Chapter 2468: World Hand
Snatching the Celestial Pivot Needle was clearly impossible.
The artifact spirit of the Celestial Pivot Needle, though not having reached the Divine Realm, was undoubtedly a top-tier combat force below the Divine Realm. Moreover, the Minister of Works of the Fate Transport Department was definitely an existence on the level of Zhuo Yunong or Wuyue Minghuang. Unless it was Wuma Jiuxing, who would dare make a move against him?
To escort the Minister of Works and the Celestial Pivot Needle, the Destiny Temple must have dispatched countless experts. Even if Wuma Jiuxing were not injured, he probably wouldn't dare to entertain the thought of seizing a divine artifact.
Guye Jing offered a suggestion: let Zhang Ruochen temporarily place the supreme-grade Origin Divine Crystal with her, then come forward and reveal the truth to the major powers. Given his current status and position, no one would dare to openly make a move against him. Besides, with deities protecting the path, who would dare attack him without absolute certainty?
Zhang Ruochen directly rejected her proposal.
Give the supreme-grade Origin Divine Crystal to her?
Sorry, their relationship wasn't that close.
Moreover, she herself suspected that a deity had arrived on Ice King Star. How could Zhang Ruochen dare to show his face?
Guye Jing left with a sense of grievance.
As she departed, she acted like a wronged young wife, saying Zhang Ruochen didn't trust her.
Zhang Ruochen didn't stop her.
Since Guye Jing knew he possessed the supreme-grade Origin Divine Crystal, she would surely secretly take action to help him.
"Is it truly a dead end? If I have no other choice, I'll have to forcefully break out."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes turned cold. If Zangjin Baihu was willing to act, combined with Xiao Hei's mastery of formations, breaking through the city-protecting grand formation of Divine Maiden City wouldn't be too difficult.
Once outside the city, with his space and time powers, his chances of escape would greatly increase.
However, if he did this, not only would he become a target for everyone, but the Blood Absolute family would also be thrust into the spotlight.
This was the worst possible strategy.
Moreover, as long as the Celestial Pivot Needle existed, no matter where Zhang Ruochen fled, the Destiny Temple would surely be able to track him. The thought of being hunted by a group of top-tier Great Saints, and possibly even deities, made Zhang Ruochen's scalp tingle.
"Xunmu, report to the Third Council Hall immediately." Gu Yanzhi's voice reached Zhang Ruochen's ears.
Zhang Ruochen immediately changed into a black robe, transforming into the gaunt appearance of Master Xunmu, picked up the Divine Envoy wooden staff, and headed toward the council hall.
The Third Council Hall was built underground, covered by a large number of formation inscriptions, and was a place for discussing major secrets. It was not usually open.
When Zhang Ruochen arrived, several hundred Spiritual Power Saint Masters had already gathered outside the stone gate of the council hall. Many of them were Spiritual Power Saint Kings above the fiftieth rank.
"Just a single Divine Maiden Tower under the Goddess Twelve Pavilions can recruit so many Spiritual Power experts."
Zhang Ruochen was quite surprised. He certainly didn't believe that the Goddess Twelve Pavilions could have trained so many Spiritual Power Saint Masters. Therefore, he observed carefully and found that over ninety percent of these Spiritual Power Saint Masters did not belong to the Ten Clans but came from various small clans, and even some from mortal realms under the Heavenly Court.
That was quite normal—which faction didn't have defectors?
Some cultivators with strength couldn't stay in the Heavenly Court, but in the borderlands of the Hell Realm, they could live quite comfortably.
"Activating the Third Council Hall means something big is happening."
"Recently, many big shots have arrived in Divine Maiden City, each with awe-inspiring saintly might. It would be strange if nothing major happened."
"I hope there won't be another battle at the top-tier Great Saint level. From the last great battle, as far as I know, over three hundred Spiritual Power Saint Masters died tragically, and countless were injured."
"Don't mention it. My injuries haven't healed yet, and my spirit has been listless."
