Chapter 2495: Probing the Bottom Line
Yan Huangtu and Yan Zhexian stared at Bai Qinger as she walked out of the stone pavilion, deep wariness in their eyes.
Bai Qinger glanced over and said, "You saw everything just now, didn't you?"
"I didn't expect that Miss Bai is not only peerlessly beautiful, but your cultivation has also reached such a terrifying level." Yan Huangtu's gaze was sharp and cold. He was wary, but not afraid.
Bai Qinger smiled and shook her head. "Will you two do it yourselves, or should I do it?"
"Demon woman, you're too arrogant. There will surely be a strong one from the Yama Clan who will take your life," Yan Zhexian said.
Bai Qinger said, "Yan Yu? I hope I encounter him soon. For now, you still have the chance to end yourselves. If I make a move, you might not have intact corpses."
Yan Huangtu gritted his teeth, wanting to self-detonate his Sacred Source.
But the moment the thought stirred, a powerful Spiritual Power intervened. The Sacred Qi in his body could not circulate, and his mental state teetered on the brink of collapse.
Yan Zhexian was no better off. Her eyes became hollow, as if she had turned into a clay figurine.
They wanted to resist, but had not a shred of strength to do so.
"Forget it, I'll send you on your way myself," Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen stepped forward, blocking Yan Huangtu and Yan Zhexian. He unleashed the Truth Realm Form, "Starry Sea Without Shore," dissolving Bai Qinger's Spiritual Power suppression.
In an instant, Yan Huangtu and Yan Zhexian recovered.
They gasped for breath, as if they had walked to the edge of death and back.
They looked at Zhang Ruochen with strange expressions.
Bai Qinger said, "What do you want to do?"
"I want to protect their lives," Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "You can't even protect yourself. What makes you think you can protect them?"
"Do you really think I don't have the strength to fight?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger stared at him and smiled lightly. "Finally unable to endure any longer, you want to ask Zangjin Baihu to make a move?"
"If it comes to that, it will be mutual destruction," Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger looked at Yan Huangtu, then at Yan Zhexian, carefully sizing up this proud daughter of the Yama Clan. "What you want to protect is the child in her belly, so you're willing to threaten me? If I let you threaten me this time, won't I be constrained by you every time from now on?"
"Just this once. I only want to protect the two of them," Zhang Ruochen said, his tone firm and unwavering.
Yan Zhexian stared intently at Zhang Ruochen's back, slightly moved.
She knew very well how powerful Bai Qinger was, and she understood that with Zhang Ruochen's current cultivation, going against Bai Qinger's will could very well cost him his life.
But precisely because Zhang Ruochen's cultivation was far inferior to his enemy's, yet he still stepped forward without hesitation, it touched her heart even more, causing a subtle change in the heart that had always held a grudge against him.
Perhaps she had never truly understood Zhang Ruochen before.
Bai Qinger looked at Yan Zhexian again for a long moment, then laughed. "Miss Zhexian, I'm very curious. You are clearly a virgin, so how did you become pregnant?"
A storm of shock surged in Yan Zhexian's heart. She hadn't expected that the secret she had been hiding would be exposed by Bai Qinger in a single sentence.
Zhang Ruochen's expression remained unchanged, but he still turned his head to look at Yan Zhexian.
Seeing the look in Yan Zhexian's eyes, he immediately understood that this time, it wasn't Bai Qinger's trick. It seemed there was indeed something suspicious about the child in Yan Zhexian's belly.
Bai Qinger looked at Zhang Ruochen and said, "She deceived you. Do you think she deserves to die?"
"That's right. This fetus in my belly has nothing to do with him." Yan Zhexian suddenly raised her head, chin lifted, with no trace of fear left in her eyes.
She didn't want to drag Zhang Ruochen down, wanting to cut ties with him.
Zhang Ruochen couldn't die.
If Zhang Ruochen lived, he could, at a better time, restrain Bai Qinger to a certain extent.
