Chapter 2668: Battle Against a Divine Spirit
Dense Sword Dao rules appeared around Zhang Ruochen’s body, each rule taking the shape of a sword. In an instant, his body merged with the Sword Dao rules, transforming into a streak of sword light that shot outward.
The cutting power erupting from the sword light severed the mist and divine patterns emanating from the divine hand, slipping right between its fingers.
A flicker of surprise appeared in the eyes of the Judgment Divine Envoy.
Could it be that he really was a false god?
“Trying to escape? Not so easily.”
The Judgment Divine Envoy spat out a mouthful of divine mist, which transformed into a hurricane surging toward the fleeing Zhang Ruochen.
Within the divine mist flew a rain of swords. These swords, condensed from divine power, swept across the ground, carving deep sword marks into the earth.
“So fast!”
Zhang Ruochen, well aware of the immense power of a false god, came to an abrupt halt. Mobilizing the Sword Dao Essence, he swung the azure ancient sword in his hand.
In an instant, his form shifted three hundred and seventy-two times, unleashing three hundred and seventy-two sword strikes, shattering every sword that emerged from the divine mist. His movement technique, sword forms, and power all reached the pinnacle of the Saint realm.
Though the Judgment Divine Envoy’s attack seemed as simple as exhaling a breath, it was actually a battle technique sacred art. That Zhang Ruochen could break this move sent shockwaves through countless onlookers.
The name “Shu Qianchi” was destined to shake the Heavenly Court today.
On the lantern tower.
Guna the Fairy stood within the white light, her figure graceful, and let out an exclamation of surprise: “Such formidable strength! He can even exchange blows with a false god—this surpasses the peak of a demigod. Unfortunately, I can’t see how many Sacred Dao rules he has cultivated; he hasn’t used his Dao domain.”
“Shu Qianchi’s swordsmanship is exceptional, and his mastery of the Sword Dao surpasses even that Sword Emperor of the Kunlun Realm,” remarked a peerless Great Saint from the Paradise Realm faction who cultivated the Sword Dao.
A look of jealousy appeared on Michael’s face as he snorted coldly, “Perhaps our guess is correct. Shu Qianchi is a false god in disguise, but some great figure has concealed his heavenly secrets, making it impossible to deduce his true strength.”
“But he hasn’t used divine power,” a hoarse voice interjected.
A wisp of clear wind blew in.
Suddenly, a shadowy figure appeared above a lantern.
The lantern swayed gently.
Everyone on the lantern tower turned their gaze toward the shadow, their faces filled with wariness.
Guna the Fairy remained calm, nodding slightly. “The power within a false god has long been converted into divine power. It’s hard to hide when they strike. This Shu Qianchi is certainly not a false god. Let the Judgment Divine Envoy withdraw. The probing is over; if he continues, the consequences will be unpredictable.”
A Supreme Realm Great Saint from the Paradise Realm transmitted a message to the Judgment Divine Envoy.
The Judgment Divine Envoy naturally understood how severe the consequences of a god interfering in the mortal world could be. Though reluctant, he immediately withdrew his power, preparing to leave.
After all, there was no need for him, a false god, to act.
A large number of elite warriors from the Paradise Realm faction had already surrounded the entire island. Even if Shu Qianchi possessed earth-shattering abilities, he wouldn’t escape with his life today.
His earlier attack was merely to probe Shu Qianchi’s depth, lest Michael and Guna the Fairy misjudge their opponent’s strength, leading to heavy losses among the Paradise Realm cultivators.
Different enemies required different levels of force.
Sensing the fading divine might and the dimming Star Soul Divine Throne in the sky, a smile appeared in Zhang Ruochen’s eyes. Instead of fleeing, he charged back toward the Judgment Divine Envoy. “Divine Envoy, take one of my swords!”
In an instant, Zhang Ruochen closed the distance to within a hundred zhang.
“Whoosh!”
The war sword slashed through the air, connecting from midair to the ground like a waterfall of light splitting heaven and earth.
The Judgment Divine Envoy was stunned for a moment. How dare Shu Qianchi provoke him?
Had a false god lost all its deterrent power?
“Since you seek death, don’t blame this Divine Envoy for slaying you.”
Though surprised, the Judgment Divine Envoy was secretly pleased.
As a false god, he couldn’t interfere in mortal affairs. But if a mortal cultivator attacked a god first, that was a different matter.
“Die!”