"I joined the Goddess Twelve Pavilions originally because my cultivation could hardly improve further. I just wanted to live out my last few decades in comfort and pleasure. Who would have thought that lately, major events keep happening? I doubt I'll end well."
……
…………
Listening to the discussions of these Spiritual Power Saint Masters, Zhang Ruochen thought to himself, "Cultivators who seek pleasure would find joining the Goddess Twelve Pavilions a good choice. They get beautiful women to accompany them, cultivation resources, and no great danger."
"Shh! Shut up quickly. A big shot is coming!" someone said.
The group of Spiritual Power Saint Masters immediately fell silent, straightened their appearances, and composed themselves.
Footsteps sounded.
A line of cultivators in white robes arrived underground, walking through the crowd toward the stone gate of the Third Council Hall.
Zhang Ruochen sensed powerful Spiritual Power fluctuations from these white-robed cultivators. Each one was extraordinary, definitely Spiritual Power Great Saints.
Among them, the old man walking at the front had a sun, moon, and star imprint on his forehead that emitted silver light. His face was slightly plump, with black hair hanging over his shoulders, and his eyes carried a sinister smile. His aura was immense.
As he passed by, the Spiritual Power Saint Masters standing on both sides trembled.
One Spiritual Power Saint Master even went weak in the knees and fell to the ground, making a great fool of himself.
Accompanying the old man was Shang Yue, a disciple of Bai Qinger.
Shang Yue showed a respectful attitude toward the old man, clearly indicating that even someone as proud as her held this figure in awe.
As for the Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saint Gu Yanzhi, he could only follow behind.
The old man glanced at the Spiritual Power Saint Master who had fallen to his knees, grinned, revealing a row of yellow teeth, and said, "The Goddess Twelve Pavilions is one of the Ten Dark Powers after all. Don't recruit just anyone. This one, I'll eat him first!"
The old man extended two withered fingers and tapped the Spiritual Power Saint Master on the head.
Instantly, the Spiritual Power Saint Master let out a miserable scream, his whole body convulsing. His saint soul and Spiritual Power were completely drained by the old man and sucked into his mouth.
All the Spiritual Power Saint Masters present turned pale with fear.
"If Uncle Duan likes it, Yue'er will go buy you a batch of soul food," Shang Yue said in a sweet voice, flattering him, completely different from the ruthless demeanor she had shown when attacking Zhang Ruochen.
"Let's discuss business first."
Duan Lingfeng let out a sinister laugh, flicked his wide sleeve, and was the first to step through the stone gate.
The other Great Saints followed closely behind.
Those who had not reached the Great Saint realm were not qualified to participate in the council and could only wait outside.
As the stone gate closed, all the Spiritual Power Saint Masters let out a long breath. Many of them had their robes soaked through, thoroughly frightened.
After a while, some Spiritual Power Saint Masters began communicating through telepathy.
"Did you see? Great Saint Shang Yue, with her formidable cultivation, still had to accompany him. Who exactly is that old man?"
A Spiritual Power Saint King close to the sixtieth rank said, "Since Great Saint Shang Yue called him 'Uncle Duan' and his surname is Duan, he's most likely that old monster from the Goddess Twelve Pavilions who has lived for over twenty thousand years."
"You mean... the World Hand of the Goddess Twelve Pavilions? How could it be him? Wasn't he said to be dead?"
"Figures of this level cannot be discussed. Don't talk about them. With Senior Duan's Spiritual Power mastery, our telepathic conversations here definitely won't escape his perception."
……
Zhang Ruochen didn't dare to release his Spiritual Power, but with his Truth Heart, he could still hear their telepathic exchanges.
The more he heard, the more alarmed he became.
World Hand?
Zhang Ruochen felt his scalp go numb. He quickly hid all his Spiritual Power thoughts into his Truth Heart, leaving only the strength of the fifty-ninth rank.
Formation Earth Masters were divided into three levels: Mountain River Master, Sea Land King, and World Hand.
The vast majority of Earth Masters remained at the Mountain River Master level.
Sea Land Kings were already very rare.