Otherwise, she suspected that even her second uncle, Yan Yu, would be more likely to lose than win against Bai Qinger.
"Did you hear that? I'll give you the chance. Kill her with your own hands."
Bai Qinger clasped her hands behind her back and stepped aside.
Zhang Ruochen thought back carefully to what had happened when he and Yan Zhexian were in the stone coffin, and gradually, he figured out the truth, roughly understanding what had happened.
It most likely had something to do with Blood Shadow Divine Mother.
"What are you hesitating for? Has Zhang Ruochen become so indecisive about killing someone?" Yan Zhexian said.
Yan Huangtu stood to the side, saying nothing, because he knew that saying more was useless.
If Zhang Ruochen insisted on protecting their lives, there might still be a chance. But now, the situation was different. There was no longer any possibility of survival. Zhang Ruochen wouldn't risk death to defy Bai Qinger.
And now was not the time to defy Bai Qinger.
Zhang Ruochen ignored Yan Zhexian and walked toward Bai Qinger, spreading his hands and raising his voice. "Everyone in the world knows that Yan Zhexian is my woman, carrying my child. If I kill her now, killing two lives with one blow, and word gets out, how will the world see me? I won't bear that reputation."
"Don't worry, no one will spread it," Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I don't believe that. What if, in the future, I become a god and the War God of the Undying Blood Clan? If you use this to threaten me, I'll be very passive."
"Fine. If you won't do it, I will," Bai Qinger said.
"No."
Zhang Ruochen blocked Bai Qinger's path again.
"Are you challenging my bottom line?" Bai Qinger said.
"No, he just wants to protect Yan Zhexian's life, because the fetus in her belly actually has his bloodline and can be considered his biological daughter." Gong Nanfeng walked over, his words resounding.
Zhang Ruochen said, "What did you say?"
Gong Nanfeng said, "The fetus in her belly was conceived from your blood, Yan Zhexian's blood, and the divine power and essence of Blood Shadow Divine Mother. You are undoubtedly the biological father of that child."
Zhang Ruochen took a deep breath and stared at Bai Qinger. "Did you hear that? Her life, I will protect."
"The reincarnation of Blood Shadow Divine Mother, how interesting."
Bai Qinger shook her head lightly. "Unfortunately, they must die. Although I want to temper myself, I don't want to provoke the ancient gods of the Yama Clan. Killing them to silence them is the best solution. Zhang Ruochen, why don't you first communicate with Zangjin Baihu and see if it's willing to die together with me?"
"I've already made it very clear. Her life, I will protect," Zhang Ruochen said.
"You disappoint me too much. Since you seek death, I can only grant your wish."
Bai Qinger lightly pushed out a palm, and a scene of swirling snowflakes appeared.
Zhang Ruochen felt space collapse, the universe destroyed, heaven and earth turned upside down. Every flying snowflake was like an icy planet, capable not only of crushing him but also of crushing all living beings in the world.
"Red Dust Flying Snow."
Beside him, Gong Nanfeng exclaimed.
Bai Qinger could grab and kill Hei Shisha from a distance. Once she made a move, it would surely be earth-shattering.
"Swoosh—"
A golden light burst from Zhang Ruochen's body, turning him into a golden figure. Even his hair flowed with golden divine light, and his battle intent seemed to rise to the heavens.
With a tiger's roar, the Yin-Yang Five Elements Sacred Intent merged into his right arm, evolving into a peerless palm seal.
He struck out with his palm.
As the palm seal emerged, the phantom of Zangjin Baihu appeared on his body, unleashing a kingly might that could tear the sky and split the earth.
"Boom."
Their palms collided.
Zhang Ruochen's golden tiger eyes locked gazes with Bai Qinger's starry eyes, so beautiful they made one's heart tremble.
They separated.
Bai Qinger stood still, unmoving, only her long hair flying, ethereal like a banished immortal in the snow. Zhang Ruochen was sent flying dozens of miles away, but he still stood upright, golden blood flowing from his mouth.
