Chapter 2410: Return from the Great Battle
Blood Absolute War God and Blood Queen immediately flew to the top of the Dark Star.
Blood Queen, full of concern, grabbed Zhang Ruochen's right wrist, mobilizing divine power and blood energy, continuously pouring them into his body to help heal his injuries and dissolve the dark force that had invaded him.
Yan Wushen's deathblow was terrifying, its power nearly reaching the level of a Supreme Realm Great Saint.
Blood Absolute War God stood with his hands behind his back, hovering in the air, exuding authority without anger as he observed Zhang Ruochen. He noticed that Zhang Ruochen's eyes were bloodshot, his entire body overflowing with evil energy, and the Five Elements Chaos Saint Qi within him had completely transformed into Blood Fiend Qi—a state of demonic possession.
The human aura was almost entirely devoured by the aura of the Undying Blood Clan.
Blood Absolute War God certainly did not mind if Zhang Ruochen completely transformed into an Undying Blood Clan member.
But what worried him was that Zhang Ruochen's mental will and the Undying Blood Clan were not compatible, yet he was forcibly transforming. In the end, he would not become an Undying Blood Clan member but a mad demon completely devoid of reason.
"He has refined the White Cang Blood Soil. No matter how severe his injuries, he can heal himself. But his inner demon has fully erupted and taken over his mind. The urgent task is to send him to the Fortune Divine Palace. Only the Path of Fate can suppress the inner demon." Blood Absolute War God did not hide his voice, deliberately letting the surrounding gods hear.
Blood Queen was startled and transmitted her voice: "Send him to the Fortune Divine Palace and let the Path of Fate suppress the inner demon in his body? No, absolutely not."
Blood Queen had once summoned Zhang Ruochen's soul and helped him merge his past and present physical bodies. She knew that his body contained many great secrets that must not be known to outsiders.
Blood Absolute War God knew Blood Queen's concerns and said, "I know that Zhang Ruochen's body must contain some extraordinary treasure. But a God Venerable would not covet the possessions of a junior Great Saint. Even the sapling of the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree, the Qiankun Realm, or even the damaged Sundial are not considered extraordinary treasures in the eyes of a God Venerable."
Seeing that Blood Queen still seemed unwilling, Blood Absolute War God continued, "The inner demon erodes the spiritual will. Outsiders cannot help at all. Only the Path of Fate can suppress it. If we don't want Zhang Ruochen to fall into the abyss of the inner demon, we have no choice... Huh..."
Blood Absolute War God suddenly exclaimed in surprise, his gaze shifting back to Zhang Ruochen.
He saw that the blood-red color in Zhang Ruochen's eyes had slightly faded.
The blood patterns on his ten golden wings gradually receded, no longer appearing as sinister as before.
"Chen'er's spiritual will is strong. He suppressed the inner demon himself."
Blood Queen was overjoyed. She released her spiritual power, turning it into dense specks of light like fireflies, enveloping Zhang Ruochen's body.
A god's spiritual power could have a certain degree of influence on a Great Saint's inner demon.
She lightly shouted, "Awaken!"
Just these two words contained Blood Queen's lifelong spiritual power, like a divine sound or heavenly curse, shaking Zhang Ruochen's Sea of Consciousness, intimidating the demonic obstacles in his heart, and scattering all the myriad distracting thoughts.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes gradually regained clarity. The chaotic forces surrounding his body were all absorbed back into him.
"Chen'er!" Blood Queen softly called.
Zhang Ruochen turned his head and looked at Blood Queen, as if returning from a daze. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Mother, where is this place?"
Blood Queen squinted her eyes and asked doubtfully, "Do you not remember anything from before?"
Zhang Ruochen thought carefully and then gently shook his head.
Blood Queen said, "Your consciousness was invaded by the inner demon, and you engaged in a life-and-death battle with Yan Wushen. This is the Void Space."
