstand the dark star's crushing force.
Yan Wushen roared, "Die!"
Yan Wushen's physical body shattered, but the dark star's body surged out another fraction, its power even greater.
Although his body was broken, strands of dark energy connected the pieces, like a lotus root broken but still connected by threads—on the verge of death but not dead, on the verge of extinction but not extinguished.
Just as all cultivators thought Zhang Ruochen would surely die...
"Whoosh."
A spatial gate opened on Zhang Ruochen's brow, and branches of the World Tree flew out, colliding with the dark star.
"Sky-Connecting Divine Wood." Ghost Lord exclaimed, his pupils widening.
The Sky-Connecting Divine Wood was the world spirit root of the Kunlun Realm, one of the oldest beings in the universe. Old gods could recognize it by its aura alone.
Blood Absolute War God said, "The Sky-Connecting Divine Wood is dead. This is just a seedling growing from its withered roots."
Ghost Lord's expression shifted unpredictably. Even if it was just a seedling of the Sky-Connecting Divine Wood, it made him covet it greatly.
"Rumble."
Branches of the Sky-Connecting Divine Wood continuously rushed out from the spatial gate, even stopping the dark star's advance.
Zhang Ruochen's physical body could barely withstand such immense power, continuously breaking apart. But he still gritted his teeth, pressed his hands together, and roared, "Qiankun Realm, emerge! Suppress the six paths, shatter the reincarnation!"
The spatial gate blazed with light, and a corner of a world rushed out, colliding with the dark star.
The two collided, black and white light intertwining, energy exploding everywhere.
After a long time, the Void Space finally returned to calm.
"Who won?"
Source Fei Great Saint stared intently, but where could he see any trace of Zhang Ruochen?
Only a dark star floated in the Void Space, emitting a dark fluctuation that made hearts tremble.
"It seems that the one who ascends to the peak of this era is ultimately Yan Wushen." Source Li Great Saint said.
Source Shu True Emperor shook his head and said, "Yan Wushen's aura has completely disappeared. Only Zhang Ruochen remains in the world."
Under the shocked gazes of everyone, Zhang Ruochen walked step by step to the top of the dark star. His shattered body gradually reformed, displaying a recovery ability that even gods found astonishing.
Blood Absolute War God's tense face finally relaxed. He let out a long laugh and said, "Today, my grandson Zhang Ruochen stands supreme over this generation. No one can contend with him. Wu Qingzong, are you convinced?"
Wu Qingzong displayed the magnanimity befitting a god and said, "In a life-and-death battle, both life and death are accepted. Zhang Ruochen won with true skill. He deserves to laugh proudly over this generation."
On the day of Zhang Ruochen and Luo Sha's engagement, he killed Yan Wushen, achieving the uniqueness of the epoch. His astonishing talent and peerless combat power quickly spread throughout the Heavenly Court Myriad Realms and the Ten Clans of Hell, casting all contemporary prodigies into shadow.