As for World Hands, each one was an existence that could become a guest of deities. They could manipulate clouds and rain in a great world, and even use their fingers to instantly draw ninth-rank formations.
Even Supreme Realm Great Saints were unwilling to be enemies with a World Hand.
Even those who had achieved Spiritual Power divinity might not necessarily reach the World Hand level in formation mastery.
Half an hour later, Gu Yanzhi and Shang Yue walked out of the stone gate.
Gu Yanzhi's expression was extremely grave, his hands trembling uncontrollably. After a long while, he calmed himself and scanned the Spiritual Power Saints present. "A major event is about to occur on Ice King Star, and all of you need to participate."
The crowd responded in unison, "We are willing to give our lives for the Goddess Twelve Pavilions."
"Everyone, don't be so tense. It's nothing major."
Shang Yue smiled, a hint of amusement in her eyes, and nodded to Gu Yanzhi.
Gu Yanzhi waved his sleeve, and from it flew clusters of black light, floating in front of him and Shang Yue.
Within the black light were wrapped black stones of varying sizes.
The stones were covered in strange patterns, exuding a divine aura.
"Each cultivator, step forward and take a piece of Xuanwu Stone," Gu Yanzhi said.
One by one, the Spiritual Power Saint Masters looked confused but still stepped forward to take one.
Those with stronger Spiritual Power received larger pieces of Xuanwu Stone.
When it was Zhang Ruochen's turn, Gu Yanzhi selected a piece the size of a washbasin and handed it to him. He specifically introduced Zhang Ruochen to Shang Yue: "Miss Yue, this man is called Xunmu, a Spiritual Power rogue cultivator from the Wing World of the Blood Heaven Tribe. His talent is quite extraordinary; he reached the fifty-eighth rank on his own. Recently, with the resources of the Goddess Twelve Pavilions, he has broken through to the fifty-ninth rank and is expected to become a Great Saint."
A Spiritual Power Great Saint was no small figure in the Goddess Twelve Pavilions and was qualified to enter the core layer.
Having recruited such talent, Gu Yanzhi naturally had to mention it.
Shang Yue glanced faintly at Zhang Ruochen, her gaze seemingly penetrating, seeing through him thoroughly. Suddenly, her eyes shifted to the wooden staff in Zhang Ruochen's hand, and she let out a soft exclamation: "Your wooden staff is quite interesting."
Zhang Ruochen said in a hoarse voice, "Miss Yue has sharp eyes. This staff was refined from a branch of a divine tree and soaked in dark water."
Zhang Ruochen wasn't afraid that Shang Yue would covet the Divine Envoy staff, as with her cultivation, ordinary treasures were hard to impress.
Shang Yue didn't spare another glance. Zhang Ruochen tactfully stepped back.
Zhang Ruochen carefully examined the Xuanwu Stone in his hand, discovering that it wasn't a stone at all, but a fragment of a divine-level Xuanwu turtle shell.
On this fragment in his hand were inscribed hundreds of thousands of formation inscriptions, of extremely high rank.
"A divine-level Xuanwu turtle shell is one of the hardest substances in the world. The inscriptions on the fragment are even more wondrous than those of ninth-rank formations. What exactly is the Goddess Twelve Pavilions planning?" Zhang Ruochen was puzzled.
After all the Formation Saint Masters had received their Xuanwu Stones, Shang Yue announced, "Everyone, go back and familiarize yourselves with the inscriptions on the Xuanwu Stones as quickly as possible, to the point where you can activate them."
A relatively young Formation Saint Master asked, "May I ask what the purpose of this Xuanwu Stone is? By familiarizing ourselves with it, are we to jointly arrange some formation?"
Gu Yanzhi's eyes darkened, and he said coldly, "Questions you shouldn't ask, it's best not to ask."
That Formation Saint Master was intimidated by Gu Yanzhi's gaze, shuddered, and dared not speak again.
Shang Yue's voice was extremely pleasant, sweet as honey: "For the next couple of days, everyone should stay in the city lord's mansion and not go anywhere. As for this matter, don't send any messages to any cultivator. Otherwise... hehe, I do hope to buy fewer soul foods."