The Judgment Divine Envoy let out a thunderous roar. The Star Soul Divine Throne beyond the sky reappeared, sending down strands of divine radiance that converted into divine power within his body.
He struck out with a palm, divine power surging like giant waves, meeting the descending waterfall of sword light.
Zhang Ruochen’s provocation was, of course, intentional. He had already analyzed the Judgment Divine Envoy’s power, estimating it to be about seventy percent of that false god from the Death God Temple, Mo Yunduan.
Moreover, his divine power came from the Star Soul Divine Throne, which imposed significant limitations.
The biggest limitation was reaction speed.
After Zhang Ruochen launched an attack, the envoy had to first borrow divine power, convert it within his body, and then counterattack. This made his response and attack speed far inferior to other false gods.
“Boom!”
A false god was still a false god, not something a Saint realm cultivator could contend with.
In this clash, Zhang Ruochen was sent flying by the Judgment Divine Envoy’s palm strike. His body spun once in midair before crashing to the ground, sinking deep into the earth.
Countless divine patterns on the ground shattered.
“Again!”
Zhang Ruochen attacked once more, the war sword in his hand drawing upon the power of heaven and earth.
Countless bolts of lightning converged into the sword’s body, connecting to its tip as he thrust it at the Judgment Divine Envoy’s chest.
“Bang!”
It couldn’t pierce the envoy’s body, blocked by a light shield condensed from divine power.
The Judgment Divine Envoy’s body swelled several times in size, and he threw a punch at Zhang Ruochen’s head.
Zhang Ruochen formed a palm seal with his left hand, his palm wreathed in divine flames, and met the punch head-on. His body was sent flying again, crashing through building after building on the island before landing in a dust-filled ruin.
“Whoosh!”
Zhang Ruochen didn’t stop. He flew out of the dust and charged at the Judgment Divine Envoy once more, roaring, “I, Shu Qianchi, have fought a hundred battles without defeat. How can I lose to a mere false god? Let’s continue!”
A mere false god?
Only a true god would dare say such a thing!
The cultivators in the Green Pear Garden were all baffled.
Had Shu Qianchi gone mad, picking a fight with a false god?
The Judgment Divine Envoy had already intended to withdraw, yet he insisted on provoking him—truly taking the concept of “courting death” to its extreme.
“What… what is his goal?”
Lianxi found it hard to comprehend, her eyes filled with shock. Other cultivators might think this was Shu Qianchi’s nature—a love for battle, an inability to accept anyone stronger than himself.
But she knew Shu Qianchi’s true identity.
Zhang Ruochen was far too shrewd to do something so foolish and impulsive.
There had to be a deeper meaning!
Michael laughed loudly, “I thought Shu Qianchi was some formidable, troublesome character, but he’s just a brainless fool. Once the Judgment Divine Envoy kills him, those cultivators in the Green Pear Garden will be nothing to fear.”
The number one expert of the Talisman Spirit Realm, Master Yuzhen, ranked fourth on the “Red Dust Peerless List” in the Red Dust volume, smiled faintly. “Shu Qianchi has always been reckless and impulsive—nothing surprising about that. Think about it: selling the corpses of Fuji and Moyang in the Red Dust Market, such a ridiculous act—this person must be mentally deficient.”
Michael nodded. “Shu Qianchi probably won’t last more than a few rounds against the Judgment Divine Envoy. But Xiang Chunan and Feng Yan are more troublesome; the Twenty-Four Judgment Sword Formation can’t suppress them. Please, Master, lend them a hand.”
“Very well! This master has long wanted to test his skills against someone on the Peerless volume.”
Master Yuzhen stepped onto a bridge of light formed by talisman patterns, walking through the void toward the Green Pear Garden.
Great Saints who could make it onto the Red Dust volume had cultivation levels very close to the peak of demigods. And Master Yuzhen, ranked fourth in the Red Dust volume, had the strength to challenge peak demigods, so he naturally had no fear of Xiang Chunan and Feng Yan.
...
In the Colorful Cloud Villa, a group of ancient gods were in discussion.
Thousand Star Divine Ancestor, however, had been using his divine will to monitor the battle on the island where the Green Pear Garden was located.
He had no choice. The ancient civilization faction was at a critical juncture of life and death, and tonight’s mortal conflict was of great importance. The Truth Hall Master and Yunshen Daozhu might treat it as a trivial matter, but he took it extremely seriously.
When the Judgment Divine Envoy first struck, Thousand Star Divine Ancestor had intended to use his divine will to kill him. But he hesitated, thinking it would be improper—after all, the one being attacked was Zhang Ruochen, ostensibly a cultivator of the Kunlun Realm.
