Chapter 3044: Conversation with Yu Ling Shen
Zhang Ruochen had never intended to use the Wind Clan; from start to finish, his actions were solely for self-preservation.
Toward them, he could be said to have no ulterior motives whatsoever.
Even though he had been hunted by Feng Yunba earlier, Zhang Ruochen never considered taking revenge on other members of the Wind Clan. Instead, he genuinely did his utmost to protect them.
If Zhang Ruochen were a narrow-minded, vengeful person, when Feng Xi and Feng Xuan encountered danger, he might not have added insult to injury, but he could certainly have ignored them entirely.
Moving far away from the Xufeng Divine Ship, ensuring that even Mo Xiansheng's spiritual power could not detect them, Zhang Ruochen finally removed the "Qing Pingzi" face and released Xue Tu alone.
"Thank you, Senior Brother, for saving my life."
Xue Tu grinned and bowed, but seeing Zhang Ruochen's serious expression, he quickly suppressed his smile and asked, "What's the situation now? When I was locked in the divine prison, I heard that a divine war had broken out outside, quite fierce. This Xufeng Divine Ship was forged by a Heaven-level expert of the Wind Clan, and Feng Yunba is stationed aboard..."
"Don't worry about these matters," Zhang Ruochen said.
Xue Tu had been stored in a space treasure hidden within Zhang Ruochen's Xuan Tai, unaware of what had happened outside.
Feeling uncomfortable under Zhang Ruochen's gaze, Xue Tu grew even more restrained, standing straighter and asking cautiously, "What major event happened?"
"Who did you tell about my secret identity as Qing Pingzi?" Zhang Ruochen asked calmly.
In the Heavenly Beginning Civilization Great World, Zhang Ruochen had interacted with Xue Tu while disguised as Qing Pingzi.
The calmer Zhang Ruochen appeared, the more flustered Xue Tu became. "No one! I told no one."
"I'll give you one last chance," Zhang Ruochen said.
Xue Tu had never seen Zhang Ruochen's expression like this. He dared not even breathe, let alone smile. "Senior Brother, do you think I'm someone who doesn't know the stakes? If this leaks out, it would put Senior Brother in mortal danger. Oh, I only told Underworld King that you went to the Heavenly Beginning Civilization Great World, but I didn't say you were disguised as Qing Pingzi."
Zhang Ruochen's expression softened slightly. "Do you know the price I paid to save you? The risks I took?"
"I understand! Xue Tu isn't thick-headed. Back in the Ancient Desolate Ruins City, when Senior Brother protected me through my tribulation, I knew you were sincere. Even if there were some unpleasant incidents before, they were all my fault. In Kunlun Realm, I did do some things... I will repay them in the future. Stealing the Wujian Refining Hell Tower and having my bones broken and blood drained by Senior Brother was my own doing. Later, after so many hardships, the bond we forged is stronger than that of blood brothers," Xue Tu said.
Zhang Ruochen clasped his hands behind his back, gazing into the endless darkness. "Will you report this to your master?"
"What... Alright, alright, I definitely won't leak a single word," Xue Tu quickly changed his tune, knowing he couldn't evade the question.
Zhang Ruochen asked, "What if she asks you directly?"
Xue Tu's expression grew heavy. After much deliberation, he said helplessly, "I dare not deceive Senior Brother. If my master truly asks, do you think I could hide anything from those divine eyes that see through all in the world?"
"Since you can say that, you may live today."
Zhang Ruochen stepped onto the Divine Spirit Step and headed toward a certain direction in the dark void.
Xue Tu let out a long sigh of relief, feeling his body regain sensation, knowing that his honest answer had earned Zhang Ruochen's trust.
If he had uttered a single lie, he would likely have been obliterated by now.
He didn't blame Zhang Ruochen.
After all, if he were in Zhang Ruochen's position, he wouldn't be so merciful. He wouldn't even give the other party a chance to speak; he would directly silence them.
It was because Zhang Ruochen truly regarded him as a junior brother that he was so lenient.
Xue Tu immediately caught up, his mood no longer as tense as before. He smiled, "Senior Brother has Heavenly Mother backing you, and with Xinghuantian's Tianyuan Wuque-level spiritual power giant supporting you, even if your martial arts identity is exposed, who would dare to touch you?"
"Watch your mouth," Zhang Ruochen said.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen stop, Xue Tu also halted.
Suddenly sensing something, Xue Tu let out a soft exclamation, "Something's strange. There's a concealment formation here. Such highly skilled formation inscriptions—if I hadn't come close, even my divine thoughts wouldn't have detected it."
"Ssshh!"
A corner of the concealment formation opened, like an invisible curtain being drawn back in the darkness.
There, a White Feather Peacock Sacred Chariot was parked at the formation's center, emitting a soft white glow.
Yu Ling Shen stood in the void in human form, wearing a three-colored hundred-scale divine garment. Though she was an ancient god, her face bore no trace of time, appearing only about twenty years old. Her figure was striking, with a full chest, a face of national beauty and immortal grace, skin whiter than snow, and a noble aura that surpassed holy maidens and princesses by a thousandfold.
With her Tai Xu realm cultivation and long-standing high position, she had cultivated a cold, enchanting, and sacred aura.
Yet, looking at the spiritual charm between her brows, one could imagine that in her youth, she must have been a lively, mischievous little demoness of the Yaksha Clan.
Beside Yu Ling Shen stood another towering figure, with a wolf's head, a tail hanging between his legs, and an astonishingly profound aura.
It was the Wolf Ancestor's son, Amuer, whose cultivation was no weaker than Yu Ling Shen's.
