Chapter 2560: All Major Forces Have Arrived
Zhang Ruochen stood atop the Sword Mountain peak, his spirit soaring, his bearing carrying the momentum to swallow mountains and rivers. He declared loudly, "A swordsman should reveal his sharp edge, break through the clouds and part the moon, not slumber here, turning into rust and mud. Seniors, are you willing to leave with me? I will surely find worthy inheritors for you in the newborn civilization of the Sword Realm, to carry on the Sword Dao."
"Clang!"
Ten thousand swords sang in unison, the sound lingering endlessly.
"Good!"
Zhang Ruochen pressed his hands against his temples, activating the Space-Time Divine Martial Mark between his brows. He drew the Sword Mountain and the countless swords upon it entirely inside, placing them into the Qiankun Realm.
Within the Qiankun Realm, a sword domain shrouded by powerful sword intent immediately appeared.
The vast majority of these swords had lost all spiritual nature, like scrap iron. Yet, some remained peerless famous swords, enduring for eternity, true divine weapons.
Zhang Ruochen's words were no empty boast; he genuinely intended to revive the Sword Realm.
On the Heaven Hunting Battlefield, Zhang Ruochen had promised the Realm Lord of the Southern Sword Realm to protect it for ten thousand years and to transmit teachings to it. At the time, he had treated this matter merely as a transaction.
Later, when he clashed with the Earth Fiend Ghost City, the Longevity Hall, and the Bone-Hiding Sea, he was only trying to fulfill his promise.
But upon arriving at the Sword Dao Grave Forest, he had obtained ten ten-thousandths of the Sword Dao Essence, undergone the marrow cleansing of ten thousand swords, and received the Sword Ancestor's Sword Soul. He had also witnessed the glory and ruin the Sword Realm had once experienced. Profoundly moved, he felt as if he had become a part of the Sword Realm itself.
Thus, the desire to revive the Sword Realm and promote the Sword Dao was no longer a transaction or a promise, but something he truly wished to do from the bottom of his heart.
Zhang Ruochen walked through the desolate grave forest, his footprints deep. He gazed at the mottled tombstones and the sword scabbards placed before them.
There were graves, but no people.
There were scabbards, but the swords had not returned.
Moved by the scene, he recited:
"Three thousand divine swords left their sheaths and flew away,
A hundred empty graves, with none to return today."
"Those who buried the swords left behind their courage and soul,
We of later generations shall surely surpass heaven's control."
...
Zhang Ruochen and A Le began their journey back.
For Zhang Ruochen, having obtained the Sword Dao Essence and Sword Soul, and condensed the Heavenly Sword Soul at the Hundred Shackles Realm, his journey to the Origin Divine Temple was already complete.
Next, two matters remained.
First, to check whether Bai Qinger had lured cultivators from the major forces to the Origin Divine Temple.
For her, this was the final trial and test before becoming a god. She would definitely come. Moreover, the bigger the commotion, the better; the more chaotic, the easier it would be for her to retreat successfully.
This aligned perfectly with Zhang Ruochen's own goals.
Second, Zhang Ruochen needed to find a way to protect the Southern Sword Realm as much as possible.
This was a shift in mindset after visiting the Sword Dao Grave Forest.
Previously, he had only wanted to save as many living beings of the Southern Sword Realm as possible, without such a strong sense of responsibility.
The more one gains, the heavier the burden.
To save the Southern Sword Realm, there were only two ways.
Either take the Southern Sword Realm away, or lure the gods elsewhere.
The Southern Sword Realm was vast and boundless. With Zhang Ruochen's current cultivation, even bearing the ever-growing Qiankun Realm was quite a strain. It was obviously impossible to also absorb it into his Qi Sea.
To bear a great world like the Southern Sword Realm, an ordinary god would certainly be incapable. At the very least, a god who had survived an Eon Calamity would be necessary.
However, considering that the Origin Divine Temple was also within the Southern Sword Realm, even a God Venerable would likely be needed to take the Southern Sword Realm into their Divine Realm World.
To protect the Southern Sword Realm, the only option was to find a way to lure the gods elsewhere.
But with him being merely a Hundred Shackles Realm Great Saint, let alone luring the gods away, even a single casual strike from any god could kill him.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was racking his brains for a solution, Zangjin Baihu's voice rang out: "If the Origin Divine Temple is taken away, my Zangjin Divine Realm World can briefly bear just the Southern Sword Realm."
"You can release divine power to take the Southern Sword Realm?" Zhang Ruochen asked, somewhat surprised.
Zangjin Baihu said, "Of course, I cannot release too much divine power. I would only release my Divine Realm World, and you would have to bear it. Only then can we deceive the perception of the Heavenly Dao. Otherwise, if divine punishment descends, we will all die."
"Alright, let's decide on that for now."
With Zangjin Baihu's help, Zhang Ruochen felt the burden on his shoulders lighten considerably, and he gained more confidence.
...
The Origin Divine Temple had long since turned into ruins, with broken walls and collapsed pillars everywhere.
Some remnant walls stood dozens of feet high. A huge Qilin stone sculpture lay amidst the rubble. A sword tablet had fallen into a ditch below. It was so dilapidated, yet so magnificent.
There were also broken formations and ancient killing divine patterns scattered everywhere.
Even a Great Saint, recklessly barging in, could trigger a formation and bring about deadly disaster.
But for the current Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works, they couldn't care less. Their monk robes were tattered, their mouths full of blood, as they fled desperately through the ruins.
Every time they triggered a formation, sword qi would fly out from within, striking them and causing the two monks to howl in pain.
They dared not stop. Behind them, the sound of breaking water was dense, with dozens of Great Saints in pursuit.