"A life-and-death battle? I remember... today is supposed to be the day of my engagement to Princess Luo Sha. How could I suddenly be invaded by the inner demon? What about the inner demon? Was it suppressed by you, Mother, and Grandfather?"
Zhang Ruochen's expression was puzzled. As he spoke, he coughed violently, his entire body weak and powerless, as if his Hundred Shackles Realm cultivation could not be maintained and was about to drop.
He quickly examined himself internally and found that his body was covered in wounds.
His blood vessels, saint veins, meridians, internal organs, bones, and even his Saint Source, Qi Sea, and Saint Soul all had dense and fine cracks. Within the cracks were pure extreme dark force, origin force, Buddha energy, and Yama Qi.
Among them, the dark force was the strongest.
Blood Queen supported Zhang Ruochen and said, "The inner demon was suppressed by you yourself. Mother's spiritual power helped a little."
"What about Yan Wushen?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Blood Queen said, "He has fallen."
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen stood still for a long time, looked around, and let out a long sigh.
Blood Absolute War God stood to the side, carefully observing Zhang Ruochen, his gaze deep like an endless blood pool.
Logically, after being eroded by the inner demon, it was absolutely impossible to recover on one's own strength. Blood Absolute War God knew that Zhang Ruochen had great perseverance.
But some things could not be overcome by perseverance alone.
"Let's go. This is not the place to talk. Find a place to heal first, or you will leave permanent incurable hidden dangers." Blood Absolute War God said.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, "I can still endure the injuries. But today is the engagement day. I must rush over immediately. I cannot break my promise. Otherwise, it will damage the face of the Fortune God Venerable and the royal family of the Tianluo Divine Kingdom, and it will also hurt Princess Luo Sha."
Blood Absolute War God finally showed a satisfied expression, nodded, and said, "Very good. Having a sense of responsibility is the most basic thing a man should have. Let's go!"
After Blood Absolute War God, Blood Queen, and Zhang Ruochen left the Void Space, the divine shadow of Wuqing Sect appeared above the Dark Star, stared at the celestial body for a moment, rolled up his sleeve to take away the Dark Star, and then vanished.
"Two Eon-level geniuses, one has fallen, the other will surely soar to the sky and become the leading figure of this era. Zhang Ruochen, Zhang Ruochen." Green Deer Divine King sighed softly, and his divine shadow gradually faded.
Ghost Lord's expression shifted and changed. Then he flicked his sleeve, tore open the Void Space, and flew back to the Fate Divine Domain.
Yuan Fei Great Saint narrowed his eyes and said, "Zhang Ruochen killed Yan Wushen, his power reaching its peak. In a desperate state, he can almost contend with a Supreme Realm Great Saint. It seems that to avenge Seventh Brother, only Fourth Sister can personally take action."
Yuan Tianjun remained silent and thoughtful.
Yuan Shu True Emperor's beautiful eyes were as bright as the stars of the Nine Heavens. She glanced at Yuan Fei Great Saint and said, "Avenge? Why avenge?"
Yuan Fei Great Saint was stunned and quickly said, "Seventh Brother died at Zhang Ruochen's hands. This enmity must be avenged. The Death Clan's defeat on the Heaven Hunting Battlefield is mainly Zhang Ruochen's fault. How can we let him off easily?"
Yuan Shu True Emperor patted Yuan Fei Great Saint on the shoulder and said meaningfully, "Times have changed."
Yuan Fei Great Saint felt that Yuan Shu True Emperor's hand was as heavy as a mountain. Each pat seemed capable of shattering his immortal sacred body.
But just as it was about to land, all the force was instantly withdrawn.
Yuan Shu True Emperor said, "Zhang Ruochen's momentum has already formed. Who in the Hell Realm would dare to touch him now? It would surely provoke a frenzied retaliation from the Blood Absolute Family and the royal family of the Tianluo Divine Kingdom. How many forces do you think can withstand their wrath? Wuqing Sect has chosen silence. Why should we rush to hit the blade? We cannot afford to provoke him."
