Chapter 2757: Divine Battle
On the Santu River, the waters stretched wide.
Space was chaotic, and heavenly secrets were severed.
Wentong Great God chose to strike here, able to conceal his actions from heaven and earth, beyond even the perception and calculation of a God Venerable.
"Smack!"
Another crack split open the God King Talisman, and Wen Chu spat divine blood from his mouth.
The one hundred and seven stone swords all contained boundless demonic power, able to transform into stone needles or hundred-zhang giant blades. Each sword strike could cleave a star and split a realm apart.
This was the power of a Great God!
If not for the God King Talisman's protection, even if four True Gods had joined forces, they would have already suffered a crushing defeat by now.
Bore walked toward Xiao Hei, her snow-white jade hand reaching out like a phantom light, grasping the stone sword's blade.
The stone sword struggled violently, its clang piercing, as countless demonic patterns and strange images surfaced. Yet Bore's five fingers remained unmoving, and the stone sword's power could not break through her flesh and skin.
Xiao Hei's round, gleaming eyes stared at Bore, filled entirely with shock.
No one understood the stone sword's power better than he did.
How could Bore, who had become a god later than him, be so much stronger?
Xiao Hei slowly released his grip on the sword hilt, his heart filled with gloom and sorrow. He, the Emperor of Slaughtering Heaven and Destroying Earth, had never been weaker than anyone in his life. Yet now, in the end, he was not even a match for Huang Yanchen.
Back in the Kunlun Realm, when had he ever taken Huang Yanchen seriously?
Bore grasped the sword hilt, divine light flowing along her arm, suppressing the soul spirit within the stone sword. She said, "Back then, the twenty-four War God Stele Diagrams of Chi Xing Tian Great God were shattered into remnant stones. I never expected the Nether Hall to have collected those remnants and forged them into one hundred and eight stone swords."
Zhang Ruochen watched Bore's expression and demeanor, a slight ripple stirring in his heart.
He walked over and asked, "The one hundred and eight stone swords are controlled by Chi Xing Tian Great God's divine source and divine soul, wielding immense power. How did you suppress the soul force within the stone swords and subdue them?"
Chi Xing Tian's cultivation back then was unfathomably profound; the twenty-four War God Stele Diagrams were essentially his Star Soul Divine Throne.
The divine power contained in the one hundred and eight stone swords was unimaginably great. How could Bore, a newly ascended god, resist it? Even using the power of Fate would not be enough to suppress it.
Bore's cultivation could not possibly be so much stronger than Xiao Hei's, nor could it surpass the divine formation.
"This is not the time to ask such questions. Xiao Hei, take Zhang Ruochen and leave first."
Bore held the stone sword, stepping atop a surging Nether River. With a graceful posture, she flew out of the ghost ship and charged toward the one hundred and seven stone swords in the sky.
Even Wen Chu, a True God, could not help but exclaim in shock.
If even the God King Talisman could not block the stone swords, how dare the young Bore Shennü rush into the midst of the sword formation?
What astonished the cultivators on the ghost ship was that Bore was not slain by the stone swords; instead, she maneuvered among them. Each time a stone sword struck at her, it hesitated, its power greatly diminished.
She moved like a startled swan fairy, weaving through the swarm of stone swords, her palm occasionally striking out.
"It seems Wentong Great God does not dare offend the Destiny Temple and is holding back against Bore Shennü." Xue Tu breathed a quiet sigh of relief. As a disciple of the Death God Venerable, surely Wentong Great God would not dare kill him either.
Zhang Ruochen did not think so.
If Wentong Great God dared to set an ambush on the Santu River, he had the resolve to kill them all.
How could he not dare to kill Bore?
The only explanation was that the divine soul power within the stone swords was unwilling to attack Bore. The one hundred and eight stone swords were not fighting against Bore but against the distant Wentong Great God.
If this was the case, there was only one explanation:
Bore had refined the divine star soul that Chi Xing Tian had left in the Jiuli Divine Temple.
