Chapter 2945: The God-Defying Stele Emerges
Both Mingjian Shen and Jia Tianxia were ancient gods who had shaken the starry sky for hundreds of thousands of years, yet now they joined forces to deal with Zhang Ruochen. This showed that whether it was the divine power of the Heavenly Mother or the six divine swords, both had caused tremendous shock in their hearts, while also acknowledging Zhang Ruochen's strength.
"Old Six!"
Zhang Ruochen's gaze was calm as he grabbed the falling divine sword, Old Six.
He channeled the Heavenly Mother's divine power and infused it into the sword.
Instantly, the rust-covered, slender iron rod transformed from decay into something miraculous. Its radiance surged, burning like a star, carrying majestic momentum as it clashed head-on with the flying Sky-Suspended Lightning Attracting Needle.
"Boom!"
Space shattered inch by inch, divine power surged, sweeping in all directions.
The Sky-Suspended Lightning Attracting Needle let out a piercing ring, snapping into two halves from the middle and falling into the void space.
Jia Tianxia's expression changed drastically, heart aching with pain as he immediately chased into the void space.
The Sky-Suspended Lightning Attracting Needle was his strongest battle weapon, obtained through a great stroke of fortune. Losing it would severely diminish his combat power.
Zhang Ruochen swung his sword to strike, intending to take this opportunity to severely wound Jia Tianxia.
But just as he raised the sword halfway, he found himself unable to bring it down.
The sword intent he had cultivated through his practice of the Sword Dao seemed to vanish completely in an instant, leaving his mind blank. Holding the divine sword felt extremely awkward.
Zhang Ruochen understood that Mingjian Shen was suppressing his sword intent with his own powerful sword intent. He was also using the Sword Dao Essence to control all the Sword Dao rules within this region of heaven and earth.
In other words, Mingjian Shen was the only one in this region who could wield a sword.
He was the emperor of swords.
With his will imposed, ten thousand swords submitted.
Zhang Ruochen could sense that Mingjian Shen possessed a considerable amount of Sword Dao Essence. He said, "Legend has it that the Sword God Realm rose from outside the top hundred in the Western Universe to twelfth place within just a hundred thousand years, all because of war profiteering—seizing a large amount of Essence left by the Sword Ancestor in the Kunlun Realm. Mingjian Shen, your achievements today stem from that, don't they?"
"All Essence belongs to heaven and earth themselves, not to any realm or any individual. Those with strength can naturally possess it."
Mingjian Shen did not deny Zhang Ruochen's words.
"Swish, swish!"
The sword domain around him transformed into a Sword Dao Divine Realm World, spreading outward in the sky toward Zhang Ruochen.
Within the Sword Dao Divine Realm World, each sword was a mountain peak, with peaks standing in dense clusters.
Since becoming a god, Mingjian Shen had an impressive record, having been defeated only once.
He had lost to Xuanyi.
In Mingjian Shen's view, below the Infinite Realm, as long as he had a divine sword in hand, only Xuanyi could surpass him.
But when dealing with Zhang Ruochen, he was extremely serious. Not only did he use Sword Dao Essence and sword intent to suppress Zhang Ruochen, but he also released his Divine Realm World to expand his advantage.
This was no longer about defeating Zhang Ruochen; it was about killing him and seizing the six divine swords and seven soul swords.
Only by doing so could he rapidly elevate his Sword Dao to its peak and then challenge Xuanyi once more.
Mingjian Shen said, "Zhang Ruochen, your martial arts cultivation has been crippled, so you can no longer represent the Sword Dao. You should offer the divine swords and sword souls to me with both hands. Let me uphold the name of the Sword Dao and restore its former glory."
The Sword Dao Divine Realm World pulled Zhang Ruochen in, and the surroundings changed drastically. Sword Dao rules filled heaven and earth.
But Zhang Ruochen could not mobilize these Sword Dao rules; they all belonged solely to Mingjian Shen.
This was his world!