The group of Spiritual Power Saint Masters left the underground with fear and unease.
"Great Saint Shang Yue's smile is sweet and charming, but why do I find it so chilling?" a Spiritual Power Saint Master muttered quietly, his face pale.
Zhang Ruochen observed the defenses in the city lord's mansion, noticing that almost all the inner-layer formations of the castle had been activated.
"The Goddess Twelve Pavilions is planning a major operation."
If arranging formations was for protecting Divine Maiden City, there would be no need to strictly order all Spiritual Power Saint Masters not to leave the city lord's mansion. There was definitely a secret plan.
Returning to the small courtyard, Zhang Ruochen pushed open the door and saw Xiao Hei standing by the window, looking outside.
"The Goddess Twelve Pavilions is planning a major operation," Xiao Hei said with a grave expression.
Zhang Ruochen didn't ask where he had been these past few days. Instead, he took out the washbasin-sized Xuanwu Stone and said, "Help me look at the formation inscriptions on this. By the way, haven't you always boasted about your formation mastery? Now that your cultivation has recovered, has your formation skill also recovered?"
Xiao Hei took the Xuanwu Stone and snorted lightly like a peerless expert: "This emperor's formation skill isn't just boasting. In this world... eh, how is this possible? Where did you get this Xuanwu turtle shell? Who inscribed the formation inscriptions on it?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "A World Hand among Formation Earth Masters."
"Duan Lingfeng of the Goddess Twelve Pavilions?" Xiao Hei asked.
Zhang Ruochen said, "You've heard of him? Scared?"
"Scared? Haha, this emperor's martial path might not be the strongest below the Divine Realm, but in formation dao, a mere World Hand is nothing in my eyes." Xiao Hei laughed uproariously.
Zhang Ruochen said, "You also said before that you could sweep everything below the Divine Realm, but it turned out you couldn't even sweep through a single Divine Maiden City."
Xiao Hei leaned close to Zhang Ruochen's ear and whispered, "Duan Lingfeng hasn't come to the city lord's mansion, has he?"
"He's in the city lord's mansion," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Farewell. This emperor was never here today."
Xiao Hei rushed outward, preparing to leave.
Zhang Ruochen said, "All the formations in the city lord's mansion have been activated. From now on, anyone who tries to leave will be killed without mercy."
Xiao Hei stopped in his tracks, retreated back, and firmly closed the door. "This emperor's cultivation has only just recovered, and I don't have any formation materials on hand, so I haven't been able to refine a few powerful formations to protect myself. Otherwise, I'd go challenge Duan Lingfeng right now."
"No problem. I have plenty of materials, enough for you to refine divine formations. The key is, is your strength sufficient?" Zhang Ruochen said with an air of wealth.
"Heh, this emperor's formation refining requires as many materials as possible. Just wait and see!"
Xiao Hei stared at the Xuanwu shell fragment in his hand and exclaimed, "This is a corner of the Xuanwu Devouring Heaven Formation's inscription. The Goddess Twelve Pavilions is indeed planning a major move. No wonder they sent an envoy to contact the Wujian Pavilion."
"Xuanwu Devouring Heaven Formation? Contacting the Wujian Pavilion?" Zhang Ruochen was astonished.
Xiao Hei pointed at the Xuanwu shell fragment and said, "Xuanwu Devouring Heaven is meant to slay gods."
"A divine formation?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Xiao Hei shook his head. "Even if Duan Lingfeng is formidable, he couldn't possibly arrange a divine formation. This emperor guesses it's just borrowing the momentum of Xuanwu Devouring Heaven. The formation's rank definitely won't reach the divine level."
"What does the Goddess Twelve Pavilions want to do? Deal with me? That's not necessary. Could they be targeting cultivators from the Destiny Temple?"
Zhang Ruochen said this casually, but suddenly thought of a shocking possibility. His expression stiffened as he stared at Xiao Hei. "What did the envoy from the Goddess Twelve Pavilions discuss with the Wujian Pavilion?"
……
There will be another chapter in the early morning.