"Two masters, go on ahead. We'll hold them off."
Zhen Sha, Zhen Tan, and Zhen Wang released powerful death qi and Dao domains, transforming into three brilliant, shining light shuttles as they charged at the pursuers behind.
All three of them were at the Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm.
With just the three of them, without using any war weapons, they managed to beat back the dozens of Great Saints step by step. If they had not been merciful and refrained from killing intent, some Great Saints might have already fallen.
A loud shout came from afar: "You are the White-Clothed Death Gods of the Death God Temple, not Buddhist cultivators. Wake up now!"
The voice contained powerful spiritual power and death thought power.
Zhen Sha, Zhen Tan, and Zhen Wang's spirits and sacred souls were suppressed, and they stood frozen in place.
Nan Sheng and four Great Saints of the Death God Temple flew over rapidly, their forms cutting through the thick water, leaving five white water trails behind.
Seeing Nan Sheng appear, the dozens of Great Saints nearby exchanged uneasy glances, revealing expressions of fear and dread, and quickly retreated.
They all knew that the Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works carried many Origin Sacred Medicines, so they were extremely unwilling to give up and continued to linger in the distance, waiting for an opportunity to fish in troubled waters.
Nan Sheng stood on the shoulder of a broken stone sculpture over ten feet tall. Glancing at the fleeing Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works, he sneered mockingly: "Just two Immortal Realm Great Saints, and they still think they can escape from me?"
"Nan Sheng, don't kill them. Since they call Zhang Ruochen 'Uncle Master,' capturing them might prove very useful," said a Death God Temple Great Saint with a crocodile head.
Nan Sheng nodded, released his spiritual power, and condensed two gray chains.
The gray chains were formed from the rules of heaven and earth, moving like two spirit snakes as they coiled toward the Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works.
"Do not harm my two masters!"
Zhen Sha broke free from Nan Sheng's spiritual power, his eyes shining with Buddhist light. He pressed his palms together, and a ten-foot-long giant sword condensed above his head.
He brought his hands down, and the giant sword followed suit.
"Boom."
The two spiritual power chains snapped with a sound.
"Well done, Zhen Sha!" the Grand Minister of Works turned his head and couldn't help but praise.
Nan Sheng was first stunned, then turned angry. He vaguely heard laughter from a Great Saint in the distance.
Was it mocking him, or mocking the Death God Temple?
The White-Clothed Death Gods of the Death God Temple, who were at the Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm, had turned into Buddhist cultivators and were now opposing the Death God Temple. Was there anything more ridiculous than this?
Zhen Tan and Zhen Wang also broke free from Nan Sheng's spiritual suppression. They formed Buddhist seals, but killing swords condensed above their heads as they attacked Nan Sheng.
"You go and capture those two monks. I'll deal with these three disgraceful things."
Nan Sheng's face darkened. He took out a cyan talisman fan and fanned it forward. Dense talisman patterns flew out, transforming into hundreds of bolts of lightning that struck Zhen Sha, Zhen Wang, and Zhen Tan, sending them all flying.
The four Great Saints of the Death God Temple circled around and chased after the Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works.
"Nan Sheng is too terrifying. He's also at the Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm, yet he can fight three at once."
"Is this fighting three at once? With a casual wave, he can defeat three Ten Thousand Deaths One Life Realm powerhouses. His combat power is terrifying enough to rival a Supreme Realm Great Saint."
"He's a disciple of the Seventh Master, a legendary figure among the Death Clan. Did you think he was ordinary? Let's go. With Nan Sheng here, there's no way we can pick up any scraps."
...
Among the four Death God Temple Great Saints, the weakest was at the Hundred Shackles Realm.
But this was the Origin Divine Temple. Fearing they might trigger formations and killing divine patterns, they chased for quite a while without managing to capture the Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works.
They launched long-range attacks and spiritual power attacks, hitting the two monks.
Strangely, the Grand Minister of Works and Second Minister of Works seemed to possess an indestructible diamond body. Each time they were hit, they spat out two mouthfuls of blood, then immediately got up and continued fleeing.
"Is the golden body of a Buddhist Bodhisattva really this powerful?" the Death Clan Great Saint with the crocodile head asked in astonishment.
The attack he had just launched from a distance could have killed an Immortal Realm peak Great Saint. Yet, after being hit, the white, plump monk in front simply rolled on the ground like a ball, cursed a few times, got up, and continued fleeing.
"Perhaps they are not just at the Immortal Realm," another Death Clan Great Saint speculated.
"Forget it. Let's suppress them first. They entered the Origin Divine Temple before us, so they must have picked many sacred medicines."
The crocodile-headed Death Clan Great Saint was incredibly fast. In an instant, he caught up to the Grand Minister of Works. A hammer-shaped war weapon in his hand glowed with strands of death light. He raised it high and smashed it down toward the Grand Minister of Works' head.
The power of this hammer strike had reached a level comparable to a full-force attack from a Hundred Shackles Realm Great Perfection Great Saint. He didn't believe this white, plump monk could withstand it.
"Uncle Master, you've finally arrived! Save me!" the Grand Minister of Works shouted, looking ahead with great joy.
The crocodile-headed Death Clan Great Saint sneered inwardly, completely unmoved.
This trick—the white, plump monk had already used it twice. Did he think he could use it a third time?
Just as the war hammer was about to land on the Grand Minister of Works' head, a sword cry rang out.
"Whoosh—"
The Abyssal Ancient Sword transformed into a black sword light, slashing across the crocodile-headed Death Clan Great Saint. Both his war hammer and his body were severed in two, flying backward.
The Death Clan Great Saint's blood dyed this stretch of water a deep red.
...
There's still one more chapter. I'll try to update it sooner.