# Chapter 2803: Dragon, Phoenix
Blood Butcher's divine power surged violently, his blood energy thick and vast, like a heavenly god descending to earth, causing the Yama clan cultivators who had been on edge to all breathe a sigh of relief.
"Great Slaughter War God Emperor has already reached the divine realm. Excellent, he is a friend of our Dark Abyss Yan Clan."
"An Eon-level representative figure becoming a god makes him a powerhouse even among gods. Luo probably won't be a match for Great Slaughter War God Emperor."
"A disciple valued by Death God Venerable is indeed not comparable to ordinary nobodies. This friend, our Dark Abyss Yan Clan will definitely keep!"
...
A group of elderly Yama clan members were all spiritually invigorated, regarding Blood Butcher as one of their own.
What they didn't know was that Blood Butcher kept the title "friend of the Dark Abyss Yan Clan" on his lips only because he had been psychologically scarred by the Yama clan's old patriarch earlier.
"This guy... is indeed a trustworthy ally..." Yan Ting murmured.
At this moment, her sacred energy was completely depleted, her injuries worsening, and she could no longer hold on. The last beast of the "Seven Fiend Formation Diagram" was forced back into the scroll.
Yan Wushen secretly breathed a sigh of relief and put away the Wish-Fulfilling Seal.
As long as one had reason, no one would break through in the Dark Abyss. Earlier, he had said that deliberately because he heard Blood Butcher's telepathic message, intentionally provoking Luo to charge up.
That was precisely why Luo was caught off guard by Blood Butcher, trapped in the Great Slaughter Divine Fire, barely able to defend himself.
Luo, at the Great Saint realm, hadn't even reached demigod peak; he had only entered the "Red Dust Volume" of the "Red Dust Peerless List." Looking across the myriad realms of the heavens, this was an extraordinary achievement.
However, compared to Eon-level representative figures, it was insignificant.
Moreover, Luo hadn't been a god for long, so naturally, he fell into an absolute disadvantage when fighting Blood Butcher.
"Where's the treasure? Bring it out! Xi, at the Great Saint realm, had the Supreme Sacred Artifact Seven-Star Ghost Lotus. Yuan, at the Great Saint realm, had the Supreme Sacred Artifact Soul-Devouring Bell. You're a true god, you must have a Supreme Sacred Artifact. Hurry up and bring it out, let me, the Emperor, compete with you!"
Blood Butcher threw punch after punch, his fist force like a sea of blood, driving Luo back in defeat.
Luo was furious inside, feeling that Blood Butcher was humiliating him.
Could a Supreme Sacred Artifact be obtained so easily?
Xi got a Supreme Sacred Artifact because he was representing the Ghost Clan in the Heaven Hunting Battle, a matter of great importance that couldn't afford any mistakes.
Yuan got one because she had the highest talent and was heavily favored by the Ghost Lord, thus able to obtain a Supreme Sacred Artifact.
He, Luo, was only of mediocre talent among the Ghost Lord's nine sons, never favored by the Ghost Lord. Wanting a Supreme Sacred Artifact? Dream on! And having just reached the divine realm not long ago, when would he have time to forge his own Supreme Sacred Artifact?
"You don't even have a decent battle weapon, do you?" Blood Butcher's tone had already become somewhat tense.
Tension mixed with worry and anger.
This was too much!
This was too much!
If he had a Supreme Sacred Artifact, why would he risk death by entering the Dark Abyss to hunt Zhang Ruochen? Wasn't it to seize one from Zhang Ruochen?
That way, it would be much easier than refining one himself.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
...
Luo unleashed seven Monarch Sacred Artifacts in a row, but none could withstand the Great Slaughter Divine Fire. Instead, five were shattered by the unknown-grade fist gloves Blood Butcher wore.
The artifact spirits were all annihilated.
Ordinary Monarch Sacred Artifacts were like paper before a true god's attack.
The ghost energy on Luo's body was continuously refined by the Great Slaughter Divine Fire, and even his ghost body felt an intense burning pain. The Great Slaughter Divine Fire was too powerful; only a Supreme Sacred Artifact could block it.
Luo had never wanted a Supreme Sacred Artifact as badly as he did at this moment. If he had one, he could withstand the Great Slaughter Divine Fire and even counterattack Blood Butcher.
"Boom!"
