Chapter 3181: The Heavenly Cauldron Emerges (Chapter 3)
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Who is Fan Ning?"
"Xiu Chen didn't tell you? Forget it, you can ask Nutian Shenzun about your Zhang family's ancestral matters yourself." Mu Lingxi spread her palm, where three different kinds of light flickered, and said, "Gong Shang's esoterica—do you want it?"
"Of course!"
The Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram rotated over and took away the three types of esoterica.
Although esoterica was something Zhang Ruochen could take or leave, it was ultimately one of the most precious things in the world—how could he refuse it?
He incinerated Gong Shang's divine soul and severed hand, reducing them to nothing but smoke and dissipation.
Although these two items were valuable, they also carried the great karmic entanglement of Gong Xuanzang. It was better to destroy the evidence outright and not covet such petty gains.
Zhang Ruochen approached the half-face bone of the Three Fiends Emperor. Just as he reached out to pick it up, three bizarre patterns emerged on the bone face, emitting a "chi chi" sound as it flew toward the dark purple formation light barrier.
"Even in this state, it hasn't been worn away?"
Zhang Ruochen struck out with the God-Defying Stele, hitting the half-face bone and sending it crashing down.
The power unleashed by the God-Defying Stele also landed on the formation light barrier, causing the formation to tremble violently and its light to dim considerably.
Mu Lingxi said, "The Three Fiends Emperor ranks among the top three in the Corpse Clan, with cultivation so profound. However, the divine soul consciousness of the Three Fiends Emperor within this half-face bone has already been incinerated. At most, it can now only be considered a powerful evil object!"
Zhang Ruochen held the half-face bone up to his own face, comparing it, and said, "It might come in handy someday."
Suddenly, Mu Lingxi's gaze shifted away from Zhang Ruochen, looking past him at the formation light barrier behind, a hint of unusual caution in her eyes.
Zhang Ruochen felt a strong sense of crisis, a chill flowing through his back and the back of his head. He slowly turned around to look inside the dark purple formation light barrier.
There, the ten-thousand-zhang divine corpse that had been lying on the ground had actually sat up.
The aura emanating from the divine corpse was unimaginably powerful. As it breathed, lightning and thunder crackled. The formation set up by Gong Shang was shattered with a single wave of its hand.
"Boom, rumble!"
The entire dark material ground shook violently.
Its appearance really did resemble Kong Lao. However, Kong Lao, who guarded the Nether Prison, looked even older.
"Let's go, get out of here quickly. This is Kong Chengzi's corpse, and it has undergone a malignant transformation." Mu Lingxi managed to stay calm, but her voice grew more urgent with each word.
The white-haired corpse went from sitting to standing, looking down at Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi below.
Its gaze shifted from hollow to bloodthirsty.
Zhang Ruochen felt a bone-chilling divine might pressing down on him, knowing that escape was impossible. Today, he truly faced a life-and-death crisis.
He could only place his hope in Feng Tian.
If she unleashed the combat power she had shown earlier, she should be able to suppress Kong Chengzi's evil corpse.
But it would require Zhang Ruochen to inject the chaotic yin-yang dual qi into her body.
That would take time.
Did they have that time?
The pressure on Zhang Ruochen grew heavier and heavier, making it hard to move. He resorted to the same trick, using the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram to envelop Mu Lingxi.
The Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram shrank to the size of a speck of dust, merging with the dark material and burrowing deep into the ground.
"Boom!"
Kong Chengzi's evil corpse lifted its foot and stomped down.
A ferocious force crushed the dark material ground, leaving a footprint pit hundreds of feet long.
Divine power penetrated through the thick layers of earth, striking the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram. Zhang Ruochen, whose injuries had not yet healed, spat out a mouthful of blood.
This time, the gap in power was too great. Zhang Ruochen suspected that even using the Divine King Talisman, he could only withstand a few blows.
Zhang Ruochen looked at Mu Lingxi, their eyes meeting.
She understood what he intended and nodded. Her soft jade hand pressed against Zhang Ruochen's chest. Instantly, a powerful surge of chaotic yin-yang qi erupted from Zhang Ruochen's body, rushing toward her.
"Boom!"
Kong Chengzi stomped down a second time, sending powerful divine force and gray corpse qi surging downward.
Zhang Ruochen spat out blood again. The Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram seemed on the verge of collapse.
Just as he was about to unleash the Divine King Talisman for defense, the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram crashed into a hard object deep underground, producing a loud "bang," like the sound of metal.
Zhang Ruochen was puzzled. What could be in the depths of this dark material ground that was so hard?
After all, a collision from the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram was definitely comparable to a strike from a Great God.
"It looks like a well, with a metal rim. We crashed right into the rim!"
As he probed, the confusion in Zhang Ruochen's eyes deepened.
Mu Lingxi said, "Since there's no other way out, let's go in."
As Kong Chengzi's evil corpse delivered its third strike, Zhang Ruochen maneuvered the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram into the well.
But as soon as they entered, he regretted it.
First, the well was very shallow.
Second, when Kong Chengzi's evil corpse's attack landed, it shook the well rim, and the vibration spread throughout the entire metal well. It was like hiding inside a bell that was suddenly struck.
"Buzz!"
The Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram was cracked with lines, nearly shattering.
Zhang Ruochen's scalp split open, and he kept spitting blood.
Mu Lingxi, however, was unharmed, as Zhang Ruochen and the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram had absorbed all the force for her.
Now, escaping the metal well was too late.
Zhang Ruochen had no choice but to send out the Divine King Talisman, suspending it above the metal well to block Kong Chengzi's evil corpse's attacks.