Zhang Ruochen stepped forward, cupping his hands, "Uncle Wolf, Yu Ling Shen."
Xue Tu, following behind Zhang Ruochen, couldn't see the faces of Yu Ling Shen and Amuer clearly, only two dazzling divine lights. The aura emanating from the divine light pressed down on his heart like two ancient divine mountains.
No need to guess—they were two great gods.
Hearing Zhang Ruochen utter the name "Yu Ling Shen," Xue Tu gasped sharply, realizing the level of existence he was facing, and quickly bowed.
Although his master was the Death God Venerable Feng Tian, he had never seen her true form.
Before a Bu Tian realm deity, he could still put on airs, flaunting his status as a disciple of a Heavenly Venerable. But before a great god of Yu Ling Shen's level, he had to bow his head.
Yu Ling Shen's spiritually charged eyes fixed deeply on Zhang Ruochen, her crystalline, fragrant face covered in frost. "This time, the Yaksha Clan has been ruined by you."
Zhang Ruochen said, "The appearance of experts like Wu Yue, Shi Di, and Ren Pi Denglong was unexpected from the start. No one anticipated that the Darkness Temple would place such importance on the Sword Realm."
Yu Ling Shen glanced at Xue Tu, her beautiful eyes like knives.
Xue Tu felt a powerful divine force pressing down on him and quickly said, "You two talk. I know you have important matters to discuss. This emperor dares not listen. The less I know, the longer I live."
Zhang Ruochen said, "No harm. Let him listen. He can guess anyway."
"I can't guess anything. This emperor can't guess anything at all," Xue Tu quickly said.
Zhang Ruochen ignored him and continued, "Feng Yunba made a deal with Wu Yue to save Qingkong Sword King. Now, those two Darkness Temple true gods who know the truth have surely reported it to her. We are now in the same boat. We must kill all those in the know within the Dark Great Triangle Star Domain."
Yu Ling Shen had long anticipated this outcome. "Kill Wu Yue? Kill Shi Di? Kill Ren Pi Denglong? Kill Shuang Cheng Mo? Are you insane? Do you think you're a God King? Even if a God King came personally, it might not be possible."
Xue Tu knew he was about to hear something earth-shattering, his Adam's apple bobbing.
The names Yu Ling Shen mentioned—each had shaken the Hell Realm for hundreds of thousands of years. Even among great gods, they were powerhouses. Was he already involved in battles of this level?
"Senior Brother, I'd better go over there," Xue Tu said, not daring to listen further.
Amuer's bronze bell-like eyes showed gravity. "This is absolutely impossible. Even if we succeed, do you know the impact? It would likely alarm even the Darkness Temple's Hall Master to come to the Dark Great Triangle Star Domain."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Then the Yaksha Clan will have to wait for the Darkness Temple to exterminate them. By then, even the Hundred Clans Royal City will likely be shattered."
"Ignorant! If the Yaksha Clan had no means of self-preservation, how could they have survived until now?"
Yu Ling Shen continued, "Although the Yaksha Clan schemed against the Darkness Temple, no great god has fallen. The losses aren't too severe, and it hasn't escalated to the point of clan extermination. Do you think the Darkness Temple wouldn't pay a heavy price to destroy the Yaksha Clan?"
Zhang Ruochen shook his head with a smile. "So, the esteemed Yu Ling Shen intends to go to the Darkness Temple to apologize and resolve this grudge? How many divine stones would that cost? Mere divine stones probably won't satisfy them."
Yu Ling Shen naturally knew that if she chose to compromise, the Darkness Temple would bite hard, and might even use this opportunity to force the Yaksha Clan to submit.
But what choice did she have?
It was her own decision-making error.
When one makes a mistake, one must do everything possible to resolve it.
Yu Ling Shen said she wasn't afraid of clan extermination, but in her heart, she wasn't so optimistic. After all, the Darkness Temple had long coveted the Hundred Clans Royal City. Now that they had an excuse to bypass the Destiny Temple and strike, would they let it go?
Moreover, this was such a sensitive time with the Heavenly Court-Hell war erupting. The Hell Realm didn't want the variable of the Hundred Clans Royal City to exist.
If the Darkness Temple acted, the Destiny Temple would likely stand by this time.
"Things have reached this point. There's no other choice. One wrong step leads to eternal damnation." Yu Ling Shen's bright divine eyes dimmed slightly.
If not for Wu Yue, she might have hardened her heart and fought a desperate battle with the Darkness Temple.
Wu Yue...
Below the Infinite Realm, few dared to oppose Wu Yue.
Zhang Ruochen knew well that his identity as Qing Pingzi might not be hidden from a spiritual power expert like Wu Yue. He had to pull the Yaksha Clan onto the same side.
Zhang Ruochen's sharpness was evident, somewhat forceful. "Now I understand why you've cultivated for so many years and still remain at Tai Xu realm. They say one must balance hardness and softness, advance and retreat with measure, neither blindly fighting to the death nor blindly yielding."
"If Wu Yue, Shi Di, Ren Pi Denglong, and Shuang Cheng Mo were all at their peak, not just you, even I would flee without hesitation."
"But Feng Yunba used the Pure Yang Self-Immolation Art before his death. Even if Wu Yue didn't die, she must be in an extremely weakened state."
"Shi Di was hunted by Xuanyuan Lian. Even if he survived, how much combat power does he have left?"
"Ren Pi Denglong has been crippled by the Pure Yang Divine Sword. You don't even need to act. Although I, Zhang Ruochen, have just stepped into the great god level, I dare to slay him."
"As for Shuang Cheng Mo's situation, it's probably even worse than Ren Pi Denglong's."