Blood Butcher unleashed a divine ability, condensing a fire phoenix from the sea of Great Slaughter Divine Fire, shattering another of Luo's protective Monarch Sacred Artifacts.
"Is that all? Don't you have any other battle weapons?" Blood Butcher's face was full of contempt and disappointment.
Luo had only one battle weapon left, a Seven-Yuan Monarch Sacred Artifact that had been nurtured by multiple gods of the Earth Fiend Ghost City. Its material was special, so it hadn't been destroyed by Blood Butcher.
But he didn't know that Blood Butcher, having destroyed six Monarch Sacred Artifacts in a row, was also heartbroken.
"It seems he really doesn't have a Supreme Sacred Artifact."
Blood Butcher regretted it inside. If he had known, he shouldn't have been so ferocious, forcing Luo to bring out a Supreme Sacred Artifact by destroying his weapons. Now, the Monarch Sacred Artifacts were destroyed, and there was no Supreme Sacred Artifact either.
"I'm too disappointed in you. Only your divine source can make up for the regret in my heart."
Blood Butcher opened his mouth and spat out eight light clusters in a row.
Each light cluster was a Monarch Sacred Artifact, and of very high grade, at least Five-Yuan Monarch Sacred Artifacts.
The gap in both quality and quantity of their battle weapons was enormous. Luo lost all confidence to continue fighting Blood Butcher. He activated an escape secret technique, turned around, and fled as a divine light.
His flight speed was even faster than a Monarch Sacred Artifact.
This was a true god's life-saving speed, each use coming at a great cost.
Blood Butcher sighed in disappointment, knowing he couldn't kill Luo alone, so he had to retract all his Monarch Sacred Artifacts and the Great Slaughter Divine Fire into his body.
Now, Blood Butcher wasn't afraid to show his treasures. In his view, he and his senior brother had a life-and-death bond, as strong as metal, trustworthy, with nothing to hide.
"So that's where he keeps them—in his stomach." Zhang Ruochen nodded.
For the Abyssal Ancient Sword to advance to a Supreme Sacred Artifact, it needed to refine a large number of high-grade Monarch Sacred Artifacts. Zhang Ruochen had already collected quite a few. Adding those in Blood Butcher's stomach should be enough.
However, advancing to a Supreme Sacred Artifact wasn't easy. It wasn't just about refining battle weapons; the Abyssal Ancient Sword also needed to be reforged.
Suddenly.
"Roar!"
From the direction Luo had fled, a thunderous and fierce dragon roar echoed.
Then came Luo's divine voice: "No..."
The voice was filled with terror and despair.
All cultivators, including Zhang Ruochen and Chi Yao hiding in the shadows, tensed up and looked toward the direction of the sound.
Where their sight reached, boundless darkness appeared.
In the darkness, the scales and claws of a dragon-shaped creature were faintly visible. Its aura was vast and surging, like mountains and ridges, rapidly approaching the Heavenly Gate.
"Run! It's a dragon-shaped strange beast." Yan Wushen said.
The power of the dragon-shaped strange beast shocked even Blood Butcher, a powerful true god, because he had personally seen it swallow Luo in one bite, without even giving him a chance to escape.
How vast was the gap in strength?
There was no other choice now. Only by fleeing into the Heavenly Gate might there be a glimmer of hope.
But an even greater upheaval occurred. Above their heads, another patch of darkness appeared, covering the rosy clouds.
It wasn't dark clouds.
It was the power of darkness!
There, darkness rules filled the air, full of deathly stillness and terror.
A pair of wings, a thousand miles long and wider than the Heavenly Gate, rushed out from the darkness above. Along with them came a ferocious phoenix head, black feathers, sharp teeth, and a bloody mouth that could swallow ten great mountains in one gulp.
Before it, everyone seemed incredibly tiny.
Supreme Realm Great Saints were like ants, trembling in fear, unable to take a step to flee.
"It's a phoenix-shaped strange beast. Run for your lives!"
Blood Butcher released his divine aura, enveloping the Yama clan cultivators, and charged toward the Heavenly Gate.
"Caw caw!"
The phoenix's cry came from above.
The sound waves were incredibly fast, like a hurricane, like light patterns, crashing into Blood Butcher.
"Pfft!"