"Taking one of my palms without dying, you're stronger than Hei Shisha. Try another palm!"
Bai Qinger kept one hand behind her back and drew a circle with her right hand. A wondrous scene of the Five Elements cycling appeared in her palm, faintly carrying the charm of Zhang Ruochen's Yin-Yang Five Elements Sacred Intent.
Gong Nanfeng rushed over, appearing between Bai Qinger and Zhang Ruochen. "Stop! There's another way. We can erase their memories."
Bai Qinger withdrew her palm seal, stared at Gong Nanfeng, and signaled for him to continue.
Gong Nanfeng said, "Those two are too weak. Miss Bai has no need to kill them. If Miss Bai wants to kill them, it's only to silence them. Erasing their memories will do."
"As far as I know, the Path of Fate can restore memories," Bai Qinger said.
Gong Nanfeng laughed. "Even the Path of Fate can only restore erased memories within a certain time frame. Besides, if you use the power of the Celestial Pivot Needle to erase their memories, even if a God Venerable makes a move, they won't be able to restore them."
"The artifact spirit is here, so the Celestial Pivot Needle must be nearby, right? On you?" Bai Qinger asked.
"Miss Bai is so clever, how could she not know that the Celestial Pivot Needle is on Ruochen?"
Gong Nanfeng naturally pointed at Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Gong Nanfeng and said, "The Celestial Pivot Needle is indeed with me, but Miss Bai just checked my Space Ring and didn't find it, right?"
"If I want to find it, I naturally can," Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I have over a hundred million treasures on me, many with artifact spirits and inner spaces. How long would it take you to find the Celestial Pivot Needle? And I might not have hidden it among these treasures."
"Give me the Celestial Pivot Needle, and I'll spare the two of them," Bai Qinger said.
Gong Nanfeng said helplessly, "Ruochen, give it to her. You can't keep it. I've already calculated that the injury to your Qi Sea hasn't healed. If you keep fighting, your Qi Sea might shatter, and you'll lose all your cultivation. Do you really want to die together with her? I understand your desire to protect the divine artifact of the Destiny Temple, but we're too weak now. We can't fight!"
"Shut up." Zhang Ruochen glared at him.
Gong Nanfeng looked somewhat wronged and closed his mouth, muttering inwardly, "I'm doing this for your own good. Why are you glaring at me?"
Zhang Ruochen took out the Celestial Pivot Needle, sealed by the Black Tortoise Swallowing Heaven Formation, from the Qi Sea between his eyebrows. He hesitated for a moment, then showed a bitter smile and handed it to Bai Qinger.
Bai Qinger's hand brushed over it, and the formation inscriptions that Zhang Ruochen could do nothing about snapped one by one, dissipating completely in moments.
The artifact spirit resisted fiercely, and the Celestial Pivot Needle emitted a blinding divine light, trying to break free from Bai Qinger's hand.
Bai Qinger didn't deliberately suppress the artifact spirit. Instead, she turned her gaze to Gong Nanfeng.
Gong Nanfeng smiled bitterly, nodded, and whispered something to the Celestial Pivot Needle. The needle calmed down, its divine light retracted, and it lay quietly in Bai Qinger's palm.
Bai Qinger used the power of the Celestial Pivot Needle to erase the memories of Yan Huangtu and Yan Zhexian. Then, with a flick of her sleeve, a cold wind swept them away, turning them into two streaks of dark light flying toward Ice King Star.
Bai Qinger looked at Zhang Ruochen and said, "I kept my promise, didn't I?"
"If you hadn't, I would have fought to the death," Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "Actually, I'm very curious. What was your real purpose in saving them? Their memories have been erased, so they certainly won't be grateful to you."
Zhang Ruochen's golden light faded, and he wiped the bloodstains from the corner of his mouth. "Why? Didn't you say it yourself earlier?"
