Chapter 2540: The Fall of Yan Huangtu
Kairo Dishi possessed formidable spiritual power, making it difficult even for gods to force him into submission.
Thus, the Wolf Ancestor's grandson brought him back to the Demon Wolf Clan's sacred land, intending to use ancient techniques and divine abilities to slowly erode his will. Once his will collapsed, whether for control or interrogation, it would become much easier.
With Kairo Dishi and Krafilin taking action, it was clear that the traitor was one among Kun Tong Great Saint, Mu Huang, or the Nine-Headed White Wolf. Identifying the culprit was no longer a difficult task.
Naturally, none of this required Zhang Ruochen's concern.
Zhang Ruochen immediately rushed back to the Earth Demon Clan's sacred land, as there was another urgent matter he needed to handle.
...
After witnessing Zhang Ruochen's fierce battle against the many Ten-Thousand Deaths One Life Realm Great Saints of the Death God Temple, Yan Huangtu had been greatly shaken. Recently, he had been in seclusion within a cultivation cave dwelling in the Earth Demon Clan's sacred land.
That cultivation cave was equipped with a powerful time formation.
Cultivating there for two months meant only eight days had passed outside.
Such a formation naturally consumed sacred stones, divine stones, and various time-related materials.
On this day, Yan Huangtu successfully broke through to the Thousand Questions Realm Middle Stage, significantly boosting his strength. His confidence, which had been severely battered by Zhang Ruochen and Que, recovered somewhat.
"Yan Huangtu, come out and fight." A voice came from outside the cave dwelling.
It was Zhang Ruochen's voice.
"What is Zhang Ruochen trying to do? Challenging me to a fight... Could it be that I have offended him in some way, and he wants to humiliate me?"
Seated cross-legged in the cave, Yan Huangtu was filled with doubt and unease.
Though reluctant to admit it, he had to acknowledge that the gap in combat power between him and Zhang Ruochen was now immense. Zhang Ruochen challenging a weaker opponent was hardly in character, so there had to be something behind it.
Wait...
Who was the weaker one?
Yan Huangtu immediately cleared his mind of any weak-minded thoughts, a blazing divine light flaring in his eyes as his imperial and domineering aura surged forth.
Zhang Ruochen stood with his sword in hand, calling out again, "Yan Huangtu, if you are still a man of standing, come out and fight me."
Xuan Zehai and Xuan Qingying, who were nearby, heard the commotion and rushed over.
Xuan Zehai, looking deeply worried, asked nervously, "Has Ruochen Great Saint encountered some trouble?"
"No."
"Has someone from the Yama Clan offended you?"
"No."
Zhang Ruochen said calmly, "You two need not be so tense. I simply wish to have a fair and just battle with Brother Yan. Back in the Heaven Hunting Battlefield, there were too many external factors, and we never got to fight to our hearts' content. That has been a real regret."
The more he said this, the more worried Xuan Zehai and Xuan Qingying became, convinced that something must have happened.
Otherwise, why would Zhang Ruochen take his anger out on Yan Huangtu?
They did not know that the fake Yan Huangtu had already been severely wounded by Krafilin's arrow. If the real Yan Huangtu showed no signs of injury, that would be a glaring flaw.
"The Second Master is not in the sacred land. Go and inform the Clan Emperor immediately," Xuan Zehai transmitted to Xuan Qingying.
Filled with anxiety, Xuan Qingying sent the message to the Clan Emperor while also investigating who in the sacred land might have provoked Zhang Ruochen.
The stone door of the cultivation cave opened, and Yan Huangtu strode out with an imposing air, smiling, "Brother Ruochen, could you tell me what exactly has happened?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "I ask you, have you ever joked with anyone, calling me your nephew?"
"Absolutely not. Who told you that? I have been in seclusion cultivating all this time—how could I have said such a thing? Who is spreading rumors?" Yan Huangtu's expression turned serious as he flatly denied it.
Back when Zhang Ruochen acknowledged Yan Yu as his "Second Uncle," Yan Huangtu had indeed thought to himself that he could be considered Zhang Ruochen's "Fifth Uncle," feeling secretly pleased for a while. But he had never spoken of it to anyone.
Since Zhang Ruochen was looking for trouble, he naturally needed a reason.
He had to have a justifiable cause.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Forget it. Whether you said it or not, today we must have a good fight. Do you dare to accept?"
Yan Huangtu did not immediately agree, saying, "I think we should investigate this matter thoroughly. There may be someone scheming to damage the relationship between Brother Ruochen and the Yama Clan. Hmm... the Death God Temple is highly suspicious!"
Zhang Ruochen feigned lingering anger, saying, "I'll ask you one thing: do you dare to fight or not? You are in the Thousand Questions Realm, while I am only in the Hundred Shackles Realm. Does your Imperial Dao Divine Bone lack even this much courage? If you are truly afraid, I won't use my spiritual power—we'll just compare physical strength and combat techniques. If you still refuse, then I'm afraid I'll have to look down on you!"
Yan Huangtu's gaze turned heavy, and a dragon roar echoed from within his body. "Fine, I'll fight you. But I must say again: if I, Yan Huangtu, have done something, I will admit it. Since I say I haven't, then I haven't."
Zhang Ruochen's expression softened slightly. "At least you have some backbone. Let's fight inside the cave, so this doesn't become public knowledge and embarrass everyone."
The two entered the cultivation cave, and the stone door closed behind them. Soon, booming sounds rang out from within, and the ground trembled slightly.