"I've already unfolded my Sword Dao Divine Realm World, yet you didn't flee? Do you realize that once you fall into a Divine Realm World, even with the Heavenly Mother's divine power, you'll be severely suppressed by me?" Mingjian Shen said.
Zhang Ruochen replied, "You don't really think that in front of you, I can't even swing a sword and can only be at your mercy, do you?"
"In front of me, any sword, including divine swords, is controlled by my will."
Mingjian Shen held the Mingjun Sword in one hand and reached out with the other through the air.
Instantly, the five divine swords surrounding Zhang Ruochen, including the Old Six he gripped tightly, trembled violently and flew uncontrollably toward Mingjian Shen.
A Heavenly Court god exclaimed in admiration, "Mingjian Shen is truly the number one sword below the Infinite Realm. His absolute mastery over the Sword Dao is unmatched by any cultivator."
"With these six swords, just how far will Mingjian Shen's combat power rise?"
...
"You are not the Sword Dao Overlord, so how dare you speak with such arrogance?"
Zhang Ruochen's voice penetrated the Sword Dao Divine Realm World and reached the outside.
The gods fixed their gazes and saw that Zhang Ruochen had not released his grip on the sword. Instead, he flew along with the divine swords. After entering within a hundred zhang of Mingjian Shen, he raised his hand, lifted the sword, and slashed straight down.
This sword strike was like a vertical "one" character!
Although he did not mobilize any heavenly or earthly Sword Dao rules, it was perfectly aligned with the Heavenly Dao, breaking through Mingjian Shen's suppression of Essence and sword intent.
A flicker of surprise flashed in Mingjian Shen's eyes as he raised his wrist and swung his sword faster than Zhang Ruochen.
The two divine swords clashed.
"Boom!"
Fierce sword qi erupted like a tidal wave from the space between the two, destroying all the peaks within the Sword Dao Divine Realm World, leaving a scene of devastation.
Every ray of light emanating from the Divine Realm World was indistinguishable from tangible sword qi, causing the false gods peering in to bleed from their eyes, their eyeballs bursting.
A series of screams followed.
"Impressive! These two are the true representatives of the Sword Dao. No wonder the sword can become the chief of a hundred weapons, and the Sword Dao can become the strongest combat method under the Eternal Dao." The Lord of the Soul Realm said.
Xuanyi said, "This should be the legendary third-rank Sword Dao Sacred Intent that Zhang Ruochen cultivated. That must be it. Only a third-rank Sword Dao Sacred Intent could break Mingjian Shen's Sword Dao suppression."
"It seems we've underestimated this kid. Qingzu personally crippling his martial arts was truly far-sighted. His vision is beyond what we can match." The Lord of the Soul Realm said gravely.
Xuanyi shook his head slightly, saying, "Unfortunately, although the Sword Dao Sacred Intent is strong, it is still just a Sacred Intent and has not yet transformed into a Divine Dao. Even if it does transform into a Divine Dao, it would still require hundreds of thousands or millions of years of contemplation and hard training to truly become invincible in the Sword Dao. And Mingjian Shen is a top-tier Sword Dao figure in the world today. Zhang Ruochen is still far behind."
The Lord of the Soul Realm snorted coldly, "Relying solely on divine power is enough to deal with ordinary great gods. Wielding divine swords, he can gain the upper hand against ordinary Taixu Realm great gods. But the top-tier Taixu Realm great gods are all unparalleled overlords. How could a brat like him, borrowing a body of divine power, contend with their cultivation of the Divine Dao and their comprehension of the Heavenly Dao?"
"Since Mingjian Shen is enough to deal with that kid, I'll enter the city and take control of the Star Huan Heaven's realm-protecting grand formation."
Xuanyi said, "No need. The old gentleman has already arrived!"
The Lord of the Soul Realm looked toward the sea.
He saw that the Great Elder of the Space Divine Temple had already come ashore. With just one step, he covered a thousand miles, appearing beside him and Xuanyi.