"I said it?"
Even though Bai Qinger was extremely intelligent, she now showed a confused expression.
Zhang Ruochen smiled. "I was probing your bottom line!"
Bai Qinger's face instantly turned a few degrees colder.
Zhang Ruochen said, "You are very strong and very smart, arguably my greatest current enemy. But I don't understand you. I need to understand you. Through this probing, at least I know that you are not completely unafraid of me. That is probably the biggest reason you didn't kill me!"
"What if I had killed Yan Zhexian and Yan Huangtu without hesitation?" Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen was silent for a moment, then said, "That would mean your state of mind is flawless, without any weakness, even fearless of life and death. No one and nothing could stop your will."
"Do you think I'm afraid of death?" Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Fear of death is human nature. But you have never experienced life and death, so you don't know the taste of death, which makes you even more afraid of it. Your Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm is not perfect. The reason you are stirring up trouble is precisely because you know your own weakness and want to make up for it, isn't it?"
After a long moment, Bai Qinger laughed. "While you were probing me, didn't you realize that I also probed the strength that Zangjin Baihu can currently unleash?"
"How was it?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "Within the limits allowed by the rules of heaven and earth, it is still far from being a threat to me. Zhang Ruochen, you can leave."
"Go where?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "I have already obtained the top-grade Origin Divine Crystal and the Celestial Pivot Needle. You have no value anymore. Go wherever you want, just don't stay by my side."
"I won't leave. I won't go anywhere. I'm going to follow you," Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "I am wary of Zangjin Baihu, but if you stay by my side, I will have plenty of opportunities to kill you in one strike before Zangjin Baihu can react. Aren't you afraid of death?"
"Of course I am afraid of death too. But I know even more that you absolutely cannot let me go."
Zhang Ruochen continued, "You only took back a top-grade Origin Divine Crystal. How could you possibly let me go? You don't want to expose your identity. If you let me go, the Goddess Twelve Pavilions would be annihilated in an instant."
"The reason you said you would let me go is only to capture me again, achieving the goal of capturing me three times, so that I will completely submit to you."
"To avoid being captured by you a third time, I have decided to stay by your side from now on."
"You want to find an opportunity to kill me?" Bai Qinger said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "There is no irreconcilable deadly feud between us. Why would I want to kill you? Actually, I want to marry you."
"You have this thought..."
Bai Qinger stopped mid-sentence, stepped into the void, and walked toward Fei Zhong. "Since you're awake, stop pretending to sleep."
Gong Nanfeng walked up to Zhang Ruochen and asked in a low voice, "Do you really want to marry her?"
Zhang Ruochen turned to look at him, then pressed his hand on his face and pushed him away, not wanting to talk to him.
Right before Gong Nanfeng and Zhang Ruochen's eyes, Fei Zhong, once a Supreme Realm Great Saint with immense cultivation, cut off his own tongue and knelt humbly before Bai Qinger.
Bai Qinger walked back, and Fei Zhong bowed and followed behind her, like a servant.
Bai Qinger said, "Zhang Ruochen, you're very smart. Tell me, how can I kill my way to the Origin Divine Temple without anyone knowing my true identity?"
"You need a new identity," Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "What kind of identity?"
"Haven't you already thought of it yourself? You didn't kill Fei Zhong and let him follow you, isn't that to tell the world that you are a cultivator from the Heavenly Court side?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Bai Qinger said, "Who are the Origin Controllers of the Heavenly Court's myriad realms?"
Before Zhang Ruochen could answer, Bai Qinger had already changed her appearance and figure, transforming into the appearance of the Hundred Flowers Fairy, Ji Fanxin. "The Primordial Illumination Divine Lotus is more convincing. Besides, if the Hundred Flowers Fairy travels with Zhang Ruochen, no one will suspect anything. Even if they do, they will suspect whether Zhang Ruochen has defected from the Hell Realm. If you want to stay by my side, you will have to pay the price."