Thinking of this, Zhang Ruochen's mind filled with even more questions.
The Jiuli Divine Temple had long since vanished. When had it reappeared in the world?
How had Bore obtained the opportunity to claim Chi Xing Tian's divine star soul?
Xiao Hei felt despondent, grabbing Zhang Ruochen's wrist. Opening his cat mouth, he said, "Let's go. Hurry up and leave with this emperor. Once that old thief Wentong makes his true move, none of us will be able to stop him."
"No need."
Zhang Ruochen shook off Xiao Hei's arm.
"You're not fleeing?"
Xiao Hei was not surprised, after all, how could Zhang Ruochen abandon Bore and escape alone? But he was only a Saint-level cultivator; staying behind would only be a burden.
Xiao Hei was about to forcibly take Zhang Ruochen away.
Zhang Ruochen patted Xiao Hei on the shoulder and said, "You stay and help Bore. I'll escape alone."
As Xiao Hei stood stunned, Zhang Ruochen had already flown to the railing of the ghost ship. The Fire God Armor covered his entire body. He turned back, shot out a mass of divine blood, and transmitted a message to Xiao Hei: "This is Chi Xing Tian's divine blood! If Chi Xing Tian's divine soul will within the Xing Tian Cauldron has not yet been extinguished, carrying this divine blood on you might reduce some of the attacks you face."
With that, Zhang Ruochen used a sacred qi chain across the void to grab Xue Tu and Yan Ting, then flew out of the God King Talisman, heading deep into the misty, yin-charged waters.
Xiao Hei held the divine blood, still unable to snap out of his daze.
A thousand years apart, and Zhang Ruochen had become so shameless?
No.
It wasn't shameless.
It was utterly cunning—so cunning that Xiao Hei was caught off guard, and by now, Zhang Ruochen had already vanished without a trace.
In the distant sea region.
Wentong Great God stood atop a mountain shaped like a human head, formed from lightning. His gaze fixed on Bore, his eyes cold and deep. "This Destiny Shennü has quite the skill, trying to wrest control of the one hundred and eight stone swords from my hands."
Wentong Great God had been a representative figure of his eon over three hundred thousand years ago.
Having cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years more, how could he take a newly ascended god like this junior girl seriously?
Yet the power within Bore was strange. The one hundred and eight stone swords did not attack her at all, instead showing signs of slipping from his control. Even the Xing Tian Cauldron, which Wentong Great God had underfoot, trembled from time to time, and furious roars echoed from within the cauldron.
Chi Xing Tian's divine soul, after being refined for a hundred thousand years, was now showing signs of awakening.
"Interesting. Very interesting."
Wentong Great God was certain that Bore must have some extraordinary connection with Chi Xing Tian from a hundred thousand years ago.
"Whoosh!"
A streak of firelight flew out from the ghost ship.
Wentong Great God focused his gaze and said, "Zhang Ruochen is trying to escape. Kong Zhi, go and capture him. Be careful. Although Zhang Ruochen is still at the Saint level, he is the Source Envoy, and his combat power should not be underestimated."
"Great God, rest assured. Zhang Ruochen will not get away."
The five False Gods of the Nether Hall spoke in unison.
Standing in the middle of the five False Gods was a black-robed monk, six meters tall, with a face full of rough flesh and a snake-like Nether pattern tattooed on his neck. His entire body was shrouded in deathly stillness.
This monk was Kong Zhi.
When alive, he had been a monk from the Western Buddha Realm. After death, he turned into a Corpse Clan member in the Santu River.
Later, he evolved into the Nether Clan.
The five False Gods transformed into five beams of divine light, chasing after Zhang Ruochen from five different directions.
Xue Tu, wrapped in Zhang Ruochen's sacred qi chain, flew rapidly over the water's surface, showing no fear at all. "Brother, rest assured. Although Wentong is a Great God, he wouldn't dare do anything to me. My master is the Death God Venerable; he can't afford to offend him."