Yuan Fei Great Saint wanted to speak but stopped, very unwilling.
Yuan Shu True Emperor said, "The three pats I just gave you were each comparable to Zhang Ruochen's full-force strike earlier. Weigh it yourself. Seventh Brother's fall on the Heaven Hunting Battlefield was a matter of life and death—he was too weak. From now on, don't mention revenge again, or you might bring disaster upon yourself."
"Thank you for the teaching, Fourth Sister."
Yuan Fei Great Saint clasped his hands and bowed slightly.
Yuan Shu True Emperor nodded gently and then said, "However, Zhang Ruochen has too many treasures and is too outstanding. He has surely been targeted by many forces. We dare not touch him, but there are those who do. Whether he can survive to become a god is still unknown."
After the divine shadows of all the gods disappeared.
Yan Yu and Fu Xiangnu walked out while holding the Dark Heavenly Mechanism Umbrella.
The shock on their faces had not yet faded.
Fu Xiangnu's beauty could rival Yuan Shu True Emperor's. Like a fairy from a painting, she parted her red lips and said, "Yan Wushen and Zhang Ruochen's cultivation has not yet reached the Great Perfection of the Hundred Shackles Realm, yet they have become this powerful. Fortunately, Zhang Ruochen killed Yan Wushen. Otherwise, I suspect that even an arrow shot from ten thousand miles away might not be able to kill him."
Yan Yu had a handsome figure, ethereal and otherworldly, and said, "Wind Queen was assassinated by the Wujian Pavilion gods, and Yan Wushen fell in a life-and-death battle. I have a feeling that the peace among the Hell Clans will soon be broken. And Zhang Ruochen is likely the person standing at the center of the vortex."
The Hell Clans!
Not the Ten Clans of Hell.
The ten clans of the Hell Realm were just the ten largest races, the ten races that held all the power. Besides them, there were many smaller ethnic groups.
For example, under the Undying Blood Clan, there were the Blood Spider Clan, the Blood-Ant-Eating Clan, the Flying Blood Moth Clan... and so on.
Even within the Undying Blood Clan, there were not only the ten major tribes but countless smaller tribes.
"Is that so? A chaotic era is good. Only in a chaotic era can strong individuals emerge. It was time for someone to break the peace. Red Dust Peerless Tower, Crimson Sunset Flying Immortal Valley. Sea Stone Star Beyond Heaven, Divine Mountain Startling Cloud Pavilion. I wish to ascend the Nine Heavens to pluck stars, but the divine path is long—when can I reach it? When can I reach it?" Fu Xiangnu's long hair flew in the wind. Carrying her crystal longbow, she turned into a streak of white light like a meteor and flew out of the Void Space.
Yan Yu followed closely behind.
Below the divine realm, there were very few who could enter the Void Space freely and leave it freely like the two of them.
...
...
Fortune Divine Palace.
The representatives of the major forces were all shocked by the news of "Wind Queen's Assassination" and "Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen's Life-and-Death Battle," discussing it endlessly.
"The Wujian Pavilion is too reckless. They dare to assassinate the newly appointed Fate Divine Maiden. This is clearly a provocation to the Destiny Temple. In my opinion, we should mobilize all forces to flatten them and kill them all without mercy."
"The master of the Wujian Pavilion is secretive, with unfathomable cultivation. It is said that he has killed gods."
"What do you think the Wujian Pavilion's intention was in killing Feng Li?"
"Zhang Ruochen is also causing trouble. On his engagement day, he went to fight a life-and-death battle with Yan Wushen. Isn't he afraid of angering the God Venerable?"
"What is there to fear? If Zhang Ruochen died in battle, how could the God Venerable blame him? If Yan Wushen died in battle, Zhang Ruochen would be the only supreme of this Eon, and the God Venerable would not be too harsh."