Just as he was about to remind Yunshen Daozhu, the situation took a turn, with Zhang Ruochen actively provoking the Judgment Divine Envoy. This infuriated Thousand Star Divine Ancestor, who felt Zhang Ruochen was too reckless and impulsive, unlikely to achieve great things.
Thousand Star Divine Ancestor’s gaze frequently shot coldly toward Yunshen Daozhu, as if to say, “See? This is the hope you value—too brainless to act.”
...
In an instant, the Judgment Divine Envoy had exchanged seven blows with Zhang Ruochen.
Without exception, Zhang Ruochen suffered crushing defeats each time.
Yet, astonishingly, though Zhang Ruochen was battered every time, he seemed uninjured and grew fiercer with each exchange.
A surge of anger rose in the Judgment Divine Envoy’s heart. After all, he had already stepped through the threshold of godhood, yet he couldn’t finish off a mere Great Saint. If this dragged on, wouldn’t it only enhance Shu Qianchi’s reputation?
“Kunlun Realm’s Shu Qianchi fights the Judgment Divine Envoy to a standstill?”
As Zhang Ruochen charged again, the Judgment Divine Envoy let out a long divine roar, shaking buildings on the island to collapse. The Great Saints of the Paradise Realm faction, unable to withstand the impact of the divine sound, quickly retreated into the distance.
Zhang Ruochen’s eardrums burst, his internal organs ached, and his skin began to crack.
A god’s roar could kill the living beings of an entire planet.
“Demon Slayer!”
The Judgment Divine Envoy executed the divine ability “Judgment Eight Cuts.” Before him, the sacred energy of heaven and earth and the divine qi from the Star Soul Divine Throne condensed into a three-zhang-long Judgment Sword.
This sword strike seemed capable of splitting heaven and earth, tearing apart the island’s ground.
Zhang Ruochen dared not take this sword head-on. As he retreated, he thrust the azure war sword into the ground. Thousands of sword shadows rose from the earth around the azure sword, forming a forest of blades.
Each sword shadow was several zhang tall.
“Boom!”
The three-zhang-long Judgment Sword smashed through the sword forest with irresistible force, even cleaving the azure war sword into four fragments.
A divine ability unleashed by a god was unstoppable, capable of destroying everything in the mortal world.
Zhang Ruochen was also struck by the sword’s power, his left arm severed, spilling a great deal of blood. But before the arm hit the ground, it reattached, and his body healed completely without a trace.
Seizing the advantage, the Judgment Divine Envoy immediately struck with the second cut.
“Saint Slayer!”
The divine ability’s might was overwhelming. On the Red Dust Archipelago, it was suppressed by the Dao lock, preventing it from unleashing its full destructive power; otherwise, it could have leveled an entire region.
Without his war sword, Zhang Ruochen’s lips curled slightly upward. Instead of retreating, he charged forward, shouting, “Watch my secret art—Dark Clouds Cover the Sky!”
Above the sky, rolling black clouds truly appeared, blanketing the island.
It was as if a black cloth had been drawn across the heavens.
Instantly, the atmosphere on the island grew heavy, as if a storm were about to break.
“Dark Clouds Cover the Sky? What kind of secret art is that? I’ve never heard of it.”
“Isn’t that the Dragon Clan’s cloud-and-rain technique? It’s just the most basic sacred art—any Saint could easily perform it.”
...
On the sea near the island, onlookers buzzed with discussion.
The secret art Shu Qianchi had unleashed seemed to have no power; it merely summoned clouds to block the sky.
In the Green Pear Garden, Ao Xukong, Linglong the Fairy, Bihai Sixiu, Hua Chunqiu, and others were all deeply worried about Shu Qianchi’s safety. After all, he was fighting a false god, and had even had his arm severed by it.
Any other Saint realm cultivator, even an Eon-level representative, would have fled immediately upon encountering a false god.
Provoking a false god would not end well.
“Look! Mr. Shu sent the Judgment Divine Envoy flying!” a cultivator from the Book Realm exclaimed in surprise.
Everyone had already seen it, all of them stunned.
Beneath the rolling black clouds, the Judgment Divine Envoy was struck in the chest by Shu Qianchi’s palm, his body hurtling backward. The sacred robe and divine light around him shattered, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
No one understood how the situation had suddenly reversed so drastically—a god had been sent flying with a single slap!