But strangely, Kong Chengzi's evil corpse stopped attacking. Instead, it used its divine hands to dig into the earth, emitting a hair-raising corpse laugh.
With its terrifying power, it wouldn't take long to dig down to them.
Now, Zhang Ruochen was caught between a rock and a hard place. He could only hope that before Kong Chengzi dug them out, Feng Tian would first have the conditions to unleash her own power.
Mu Lingxi looked around and said, "This isn't a well—it's a cauldron, a cauldron buried here for who knows how many years!"
Zhang Ruochen also looked around.
It really was a cauldron. The two of them were inside it.
Even stranger, the cauldron was absorbing the chaotic dual qi from the Taiji Yin-Yang Diagram. The cauldron walls seemed to ignite, revealing ancient patterns that flickered like stars in the sky.
There were scenes of herding cattle and farming, heavenly fire sweeping across the land, serpent-bodied human figures performing sacrifices, calamitous thunder descending, and the light of blessings and fortune shining upon the earth...
Mu Lingxi's voice carried a hint of excitement, "It's the Heavenly Cauldron among the Nine Cauldrons, the one representing fate. This Heavenly Lord understands now—it was the Heavenly Cauldron calling out in the dark that brought me here. With the Heavenly Cauldron in hand, once I return, I can truly take control of the Destiny Temple and become its master, the Lord of Fate!"
"Hiss!"
A phoenix cry rang out from within Mu Lingxi, divine flames blazing around her body as she shot upward, breaking through layers of dark material.
The Heavenly Cauldron rose with her into the sky.
"Boom!"
As she emerged from the ground, her long hair flying, she grabbed one corner of the cauldron and hurled it fiercely, striking Kong Chengzi's evil corpse.
As powerful as Kong Chengzi's evil corpse was, it was still just a corpse. How could it contend with Feng Tian?
Moreover, Feng Tian now wielded the Heavenly Cauldron.
This single blow shattered all the chains stitching Kong Chengzi's wounds, breaking his corpse body into dozens of pieces.
All the evil and aberrant qi within the corpse was purified and annihilated by the light erupting from the Heavenly Cauldron.
Zhang Ruochen flew out of the cauldron, stumbling and falling to the ground. "I was still inside the cauldron... cough, cough..."
Mu Lingxi retrieved the Heavenly Cauldron, landing on the ground. The smile on her face gradually faded, but it couldn't hide her triumphant spirit. "First, I achieved nirvana and entered the Infinite Realm. Now, I've obtained the Heavenly Cauldron. Zhang Ruochen, do you think I am worthy of being the Hall Master of the Destiny Temple?"
Zhang Ruochen answered seriously, "If the Destiny Temple can have a Hall Master, it would be a good thing, enough to resolve the intense internal conflicts."
Mu Lingxi nodded. "Indeed, the Destiny Temple is rife with internal strife. I've long wanted to unify it, but unfortunately, my cultivation was always a step short, unable to suppress all the Infinite-level beings. Now that I have the Heavenly Cauldron, it's clearly fate's decree. Who would dare to defy me?"
"Zhang Ruochen, I know you won't submit to anyone, so I won't ask for your submission. But if you're willing to join the Destiny Temple, the position of master of the True God Palace is yours! In the future, whether in the Heavenly Court or Hell, if anyone dares to touch you, I will be the first to cut them down. Isn't that far better than being a Heavenly Mother's Divine Envoy or the Realm Lord of Xinghuantian?"
Zhang Ruochen healed his injuries as he spoke, "Thank you for the offer, Feng Tian, but..."
"I don't want to hear the word 'but.' Can't you see? With the Heavenly Cauldron emerging, the Destiny Temple is about to be unified, and the Hell Realm will sweep through Xinghuantian and the Heavenly Court. Join the Destiny Temple, and in the future, you will be the second Hall Master after me. Then, the entire universe will be yours." Mu Lingxi said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The light of the Heavenly Cauldron has faded!"
Mu Lingxi looked at the Heavenly Cauldron in her hand, finding that the patterns had disappeared. The cauldron's body had become cold and lifeless, showing no signs of its former wonder.
She quickly mobilized the divine qi within her and injected it into the cauldron.
This divine qi belonged to Mu Lingxi.
Because the chaotic yin-yang dual qi Zhang Ruochen had injected into her body was already depleted, she could no longer mobilize the heavenly-level power belonging to Feng Tian herself.
"How can this be? Why has it suddenly lost its divine nature? Does it require my divine power to activate it?" Mu Lingxi considered this possibility and nodded slightly.
She felt certain this was the case.
Because Mu Lingxi had not cultivated the Path of Fate. Without cultivating the Path of Fate, how could she activate the Heavenly Cauldron, which represented fate?
Feng Tian's long-lost excitement gradually subsided as she realized she was still too weak, far from the point where she could intimidate all the Heavens.
At the very least, she would need to first mature her new body, break out of its shell, and then return to the Destiny Temple with the Heavenly Cauldron to make her grand move and do what she had always wanted to do but never could.
Obtaining the Heavenly Cauldron had stirred Feng Tian's heart with passionate ambition, giving her hope of fulfilling her vision of destroying the Heavenly Court. One day, she would ascend to the position of Heavenly Venerable, and the entire universe would tremble beneath her feet.
It was a pity that Zhang Ruochen, with such talent and intellect, and with her holding him in such high regard, remained stubborn and unyielding.
If Zhang Ruochen could break through to the Infinite Realm and lend her a hand, what great deed would be beyond their reach?