Blood Absolute War God and Luo Yan Great Emperor had friends all over the world. The representatives of forces attending the engagement banquet were numerous, each with a resounding reputation. Without Great Saint cultivation, one could not even enter the outer hall of the divine palace.
In an area stretching for dozens of miles, lights were bright, gathering countless powerful individuals.
Luo Sha, wearing a phoenix red brocade long dress, her face peerlessly beautiful, stood motionless in front of layers of palace buildings, accompanied by dozens of Saint realm maidservants. She gazed into the endless darkness, her eyes constantly changing, full of worry.
She seemed to have turned into a waiting stone.
News of the battle between Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen came back one after another.
"Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen have entered the Void Space, determined to decide life and death."
Upon receiving this news, Luo Sha wanted to rush over regardless of everything to stop them from continuing to fight.
She knew very well that once they entered the Void Space to fight, the probability of mutual destruction was very high.
Unfortunately, all the gods had been summoned to the Fate Divine Mountain by the Fortune God Venerable due to the "Fall of the Newly Appointed Divine Maiden." Luo Sha had no way to enter the Void Space.
Luo Shengtian led a sacred army back to the Fortune Divine Palace.
Luo Sha drifted forward to meet him and asked urgently, "Is there a result?"
Luo Shengtian shrugged and spread his hands, saying, "I can't enter the Void Space either. How could I know which of those two madmen lived or died? However, Yan Wushen cultivates the Path of Origin, which has a certain restraining effect on the void. Fighting in the Void Space would give him a considerable advantage."
Luo Sha's heart sank deeply.
Bore stood in the brightly lit courtyard, surrounded by figures, but she felt as if she were the only one in the world, exceptionally cold and lonely.
When the news of Wind Queen's assassination came, she already understood what Zhang Ruochen wanted to do.
"Didn't you say that all ties have been severed? Why are you still doing this? Why? It's not worth it."
Bore's eyes were blurred, covered with a layer of mist, and she murmured to herself, "You must come back alive. Otherwise... everything will lose its meaning."
Molo War Emperor drank a lot of wine, staggering as he walked to Luo Sha and Luo Shengtian. With a slurred tongue, he said, "Princess... Princess, in my opinion, Zhang Ruochen clearly doesn't care about you. If he... if he cared about you, how could he go fight a life-and-death battle with someone on the day of your engagement? Why don't you... why don't you marry me?"
Luo Sha was nervous and worried. How could she have the mind to pay attention to him?
Luo Shengtian rolled his eyes. Even if his sister didn't marry Zhang Ruochen, how could Molo War Emperor be worthy of her?
However, Molo War Emperor's earlier words struck a chord with him. Zhang Ruochen going to fight Yan Wushen on the engagement day, leaving his sister and countless banquet attendees waiting, was indeed too outrageous.
Even though Mother Empress had taken Zhang Ruochen's side and said some good words for him, Luo Shengtian was still very dissatisfied.
Luo Shengtian let out a long sigh of resentment and said softly to Luo Sha, "Let's forget it. Dismiss everyone. Not to mention whether Zhang Ruochen can come back, even if he wins, it will most likely be a pyrrhic victory. How can he still come to attend the engagement banquet?"
Luo Sha stood still, clearly not listening to him.
Luo Shengtian continued, "The newly appointed Divine Maiden has fallen. The God Venerable and Father are busy with this matter. They probably won't be able to attend the engagement banquet. Royal Sister, there's no need to wait any longer!"
"Zhang Ruochen said he would protect me for life and never betray me. I believe him!" Luo Sha said firmly.
Luo Shengtian clicked his tongue. He thought to himself, How can she believe such nonsense? Royal Sister must have been fed love potion by Zhang Ruochen and lost her mind.
"Whoosh!"
Space trembled violently.
A Space Gate was torn open by divine light.
Zhang Ruochen walked out of the Space Gate, appearing opposite Luo Sha. Although his face was pale, his posture was outstanding, and he wore a smile. "Luo Sha, I'm here!"