Blood Butcher spat out a mouthful of divine blood, feeling as if his divine soul was being torn apart. His legs went weak, his knees bent, and he fell to the ground.
The sound waves contained a strange power attack.
Even a true god couldn't withstand it. The Yama clan cultivators all screamed in agony, blood flowing from their seven orifices, collapsing to the ground. Many Supreme Realm Great Saints lost consciousness, their bodies becoming tattered.
Yan Wushen had just taken out the God King Talisman but hadn't had time to activate it before he fell.
The God King Talisman and the "Seven Fiend Formation Diagram" were their two trump cards for entering the Dark Abyss—one for defense, one for attack.
"Sizzle sizzle!"
Divine fire leaked from Blood Butcher's body as his divine power surged, and he slowly stood up.
He looked up. The massive black head of the phoenix strange beast was hideous and terrifying, its stench overwhelming. He felt like crying but had no tears. If he had known Luo was so poor, he shouldn't have acted rashly. If he had hidden like his senior brother, there might have been a glimmer of hope.
Suddenly, the phoenix strange beast sensed Chi Yao's aura and spat out a stream of black fire toward the heavenly pillar.
"Whoosh!"
Chi Yao, hiding on the heavenly pillar, revealed her figure. Divine energy surged into the Hundred Dragon Bright Emperor Armor.
A hundred golden dragon shadows rushed out, wrapping around her, blocking the black fire's refining.
Chi Yao was now in Bore's form, unable to use many of her abilities. So, she had no intention of clashing head-on with the phoenix strange beast. She broke through the black fire and landed before the Yama clan cultivators.
The golden dragons coiled around their fallen bodies.
"Whoosh!"
Five-colored light radiated in all directions, and an overwhelming supreme power flew out, stabbing straight at the phoenix strange beast's neck.
Within the five-colored light was the Five-Colored Stone Sword.
The phoenix strange beast shook its wings. Its feathers were like demon iron, flowing with darkness rule divine patterns, sending the Five-Colored Stone Sword flying diagonally with a piercing metallic clash.
The wings stirred up a dark storm, full of destructive power, sending Blood Butcher and Chi Yao flying dozens of miles away, crashing to the ground and creating two large craters.
"Take the Yama clan cultivators and enter the Heavenly Gate first. I'll hold them off."
Blood Butcher, dazed and confused, heard this familiar voice in his ears. He climbed up and looked ahead.
There, Zhang Ruochen's figure stood with his back to the Heavenly Gate, having appeared before them at some unknown time. Above Zhang Ruochen, in the sky, was the boundless darkness and the massive phoenix strange beast.
Zhang Ruochen raised his right hand above his head, and the heaven and earth trembled violently.
Blood Butcher, using his divine eyes, could see dense origin rules surging from all directions of the Ancient Desolate Ruins City, all converging into Zhang Ruochen's body.
"Whoosh!"
A dazzling origin divine light burst from his body.
The origin divine light transformed into an ocean of origin, spreading outward, colliding with the phoenix strange beast and the boundless darkness.
"Boom!"
The darkness was illuminated.
The phoenix strange beast's divine body, as massive as countless mountains combined, was blasted backward, letting out an angry roar.
This was the true power of an Origin Envoy!
In the Dark Abyss, origin esoterica was indeed difficult to use. However, the Ancient Desolate Ruins City was an exception. Here, many gods had fallen, leaving behind a vast amount of origin rules.
Although Zhang Ruochen didn't have a divine soul, after becoming a god in spiritual power, his spiritual power could replace the divine soul in using the power of esoterica.
Using other esoterica might still be difficult, requiring a lot of time to comprehend and cultivate the realm, with limited ability to mobilize heaven and earth rules.
But Zhang Ruochen possessed one percent of the origin esoterica. He was an Origin Envoy, the most honored existence in the universe below the main gods. After becoming a god in spiritual power, his combat power as an Origin Envoy increased by more than ten times compared to before.
Origin rules didn't even need to be deliberately mobilized; they would actively converge toward the Origin Envoy.
Of course, it was also because during the time it took to reach the Heavenly Gate, Zhang Ruochen had often activated the Sundial to cultivate, effectively spending decades to initially master the power of the Origin Envoy and the way to use the origin rules of heaven and earth.
Once an Origin Envoy became a god, the difference was like heaven and earth.
A spiritual power god was still a god.