"On this Santu River, if Wentong Great God kills you, who would know?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Xue Tu was struck speechless, his earlier optimism fading.
Zhang Ruochen sensed the auras of the five False Gods and glanced back. "Don't worry. His main target is me, not you. But after killing me, he'll silence you all."
Yan Ting, also bound in the sacred qi chain, said angrily, "Our journey was extremely secret. I wonder who leaked the news to Wentong."
"It couldn't have been those Saint-level nobodies on the ghost ship," Zhang Ruochen said.
Yan Ting was startled, thinking of a possibility. "You mean..."
How could those Saint-level cultivators on the ghost ship have access to someone like Wentong Great God?
The only possibility was that the ghost ship's owner, that Great God from Wuchang Ghost City, had betrayed them.
Zhang Ruochen let out a cold laugh. "The treasures I carry would interest not just a Great God, but even a King or a Venerable."
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
...
The five False Gods caught up.
Two of them flew over Zhang Ruochen's head, blocking his path ahead.
Five waves of divine might, like invisible forces, pressed down on Zhang Ruochen.
Xue Tu and Yan Ting's faces changed drastically.
"Brother, quickly summon Zangjin Baihu!" Xue Tu roared.
Hearing this, the five False Gods of the Nether Hall all showed expressions of terror, retreating rapidly, not daring to get too close to Zhang Ruochen.
Every god in the Hell Realm knew that Zhang Ruochen had become Zangjin Baihu's guide.
But no one knew how much power Zangjin Baihu could unleash in this era.
This uncertainty made even True Gods feel fear.
"If you're not attacking, I'll be on my way."
Zhang Ruochen locked onto a False God with bone wings on his back and charged toward him, preparing to break through.
That False God retreated rapidly.
But his speed was no match for Zhang Ruochen's, and he was caught in an instant.
Zhang Ruochen swung his arm, executing the Taiqing Cloud-Pushing Palm. His palm shone with golden light, surging with divine power. An ordinary hand seemed to transform into a five-fingered golden mountain.
That False God also went all out, unleashing a divine ability, forming a Nether Wheel with both palms.
"Boom."
The Nether Wheel shattered.
The False God's protective divine qi was dispersed, and his body was sent flying, with streams of divine blood spraying out.
He could not withstand a single strike from Zhang Ruochen.
Xue Tu and Yan Ting had never imagined Zhang Ruochen had become so formidable. At the Saint level, his combat power was truly unprecedented and unmatched.
"Mortal world myth—well-deserved reputation," Yan Ting murmured inwardly.
Kong Zhi let out a long roar. "With a Great God here, why fear a Zhang Ruochen? If Zangjin Baihu dares to show himself, today will be its death day."
"Great Compassion Buddha Light!"
Kong Zhi flew a thousand zhang high, pressing his palms together.
Golden Buddha light radiated from within his body, turning into a sea of gold. Within that golden sea, nine-petal lotuses, towering Buddha shadows, ancient temples, and other strange visions emerged.
The golden sea descended from above, pressing down on Zhang Ruochen.
The momentum and power fluctuations were far greater than those of the Nine-Toothed Wolf God General.
"It's Kong Zhi, the top-tier among the lower three ranks of False Gods," Xue Tu warned.
He and Yan Ting no longer harbored any illusions. The Nether Hall had come with fierce intent, even wanting to kill Zangjin Baihu. What wouldn't they dare to do to two Saint-level cultivators?
Though they were top-tier experts in the mortal world, they could not help in this fight.
Xue Tu felt frustrated. If he had known, he would have led his holy army to sweep through the Saint-level cultivators of the Heavenly Court's various realms on the Starry Sky Battlefield. Why go to the Abyss of Darkness? How had he been dragged into a divine battle?
The world was too dark. The so-called rule that gods could not interfere in the mortal world could not be fully trusted. Absolute cultivation strength was the true foundation for survival. He had to undergo his tribulation and step into the divine realm as soon as possible.