The Space Great Elder primarily cultivated spiritual power, using it to penetrate the mysteries of the Way of Space, walking a different path of Space Dao cultivation.
Xuanyi asked, "There won't be any problems with the matters overseas, will there?"
"That Nether Maiden has been trapped by the Thousand Mile Horizontal Sky Divine Formation, and the Fourth Elder is guarding her. She won't be able to get out for a short while."
The Space Great Elder glanced at the Sword Dao Divine Realm World in the sky before withdrawing his gaze, not taking Zhang Ruochen seriously. He was merely an envoy of a certain Heavenly Venerable, nothing he hadn't seen in the Heavenly Court.
In the eyes of top-tier figures below the Infinite Realm like them, only true Infinite Realm cultivators and Heavenly Venerables were worthy of their reverence.
The Space Great Elder did not enter the city, but as soon as he arrived, the formation inscriptions in the surrounding heaven and earth automatically emerged, interweaving like a spider web across the sky.
Further away, the formation inscriptions within the Divine Maiden City also surfaced.
The Space Great Elder praised, "Under the management of the Goddess Twelve Pavilions for over a million years, the city-protecting grand formation of the Divine Maiden City is truly formidable. Unfortunately, Yuyu's spiritual power is still a bit weak. Otherwise, even an Infinite Realm cultivator would find it no easy task to break the formation."
The Lord of the Soul Realm snorted inwardly. Spiritual power at the eighty-first level was only considered weak in the eyes of this Great Elder.
"Pfft!"
Yuyu tried to contend with the Space Great Elder for control of the city-protecting grand formation, but after only a brief struggle, she was injured by the Space Great Elder's spiritual power and frozen in space.
The Space Great Elder raised his hand and uttered a single word: "Rise!"
One by one, the city-protecting grand formations of the Divine Maiden City reappeared, rotating like rings of light beneath the ground, in the sky, along the city walls, and through the streets.
"Impressive, old gentleman. You've already analyzed the formations within the Divine Maiden City so quickly!" Xuanyi said.
The Space Great Elder smiled, his spiritual power instantly spreading out to envelop the entire Star Huan Heaven Great World, intending to use the Divine Maiden City's city-protecting grand formation as the center to take control of the realm-protecting grand formation.
Just then, the expressions of the Space Great Elder, Xuanyi, and the Lord of the Soul Realm all changed slightly as they looked toward the Sword Dao Divine Realm World.
"Boom!"
The Sword Dao Divine Realm World suspended in the sky was shattered, and Mingjian Shen fell, his body covered in bloodstains.
"How is this possible?" The Heavenly Court gods were all shaken.
Even Mandala Flower God couldn't help but utter these words, for she had also fought Mingjian Shen and knew just how powerful he was.
How could Zhang Ruochen, relying on the Sword Dao, break through his Divine Realm World and defeat him?
"Be careful, the God-Defying..."
Mingjian Shen's divine thought transmitted, intending to warn the gods.
"Boom!"
Half of a broken stele fell, smashing into him and driving him deep into the ground.
On the ground, a large area of the formation inscriptions erected by the Space Great Elder was shattered by this strike.
In the sky, the sound of sword cries was piercing. Countless billions of sword qi converged into six rivers of sword qi, crashing toward the Space Great Elder, Xuanyi, and the Lord of the Soul Realm.
Xuanyi did not act, instead gazing into the void.
The Space Great Elder's expression darkened as he formed hand seals, causing the space before him to solidify. All the flying sword qi and the six divine swords were frozen in front of him.
Through the solidified space, Xuanyi saw Zhang Ruochen grab the broken stele stained with Mingjian Shen's blood and charge toward them.
The solidified space could not stop him.
Wherever he passed, it opened.
From beginning to end, Xuanyi's attention was not on Zhang Ruochen but fixed firmly on the broken stele covered in inscriptions. In his heart, he finally understood why Zhang Ruochen had been able to break Mingjian Shen's Sword Dao Divine Realm World.