The cultivation grounds of a Great Saint naturally had extremely stable spatial structures that would not be easily damaged.
The Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor and Yan Zhexian rushed over.
Yan Zhexian fumed, "What the hell is going on? Has Zhang Ruochen lost his mind? Why is he challenging my Fifth Uncle?"
Xuan Zehai gave a bitter smile. "This might not be entirely Zhang Ruochen's fault. It seems the Fifth Young Master joked about Zhang Ruochen being his nephew, and Zhang Ruochen found out."
Yan Zhexian was stunned.
The Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor said worriedly, "The Fifth Young Master is usually prudent—how could he say something like that casually? The reason Zhang Ruochen and the Second Master address each other as uncle and nephew is because of the vast gap in their cultivation levels, which gives them the right to speak in terms of seniority."
In the cultivation world, seniority was determined not only by age but also by strength.
As long as one had not broken through to the Divine Realm, almost everyone addressed Yan Yu as "Second Master," while Yan Huangtu was more often called "Fifth Young Master."
Xuan Zehai said, "It's also possible that the Fifth Young Master never said such a thing, and someone is sowing discord."
"Who would have the audacity?" Yan Zhexian glared with her almond-shaped eyes.
Xuan Zehai lowered his voice. "The reason the Second Master and Zhang Ruochen address each other as uncle and nephew is to facilitate a marriage alliance between the two clans. Who would most want to prevent Miss Xian'er from ending up with Zhang Ruochen?"
The Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor said, "Yuan Qianmo."
"Yuan Qianmo probably wouldn't resort to such a lowly tactic," Yan Zhexian said, frowning deeply. She felt utterly exasperated—could it be that she had brought this trouble upon her Fifth Uncle?
The Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor said, "Yuan Qianmo might not, but his younger brother, Yuan Benshu, is a man who stops at nothing."
Yan Zhexian was somewhat convinced. She looked worriedly at the stone door ahead, listening to the increasingly violent crashing sounds. "Is this duel between them a life-or-death battle?"
Xuan Zehai was uncertain. "It shouldn't come to that. After all, Zhang Ruochen's cultivation is much higher than the Fifth Young Master's..."
He suddenly realized he had misspoken.
In truth, the Fifth Young Master's cultivation was much higher than Zhang Ruochen's.
"Bang!"
After a while, the stone door burst open.
Zhang Ruochen stepped out, his body ablaze with divine fire, his long hair as red as blood, like a fiery war god. He exhaled a long breath of turbid air, then rubbed his hands together as his imposing aura gradually faded.
Yan Zhexian approached him, feeling somewhat guilty, and spoke in a softer tone, "My Fifth Uncle is definitely not someone who speaks without thinking. I believe what you heard was most likely a rumor spread by someone with ill intent."
Zhang Ruochen felt even more guilty inside, his expression softening. "I have calmed down and suddenly realized that I may have fallen for a scheme by the Death God Temple to drive a wedge between us. Brother Huangtu is certainly not the type to do something and then refuse to admit it. Ah... I was too impulsive."
Zhang Ruochen took out a wooden jar and handed it to Yan Zhexian. "This is Life Spring. Take it and give it to Brother Huangtu. Apologize to him for me—I have no face to see him."
Yan Zhexian was taken aback. She looked toward the cultivation cave—just how badly had Zhang Ruochen injured her Fifth Uncle that he needed Life Spring?
Taking the Divine Wood jar, she quickly walked through the stone door.
Zhang Ruochen walked toward the Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor, Xuan Zehai, and Xuan Qingying, letting out another long sigh. "Three of you, I have been far too reckless in this matter. Please keep it a secret, or I fear I will be ridiculed by the world. The instigator from the Death God Temple is truly detestable. Once I confirm that they are behind this, I will not let them off easily."
The three understood that this matter could be either trivial or serious, so they readily agreed to keep their mouths shut.
The Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor watched Zhang Ruochen's retreating figure and remarked, "I didn't expect this young man to be able to humble himself and admit his mistakes."
Xuan Zehai nodded and sighed, "The world thinks Zhang Ruochen is unyielding and ruthless, with a heavy killing intent, and that one day he will break from being too rigid. But who sees this side of Zhang Ruochen?"
"A son should be like Zhang Ruochen," the Earth Demon Clan's Clan Emperor said with deep agreement.
Inside the cultivation cave, Yan Zhexian stood frozen, staring at Yan Huangtu, who lay on the ground, reduced to little more than a golden skeleton. Fortunately, he possessed the Imperial Dao Divine Bone, or his physical body would have exploded countless times.
Zhang Ruochen had struck far too hard.
Yan Zhexian quickly opened the Divine Wood jar and sprinkled the Life Spring over the golden skeleton. "Fifth Uncle, Zhang Ruochen said he might have misunderstood you. It could be the Death God Temple scheming behind the scenes. This is the Life Spring he gave you."
As the Life Spring was absorbed, flesh gradually began to regrow on Yan Huangtu's skeleton.
Trembling, Yan Huangtu struggled to prop himself up on one arm, speaking haltingly, "Xian... Xian'er, your Fifth Uncle has figured... figured it out. No matter what... no matter what, you must... you must marry Zhang Ruochen and make that 'nephew' title stick!"
Seeing how pitiful Yan Huangtu looked at that moment, Yan Zhexian did not have the heart to argue with him. She simply told him to rest and recover.
"Investigate... we must investigate thoroughly. If the Death God Temple is behind this... I will make them pay a heavy price... cough, cough..."